Lemon Blueberry Baked Oatmeal Cups

Easy, vegan, and oil-free baked blueberry lemon oatmeal muffin cups!  They’re great for breakfast, snacks, or dessert.  They can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator or freezer for later.  

I thaw them in the fridge the night before, then breakfast is ready for those busy mornings.  It makes breakfast time go a little smoother and keeps me from reaching for processed food.  I prefer them cold, so I don’t normally heat them up.  (But my favorite way to enjoy them is having them as a light sweet treat after dinner or with late afternoon green tea!)

Tips for Lemon Blueberry Oatmeal Cups

• Use a ripe banana with lots of brown spots, the kind you’d choose for banana bread.
• I use frozen blueberries in baked goods, they’re usually cheaper and they can be found all year round.  
• There’s no need to thaw the frozen blueberries before adding them to the mixture.  
• The frozen blueberries can be replaced with fresh ones.
• Gently fold in the blueberries, the frozen ones will most likely start to turn the oatmeal mixture blue.  This doesn’t impact the flavor at all.
• A Microplane works great at zesting citrus.
• Zest your lemon first before cutting it to squeeze the juice out. 
• Make sure to use ground flaxseed, not whole. 
• The ½ cup mashed banana can be replaced with ½ cup unsweetened applesauce.

How to Make Baked Oatmeal Cups

Preheat the oven to 350° F (180° C). Line your 12 cup muffin tin with silicone liners or lightly oil the cups of the muffin tray.

In a medium bowl, mash the banana until smooth. 

Then mix in the milk, maple syrup, ground flaxseed, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.  Let it sit and gel for 5-10 minutes while you prep your pan and mix the dry ingredients.

To a large bowl, add the oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt; then mix to combine.  The nuts can also be added to the dry ingredients at this stage, but wait on the blueberries.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry oat mixture and stir to combine.

Fold in the chopped nuts (if not done in the step before) 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 lightly browned and have firmed up. Let them cool in the tray for about 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack. Store cooled leftovers in the refrigerator.

Silicone Muffin Liners or Lightly Oil Muffin Tray

I pop the silicone liners into my muffin tray for an oil-free option.  The liners can be kept on the oatmeal cups when freezing and they also act like a little serving cup for your muffin.  

Alternatively, the muffin tin can be lightly sprayed with oil instead of muffin liners.  Spray the muffin tray cups then use a paper towel to move the oil around to coat and remove any excess. 

Storage

Store the cooled oat cups in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze for 2-3 months.  They can be frozen in silicone muffin cups.  If freezing without the muffin cups, use a piece of parchment to separate the oatmeal cup layers so they don’t freeze together.  Or freeze them on a baking tray in a single layer and not touching.  This freezes them separately so they don’t stick to each other.  Once frozen then place them in a freezer-safe container.

More Oat Recipes

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
• Simple Overnight Oats
• Mango Overnight Oats
• Strawberry Overnight Oats
• Cherry Overnight Oats
• Banana Nut Oatmeal Cookies

I hope you enjoy this recipe for lemon blueberry baked oatmeal cups!  

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