By When the morning rush strikes and you need to be out the door in minutes, chow down on these cinnamon roll protein baked oats (without protein powder)! I prep a batch (they only take 5 minutes to mix and pop in the oven) when I have time, so they're ready when we need them. With 25g of protein per slice, they are perfect for on-the-go mornings with your family or, in my case, a toddler!
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Not only do I think these oats are delicious but my toddler has also approved it! He ate it day after day, and I felt good about giving it to him. So when you need a high protein breakfast recipe that you're sure everyone will love, this is the recipe for you!
who wouldn't love cinnamon sugar-baked oats?
- One baking dish is all you need to mix up all the ingredients! Seriously, it all gets mixed in the same pan it's baked in.
- Christmas morning just got a lot easier, healthier, and delicious!
- Picky toddler approved and beloved by him!
ingredient notes & substitutions
All substitutions are a 1:1 substitute unless otherwise noted. See the recipe card for quantities.
- Rolled Oats: I've used both old-fashioned rolled oats and quick-cooking rolled oats. I preferred the not-quick cooking style for this bake, but either works just fine. If you're an oat fan, check out our full list of protein oats recipes for more ideas!
- Chia seeds & hemp seeds: Both of these ingredients add more fiber and protein while also helping to thicken the oats.
- Cinnamon and salt: These all add flavor! Salt helps elevate the flavors without a need for more sugar.
- Egg whites: For this recipe, I like to use ready to use egg whites rather than cracking a bunch of eggs. If you do and have egg yolks to use, you can save them to make rigatoni carbonara, almond croissant protein blondies, or these almond flour cocoa cookies.
- The Batter: Grab plain Greek yogurt (non-fat), skim milk (or milk of choice), and vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste. Feel free to use any unsweetened Greek yogurt, Icelandic yogurt, or other thick, strained yogurt.
- Cinnamon roll drizzle: To turn these into cinnamon roll oats we will mix melted butter with coconut sugar. Brown sugar and margarine will work too.
- Monk fruit maple syrup sweetener: Or just use regular maple syrup or your favorite sweetener.
high protein ingredient spotlight: hemp hearts
Hemp hearts are an adaptable ingredient that can be baked into countless delicious meals. Whether you prefer them in protein granola, overnight oats, or mixed into this protein apple cake, they are an easy, customizable staple to have in your pantry. Just 3 tablespoons pack in 10 grams of protein!
let's make baked oats
- Mix: In the baking dish, mix all the ingredients together except for the melted butter and coconut sugar. In a small bowl, mix the melted butter and cinnamon. Dollop this over the top of the baked oats and then swirl in with a utensil or toothpick.
- Bake: Bake for 30-35 minutes or until all the liquid has absorbed.
- Enjoy: Let it cool slightly, then cut it into 6 large slices (I know, big, beautiful servings). Enjoy with a dollop of Greek yogurt for a bit more protein.
quick recipe video
expert tips
- Dairy-free options: You can easily make this recipe dairy-free by subbing your skim milk for almond milk, or your milk of choice. Additionally, you can use Siggis plant based yogurt instead of Greek yogurt.
- Grease your pan: The oats can start to caramelize on the edges so it makes it much easier to remove the slices when the pan is greased.
- Add more protein: Top with Greek yogurt for added protein!
toppings
There are so many yummy ways to personalize your cinnamon roll baked oatmeal, but here are a few suggestions I have:
- Top with any type of nut butter, like almond butter, peanut butter, cashew butter, etc.
- Add ingredients like fresh berries, my favorite being raspberries. You can also add apples like in our apple protein baked oats.
- Or, if you're craving a sweeter taste, top with some chocolate chips.
- Coconut and macadamia nuts bring a tropical twist.
common questions
Store this in the fridge for up to a week in an airtight container or freeze for up to 3 months. You can either reheat it for 45 seconds to a minute in the microwave or enjoy it cold.
If you notice your oats are on the dry side, try baking them for less time so you don't burn them. For oats that are too wet, try baking them for a tad bit longer.
You can use some whole eggs (up to 3), but the taste and texture will change. Egg yolks add richness and act as a binder, while egg whites act as a learner, so they keep the flavor lighter. The more mild flavor leaves way for the cinnamon to really shine!
No! Steel-cut oats take much longer to bake, so they won't work for this recipe.
storage and meal prep tips
These baked oats are one of our family's favorite high protein meal prep breakfasts! Leftovers will last in the fridge for up to one week in an air-tight container. Reheat them in the microwave for 30 seconds or until warmed through. You can also freeze these for up to 3 months and then let it thaw overnight before reheating.
If you tried this cinnamon roll protein baked oats without protein recipe or any other recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks!
Recipe
cinnamon roll protein baked oats without protein powder
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups plain Greek yogurt (for topping)
Batter
- 2 cups rolled oats (old fashioned)
- 1 cup egg whites (see notes for alternatives)
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- ¼ cup hemp seeds ((hemp hearts))
- 1.5 cups plain Greek yogurt (non-fat )
- ¼ cup monk fruit maple syrup sweetener (or regular maple syrup)
- 1 cup skim milk (or any milk)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Topping
- 2 tablespoon melted butter
- ¼ cup coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
Before you start!
If you make this recipe, please take a moment to leave us a review. We love to hear from you!
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish.
- Mix: In the baking dish, mix together the 2 cups rolled oats, 1 cup egg whites, ¼ cup chia seeds, ¼ cup hemp seeds, 1.5 cups plain Greek yogurt, ¼ cup monk fruit maple syrup sweetener, 1 cup skim milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. In a small bowl, mix the 2 tablespoon melted butter and ¼ cup coconut sugar. Dollop this over the top of the oat mixture evenly.
