Carrot Cake Baked Oats are filled with nutritious, shredded carrots and topped with a perfectly sweet cream cheese frosting. It's a delicious healthy breakfast or quick snack that everyone will love!
This makes such a hearty, tasty breakfast. Baked oats are an amazing meal prep idea for a healthy breakfast. We use chunks of Granny Smith apples (some peeled, and some with the skin on for extra fiber) as well as the perfect combination of spices to really emulate a freshly baked apple pie.
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.59
- Total Cost (6 servings): $3.59
- Those Other Guys: $8.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Carrots - We're going to shred a couple of carrots to make up the main mix-in for this baked oatmeal.
- Quick Oats - Grab some whole grain, quick oats (sometimes called 1-minute oats) for this recipe.
- Maple Syrup - Grade A, pure maple syrup provides natural sweetness for the oats base.
- Spice Blend - We're going to use a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves.
- Oat Milk - To add moisture to the oats. You can use any type of milk you prefer in this recipe.
- Pecans - Some chopped pecans add texture and healthy fats. I also add some to the top for decoration!
- Cream Cheese - To make this even more like a true carrot cake, we're topping the baked oats with a cream cheese frosting.
- Greek Yogurt - I add in a little bit of Greek yogurt to the cream cheese frosting for more probiotics and protein. You don't taste it.
- Powdered Sugar - Used to sweeten the frosting. You can use maple syrup instead to keep the dish 100% naturally sweetened.
Variations and Substitutions
This oat base mixture pairs so well with all types of baked oats flavor variations!
Peach Cobbler Baked Oats: For another tasty twist on dessert for breakfast, try my Peach Cobbler Baked Oats recipe. This uses canned or fresh peaches caramelized in a delicious homemade syrup.
PB&J Baked Oats: In this recipe, we flavor the oats with some peanut butter powder (or melted PB) and swirl homemade jam into each bite!
Apple Pie Baked Oats: Another tasty twist on dessert for breakfast! With my Apple Pie Baked Oats recipe, we stir in caramelized Granny Smith apples into a sweetened oat batter before baking.
How to Make Carrot Cake Baked Oats
I love making a double batch of these for Easter breakfast! It's really so quick and easy to prepare.
Step 1: To begin, add all of your baked oatmeal ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
You can use previously shredded carrots, or shred your own.
Step 2: Stir will until you have a medium-consistency batter.
Step 3: Add your batter to a 9x9 baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray.
Bake at 350°F for 22 minutes, then let the baked oats cool for a few minutes.
Step 4: Meanwhile, whisk together all of the cream cheese frosting ingredients.
Spread on top of the cooled baked oats, and top with extra chopped nuts and cinnamon.
Recipe Pro Tips
- Start with room temperature ingredients. Because we use coconut oil (which turns solid when cold), you want to set out your milk, syrup, and egg to get everything to room temperature. That way, when you melt the coconut oil, it won't clump in the batter.
- Switch up that texture. Similar to when I make actual carrot cake, I like to shred half of my carrots using the larger grater holes, and then grate the rest on the smaller holes. It makes for a more interesting final dish because of the different textures!
- Soften the cream cheese. For a silky-smooth cream cheese frosting, make sure you're not starting with cold cream cheese.
- Let it sit for a few before adding the frosting. Let your pan cool completely before adding the cream cheese frosting so it doesn't melt.
Recipe FAQs
I use quick oats due to their neutral texture. This recipe hasn't been tested with steel cut oats; but if you like those, then you may like that as a substitute!
Yes, you can sweeten to your taste with your preferred sweetener! I've used maple syrup before, but you could also try agave.
Yes you can! Simply wrap individual slices in plastic wrap, add them to a freezer-safe container or bag, and freeze for up to 3 months.
When you're ready to eat, let the slices thaw overnight in the refrigerator. You can eat cool, room temperature, or warm them up in the toaster oven for a few minutes.
Other Healthier Sweets You'll Love!
If you tried this Carrot Cake Baked Oats Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Carrot Cake Baked Oats
Equipment
- Vegetable Grater
- Small Skillet
- Silicone Spatula
- Mixing Bowl
- Wooden Spoon
- 9x9 Metal Baking Pan
- Whisk
Ingredients
Baked Oats
- ¾ cup shredded carrots about 1 - 2 whole carrots
- 1 ½ cup oat milk or your preferred type of milk, room temperature
- ¼ cup maple syrup room temperature
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 count egg room temperature
- 2 cups quick oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ cup chopped pecans plus some for topping
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Baked Oats
- If using whole carrots, shred them using a vegetable grater. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together your oat milk, maple syrup, coconut oil, vanilla extract, and egg until fully combined.
- Pour in the quick oats, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves.
- Fold in the shredded carrots and chopped pecans. Stir well.
- Add the batter to a 9x9 baking pan prepared with nonstick spray.
- Bake at 350°F for 22 minutes, then let cool for a few minutes until set.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- While your oats are cooling, whisk together the softened cream cheese, greek yogurt, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
- Spread on top of the cooled baked oats, slice, and enjoy! Serve with extra maple syrup on top.
Diana Patson says
These are so good!!! I'm a carrot cake lover - I've even requested it for multiple birthdays in the past - and with this recipe I can get my fix in every day but not feel guilty about it. I've just been eating it as a snack or for my sweet treat at the end of the day. I was hesitant about the greek yogurt but luckily you can't even taste it in the frosting. Will make again of course!!
Shani W. says
Thank you for your comment Diana! 🙂