Baked Oatmeal

101 Cookbooks, the gorgeous blog started by Heidi Swanson in 2003, is one of the sites that inspired me to launch Lottie + Doof. That may surprise you if you were to compare the nutritional qualities of the two sites, but I really related to Heidi’s sense of design and to her relationship to food. It is one of the places on the web that continues to inspire me to cook. Heidi also writes some lovely cookbooks and I was pleased as punch that she sent me a copy of her newest, Super Natural Every Day: Well-Loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen.

It is incredibly beautiful and from the moment I picked it up, had a hard time putting it down. It is easy on the eyes, a good read and full of recipes that had me itching to cook. It is rare that a book can do all three things, but when it does, you know it is a keeper. I kept annoying Bryan by making him look at photos and recipes that I liked—my excitement could not be contained.

Currently, the book is filled with scraps of paper marking the recipes I plan on trying. There are many scraps of paper, but I decided to start with this recipe for baked oatmeal.

I know baked oatmeal is a thing, but it is a thing I had never tried. I have no idea why. I like oatmeal, I like baking—seems like a no-brainer. Bryan’s sister (hi Heather!) was staying with us last weekend and the three of us couldn’t get enough of this recipe. I will be making it again and again, it is fantastic. It is easily adapted as fruits come in and out of season. I can even imagine a version with jam in the depths of winter. Bryan was impressed with the leftovers, he heated this up the next day and loved it. The blueberries had turned everything a little grey by then, but close your eyes and you’ll be happy.

Thanks, Heidi, for creating such a beautiful book and for inviting all of us into your kitchen.

Of course, we couldn’t leave well enough alone and poured a tiny bit of cream on ours. Milk would be a good compromise. Either way, this is straight-up delicious.

  • 2 cups / 7 oz / 200 g rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup / 2 oz / 60 g walnut pieces, toasted (see page 219) and chopped
  • 1/3 cup / 2 oz / 60 g natural cane sugar or maple syrup, plus more for serving
  • 1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
  • 11/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
  • 2 cups / 475 ml milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 ripe bananas, cut into 1/2-inch / 1cm pieces
  • 11/2 cups / 6.5 oz / 185 g huckleberries, blueberries, or mixed berries

Preheat the oven to 375F / 190C with a rack in the top third of the oven. Generously butter the inside of an 8-inch / 20cm square baking dish.

In a bowl, mix together the oats, half the walnuts, the sugar, if using, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, if using, the milk, egg, half of the butter, and the vanilla.

Arrange the bananas in a single layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle two-thirds of the berries over the top. Cover the fruit with the oat mixture. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the oats. Gently give the baking dish a couple thwacks on the countertop to make sure the milk moves through the oats. Scatter the remaining berries and remaining walnuts across the top.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the top is nicely golden and the oat mixture has set. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Drizzle the remaining melted butter on the top and serve. Sprinkle with a bit more sugar or drizzle with maple syrup if you want it a bit sweeter.

serves 6 generously, or 12 as part of a larger brunch spread

***Recipe reprinted with permission from Super Natural Every Day: Well-Loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen by Heidi Swanson, copyright © 2011. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.

Thanks, Heidi and Ten Speed!

94 comments to “Baked Oatmeal”

  1. Wow! I have oatmeal every morning for breakfast, This looks so good.

  2. I’ve been reading here for a while but don’t often comment. You do a great job on this blog – it keeps me coming back.

    Heidi was my first food blog ‘hero’ too. I have her new book on pre-order and can’t wait for it to arrive so I can get in the kitchen with it. This recipe looks fab – feel very, very free to post some more if you like to keep me going until my copy arrives!!! :-)

  3. …Yum! Another fantastic way to get your fiber!

    …Thanks for sharing!

    …Blessings… :o)

  4. I absolutely love baked oatmeal and Heidi to of course. I make mine with maple syrup and coconut oil, delicious!

  5. Wow! This looks so good!
    I think it’s calling to be made on the rainy weekend for breakfast one day :) Your site looks gorgeous.

