Serves: 6–8
Pan: 9×9-inch / 23×23 cm
Bake: 350°F / 175°C for about 35–45 min
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 eggs
- 1⅔ cups milk — whole, oat, almond, etc.
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2¼ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp melted butter or coconut oil
- 1 extra banana, sliced into rounds for the top
- Optional but highly recommended: ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- Optional: ⅓ cup chocolate chips
Method
- Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9×9-inch glass baking dish generously with butter.
- Mash the 3 bananas very well. Whisk in the eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla and melted butter.
- Stir in oats, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Fold in nuts/chocolate chips if using.
- Pour into the dish and let it sit 5–10 minutes so the oats absorb some liquid.
- Arrange the sliced banana over the surface. For the beautiful caramelized top in your photo, lightly brush the banana slices with a little melted butter and sprinkle them with a tiny pinch of brown sugar.
- Bake 35–45 minutes, until the center is set and the edges are deeply golden.
- Let it cool 10–15 minutes before cutting. This is important—the middle firms up as it rests.
My secret for making it taste bakery-level: use very brown, overripe bananas, don’t skimp on the cinnamon, and let the top get genuinely golden rather than taking it out as soon as it’s technically cooked.
This is closely based on the highly rated banana baked oatmeal from Ambitious Kitchen, which uses 3 ripe bananas, eggs, rolled oats, cinnamon and maple syrup and bakes at 350°F.