Today I'm sharing a few easy and delicious ways to add vegetables to your oatmeal. You can't taste the veggies, but they add bulk and nutrition!
I've been adding vegetables to my sweet breakfasts for years now. Recipes like these vegan zucchini bran muffins, zucchini bread baked oatmeal, carrot cake baked oatmeal and even my stovetop oatmeal. Yes. Vegetables in oatmeal. It's a thing and it's delicious!
And I'm not talking savory bowls of oatmeal.
While I'm sure there are some delicious savory oatmeal recipes, today I'm going to show you how I add veggies to sweet oatmeal.
We're talking zucchini, pumpkin, carrots and even cauliflower!
Let me walk you through my tips and tricks on how to add veggies to your oatmeal.
Why I Add Vegetables to My Oatmeal
Some reasons I personally love adding vegetables to my oatmeal are:
- They add volume: I love to eat large portions
- They add micronutrients: not a lot, but I'll take a little somethin' something'
- I can't taste them (so why not!)
- They add fiber: which helps keep me fuller for longer
Sometimes I like a simple, classic bowl of oatmeal, but most days I choose to add veggies to my oatmeal and I'm guessing I'll continue to do this for the foreseeable future!
I hope, however, that this doesn't make you feel like you have to add vegetables to your oats.
You do you!
Which Vegetables Taste Good in Oatmeal?
An important decision to make when adding vegetables to your oatmeal is deciding which vegetables to add and how to prepare them.
I like to use flavorless or sweeter vegetables, such as:
- Zucchini (raw and shredded)
- Carrots (raw and shredded)
- Pumpkin (cooked and pureed)
- Sweet potato (cooked and pureed or mashed)
- Beets (cooked and pureed)
I find zucchini to be practically flavorless and I probably use it most often. If the thought of zucchini in your oatmeal weirds you out, just think of it as zucchini bread!
Carrots are similar to zucchini in that they are sweeter and mimic carrot cake.
Sweet potatoes, pumpkin and beets are great to add to oatmeal as well, but these veggies I usually use after they've have been cooked and pureed.
How Do I Prepare Vegetables for Oatmeal?
Pureed pumpkin or squash out of a can is ready to be used as is.
However, when it comes to vegetables like zucchini and carrots it's important to prepare them correctly so that you don't feel like you're eating vegetables with every bite you take.
When first starting out, add a small amount of the vegetable, maybe about ¼ cup.
Later, as you get used to veggies in your oatmeal, you can add more!
Pro Tip: I've discovered that I love to shred my vegetables (when using carrots or zucchini) and then mince them so that the size of the vegetables mimics the size of oats.
I hate having long strings of vegetables in my oatmeal! Yuck!
When using zucchini, you can also start out by peeling off the green skin so that it blends in with the oatmeal better.
I'm at the point now where I probably add ½ - 1 cup's worth of shredded vegetables.
Below are some images that I shared on my Instastories that show how I prepare my zucchini for zoats (aka zucchini oatmeal!)
How Can I Sweeten Oatmeal Naturally?
In all of the recipes below, I use mashed banana to sweeten my oatmeal.
I love using natural sweeteners, especially at breakfast, because I get the fiber along with the sugar.
Some other great options if you don't like banana are maple syrup, Homemade Date Paste, chopped-up dried fruit, coconut sugar, etc.
How to Make Oatmeal with Vegetables
Making oatmeal with vegetables isn't much different than making traditional oatmeal.
STEP 1: Start by stirring your oats, ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, a pinch of salt and whatever spices you want together in a sauce pan.
STEP 2: Add in your prepared vegetables (either shredded or pureed), a sweetener and 1 cup of liquid.
STEP 3: Using a wooden spoon, stir this mixture constantly over medium low heat until the oatmeal thickens.
If you need to, you can always add more liquid!
STEP 4: Pour the hot oatmeal into a bowl and add whatever toppings you desire!
The Best Oatmeal Toppings
In my opinion, oatmeal is just a vessel for ALL the toppings!
Even when you add veggies to your oatmeal, you can still top your oats with a variety of toppings.
I'll list out my favorites below:
- Fresh, frozen, or dried fruit
- Nut/seed butters
- Chopped nuts and seeds
- Jams and jellies
- Shredded coconut
- Cacao nibs or chocolate chips
- Granola
I personally love to add some fat and crunch to my oatmeal to help keep me satisfied for longer!