  6. I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy!

  7. Looks delish! I was just going to make some granola, but maybe should make this instead?

  8. yum, it’s like dessert for breakfast

  9. great lookin’ recipe. i also eat oatmeal almost every day for breakfast, and this looks like a great way to take care of a weeks worth all at once :).

  10. I love how your pictures come out. How do you get such great pictures?

  11. Darn it Amazon, hurry up!! (it’s on it’s way to me). I’m going to try this recipe first…

  12. And it looks straight-up delicious. I don’t know why I haven’t tried this either, considering how much I love oatmeal. So excited to see her at Omnivore Books next week.

  13. i am sitting @ my desk eating “nuked” instant oatmeal with bananas (s o o sorry!)…& looking @ your beautiful photos & reading your words….i def know what i am going to be baking for my mornings!
    thanks tim…as always!!

  14. I made it this morning and it was great! I really liked the texture so much more than regular oatmeal.

  15. Kartik- light! so much light.
    Kimberly- lucky you! I keep hoping she’ll make it to other parts of the country on the book tour.
    Whistlepea- agreed. I have a hard time eating oatmeal unless I load it with nuts and fruit. this is such a great alternative.

    thanks, everyone!

  16. Wow this looks and sounds amazing!! I’m not a big oatmeal fan, but the wife sure is. I think I will give this a try tomorrow…seems like a perfect Sunday breakfast. Thanks for sharing!!

  17. Mmm, it’s in the oven as we speak!! Uh, I mean type!!

  18. fernanda mendez says:

    April 3rd, 2011 at 11:25 am

    thanks! it was a big hit !! my kids loved it

  19. Heidi has fixed more lunches and dinners than any other blogger for me. I have a feeling she is going to colonize breakfast as well quite soon. Lovely pictures.

  20. Fantastic photos! It makes the recipe even more appealing. I just love your blog! So Tim, did you use the sugar or the maple syrup option in the recipe?

  21. Sandra Holl says:

    April 3rd, 2011 at 3:49 pm

    Tim,
    I am an oatmeal lover who hated stirring a pot of oatmeal. This seems to be the perfect solution. Thanks!

  22. We read your post with the Baked Oatmeal recipe and had to try it. The recipe turned out great and was a hit at a social gathering this afternoon. The recipe was easy to follow, clear instructions and the photos helped a lot. Thank you for sharing and our family looks forward to other great ideas in the future.

  23. christine says:

    April 4th, 2011 at 10:38 am

    This looks delicious, and your photos are lovely! I have a question about how you made the recipe, though. It calls for 1/3 cup of “natural cane sugar or maple syrup”. The recipe then says to add “the sugar, if using,” to the oat mixture, but the next instruction is to whisk “the maple syrup, if using,” into the egg mixture. I’m confused about whether the total amount of sweetener called for is 1/3 cup? Also, which mixture, oat or egg, should the sweetener be added to? Thanks for sharing.

  24. This was delicious, and I got rave reviews from my in-laws and husband. I used toasted pecans instead of the walnuts. Also, my blueberries were pretty tart so I added a tablespoon of sugar to the oatmeal, along with the noted amount of maple syrup. I will definitely make this again!

  25. Gotta make this!

  26. Tim, I’m a sucker for almost any Heidi recipe. Baked oatmeal is SO good! Sidenote: is that a vintage spoon?? I love it.

  27. Hi Tim,

    I made this recipe this morning and it was divine. This is one of many recipes I’ve been encouraged to try on your blog and I just wanted to say thank you for helping me realize that cooking and baking is not chore, but a true pleasure. Really, thank you for your beautiful posts and photos.

  28. Christine- yes! total sweetener is 1/3 cup. The recipe is correct as written, liquid is added to liquid, dry is added to dry. It just gives you the option of sweetening it however you like.

    Allison- yay, success. glad to hear you liked it.

    Kasey- Not vintage, amazing Beekman spoon. Dishwasher safe! https://www.lottieanddoof.com/2010/03/recent-acquisitions-spring-fever-edition/

    Emily- Thanks for the nice note, it means a lot to me. Happy baking!

