Studded with juicy peaches and lightly sweetened with maple syrup, this healthy peach baked oatmeal tastes like having peach crisp for breakfast. Get it now!

While I’ve always had a sweet tooth, one of my most memorable dessert moments as a kid was eating peach crisp made in a dutch oven while camping. 

It was juicy, slightly doughy, warm, and made even better with a slowly melting scoop of French vanilla ice cream on top. 

Peach crisp continues to be one of my favorite treats, especially when made over a campfire. But with all the sugar and butter, it isn’t exactly a health food. 

Enter in this baked oatmeal. 

If you’re used to baked oatmeal that’s firm, retains its shape and needs a little milk to make it moist, just know that this recipe isn’t like that.

Instead, it falls apart the minute you try to slice and serve it – so for any of you perfectionists out there, just accept the gooey messiness of it all. 

However, you really want perfectly cut slices, let it cool in the fridge overnight, slice, and then reheat.

These oats are also incredibly moist and almost doughy with sweet, juicy peaches sprinkled throughout.

Add a dollop of plain Greek yogurt and it’s very close to tasting like the peach cobbler of my childhood, but with far less sugar and much more protein and fiber. 

So, if you’re a fan of dessert for breakfast, you gotta try this out! 

What You’ll Need

• Peaches
• Rolled oats
• Baking powder
• Cinnamon
• Salt
• Pure maple syrup (the darker, the more maply the flavor) 
• Unsalted butter
• Eggs
• Plain oat milk
• Vanilla and almond extracts
• Optional: plain Greek yogurt 

Tips for preventing dried out baked oatmeal

If you haven’t liked baked oatmeal in the past, chances are it was dry and chewy rather than moist and doughy. 

While I’m still getting the hang of making it just right, there are four key tips that I’ve been learning through trial and error: 

1. Don’t use too large of a pan as you want nice, thick slices, not thinner, wider ones. This is huge! I used to use a 9 x 13 pan for 6 servings and kept ending up with a consistency closer to oat muffins. But now, I’ve found that using my 7 x 9.5 glass baking dish results in the perfect baked oat consistency without changing the cooking time. If you don’t have one, you can use a 9 x 9 pan instead. 
2. Don’t skimp on the milk or maple syrup. It only makes sense that you need to keep the moisture up for a softer oat bake. So if you don’t have maple syrup, honey is okay, but don’t try using a granular sugar in this recipe. 
3. Don’t nix the butter. I’m a dietitian – I get it. It can be so tempting to cut back on calories and fat by just leaving out the butter. But trust me when I say the butter is a must. Not only does it add more moisture, but the flavor and mouthfeel it gives this recipe is a big reason why it so closely resembles actual peach crisp. Plus it’s only 2 tablespoons between 6 servings.  
4. Don’t over-bake. This sounds obvious, but it’s very easy to do. Just because the directions say 45 minutes, doesn’t mean that your oat bake won’t be done sooner. Once a baked oaty smell starts wafting through your kitchen, you’ll want to start checking it every 5 minutes or so. The top should be lightly browned and shouldn’t jiggle when you shake the pan lightly. However, you don’t want the top to feel overly firm either, there should be a little give when you lightly press a finger on it.

Is oat milk healthier? 

You’ll likely start to notice that I’m using oat milk instead of almond on the blog. 

This swap was driven at first by environmental reasons (which I talked about in this article), but after giving a try in a latte I was hooked. 

Not only is oat milk creamier than almond, but it has a nuttier taste that I really enjoy. 

Ingredient-wise, it’s a lot like almond milk in that you need to really read your nutrition labels and ingredient lists to avoid any added sugars. My go-to brand is Planet Oat Original, which has 0 added sugars and 2 grams of fiber per cup. 

Whether or not it’s healthier really depends on what you’re going for. Calorie-wise, almond milk wins as unsweetened almond milk has more than 50% less calories per cup. 

However, if you drink original and not unsweetened almond milk, then unsweetened oat milk may be a better option for you. Yes, it’s still slightly higher in calories, but you get a subtle sweet flavor and thicker texture without the added sugars found in almond. 

Just note that if you have IBS, many brands of oat milk contain inulin – a prebiotic fiber that can wreak havoc on an IBS stomach as it’s high in FODMAPS. There are plenty of brands that don’t, just make sure to double check the ingredient list.

And of course, oat milk is also super easy and cheap to make yourself! 

Step-By-Step Instructions 

Step 1: Measure everything out, preheat the oven, and melt butter

Start by preheating your oven to 350-degrees F and melt the butter in a microwave or over the stove. Allow the butter to cool while you prep everything else. 

Dice 1 ½ peaches, and cut the remaining ½ peach into thin slices. Set aside. 

Get everything else measured out. 

Step 2: Mix everything together

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.

In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Pour these into the dry, and then stir in the diced peaches.

Step 3: Pour and bake 

Pour mixture into a 7 x 9.5 pan (see notes above on making baked oatmeal for other pan options). 

Place sliced peaches on top and then bake for 45 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. 

Do not over bake! Once you start smelling the baked oatmeal, it’s a sign that it’s getting close to being done. Start checking in 5 minute intervals, looking for a light browning, no sign of liquid on top, and when lightly pressed it should be soft but not liquidy. 

Remove from oven, let cool for about 5 minutes and then dig in! 

Get your peach crisp on all day long by making sure to pin this recipe for later and tagging @TheHealthyToast_RD on Instagram! 

Print Recipe

Healthy Peach Baked Oatmeal

Studded with juicy peaches and lightly sweetened with maple syrup, this healthy peach baked oatmeal tastes like having peach crisp for breakfast.

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time45 mins

Total Time50 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Healthy baked oatmeal, Healthy breakfast recipe, Healthy peach baked oatmeal

Servings: 6

Calories: 288kcal

Author: Kelli McGrane, MS, RD

Ingredients

• 2 medium peaches
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 2 ½ cups unsweetened oat milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon almond extract
• Optional: plain Greek yogurt for topping

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350-degrees F and melt butter in microwave, let cool.
• Dice 1 ½ peaches and then cut the remaining half peach into thin slices. Set aside.
• Combine oats, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large mixing bowl.
• In another bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, extracts, maple syrup, and cooled butter.
• Stir wet ingredients into dry and then add in diced peaches.
• Pour mixture into a 7”x9.5” rectangular baking pan (or a 9-in square paand top with peach slices.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until lightly browned on top and mostly set. Let cook for 5 minutes before digging in. Option to top with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt.

Notes

Nutrition for ⅙ of recipe: 288 calories, 9 grams fat (3 grams saturated), 46 grams carb, 5 grams fiber, 10 grams sugar, and 8 grams protein