Need a simple, healthy breakfast idea? Try this Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal! It combines old-fashioned and quick oats with milk, eggs, butter, chocolate chips and a few other pantry staples for a delicious easy recipe that the whole family will love.
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I know that overnight oats are all the rage right now. Personally, though, I’ve never been a fan. I struggle to get past the mushy texture and find them quite unappetizing.
But baked oatmeal? Now, that’s a different story! I can happily eat that every morning of the week!
Why We Love Easy Baked Oatmeal
- Simple & Quick. Just mix all the ingredients together, bake it and just like that you have a great busy morning breakfast recipe.
- Kid Friendly. Even picky eaters tend to like this recipe. I mean, there are chocolate chips after all!
- Healthier. More nutritious than many breakfast options, especially traditional breakfast cereal.
- Filling. We find a serving of this keeps us full until lunchtime.
- Stores Well. While we love eating it hot and fresh, leftovers are also delicious. Either enjoy it cold or simply reheat whatever portion you want to eat.
Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal Ingredients
- Quick oats. You can use all quick oats instead of half quick oats, half rolled oats- the texture will just be a bit different.
- Rolled oats. I love the slightly crunchier texture that these give the recipe!
- Brown sugar. You can easily adjust this amount to suit your preference.
- Baking powder.
- Cinnamon.
- Salt.
- Milk. You can use both regular milk or your favorite plant-based milk.
- Butter. Salted or unsalted will work. You can also substitute for melted coconut oil if you prefer.
- Eggs.
- Chocolate chips. We love using dark chocolate but semi-sweet or milk chocolate are good too.
How to Make This Recipe
STEP 1: Add all of the ingredients except for the chocolate chips, into a large mixing stir. Stir until combined. Add chocolate chips and mix well.
STEP 2: Spoon the oats mixture into a greased 9×9 baking dish, or one that is similar in size.
STEP 3: Bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 350 degrees or until the center is set and the edges are lightly browned.
STEP 4: Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Helpful Tips & Variations
- For a Double Batch: Just use a 9×13 pan and bake for a little longer.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for 4-6 days.
- Freezing: Save time by making several batches at once and then freezing the extra. You can either freeze the oatmeal in the pan you baked it in, or cut it into squares and put it in a freezer safe container. If it’s more convenient, you can also cut the oatmeal into individual portions, wrap in plastic wrap and freeze that way.
Want to eat the oatmeal directly from the freezer? Simply defrost it using the microwave.
- Make Ahead: This one-bowl recipe can be mixed up the night before and baked the next morning. I don’t think this works quite as well if you are using only quick oatmeal since they will soak up the moisture more and the texture of the finished recipe tends to be a bit more mushy. But if that won’t bother you, go for it!
- Less Cleanup: For fewer dirty dishes, melt the butter directly in the mixing bowl before you add the other ingredients.
- Oatmeal Parfaits: To make oat parfaits, simply layer crumbled baked oatmeal with fruit and yogurt in a bowl.
- Additions: Serve baked oatmeal with milk or yogurt poured over it. Try topping it with some strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or peaches.
More Recipes You’ll Enjoy
- Easy Basic Homemade Granola
- Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins
- Healthy Double Chocolate Muffins
- Easy Homemade Caramel Frappe
Easy Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1 ½ c. quick oats (see notes below)
- 1 ½ c. rolled oats
- ½ to 1 c. brown sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 c. milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- ½ c. butter, melted (or melted coconut oil)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- ½ c. chocolate chips
Instructions
- Add everything but the chocolate chips to a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly, then stir in chocolate chips.
- Spoon into a greased 9 in. baking dish (or any similar sized baking dish).
- Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and center is set.
- Enjoy plain, serve it with milk or yogurt or top it with your favorite fruit.
Notes
A reader commented on Facebook that she makes this into muffins (makes about 15), baking them for 18 to 20 minutes. They’re perfect for quick easy grab-and-go breakfasts!
