Make this Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal for a deliciously spiced easy meal prep breakfast. If you love carrot cake and baked oatmeal, you will love this recipe. Full of flavor, texture and a healthy breakfast for all!
Looking for carrot cake recipes? Check out my vegan carrot cake, paleo carrot cake muffins and healthy carrot cake cookies.
It’s no secret I have officially become a big fan of healthy baked oatmeal recipes. Just check out all of these FMK oatmeal favorites! There are so many flavor options and I love how easy it is is for meal prep.
This recipe has a classic carrot cake flavor, but lighter on the sugar and made with wholesome ingredients. You get to pack in a good amount of veggies, plus healthy fats from walnuts and coconut. If you’re looking for a simple way to start the morning and you love oats and carrot cake, then you must make this!
Why You’ll Love this Baked Oatmeal
- Like healthy carrot cake, but in baked oatmeal form!
- An easy one bowl recipe ready within 45 minutes.
- Great for meal prep and busy mornings, a spring brunch or an easy weekend breakfast.
The Ingredients
- avocado oil – feel free to use light olive oil, or melted and cooled coconut oil. Just make sure your eggs are room temperature so the coconut oil doesn’t solidify when you begin mixing everything together.
- pure maple syrup – Just a hint of natural sweetness for the oatmeal batter. Feel free to serve with more if you’d like. Honey is an okay substitute as well.
- eggs – I prefer using eggs in baked oatmeal recipes because I think it holds things together well and creates a better texture. If you’re okay with a more dense baked oatmeal, feel free to use flax eggs. Unsweetened applesauce may also be an okay substitute for the eggs, but again, the texture may change.
- vanilla extract – adds a little hint of vanilla flavor.
- milk of choice – Use cashew milk, almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk, etc. I do not recommend using a protein-based plant milk (i.e. pea milk), since it is thicker and could throw off ratios.
- old-fashioned rolled oats – I prefer old fashioned oats for baked oatmeal recipes versus quick oats. Use gluten-free as needed. I do not recommend steel cut oats here.
- baking powder, spices & salt – using carrot cake spices like ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground ginger and a hint of all spice.
- walnuts – I like the addition of chopped walnuts for texture and healthy fats.
- shredded coconut – If you can’t do coconut, feel free to omit with no other changes. You can also lightly toast the coconut before adding into the mixture for a richer coconut flavor.
- shredded carrots – Make sure to use the fine side of your box grater for even texture throughout this carrot cake oatmeal bake. Fresh carrots are better than pre-grated here. You can also use the shredder attachment on a food processor if you don’t mind larger grated carrots.
How to Make Baked Oatmeal
Baked oatmeal is an easy one bowl recipe – anyone can make this!
First mix together the wet ingredients – oil, eggs, maple syrup, vanilla, and slowly whisk in milk.
Then start adding in dry ingredients – rolled oats, baking powder, salt, spices. And fold in shredded carrots, coconut and chopped walnuts.
Transfer the oat mixture to a baking dish (I like an 8×8 pan or something similar in size) and bake for about 30-35 minutes.
For the full recipe with ingredient amounts and step-by-step instructions, check out the recipe card below.
How to Serve
You can serve baked oatmeal immediately and portion into bowls, serving with your favorite toppings for a complete breakfast. If you’d like to serve baked oatmeal as bars for easy grab and go individual portions, allow the pan to cool for about 20 minutes (chill in the fridge to speed things up) then slice and serve.
Favorite Toppings for Baked Oatmeal
- cashew butter, almond butter or peanut butter
- melted coconut butter for a healthy frosting alternative
- drizzle of maple syrup or honey
- splash of coconut cream or greek yogurt (feel free to use a plant-based variety)
Storing Leftovers
Store any leftover baked oatmeal in the fridge, and enjoy within 3-4 days for best flavor.
To freeze, place completely cooled oatmeal in an airtight container and freeze up to three months.
You can also wrap and store individual pieces if you’d like, for an easy grab-n-go breakfast option.
REHEATING
To reheat, allow the frozen oatmeal to thaw in the fridge overnight. Then you can reheat the (thawed) oatmeal in the toaster oven at 350ºF for about 15 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces.
More Baked Oatmeal Recipes to Try
- Banana Baked Oatmeal
- Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
- Lemon Raspberry Baked Oatmeal
- Pear Baked Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
Let me know if you make these carrot cake baked oats by leaving a comment and star review below! It helps others learn more about the recipe too! Xx Ashley
PrintCarrot Cake Baked Oatmeal
Carrot Cake meets Baked Oatmeal for one delicious healthy breakfast recipe. Baked oatmeal is great for meal prep but it is perfect for serving a crowd as well. Breakfast made on a Sunday afternoon and done for the week! If you love carrot cake flavors and enjoy baked oatmeal, you must try this recipe.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 9 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup avocado oil
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1.5 cups milk of choice (cashew, almond, coconut, hemp, soy, etc.)
- 2 cups gluten free old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/3 cup shredded coconut
- 2/3 cup finely shredded carrots, packed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF and grease 9×9 baking dish (or similar size).
- Whisk Wet Ingredients: In large bowl whisk together oil, eggs, maple syrup, vanilla extract and milk.
- Add Dry Ingredients: Add in rolled oats, baking powder, spices and salt.
- Gently fold in walnuts, coconut and carrots; transfer to your prepared baking dish. Top with more walnuts if you’d like.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or, until top is golden and middle is set. You can serve immediately bowl style, or wait about 20 minutes to serve as squares.
- Serve carrot cake baked oatmeal with your favorite toppings, a little extra maple syrup or honey and enjoy!
Keywords: carrot cake oatmeal, healthy baked oatmeal, recipe for baked oatmeal
tori says
Delicious! I added white chocolate chips and almond extract for a more rich feel. I also added finely shredded apple.
★★★★★
stacy says
I am making this for the second time, taking to our mother’s day gathering! also bringing the banana baked oatmeal with some chocolate chips thrown in! love this for weekday breakfast on the run, as well as a mid day snack!
★★★★★
Amy says
I made this, this morning, and the spices are giving me all the cozy fall vibes. I love the recipe and will pass along to my aunt!
★★★★★
Ashley says
Thank you for sharing your review!