What is Baked Oatmeal?

Baked oatmeal is a fabulous Amish dish that may have any breakfast goers delighted with what seems similar to eating an oatmeal cookie for breakfast. Unlike typical stove top oatmeal, and as the name implies, bakes oatmeal is made in the oven. There are few recipes for creating this dish in a crockpot, but they won’t have quite the same crust or texture as those you can make in the oven.

Most stovetop oatmeal recipes call for the use of water. Baked oatmeal is different in this respect and for liquids uses a combination of milk, egg and melted butter. These are mixed with brown sugar and quick oats, ladled into a greased pan and cooked for about 30 minutes. Some cooks are quick to point out that you can assemble the ingredients the night before you plan to bake the dish. Breakfast can become extremely easy if you’ve prepared the ingredients the night before cooking.

As the dish bakes the top gets crusty and crumbly, similar to the topping on some fruit crisps. Meanwhile, the oats underneath the top soak up moisture and expand, much as they do in stovetop oatmeal. To serve, you simply spoon out sizable portions into bowls. Since the baked oatmeal already contains sugar, it doesn’t require much additional sweetening.

You can get creative with toppings and use things like berries, other fresh fruit, and sour cream or yogurt. You can also vary recipes to include raisins, chunks of apple or cinnamon. Some people use additional ingredients like chopped almonds, cranberries or dried apricots. Get creative in your additions because oatmeal has a simple, light taste that tends to adapt well to most fruits and nuts.

Recipes for baked oatmeal can easily be doubled to make larger amounts, suitable for satisfying the appetites of a big family or a gathering of folks looking for breakfast. Baked oatmeal also makes for an excellent side dish for brunch or breakfast. It’s quick to prepare if you’re having a potluck brunch or breakfast, though you do need to make sure it’s served when it’s still hot.

People in Pennsylvania, especially those living close to Amish settlements are much in the know about this variation on simple breakfast cereal. Thanks to the Internet there are literally hundreds of different recipes to try, many of them offering excellent results. Another way to get recipes for this dish is to look in cookbooks that feature the cuisine of the Pennsylvania Dutch or the Amish people.