Full of whole grains, natural sweetness and shredded carrot, this make ahead Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal is perfect for busy mornings!
You guys already know I'm obsessed with baked oatmeal. I have a baked oatmeal flavor for everyone on my blog. My personal favorite is this Brownie Batter Baked Oatmeal. However, you may prefer Maple Pecan Baked Oatmeal, Peanut Butter Banana Baked Oatmeal or even Zucchini Bread Baked Oatmeal! Sometimes, however, baked oatmeal can feel intimidating if you have a busy morning ahead of you. That's why today I'm sharing a recipe for make ahead baked oatmeal that you can prepare the night before and then let your oven do all the work in the morning while you get ready for the day.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe!
- Made with minimal ingredients and one bowl, this make ahead baked oatmeal comes together in minutes.
- If your mornings are busy, but you want to eat a nutritious, wholesome breakfast, you'll love this make ahead baked oatmeal recipe! Prepare the oatmeal the night before, stick it in the fridge overnight and then let your oven do all the work the next morning while you get ready for the day!
- Everyone will love this carrot cake baked oatmeal because ground ginger, cinnamon and raisins help it mimic the flavors of carrot cake. Who doesn't love carrot cake?
- Not only does this baked oatmeal taste amazing, but you'll be eating some veggies with every bite!
Ingredients
- Rolled Oats - Rolled oats are my favorite oats to use in baked oatmeal, no matter the flavor. They hold their shape will and add some texture. If you're in a pinch you can try using quick oats, but you may need to add more liquid as they absorb more liquid.
- Ground Flaxseed - Ground flaxseed helps to bind all of the ingredients together, just as an egg would do in non-vegan baked oatmeal. I don't recommend omitting this ingredient, or else you may end up with crumbly baked oatmeal.
- Ground Ginger - Carrot cake needs ginger, am I right?! That why I include ground ginger in this carrot cake baked oatmeal. Ginger adds the perfect warmth and spice to this recipe.
- Raisins - I feel like raisins are a must when it comes to carrot cake. However, if they aren't your favorite, you could use another kind of dried fruit or swap them out completely for walnuts/pecans, etc.
- Liquid Sweetener - By liquid sweetener, I mean something like maple syrup, agave, honey (if not vegan), etc.
- Non-Dairy Milk - Any non-dairy milk should do. I prefer to use unsweetened and unflavored so that I can control the sweetness and flavor in this recipe.
- Shredded Carrot - Of course we need some carrots in this carrot cake baked oatmeal! One large carrot, finely shredded, usually does the trick for me.
How to Make Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal
Step 1: Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, including the rolled oats, flaxseed, spices, and raisins.
Step 2: Next, add in the wet ingredients and the shredded carrot and stir everything to combine.
Step 3: Pour the mixture into your baking dish and place the dish in the fridge.
Step 4: The next morning the oats will have soaked up most of the liquid. Still preheat your oven and then bake the oats for about 25-35 minutes or until set and hot!
Expert Tips
- I really don't think you can mess up baked oatmeal. Sometimes I mix the wet and dry ingredients together separately, then combine them. Other times, I plop all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir everything until it's well combined. It almost always works out!
- I've made this make ahead baked oatmeal in two different baking dish sizes, a 7x11 inch dish and an 8x8 inch dis. Obviously the smaller the pan, the thicker the oatmeal will be and the longer it will need to bake. For an 8x8 dish, this oatmeal should take about 25 minutes to bake. For a smaller pan, it will take closer to 35 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
To make baked oatmeal ahead of time, prepare your baked oatmeal as the recipe states, pour the batter into a baking dish, cover the dish and soak your baked oatmeal recipe overnight.
Then the next morning, you can bake the oatmeal without having to prepare it! However, the oats will soak up most of the liquid overnight so the baking time will be shorter than the recipe states.
I find baked oatmeal to be the perfect food to meal prep for breakfast, so I usually make a double batch and store any leftovers in the fridge. To do so, allow the baked oatmeal to cool before slicing it into serving sizes and transferring the oatmeal to a sealable container. Your leftover baked oatmeal should last for about a week!
Yes! This baked oatmeal recipe has 11g of protein per serving as calculated by Nutrionix.
Yes! You absolutely can freeze baked oatmeal! Allow the baked oatmeal to cool completely before cutting it into serving sizes and flash freezing the individual servings on a baking sheet.
Once hard, transfer the individual servings of oatmeal to a freezer-friendly zip-lock bag and freeze them for 2-3 month.
While baked oatmeal makes a hearty, nutritious breakfast on its own, we still love to add all the toppings. Some of our favorite things to pair with baked oatmeal are fresh fruit, nut butter, granola, nuts/seeds, berry compote or jam and chocolate chips.
