Zucchini Bread Baked Oatmeal

Reader question: what about breakfast??

A few weeks ago, I got a lovely reader comment from Kelsey:

"Phoebe, Munch Menus has seriously changed my life. My husband, 18 month old, and I love your menus so much! You've made our lives so much easier. Question: what are your breakfast staples? I feel like now that dinner is solved (thanks to you) breakfast is still a challenge for us.”

Since we have 6 weeks of menus in the bag to help you with the “what’s for dinner?” question, I wanted to focus this month’s recipes on breakfast. Thank you for the nudge, Kelsey!

I don’t usually create a weekly menu for breakfast in our household because the truth is we incorporate much less variety in the mornings. It’s survival mode over here. And by survival mode, I mean I am in bed sleeping while my husband juggles getting food on the table for a hangry munch. Teamwork!

Usually, my contribution to the routine is I’ll make a couple oatmeal options over the weekend so he has something ready made in the fridge or freezer. For the former, it’s usually overnight oats (some variation on this recipe). And for the freezer, it’s a veg-packed baked oatmeal like this zucchini bread number.

If you already follow me over on my main recipe blog, Feed Me Phoebe, you may be familiar with this green baked berry oatmeal, which is the formula I vary week to week. (I also have a carrot cake version in my cookbook CARBIVORE.)

Since I know I lose some kids at green, I wanted to create an even more user-friendly version for the stack that celebrates one of my favorite summer treats: zucchini bread. I grew up inhaling loaves of it on Martha’s Vineyard at Morning Glory Farms, so I think it is one of those desserts (like carrot cake) where parents can feel good that their child is eating a vegetable, and the child can feel good that they’ve essentially convinced their parents to let them eat cake for breakfast.

This recipe uses a TON of zucchini and takes a modest approach to added sugar, relying mostly on mashed banana and a splash of maple syrup. It also has more egg and almond butter for protein than most oat dishes. Still, it ended up being one of the most delicious baked oatmeals I’ve ever created.

The oatmeal squares can keep for up to a week in the fridge or a few months in the freezer, which is usually where my husband sources it from in the morning. I have plenty of tips below on how you can create variations on this theme to have a couple different versions on hand to rotate.

And stay tuned for a special munch menu coming up that lays out a full breakfast plan!

If you have a recipe or resource request, make sure to comment on this post! You know I live to please.

Happy munching!

Phoebe

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Zucchini Bread Baked Oatmeal

Makes 12 squares

The banana gives this oatmeal as much sugar as it needs for my daughter, but my husband prefers it with a touch more sweetness, so feel free to up the maple syrup as needed. You do you.

To make this baked oatmeal with steel cut oats: use 1 cup steel cut oats and 2 ½ cups milk. It will be slightly more crumbly than this version.

1 ripe banana

1 large zucchini (3/4 pound), coarsely grated

1/3 cup almond butter