This cinnamon roll baked oatmeal recipe is a sweet, gooey, fluffy and ultra delicious healthy breakfast that tastes like dessert!
Healthy cinnamon roll baked oats
I blame Ikea.
It is impossible to walk out of that store not craving cinnamon rolls.
The aroma of their freshly baked rolls permeates the entire warehouse, as if they’ve sprayed cinnamon scented perfume in every room.
I spent yesterday afternoon happily shopping for furniture while dreaming of soft homemade cinnamon rolls.
Wanting a healthier option, I baked up this wholesome single serving cinnamon roll baked oatmeal for breakfast the next morning.
It gives you all the gooey comforting goodness of a classic cinnamon roll, with whole grains, fiber, and protein at the same time!
You may also like: Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
Step by step recipe video
Key ingredients
Rolled oats – You need a half cup of old fashioned rolled oats or quick oats. For gluten free baked oatmeal, use certified gluten free oats or substitute rolled quinoa flakes.
Applesauce – I like applesauce (sweetened or unsweetened) because it compliments the cinnamon flavor. You can swap mashed banana, pumpkin puree, or Greek yogurt for a high protein boost.
Sweetener – Liquid sweeteners like honey or pure maple syrup work well. Or if you want a breakfast with no sugar added, use the equivalent sweetness amount of stevia.
Cinnamon – The star of the show. It wouldn’t be a cinnamon roll without ground cinnamon! Play around with complimentary spices if you wish, such as a pinch of ginger, nutmeg, allspice, or pumpkin pie spice.
Nut butter (optional) – A tablespoon of a neutral tasting nut butter (like cashew or almond butter) or melted coconut oil adds incredible richness and really makes it feel like you’re eating dessert.
Add ins of choice – Feel free to stir in a spoonful of raisins or dates, dried figs or cranberries, chopped walnuts, chia seeds, or finely diced apple.
Other ingredients – The dessert baked oatmeal recipe also calls for pure vanilla extract, a pinch of salt, and water or milk of choice.
While the cinnamon is out, make Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts
How to make cinnamon roll baked oatmeal
- Start by preheating your oven to 375° Fahrenheit (190° Celsius). Alternatively, you can cook the recipe in a microwave or preheated toaster oven.
- Grease a one cup ramekin, mini loaf pan, or small heat-safe dish with oil or fat free spray. Want a double layer cinnamon roll oatmeal cake? Grease two half cup ramekins instead, or line the bottoms with parchment paper.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir the oats, cinnamon, salt, and any other dry ingredients.
- Whisk in the applesauce, water, sweetener, nut butter, vanilla extract, and all remaining ingredients.
- Spread the uncooked mixture into the prepared dish or pan.
- Bake on the center rack of your oven for fifteen minutes, or microwave until fully cooked. (Microwave time should take around one to three minutes and will vary depending on the wattage of your machine.)
- Let cool, then frost if desired and enjoy for breakfast, snack, or dessert.
- For optimal freshness, refrigerate leftovers in a covered container for up to five days. Or freeze in an airtight container for up to two months. Thaw or reheat frozen oatmeal before eating.
Prefer traditional cinnamon rolls? Try these Easy Cinnamon Rolls
Frosting the cinnamon oatmeal
Protein frosting: Top the oats with your favorite thick yogurt or dairy free alternative. Mix in a scoop of vanilla protein powder or sweetener to taste if desired.
Cream cheese frosting: Use store bought icing or whip up the quick homemade cream cheese frosting written out in my recipe for Carrot Cake Bars.
Powdered sugar glaze: Stir two tablespoons powdered sugar with a few drops water, milk, or lemon juice. If glaze is too thick, add more liquid.
Coconut butter frosting: This is one of my personal favorites. Spread your oatmeal with warmed buttery Coconut Butter. You may not even need additional sweetener.
Other options: Eat the cinnamon roll baked oatmeal plain, topped with mashed banana, or spread with almond, apple or pumpkin butter.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if IKEA bottled their cinnamon scent and sold it as perfume?
Or maybe I am the only one who wants to smell like a giant cinnamon bun…
Just thinking out loud here…
The recipe was inspired by my Vegan Cinnamon Rolls.
Cinnamon Roll Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup rolled oats (45g)
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/16 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup applesauce (60g) (or pumpkin, yogurt, or mashed banana)
- 1/4 cup water (60g)
- 1 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup (22g) or stevia to taste
- 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp almond butter or coconut oil, optional (15g)
- 1 spoonful raisins or chopped walnuts, optional
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 375° Fahrenheit (190° Celsius). Alternatively, you can bake the recipe in a microwave or preheated toaster oven.
- 2. Grease a one cup ramekin, heat-safe dish, or mini loaf pan with oil, or line the bottom with parchment paper.
- 3. Stir together all dry ingredients. Whisk in wet to form a batter.
- 4. Spread into the prepared ramekin, then bake on the center rack of the oven for fifteen minutes. (If using a microwave, cook 1-3 minutes or until fluffy. Time will vary based on wattage of your machine.)
- 5. Let cool, then serve and enjoy. Frosting ideas are included above if you want to ice your cinnamon roll baked oatmeal.
Video
Notes
More delicious oatmeal recipes
How do you think your baked oatmeals would turn out being made in a cupcake maker? I think itwould be a fun idea for on the road.
Just tried this recipe…it’s amazing!! Especially with some coconut oil mixed in…YUM!
These are so amazing! I love cinnamon buns but since I went gluten free I haven’t been able to have them and this is the perfect substitute for it! Thanks for giving me a taste of freedom!
Do these keep well? Need a yummy breakfast for camping!
Yes… they can even be frozen :).
Not sure how they’d be un-fridged for days on end. But if you have a cooler, that should work!
I’ve tried to prepare this today and while the mixture tasted pretty nice, the oats in the resulting meal were still pretty hard… I’m not sure whether this is because they didn’t soak up enough liquid or because I baked it for too long. All in all, it must have been the full 23 minutes, since I found it hard to tell when it was ‘firm’ because it was all soft and bubbly in the oven.
Do you have any suggestions?
Wow!! I just ate this today for breakfast — SOOO delicious! My sweetener of choice was 1/2 tbs agave and I decided to use 1 tbs peanut butter, which I think that was my favorite part. Also a little sprinkle of brown sugar on top 🙂 ahhh definitely a new favorite breakfast
Yum! Eating this right now! 🙂 Thanks for all of these awesome oatmeal recipes!
What if I mixed peanut butter into the bottom layer of the oats in the ramekin before baking .
This was so good! I used 60g of pumpkin puree and added a packet of Stevia, since my dad likes it sweet. I didn’t have any frosting, but I put everything in a muffin pan (filled up 2 spots) and then sprinkled some cinnamon on top. Baked for 20, broiled for 3 min after, perfect crust! It was nice and warm. Katie, your recipes never fail me!
Hey! i eat oats all the time, and always looking for new ways to create them, without adding a ton of calories and sugar to them… my meal this morning was protein shake and oatmeal .
instead of maple syrup i used “walden farms” pancake syrup ( delicious )
i used a little splenda.
and lastly soy milk.
but i didn’t want to skip my shake, or over load with the delicious sweet icing.
so i opted for a scoop of vanilla protein with a few drops of real vanilla and a tad drop of soy just enough to make it fluffy and thick..
i seperated the oatmeal ” cinnamon roll” in two and cooked them super thin….
mix it all together i made a delicious “oatmeal cookie” like i had when i was a kid growing up! so good!
Thanks for the ideas!!