Chai-Spiced Baked Oatmeal
Baked oatmeal is the make-ahead cousin of the stovetop bowl — the eggs set it into a custardy, sliceable square that reheats beautifully all week. Here it's perfumed with a proper chai blend of cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a pinch of black pepper, the same warming notes that make a masala chai taste like fall in a cup. Diced apple softens into the oats as it bakes and adds pockets of fruit instead of turning to mush. A scattering of toasted pecans on top goes crisp in the oven, so every square gets crunch and fragrance.
Breakfast · Vegetarian, Make-ahead • 50 min
Ingredients
- 2 cups (180g) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups (480ml) whole milk (or any milk)
- ⅓ cup (80ml) maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (or coconut oil)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 medium apple, cored and diced into ½-inch pieces (about 1 cup)
- ½ cup (55g) pecans, toasted and roughly chopped, divided
- 1 tablespoon turbinado or coarse sugar, for topping (optional)
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Steps
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease an 8×8-inch (or 9×9-inch) baking dish with butter or nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, black pepper, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in the diced apple and half of the pecans.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and smooth the top. Scatter the remaining pecans over the surface and sprinkle with the turbinado sugar, if using.
- Bake for 35–40 minutes, until the top is golden and set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean (a little cling is fine — it finishes setting as it cools).
- Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing into squares. Serve warm with a drizzle of maple syrup or a spoonful of yogurt.
Tips & Variations
Make Ahead
Assemble the oatmeal through step 5 the night before, cover, and refrigerate — bake straight from the fridge, adding 5–10 minutes to the bake time. Fully baked squares keep all week, so a Sunday batch covers several mornings.
Storage
Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat individual squares in the microwave for 45–60 seconds, or the whole pan in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes. Baked oatmeal also freezes well — wrap squares individually and freeze for up to 3 months.
Substitutions
Use any milk you like — oat milk keeps it dairy-free (and use coconut oil instead of butter). Pears or grated zucchini swap in for the apple. For a heartier square, add 2 tablespoons chia seeds or ground flax to the dry mix. For a vegan version, use 2 flax eggs (2 tablespoons ground flax plus 5 tablespoons water, rested 5 minutes) in place of the eggs.
Reviews
Reviews coming soon! In the meantime, let us know what you think of this recipe.
