Savory Baked Oatmeal

Recently I went in for a physical. Last year's was the first one I'd had in awhile, and at that blood test my cholesterol was "elevated." I was not expecting it to improve, because this has NOT been the year to focus on diet/exercise (I made an effort after last year's results for a few weeks, but then fell off). Now my cholesterol is officially high, so yeah...I guess I should work on that.

Generally I feel like I eat pretty well; I KNOW I need to exercise more. But I can probably do better on fiber intake, so that's the main thing I'll work on with diet. I bought some Metamucil and officially feel like an old person! Also picked up some ground flaxseeds which I've been adding to cereal/yogurt, and are supposed to help in the same way. 

And I know oatmeal is great for fiber and helps with cholesterol. I tried doing steel-cut oatmeal a few days a week on the last effort - but even with adding fruit, nuts & peanut butter it just didn't keep me as satisfied as my usual egg breakfast. I'm also not really a sweet breakfast person; I much prefer savory stuff. 

A friend of mine I stay with sometimes while traveling makes baked oatmeal (usually with blueberries) that I've enjoyed for breakfast. That's also nice when you don't really want the porridge-y texture of regular oatmeal. I know that "savory oatmeal" is a thing but have never tried it. So I thought "hmm, savory baked oatmeal?" Yes, people are doing this! Oats, whatever veggies you want, a couple of eggs & cottage cheese for protein & binding, and a bit of cheese. I found a few recipes online and as per usual, cobbled together my own.

This is great for meal prep as it makes about 8 servings, and you can just pop a slice in the microwave for 90 seconds. It probably freezes well (haven't tried it yet). I had my first piece this morning and it was pretty satisfying! And because everything is better with a sauce (or "goo" as my husband likes to say) - I drizzled it with a little Cholula Cremosa (cilantro lime).

This is super adaptable; you can use whatever veggies you want and I'm sure I'll change it up the next time I make this. This is a good dish to use up veggies that need to be used. I did an onion, a red bell pepper, a grated yellow squash, a jalapeno and some baby spinach - but you could truly put anything in here. Mushrooms, tomato, sweet potato, broccoli, leftover veggies. If you want to make it even more substantial you could throw in cooked sausage or plant-based sausage. 

I did not actually measure anything except for the oats when I was scooping them out, and it turned out fine - so I think this is pretty forgiving!

Savory Baked Oatmeal

- Veggies (you probably want about 2 cups once cooked cooked): I used 1 onion, 1 bell pepper, 1 grated yellow squash, 1 jalapeno, a couple handfuls of baby spinach
- Seasoning for the veggies (I used a garlic-onion blend; use whatever you like!)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 2 cups milk (I used almond milk)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 cups rolled (quick) oats
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 Tbl ground flaxseeds (optional but adds more fiber)
- grated cheese (I used about 1/2 cup but you can do more)

Preheat oven to 375 and grease a 13 x 9 baking dish.

Saute your choice of veggies in a pan with a little oil until cooked, and season how you like. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs. Add cottage cheese, milk & salt and mix well. Add oats, baking powder, flaxseeds and the cooked veggies and mix until combined. Spread in greased pan.

Bake for 30 minutes - a knife inserted in the center should come out relatively clean. Top with grated cheese and bake for another 10 minutes.

If you're serving right away, let cool slightly before cutting. Makes about 8 servings. 

To reheat from the fridge, microwave a piece for 90 seconds. If you like, drizzle with your favorite hot sauce, salsa, or whatever sounds good!