Baking oats makes sense because you don’t have to worry about scorching them—the oven provides beautifully even heat and makes your morning oatmeal relatively hands-off easy. The steel-cut oats need to be soaked the night before you want to eat them so, in the morning, all you need to do is stir in the tasty extras before popping them in the oven to bake.
Ingredients
FOR THE OATMEAL
- 1 cup steel-cut oats
- 4 cups boiling water
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup full-fat or lite coconut milk
- 2 bananas, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 cup pitted dates, roughly chopped
- ½ cup granola, homemade or store-bought (optional)
- ½ cup granola, homemade or store-bought (optional)
FOR THE TAHINI SYRUP
- ¼ cup tahini (sesame paste), plus extra as needed
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey, plus extra as needed
- Pinch of flaky salt
How to Make It
- To make the oatmeal: Spread the oats on a rimmed sheet pan and add the boiling water and salt. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and set aside overnight.
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Add the coconut milk, bananas, and dates to the oatmeal and stir to combine. Cover the pan with aluminum foil (you may need 2 sheets), crimping it tightly around the edges to seal, and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover the pan and continue to bake until the oatmeal is thick, about 15 minutes longer. Turn off the oven (leave the oatmeal inside the oven so it thickens more).
- To make the tahini syrup: Whisk the tahini with ¼ cup water, the maple syrup, and salt. Taste and add more sweetener or tahini (for a thicker syrup) if needed.
- Divide the oatmeal among 4 bowls. Drizzle with tahini syrup. Sprinkle with granola (if using) and serve.
