As winter sets in and my desire for a hot breakfast grows, I find myself searching for the perfect bowl of hot oatmeal.
I’m pretty picky when it comes to hot oatmeal. If you have been reading the blog for a while now, you may remember that I used to dislike homemade hot oatmeal. There was just something about it that made my stomach feel off after eating.
But I don’t go down without a fight. I have been on a quest to make a hot oatmeal recipe that I would fall in love with and I think I have finally found my match. I attempted a couple carrot cake oatmeal recipes last winter, but they never turned out as good as I was hoping. This recipe finally got it right!
If you enjoy carrot cake, you will go absolutely crazy for this bowl of oatmeal. I could totally see this as a fun, quick, and easy holiday breakfast for families who are looking for something that tastes indulgent, but is packed with nutrients and a full cup of carrots per bowl.
I believe i t would turn any oatmeal hater into a fanatic with first bite.
Oh She Glows
Carrot Cake Oatmeal
This one is for all of the carrot cake fans out there! Creamy, crunchy, chewy, and sweet, this recipe packs in a full cup of carrots and a handful of healthy ingredients that will keep you feeling full for hours and hours. This oatmeal is also wonderful as part of a holiday breakfast with loved ones. If you are adapting this recipe for several people, I suggest pouring the oats into a large casserole dish when they are ready, adding your toppings, and using a large spoon to scoop portions onto plates or bowls.
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 heaping cup finely grated carrot (about 1 large)
- 1 cup almond milk
- 2 tbsp full-fat coconut milk cream (or use more almond milk)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon, to taste
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/8th tsp ground nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup regular oats
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice (optional)
- 2 tbsp chopped walnuts, divided
- 2 tbsp raisins, divided
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tbsp sweetened shredded coconut, for garnish
- 1 tbsp coconut milk cream + 1/2 tsp pure maple syrup, to garnish (optional)
Directions: Finely grate 1 heaping cup of grated carrots. You want to use the fine grate and not the large one so the carrot shreds are very small. This helps the carrot blend in more.
In a medium sized pot over medium heat, whisk together the almond milk, optional coconut milk cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and a pinch of salt.
Stir in the grated carrots and oats. Adjust heat if necessary or bring heat to low if it starts to boil. Cook for about 8-9 minutes, stirring frequently. When the mixture has thickened up, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract, 1 tbsp walnuts, 1 tbsp raisins, and 2 tbsp of maple syrup. Remove from heat and portion into bowls.
Top the oatmeal with the remaining walnuts, raisins, and shredded coconut. If you are using coconut cream, you can mix a bit of the cream with maple syrup and drizzle on top of the oatmeal, as shown in the photo. Sprinkle with cinnamon for garnish.
Gather up the troops.
I urge you to make this recipe exactly as I wrote it above…it was that good!!!
Finely grate your carrot.
Gnaw on stump.
Who knew you could eat a heaping cup’s worth of carrot in a bowl of oats and it would taste amazing?
Heat over low-medium.
After cooking for about 8 minutes it will be nice and thick:
Pour into a bowl.
I picked up this cute mini casserole from Benix the other day and it makes the perfect oatmeal vessel!
The best part about the mini casserole dish is that you can pop the lid on and refrigerate any leftovers that you have. I had some leftover and I just ate it as a snack later on in the day, straight from the fridge!
Garnish with 1 tbsp of crushed walnuts and 1 tsp of shredded coconut. Sweetened coconut, if you are feeling downright crazy.
Now pour on the 1 tbsp of coconut milk cream + maple syrup mixture and drizzle your heart out!
This mixture tastes incredible. Silky, creamy, and sweet. It is the perfect topping for the carrot cake oats!
Want a bite?
I also tried this recipe making vegan overnight oats and it wasn’t as good as the cooked version. I will have to do some tweaking of the recipe…
I was feeling crazy, so I ventured outdoors for some pictures!
The great thing about oatmeal is that you can take it outside in the cold for a photoshoot, come back indoors, and it is still hot! bahaha.
My mini casserole dish got me thinking how great this recipe would be adapted for several servings and poured into a large casserole dish.
You could easily double, triple, quadruple (etc) the recipe to serve the amount of people that you need to. Then simply, pour the cooked oats into a large casserole dish, add your toppings, and use a large spoon to serve so others can scoop out their desired portion onto their plate.
I think it would be a wonderful holiday breakfast!
If you are looking for a delicious, healthy, and super quick holiday breakfast, you should give this one a shot.
Just be warned….an obsession may set in…
BYE!
{ 164 comments… read them below or add one }
I must make this! I’ve never used coconut “cream,” but definitely worth trying. Thank you!
Hope you like it! It’s just the creamy part at the top of the can…in a full fat coconut milk can there is usually about 1/4-1/3 cup’s worth of this cream. its blissful and basically the vegan equivalent to cow’s cream :)
Simply amazing! I love carrot cake, but it’s not so good for my weight loss efforts, this will help with the cravings!!
Jen
Damn! That looks incredible!