More Baked Oatmeal Recipes!
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Make Ahead Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal Recipe
Full of whole grains, natural sweetness and shredded carrot, this make ahead Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal is perfect for busy mornings!
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- dash ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup raisins
- ¼ cup liquid sweetener (maple syrup, agave, honey, etc.)
- 2 cups non-dairy milk
- 1 cup shredded carrot
Instructions
- Grease an 8x8 or 9x5 inch baking dish* and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, from the rolled oats to the raisins.
- Add in the sweetener, non-dairy milk and shredded carrot. Stir until well combined.
- Pour the batter into your prepared baking dish and smooth out the batter until even and uniform.
- Place the baking dish in the fridge overnight** or for a few hours.
- In the morning, removed the baking dish from the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake the oatmeal for about 25-35 minutes, depending on what size pan you use. For an 8x8, 25 minutes will be about right. If you use a loaf pan like I mention in the notes, then it will need 30-35 minutes.
- Serve warm with your favorite toppings!
Notes
- I've made this oatmeal in a pan as big as 8x8 or as small as a loaf pan. Both worked great, but the smaller pan will need more time to bake and result in a moister, thicker baked oatmeal.
- You can leave the oatmeal uncovered or covered while it sit in the fridge overnight. I never cover mine and it's fine!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1 servingAmount Per Serving: Calories: 286Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 213mgCarbohydrates: 47gNet Carbohydrates: 0gFiber: 7gSugar: 15gSugar Alcohols: 0gProtein: 11g
Nutrition information is a rough estimate provided by Nutrionix and should be used for informational purposes only.
Mary says
These oatmeal bakes are really good. The one with bananas on the bottom is my favorite, and I think with this one I'd add more seasonings (maybe some nutmeg or allspice) and dates next time since I skipped the raisins.
Faith VanderMolen says
I'm so glad you're enjoying all the baked oatmeal recipes!
Lor says
Does this freeze and reheat well? I like making bigger batches that can be reheated in the mornings.
Faith VanderMolen says
Yes! Just cut it into serving sizes before freezing. Enjoy!
Lauren says
Can most of your recipes that require a flax egg, can a chicken egg be used instead?
Faith VanderMolen says
Yes! In general, 1 chicken egg can replace 1 flax egg. Hope that helps! Happy baking:)
Kristy says
Thank you for share ng this recipe. I made this in an 8x8 and cooked it for 55 minutes. It was still not quite firm, as the recipe pictures indicate. It was as definitely not where near done by 35 minutes. I'm a texture person, so gooey oatmeal is not my style. This recipe is not gooey, but not firm either. The flavour is good. My child who likes oatmeal wasn't a huge fan, but not every recipe is for everyone! Thanks again and happy cooking!
Faith VanderMolen says
Thanks for sharing! I find it gets firmer once it's cooled in the fridge for a bit. You could also reduce the liquid a little bit and try that!
Fern Swale says
Hi, Faith! I love your YouTube video with this and five other baked oatmeal dishes -- that's how I found your blog! This one is the only one that's called make-ahead and I am wondering about the others -- can they also be made the night before, or would the recipes need to be modified to make that work? I would love to have these fresh-baked in the morning but I'm doing well just to be able to operate the oven safely in the morning so putting it together at that time is something I wouldn't do very often.
Faith VanderMolen says
I'm so glad you found my blog through that video! Thanks so much for watching and commenting. Great question. I only created the carrot cake baked oats specifically to be make ahead, but I feel like each one would work just as well to make the night before and bake it in the morning. Since the oats will have time to absorb the liquid, the baking time will probably just be shorter. If you try any of the others out, please let me know how they turn out! That'd make my life so much easier as well!
Clarisa says
Hi Faith, what's the texture like? From the pic looks like can be picked up like a piece of toast? Thinking this may be a nice option for a GF school lunch! Thanks!
Faith says
If you bake the recipe in an 8x8 dish it's definitely sturdy like toast! It would be a great GF option for lunch. Great idea! Let me know if you try it out and what the kiddos think!
Clarisa says
Ok great! I'll have to try that out, looks yummy!
Faith says
Thanks Clarisa!
Sue says
Hi Faith. Just put these in for their overnight rest. It is 10a. here, which makes me wonder: other than the convenience, why the overnight rest? I’m looking forward to eating this. ???? Thanks for sharing.
Faith says
Hi Sue! The rest is definitely mostly for convenience! I haven’t tried to bake it the oatmeal right away, but I’d love to know if it works. My guess is that I’d just need some extra baking time as the oats haven’t soaked up the liquid yet. Let me know if you try to bake the oats without the rest and how it goes! Thanks!
Erin says
Sounds yum, can’t wait to try!
Faith says
I hope you do Erin! Let me know how it turns out!