Banana Baked Oatmeal Cups

These Baked Oatmeal Cups with banana are healthy, vegan and gluten-free. Made with just 4 simple ingredients, these banana oatmeal cups are so quick and easy to make. They are perfect for healthy snacks and on-the-go breakfasts.

Turn your morning oats into delicious breakfast muffins with this easy baked oatmeal cup recipe!

Raise your hand if you’re part of the #OatsForBreakfast team. I’ll go first and raise BOTH hands. Protein oatmeal has been my everyday breakfast ever since I was 17, and things won’t probably ever change. I love topping it with peanut butter and banana, plus a sprinkle of cinnamon.

After so many breakfast bars, banana bread and cookies, this time I decided to turn my porridge into some peanut buttery breakfast cups. They are so good that I decided to share my healthy recipe with you. I love it, and I’m sure you will love it too!

Why you will love this recipe?

• Healthy and nutritious, these banana cups are rich in dietary fibers, vitamins and minerals.
• Diet-friendly, this recipe is vegan, dairy-free, eggless and can easily be made gluten-free, sugar-free or nut-free.
• Quick and easy to make, these banana baked oatmeal cups only have 4 ingredients that you probably already have at home.
• Meal-prep friendly and freezer friendly, you can make them ahead and have oat cups for your upcoming snacks or breakfasts.
• Versatile and convenient, these vegan baked oatmeal cups are great for healthy grab-and-go snacks and breakfasts.
• Budget-friendly and simple, because you only need ripe bananas, rolled oats, peanut butter and maple syrup.

What’s in oatmeal cups?

This easy baked oatmeal cups recipe only uses 4 simple ingredients. If you eat oatmeal for breakfast, I am pretty sure you already have everything in your cupboard. Bananas, oats, peanut butter and maple syrup. That’s all you need to whip up a batch of vegan baked oatmeal cups. Healthy and satisfying. Keep on reading for more details.

• Ripe bananas. To make eggless baked oatmeal cups that are naturally sweet and delicious, you will need two large ripe bananas. Be sure that they are nicely ripe, as ripe bananas are sweeter and softer. This is key in ensuring great taste and texture.
• Rolled oats. For the best oat cups I recommend rolled oats (also known as “old-fashioned” oats). Quick oats can still be used, but they will give your vegan banana oatmeal cups a softer, quite mushy texture. In case you have any allergy or intolerance, use certified gluten-free oats.
• Peanut butter. This recipe uses creamy peanut butter, made entirely from nuts without added sugar or oil. You can replace with another nut butter of your choice, such as almond butter and cashew butter, or with sunflower seed butter and tahini if you are allergic to nuts.
• Maple syrup. The maple syrup helps sweeten banana baked oatmeal cups without refined sugars. You can replace with a liquid sweetener of your choice, such as honey, agave syrup, date syrup or coconut syrup.

Mix-in ideas

Customize your peanut butter banana baked oatmeal cups with the addition of extra ingredients, such as chocolate chips or chopped walnuts. The possibilities are endless, experiment and you’ll be amazed at the result. Or check out the list down below for more ideas.

• Flavors and spices: Ground cinnamon, vanilla extract, nutmeg, cocoa powder.
• Chocolate chips: Dark chocolate chips, semisweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips or sugar-free chocolate chips. 
• Nuts: Crushed walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews, hazelnuts.
• Seeds: Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, poppy seeds.
• Dried fruits: Raisins, cranberries, dried berries, dried apple.
• Fresh fruit: Blueberries, raspberries, a mix of fresh berries, apple chunks, diced pear, pieces of mango. 
• Protein powder: Replace part of the oats with your favorite protein powder.

How to make baked oatmeal cups healthy?

Make the oatmeal dough. Start by mashing the ripe bananas in a large bowl. Add to the mixture peanut butter, maple syrup, and optionally vanilla extract plus a pinch salt. Stir well until the mixture gets smooth. Add the rolled oats to the bowl, then mix well until you get a doughy texture.

Bake vegan oat bars. Transfer the banana oatmeal dough to some prepared muffin cups and top with chocolate chips, if you desire. Bake in hot oven for 20 to 25 minutes and let cool at room temperature before serving.

How to store vegan baked oatmeal cups?

Banana baked oatmeal cups can be served right after baking or in the coming days. If you plan to make this recipe for later, it is important that you store the oat cups correctly. It’s so simple, read further for all details.

First, you will need to let the banana baked oats cool at room temperature. Once they have cooled, place in a food container and seal with lid so that they won’t absorb humidity. At room temperature, they will last for up to 3 days.

For a longer preservation, you can freeze baked oatmeal cups for up to 3 months. To ensure the best storage, let cool and then seal them into a freezer safe container or in zipping bags. Before serving, remove from the freezer and heat them up in hot oven or in the microwave.

Recipe adaptations for special diets

Whether you follow a high protein diet or cannot eat gluten, here is how to adapt this recipe to your needs and preferences. As these are healthy baked oatmeal cups with no eggs and no dairy, I haven’t listed the vegan diet. They are already vegan: eggless and dairy-free.

• High protein oatmeal cups. Make high protein banana baked oatmeal by replacing 50 grams (1/2 cup) of the oats with protein powder. In terms of protein powder, I recommend plant based protein or casein. Whey may give your cups a dry texture.
• Gluten-free oatmeal cups. Prepare your peanut butter cups with gluten-free rolled oats and you are set to go.
• Sugar-free oat cups. If you are trying to cut sugars out of your diet, replace regular maple syrup with sugar-free and calorie-free syrups. Sugar-free maple syrup is a great option.
• Nut-free breakfast cups. Instead of peanut butter banana baked oatmeal cups, make this recipe with sunflower seed butter or tahini.

Serving ideas

These banana peanut butter baked oatmeal cups taste delicious on their own or paired with other foods. They are perfect as a snack for the office or for school, and they’re also great as a dessert.

Are you always in rush? Then try these cups as a grab-and-go breakfast. My tip is to pair them with a bowl of Greek yogurt and some fruit. This will give you a more satisfying meal with plenty of protein and nutrients.

More banana oatmeal recipes

• Banana oat bars
• Chocolate chip granola bars
• Healthy banana cake
• Banana bread cookies
• Protein flapjacks
• 2 ingredient banana oatmeal cookies
• Banana oatmeal muffins