Christmas day always feels a little rushed to me.
It’s like you spend weeks in anticipation of this one day, and when it finally arrives, a day just doesn’t seem enough.
Maybe it’s just me, but the hours just seem to whizz on by Christmas day.
Still, I had a comforting Christmas day, the kind I’ve come to appreciate after that Christmas a few years ago we spent with my mom at the Cancer Agency.
We spent this Christmas Eve dining with friends, got home very late, raced to finish wrapping presents and did not get to to bed until after 3AM.
I slept in on Christmas morning; it was a wet dreary day that didn’t quite feel like Christmas Day.
It was afternoon by the time we sat around the tree to open presents.
We were hungry by then, so it’s a good thing I planned breakfast/brunch the day before, otherwise we’d have gorged ourselves on holiday candy like we usually do.
I knew I wanted a quick, healthy and delicious breakfast; I had some leftover apples from the apple pie I made for last night’s dinner, and baked apple oatmeal sounded perfect for Christmas brunch.
This oatmeal is packed with fruit, has just the right sweetness, tastes wonderful and nourishing.
I topped mine with peanuts, pomegranate, and more almond milk, it felt like dessert.

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Christmas Day Baked Apple Oatmeal
INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups old fashioned oats
• ¼ cup turbinado sugar (plus a teaspoon)
• 1 large apple cored and diced (I used jazz apple)
• ½ cup blueberries
• ¼ cup cranberries
• ¼ cup raisins
• 2 cups almond milk (plus more, depending on your preference)
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

 
DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350F / 176C, butter a baking dish and set aside
2. In a bowl, mix together the oats, sugar, apples, blueberries, cranberries, and raisins and salt
3. Add the milk, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, salt and baking powder, and mix well
4. Sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar over the top of the mixture
5. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until the top is nicely golden and the oat mixture has set.
6. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.
7. Add toppings and serve warm with more milk
8. Enjoy

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I let it bake in the oven while we opened presents, I wish I were one of those people who didn’t care about presents but I’m not, I love opening presents!
I love watching loved ones open presents too; the excitement on my mom’s face, the way she lingers and painstakingly opens every present. My brother Joe’s childlike elation at his newest favourite gadget.
It’s unfortunate, but we don’t spend happier moments like that together often enough – we’re usually never all together in one place, happy and worry-free.

And the presents… the present were nice too.
A generous and kind Santa came…

I’m always grateful for books on photography, I don’t usually buy them myself, but I’ve learnt so much from the few I’ve managed to collect over the years. These would would no doubt be a great addition.