Hands-free yummy Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal prepared in the oven - perfect for entertaining guests at breakfast or meal prepping breakfast for the week!
We can’t deny it. Our bodies need carbs…those good carbs, like oatmeal! Actually 50% of the calories we eat in a day should technically come from carbs. And I know that can be controversial, but for me it’s worked so far. So I love fueling my body with good-for-you-carbs like whole grains. This baked steel cut oatmeal recipe is just that – a creamy, comforting carbolicious breakfast!
I love the hands-off approach of baking oatmeal instead of constantly stirring it on the stovetop. This is great when you have guests coming over in the morning and want to serve something warm without doing last minute cooking! The baked steel cut oatmeal does take a little longer in the oven than over the stovetop or microwave. But it works so well for a big batch of oats. And you can just set it and forget it.
How to make baked steel cut oatmeal
First, set all the ingredients together in a 9×13 baking dish. You’ll need steel cut oats, maple syrup, vanilla extract, some cinnamon and salt. Then you’ll needs something to help it bind together. You can use mashed up fruit like bananas, applesauce or pumpkin puree. Or you can use some yogurt, coconut oil or an egg. You can also do a combination of any of these.
I love mashing a banana in there to sweeten it, add moisture and help with the binding process.
For every 1 cup of steel cut oats, you’ll want 4 cups of liquids. This can be milk and/or water. Since you’re using 1 and half cups of steel cut oats in this recipe, add 6 cups of liquids. You can do 3 cups of water and 3 cups of almond milk.
It will look super liquidy at first and you’ll think there’s no way this is going to set right. But low and behold, and hour later it gets super thick and settled.
So now you’ve teased your guests with the sweet smell from the oven and you’ve kept your stovetop and pots clean in the process. Then it’s ready to be served. You’ll notice that it gets thicker as it settles. But a splash of milk softens it up again.
What toppings are good for baked oatmeal
Just like regular oatmeal, there are endless topping ideas for baked steel cut oatmeal. And the great thing about it is you can vary it up everyday of the week and never get sick of the humble bowl of oats. Here are some ideas to get your started.
Fruit:Â Fresh fruit like bananas, berries and apples; dried fruits like raisins, cranberries, apricots, dates or coconut; frozen fruits like berries or mangoes, jams, fruit zest or applesauce.
Nuts & Seeds: Almonds, walnuts, pecans or peanuts; chia seeds, ground flaxseeds, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds. You can also do any nut butter or seed butter.
Cooked Grains:Â Quinoa, amaranth or wheat germ. You can cook them separately or with the oatmeal. You can also add granola.
Spices:Â Cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, pumpkin spice or ginger.
Dairy:Â Splash of any type of milk or creamer or a dollop of yogurt
Protein Powder: If you’re trying to add more protein to your diet, I recommend half the normal scoop.
Sweeteners:Â Honey, maple syrup, brown sugar or agave syrup.
I topped these bowls with strawberries, banana, sliced almonds, chocolate and cinnamon; and it was absolutely decadent!
What’s the difference between steel cut and rolled oats
Both types of oats are essentially the same but they differ in how they’re processed. I’ve actually learned quite a lot about this from the farmer’s markets and talking to farmers who sell various types of oats. It’s fascinating to me, and I even got to use a rolling machine once to literally roll oats. So here’s the quick and dirty about rolled oats versus steel oats.
Rolled Oats
To make rolled oats as the name implies, the oats are pressed flat with steel rollers. This helps to make them flatter and easier to cook. And even within the rolled oats “family”, you’ll notice in grocery stores that there are three types of rolled oats:
- Old fashioned oats are steamed and then rolled flat. They take the longest to cook, but they have the best texture.
- Quick cooking oats are partially cooked and then rolled pretty thin. They cook faster than old fashioned oats, but the texture is softer.
- Instant-oats are completely cooked, dried and then rolled and cut. This makes them the fastest kind to cook, but probably not the best from a texture point of view. Many times they’re referred to as mushy oatmeal, which is great for babies.
Steel-Cut Oats
And again as the name implies here, these types of oats are cut and not rolled. They basically look like cut up brown rice and they are very coarse, so they take the longest among all the oats to cook. And because they are minimally processed, they are also the healthiest types of oats to eat.
It can be tedious to cook them though. It’s not like just popping a bowl of oats and milk in the microwave with instant gratification. Steel cut oats usually require either a lot of time in a pressure cooker, oven or pot. That’s why I love this hands-off method of the baked steel cut oatmeal. You get the benefits of steel cut oats without too much work!
This baked steel cut oatmeal recipes is the perfect stress-free healthy hot breakfast to serve your guests or even your family. This also works well for meal prepping breakfast because you can divide the baked oatmeal into containers and just reheat in the morning with a splash of milk.
Whether for guests or your family, these tender tasty steel cut oats with bananas are a huge hit with everyone!
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
For more oatmeal recipes:
Hands-free yummy Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal prepared in the oven - perfect for entertaining guests at breakfast or meal prepping breakfast for the week!
- 1.5 cups steel cut oats do not substitute quick cooking, instant, or rolled oats
- 3 cups almond milk or any milk of choice
- 3 cups water
- 2 ripe bananas mashed
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- Coconut oil for greasing baking dish
- For serving: Sliced almonds dark chocolate chunks, and maple syrup
- Heat the oven to 375 degrees F, and grease a 9x12 baking dish with coconut oil.
- Place all the ingredients(steel cut oats, milk, water, bananas, almonds, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon and sea salt) except for the toppings in the baking dish and stir to combine.
- Place the dish in the oven and cook for 45-55 minutes until the oats are set and start to brown on top. I also like to stir everything together at the halfway mark to ensure the oats don't get overly brown, but it's not necessary.
- Enjoy warm immediately with the toppings as you desire.
- If you are re-heating the next day, add a splash of water or milk to loosen the thickened oats, and heat for 1 minute in the microwave, then add toppings and enjoy!
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days
- Nutrition facts do not include the toppings