My 3 Favorite Vegetable Oatmeal Recipes
In the recipe card below, I'll share three of my go-to veggie-filled oatmeal recipes:
- Chocolate Zoats (Zucchini Oats)
- Carrot Cake Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal
I hope you use these recipes as templates to experiment and find what works for you!
📖 Recipe
How to Add Vegetables to Your Oatmeal
Ingredients
BASE OATMEAL
- ½ cup quick or rolled oats
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed*
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds*
- Pinch of salt
- 1-1 ½ cups water non-dairy milk or a mix of both
CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI
- 1 ½ tablespoons cocoa powder
- ½ cup shredded zucchini minced if desired
- 1 ripe mashed banana (or other liquid or dry sweetener)
PUMPKIN PIE
- ¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ mashed banana or other liquid or dry sweetener
CARROT CAKE
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 small carrot peeled, shredded and minced
- ½ mashed banana or other liquid or dry sweetener
Instructions
- In a sauce pan, mix together the base oatmeal ingredients including the oats, ground flaxseed, chia seeds, and a pinch of salt.
- Next add in spices, veggies and sweetener from whichever flavor you are preparing. Also add in the liquid, starting with just 1 cup. Stir well.
- Heat everything over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and cook until thick, stirring often to keep things from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- If you chose to use the ground flaxseed and chia seeds, you'll get a thick oatmeal fairly quickly, so feel free to add more liquid if needed to get your desired consistency.
- Once the oatmeal has thickened to your liking, pour everything into a bowl and top with whatever toppings you like!
MICROWAVE OPTION:
- If you are cooking the oats in a microwave, start by mixing all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl, including the oats, flaxseeds, chia seeds, salt and spices. Then add in the vegetables, mashed banana and liquid and mix again until a uniform mixture forms. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir the oats and then continue to microwave for 20-30 second intervals, watching closely, until the oats reach your desired thickness.
Manjit Dhamrait says
if i were to add in egg whites, would the process stay the same?
Faith VanderMolen says
Good question! I've never made egg white oatmeal as I follow a plant-based diet. You can check out this post for more information! https://www.eatingbirdfood.com/egg-white-oatmeal/
Jojo says
Hi,
Can all of these recipes be prepared as overnight oats? Any modifications you would make for that method?
Thanks!
Faith VanderMolen says
Great question! Yeah, overnight oats could definitely work. However, I'd probably omit the ground flax and use 1 tablespoon of chia seeds instead. Then just start with 1 cup of milk and add more in the morning if it's too thick. Let us know how they turn out!
Tracey says
Where does the cholesterol come from?
Faith VanderMolen says
Good question Tracey! We've been trying to find a good nutrition calculator, but we're finding it hard. They're never completely accurate in the first place, but there shouldn't be any cholesterol in plant-based food. We'll keep doing more research!
Suzy says
Have you ever experimented with adding egg whites in your oatmeal for protein? Also, have you ever cooked the vegetable-loaded oats in a crockpot for weekly meal prep?
Faith says
I haven't! I think I'd love it though, although I try to eat a full plant based diet. I'm sure it makes the fluffiest, creamiest oats though! And I also haven't tried veggie-loaded oats in a crockpot, but I (and I'm sure others!) would love to know if it works! Keep us posted Suzy if you try it out!
Theresa H. says
Should I cook the zucchini before adding it to the oatmeal?
Faith says
Hi Theresa! No, no need to cook the oats. They should be raw! They release moisture as they cook with the oats, so keep that in mind.
Deb says
What kind of non-dairy milk do you like to use for your oatmeal?
Faith says
Hi Deb! I usually cook my oats in water actually. But otherwise when I'm in China I have homemade soy milk on hand or in America I would probably use Silk cashew milk!
Franziska says
? I actually like stringy oatmeal! (I can‘t be the only one, can I? ?)
Anyways... Thanks for collecting all these recipes in one post, Faith. That makes it so much more convenient!
Faith says
I assumed wrong! Thanks for sharing Franziska! And you can definitely leave the zucchini in shreds to suit your liking!
Erin says
Such a great idea! I don't really care for oatmeal but may have to try it again using your method:)
Faith says
I hope you like some of the recipes Erin!