This easy banana bread baked oatmeal takes just 10 minutes to prep and has big banana and cinnamon flavors, making it perfect for a delicious healthy breakfast! Plus it’s gluten-free and naturally sweetened.
I live for ripe bananas.
We go through tons and tons of bananas in our house. I buy at least 3 bunches every single week.
So ripe bananas are hard to come by around here. (Sad because I have 25 ripe banana recipes just waiting to be made...)
Usually, I resort to buying an entire extra bunch that we can’t possibly eat in time to have a few ripe ones on hand. I’ve also been known to hide some in our pantry.
I make all manner of muffins, breads, snacks and desserts with ripe bananas. Spinach-banana mini muffins are a must-have at all times in our freezer -- for school lunches -- so those often come first.
Followed quickly by this banana bread baked oatmeal. ❤️
I mean, we have overnight oatmeal jars at least 3 mornings a week, but we also love this baked oatmeal.
(We make tons of others too... blueberry baked oatmeal, peach baked oatmeal, carrot cake baked oatmeal and pumpkin chocolate chip baked oatmeal. Yes, we are obsessed.)
This banana baked oatmeal is melt-in-your-mouth soft, with big cinnamon flavor and just the right amount of sweetness for breakfast.
And the glorious smell wafting from the oven will have you hovering nearby, anxiously awaiting the moment you can pull the pan out and start devouring it!
And it’s gluten free, naturally sweetened with maple syrup and oh so filling with the hearty oats and walnuts.
Recipe Notes:
- Oats: I always use old-fashioned rolled oats for baked oatmeal. I recommend those over quick oats or steel cut oats for this recipe.
- Milk: You can use skim or 2% milk, soy milk or almond milk for this recipe.
- Walnuts: These make it feel like banana bread to me, but I've also left them out before and it worked just fine, in case you need this to be nut-free.
- The batter is very liquidy and it will fill your pan almost all the way. Don’t panic, that’s just how it should be. The oats absorb that liquid and this doesn’t rise, so it’s not going to spill over.
- It’s helpful to let this cool for a while in the pan to allow it to set up before you slice it.
Want to make a vegan baked oatmeal? Very easy to do.
- Substitute a flax egg for the egg.
- Use soy or almond milk as your milk.
- Use vegan butter, canola oil or melted coconut oil in place of the regular butter. You could also substitute applesauce or just leave it out.
This banana bread baked oatmeal is so cozy when it's warm from the oven.
However, I also love it cold from the fridge. I feel the same way about regular banana bread; you can really eat it at any temperature.
If you are making it ahead and want to serve it warm, just pop a slice in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds (a little longer if it’s cold from the fridge).
The recipe doesn’t call for it, and it’s certainly sweet enough on it’s own, but feel free to add some chocolate chips to make these even more fun!
I’d recommend about a ½ cup of mini chocolate chips or regular semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Y'all know how I feel about chocolate for breakfast.
Storage Tips:
- This baked oatmeal will keep covered, on the counter, for up to 2 days.
- After that, as with all baked recipes that have banana in them, I recommend you move it to the refrigerator. It will keep there for another 2-3 days.
- You can also freeze the leftovers. Cut your baked oatmeal, once cooled, into squares. Place them in a freezer-safe ziptop bag (that’s labeled!) and freeze for up to 6 months.
To thaw, just place in the refrigerator overnight. You can serve it cold from the fridge or warm it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.
You can also warm it in the microwave from the freezer in a pinch. Start with 45 seconds and add time (and possibly turn it upside down) as needed.
If you haven’t tried baked oatmeal before, please give it a go!
It’s a lovely weekend breakfast when you have a little extra time and it’s an easy make-ahead breakfast to have on hand for busy weekday mornings.
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. You might also want to try this healthy banana bread.
Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- ½ cup walnuts, chopped (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 medium ripe bananas
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ cups milk of choice
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375.
- Mix the first 5 ingredients (oats through salt) together in a large bowl.