- Bake: Bake for 30-35 minutes or until all the liquid has absorbed.
- Enjoy: Let it cool slightly, then cut it into 6 large slices (I know, big, beautiful servings). Enjoy with a dollop of the remaining 1.5 cups plain Greek yogurt (about ¼ cup per slice).
Video
Notes
Looking for more information?
Additional substitution information can be found above in the substitution section of this post.
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate and for informational purposes only.
It was really good! I halved the recipe but kept the cinnamon topping the same for a little extra goodness 😄. Also didn’t have hemp hearts on hand but it was perfectly fine without. I’ll add them when I make it again. Great recipe, thanks Mika!
That's so awesome to hear! Love the extra goodness on top!
Hi! Just clarifying - the instructions say “mix all the ingredients together except for half of the greek yogurt, the melted butter, and *coconut sugar*. In a small bowl, mix the melted butter and cinnamon. Dollop this over the top of the baked oats and then swirl in with a utensil or toothpick.”
If the coconut sugar is not mixed in the baking dish and it’s not mixed with the melted butter, when is it supposed to be added? Thanks!
Sorry about the confusion! The coconut sugar gets added into the melted butter and cinnamon mixture. I'm updating the post now!
Also, is this step added before baking or after because it says into the “baked” oats. I’m confused.
Before - sorry for the confusion! I've updated the recipe to clarify.
So excited to try this recipe! Just want to clarify whether there is cinnamon in the “batter” also or just the topping? Thank you!
The cinnamon is only is the oat "batter" portion! It's not in the topping.
Okay absolutely phenomenal. I used regular maple syrup but then cut in 8 instead of 6. Also mixed in unflavored vital proteins collagen powder to my yogurt on top which made the whole thing 50g protein and DYNAMITE.
Look delicious!! Any alternatives for the egg whites? thanks
You can use whole eggs although the texture will be different) or flax eggs (more similar of a texture but less protein).
WONDERFUL! Tastes like French toast, but without the sugar crash!
Made this for myself and my 3 year old for breakfast this week and we both really enjoyed it! I am eating in a deficit and when I calculated the recipe as written it was 350 calories instead of the 260 estimated. I know it’s only an estimate but that was pretty off so I’m wondering if the calculation is missing something. 🙂
I left out the hemp hearts and used light butter. I also took another commenter’s idea and added vanilla protein powder to my yogurt. Brought it to 350 calories and 31 grams of protein. I served it to my daughter with butter and cream cheese on top instead of yogurt and she loved it too. Thanks for the great recipe!
Thanks for letting me know! You are correct that the information pulled incorrectly. On My Fitness Pal it's correct but I've updated the recipe card now. Thank you!!
This was a great tummy warming breakfast. Made it exactly as written. Served with the yogurt and extra cinnamon.
Just tried a few bites straight out of the oven because it smelled so heavenly!! This was super easy to make. I can’t wait to eat it for breakfast all week. Might even top it with some blended cottage cheese with a dash of maple syrup for “frosting”.
These are delicious!! Will definitely be a staple at my house!
The perfect breakfast on a cold snowy day! Thank you!
I was pleasantly surprised by how good these are! They hit the spot between wanting a little sweet-ish treat while still being healthier than an actual cinnamon roll. I topped with Oikos vanilla greek yogurt (instead of the plain Greek yogurt I used in the 'batter'), and that added the perfect sweetness to the warmed up slice I had. I look forward to making these for my family and trying the other variations.
I’ve made this multiple times and love it! Great to prep for weekday breakfasts. I’m confused about the butter/coconut sugar mixture/addition as mine is always too thick thick to spread or marble into the oats. Is there supposed to be cinnamon added to that and is is supposed to be marbled in the oats before or after baking? Something seems off…
No, it should be thick - I should update the language to "drop" because you're right, it's pretty thick to marble.
wow! what a great change for breakfast and high protein. love that it also has good fiber. used cashew milk, dairy free unsweetened vanilla greek yogurt, and regular maple syrup. mine ended up being 432 kcal and 26 g protein. a keeper! thank you!
These were a huge success at our house! I added a handful of chocolate chips to make them more appealing to my kiddos, and all 4 of them LOVED them! Will definitely make these again. Thanks for the great recipe 🙂
Amazing!!
Solid breakfast especially because I am so sick of eggs! Came out great as written. I reheated the slices in the air fryer for 5 min, so good.
Thats great to hear!! And I feel ya!
Love this recipe!!! It has become a staple breakfast for my wife and I!
I am making it for the second time this week!
That's so amazing to hear!!
Yes absolutely!!!
It has become a weekly staple in our house. I have been adding pumpkin seeds and raisins 😊
Simply amazing!!! We put pumpkin cream cheese on it too 😉
Thank you 🙏
Have made this multiple times for my teen athletes who love that it’s a good amount of protein with real foods!
That's awesome, so happy to hear you guys enjoy!
These were really good. Kept me full all morning! Easy to make too! Getting ready to make my 2nd batch.
So happy to hear that!
I make this recipe every week! My family loves it!
I don’t typically love baked oats but I thought I would give this recipe a try given the protein and fiber content and they turned out sooo good! I used maple syrup since I had it on hand and that gave the perfect amount of sweetness. My husband also loved them, I will definitely make again!
I'm so glad you guys enjoyed!