Caramelized Banana Pecan Oats

Oh how it's been too long since I last posted a recipe/food photos! I think it's one of the biggest trade-offs to living on campus, but I will say that coming home and being able to cook for myself does feel that much more special now. 

I made a promise to myself a while back that any recipe related content going forward would be as high quality as I can manage; though I'm not able to recipe test and ask others to cross check my work to ensure flawless, fail-proof recipe content, it does mean that I'll be sharing the best work that I can manage to produce right now, all technical, artistic, and environmental constraints in consideration. 

This recipe involves the warmth of cinnamon and sweetness of over-ripened bananas, which may remind you of fall, but I think it's good enough that you'll want to eat this year round :) 

 

Recipe: Caramelized Banana Pecan Oats

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1/2 cup of oats, soaked overnight

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup of almond milk (+extra for drizzling on top before serving)

1 tsp of cinnamon

1 very ripe banana, sliced in half (lengthwise) and then sliced in half diagonally*

1 tablespoon of pecans, toasted and chopped

1/2 tablespoon of hemp seeds

Drain the oats and add to a small saucepan along with the cinnamon, water, and almond milk. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and let the oats simmer until thickened and creamy. 

Meanwhile, heat a dry, nonstick pan over medium heat for about a minute. Add the bananas (they'll sizzle), and cook on both sides until browned/caramelized. Using a silicon spatula is the easiest way to flip and take the bananas off the pan. 

Plate the oats with the caramelized bananas on top. Sprinkle the chopped pecans and hemp seeds over the bananas, and drizzle a little bit of almond milk if your heart desires. If there's some syrupy liquid from the bananas leftover in the pan, throw that in there too!

*the anatomy/phys student in me wants so badly to say "oblique and frontal cuts"!

 

If you liked these photos, please let me know by leaving a comment below :) I'd love to hear from ya!