- In a separate medium bowl, mash the banana with a fork. Then beat in the egg and add remaining ingredients (through vanilla). Mix well.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
- Pour the mixture into a greased 8x8 pan. It will be very liquidy and very full. It’s OK.
- Bake at 375 for about 35 minutes, until set and cooked through.
- Let sit for at least 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving so it sets up all the way.
- Enjoy warm or cold. See notes below for storing tips.
Notes
Video
Nutrition
Sharlene
Have you ever prepped this and stored in the fridge overnight and then just baked it in the morning?
Kathryn
Hi Sharlene! No, but I imagine that would be OK. You'd want to take it out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature a little bit before baking (and/or maybe add 5-10 minutes to the cooking time). Let me know if you try that and how it works out!
Sharice
This is sooo good! I’ve made many different oatmeal bakes in my day, and my husband said of this one: “I’m going to go on the record and say that this is the best one you’ve ever made!” I did make a couple modifications. I doubled the recipe and put it in a 9×13 pan. For the 3 cups of milk, I used a mix of Almond Milk, 2% milk, and heavy cream. Also, I did 1/2 cup maple syrup instead of 2/3 cup, and it was still sweet enough for our liking. All in all this is an awesome recipe, with the perfect denseness, texture, and flavor. My son loved it with some spray whipped cream on top!
Lizz Jackson
I can't see the recipe. Just the whole post. I tried to look at one other recipe and it was the same issue. What am I not doing? I really want to try this out.
Kathryn
Hi Lizz! I'm sorry, I've just switched recipe plugins and there seem to be some tech glitches. They are looking into it now. That recipe appears to be showing up at the very bottom of the post - underneath the big Pinterest image. (Hopefully it will be moved back up soon once they figure out what's wrong.) Sorry for the inconvenience!
Marissa
This was so delicious and even better the next morning. Thank you for sharing!!
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Marissa - thanks for sharing! It's a big time favorite in our house! 😊
Kim
Hi Kathryn!
Can I use steel cut oats in this recipe?
Kathryn
Hi Kim! No, I don't think steel cut oats will work here, since they take so much longer to cook. Old fashioned or rolled oats are the best bet for this recipe. I hope that helps!
Sushma
Hi Kathryn,
I made this today and I must say it tastes heavenly!! Such an easy and delicious breakfast! Made a few changes though: added dates and a couple of tablespoons of water instead of maple syrup for sweetness; used coconut oil instead of butter. Thanks for such a wonderful recipe!
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it! 😊 And thanks for sharing those substitutions - that's really helpful! (I actually have some dates and ripe bananas right now so I may try it that way!)
Kristen
This was so easy to put together and turned out delicious! I subbed a flax egg instead of a regular egg, used agave instead of maple syrup, almond milk instead of regular, added a couple tbsps of chia seeds, and 1/4 cup dark cocoa powder. I love the infinite add-ins and flavor options with this and I will definitely be making more in the future, thank you!
Kathryn
I'm so happy you loved it Kristen! And thanks for mentioning those substitutions and add-ins - very helpful!
Kevin W
I made these with steel cut oats for a chewy-nutty crunch (and because it was all I had on hand), and the taste is so amazing. Thanks!
Kathryn
I'm so happy you enjoyed this! And thanks for sharing about the steel cut oats - I'll have to try it that way next time for a chewier texture!
Tami
I just made this recipe this morning and I had to drop you a line and thank you so much for sharing it! It was the BEST baked oatmeal I've ever made. I loved the texture and perfect amount of sweetness. Truly tastes like a banana bread oatmeal hybrid! As far as changes, I used brown sugar for the honey because that's what I had on hand, I added an extra egg for the liquid since I left out honey, and I omitted the walnuts to reduce calories. Texture came out perfect. I also added two teaspoons of cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg because we like our banana bread spiced. I will definitely be adding this to my breakfast rotation. Thanks again!
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear you loved this Tami! And thanks for sharing your changes and additions - so helpful! And sound so yummy!
