I love it when breakfast sort of disguises itself as dessert. Let’s talk pancakes for a moment. Serve those sweet fluffy, round cakes in the morning with a generous drizzle of maple syrup and you have breakfast . Serve something similar after dinner and it’s dessert. Let’s call them what they are – cake.

Our weekday mornings are harried with me quickly trying to stuff the kids with a bit of protein and them procrastinating over their shoes but the weekends are for lingering and indulging in the teetering line of breakfast dessert.

Fortunately our latest favorite is more breakfast than dessert as it’s fairly light on sugar, loaded with oats and topped with juicy pears whose natural sugars condense and caramelize in the hot oven. A sweet and nutty crumble nudges into the cracks and crisps in the oven creating a lovely crunch against the creamy oatmeal.

Weekends are for slowing down, taking a moment to catch your breath, feeling grateful and yes, maybe a bit of indulgence too. This recipe is one for the weekend.

Baked Oatmeal with Roasted Pears

adapted from Super Natural Every Day
Serves 6

2 cups rolled oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
¼ teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon chopped rosemary (optional but adds something real special)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla (or a vanilla bean, or both)
3 pears, cored and cut in half

Crumble Topping
½ cup walnuts (or any other nut you prefer)
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
pinch salt
1 Tablespoon brown sugar

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Butter an 8x10-inch baking dish.

Combine oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, rosemary and salt. Stir together. Pour this mixture into the buttered dish.
In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, milk, egg, 2 Tablespoons melted butter and vanilla. Whisk together completely. Slowly pour this over the oats.
Tuck the pears into the oats.

For the crumble: Combine everything in a small bowl then sprinkle over the top of the oats and pears.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the center is cooked through and the crumble is deep golden and caramelized. Let cool slightly then serve. Serve with maple syrup, brown sugar and a bit more melted butter if you’d like.