Oat Squares (courtesy of WilliamB!)
Hey everyone! In yesterday's Five Frugal Things post, WilliamB mentioned making oat squares (promising that they are even easier than my spread-in-a-pan granola!), and multiple readers were wanting the recipe.
Luckily, WilliamB sent it to me in an email last night, so I'm just copying and pasting it here for you guys. By the way, as long as you use gluten-free certified oats, this should be safe for gluten-sensitive people to eat!
Apple Oat Squares (9x13 pan)
I've modified it by using honey (or, once, leftover failed apple cider caramels, aka cider caramel sauce) instead of maple syrup, on the theory that the maple syrup flavor wouldn't shine as it deserves to, and homemade applesauce instead of storebought. I also left off the apple chunks which The Kitchn spreads across the top.
The recipe is dirt easy and not sweet, a good breakfast or snack with staying power. You can top with PB for some protein to go with, or jam for some sweetness.
I found them a little dry so I modified the recipe to make sandwiches. I cut the recipe in half, bake it thin, cut the batch in half, spread PB on one half, top with the other half, squish it down, cut into serving pieces.
This is the halved recipe; for thicker ones, double the below. If you do that, you could add nuts or choc chips for a sweeter version.
160g (2 cups) rolled oats
40 g (½ cup) rolled oats, buzzed to flour in a blender
½ tablespoon cinnamon
1 t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
½ c. applesauce
1 egg
¼ c. maple syrup, honey, or other liquid sugar
optional peanut butter
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Mix oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
Add the applesauce, egg, and liquid sugar.
Pat evenly into a greased 9x13" pan.
Bake at 350° F till done. About 10 minutes; one way to tell is that the edges will pull away a bit from the pan, although it'll be soft to the touch.
optional: make PB sandwiches by cutting in half, spreading one half w PB, top with other half, cut.
Again, if you want to make the full-thickness bars, the original recipe is on The Kitchn.
___________
And now I'm hungry for something made with oats. 😉 So, I'm including a list of other oat-based recipes for you to try as well.
Oatmeal Recipes
Five Step Fruity Overnight Baked Oatmeal
Super easy, super quick to prep ahead, and good leftover too!
DIY Microwave Oatmeal for One
A super quick, super cheap alternative to oatmeal packets!
One-Serving Dark Chocolate Microwave Oatmeal
These oats take just a few minutes to throw together, and they can be made dairy-free!
No-Stir Granola
This granola requires NO stirring during the baking time! Less mess, more even baking, more clumps. Perfect.
Orange-Coconut Granola Bars
Healthy? No. Tasty? YES.
Homemade Granola Bars
This recipe makes hearty bars that freeze and travel well. Super easy, and less expensive than pre-packaged granola bars.
Molasses Oatmeal Bread
Soft, sweet, and delicious.
Yum, that sounds good, and I have a gallon jug of maple syrup....
Thanks for posting this! Thanks, WilliamB, for sharing it!
@JD,
I just had a thought: eons ago, I got a freebie Quaker Oats cookbook that had recipes for oatmeal scones, savory oats, oatmeal cookies, oatmeal bread, etc. It also had a recipe for muesli that I enjoyed in the summers as a single girl, when a cooked breakfast on a hot morning sounded like a bad idea. I haven't thought about that in forever. I wonder if I still have that recipe?
@JD, ?
https://www.quakeroats.com/cooking-and-recipes/fruity-muesli
@JD, That sounds like a great little cookbook.
I've been making bread about once a week lately (mostly sourdough). I'm going to try the molasses oatmeal bread. I love oats so I will try the oat squares when I get some applesauce.
I just remembered that I don't have applesauce, but I do have some canned cinnamon apples that I could blend up and use as applesauce...so yay! I can try making the oat squares sooner than later!
@Marlena, have you made Anadama bread before?
I'll try it. I love oatmeal but I simply can't eat anything sweet in the morning--not sure why. So I usually eat oatmeal with nuts and/or berries but no sugar.
That sounds good and easy to make. Great that the recipe gives quantities in gramm rather than in cups. So much more precise I believe and it is what we do in Germany. Thank you.
I love coming to Frugal Girl for Kristen’s recipes (along with everything else). Oats are my favorite useful grain and these recipes make me say Yum. Thanks WilliamB and FrugalG!
Thanks to WilliamB for the recipe. This sounds like a reasonable substitute for granola bars, so I might give it a shot. (Granola bars are the only way I can eat oatmeal. I can't eat regular oatmeal for the same reason I can't eat cooked turnip greens: Someone tried to force-feed it to me when I was a little kid.)
Thank you! I am going to make these for breakfast tomorrow.
Maybe some readers could chime in. Has anybody every made granola using other grains? I originally was cooking Dr. Greger's Basic BROL ( barley, rye, oat groats, and lentils). https://nutritionfacts.org/recipe/basic-brol-barley-rye-oats-and-lentils/. I cooked a batch every week in the instant pot. My husband is a farming and brought me sorghum. So I added that. I wonder if anyone has tried making dried granola type using any of these other grains. I have a bunch to use up and there is more protein in it.
@mary ann, That's a neat thought, so I thought about it.
I think the main way that oats differ from other grains is that when Americans say "oats" we mean rolled oats. Because they are rolled, they have a different texture than other grains and they cook a lot faster. Using whole grains would make this difference even greater.
1. Texture.
Texture is a matter of personal preference. I'd say try it and see what you think.
2. Cooking time.
I'd try pre-cooking other grains I used, unless - like kasha - they're already a bit processed. I'm not sure exactly how; simmering them would make them wet and goopy, which seems inimical to granola. OTOH I don't know if roasting or pan-toasting would cook them well enough. On the plus side that seems like an easy thing to experiment with, especially as you can make very small batches of granola.
If you do this, please report back! I think barley granola would be tasty.
@mary ann, I have not, but here is a recipe for a lentil-based granola that is simple and sounds good. You par-cook the lentils and then toast them.
https://thestonesoup.com/blog/2012/05/15/lentilgranola/
@WilliamB, Scottish milled porridge oats cook even faster than rolled oats.
Thanks for sharing the recipe! I've been looking for something or this to use for after-school snacks.
This looks similar to a Baked Oatmeal recipe that I love. I tell my nieces that it is breakfast cake.
Thank you to WilliamB and Kristen for this recipe. Mr. N loves home made cookies a bit too much and I have been looking for a low-sugar substitute. This looks like a great option.
This is helpful as I have a giant cylinder of oatmeal to use up, and I'm not a fan of oatmeal. Thank you to you both.
@Amanda in VA, You can also use oatmeal in meatloaf and meatballs. Also in streusel topping.
Thank you WilliamB, for sharing the recipe. I've been looking for a snack to bring to work that's a bit healthier and cheaper than the options available near my office. Can't wait to try them!
Thank you Kristen, for the repost of the other oatmeal recipe links. I mentioned the dark chocolate oatmeal to my husband the other day and was meaning to search for it. Sounds decadent!