Yummy Morning Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal

Mr. 3 usually handles breakfast duties in our house (the man makes a mean goat cheese omelette), but he hasn't been feeling well this week, so I decided to make him a nice, warm, filling breakfast.  Through my regular trolling on Pinterest, I found a recipe for Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal that required a bit of extra effort and time to make for a regular week day morning but sounded super yummy.

Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
Image Source: Mint Design Blog

The best part about the recipe is it is easily modified to adjust the serving size for 1-2 people or increase depending on how many people you need to feed.  I halved all the ingredients (except the spices, which I always tend to use a ton of) and used two ramekins.  I also omitted the walnuts (didn't have them and Mr. 3 isn't a fan anyways).  I didn't have any baking powder so I threw in 1/3 of the amount of baking soda in (I read online that if the recipe calls for baking soda you can use 3 times the amount of baking powder, so I figured the inverse might be true for this recipe, but I wouldn't recommend doing this for something like cookies).  Since I only made two servings, I used ramekins for baking instead of the baking dish.  I would highly recommend taking a cookie sheet, lining it with tin foil, and baking the ramekins on cookie sheet in case they overflow.

Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
serves 4-5

DRY
2 c. uncooked oats (quick-cooking or old fashioned work)
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. craisins or raisins
1/4 c. chopped walnuts
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
dash of cloves

WET
1 1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. applesauce (jarred or homemade)
1/4 c. pumpkin puree (canned or roasted)
2 tbsp. salted butter, melted
1 large egg beaten

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly spray 4 individual ramekins or an 8-inch square pan with olive oil. Set aside.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Combine wet ingredients in a medium bowl. Mix well.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir until combined.
5. Pour mixture into baking dish or ramekins and bake for 20-25 min.
6. Serve warm.

It took me about 35 minutes from start to finish.  After they were done baking, I picked up the ramekins (using mitts) and put them on our bread and butter plates to carry to the table (be careful not to hold the plates on the bottoms, they still heat up!). This recipe turned out delicious!  More like a souffle than an boring bowl of oatmeal.  It was warm, hearty, and filling.  Next time I will try reducing the amount of brown sugar...even 1/8 of a cup seems a bit much.  I think this would be a great recipe for serving a bunch of people.  The individual ramekins make a cute and unexpected presentation...perfect for visiting guests!

Emile Henry Ramekins
$36 for a set of four
Image Source: Emile Henry