These oatmeal muffins are simple, wholesome and gluten-free. Made with rolled oats and no refined sugar, this recipe uses one main oatmeal muffin base with 6 different flavor additions! These are the perfect grab-and-go breakfast.
6 Oatmeal Muffin Recipes From One Base Recipe
Hey folks! Today I'm sharing a quick and easy oatmeal muffin idea with you.
These muffin flavors are made with one main oatmeal base. They're delicious and easy to make. Most traditional oatmeal muffins still use flour - which will cause a blood sugar spike and crash. These refined flours are not great first thing in the morning because you'll be reaching for a pick-me-up (aka. more sugar) by 10 am.
That's why I've avoided using refined flour in my baking recipes. Today I'm using old-fashioned rolled oats - half are kept whole and the other half are added to a blender to create oat flour.
These muffins are gluten-free and use no refined sugar. I'm using my popular banana oatmeal muffins recipe as the base here.
You will be creating one main oatmeal muffin base and adding flavor additions after. The result is 12 muffins that don't taste exactly the same. You can try any flavor combinations you'd like, but I've added six here to help inspire you. Today we're making classic banana oatmeal muffins, apple cinnamon, lemon blueberry, mango coconut, double chocolate chip, and cranberry pumpkin seed. For even more flavor ideas, check out my baked oatmeal breakfast cups recipe.
Oatmeal Muffin Tips and Tricks
There are a few simple tricks to learn before you get started:
- Make the banana oatmeal muffin base first. I’ve designed these oatmeal muffins to be created using the same base. That way you’re not starting from scratch every time. It’s easy to make the base, and once you do be sure to let the base sit for 15-20 minutes to help the oats soak up the excess liquid.
- Add ½ cup of the oat base to a small bowl to make the other flavors. Each muffin requires ¼ cup of the oat base. To make two of each flavor, I recommend scooping ½ cup of the base into a small bowl and then adding the additional flavor ingredients. This will make two muffins.
- Spray The Muffin Pan. If find that muffins made with oat flour tend to stick to the pan. The same will happen when using paper liners - the bottom can stick to the paper. I like to use avocado oil spray on the pan first and then add the batter directly to it without paper liners.
- Grab-and-Go breakfast muffins. These are the perfect meal prep breakfast idea that can be created on Sunday and used as a breakfast or snack throughout the week. They are incredibly easy to make, and fully customizable – meaning you don’t have to make a dozen of the same recipe, you can make two of each flavor using the same oat base.
- Oatmeal muffins can be stored in fridge or freezer. Try out these six flavors and if you end up liking them you can make a double batch next time to store in the freezer. These muffins can be pulled out of the fridge and eaten cold, or popped in the microwave for 10-20 seconds to warm them up. If you’re pulling them out of the freezer, I would defrost for 30 seconds in the microwave while wrapped in a paper towel.
- Create new flavors. Want to try something different? It’s easy to add ½ cup of the base to a bowl and experiment with dried fruits, shredded coconut, nuts and seeds, cinnamon, dark chocolate chips, cacao powder, nut butter, and soo much more! When adding other ingredients I recommend starting with ¼ cup of dried fruits or berries, and 1 Tbsp max for things like cacao powder, shredded coconut, seeds, etc. This would work best for two muffins.
Oatmeal Muffin FAQs
Majority of the time, yes. Most store-bought muffins use refined white flour and refined white sugar to sweeten. These two ingredients are notorious for causing blood sugar spikes that are followed by crashes. To create longer-lasting energy you want to focus on eating whole grains (like old-fashioned rolled oats) which take longer to digest. You also can add your own superfood ingredients to muffins like nuts and seeds. And you can control the amount of sugar you use. This is why I prefer to make homemade muffins.
Yes, you can, but the muffin results might be a bit mushier. It will also take less time to cook. I'm not a personal fan of instant oats because they have a higher glycemic index and won't provide the same long-lasting energy as old-fashioned rolled oats.
Two things are going to help make these muffins moist and fluffy. First is the ripe bananas – make sure to use bananas with brown spots and not green ones. These will be sweeter and add to the moisture. The second is letting the oats have time to soak up wet ingredients before baking. This is why I let the batter sit for 15-20 minutes before adding it to the muffin pan.
More Muffin Recipes
- Oatmeal Blueberry Breakfast Loaf - It’s the perfect healthy breakfast cake to serve for brunch or meal prepped for breakfast throughout the week.
