cinnamony baked oatmeal.

I’m a big fan of oats.  Is that weird?  Granola, cookies, cobblers, or even just a bowl of oatmeal in the morning.  Or if you’re my husband you find the oatmeal a great base upon which to add a mountain of raisins and brown sugar.  Wait, where was I going with this?..

One way that I’ve found we save a ton of money is by cooking from scratch.  Not only does it save us some benjamins, but it’s typically more nutritious and I know exactly what I’m eating.  To me, the shorter the ingredient list the better.

This baked oatmeal is quick to whip up for breakfast OR a quick, 100% kid-friendly dinner.  And you can top it with all sorts of yummy stuff.

And as a last plug, I’ll throw in that it makes your house smell fantastic.

Cinnamony Baked Oatmeal

(serves eight)

What You’ll Need:

3 cup oats ($1.49 at $.99/lb)

1/2 cup brown sugar ($.19 at $.75/lb)

1 tsp. salt (trace)

2 tsp. cinnamon ($.44 at $.22/tsp)

2 tsp. baking powder ($.12 at $.06/tsp)

1/2 cup raisins, dried cranberries, cherries, or other dried fruit ($.75 at $2.99/lb average)

1 cup milk ($.41 at $3.29/half gallon)

1/4 cup applesauce ($.19 at $.76/cup)

2 tsp. vanilla (free…we’ll talk about making your own here in a bit)

2 eggs ($.24 at $.12/egg)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and dried fruit. Then mix in remaining ingredients.  Pour into a 13×9″ baking dish and bake for 40 minutes or until it is golden brown.  Serve immediately and try to save some for your children (ok, maybe that’s just me).  Also, because it serves 8 you will likely have leftovers which you can have another morning for a quick breakfast…just reheat and enjoy.

Great topped with a little milk, maple syrup, toasted almonds or walnuts, blueberries, strawberries, etc…you get the idea.

TOTAL:  $3.83 or $.48 per serving

Nutrition:

210 calories per serving

3 grams of fat

39 carbs

7 grams protein

4 grams fiber (this one’s for you, Chantal )