breakfast – Mama the Reader

I’ve been baking a little this summer, but not too much. It’s hot outside, and the last thing I want to do is stand in the kitchen baking bread when there is so much great produce everywhere you look. I got a huge crate of blueberries from Costco though, and this recipe was calling my name.

My grandmother used to always make blueberry biscuits for my cousins and me when we were kids. Hers are white and fluffy and more delicious than I can describe. As I’ve become used to whole grain breads, my tastes have changed, and I don’t crave white flour anymore (with the exception of tomato sandwiches which are an excuseable sin on whole wheat bread). If I’m being honest, my grandmother’s blueberry biscuits are better in that light and fluffy way, but my whole wheat remodel of this old recipe came out pretty good in a different fashion. They are filling and delicious, and my favorite thing about milling my own wheat is that it has a real taste – not just fluff. Store-bought whole wheat flour can’t quite match it, but they will still be good.

We’ve made these twice in the last week, so I’m writing the recipe here for me to come back to … and to share with you, too!

Whole Wheat Blueberry Biscuits

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (freshly milled if you can)

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup butter (half a stick)

3/4 cup milk

3/4 cup blueberries

1 tablespoon sugar

Sprinkle sugar over the blueberries, and let them sit. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Use a box grater to grate the butter into the flour, and then lightly stir so that it is crumbly. Gradually add the milk, and then add the blueberries. Stir lightly.

Roll out onto a clean, floured surface – trying not to squish the berries. Cut biscuits with a glass and arrange in a pan.

Bake at 475 degrees for about 15 minutes if they are closely arranged like the photo above. Cook for only 10 minutes if they are spread out on a cookie sheet.

**If you really want to top these with something even better, mix 1/4 cup of powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons of milk to create a glaze for the top. Enjoy.

We eat a lot of oatmeal around here, but never the soupy kind in a bowl. I know there is a bit of convenience with the store-bought instant kind, but when I look at the ingredients, I see maltodextrin, hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors, and some other weird things. (The peaches and cream variety contains no peaches??)

My solution is baked oatmeal. I prep it the night before, and I make a large batch that lasts all week. I wish I had a real photo I took with a real camera and edited, but I leave my house at 7:30 with two kids in tow. So that would never happen at the breakfast table. I don’t even have a cell phone picture, so you will just have to make it yourself to see what it looks like. You won’t regret it!

The recipe is so simple, and I wanted to share it. I’ve tried a variety of baked oatmeal variations, and I eventually blended a few different recipes to create this one. It is flexible and can be changed to suit whatever you have on hand. Right now, it is my absolute favorite breakfast, and my four-year-old will ask for seconds and thirds! I’ve started buying the huge box of oatmeal at Costco to keep up with our habit around here. It does contain eggs, so I’m not technically in line with my VB6 attempt when I eat this, but I usually make it with almond milk so that it is dairy-free.

Basic Baked Oatmeal

3 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup sucanat (or brown sugar)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs

1 cup milk (or almond milk if making dairy free)

1/2 cup melted coconut oil (or butter if you’d like)

at least 1 cup fruit of choice (I use whatever is on-hand – bananas, blueberries, peaches, apples. Fresh or frozen. I occasionally add shredded coconut or a few pecans if the baby isn’t going to eat it.)

**optional: 1/2 cup Chia seeds (great tasteless source of Omega-3)

The night before:

Combine oats, sucanat, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and coconut oil. Combine wet and dry ingredients and then stir in fruit and chia seeds. Spoon into a baking dish. (I use my long pyrex pan most of the time, but square would work, too.) Place dish in the refrigerator.

The following morning:

Preheat oven to 350, and remove dish from refrigerator. Bake for about 40 minutes, and it’s perfect. You can eat this plain or with milk on top (how Jude likes it). Enjoy!

Tag: breakfast

Whole Wheat Blueberry Biscuits

our favorite baked oatmeal