- Chocolate Protein Mini Muffins - This recipe makes 24 mini muffins. They are the perfect treat size to pack for a lunch.
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins - These muffins are made using oat flour and quinoa flour. When you combine them, they create a delicious light and fluffy texture.
- Coconut Flour Banana Muffins - These are paleo, whole30, gluten-free, nut-free, and sugar-free.
- Breakfast Flaxseed Muffins - These breakfast muffins can be quickly put together using a few simple ingredients and ground flaxseed as the base.
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Oatmeal Muffins With 6 Incredible Flavors
Ingredients
Oatmeal Muffin Base Recipe:
- 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 ripe bananas - mashed
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup maple syrup - or honey
- ¾ cup milk - dairy or non-dairy (oat milk, almond milk etc)
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
Classic Banana Oatmeal (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup + 1 Tbsp oatmeal muffin base
Apple Cinnamon (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup oatmeal muffin base recipe
- ¼ apple - diced
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Lemon Blueberry (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup oatmeal muffin base recipe
- ½ cup blueberries - fresh or frozen
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Mango Coconut (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup oatmeal muffin base recipe
- ¼ cup diced mango - fresh or frozen
- 1 Tbsp shredded coconut
Double Chocolate Chip (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup + 1 Tbsp oatmeal muffin base recipe
- ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 Tbsp cacao powder
Cranberry Pumpkin Seed (makes 2 muffins)
- ½ cup oatmeal muffin base recipe
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- 1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
Oatmeal Muffin Base Recipe Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a muffin pan with cooking spray (I use avocado oil spray).
- Make Your Own Oat Flour: Add 1½ cups of rolled oats to a blender. Blend until the oats turn into a flour consistency. Note: You can also use store-bought oat flour and skip this step.
- In a large bowl combine 1½ cups rolled oats, 1½ cups oat flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a smaller bowl, mash two bananas well with a fork. Add those to the bowl of oats.
- Beat two eggs in a small bowl with a fork, then add to the bowl of oats.
- Add in the maple syrup, milk, vanilla extract (plus eggs and mashed banana). Mix everything together.
- Let the batter sit and soak for 15-20 minutes to thicken.
Classic Banana Oatmeal Muffins:
- Scoop ¼ cup + ½ Tbsp each of the batter into two cups of the muffin pan.
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins:
- Add ½ cup of oat base to a small bowl. Stir in diced apple and cinnamon. Scoop half of the batter into one muffin cup and pour the rest in another.
Lemon Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins:
- Add ½ cup of oat base to a small bowl. Stir blueberries, lemon zest and cinnamon. Scoop half of the batter into one muffin cup and pour the rest in another.
Mango Coconut Oatmeal Muffins:
- Add ½ cup of oat base to a small bowl. Stir in diced mango and shreded coconut. Scoop half of the batter into one muffin cup and pour the rest in another.
Double Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins
- Add ½ cup + 1 Tbsp of oat base to a small bowl. Stir in chocolate chips and cacao powder. Scoop half of the batter into one muffin cup and pour the rest in another.
Cranberry Pumpkin Seed Oatmeal Muffins:
- Add ½ cup of oat base to a small bowl. Stir in the dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, cinnamon and nutmeg. Scoop ¼ cup of batter into one muffin tin and pour the rest in another.
Baking Instructions:
- Sprinkle a small amount of toppings onto each muffin (this is optional).Place in the oven and bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when poked in the center.
- Let cool 10 minutes in the pan. Run a butter knife along the edges to pop out each muffin.
- Place on a rack to cool completely. Once cooled, add to an airtight container or Ziploc bag.These can be stored in the fridge for 1 week, or freezer for up to 2 months.
Recipe Notes:
- I find that these muffins store best when chilled in the fridge versus on the counter.
- These muffins also freeze well – just wrap individually for freezing and then pull one out for breakfast in the morning and pop in the microwave for 30-60 seconds.
- This recipe is easy to customize. Feel free to play around with the flavors.
- The base oatmeal recipe will be about 154 calories per muffin. All muffin flavors will vary depending on the ingredients and quantities used.
The nutritional information provided is an estimate and is per serving.
Jess says
I like that you used 1/2 oat flour and 1/2 whole oats. You get the consistency of a muffin but with a bit of a bite from the whole oats.
I also love the different flavor options, keeps it interesting during the week! I already have some other flavor ideas for the next time I make these. I love that you gave us the base recipe and amounts to allow for individualization.
JoJean Cavalli says
Love these muffins….!!!