"Baked" Oatmeal Read: Cheap, Easy Breakfast!

This is my latest masterpiece ...Yes. I called it a masterpiece. My humility is staggering. 

This was inspired by a recipe I found here: 

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/baked-oatmeal-365069

Baked Oatmeal is "old school" and a great way to send yourself and the kids out on a cold winter day. It's also a great dish to serve guests.  But on my quest to eat heart friendly foods that don't contain animals, I wanted to find a plant based version that fit my current health and fitness goals. 

So here we go..... 

Overnight oats are all the rage. So I used that premise to come up with my version of an Oatmeal "Bake".  

The night before I soaked almonds in filtered water and oats (You can use steel cut or whole oats but not instant)

Here is my entourage of ingredients waiting to be a meal!

After soaking overnight I rinsed the almonds and drained the oats. 

Add 1tbsp vanilla and 2tbsp to 1/4 cup of raw sugar, maple syrup, honey or agave to the 1 cup of soaked, rinsed almonds and 1 cup of water. Blend together to make almond cream. 

I strain the cream in a mesh strainer to make sure it's nice and thick. And then stir about 1/4 cup of the cream into the oats. Reserve the rest of the almond cream for coffee and smoothies and late night time snacking. You heard me......next time you want a drink at night try a cup of almond cream. Reminds me of Bailey's Irish Cream...but I digress. 

I use 1 1/2 cups of oats (weight before soaking) for this recipe.

Once mixed I put the oats into a ceramic dish. 

Next up. The topping. I mixed one cup of blueberries, 1/2 cup of walnuts and 5 pitted dates. I prepped this in the Vitamix  to make a crumble. 

Spread this mixture on top of the oats. Then sprinkle this ensemble with some nutmeg and additional sweetener of choice. 

Top the entire oatmeal "bake" with more blueberries and walnuts to garnish.  

Now....you can put this in the dehydrator to warm it or serve it as is.  Either way you can't lose!

I want to eat the whole bowl, but for reference sake this serves 4. 

For those of you who aren't greedy like me please share. This is lovely presented in a martini glass or decorative ramekins. 

It will keep in the fridge along with the almond cream for 2-3 days. I cover mine as is and store the almond cream in a glass milk bottle (shown below). This is a lovely way to start the day with a cup of coffee or tea. 

Nom nom! Bon Apetit!