- Oatmeal: You can use 3 c. quick oats instead of half quick oats, half rolled oats- the texture will just be different.
- Add-Ins: Feel free to try other add-ins such as apples, blueberries or bananas. The flavor options are quite versatile!
- Doubling: This can easily be doubled and baked in a 9 x 13 baking dish. You will just need to bake a bit longer.
- Make Ahead: This can be mixed up the night before and then baked in the morning. If using all quick oats, the texture will be a bit mushier, but it is still good. If using a mixture of quick and rolled oats, the texture will not change much.
- To Freeze: Cut the oatmeal into individual portions and either freeze them in a freezer-safe container or wrap each portion in plastic wrap and freeze. When ready to enjoy, pull out the amount you need and thaw ahead of time or defrost in the microwave.
Kori Tomelden
I don’t think I’ve ever had baked oatmeal before but this does sound really good. We just bought rolled oats to make our own granola and were trying to figure out other things to make. Going to have to print this out for later!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Oh, we love homemade granola too, Kori! How fun that you are getting started making your own. And yes, this baked oatmeal will be another great breakfast recipe that will help you use up all those rolled oats. Enjoy!
Jennie
Mmm, this sounds like a delicious oatmeal chocolate cookie for breakfast! Love this! 🙂 🙂
ThriftyFrugalMom
Oh, that is a great description, Jennie! Isn’t it fun when you can have dessert for breakfast guilt free? 🙂
Jess
Have you tried it with all steel cut oats? (We can’t have quick cooking due to dietary restrictions.) This looks amazing! I’ll have to pin and try this for sure.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Jess, I think that steel cut oats are the same as rolled oats, right? (Rolled oats are the bigger, unprocessed flakes of oatmeal.) I’ve never made baked oatmeal with totally rolled oats, but I’m pretty sure my sister-in-law has. I really don’t think it would be a problem, it just will be crunchier, which isn’t a bad thing in my opinion.
And I’ll be sure to check out the link-up!
Kristen @ Joyfully Thriving
I love baked oatmeal for breakfast – especially because it freezes so well. And as much as I love chocolate, would you believe I’ve never added it to my baked oatmeal? I’ll have to give it a try on my next batch.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Oh, Kristen, do it! It almost takes it to dessert level. And then you can enjoy eating “dessert” for breakfast. 😉
Thrifty Frugal Mom
Maria, the kids about think they can’t eat baked oatmeal without chocolate chips now! The muffin cup idea is a great one. It would definitely make it easier to freeze. I just wish muffin tins weren’t so annoying to clean! 🙂
Oh and have you ever tried parfaits using baked oatmeal? So yummy!
Shiloh
My kids picked this recipe to look at! Yum!
ThriftyFrugalMom
I’d say they have good taste! 🙂
Shiloh
Yes! We love anything with oatmeal!
ThriftyFrugalMom
And the chocolate chips just totally take this far beyond ordinary oatmeal!
Shiloh
Yes, we put raisins instead but still tasted wonderfully sweet. We also substituted ground flax seed for the eggs.
ThriftyFrugalMom
I’m odd and don’t like raisins, but I know lots of people love them in their oatmeal. And thanks for the tip on subbing flax seed for eggs….will be helpful for any readers who are needing to avoid eggs.
J
To make cleaning muffin tins easier (and minimize sticking), try Pam no stick spray WITH FLOUR in it (Baking Pam? depends where you live). My muffins just FALL out of tins now.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks for the tip! I bet that makes the tins way easier to clean too.
Joedee
To make your own muffin cups take a square piece of baking paper, cut slits from each four corners about a third of the way down. Then you can pop them straight into your muffin tray and clea up is so much easier.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Oh, that’s a great tip! Thanks.
Maria
Yummy! I love baked oatmeal, and with chocolate chips at that! I should definitely try that more often. I recently made a batch of baked oatmeal in muffin cups, which was 1) more fun for the kiddos, and 2) easy for freezing small portions.