Love-Me-Slender Baked Oatmeal with Apples and Raisins

Delight your sweetheart with fruit-filled baked oatmeal, perfect for a romantic breakfast or brunch. Let this low-fat, healthy alternative to coffee cake or doughnuts say "love me slender"!
 

Active time: 30 minutes. Total time: 65 minutes. Yield: 8 servings.

Gluten free, dairy free, egg free, vegan.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup dried coconut (20 grams)
• 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (160 grams)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons finely ground flaxseed
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1 sweet red cooking apple, such as a Gala
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or sorghum
• 1/4 cup raisins (40 grams)
• vegetable oil for the pan

Method

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Oil heart-shaped cake pan and line with parchment cut to fit. (You can also bake this in an 8x8 baking pan or 9-inch cake pan.)
2. Put coconut in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process for about 30 seconds. Add 1/2 cup oatmeal and pulse five or six times. Put mixture in a medium bowl with remaining oatmeal, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Stir to combine.
3. Put flaxseed and 1/4 cup water in a microwave-safe container. Heat until very warm, about one minute on high. Stir to develop eggy texture.
4. Dice apple while flaxseed mixture cools. Add flaxseed and remaining water to oat mixture, stirring just enough to combine. Stir in apple and raisins. If you're in the mood, use your fingers to arrange apples so most of the red peels show. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until oatmeal cake begins to pull away from the edges of the pan and is firm to the touch.
5. Serve warm or at room temperature. Keeps covered at room temperature for about four days.

Tips and Notes

• Save 5 minutes or so and serve this baked oatmeal right from the pan. The heart-shape pan shown holds 5 cups, so this works in an 9-inch round cake pan or an 8-inch-square pan as well. If you do this, then just oil the pan but skip the parchment.
• If you don't have dried coconut, use one cup of coconut drink in place of the dried coconut and one cup of water.
• Maybe I should have tucked a few sweet potatoes in with the baked oatmeal and chocolate cake? Still felt good about this! Make oatmeal first and start it baking, then make chocolate cake using the same bowl.
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