Carob Banana Spiced Baked Oats Vegan WFPB

For those who crave sweet comfort food in the morning these baked oats have it all. Carob and bananas are a perfect earthy whole food plant-based pairing with a naturally brown-sugary boost from whole dates. This nourishing gently spiced breakfast casserole is perfect for make ahead meal prep.

BEYOND THE BAKED OAT TREND

Baked oats are having a moment right now and the hype is well deserved. In my opinion baked oatmeal is not merely a passing trend, but here to stay. Until recently I thought that baked oats had been invented by a TikTok influencer during the pandemic because that’s when I first heard of them. I didn’t try them right away, but the concept immediately appealed to my whole food carb loving sensibilities. Now that I’m a full-fledged baked oat believer, I took the time to dive deeper into the origin story of baked oats and was surprised to discover that the idea of baking your oatmeal goes quite a bit further back. The culinary precursor to the 2020s baked oat craze seems to have begun in the early 1900s, if not earlier, among the Pennsylvania Amish. Although traditional Amish recipes almost always include eggs and other non-vegan ingredients, plant-based versions are similar in texture and absolutely delicious. It’s not the first time that a little known regional favorite rapidly morphs into an American breakfast staple. Once upon a time bagels had been viewed as a local old-world ethnic food that was only available in New York City and a few other spots in the Northeast United States. Most Americans had never heard of them. At some point in the early to mid 1970s bagels gained nationwide and eventually worldwide popularity. This popularity never waned. I predict something similar with baked oats. Great comfort food has a way of making a place for itself in our collective eating habits.

BAKED OAT VERSATILITY

One of the things I love most about baked oats is their versatility. They make for a great hot breakfast and you can even pour plant milk on top to cool them down just like you might do with a piping hot bowl of oatmeal. But when they cool down, baked oats can be a tasty snack that you cut into squares and can even pick up with your hands like a snack cake or a healthy dessert.

A POSSIBLE CAROB RENAISSANCE

Carob is slowly making a comeback from its tortured days of being perceived as hippie pseudo-chocolate in the 1960s and 70s. I’ve written at length about why carob got a bad rap for almost half a century in my recipe post for carob almond energy balls. One way to sum things up is that carob is not a perfect chocolate substitute. If you want to love carob like I do, love it for what it is, a nourishing naturally sweet earthy flavored whole plant food with binding properties and no caffeine.

WHY I LOVE CAROB IN THIS RECIPE

In this particular recipe the warming flavor of carob serves as a backdrop to a medley of spices. I’ve used a modest amount because I want its presence to be subtle rather than overpowering. The natural sweetness of carob harmonizes seamlessly with that of ripe bananas and tiny date bits, while its binding properties help create a custardy texture that’s highly desirable in baked oats.

ROLLING WITH ROLLED OATS

This recipe was specifically designed to be made with rolled oats. Please don’t attempt to use steel cut oats or groats because the recipe won’t work. I’m not saying that making baked oats with steel cut oats or groats isn’t possible because it totally is, just that this recipe isn’t designed for that. Quick oats are a different story. I haven’t tried them but quick oats may work. As always, if you are strictly gluten free because of a health condition be sure to use oats that are labelled gluten free in order to avoid possible contamination from other grains.

TWO BANANAS USED TWO WAYS

For this recipe you’ll need two ripe medium bananas approximately 7 or 8 inches long, or a little over 4 ounces (120 grams) including the peel. If you have really huge bananas you may not need to use the entirety of both. The idea is to turn one of the bananas into about 1/2 cup of mashed banana and to create slices from the other banana to top the oats. If one of your bananas is riper than the other, use the riper one for mashing and the less ripe one for slicing.

STICK PROOFING YOUR BAKING PAN

Baked oatmeal can, and probably will, stick to most baking pans if you don’t grease them or use parchment paper. Because I’m mostly oil-free, I prefer to line my baking pans with some sort of parchment paper barrier. If you don’t mind using a little oil or plant-based butter, feel free to lightly grease your pan instead. I recommend an 8 inch (20 to 21 cm) round cake pan or an 8 inch square casserole dish for this recipe. I used a 7 x 9 inch casserole dish which has similar dimensions. Any method for lining a baking pan with parchment paper is fine. Click here to watch a video with one method for lining square and rectangular pans with a sheet of regular parchment paper. I order my preformed parchment paper liners online and used a round one to line my slightly rectangular casserole dish. Unfortunately, these liners are not available at most grocery stores in the US.

CREATING THE OAT BATTER

The batter comes together like a traditional simple cake or quick bread batter. There’s no need for a food processor or blender. Mix all the dry ingredients in a medium-large bowl. Then mix in the wet ingredients. Finally, fold in the chunky ingredients, finely chopped dates and pecans.

SPREAD, TOP, BAKE

The final step is super easy and straightforward. Just spread the batter evenly over your stick-proofed pan or casserole dish. Then arrange banana slices over the top, pushing them into the batter just a little. Bake in a preheated conventional oven at 350 °F (175 °C) for 40 to 45. The baked oats are done when the edges pull away from the sides of the pan and the center is mostly, but not completely, set.

SERVING AND STORING

You can serve baked oatmeal immediately or wait and serve it later. Baked oatmeal can be prepared ahead of time, cooled, covered and kept in the fridge for several days. Just know that if baked oatmeal is served piping hot right out of the oven it will be softer and gooier than if it cools down before serving. I enjoy eating it right out of the fridge as a very moist snack cake.

SUBSTITUTIONS

• Use a Spice Blend: You can substitute the cinnamon, allspice and ginger with 1¼ to 1½ teaspoon of pumpkin spice or apple pie spice.

• Sub Dates with Another Dried Fruit: Instead of finely chopped dates you can use raisins, chopped prunes or chopped dried apples. These dried fruits aren’t quite as sweet as dates so you may want to use a tiny bit more if you want to maintain the same level of sweetness.

• Use Different Nuts (or seed): Walnuts are the closest substitute for pecans but almost any chopped nuts or slithered nuts will work. For a tree nut free version you can use pumpkin or sunflower seeds.

• Sub Ground Flaxseed: Instead of ground flaxseed you can use ground chia seeds. You could also use whole flaxseeds or chia seeds instead of the ground flaxseed.

NUTRIENT BOOSTING ADD-ONS

• Add Hemp Hearts: Adding one or two tablespoons of hemp hearts is a great way to boost protein while adding fiber and other nutrients.

• Add Ground Turmeric: Adding ½ teaspoon of ground turmeric enhances the color and flavor of this recipe and provides a multitude of health benefits. In order to drastically improve your body’s ability to absorb curcumin, the active component in turmeric, it’s best to use turmeric together with a bit of black pepper. About ⅛ teaspoon of black pepper would be plenty for this recipe but you can use up to ¼ teaspoon if you enjoy a little more heat.

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