  29. Hey Tim!
    Baked oatmeal sounds delicious! I’ve actually never heard of it. I love blueberries and I love oatmeal- so it sounds right up my alley. Heidi’s blog is one of the blogs that inspired me to start my brand-new blog too ;)

  30. Heidi is a rock star. I just made the Wild Rice Casserole and it was fantastic. I’ve dog-earned half of the cookbook…Baked Oatmeal included. Your pictures are absolutely fantastic and I bet you’ll have your own book out there in the not-so-distant future. As a fellow food blogger (for documentary/fun purposes only, not commercial/financial prospects), I wanted to ask you: do you always get permission from the author of a recipe? Most of the recipes I use are online and available free of charge to whomever might want them. That includes Ina, Food Network, other blogs and Saveur to name a few. Is it different with materials (like books) that don’t have their recipes available for free? Thanks for your insight.

  31. Hi Batya- Thanks for the nice message and for the good question. Normally, when I post a recipe it is either available online already and/or I have altered it and rewritten parts of it. But in any case, I always give credit to the writer and include links to purchase the book or to the magazine or blog. In the case of this recipe, when I first posted it the book had not yet been released. Since I wanted to use the recipe exactly as written, I asked Heidi for permission. I think the most important thing is that credit is always given to the creator of the recipe (ideally with a link back to source). That is my opinion, anyway. Happy cooking and blogging!

  32. Yow!! That sounds AMAZING. I’m having a little love affair with oatmeal lately. And I have frozen blueberries in the freezer! hip hip.

  33. Luisa- I just said to Bryan last night, “I think Oatmeal is one of my favorite foods”. So great!

  34. Made it! Loved it! Love your blog too…stylish and fun!

  35. I have that set of baking dishes, too – from Crate & Barrel. Just made lasagna in one of them last night, in-your-face iphone pic on the blog. I was thinking it was the type of very cheesey dish Heidi says she doesn’t really like … in my defense, I was cooking for teenagers.

  36. The oatmeal looks great. You mentioned switching in other fruit-do you think the bananas in particular are crucial to the finished dish/texture? I love the blueberries in it, almost looks like a crisp, so was excited to try but just cannot do bananas. And a lot of times when bananas are in something they are there specifically for their texture (alas for me).

  37. Hi Laura- the recipe is super forgiving, so do whatever you like, you won’t go too wrong. I can imagine it with berries, apples, all sorts of stuff.

  38. Love baked oatmeal, and love Heidi! Everyone seems to be enjoying her new book – can’t wait to get it!

  39. Kellie Ann says:

    April 10th, 2011 at 1:45 pm

    Thank you for your fabulous website. I just made the Baked Oatmeal this morning and it was delicious. I had everything on hand, and I love that it was fast and easy. Thank you so much for giving so many of us great recipes to brighten our day :)

  40. Clover Eighty Eight says:

    April 10th, 2011 at 1:57 pm

    Great recipe. Made if for brunch today. Not too sweet and easy to make with readily available ingredients. Delicious, thanks!

  41. Did you double the recipe? The recipe says to use an 8-inch square dish. Your dish looks like a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish?

  42. No, :D, I didn’t double it. the dish I used is small.

  43. Glad to hear so may of you are giving this a try!

  44. This was fantastic, I want to eat it daily!

  45. This recipe had both my husband and my 5-year old daughter asking for seconds (and they both hate oatmeal)! Thanks! P.S. I used brown sugar instead of cane and it was still great.

  46. Great, Kim! Glad to hear everyone liked it. And thanks for letting us know about the brown sugar….

  47. I made this and we loved it. And the house smelled heavenly. I added both the brown sugar and the maple syrup — and we did not find it too sweet.

  48. I feel the same way about Heidi: her aesthetic, the way she writes about life and food, and the fact that even less-judicious eaters can enjoy her writing and recipes. Like you, she was one of the first food blogs that really ‘hooked’ me. Thanks for such a lovely write-up of this recipe, Tim!

  49. This was SO good. Will be adding it to our list of breakfast favorites!

  50. Can’t wait to try this with the organic blueberries I just bought! Also have read that maple syrup is high in antioxidants – so this will be doubly good!!

  51. This was so good! thank you for sharing – the “no new cookbooks” ban has been lifted in our house thanks to this recipe. heading to amazon right now to buy super natural!

