Meal prepped in just 5 minutes and with 18 grams of protein, these chocolate protein baked oats are sinfully decadent but surprisingly healthy.
Naturally dairy-free, made with protein powder and sweetened with maple syrup this high-protein oatmeal has a gooey chocolate center to curb morning blues and give you some fuel to start your day.
Struggling to grab a healthy breakfast in the mornings? No time to whip anything substantial up? These chocolate protein baked oats or something like egg bites were made for you!
As a Certified Nutrition Coach, I love that these baked oats are individually portioned. This means you can cook them all at once or one at a time and top them any way you please, just like these low calorie baked oats.. They're a fast and easy way for moms to boost their daily protein intake. Learn more about the benefits of a high protein diet.
With a gooey chocolate center but 18 grams of protein, this baked oatmeal is a life-saver in the mornings.
Why You'll Love These Baked Oats
Allergy-friendly: Naturally dairy-free and vegetarian and so long as you get gluten-free certified oats they're gluten-free as well.
Meal prep: These protein baked oats can be made the night before and baked in the morning for a quick breakfast.
Hit with kids: Great for school mornings the kids love the double chocolate flavor as they're super rich but not too high in sugar.
Protein packed: They come with a whopping 18 grams of fueling protein. Learn other ways to eat more protein.
Ingredients You’ll Need
If you have a well-stocked gluten-free pantry, you should have all the ingredients you need for these baked oats.
Regular rolled oats: not to be confused with quick oats, make sure to use rolled oats so the recipe doesn’t end up mushy. Learn more about different types of oats and how to use them. Likewise, double-check that they’re gluten-free.
Chocolate protein powder: Previously, I have made these with vegan protein powder. However, I have recently switched to beef protein powder (learn the benefits of beef protein). If you're making the switch, read through the tips section for adjustments.
Egg whites: these help bump up the protein in the oats as well as the texture.
Maple syrup: make sure to use the real stuff for maximum flavor.
Mini chocolate chips: mini ones make it so that there’s more chocolate when it melts. Make sure to use a dairy-free, gluten-free brand of chocolate if you need them.
Baking powder: you don't want a lot of baking powder otherwise the protein baked oats rise too much and will become too airy and dry out. Make sure to measure and not eyeball this!
Almond milk: any kind of non-dairy milk will work here so use what you have on hand. We use almond milk or homemade hemp milk the most.
Important Teaching Tips
To make a chocolate sauce to drizzle, just melt 1-2 tbs of chocolate at extremely low heat.
And of course, you can drizzle some nut butter (any nut butter!) on top if you wish to make these baked oats extra indulgent.
When you blend the mixture, the protein-baked oats mixture won’t be fully blended/combined, that’s okay! Just make sure to divide them evenly as they fall to the bottom of the food processor.
Using vegan protein: If using a pea-based protein like genuine health, bake for 15 minutes. If using a vegan protein powder like Orgain which isn’t fermented, bake for an additional two minutes and know that the oatmeal will be a bit thicker and gooier.
If using beef protein: I use Equip protein powder as it tastes amazing. If you're using beef protein, you only need 1 tablespoon of maple syrup but you'll have to bake the oats for 20 minutes and not fifteen.
Collagen powder: You can use collagen powder in place of protein powder. However, you'll need to add cacao or cocoa powder to make it a chocolate flavor and scale back slightly on the milk or let the baked oats cook longer. This is because collagen powder doesn't absorb as much as vegan protein powder does.
How To Make Chocolate Protein Baked Oats
How To Meal Prep Chocolate Protein Baked Oats
One of the perks about this protein baked oats recipe is that it's a great meal prep recipe (here are other great meal prep breakfast ideas)! You can make and prep the oatmeal the night before and then just make it in the morning (just like this candy cane, Christmas morning high-protein baked oatmeal!).
To do this, follow the directions but instead of baking it just pop it into the fridge overnight.
Let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes in the morning before baking for the same amount of time in the morning.
This chocolate protein baked oatmeal is done in individual portions! This makes it fun for kids (or moms) as everyone gets their own.
Tasty Toppings
These chocolate protein baked oats are delicious on their own. However, you can change the flavor based on how you serve them.
Personally we enjoy ours with a side of fresh fruit and top the baked oats with a mix of the following:
- Dairy-free caramel sauce
- Dairy-free chocolate ganache
- Toasted pecans
- Toasted coconut
- Coconut cream (learn more about coconut milk and which variation to choose)
If you're using these toppings, they're best added after the baked oats are cooked.
Choosing Molds
These protein baked oats are made in individual silicone molds. This means that different molds may cook slightly differently.
These are the molds that I use and we love them because they’re the perfect serving size.
How To Store It
These chocolate protein baked oats taste best fresh as they tend to firm up a lot once stored.
If you have leftovers, you can store them in the fridge in an airtight container for 1-3 days but know they become dense.
To reheat them, microwave until warm or bake in the oven on low but you may want to add a hint of milk to them.
Fast, crave-worthy snacks that hit your protein goals (without tracking or extra cooking time).
Frequently Asked Questions About Chocolate Baked Protein Oats
While it may work, I haven’t tried this. Whey protein tends to be sweeter but absorb less liquid. Thus, if using whey protein you would need to cook the protein baked oats for longer.
Collagen powder doesn’t absorb liquid like vegan protein powder does. Thus, the protein baked oatmeal may need longer to cook or come out far too gooey.
