Sugar Free Baked Blueberry Oatmeal. And a weigh-in day!

Weigh in.  Ran into the clinic and acted like I owned the place now that I know how to use their scale.  I'm down another four pounds.  I could get used to this!   My goal was a loss of five pounds before the end of maternity leave, but as long as I lose a half pound in the coming week, I will be down ten.  Could we see a total of fifteen before August 20?  That would be awesome.

Moving forward.

So, I've been searching for a hand-held, baked, oatmeal breakfast thing.

I've been searching for a couple of years.

I decided to try another one that would fit a couple of needs: as I mentioned, I need to be able to carry it. I also want copious oatmeal in it; anything else defeats purpose. It needs to taste good, and it must be enough to serve as the main staple for any breakfast. 

Oatmeal can get a little sponge-y when baked with too much moisture.  One thing to watch out for.

So I found a recipe.  I made substitutions based on diet.  It is a decent start. I imagine the original is pretty good as is. I love rhubarb.  I don't feel one can go wrong with that tarty goodness. You can find the original on over here.

So, my version contains blueberries, as you can see. I hit our grocery store and alas, rhubarb in neither a fresh nor frozen state was available.  I also used Splenda, instead of honey, as called for by the original recipe.  Let's digress for a second...

Generally speaking, I am not supportive of using sugar substitutes - particularly in baking. Some have a detectable and particular taste, others may have an aftertaste, and many are not widely appreciated by moms because of their chemical composition. My biggest argument against using a substitute is the outcome of your recipe.

Baking is more of a science. Heat, applied to certain materials, results in particular chemical reactions. The ingredients we use impact these reactions, as well. A substitution like Splenda (for sugar, for example) can make a baked item more brittle and dry.

I used the Splenda because I wanted to use up the giant box that lives in our pantry without feeding to the wee ones.  I bought it to make a dessert for my dad (diabetic) a while ago.  I hate throwing stuff out.  So I thought, "Hmm.  Probably can reduce the WW points in this with that box of yellow."  There you go.

I also omitted the almonds by accident. This lowered the calorie content, but seriously think about using almonds.  

Finally, if you're planning to use blueberries as I did, I would zest a lemon and add that - and also roll your berries in sweetener/sugar before throwing them in the pan.

Anyway, I cut this recipe into eight servings.  That's three points a piece.  Not too shabby. And an added bonus is that oat is a galactagogue, so while losing weight, I continue to support lactation in other ways through my diet.  And oats can help me lower my cholesterol.  So many bonuses.

In all, I'm going to keep working on this one.  I want to do the original with rhubarb. I don't even care about the strawberries.  Rhubarb without strawberries is equally fantastic.  I love rhubarb pie - not strawberry rhubarb. It is an undersung produce item.   I want the final product to be dry and crumbly, so I've got to work on that.  I want it to be awesome and we aren't there yet.  

If you find what I'm looking for, please share it!!!