Think oatmeal is mushy, bland, and boring? Think again. 🙂This fluffy strawberry chocolate chip baked oatmeal is bursting with melty pockets of dark chocolate and sweet, juicy strawberries.
And we’re back with yet another breakfast recipe using oats! Have you ever tried baked oatmeal before? I had never even heard of it until college. I lived in a cooperative house (think similar to a sorority house, but we did our own cooking and cleaning to keep costs down) in college with over 30 girls. We served lunch and dinner Monday-Friday, and baked oatmeal was one of the recipes in the house binder of popular, go-to recipes. We would have it for lunch, and it honestly was one of the most popular recipes.
Fun fact: for two semesters I planned all of our meals and had to go grocery shopping weekly. For over 30 people! Needless to say, grocery shopping for 2 now seems like a breeze. Although, Chris always says I take forever “browsing” as he calls it. What can I say, I’m a nerd and actually enjoy grocery shipping. 🤓
So back to this recipe. Baked oatmeal is seriously nothing like traditional cooked oatmeal. Think more like an oatmeal muffin in texture. While the baked oatmeal from college didn’t have anything added in (so people could customize and add their own toppings), just like cooked oatmeal, it is the perfect blank canvas to get fun and creative with different flavors! There are honestly so many versions I’ve made throughout the years: apple cinnamon, pumpkin chocolate chip, blueberry lemon…the list goes on. When my neighbor gifted me a huge basket of fresh strawberries from his garden, this creation was born.
Health Benefits of Oatmeal
A ½ cup serving of oats contain 4 grams of fiber. It’s recommended to aim for 25 grams of fiber/day. Most Americans do not consume this recommended amount. With just one serving oat oats, you’re well on your way to the goal of 25 grams per day!
Allow me to nerd out for a brief moment. There are two different types of fiber; soluble and insoluble. They both have different roles and are found in different foods. Oats are a great source of soluble fiber, which can help prevent against heart disease by interfering with the absorption of dietary fat and cholesterol. Increased fiber consumption is linked to reduced LDL cholesterol levels (the “bad” type of cholesterol). Insoluble fiber helps with digestion. Here’s a good resource for more information on fiber.
Substitution ideas
This recipe can easily be made vegan by using a flax “egg” (which is simply 1 tablespoon of ground flax mixed with 2.5 tablespoons of water to form a gel-like consistency) as well as non-dairy milk. You can also use white cane sugar, brown sugar, or a sweetener. Feel free to adjust the amount of strawberries and chocolate chips to your preferences (but if you leave out the chocolate chips you’re crazy)!
- 2 cups old fashioned/rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup sugar or sweetener, to taste (I used 3 packets monkfruit sweetener, can use white or brown sugar instead)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg (or 1 flax egg: 1 tablespoon ground flax with 2.5 tablespoons water)
- 2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (could sub butter)
- 1 cup diced or sliced fresh strawberries
- ¼ cup mini chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8x8 or 9x9 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- Mix dry ingredients (oats, baking powder, salt, and sweetener) together in large bowl. In separate bowl, stir wet ingredients (vanilla, egg, milk, coconut oil) together until combined.
- Pour wet ingredients over oat mixture and gently stir to incorporate. Fold in strawberries and chocolate chips.
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 35-50 minutes (for 8x8 pan, likely less time for 9x9 pan) or until top is set. Mine took 45 minutes. Makes 6-9 servings, depending on size.
- Delicious topped with fresh sliced strawberries and whipped cream (or ice cream!).
This was absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to try other variations!