  52. Heidi’s blog was the first I ever read, and also was the main inspiration for me to start my own! I love the design, her very humble and minimal writing, the uniquely ‘her’ photos. This recipe looks like a perfect breakfast – healthy, but still luxurious. Can’t wait to try it.

  53. Egg question — one of us has an egg allergy over here. For this dish, what would you suggest for a substitution? I often use 1tsp baking powder combined with 1 1/2 Tbsp oil and 1 1/2 Tbsp water (whisked together, makes an foamy/eggy kind of thing). Would something else do the job better?

  54. Hi Andrea- Hopefully someone else can help…I don’t know anything about egg substitutes.

  55. I made this for a Mother’s Day brunch and my family loved it. I also tried an apple version, with sliced apples on the bottom instead of bananas, and chopped apple pieces throughout. I also substituted brown sugar for the maple syrup/cane sugar and it was delicious! I think this recipe is a great base, you can pretty much use any combination of fruit, nuts and sweetener and it will come out great! Thanks for sharing, I’m giving your Mac and Cheese recipe a try tonight!

  56. Update: made it with egg replacer. It was amazing!

  57. Thanks for the update, Andrea! Glad to know it worked.

  58. Thank you for posting this recipe. Baked oatmeal has been on my list to try for awhile now, and I finally made it this morning. It surpassed my expectations.

  59. Jennifer says:

    June 3rd, 2011 at 9:12 am

    Hello. This looks so good I want to try it for a weekend breakfast. One question: My son’s school is having a bake sale tomorrow to raise money for rebuilding a Kindergarten in Japan. We are supposed to drop everything off today. Is this any good the next day, served at room temp? Thanks!

  60. Hey Jennifer- No, not good enough for bake sale. We still enjoy the leftovers the next day, but they are definitely of diminished quality and are not great at room temperature.

  61. This was very good especially with warm milk and honey!

  62. The temperature this morning in the Eastern Townships of QC was a frigid 7 Celcius! This called for hot breakfast. Can’t remember how I ended up on your blog, but this recipe hit the spot for me and my family. Will be coming back for more! (I will also be trying apples on the bottom. Loved the bananas ;-) but am curious…)

  63. i just got her cookbook a few days ago and can’t wait to dive in and start cooking. the baked oatmeal is already on my list!

  64. This was so amazing! I made it with nectarines, banana, and a mixture of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries, and it was so wonderful. We reheated it in the oven and agree, it was of diminished quality (although not bad at all!). Thank you!

  65. I’ve been following your blog for months, but this is my first comment…made this with strawberries and rhubarb and it turned out deliciously, served with fresh cream. Definitely one to add to my breakfast/brunch repertoire. Thanks!

  66. Eleonore, thanks for the sweet comment! I am so glad to hear you tried this with strawberries and rhubarb- I haven’t had a chance yet. But I can’t wait!

  67. Can’t wait to try this sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing

  68. I halved this and used cherries–delicious! I can’t wait till I’m back in the US so I can buy Heidi Swanson’s new books!

  69. OMS!! Oh. my. science! I 1/4 the recipe, made w NO EGG, and used soy milk. It was amazing and I am already dreaming up another combination for more….bananas, figs, and blueberries! Thank you for this recipe (and all others you provide….I dream of making your jellies someday)!!
    ~Kristi

  70. How long does this stay good? I’d like to make one batch at the beginning of the week and have my husband reheat servings of it for breakfast

  71. If this recipe can’t convince my boyfriend to like oatmeal, I don’t know what will. I’ve had this bookmarked for months; it’s high time to make it. I think it will be perfect for this upcoming chilly fall weekend! Thanks for sharing.

  72. This is amazing. I’ve already made it twice – once on Christmas morning and again at the request of my husband. Delicious!! Perfect for chilly winter mornings in bed, and it makes your house smell amazing. :-)

  73. This is ridiculously good. I am not even an oatmeal fan and I can’t stop eating it – thanks!

  74. Do you think this could be prepped the night before, refrigerated overnight, and baked in the morning?

  75. Hi Mara, I don’t know. I havent tried that. It only takes a few minutes to make, so I haven’t felt a need. if you try, let us know what happens.

