Amish Baked Oatmeal

Most of the time, I try really hard to cook healthy meals and snacks for my family. But after a long month and a half of eating not-so-healthy foods though, it's difficult to get back into the swing of things. Tonight we had chicken lettuce wraps with jasmine rice. It tasted fantastic, especially knowing that I was putting something nutritious in my body!

After dinner, though, always come the cravings. I have such a sweet-tooth! I guess some might consider this a post of shame, a total cuisine cave.

This is a recipe for delicious, comforting Amish Baked Oatmeal from Taste of Home's Contest Winning Annual Recipes (2005). Does it have sugar? Yes. Margarine? You bet. Did I cave? Absolutely. Honestly, the sugar and margarine are the only "bad" ingredients, and there isn't an obscene amount of either. Topping this dish with fresh fruit would be a great choice. I'm thinking I'll go with sliced apples.

So maybe I caved a little in the snack department tonight, but you gotta fight one battle at a time, right?

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 egg
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions:

Combine all dry ingredients in medium bowl.

Add milk, melted margarine and egg. Mix with a large spoon until all ingredients are well-combined. I actually stirred in a few dashes of cinnamon for extra flavor.

Grease four ramekins (or one large 9x13 in. pan). Pour batter evenly into each ramekin (or into the pan).

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

Top with whatever you like! As aforementioned, apples are my top choice tonight. They pair so well with cinnamon. Try strawberries, blueberries, warm milk, or brown sugar.

Enjoy with all situations of life--even the setbacks.