Sun Butter and Maple Baked Oatmeal

Recently I've been making a lot of baked oatmeal for the girls and myself. Since I like variety, I decided to come up with another version. There are lots of recipes on the internet for peanut butter baked oatmeal, but Sabrina and Naomi are still allergic or sensitive to peanuts. (We'll go back to the allergist for more testing this spring.) I thought that sunflower seed butter would probably work just as well as the peanut butter, so I gave it a try. Because the sun butter -- as we call it -- has a pretty strong flavor, I like to pair it with maple syrup and a bit of cinnamon. I think the flavors of the maple syrup and cinnamon do a good job at complementing and balancing out the flavor of the sun butter. And because we all love chocolate, I threw some chocolate chips in as well. Another time, instead of using chocolate chips, I'm going to try placing diced apple or apple slices in the bottom of the ramekins like I did in this recipe. I think the apples would go well with the sun butter, too.

If you can eat peanut butter, I recommend trying to make the baked oatmeal with 1/4 cup of peanut butter and 1/4 cup of honey or brown sugar instead of the sun butter, maple syrup, and cinnamon.

Sun Butter and Maple Baked Oatmeal
serves 4 adults

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
• 1 1/3 cups almond milk. I like the flavor of Blue Diamond Original Almond Breeze.
• 1/4 cup sunflower seed butter. We use Trader Joe's brand.
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips. I recommend Ghirardelli, Trader Joe's, or Enjoy Life brand.
• OR 2 medium apples (to make 1/4 cup of sliced or diced apple for the bottom of each ramekin)

Instructions:

The night before, put the oats in a medium bowl. Warm the milk in the microwave and pour it over the oats. Stir the oats and milk; then cover the bowl with saran wrap or a plate. Leave the bowl on the counter overnight.

In the morning preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Measure the sun butter and maple syrup into a small bowl. If you keep them in the refrigerator like I do, microwave them until warm. Whisk the sun butter and maple syrup together; then pour them into the bowl with the oats. Add the baking soda, cream of tartar, and cinnamon to the bowl as well. Stir all of the ingredients together.

If using chocolate chips, stir them into the oat mixture. If you prefer to add apple pieces, follow the instructions at this recipe. Transfer the oat mixture evenly into four 5 to 7-ounce ramekins. Put the ramekins in the oven and let the oatmeal bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.