Happy….whatever day it is for you right now! It’s another day and another recipe.
So you know that really sad feeling that you get when you finish a show that you’ve been secretly obsessed with? Yeah, I’m totally dealing with that right now. Big teary eyed emoji face inserted here. It’s such a sad thing because you can never imagine loving another show the same way as this one. It’s kind of like the day after Christmas when you realize it’s going to be a whole year before it comes again.

But we get over it quickly as soon as another show comes along to take over our fancy. I know that will happen but I’m still pretty sad anyway. Does anyone have new show suggestions? I’m really not that picky. Also, the days are starting to get shorter as I can tell by the later sunrise time each morning.

Yes, I’m one of those really weird morning people who wakes up with the sun. I’m also the kind of weirdo that’s getting super excited about Autumn already, even though there’s still a nice chunk of Summer left. In my defense, I’ve got extra reasons this year because I’ll be traveling during the Fall AND the holidays are on the way. It’s like double prizes. As you know, the holidays are my absolute favorite time of year.

Okay, so speaking of the cozy Autumn days coming, I’ve been prematurely thinking of recipes I want to make when they get here. I think carrot cake is the perfect transitional flavor right now. It’s got all the spices but with the fresh fruity flavors it’s not too in-your-face festive. See what I did there with making this perfectly acceptable?

Alright, so baked oats are something that I had a major moment with a few years ago. I seem to remember eating them every single morning for over a year because I enjoyed them so much. At the time I stuck with the exact same flavor every time but that was before I explored my imagination and realized you can do so many flavors! Making them this way is way is a great way to deviate from the porridge style that so many people find boring. The texture is somewhere between traditional oatmeal and a muffin or cake. Who doesn’t want to eat cake for breakfast?

So short-cuts and tips. If you are making this as a single serving and don’t want to heat up the whole oven, no worries. A counter-top oven works perfectly if you’ve got one but then there’s always the microwave. Now I don’t recommend this version but, ya know, sometimes it’s the only option. If you do decide to go that route be sure to put it in a slightly larger dish to avoid it boiling over. Oh, and one last tip, you can easily bake a whole batch of this and save a serving for each day. You can either warm them up later or even eat it cold (I love it that way!)

Awesome, so I hope you get a chance to try this and enjoy it. Oh, and leave any comments about your favorite shows in the comments. 😉

Carrot Cake Baked Oats

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 1 serving

A great way to change up your favorite breakfast. This recipe for baked oats is quick, easy, and completely delicious. Like eating carrot cake for breakfast!

Ingredients

1 small carrot, grated (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup almond milk
1/2 medium banana, mashed
1 tablespoon pitted dates, chopped
1 tablespoon craisins, chopped
1 tablespoon walnuts, chopped
2 teaspoons unsweetened coconut shreds
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or apple pie spice)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
1-2 teaspoons maple syrup (optional if you want it very sweet)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C) and lightly grease a 6 inch ramekin or oven safe dish.
In a separate bowl, mash the banana and stir in the almond milk. Stir in all the other ingredients and add it all to the ramekin.
Bake for 18-25 minutes or until the top begins to brown and the sides are bubbling.Remove from oven and cool for about 5 minutes before serving

ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL! All of these food photos were taken with my Nikon D750 and my favorite Lens, the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. You can find out more in my INTRO POST.

And, by the way, to all the minnows out there, my intro post did a huge $0.21. The key to success on Steemit is to be consistent and persistent. Click on the link below for some great tutorials on how you can also succeed on the steem blockchain:

Master Toolkit: Steemit Resource Guide Illustrated by @sndbox

Also, a huge shoutout to @rigaronib for designing my logo!

If you're looking for more recipes check out some of my other recent posts!

1. Vegan Almond Pudding Jars
2. Fudgy Sweet Potato Nutella Brownies
3. 25-Minute Thai Peanut Soba Noodle Salad
4. Energizing Ginger Berry Maca Smoothie
5. BBQ Jackfruit Tacos + Kale Corn Slaw

Also, I've been starting to vlog in case you missed it.

1. Vlog #4 Grocery Shopping with Gringalicious at Trader Joe's
2. Hiking to Snow Creek Falls + I Hit 17k Followers!
3. Vlog #3: Looking for a New Gym + Meet My Baby
4. Vlog #2 Rock Climbing With @hotrod, @fullofhope, and @whiteknight20 + What I ate Today

Do you want to learn more about me? Click here to see a recent @wadepaterson interview with me - 20 questions with @gringalicious