Baked chocolate and banana oatmeal

That warm bowl of oatmeal we may have been fed to us as a child was not always the breakfast of choice. Oats were once known for cattle feed and a nuisance of a weed. The wild grown oat grain or cereal grass dates back to the B.C. era. It wasn’t until Northern Europe during B.C. era who began to farm oats for consumption, considered oats to be a food of choice. Now, oatmeal is eaten throughout the world for its health benefits to include high in fiber. It can be eaten in many forms from breakfast bars to overnight oats. This baked oatmeal recipe, is perfect for a quick bite on the go made into a dense, moist loaf that you can cut into bars.

I had over ripe bananas starring at me from across the kitchen . Most of the time I would just freeze the bananas for smoothies or smoothie bowls but I already had a full batch. I searched for recipes using banana and came across a similar oatmeal and banana breakfast bar recipe, it was too simple for my liking so..... I improvised and decreased the portion size to create my own. From past experiences, I knew mashed bananas and oats could create something tasty.... why not add chocolate, peanut butter and coconut with a dash of cinnamon! After mixing all ingredients together by hand, no appliances needed, I put the mixture into a loaf pan, topped it off with more chocolate chips a a sprinkle of pink Himalayan sea salt and baked at 350 for 20 minutes.

The loaf, after cooled, sliced perfectly and was so moist. It was the perfect combo of ingredients but was not to overly sweet. I’ve actually stored the leftover loaf wrapped at room temperature, still satisfying the next day!