Banana, Oat & Almond Butter Bake
A shallow tin of baked oats that sets like a soft flapjack, spooned out hot under cold yoghurt.
Why it works
Very ripe bananas carry enough sugar and moisture that the bake needs no added sweetener, and mashing rather than slicing them spreads that moisture evenly through the oats. A shallow 18 cm tin gives the mixture enough surface area to set through in fourteen minutes; a deep dish would still be raw in the middle.
Method
- Heat the air fryer to 175°C (350°F). Butter an 18 cm (7 in) cake tin or ovenproof dish, leaving a finger's width of clearance in the basket.
- Mash the bananas in a bowl with a fork until almost smooth. Beat in the eggs, milk and 2 tbsp of the almond butter until you have a loose batter.
- Stir in the oats, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Pour into the tin and level the top.
- Dot the remaining almond butter over the surface, drag a knife through it once or twice to marble it, and scatter over the flaked almonds.
- Air fry for 14 minutes. It is ready when the top springs back under a finger, the edges have pulled from the tin, and a skewer in the centre comes out with no wet batter.
- Spoon straight from the tin into bowls and add a spoonful of cold yoghurt to each.
For the toddler
Leave one corner of the tin bare when you scatter the flaked almonds at step 4 and cut their square from there, since flaked and chopped nuts are a choking risk under five while the smooth almond butter through the batter is not. Otherwise this needs nothing changed; there is only a quarter teaspoon of salt in the whole tin. Let their piece cool to warm and break it into finger-sized pieces.
How the toddler notes workChef’s notes
Peanut or cashew butter instead of almond. Blueberries or chopped pear pressed into the top need no extra time.
Mash the bananas and mix the wet ingredients the night before, then stir in the oats straight from the fridge.
A handful of chopped walnuts through the mix, or serve with sliced banana on the side.
Keeps 4 days chilled and firms as it sits. Cut into squares and eat cold, or warm through for 3 minutes.