I just love when friends come over, especially when they’re sweet friends coming all the way from Texas to NC in an RV.
Wait, did I mention they aren’t just coming to NC in their RV, but they’re traveling up and down the East Coast with their four kids for a few months and taking full advantages of working from home or in this case, working from their RV.
I’ve been so excited to have them at the homestead, but completely forgot that their family was gluten free until hours before they arrived for dinner. Well, I wasn’t going to stress too much about making dessert because all my quick recipes call for some kind of wheat flour and I didn’t have time to snag ice cream. I knew they’d understand.
But then I realized that a favorite oatmeal cake recipe could very well be converted to gluten free if I got a little creative and prayed that my substitutions would work.
(*I made sure their gluten free request wasn’t due to Celiac or sever allergy. If that is the case for you, please make sure you use special gluten free oats. Mine were not. I made my own oat flour by adding rolled oats to my vitamix and grinding it into a fine flour.)
Considering their children couldn’t get enough of it, plus their daughter asked if I could please make it again for them when they came the next day (which I did), I can successfully say it was a hit. I’ve tweaked it here and there; cut down on the sugar, added a banana, and I now add even more spices than what I list and it’s definitely a new favorite.
The flavors were so good that our 16 year old daughter actually asked me not to frost the entire cake and leave some plain.
“SAY WHAT? Cake without frosting is BREAD,” I told her. “Whose daughter are you?”
For those though that want a treat and choose to keep it a tiny bit healthier, it’s deliciously moist and yummy even without frosting. Yes, I can’t believe I just said that. 🙂
I used my favorite Cream Cheese Frosting recipe, but you can really use any frosting you’d like. I’ve added a unique frosting recipe down below to try as well. You’ll love it, I know.
I’m so glad I can share something that is successfully Gluten Free and is a hit by the toughest of critics (those who have to live gluten free all the time.)
Enjoy this yummy and Easy Oatmeal Bar recipe.
Easy Oatmeal Bars – Gluten Free
Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cups boiling water
- 1 cup quick oatmeal
- 8 TBS butter or margarine
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2/3 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 mashed banana
- 1 1/2 cups oat flour (or use regular rolled oats and grind in blender until fine) *use gluten free is necessary due to health reasons
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 TBS cinnamon
- FROSTING option : 6 TBS butter or margarine, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, 1/3 cup cream or evaporated milk, 1/2 cup chopped nuts, 1 cup coconut, 1 cup brown sugar.
Cooking Directions
- Mix together boiling water, quick oatmeal and butter.
- Cover and let stand for 20 minutes.
- Add sugars, mashed banana and egg, mix well.
- Sift together all dry ingredients and add to batter. Mix well.
- Pour into greased and floured 9×13 pan for more thing bars. Smaller pan for thicker.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until done. Check at 30.
- To prepare frosting, mix all ingredients and spread over cake while still hot. Put cake under broiler to brown frosting being careful not to burn it. If using cream cheese frosting, cool cake first before adding frosting.
Looks good! We often do baked oatmeal for breakfast – maybe this one will be for special breakfasts. Thanks.
These look so good- I love the spices in this cake, and I must say, cream-cheese frosting is also a favorite. Oatmeal & cream cheese…so I could maybe enjoy this for breakfast?! haha- Yum!
Exactly!! 🙂 I won’t tell if you won’t tell. 🙂 xoxo
How are theses gluten free? Oatmeal is not gluten free!
Non-contaminated, pure oats are gluten-free. They are safe for most people with gluten-intolerance, but note that if this is for someone who could die tue to any cross contamination, then as noted, they do have gluten free oatmeal.
Hello!! What if we are not gluten free? What would be the difference in ingredients? Thanks!!
Same recipe. I just added the gluten free title for those that are trying to find those rare dessert recipes.