Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

Chocolate Baked Oatmeal tastes like brownie batter but bakes into a sliceable, meal-prep friendly breakfast in just 35 minutes. Made with rolled oats, cocoa powder, and maple syrup, this chocolate-forward breakfast is filling, not overly sweet, and tested for clean, brownie-like slices.

Are you stuck in a boring breakfast rut? We totally get that! Our mornings are a repetitive cycle of cereal, frozen waffles, yogurt and the occasional toast with jam on the run. 

Mornings are simply too busy for us to put much effort into breakfast. But that's where this brownie baked oatmeal recipe comes in handy. Simply stir the ingredients together, dump into a square baking dish then bake for about 30 minutes (plenty of time to get the kids ready in the morning). Plus, you can make this healthy chocolate oatmeal ahead and serve it cold or warm it slightly for those hectic mornings--that's pretty much every morning if you have young kids like us.

What Makes This Chocolate Baked Oatmeal Different?

• It's not overly sweet, more brownie batter than chocolate cake.
• It uses chopped bittersweet chocolate, which melts better than chips.
• It's tested for sliceability, so you can portion it cleanly for meal prep.
• It works with multiple milk and sweetener swaps.

Ingredients That Matter

This is one of those versatile recipes with simple ingredients, plus it can be adapted for dietary needs:

• Rolled Oats. There are few better breakfast ingredients to keep you feeling full than oats. For this recipe we stick with good old fashioned rolled oats. We'll discuss the health benefits of oats below, but note that you can swap in just about any form of oats you have on hand (but you'll get best results with regular rolled oats instead of thick-cut, quick or steel cut).
• Cocoa Powder. Much of the chocolate flavor in this recipe comes from cocoa powder. Simply put, cocoa powder is the ground solids of cocoa beans after the cocoa butter is extracted.
• Milk. The milk helps hydrate the oats, giving the baked oatmeal a pleasantly moist texture. We use regular whole milk, but any variation of fat level and even alternative milks will work, including almond milk, soy milk, or oat milk.
• Maple Syrup. To sweeten our chocolate baked oatmeal we reach for maple syrup. We like to use a natural sweetener whenever possible, plus we live in Vermont and we're pretty sure there's some law about using maple syrup instead of other sugars.
• Melted Butter. Here you can use melted coconut oil if you plan to make this vegan (see below) or even a vegetable oil. The fat helps give this chocolate baked oatmeal the right amount of richness.
• Baking Powder. A little baking powder is mixed into the oats to give our final baked oatmeal a light and fluffy texture. It helps prevent the baked oatmeal from being too dense.
• Eggs. A couple eggs help bind the oats together into a cohesive, sliceable dish. You can swap for two flax eggs if you prefer.
• Vanilla. We know this is a chocolate flavored baked oatmeal, but a little vanilla tastes so good with chocolate. A teaspoon is all you need!
• Chopped Bittersweet Chocolate. Adding some chopped bittersweet chocolate gives the final baked oatmeal little pockets of gooey rich chocolate goodness when warm. Chips work fine, too, but we tend to use bars as chips often have additives to hold their classic chip shape and then don't melt as well as chopped bars. And using bittersweet chocolate means there's tons of rich chocolate flavor without being overly sweet.

How to Make Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

This recipe is about as simple as it gets, but there are a few steps to ensure success:

A Healthy and Hearty Breakfast

Besides the maple syrup and the chocolate topping, there isn't much in this recipe to feel guilty about. In fact, it's actually quite healthy.

• Oats. You'll likely feel pretty full after eating a single serving of this chocolate baked oatmeal. That's because the oats are a rich source of dietary fiber (that's the nutrient that gives you the full feeling). Plus they are packed with protein, manganese, and B vitamins. Oats also contain soluble fiber beta-glucans, which has been shown to lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
• Cocoa Powder. You'll get a good amount of minerals from cocoa powder, too, including iron, zinc, manganese, magnesium and potassium.
• Maple Syrup. While maple syrup is still sugar, it contains small amounts of antioxidants and trace minerals not found in refined sugar. Overall sweetness remains moderate compared to traditional brownies.

Substitutions & Variations

Do you want to make some dietary tweaks? We have you covered:

• Make this recipe vegan - Swap the milk for a dairy-free alternative like almond or oat milk. Use melted coconut oil instead of butter and be sure to use a vegan chocolate. You'll also want to swap in two flax eggs (2 tablespoons ground flax seeds stirred into 6 tablespoons water and set aside for 5 minutes).
• Make this recipe gluten-free - This one is pretty simple. Be sure to use gluten-free oats (some oats are processed in facilities that also handle flour, so be sure to buy a package labeled gluten free). Everything else is already gluten free.
• No maple syrup - You can swap in equal amounts of light brown sugar or even granulated sugar. Honey and agave work as well, though the flavor may be slightly overwhelming. The texture may be slightly different, but it will be plenty sweet!

Fudgy vs. Cake-Like: How to Control Texture

For a fudgier, brownie-like texture, increase the milk to 1 ½ cups and 3 tablespoons of melted butter. For a cake-like texture, bake slightly longer for firmer slices. Whichever you choose, be sure to rest at room temperature completely. Resting time matters as the oats will continue absorbing liquid as it cools.

This recipe simply calls for a mixing bowl, a spoon, and a baking vessel. Does the baking dish matter? The short answer is yes. Here's what you need to know:

• Metal pans brown more aggressively and often bake slightly faster.
• Ceramic pans heat evenly but may take a few extra minutes.
• Glass pans retain heat longer and the edges often cook faster than the center of the pan. (check for doneness earlier).

How to Scale This Recipe

This recipe is ideal for meal prep. Doubling it in a 9- by 13-inch pan yields 12 hearty squares that reheat well throughout the week. Increase the total cook time by 5 to 10 minutes and rotate the pan halfway through baking.

Storage and Make-Ahead

This brownie baked oatmeal is perfect for a meal prep breakfast. If you want to make this a day ahead, you absolutely can. We prefer it fresh out of the oven, but it's quite tasty room temperature or cold.

• You can assemble the recipe and wait to bake it until morning. Just be sure to cover the baking dish with plastic wrap to avoid picking up any unpleasant odors from the refrigerator. We don't recommend holding it uncooked in the refrigerator for more than one night.
• You can portion leftovers and eat them throughout the week.
• Be sure to store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
• We don't recommend freezing baked oatmeal, but in a pinch you can. Just be sure to warm it up (we advise against it because it would likely become very dry).

Do you love interesting breakfast recipes? Try these:

• Strawberry and Almond Baked Oatmeal
• Pumpkin Pie Baked Oatmeal
• German Chocolate Cake Baked Oatmeal
• Brioche French Toast Casserole
• Peanut Butter and Jam Baked Oatmeal
• Homemade Cinnamon Granola
• Mini Egg Bites with Broccoli and Cheddar
• Blackberry Banana Oat Muffins
• Biscoff Overnight Oats

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