Oatmeal Banana Bake

Banana bread has always been our go to for using up our over ripe bananas! But every once in a while we feel the need to switch things up a bit. We began making this oatmeal banana bake recipe inspired by a recipe we found on frommybowl.com. And after many makes and a few of our own adjustments, this is where we landed! Give it a try next time you need to use up some nanners!

Oatmeal Banana Bake

2 Ripe Bananas
1 3/4 cup of non dairy milk of choice
1/2 cup of maple syrup
2 1/2 cups of old fashioned rolled oats
2 Tbls ground flax
1 Tbls chia (optional but gives good consistency)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a 9x7 glass baking dish, mash the ripe bananas. Add in the non dairy milk, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add Oatmeal, flax, chia and nuts and stir until well combined. You can slice up an additional banana and place slices all over the top of the mix. Or dot with blueberries for a little pop of color!

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 mins. Check and continue baking until edges begin to get a nice brown finish and knife or toothpick inserted into the middle of the dish comes out mostly clean!

::One of my favorite things about this recipe - you mix everything up in one dish! Less dirty dishes and a super fast clean up::

Easy Egg Bake

Okay, I know the title doesn't sound super fancy! But that’s the whole point with some recipes right? We don’t necessarily always want something fancy. Most of the time we want something that tastes great, comes together quickly, and will store well for several days of meals. This is one of those recipes.

I’ve got a handful of people at home right now and it seems like they’re always looking for ways to eat healthy but not spend much time in the kitchen. Especially the boys…ahem…who really prefer to not have to lift a finger when it comes to food! Anyone else whose people can open the fridge door to an abundance of food and the first comment out of their mouth is “there’s nothing to eat”?! Oh boy. What they really mean is I don’t see anything that is quick-grab-ready-to-eat-I-don’t-want-to-have-make-anything-myself kind of food. But, don’t worry. I don’t let them off the hook that easy. They do have to cook and are becoming pretty efficient in the kitchen.

But back to the recipe! I do like to have meals like this at the ready. They are great for busy weeks when you need to know that something healthy is waiting when you get home late at the end of the day. They’re also easy grab for lunches and quick reheats for breakfast. Egg casseroles are hard to beat and such a great source of protein.

One thing I love most about egg dishes is the many different combinations of ingredients you can bring together, bake up, and it tastes amazing! So feel free to take creative measure when making something along these lines. It’s a great way to create a warm yummy meal and use up extra veggies and proteins. The possibilities are many!

Food prep and preparing meals ahead of time can be a game changer any week out of the year but especially while on a Whole30. So keep this in mind for your next Whole30 journey! It’s perfect!

Preheat oven to 350.

Servings: 10-12

12 large eggs

3 Tablespoons of water

3 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Pinch of Cayenne for a little heat (opt)

1 pkg Trader Joes Spicy Chicken Sausage or compliant sausage of your choice

½ red bell pepper chopped

6-8 button mushrooms sliced

2 cups of spinach or kale (chopped)

½ cup cherry tomatoes halved

2 tsp Fresh thyme or basil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Two scallions sliced thin

Fat for cooking: Avocado oil, ghee, olive oil

To finish: Avocado + Trader Joe’s Jalapeno Hot Sauce

1. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, water, cayenne (opt), salt and pepper and set aside.

2. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, heat 1 T ghee or avocado oil. Sauté sausage until nicely browned on all sides. Set aside.

3. Add more oil to the pan and sauté the peppers, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, thyme, salt and pepper over medium high heat. Just enough to create some tenderness but be careful to not overcook (the veggies will continue to cook during the baking time). Add the sausage back in plus the spinach or kale and sauté for a minute more stirring to incorporate the greens. Adjust seasonings for a well-rounded flavorful mix of sausage and veggies. Making them a little extra flavorful is helpful so they don’t get lost in the egg mix.

4. Place sausage vegetable mix in a lightly greased 7x11 glass baking dish. Pour the egg mixture over the veggies. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Sprinkle scallions over the top and continue baking for an additional 10 mins or until the Egg Bake is set in the middle and light golden brown.

Cut into squares, top with avocado and hot sauce. Enjoy as is or with a salad or roasted sweet potato for a more complete meal.

Note: you can also bake this in a 9x13 glass baking dish. Just decrease your baking time to 15 minutes first round and know that it will be much thinner servings, additional 5-10 as needed. Muffins, bake for 10 mins, add onions and bake 5-10 more minutes as needed. Mini egg muffins ~ 10 mins + 5 if needed.

Susan Marks :: Life In, Life Out