Brenda
If i change it to 36 servings how big of a pan do i need and how long would i bake it for?
Kathryn
Hi Brenda! So as is, in an 8x8 pan, it makes 9 large servings or 16 small squares, depending on how you cut it. If you were to double the recipe, you could try baking it in a 9x12 pan. It would probably need just a little extra baking time since it'll be slightly thicker. Maybe give it 40-45 minutes? Hope you love it!
LaTonia
I just made this and holy moly is it good! I dont usually leave comments for recipes, but this was was so good, I just HAD to! I didn't have walnuts, so I used pecans. Delicious!
Kathryn
Oh I'm SO happy to hear you loved it! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Erin
I made this a few months ago. Or maybe it was almost like a year? 😉 It was the first thing I ever baked for my son! (I left out the maple and it was obviously not sweet but he didn't mind) I had to laugh when I scrolled down and I saw my peanut butter cookies listed under your breakfast options. I do cookies for breakfast, too. 😀 Thanks for the great recipe and for linking to my cookies!
Kathryn Doherty
Aww, yay! So glad your little one loved this Erin! 😊
Dawn M
I've made this twice. The first time, I followed the recipe and it is WAY too much cinnamon. Burn your mouth and leave sores kind of too much. The second time I halved the cinnamon, and it was great. With that adjustment, this is how we'll use up ripe bananas from now on.
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Dawn, I'm happy to hear you enjoyed this and plan to make it again and again! I'm sorry it seemed like too much cinnamon to your tastes. I've made this dozens of times as written, with 1 1/2 teaspoons (definitely not tablespoons; hopefully that wasn't the issue) and it's never seemed like a lot to us. But I'm glad you liked it better when you halved the cinnamon. 😊
Christi
Could I use honey instead of maple syrup?
Kathryn Doherty
I switch those out for each other often in baking, so I think it would work just fine here. Would love to hear if you try it!
Auj
Hi, I was wondering, what could I use instead of the applesauce?
Kathryn Doherty
Hi! You could substitute butter or oil for the applesauce. Or you could use some extra banana and milk to make up that 1/2 cup worth of liquid. Hope that helps!
Carmen
Hello! I was wondering if I could use Stevia liquid form in this as a form of sweetener and if it would affect the recipe at all. I haven't tried using Stevia in baking yet and I'm so scared to mess this recipe up!
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Carmen, I have also never used Stevia liquid, either in baking or otherwise, so I can't advise you on how it would or would not work. Let me know if you try it though!
Carmen
So I tried it with liquid stevia and it came out wonderful!
My boyfriend and I love eating it for breakfast with a glass of almond milk. This recipe is great since we're both rushing in the morning.. no need to prepare since having it cold is just as great!
Kathryn Doherty
Thanks so much for letting us know it turned out so well with the liquid stevia - that's so helpful! And I'm so glad you both enjoy it - I'm a big fan of eating it cold too. Happy holidays! 😊
Donna Bielstein
Hi Kathryn,
I am excited to try this recipe....today! However, I am wondering if you have ever tried this with any other fruit; like peaches, pears? I do like banana bread and bananas but love peaches. Thank you for sharing, I have to go now to check out your other recipes....ha!
Thanks and HNY!
Donna
Kathryn Doherty
I hope you enjoy it Donna! I have several other baked oatmeal recipes (check them out here: https://www.familyfoodonthetable.com/?s=baked+oatmeal) but none with peaches - yet! Sounds like a great idea though and I'll have to get to work on developing one. 😊
Kari Keith
Can I make a double batch and freeze half?
Kathryn Doherty
Yes, this freezes great! Make sure to let it cool down completely. I also recommend slicing it and either wrapping individual pieces in saran wrap and aluminum foil to freeze or placing several pieces together in a freezer-safe plastic bag (depending on how many you'll want to take out at a time). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy it!
Sadie Belle
Could I leave out or substitute the nuts for taking to a nut free school?
Kathryn Doherty
Yes, you can just leave out the nuts! My kids now prefer it that way. Hope that helps!