Blueberry Oatmeal Cups

Make them ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator or freezer.  I thaw them in the fridge the night before, then breakfast is ready for those busy mornings.  These baked blueberry banana oatmeal cups even work well for school lunches or a lightly sweetened dessert.

For different flavors of baked oats try a lemon version with blueberry lemon oatmeal cups, the classic combination of cinnamon raisin in raisin oatmeal bars, or chocolate baked oatmeal for a chocolatey version. For more oat snack recipes try carrot bliss balls, healthy apricot balls, or peanut butter date balls with chocolate chips.

Tips for Baked Blueberry Oatmeal Cups

• I use frozen blueberries in baked goods, they're cheaper and they can be found all year round.
• Frozen blueberries may turn the oatmeal cups a little blue.
• There's no need to thaw frozen blueberries.
• Frozen berries can be replaced with fresh berries.
• To keep this recipe oil-free I use silicone liners for my muffin tray.  The liners can be kept on the oatmeal cups when freezing them.  They also act like a little serving cup for your muffin. 
• The ½ cup of ripe mashed banana can be replaced with ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce. For more recipes with ripe bananas, try vegan banana oat cookies.
• Make sure to use ground flax seed, not whole.
• The recipe wasn't tested using quick-cooking or steel-cut oats.
• Substitute the walnuts for pumpkin seeds for a nut-free version.

How to Make Oatmeal Blueberry Cups

Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C) and line your muffin tin with silicone liners or lightly oil the muffin tray.

In a medium bowl, mash the banana until smooth, then add the dairy-free milk, maple syrup, ground flaxseed, and vanilla extract.  Let the flax gel while you prepare the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, mix the oats, cinnamon, baking powder, ginger, allspice, and salt.

Then add the mashed banana/milk mixture to the oats, and mix well before adding the blueberries.

Fold in the chopped nuts and frozen blueberries.

Fill a 12-cup muffin tin with the oatmeal mixture.  Lightly press down on the oat mixture in each cup.  I like to do this so any stray walnuts get cooked into the oatmeal mixture. Bake for 28-32 minutes or until the tops have slightly browned and they've firmed up.

Let them cool in the tray for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Storing Blueberry Banana Baked Oatmeal Cups

Store cooled baked oatmeal cups in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-6 days or freeze for 2-3 months.  They can be frozen in silicone muffin cups.  Otherwise, use a piece of parchment paper to separate layers so they don't freeze together.  The oat cups can also be placed in a single layer on a baking tray, and then frozen.  Once frozen, place them in a freezer-safe container.  This ensures the oat cups freeze separately versus together.

More Oat Recipes

• Blueberry Lemon Oat Cups
• Banana Oat Cookies
• Raisin Oatmeal Bars
• Orange Cranberry Oatmeal Bars
• Carrot Cake Bliss Balls
• Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

More Breakfast Oat Recipes

• Vegan Baked Oatmeal with Apples
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
• Simple Overnight Oats
• Mango Overnight Oats
• Cherry Overnight Oats
• Strawberry Overnight Oats

For school mornings I love make-ahead meals for breakfast.  It makes mornings go a little smoother and I won't be reaching for processed food. I hope you enjoy this recipe for blueberry-baked oatmeal cups!