We have talked before about how I am bad at breakfasts and never know what to eat. On the weekends, I can deal with it, because I have time to stand with the fridge door open and time to make eggs. Fat Tuesday left me spoiled as Noah made me pancakes before work, and it reminded me that breakfasts on work days can be good again. Did anyone else have pancakes yesterday? Or go to IHOP for Free Pancake Day (I have never actually been for free pancake day, or any day, I just like the idea of free pancakes)?
Moving on from pancakes, last week I was left with an overabundance of cooked quinoa after eagerly meal prepping for the week. I had a vision of an oatmeal bake that incorporated this plain quinoa with vanilla, cinnamon, and chewy dried fruit.
Thus, a new breakfast on rotation was born and I have to say that I am a big fan of quinoa for breakfast. Chewy, slightly nutty, and perfectly sweet with a bit of added maple syrup, I have now been enjoying breakfast a little bit more.
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 3 tablespoons ground flax seed & ½ cup water (3 flax eggs)
- 1 cup unsweetened soy/almond milk
- ¼ cup almond butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chopped dried apricots
- If you don't have some cooked quinoa laying around, cook up a batch (a little under a cup of dry quinoa) and let it cool in the fridge.
- Make 3 flax eggs by combining the ground flaxseed with water and letting it sit for 15 minutes until you get an eggy consistency.
- Chop up your favorite dried fruit (I was craving apricots), and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, combine everything except for a small handful of the dried fruit. Give everything a big mix, especially if your almond butter isn't spreadable (trick: heat it up in the microwave first!).
- Grease your baking pan with olive oil and dump the contents of the bowl into the pan. Top with your reserved dried fruit. I used a loaf pan (filled halfway) so that I would get plenty of crusty sides and a deeper volume for the oatmeal bake.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, checking starting around 20 minutes to ensure the middle is no longer 'jiggly' and that a crust has formed on top.
If you are using a shallower pan, reduce the baking time slightly and anticipate a thinner baked oatmeal. You could also easily double this recipe for a 9×9 or 8×8 pan, increasing the baking time. After letting the oatmeal sit and cool for a few minutes, slice into it and top with maple syrup, extra cinnamon, or yogurt.
Looking for more awesome ways to prep for the week ahead? Check out these posts:
- Food Prep + Quick Meal Ideas
- Crockpot Shredded Chicken: 1 Recipe, 3 Meals
- Homemade Chicken Stock
- Maple Almond Butter from scratch!
- Freezer Friendly Recipes (direct link to that category)
Give me all your easy work day FILLING breakfast ideas for the days that I haven’t planned to have a beautiful slice of this oatmeal bake. Cereal doesn’t cut it for me. K thanks!
Marisa
Holly @ EatGreatBEGreat says
These bars look wonderful Marisa! I would totally eat this for breakfast!
Marisa says
Thanks, Holly! It’s hard for me to remember to sit down and plan breakfasts for the week when I am thinking about dinners and lunches, but they are just as important!
Jessi says
My breakfasts are usually fruit and coffee based – I need to get better about loading up on the morning protein. You’d think I’d be better at this!
Marisa says
You just inspired me to whip up some hard boiled eggs- how good would that be with cut up fruit, yogurt (oops not paleo..), and coffee? Let’s try that!
Kammie @ Sensual Appeal says
Oh wow this looks fantastic, such a creative and delicious snack. I haven’t had apricots in forever.
Marisa says
I just bought a huge bag of dried apricots from Trader Joe’s and they have all disappeared because they are such a good snack! Thanks, Kammie!
Annie says
Although I agree that breakfast is extremely important, I think it would be great to post/share some ideas for lunches or snacks for work. I struggle most with those. I make salad everyday but it is incredibly boring and for snacks I usually consume chocolate (which I refuse to change, but could maybe cut down on?). So, good easy and cheap lunch ideas for my brown bags? THANKS 🙂 <3
Marisa says
Can do Annie!! I think my struggle with cranking out those posts is that I just bring dinner leftovers to work everyday so I don’t have to stress about it. Making an extra portion or two of dinner makes it so easy to pull it along for lunch. I will keep thinking of snacks, but I try my best to keep some hummus in the fridge at work and a box of crackers at my desk for emergencies. I also bring cut up red peppers, cucumbers, or carrots for hummus dipping, cheese sticks, or fruit with me for the afternoon munchies. Thanks for the post ideas!
Laura Dembowski says
I love baked oatmeal and the idea of adding quinoa! My favorite breakfast is homemade granola and a smoothie.
Marisa says
I just made a batch of homemade granola to get me through the rest of the week with yogurt. Yum! Thanks for the idea!
Jessica says
How about mini frittatas baked in muffin tins? They keep well in the fridge or freezer & can be heated quickly in the microwave.
Marisa says
Love the idea, Jessica! I have made those before and always enjoy them. Thanks for the reminder to get back on the bandwagon with eggs!
Tiffany @ Snack Snark Bark says
WHOA.
This is amazing and even more amazing, I have about 80% of the ingredients already . I usually have a breakfast sandwich or casserole (cereal doesn’t do it for me either, I don’t get how it keeps anyone full or happy) but this? I could get down with this. I am adding this to Pinterest so it’s actually official that I will make this soon!
Marisa says
I love to hear that you are prepared to make these tasty squares! I love seeing your breakfast sandwiches and wish I could prep those like you do!
Sarah says
Can I make these with real eggs instead of flax eggs? I have a huge bag of apricots from Costco that I have been enjoying, and this looks delicious!
Marisa says
Hi Sarah- Yes, absolutely! Let me know if you make any other substitutions that turn out yummy 🙂 Enjoy!