As I told you in my Sassenach's Stew post, I've been really into reading the Outlander series as of late. The Starz television show premieres this week -- it follows book two of the series, Dragonfly in Amber.
While stumbling along through the Internet, I found two noteworthy sites. First, since M&M celebrates boozy baking, someone went to the trouble of listing all of the alcohol mentioned in Outlander books. For instance, you can make my Blueberry Port Pie in honor of the premiere this week, as Jamie Fraser smuggled port while living in France. The second site is all about Outlander-related recipes. There are many creative and fun recipes based on the books, although they are not all vegan-friendly.
Anyhoo, In the series, the Scots often eat "parritch" for breakfast, said with a nice Scottish accent. For us, it's something similar to porridge or oatmeal. An interesting tid-bit about myself: I do not really like normal oatmeal. At all. There's just something about it that I find unappealing, both in regards to texture and flavor. I'm not joking when I say that this oatmeal is a game changer. Although it's not the parritch that Jamie Fraser would eat, it's certainly a good alternative!
Since moving to South Carolina, I happened upon a rather outstanding store called The Scottish Mill Shop. If you happen to be near Hilton Head, be sure to check it out. I stumbled upon it during my Outlander obsession. Rather convenient, huh?
In the back, they carry a section of Scottish foods like tea, shortbread cookies, condiments, etc. I happened to buy a box of Scottish oats, mainly because the picture on the box made me chuckle -- this kilted Highlander throwing a shot put gives the Brawny man a run for his money.
If you want to be precise about it, the porridge that Jamie Fraser would have eaten would have been closer to cooking steel cut oats. These oats with the Scotsman on the box were more like quick oats (in America). For this baked oatmeal recipe, I prefer to use old fashioned oats. They're less processed and make for a better texture.
The baked oatmeal is chewy and delightful -- and tastes kind of like an oatmeal cookie. You will not be disappointed. This recipe makes four servings. I'll make this recipe on a Monday and reheat it each day for breakfast throughout the week :-)
Outlandish Parritch (Baked Oatmeal)
Lightly adapted from CCK
2 c. old-fashioned oats
1 tsp. sea salt
1 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 T. vanilla-infused bourbon (learn more about infusing your own!)
1 c. water
5 T. pure maple syrup
4 T. coconut oil, melted
1 T. cinnamon, plus more as needed
Optional add ins: 1/3 c. raisins (or chocolate chips), 2 tsp. maca powder, etc.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 380°F. Grease an 8x8 oven-safe pan. (Usually, this is how I make it. I bake it and then divide it into four servings. For this post's photo shoot, I put the oatmeal in four separate ramekins.)
In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients well. Pour the mixture into the greased pan and bake it for 20 minutes. After, turn on your broiler and broil the oatmeal for 3-5 minutes -- watch it carefully so it doesn't burn! This makes a nice crust on your oatmeal.
Drizzle the serving of oatmeal with maple syrup or agave nectar. Add fresh fruit to the top too! I promise: you will love this baked oatmeal breakfast!
Cheers!
-Aileen