coffee cake oatmeal with caramelized bananas

good morning, and happy sunday, friends!

i’m nearing the end of a 10-day quarantine, and getting really antsy to do just about anything that isn’t staring out my living room window. this whole thing has been peaks and pits - peaks being ample time to read (i finished my 4th book of 2022! this voracious pace will not hold when i have to re-enter the real world!) i’ve been cooking every night and threw together a quick menu for the week (i MIGHT in fact have my sh*t together!) and i’ve been realizing over and over that slowing down is a gift, and that sometimes the biggest accomplishment i need to pat myself on the back for is putting on real pants that button and not panicking about productivity. we love a forced life lesson one week into a new year, don’t we.

coming at you on a slow, sleepy weekend morning where i had a little time to play in the kitchen and a lot of time to daydream about coffee cake, except that i didn't actually want to bake an entire coffee cake, but get all the sweet cinnamony flavors in my heart and body with much less effort. oatmeal seemed like an appropriate vehicle, and adding a big scoop of my favorite protein powder seemed prudent. #sponsored. this is what we call low risk high reward, and ohhhhhh my goodness is this oatmeal delicious.

see the thick, swirly sweet coffee cake drizzle we’ve got going on here? it’s cinnamon magic. and if you look a tad to the left, you will also see soft caramelized bananas, because why top oatmeal with a plain sliced banana when you can sear it in a little coconut oil and make it even more delicious? and we’re mixing in coffee flavored (YES, COFFEE FLAVORED) protein powder to give this breakfast situation a huge punch of protein and take things to a truly amazing level.

a few things before we get started:

- i’m partnering with SFH for this recipe - they’re the only protein powder i’ve used for years and years, and i’m super into their coffee flavor (tbh i’m into all of their flavors.)
- this is a great breakfast option when you’re not so so short on time, but need to throw something together quickly. like, more time than frantically grabbing a granola bar from the cupboard, but less time than a frittata. you know how those mornings go, no?
- there are a few working parts to this recipe, but all are keeeeeeey to making this extra delicious. the oatmeal bit is obvious, but the caramelized bananas give this a little zhuzh, and the coffee cake drizzle is essential for that classic coffee cake flavor. it’s also the sort of thing i’d like to drizzle on… everything?

coffee cake oatmeal with caramelized bananas
makes: 2 servings
prep time: 5 minutes
cook time: -10 mintues

for the oatmeal:
1c rolled oats
1 1/2 scoops sfh coffee protein powder
1 1/4c unsweetened almond milk
1tbsp maple syrup
1tsp vanilla extract
1tsp cinnamon

for the coffee cake drizzle:
2tbsp maple syrup
1tbsp turbinado sugar
1tsp cinnamon

for the caramelized bananas:
1 banana, sliced into 2in. thick coins
1tbsp coconut oil

in a sauce pan, add the ingredients for the oats. turn heat to medium, and warm through until the oats absorb most of the liquid, about 5-7 minutes. stir occasionally so nothing sticks!

while the oats are warming, heat the coconut oil in a separate skillet over medium heat. add the banana slices, and let caramelize for 3-4 minutes per side. give the skillet a shake every minute or so to ensure the bananas don’t stick.

stir the ingredients for the coffee cake drizzle until you have a smooth paste. pour the cooked oats into a bowl, top with banana slices, then spoon the drizzle over top.