Oatmeal makes my heart sore. Honest.
I’m intrigued by the carrot cake verison you showcase..and yes I’d like a bite!
Thanks for a new twist on oatmeal! I was starting to get a bit bored with my pumpkin oats ;) And I was looking for new ways to eat carrots too. I would totally use the “2 birds and stone” saying, but I don’t like the idea of killing a bird ;)
Not only do I want to try these delicious looking oats immediately, but the pictures REALLY top it off!! Especially the picture of the little bowl in the snow…LOVE it!
This would be amazing as a Christmas morning breakfast! It’s too bad the rest of my family doesn’t like oatmeal. :P I’ll definitely be trying this for myself though!
My fam aren’t big oatmeal people either, but i may try to offer it anyways!
Carrot cake is my favorite… finally a version you can feel good about eating for breakfast!
Not that I have issues with dessert for breakfast… I just made overnight oats in a Nutella jar. :)
OH MY!!!!
this looks amazing!!!! going to make it for my xmas eve breakfast for sure! :)
Mmmmm….anything that riffs off of carrot cake is GOOD WITH ME. :-)
I have been debating taking my oats outside to our snow for days! But every time I imagine the oats getting too cold and change my mind. Mine would definitely get cold!
I think my tiny casserole dish kept them warm :)
fabulous idea!!! i love your outside shots!
I love the idea of coconut milk in oatmeal! And the way you serve it in that little dish is so adorable :)
The oatmeal and delightful casserole dish look divine!!!
Holy yum!!!!
Yum…I love carrot cake…recently I’ve been obsessed with baked oatmeals like on HTP…I’m going to try a carrot cake version of that and report back!
I definitely want to try this!!! It sounds delicious, and I have an abundance of carrots at the moment. We’ve just recently tried coconut cream with oats or rice as a breakfast cereal, and it tastes SO GOOD. :)
I am a huge carrot cake fan…this looks like the ultimate breakfast.
I love this recipe! Will have to try it ASAP!
So I am on maternity leave and having a glum day so I decided to make this for an early dinner for myself and IT IS DELICIOUS!!! I didn’t have coconut cream so I subbed in regular cream (thereby de-vegan-izing it…d’oh!) and used crushed almonds instead of walnuts and I am in heaven. I just really needed to tell you this. I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about writing a cookbook, but if you do…include this one!
Robyn Im so glad you enjoyed it! Glad you could modify it and it still turn out yummy too! :)
Brilliant.
I personally am not a huge carrot cake fan, but my sister is!! Maybe if I made this for her, she’d eat oatmeal! =D
what a great way to have veggies for breakfast:-) oh, and i am so glad you left out raisins! some people love them but i can’t stand them in anything cooked
This sounds fantastic Angela! I made a carrot cake oatmeal a few years ago as part of my 30-day oatmeal challenge and I whipped up some cream cheese “frosting” for it as well (mine wasn’t vegan). So yummy. I’ve since switched over from cream cheese + yogurt, to a whipped cottage cheese “frosting”. Anyway, doesn’t it make breakfast so much more exciting to make a dessert out of it?! :-)
I think I’ll just have to join you and Eric for breakfast from now on!
This looks delishh!! You’ve got me thinking now…maybe carrot cake scones for Christmas morning? Hmm.. :)
Wow – this sounds amazing! Love the pictures of the bowl in the snow. You must be brave, indeed! I would be huddled up next to the fire in a big fluffy robe! : )
This looks AWESOME! What do you do with the rest of the coconut milk?
Oh my goodness, this looks SO good!
Oh my gosh, that looks incredible! I wish I had the ingredients on hand right now!
What a fun way to start off the day with some vitamin A!
this is so great! i’ve got coconut butter that would go perfectly on top of this too :)
I want this– now, for dinner! What a fabulous way to sneak an extra vegetable into your day. Yummy!
Thank you for another brilliant hidden veggie breakfast inspiration! Those a.m. vegetables always make me feel great throughout the day. And the tiny casserole dish is too cute!
yay for breakfast posts! I love when you post your breakfast! Where did you get that spoon from? I am on the hunt for a plastic spoon JUST like that and I can’t find one anywhere!
its from crate & barrel :)
i’ve been so sick of carrots lately. i think this will pull me out of my rut.
i was sick of carrots for a while too!
Oh lordy… Angela you made my heart skip a beat with this recipe! I am so going to beds right this instant so I can wake up and make it :)
Oh my GOD.
Oh my gosh this looks delicious! I’ve been trying to figure out interesting ways to eat oats because having the same breakfast every day can get boring. AND I’m trying to get my family members to start having porridge for breakfast… so this looks perfect!! I’ve heard that cooked carrots aren’t as nutritious because they turn to sugar (?) but what the heck, this looks so yummy that I *have* to give it a try!
How do you think this would be as a dessert?
It seems like it would be similar to a rice pudding, which makes perfect sense for dessert … but oatmeal might say “breakfast” too loudly for dessert eaters?
dessert…hmmm not sure it would cut it?