Vegan Baked Oatmeal with Apples

This apple vegan baked oatmeal with cinnamon and walnuts dish is a wholesome breakfast that can be made ahead of time.  The apple is paired with warm cinnamon, rich maple syrup, and the crunch of chopped walnuts to deliver loads of flavor to these rolled oats.    

This hearty breakfast oat recipe is made without banana and sweetened with maple syrup.  It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and oil-free.  The vegan baked oats are soft right out of the oven but firm up as they cool.  Once the oatmeal has cooled completely, they firm up to be sliceable. 

For more apple-flavored oats, try applesauce overnight oats, vegan microwave apple oatmeal, or apple steel-cut oats. If you prefer a chocolate version without apples, try chocolate-baked oatmeal with peanut butter.

Jump to:

• Recipe features
• Ingredient notes
• Tips
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Instruction for vegan baked oatmeal
• Serving suggestions
• Variations
• Storage and reheating
• Related recipes
• Recipe
• Comments

Recipe features

• The oats recipe is packed with apple and cinnamon flavors!
• Uses simple ingredients!
• It’s vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free!
• Easy to whip up and great for meal prep!

Ingredient notes

This vegan baked oatmeal recipe calls for simple ingredients to make a wholesome breakfast.  Please see the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and exact measurements.

Old-fashioned oats - The main ingredient to hold on to all those flavors.  Use rolled oats for the best texture, not quick oats or steel-cut oats.

Ground flaxseed - This is used instead of eggs to bind everything together to keep this dish egg-free.  Mix ground flax seeds with water to make a gelatinous mixture.

Ground cinnamon - Adds more flavor.

Baking powder - The baking powder helps the baked oatmeal rise in the oven.

Salt - Just a little to enhance the overall flavors.

Non-dairy milk - Any plant-based milk can be used to keep the oats dairy-free.  Try it with unsweetened almond milk, cashew milk, soy milk, or oat milk.

Unsweetened applesauce - Delivers more apple flavor and added moisture to the baked oats, but can be replaced with mashed ripe banana.

Maple syrup - Adds sweetness and can be substituted with agave syrup.  If you find the oats too sweet, it can also be reduced.

Vanilla extract - Adds more flavor to pair well with apples and cinnamon.

Apple - Dice one large apple or two small apples. There is no need to peel them and any type of apple should work. They will cook with the oats giving the entire baked oatmeal a lovely apple flavor.

Walnuts or pecans - They add a little crunch.  They can be substituted with sliced almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, or they can be left out if needed.

Tips

• Be sure to use ground flax seed to make the flax egg and to let it gel with the water for about 10 minutes.
• Place the uncooked mixture promptly into a preheated oven before the oats start to soak up the dairy-free milk.
• If you don’t use a glass baking dish, then lightly grease the baking tray with cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.  In my case, the oats came out fine whether I greased the glass baking dish or not.  Both ways the pan needed to be soaked before being cleaned.  So if you want to prevent that, use parchment paper.

Frequently Asked Questions

Instruction for vegan baked oatmeal

The baked oatmeal is easy to make and just requires one bowl. First, preheat your oven to 350 F (180 C).  You can lightly grease an 8x8 glass baking dish, or not. 

The cooked oats don’t normally stick for me when using a glass baking dish.  If you don't use a glass dish, then I would suggest spraying it with non-stick cooking spray or line the baking dish with parchment paper.

Next, make the flax egg by mixing the 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed with 5 tablespoons of water.  Let it sit and gel for 10 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.

Then mix the rolled oats, ground cinnamon, baking powder, and salt, in a large mixing bowl.

Next, mix in the dairy-free milk, applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla, and flax egg into the oat mixture. Fold in the diced apple and walnuts (or pecans).

Pour the mixture into an 8x8 glass baking dish and spread the mixture out so it’s even.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the middle is almost set and the edges have firmed up. Let the dairy-free baked oatmeal cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. It’s soft right out of the oven but firms up as it cools. Eat it warm or cold. 

Serving suggestions

The vegan baked oatmeal can be eaten warm or cold (my personal favorite is cold).  It will be a little soft and creamy while still warm.  Once completely cooled they firm up, especially after being refrigerated.  

• I like to top them with vegan yogurt (plain yogurt can be sweetened with maple syrup), fresh berries, and banana slices.  
• Almond butter, peanut butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter can also be used to top the vegan baked oats.  They can also be eaten without any toppings.
• Make it into a dessert with fresh fruit, a drizzle of vegan nutella, and/or coconut whip.
• Serve the baked oatmeal by itself or serve it with vegan fruit salad with lime juice or summer berry salad.

Variations

The apple-baked oatmeal is an easy breakfast made from wholesome ingredients.  The recipe can even be adapted. Try some of these variations to change things up.

• Add 3 tablespoons of raisins for little pops of sweetness.
• Instead of diced apples, try adding 1  ½ cups of berries.  Try it with fresh blueberries or raspberries.
• Try a chocolate peanut butter baked oatmeal.
• Use mashed banana instead of applesauce, skip the apples, and add ½ cup of vegan chocolate chips, for a banana chocolate chip version.
• Instead of ground cinnamon, try pumpkin pie spice.
• Skip the apple and walnuts and try ⅓ cup of dried unsweetened cranberries with orange zest.  
• For more baked oatmeal ideas try orange cranberry oatmeal bars, blueberry baked oatmeal cups, or blueberry lemon oatmeal cups.

Storage and reheating

Refrigerator: Cool vegan baked oatmeal completely and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.  

To freeze: They can also be frozen; let the oats cool, then store them in the refrigerator for them to firm up (this makes it easier to get nice slices).  

Slice the baked oats into squares, then line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.  Place the slices on the lined cookie sheet and freeze.  They’re now frozen separately and can be placed in a freezer-safe container.  Alternatively to freezing separately, layer parchment paper between slices so they don’t freeze together.  Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Reheating:  The baked oatmeal can be eaten warm or cold. Heat refrigerated oatmeal in the microwave until heated through.  If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then heat in the microwave until warmed through.

Related recipes

• Lemon Blueberry Baked Oatmeal Cups
• Blueberry Oatmeal Cups
• Raisin Oatmeal Bars
• Orange Cranberry Oatmeal Bars
• Chocolate Baked Oatmeal

I hope you enjoy this delicious healthy baked oatmeal recipe! If you like the recipe feel free to rate it and leave a comment.

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