Cake-like baked oatmeal topped with cream cheese frosting. It’s a fun (and easy) birthday breakfast.
It’s the blog’s second birthday! Actually, the blog’s birthday was last week (on December 19, to be exact). But I was far too preoccupied with writing Christmas posts, baking cupcakes and doing some last-minute shopping to mark the occasion.
So, in the spirit of ‘near enough is good enough’, I’m celebrating the blog’s birthday today.
To be completely honest, I have mixed feelings about the blog’s birthday. Being a bit of a perfectionist, I’m constantly worried that my photographs aren’t good enough, or my posts sound too silly, etc (so I’m not usually on board with the whole ‘near enough is good enough’ attitude).
Notwithstanding, I do love making this blog. It’s a time-consuming hobby, but undoubtedly a fun one. While I worry about my pictures, taking photos of food is one of my favorite things to do. Oh, and eating that food isn’t bad either!
So thank you for reading, and a giant thank you to everyone who has ever left a comment. It’s beyond exciting to read your comments! Actually, the idea that someone is even looking at the blog is beyond exciting for me.
What’s next for The Breakfast Drama Queen? Lots of things, hopefully! They’ll still be many oatmeal recipes on this blog, although one of my goals for next year is to include more non-oatmeal recipes. More pancakes, muffins, quick breads, French toast, and so on. I even have some savory recipes coming up! (Regular readers will know that I don’t post many savory recipes, as I’m always craving sweet food in the morning).
As always, I’m open to recipe requests/suggestions. I can’t promise that I can make everything you suggest*, but I’ll certainly try!
*Apologies to the person who suggested a vegan quiche earlier this year, but I’m a bit perplexed by that one!
Without further ado, let’s talk about this celebratory oatmeal.
When deciding which recipe to make to mark this special day (a week ago), I couldn’t go past this Funfetti Baked Oatmeal. I actually first made this recipe to celebrate my own birthday on August 14. For better or worse, oatmeal has been a main feature of this blog during the last two years, and – as you may have noticed – I have a serious soft spot for baked oatmeal. It’s like cross between an oatmeal cookie and a cake.
And I’m not going to pass on cake for breakfast.
This cake baked oatmeal is very simple, but still seems special (to me, anyway). It’s flavored with vanilla and butter extracts, sweetened with a little maple syrup, and topped with an easy, spreadable cream cheese frosting. Oh, and sprinkles. It’s not a funfetti cake without sprinkles – which are both in and on top of the baked oatmeal.
A mixture of applesauce and yogurt keep this oatmeal moist (like a cake). I used a thick, vanilla-flavored yogurt, but you could get away with using plain/natural yogurt. However, if your yogurt is sour, make sure you don’t omit the maple syrup in the recipe! A sour birthday cake would be awful. Yikes.
Just before I wave goodbye for today, thank you again for taking a look at this little blog. With any luck, this space will be filled with plenty more breakfast recipes and ideas in the future. Until then, let’s all eat some cake (baked oatmeal).
- Baked Oatmeal
- 2 tablespoons applesauce
- 2 tablespoons Greek-style vanilla yogurt
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon butter extract
- 1 - 2 teaspoons maple syrup (optional)
- ⅓ cup milk
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch of baking soda
- Pinch of salt
- 2 - 3 teaspoons sprinkles
Cream Cheese Frosting- 2 tablespoons spreadable cream cheese
- 1 - 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- Confectioner’s (icing) sugar, if necessary
- Sprinkles
- For the baked oatmeal: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a 1-cup capacity ramekin.
- In a bowl, combine the applesauce, yogurt, vanilla extract, butter extract and maple syrup (if using). Stir in the almond milk.
- Add the rolled oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix until well combined. Carefully fold in the sprinkles.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared ramekin. Bake for 22 - 28 minutes, or until the top is dry and a little bit firm.
- For the cream cheese frosting: In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk together the spreadable cream cheese and maple syrup until smooth. If the frosting is too thick, whisk in more maple syrup. If the frosting is too thin or not sweet enough, whisk in a teaspoon of confectioner’s sugar (and increase as needed).
- Top the baked oatmeal with plenty of cream cheese frosting, and some extra sprinkles. Enjoy!
Plain yogurt is fine too. If your yogurt is sour (or just not very sweet), then please don't omit the maple syrup. The yogurt can also be replaced with more applesauce (in which case it's best to also omit the pinch of baking soda).
Butter extract
If you don't have any butter extract, just use more vanilla extract.
Alternative toppings
If cream cheese frosting isn't your thing, then some other topping ideas are: a dollop of yogurt, strawberry jelly/jam, or a scoop of ice cream (either the real stuff, or banana 'ice cream').
Veganize it
The baked oatmeal can be easily vegan-ized by using a dairy-free milk, and replacing the yogurt with more applesauce. Alternatively, simply use a dairy-free yogurt. If you use applesauce, leave out the pinch of baking soda.
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