Overnight Baked Apple Oatmeal with Crunchy Brown Sugar Streusel
I love that this Overnight Baked Apple Oatmeal can be prepared the night before. And it’s crowned with crunchy goodness, sweet and salty and utterly delicious!
When the temps were chilly last week, I couldn’t get the thought of warm oatmeal with apples and cinnamon off my mind. Most years I wait to bake with apples until after we pick “Haralsons” (my very favorite apple!) at a local orchard. But the apples weren’t quite ready to pick yet. So I settled on another crisp and tart (and a bit sweeter) variety that was also developed right here at the University of Minnesota, the “Zestar!”.
Up until last week, I had only made oatmeal on the stovetop, to be eaten immediately. But with all the recipes for baked oatmeal floating around out there, I was curious to try a new-to-me method. And then, to work into my schedule better, I took it all one step further and prepared the oatmeal the night before. What a treat to wake up to an already made dish that only needed to be popped into a warm oven. It all worked out quite splendidly.
Overnight Baked Apple Oatmeal with Crunchy Brown Sugar Streusel is a fabulous way to get your day started!
This comfy pan of oven baked apple oatmeal is made from both steel cut oats and old fashioned oats. It’s hearty and sustaining, and generous with chunks of fresh local apples, sautéed to perfection.
The apple oatmeal is absolutely lovely spooned into a deep bowl with a bit of warmed milk. Really, could a cool fall morning’s breakfast get any lovelier than this?!
And did you catch the last part of this oatmeal’s title? The “crunchy brown sugar streusel” part? It’s a golden crown of crispy yum, all sweet and salty on top, and so utterly delicious. I like to think of it as a thin layer of dessert on my breakfast. ;)
Overnight Baked Apple Oatmeal with Crunchy Brown Sugar Streusel
I love that this Overnight Baked Apple Oatmeal can be prepared the night before. And it’s crowned with crunchy goodness, sweet and salty and utterly delicious!
Ingredients
- for the sauteed apples:
- 2 T. unsalted butter
- 4 c. peeled and chopped apples (Use a flavorful variety that will hold up well when cooked.)
- 2 T. brown sugar
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/3 c. fresh pressed apple cider
- for the oatmeal:
- 2 T. unsalted butter, melted
- 2 c. milk
- 1 c. unsweetened applesauce
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 c. brown sugar
- 1 T. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 3 c. old fashioned oats
- 1 c. steel cut oats
- for the crunchy brown sugar streusel:
- 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/3 c. old fashioned oats
- 1/3 c. brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 4 T. unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 1/2” pieces, (do not melt)
Instructions
- Butter a deep 9'' square baking dish or a similar dish that holds about 2 quarts. Set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon, and stir to coat. Pour in apple cider and cook until apples are soft and cider has mostly reduced and disappeared from the pan. This should take 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together butter, milk, applesauce, eggs, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla. Stir in the sauteed apples, then the old fashioned oats and steel cut oats.
- Transfer to buttered dish and spread oatmeal mixture evenly. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the surface of the oatmeal mixture. Refrigerate overnight.
- In a medium bowl, use a fork to stir together the flour, oats, brown sugar, salt, and baking powder. Cut in the butter with the same fork until there are large pea-sized crumbs. This can be prepared the night before, and covered, but don't add it to the oatmeal mixture until you are ready to bake it in the morning.
- The next morning, preheat oven to 375° F. Unwrap the oatmeal mixture and top it with the prepared streusel. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until oatmeal is thoroughly hot and the streusel is golden brown.
- If you want the streusel to be more browned and crunchy, simply place under the broiler for a couple minutes. Serve hot with warmed milk or cream, and extra brown sugar if desired.
Notes
Heavily adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 425Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 66mgSodium: 308mgCarbohydrates: 67gFiber: 6gSugar: 30gProtein: 9g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by Nutritionix. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again with your own favorite calculator.
This looks like apple crisp to me! Really want to make this soon!
Let me know if you and Dad like it! :)
This is the best kind of breakfast and that streusel topping makes it amazing!!
Thanks, Gaby! :)
Love this!! What a warm and cozy recipe!
I have never tried baked oatmeal, but have always wanted to and this looks like just the recipe to get me to dive in! It looks like apple crisp for breakfast, what could be better than that!??
I thought I was the last person to try baked oatmeal! ;)
How nice to wake up to a pan of this in the morning, Brenda. It looks absolutely delicious and so delightfully fall”ish”.
What a yummy way to eat oatmeal!!! Yum!!!
Do you thinking would matter if I used all old-fashioned oats?
I’m sure it would be just fine, Jessica. But the texture would be different. I just love steel cut oats! Please let me know if you give it a try.
This totally looks like a breakfast that could rival dessert, but much healthier, of course. ;) I never would have thought to put a streusel topping on baked oatmeal…brilliant! Thanks for sharing this one…pinned and I can’t wait to try it.
I hope you like it, Samantha – so nice to hear from you!
I seem to be having trouble finding steel cut oats. I’ve never seen them at my grocery store! Any ideas where I could find it?
I’ve never tried baked oatmeal and this looks delicious. I have a feeling I’m going to love this and hopefully my family will too! Thanks for sharing.
I have seen it next to the oatmeal at our grocery store. It’s also in the organic section at our store, with all the Bob’s Red Mill products. And I’ve seen it sold in bulk at stores like Whole Foods. I hope you find some, Christina – I love steel cut oats!
I so want to go apple picking and then whip this delicious treat up! Love all the flavors!
We’re picking apples off of our trees faster than we can eat them right now. Definitely adding this to our list of recipes to try!
Oh my gosh, Brenda! You have really outdone yourself with this recipe. I could easily see this as dessert as well as breakfast. Yum.
Ahhhh…thanks, Lana. :)
Oh my gosh! This sounds and looks amazing!
Love this! I need to whip it up for the kids to enjoy before school!
I bet this smells amazing in the oven! Like Liz, I got a lot of apples to use… and I know just the recipe! ;)
It surely does! It’s a beautiful way to wake up the house! ;)
I love oatmeal and this looks to die for Brenda. Yum!
Oh that topping! Wow, it looks incredible! What a warm, cozy and healthy fall morning breakfast. Sounds perfect right now!
We went apple picking this weekend and I am up to my knees in apples!!! This would be perfect for the weekend…especially the topping. ;)
Haralsons, Cortlands, and McIntosh are my absolute favorite apples for baking! I lived in the Twin Cities (home of the honeycrisp) for 4 years, and apple picking in Stillwater every fall was a must. I just went picking last weekend and have a slew to use up, and now I know just how :) Bring on the baked oatmeal!
Great to hear from you, Erin! We live near Stillwater – that’s where our apples came from! :)
This looks SO SO good!!!! We just went to our favorite orchard last weekend and had the best time! Perfect weather. Although we were bummed to discover the Honeycrisp were long gone as were the Zestars. :( We still picked a ton of apples and brought home apple cider. I’m going to make this ASAP. Wishing I had it right now on this cool fall morning.
We still have some Honeycrisp and Zestar around here, but it’s crazy how fast they disappear. I couldn’t believe how little Haralsons were left, and they just started picking a few days before I went!