Because the vegan protein absorbs so much liquid (especially if using a fermented powder), just reheating the protein baked oatmeal won’t work. If you want to reheat it, add 1-2tbs more non dairy milk to the mixture and heat it in the microwave or on the stove.
Though both are amazing sweeteners, honey can't be used in this protein baked oatmeal. Only because maple syrup adds a bit more liquid to the oats and thus the texture would end up too thick with honey.
Other Baked Oatmeal Recipes
Other High Protein Recipes You’ll love
- Dairy-free breakfast casserole
- 18 Make ahead breakfast ideas
- Gluten-free blueberry bagels
- Protein bagels
- Overnight cookie dough protein oats
- Easy, gluten-free bagels
- Chocolate chip protein powder muffins
- High protein pancakes
- Yogurt protein pancakes
- Blueberry protein oatmeal
- High protein snack recipes
- Healthy breakfast recipes
Chocolate Protein Baked Oats (dairy-free)
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup Rolled oats gluten-free as needed
- ¼ cup Vegan chocolate protein powder
- ¼ cup Egg whites
- 3 tbs Maple syrup
- ½ cup Almond milk
- ½ teaspoon Baking powder
- 2 tbs Mini chocolate chips plus more for drizzle
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Blend all ingredients except chocolate chips.
- Portion half the baked oats mixture into two silicone cups, and place 1 tbs chocolate chips in the middle of each. Top with remaining batter. Top with more chocolate if you want.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Drizzle with chocolate sauce and nut butter as desired.
Notes
- To make a chocolate sauce to drizzle, just melt 1-2 tbs of chocolate chips at extremely low heat then drizzle over the protein baked oatmeal.
- The kind of protein you choose will make a difference. If using a pea-based protein like genuine health, bake for 15 minutes. If using a vegan protein powder like Orgain which isn’t fermented, bake for an additional two minutes and know that the protein baked oatmeal will be a bit thicker and gooier.
- When you blend the mixture, the protein baked oats mixture won’t be fully blended/combined, that’s okay! Just make sure to divide them evenly as they fall to the bottom of the food processor.
- Honey cannot be used in place of maple syrup for the baked oatmeal unless you add a splash more milk as it changes the texture.
- Drizzling options are not included in the nutritional information.
Disclaimer:
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data"
Gwen says
This was really good and I will be making it again. I used a pea protein and cooked it a bit longer. Loved the taste and texture!
Karen says
I'm trying to work more protein in and this hit the spot for breakfast! Nice and chocolatey, and kept me full until lunch. Thank you!
fitasamamabear says
Happy to help!
Ash says
Indulgent yet guilt-free! These chocolate protein baked oats are a breeze to prep and pack a punch with 18 grams of protein. So easy, healthy and delicious!
fitasamamabear says
Chocolate is life!
Riley says
Swapped the maple syrup for honey since that's what I had in my pantry, still turned out sweet and satisfying. And of course I already shared this recipe with my workout buddies.
fitasamamabear says
Perfect swap! Thanks for passing it along!
chhavi vashisht says
Omg I love this! I have been making this almost every day as my "cheat dessert". Had to come back and give this rating!
fitasamamabear says
Haha Happy you loved it!
Sienna says
When I first found your site, I made sure to check on new updates here - I love the idea of enjoying sweets without guilt (thank you so much for your ideas).
fitasamamabear says
You're so sweet, thanks for the support!
Brynda says
This recipe was delicious. I made it for my husband yesterday morning and he wanted to know why I was giving him dessert at 8 am 😂
fitasamamabear says
Happy you enjoyed it!
Ann says
OMG these oats taste like dessert!! These were so good. And the protein kept me full!
fitasamamabear says
Haha life win!
Paula says
These double chocolate protein baked oats are a morning treat. So easy to make, super chocolatey, the gooey chocolate center is so satisfying. My kids love them too!
fitasamamabear says
Best way to start the day!
Katie says
I made this protein baked oats as my post-workout snack. And let me tell you it's one of the best I've had! Love how I can incorporate my fave protein powder, and enjoy chocolate at the same time.
I'll permanently add this snack in my post-workout meal list!
fitasamamabear says
Ah yay! It's wicked when you "get the best of both worlds right"??
Joshua Weberg says
Glad I read the notes saying not to use honey for the recipe. The chocolate protein oats had a great texture and were tasty!
fitasamamabear says
Haha yea I did the honey thing once and it was such a mess, glad you liked them!
Jane says
I love this recipe! It's so easy to make and my kids absolutely love it. We make it for breakfast often and it's such a great way to get some extra protein in their diet.
fitasamamabear says
Definitely a great way to sneak it in!
Jessica says
I loved your oats recipe with cream cheese and cinnamon so I decided to try this recipe as well. Also a hit! These chocolate oats have got me motivated to hop out of bed each morning. I love that they keep me full and away from snacks.
fitasamamabear says
You are so sweet! I love that this is another one in the bank for you!
Lisa says
I'm a chocoholic so I had to try this recipe. It did not disappoint! I loved the flavor and texture.
fitasamamabear says
Haha chocolate is life!!
Shar says
I can't get enough of this easy yet incredibly delicious and satisfying chocolate protein baked oats! It is my new go-to breakfast or brunch especially when I have a busy day ahead of me. Such a keeper!
fitasamamabear says
Super happy that you love them!