Baked Oatmeal with Apples
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Wake up to the cozy flavors of fall with this comforting baked oatmeal—a warm, make-ahead breakfast that’s perfect for chilly mornings.
Baked oatmeal is a traditional and comforting breakfast casserole. Unlike regular oatmeal, which is made on the stovetop and has a porridge-like consistency, or overnight oats, which are served chilled, baked oatmeal recipe is made in the oven and has a consistency similar to bread pudding. There are endless variations, like blueberry baked oatmeal and morning glory baked oatmeal, but this version with juicy apples, plump raisins, and warm spices is a classic. Bonus: it can be made ahead of time and reheats beautifully.
“FANTASTIC!! I sub peaches during the summer and add ginger and nutmeg. We cut into individual portions and top with Greek yogurt.”
What You’ll Need To Make Baked Oatmeal
- Old-fashioned rolled oats: The base of the dish; don’t substitute instant oats—they won’t give you the same hearty texture.
- Chopped walnuts or pecans, raisins & apples: These add-ins lend crunch, a touch of chewiness and sweetness, and tart, fruity flavor.
- Light brown sugar, cinnamon & vanilla: A well-balanced mix that sweetens the oatmeal and adds warm spice and depth of flavor.
- Baking powder: Helps the dish rise slightly.
- Butter, Eggs & Milk: This trio binds everything together and gives the oatmeal a rich and custardy texture.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, stir together the oats, half of the nuts, raisins, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
Step 2: Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, and vanilla until well combined.
Step 3: Combine everything. Pour the custard and melted butter into the oat mixture and stir until evenly mixed.
Step 4: Layer the apples. Arrange the chopped apples in a greased baking dish.
Step 5: Assemble and top. Pour the oat mixture over the apples and sprinkle the remaining nuts on top.
Step 6: Bake. Bake at 325°F for about 40 minutes, until the oats are set and the top is golden. It’s just as tasty cold from the fridge the next day, so be sure to save a slice!
ADDITIONAL PRO TIPS
- Make it your own: You can swap the raisins for dried cranberries, chopped dates, currants, or skip them altogether.
- No nuts (or different nuts)? Instead of pecans, use slivered almonds or walnuts. Pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds work too—or just leave them out.
- Meal prep win: Slice the baked oatmeal into squares, wrap individually, and store in the fridge or freezer for a grab-and-go breakfast.
- Best apple types: For the best results, use tart yet sweet baking apples, like Honey Crisp or Gala, which hold their shape when baked.
Got Oats? More Ways to use them
Baked Oatmeal with Apples
Ingredients
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
- ¾ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, divided
- ½ cup raisins
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the dish
- 2 tart yet sweet baking apples, such as Honey Crisp, peeled and cut into ½-inch (1.3-cm) chunks (about 2 cups/232 g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Grease an 8 or 9-inch (20 or 23-cm) baking dish with butter.
- In a medium bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, ½ cup (60 g) of the nuts, raisins, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well.
- In another bowl, break up the eggs with a whisk; then whisk in the milk and vanilla until well combined.
- Add the milk mixture to the oat mixture, along with the melted butter.
- Scatter the apples evenly on the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Pour the oatmeal mixture over top and spread evenly. Sprinkle remaining ½ cup (60 g) nuts on top. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden and the oats are set. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Our young family loves baked oatmeal, so I had to try out this recipe when I saw you had one. Boy it did not disappoint and is better than my tried and true recipe. All of our kiddos asked for at least seconds.
I love this recipe. So smart to put some nuts on top so they taste roasted. I often make on a Sunday so my husband and I will have breakfast leftovers for the next couple of days. It’s a great way to start the week. My only modification I do is too cut the sugar. I made as listed once and found it to be dessert sweet, so I only use 1/4 c sugar to keep this a regular recipe in the rotation and it still tastes great.
Hi Jenn!
A question for you- I want to make a lot of these recipes for a party and would like to bake this in those tin foil baking pans. Do you recommend changing the baking time or anything else in the recipe? Thank you!
Hi Montana, Assuming it’s the same size pan that’s specified in the recipe, I don’t think you’d need to make any modifications to the recipe. Hope everyone enjoys!
I have made this before and it is delicious. I have a question though. If I had frozen peaches and wanted to use instead of the apples, should I thaw the peaches or leave them frozen before baking?
Hi Jennifer, You could really go either way; I’d probably just add them frozen for ease.
Thanks for the help😊
Great staple recipe to build upon!
I let the oat mixture sit for about 30 minutes prior to pouring into the baking dish. Instead of apples, I threw blackberries and blueberries into the mixture. As for the nuts, I chose sliced almonds & chopped walnuts.
Additonally, I made a “crumble” topping. I wanted my dish to have a bit of crisp texture to it!
Crumble Topping:
In a separate bowl, I combined 3/4 cups of oats, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour & 1/2 cup butter.
Layers:
Berries on the bottom, filled pan with the wet oat mixture, added top layer with the crumble topping recipe, then lastly added a handful of blackberries, almonds & raw sugar to the very top 🙂
Thank you for this amazing recipe. I can’t wait to add different & fun ingredients to each batch! This dish is a new family favorite! So yummy 😋
This was a big hit at our house. I increased it by half again and used a 9×13 pan. To speed things up a bit I microwaved the apples in the bottom of a glass baking pan for several minutes. It baked in half and hour. Got the fishermen out onto the lake a bit faster…
Hi, I would like to make this in 7oz ramekins. Any changes to the cook temperature or cook time? Thanks!
Hi Wendi, No need to change the baking temperature. In terms of cook time, I’d start checking them at 15 to 20 minutes. Please LMK how they turn out!
I’ve made this as directed and it is GLORIOUS. That said, I have a couple of family members who will be visiting soon who can’t do soy, dairy, or gluten. Oats are naturally gluten-free, I think, but is it a big deal to sub out coconut milk or almond milk in the custard…? Thanks so much for this beautiful recipe!
So glad you like it! I think almond milk will work just fine here. Hope everyone else enjoys!
Great recipe but I found 1/4 cup Brown sugar was sufficient. I also cut it in half and used 3 T Brown sugar for the air fryer.
I have used both almond milk and oatmilk with great success.
I made this yesterday but I am a Diabetic so I reduced the sugar to 2 T. The raisins made it sweet enough. It came out perfect. I also made a custard sauce and reduced sugar. My husband is British and he loved it.
My family loves this recipe. We also use a bit less sugar and it still tastes amazing.
Question- I have read that some people make ahead and reheat and others make the night before and bake in the morning. I am wondering if there is much difference in end result. We are going on a family vacation and I am planning this for our first morning. Should I make, bake and reheat or wait and put it all together the night before and bake in the morning? How long before baking can it sit in a fridge? It would be easiest to make in full and just reheat but my family loves this recipe so much so want it to turn out well. Any advice appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Nicole, glad you all like this! I truly think you can go either way in terms of making it ahead, but I’d probably just fully assemble it, let it sit overnight in the fridge overnight, and bake it in the morning. Hope you have a great vacation!