Orange Caramel Baked Oats
A single-serving baked oat cup with orange and caramel, rebuilt for a dutch oven and a shelf-stable pack.
- calories
- 690
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 125
- protein
- 18 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 30 min
- total time
- 40 min
- water
- 120 ml cold
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Dessert
- Dutch oven
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- Real dishes
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Quick rolled oats | 1.5 dl (about 2/3 cup) | quick oats, not steel cut |
|---|---|---|
| Powdered whole milk | 3 tbsp | reconstitutes to 1 dl |
| Powdered whole egg | 2 tbsp | equals one egg |
| Dried banana chips or freeze-dried banana | 1/4 cup | crushed fine |
| Honey | 1.5 tbsp | in a small squeeze tube |
| Baking powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Ground cinnamon | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp | |
| Caramel sauce | 1 tbsp | shelf-stable squeeze bottle or a caramel candy melted in |
| Dried orange slices | 4 to 5 slices | or 1 tsp dried orange peel stirred into the batter |
| Water | 120 ml |
Method
- Get a bed of coals going, or set the dutch oven on a low fire with coals on the lid. You want steady moderate heat, not flames.
- Stir the dry mix with 120 ml of water in a mug or small metal tin until smooth. Let it sit two minutes so the banana and milk powder hydrate.
- Squeeze the honey in and stir again. Drizzle the caramel on top and drag a spoon through it once.
- Lay the dried orange slices on the surface. Set the tin inside the dutch oven, lid on, coals above and below.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes. It is done when the center is set and does not slosh when you tip the tin.
- Let it cool a few minutes. It firms up as it goes.
This started as a blender-and-oven breakfast: fresh milk, a raw egg, half a banana, orange slices on top. None of that carries. Milk powder, whole egg powder, and crushed dried banana do the same three jobs — liquid, binder, sweetness and body — and they ride in one bag at ambient temperature. Dried orange slices replace the fresh fruit; they soften as the batter bakes and give up most of their aroma into it.
The egg powder is what makes this a baked good rather than porridge. It sets the middle so the whole thing holds together when you spoon it. Baking powder gives it enough lift that it does not turn into a dense puck. Keep the coals moderate: too much bottom heat and the edges scorch before the center firms, which is the one way this fails.
Packing
Oats, milk powder, egg powder, crushed banana, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt go in one bag at home. Honey and caramel in squeeze tubes, orange slices in their own small bag so they stay dry.
Variations
- Skip the dutch oven and cook it in a covered pot over a very low flame, checking every five minutes for scorching.
- Swap the caramel for brown sugar and a pat of shelf-stable butter powder mixed with water.
- Double it in a wider tin and split it between two people.
https://www.matprat.no/oppskrifter/kos/baked-oats-med-appelsin-og-karamell