Easy Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

A few Saturdays ago, I found myself in need of a creative outlet. It had been an exhausting week and my brain just needed to make something new. (I read this week that the best self-care tasks for my personality type, ISFJ, are simple tasks that provide sensory input. Hello, cooking!) I wanted to recreate my favorite chocolate applesauce stove-top oatmeal in baked form, but couldn't quite find a recipe. So I adapted this one from The Conscientious Eater.

These oats were soft, fluffy, and popped right out of the greased pan. If you're looking for a make-ahead or on-the-go breakfast, this might be it!

Ingredients:

1 c. quick oats
2 T cocoa
1 T ground flax meal
1/4 t baking powder
1/8 t salt
1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
1/4 c milk of choice (I used Almond Breeze's almond coconut blend)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease a small loaf pan. (I used coconut oil.)
3. Stir together dry ingredients, and then add wet.
4. Pour mixed ingredients into the loaf pan and smooth with the back of the spoon.
5. Bake for twenty minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean.