Baked Chocolate Oatmeal

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This Baked Chocolate Oatmeal will be your new go-to breakfast recipe for a busy week or slow weekend morning, it's extremely addicting. Perfect to meal prep in advance, in about 45 minutes you'll have a healthy and hearty breakfast on the table for all the chocolate lovers!

Chocolate for breakfast? You heard that right! Believe me when I say, this Baked Chocolate Oatmeal is the perfect way to start the day. Full of wholesome oats, decadent, rich chocolate, and creamy peanut butter, this dish is nutritious and delicious! This satisfying breakfast is sure to fill you up and leave your tastebuds happy, so you can feel good about digging in bright and early.

Plus, with ingredients you probably have in your pantry and a super simple process, you can have this Chocolate Baked Oatmeal on the table in no time. Make this ahead of time and portion it out for the busy week ahead, too. Now breakfast can be the most important AND most delicious meal of the day. Enjoy!

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If you like this tasty morning meal idea, check out some of our other favorite breakfast recipes full of oats. We especially love these flavorful applesauce oatmeal muffins and our hearty amish baked oatmeal. Cheers to breaking the fast!

Baked chocolate oatmeal with berries and cream.

Table of Contents

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Quick and Easy: Using ingredients you likely already have on hand plus a simple method, you can whip up these oats and have breakfast on the table in no time.
Nutritious and Delicious: These oats are packed with decadent chocolate peanut butter goodness, but are so hearty and filled with healthy ingredients to fill you up. You'll feel good about starting the day with this breakfast that tastes just like dessert!
Customizable: This is our go-to recipe, but feel free to swap in different types of milks, oats, chocolate chips and toppings, depending on what you and your family prefer. Get creative and enjoy!
Prep Ahead or Make Ahead: You can measure out your ingredients ahead of time and simply mix together and assemble when you're ready to bake and enjoy. Or you can even make this ahead of time, bake, let cool, and simply reheat when you're ready to eat it.

Ingredients

Scroll Down for Ingredient Amounts Listed in the Recipe Card Below

Old Fashioned Rolled Oats: The base of this hearty breakfast recipe. These are hearty, packed with fiber and vitamins, and have a great texture. Stick with old fashioned rolled oats here if you can for the best results, but you can certainly use thick-cut, quick or steel cut if you're in a pinch.
Brown Sugar: Sweetens the oats with rich, nutty, molasses notes.
Cocoa Powder: Provides the chocolatey goodness to this recipe! This is where the oats get their rich, but not overpowering or overly sweet chocolate flavor from.
Baking Powder: Helps to give the oats a light, airy texture when baking, and prevents them from being too dense.
Salt: You always needs a little bit of salt when baking something sweet. It helps to balance out the rich flavors from the brown sugar and cocoa powder.
Milk: Helps to hydrate the oats and keep them moist.
Eggs: Act as a binder and give the oats that perfect scoopable consistency.
Butter or Oil: The fat in this recipe, butter or a neutral oil works, and adds a nice richness to the oats.
Vanilla Extract: A little hint of vanilla always goes perfectly with chocolate!
Peanut Butter: We like creamy peanut butter for this recipe. It brings a rich, decadent, nutty flavor and consistency to the oats - peanut butter and chocolate are the perfect match!
Chocolate Chips: You can use milk, dark or white chips here - anything goes! These add extra sweetness and a fudgy texture.
Nuts: These are optional, but we suggest taking the option - chopped pecans, walnuts or almonds provide a nice toasted flavor and crunchy bite. Toasted coconut flakes on top would be delicious, too!
Toppings: Get creative and top your oats with anything you desire. We love fresh sliced strawberries, bananas and homemade (or store-bought!) whipped cream to take this recipe to the next level.

The ingredients to make baked chocolate oatmeal.

TOOLS YOU’LL NEED

How To Make Baked Chocolate Oatmeal

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 9 x 9-inch baking dish or line with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, mix together the rolled oats, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Stir until well combined.

Mixing the dry ingredients for baked chocolate oatmeal.

In another bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, melted butter or oil, vanilla extract, and creamy peanut butter.

Mixing the wet ingredients for baked chocolate oatmeal.

Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and stir until well combined.
Stir in ¼ cup of the chocolate chips and chopped nuts, if using.

Folding chocolate chips in baked chocolate oatmeal.

Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread it out evenly. Top with remaining chocolate chips.

Adding chocolate chips to the top of chocolate oatmeal.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top is set and the edges are slightly browned.
Let the baked oatmeal cool for a few minutes before serving. Then serve warm with fresh berries, sliced bananas or fresh whipped cream, if desired.

Slicing Baked chocolate oatmeal with berries and cream.

Pro Tips

Avoid Over-Baking: Stick to the bake time the recipe calls for to keep this dish rich and moist. If you bake it too long, it'll come out dry.
Add Espresso Powder: Add in a teaspoon or so of espresso powder to intensify the chocolate flavor!
Make it Dessert: This chocolate baked oatmeal is decadent as is, but if you want to really turn it into a treat, add in your favorite chopped up candy bars. More chocolate, peanut butter, caramel and toffee will take this breakfast to dessert level, fast!
Change the Texture: If you want these oats to have a more cake-like consistency, try blending your oats into a smooth oat flour. The end result will be super tender, moist, and scoopable.

Variations and Substitutions

Swap in Different Milks: You can make this recipe with any type of milk. We like whole milk, but almond, soy, or any preferred plant-based milk would be delicious too.
Sweeten It Up: There are some sweet ingredients in this recipe, but if you want a little more, try a drizzle of maple syrup or honey for some extra sweetness.
Add Crunch: Toasted nuts bring flavor and crunchy texture to these oats. Pecans, walnuts or almonds would all work - use whatever you like or happen to have in your pantry.
Change Up The Nut Butter: We love the combination of chocolate and peanut butter, but you can certainly use any nut butter you'd like - almond or cashew would both be tasty. Get creative!
Homemade Whipped Cream: A dollop of fresh whipped cream is the perfect accent:
- In a large bowl on high speed, blend together 1 cup heaving whipping cream or whipping cream, 2-4 tablespoons powered sugar, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract until stiff peaks form, about 1-2 minutes.

What To Serve With Chocolate Baked Oats

This baked chocolate oatmeal is perfectly delicious on it's own, but serve it alongside some of our favorites here to make it more of a hearty meal!

Storage Instructions

For the fridge. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. You can portion out individual servings into separate containers too, so they're ready to grab and go during the week.
Reheating. If you reheat the oatmeal and it's too dry, then add a splash of milk and stir in to make it the correct consistency.
Freezing. We don't recommend freezing this as it might dry out and change the texture, but if you're in a pinch and need to, be sure to store it in an airtight container and warm it up before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I substitute quick oats for rolled oats?

If you have quick oats, you can use them in this recipe instead of rolled oats. They'll just have a slightly softer texture and won't be as chewy. You can also use a combination of quick and rolled oats. We don't suggest using steel-cut oats, as they might not fully cook through.

Can this recipe be dairy free or vegan?

Definitely! Instead of whole milk, use a plant-based milk like almond or soy milk. And you can omit the eggs if you'd like - simply use ground flaxseed instead.

How can I make this chocolate oatmeal not as sweet?

To cut down on the sweetness, you can use less brown sugar and chocolate chips than the recipe calls for. It will still be just as delicious!

How do you know when the oatmeal is finished baking?

Once the oatmeal appears set and no longer looks liquid-like or jiggly, the baked oatmeal is done. Remove it and let it cool on the counter before serving; this will let it set up a bit, too.

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