Banana baked oatmeal

Name: Banana baked oatmeal
Total time: 50 min
Yield: About 12 fingers or 9 squares
Ingredients: 150 g (1½ cups) plain rolled or quick oats; 2 ripe bananas; 2 eggs; 300 ml (1¼ cups) whole cow's milk; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 100 g (⅔ cup) blueberries

A soft, sliceable baked oatmeal of blended oats, ripe banana, egg and milk, sweetened only with fruit. Contains egg and milk: offer it once your baby has had each of these on its own. Cut it into fingers for little hands.

From: 6 months
Time: 50 min
Makes: About 12 fingers or 9 squares

Contains eggContains milk

Ingredients

150 g (1½ cups)plain rolled or quick oatsno added sugar or salt
2ripe bananasyellow with brown speckles
2eggs
300 ml (1¼ cups)whole cow's milkfine in cooking from 6 months, but not as a main drink until 12 months; breast milk or formula also work (see the US and UK note)
1 tspbaking powder
1 tbspvegetable oilplus a little for the dish
100 g (⅔ cup)blueberriesoptional, fresh or frozen. Frozen ones need cooking first (see step 1); squash fresh ones flat

Steps

1Wash your hands. Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F), or 160°C fan, and oil a baking dish about 20 cm (8 in) square. Rinse the bananas and blueberries under running water. Using frozen blueberries? Frozen berries are safest cooked for babies: simmer them from frozen with a splash of water and let them bubble for at least a minute, then mash them and let them cool before they go in.
2Blend the oats until they look like fine flour, so there are no dry flakes left.
3Mash the bananas in a large bowl until smooth. Whisk in the eggs, milk and oil, then stir in the blended oats and baking powder. Don't add sugar, honey, maple syrup or salt: the banana sweetens it. The mixture contains raw egg, so don't taste it, and wash your hands after handling raw egg.
4Squash each fresh blueberry flat with a fork until the skin splits (cooked frozen ones are already mashed) and stir them in. Check the batter for any berry that's still round, and squash it before baking. Pour the mixture into the dish, about 2–3 cm (1 in) deep, and smooth the top. Leave it for 10 minutes so the oats soften.
5Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until just set in the middle and a knife pushed into the center comes out clean, with no wet egg mixture. If you use a food thermometer, the center should reach 160°F (71°C). It should stay soft and moist, not dry or crisp.
6Let it cool in the dish for 10 minutes, then cut it into fingers. Trim off any crisp edges, squash a finger between your thumb and finger to check it's soft, and make sure it's only just warm before serving.

How to serve it by age

6 months+

Once your baby has had egg and dairy each on their own without a reaction, offer fingers about the size of an adult finger, roughly 6–8 cm long and 2 cm wide (2½–3 × ¾ in). Each one should flatten easily and feel moist, with no dry or chewy bits. If a batch is firm or crumbly, mash it with a little breast milk, formula or water and serve it on a pre-loaded spoon. If you added blueberries, check each finger before serving and squash any berry that's still round.

9 months+

Cut it into pieces no bigger than about 1 cm (just under ½ inch) for pincer-grasp practice, or keep serving soft fingers. Check the pieces for any round blueberry and squash it.

12 months+

Serve squares or fingers for breakfast, with plain yogurt or soft fruit cut into pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch). Squash flat or quarter small round fruit such as blueberries. Keep sweetening it with fruit rather than sugar, honey or syrup: the CDC says added sugars aren't recommended for young children, and the NHS says to avoid them up to age 4.

Where US and UK guidance differ on this recipe

United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting

The CDC says not to give cow's milk before 12 months. If you follow US advice, use breast milk or formula instead.

United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting

The NHS says cows' milk can be used in cooking or mixed with food from around 6 months, but shouldn't be given as a main drink until 1 year.

We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.

If your baby reacts

This recipe contains egg, milk. Introduce one new allergen at a time, mixed into a food your baby already eats, before serving it in a dish with other new foods. Contact your pediatrician, GP or health visitor if you notice mild signs after eating, such as a few hives or a little vomiting. See signs of a reaction.

Call 911999your local emergency number (such as 112 in Europe or 000 in Australia) now if your baby has trouble breathing, wheezing, can't cough or cry, has lips, mouth, tongue or throat that suddenly swell, or becomes pale, bluish, floppy or unresponsive. Also call if hives come with repeated vomiting.

Leftovers and the rest of the family

Storing it

Keep leftover baked oatmeal in a covered container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, or freeze fingers for 2 to 3 months (freeze them in a single layer, then pack them together once frozen solid). Reheat only the portion you need, and only once, until steaming hot, 165°F (74°C), then let it cool before serving. Throw away anything left in your baby's bowl. Don't leave it at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if it's hotter than 90°F (32°C).

For the grown-ups

Bake a double batch for family breakfasts. Adults can add their own toppings, such as nuts or a drizzle of maple syrup, at the table after the children's portions are served.