  76. My mom makes this as a savory breakfast with mix-ins like mushrooms and onion, etc. Try it!

  77. Beautiful photographs with a simple recipe. I’m going to try to make this (minus the bananas) Hopefully all goes well.

  78. Barbara E. says:

    July 3rd, 2012 at 9:33 am

    I made baked oatmeal the other day, did not add egg, used almond milk. Put bananas and blueberries in it. It was so good, but even better the next day COLD, with cold almond milk in it. I hate the texture of cooked oatmeal, so this is a great way to get the benefits of rolled oats into my diet. LOVE IT!!!

  79. I made this tonight. My kids thought it was dessert and are very excited that I told them they could have ‘dessert’ for breakfast tomorrow ;) I love Heidi.

  80. I don’t normally comment on recipes but – this is amazing. I have 2 little ones – 3 yrs old and 19 months – they LOVE it. I am currently making it weekly and made it on vacation with extended family … received rave reviews. You are making me look like a better cook than I am – and I appreciate it! :)

  81. This was delicious. I didn’t have any nuts but think I will put almonds in next time and maybe cut back some on the sugar. Can’t wait to warm it up tomorrow and see how nummy is is as leftovers

  82. I think this looks great. Recipe says 8×8 pan, but picture is 9×13 I believe. Does this matter? Also, how much syrup to use?
    I don’t see it in the ingredient list. Can’t wait to make this!

  83. Hi Mel- the pan I used is the equivalent of 8×8 (it is not 9×13). It does matter. Syrup quantity is in ingredients list, with sugar. You can use either sweetener, and then follow directions accordingly.

  84. I made this for breakfast on Christmas morning and it was absolutely delicious. The leftovers were fab too. I will definitely be making this again. Thank you so much for posting it and bring delicious warmth to our Christmas morning. Much appreciated.

  85. Brilliant. Delicious. but feeds 4 in my house! :-)

  86. I finally made it this morning and loved it. I think I will be full up well beyond lunchtime! As someone who really doesn’t like porridge, I was pleased to find that I loved this with a few dollops of natural yogurt and lots of maple syrup drizzled over the top. Thank you to both you and Heidi!

  87. Patty Martin says:

    February 3rd, 2013 at 6:26 pm

    Made your Baked Oatmeal for Sunday morning breakfast. Wow! A very skeptical husband thought he wouldn’t like it. Well, he ate it for breakfast, lunch, and I quote “this tastes so good you could eat it for dessert”, and he did! Needless to say this will be a “go to” recipe for my family. Thanks!

  88. wow, this looks great :) i am going to turn this into muffins for a on the go breakfast !

    Thanks alot

  89. I don’t like the gluey texture of porridge so was looking for alternative oaty recipes, and this one is the bee’s knees! Good enough for dessert nevermind breakfast. I replaced bananas with thinly-sliced apples, added sultanas & dried cranberries, substituted most of the milk with oat milk & boosted the cinnamon. It was so sweet with the extra fruit that I think I can safely halve the sugar next time. Many thanks!

  90. Can steel cut oats be used in this instead of the rolled oats? Would the amount of milk need to be increased and also the baking time?

  91. Hi Sue- I’ve never tried, so I have no idea. But it doesnt seem like it would work, the cooking time would need to be way too long. But if you give it a try, let us know.

  92. Just gave this a try with steel cut oats and it was quite successful. Cut the oats back to 1 cup and threw in some extra nuts to make up for the missing volume. Cooking time was about 50 minutes.

  93. Kirsti Alnes says:

    April 19th, 2015 at 4:46 am

    Thank you for this recipe. We love this! We have skipped using butter and sugar, it tastes great anyway. Today I grated apples instead of using apple sauce :-)

  94. hi tim! I have made this many times but do you think I could replace the milk with kefir? I know it wouldn’t be as rich but I started making kefir and have a TON of it, so I want to try to use it up. alternatively, do you think I could make it with water instead of milk? I know it wouldn’t be as rich but I’m coming to the sad conclusion that my body isn’t too fond of straight milk. thanks! (also, to make this recipe even better, I’ve grated orange zest in it — SO good. fresh cranberries on top are killer, also.)

What do you think?