This apple cinnamon baked oatmeal is a hearty and satisfying breakfast with ingredients like chopped fresh apples, walnuts, coconut oil, and honey. I love it because it reminds me of apple cake!
I think I could be on that show My Strange Addiction: Baked Oatmeal Edition. I have an intense love for baked oatmeal and have shared recipes for blueberry banana, cranberry pear, and pumpkin spice baked oatmeal in the past.
I’ve already made this specific apple cinnamon baked oatmeal version SIX times since I came up with this recipe, and I just love it. I almost called this recipe “healthy apple cake” because it’s just that good, but I decided that might be a little bit of a stretch.
I love baked oatmeal because it reminds me of a big muffin or piece of banana bread and in general, it’s healthier and more satisfying. Packed with fruit, nuts, natural sweetener, and just a bit of coconut oil, baked oatmeal is something I feel good about eating any time of the day, so I do.
Sometimes, it’s breakfast and sometimes, it’s an afternoon snack. I also love having a little piece for dessert or when I get back to my dorm room at night and am hungry right before bed, just to hold me over until the morning.
It’s also naturally dairy-free and gluten-free (if you use certified gluten-free oats), which is awesome if you have those dietary needs.
I used granny smith apples because they’re one of my favorites for baking, but any tart, firm baking apple works well here. Like always, I used my favorite all-in-one apple slicer/corer/peeler to prep the apples in a flash.
You can make a big pan of baked oatmeal on a Sunday afternoon to have for the whole week, which I do almost every week in my dorm kitchen. Then, during the week, I just heat a piece up in the microwave for 20-25 seconds and enjoy apple “cake” bliss. You can even double the recipe– just reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and lengthen the baking time (more specific details in the instructions below!).
Something I’ve also experimented with is freezing individual pieces, so you can just pull one out of the freezer and place it in the fridge to defrost overnight. It works so well, so I almost always make a double batch now.
Finally, this recipe calls for mashed ripe banana, so it’s a great way to use up bananas that sit on the counter a bit too long. I’ve tried substituting applesauce for the banana when I didn’t have ripe enough bananas and it works (more on that swap in the printable recipe below), but I prefer the taste and texture bananas add.
If you try this apple cinnamon baked oatmeal, feel free to let me know in a comment or take a picture and tag me @livbane on Instagram. Hope you LOVE it!
Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats (not instant)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
Liquid Ingredients
- 2 tbsp melted coconut oil or butter
- 1/2 cup honey (scant)
- 1 3/4 cup milk (I use almond milk)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 small ripe bananas or 1 large ripe banana, mashed
- 2 small Granny smith apples, peeled and diced small (or other tart, firm apple)
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a medium mixing bowl bowl, stir together the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a large measuring cup, melt the butter or coconut oil in microwave. Whisk the honey, milk, eggs, and vanilla into the measuring cup with the coconut oil. Add liquid mixture to dry mixture in the bowl and stir to just combine. Add mashed banana, chopped apples, and nuts and stir.
- Grease an 8x8 or 9x9 baking dish with butter or cooking spray. Pour oat mixture into pan and bake for 30-33 minutes, or until the the baked oatmeal is set.
- Let cool for 10-15 minutes in the pan and then slice and serve warm, or refrigerate in a storage container for up to 5 days, reheating in microwave before serving. You can also freezer individually wrapped leftovers and defrost in refrigerator before reheating (best option) or or reheat directly from freezer.
I LOVEEE baked oatmeal, and it seems to go so much easier on my stomach than regular stove top oatmeal. :))) This is so pretty too Liv!
Thanks, Emily! Baked oatmeal has taken the #1 oatmeal spot in my heart, too!
This looks delicious!! I can’t wait to try it out 🙂
Hope you love it! 🙂
One of my favorites! It is delicious!!!
Thanks, Mom! Love getting to share my recipes with you!
Yummm! Baked oatmeal is my go to breakfast! ❤️
Same here! I get so excited to have it for breakfast!!
I love baked oatmeal so much too – it really does make weekly breakfasts so much easier!
Yes!! I just love it!
Great recipe!
I’m now off to the market to buy the ingredients so I can make it before my gf gets home!
Made this today. It was delicious. I only had old fashioned rolled oats so I added a bit of extra milk in case they soaked up more than the quick cooking. My son loved them too. Excited to have breakfast made for a few days. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed this! The old-fashioned oats will make it a bit more chewy. I’m glad you and your son loved it!
I’m trying to restrict sugar in all forms from my diet. Can leave out the honey and if so should I add more milk/eggs etc.?
You can omit the honey if you don’t mind a less sweet baked oatmeal! Ripe bananas add a lot of great natural sweetness.
Hi Liv, can I replace the 1/2 cup honey with brown sugar? I know honey is healthier but unfortunately I don’t always have it on hand and it is expensive. Would 1/3 cup brown sugar be a reasonable substitution? Thank you.
Hi Barbara, You definitely can! Baked oatmeal is luckily great for adaptations 🙂 Honey is a bit sweeter than sugar, so I’d try at least 1/2 cup brown sugar to start unless you don’t mind a less sweet baked oatmeal. Hope that helps!