Mini Oat Bakes and Mango Cashew Breakfast Bowl

Oats are an insanely popular base for a lot of people’s breakfast around the world each and every day. Their slow release energy and high fibre content keep us fuelled and filled for longer, preventing unhealthy snacking and binging throughout the day. So it’s no wonder they are so popular!

As great as they are, having the same breakfast each day gets boring and you get sick of eating it. That’s why it’s important to keep switching it up so you’re satisfied and content with the food you are eating. This leads to you sticking with healthy eating rather than getting bored and shrugging it off.

I got bored of my usual overnight oats day in, day out and wanted a new way of eating my oats and decided to create these mini oat bakes instead. The same mixture was used as the overnight oats but instead of letting them just sit overnight, I baked it! The new crunchy texture as a pose to the soft plump one before is such a refreshing change! And pairing them with soft yogurt, tender mango, crunchy cashews, and honey is a dream!

Let’s get started...

Ingredients:

For the mini oat bakes:

• 2 cups oats
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1/2 cup fat free Greek yogurt
• Olive oil or Fry light

For the mango cashew breakfast bowl:

• 3 mini oat bakes
• 1 mango
• 1 small handful of cashews
• 1 tsp honey
• Chia seeds

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl, add the oats, almond milk, and yogurt and mix it well.
2. Let the mix soak for 10-15 minutes to let the oats soak up some of the liquid from the milk and yogurt. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
3. In a muffin tin, add a small amount of olive oil or a couple of sprays of fry light into each hole.
4. Spoon a heaped tablespoon of the mixture into each hole and press it down so it’s flat.
5. Bake these at 200 degrees for around 15-20 minutes or until they are golden and crisp.
6. Let them cook slightly and get ready to make the breakfast bowl.

Method for the mango cashew breakfast bowl:

1. Use your knife to cut around the stone in the mango. Watch a YouTube video if you're confused how to do this. That’s the way I learnt after struggling for ages!
2. Then with the two halves, use your knife to run down the flesh and then across the flesh so you are left with a criss-cross pattern.
3. Push out the mango from underneath to give you a hedgehog shape, then use a knife to cut away each cube of mango.
4. In the bowl, add 3 mini oat bakes and top them with some fat free Greek yogurt.
5. Then add the mango chunks, the cashews, a drizzle of honey, and a small sprinkle of chia seeds and get stuck in!

This breakfast is light, healthy, sweet, savoury, and a bloody delicious way to start your day. The ultimate mouthful is a chunk of the mini oat bakes with a dollop of fat free Greek yogurt, a mango cube, a cashew, and a little bit of honey!

These mini oat bakes can last up to three to four days in an airtight container in the fridge. That’s why I made more than I needed for another day in the week.

It's a different way to enjoy your usual staple breakfast so you don’t get bored of eating the same food, and it’s as easy as that.

Let me know if you give it a try and let me know any variations you create!

HAVE A GREAT DAY!