Escape Perfection. Create Yourself.: Baked Oatmeal with Fruit...

I was so anti-oatmeal for the longest time. I think it was from years of glue-y textured microwaved packets of oatmeal. But when McDonalds (yes, McDonalds, I know how bad that sounds) started serving oatmeal last year, I found that with all of that fruit in there, I really like it again. So I've been seeing oatmeal recipes popping up on Pinterest, and I settled on this one from Annie's Eats for round one. I'm interested in trying a Steel Cut Oats recipe next time, but for this time I settled on rolled oats (impatient this week...remember? Steel Cut takes longer to cook). The calorie counts I'm using are from the original recipe...I changed the fruits I was using, so I'm sure they're a little different, but at least it gives you a general idea. It turned out really tasty, and I think it'd be good for breakfast or for dessert with a little ice cream (yum!). I used strawberries and blackberries this time, but next time I'm thinking maybe apples and cranberries...or peaches and blackberries maybe. Mmmm...so it's pretty versatile...and fresh or frozen fruit works fine. I used frozen because it was a little cheaper this time of year for what I wanted. So here's the recipe:

Baked Oatmeal with Fruit
8 Servings, 211 Calories Each

- 1 c. old fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 c. chopped pecans, toasted (I forgot to toast mine and it was still really good, but it'd probably be even better toasted...I'll remember next time!)
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 c. maple syrup
- 1 c. milk
- 1 egg
- 2 T margarine, melted
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 1/2 c. strawberries
- 1 c. blackberries

Directions:

Mix oats, half the nuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together syrup, milk, egg, margarine, and vanilla. Grease a 9"x13" casserole dish, and put the strawberries in a layer on the bottom of the casserole. Put half of the blackberries on top. Pour dry ingredients evenly over the fruit. Pour wet ingredients evenly over dry ingredients. Add the rest of the blackberries and nuts on top.