Easy Chocolate Baked Oats without Banana or Eggs

This easy chocolate baked oats recipe without banana or eggs is super rich and chocolatey with an optional molten lava center. These oats have a fluffy texture similar to a cake but they’re perfect for breakfast or as a late-night snack! 

Why you’ll love these chocolate baked oats without banana

Why This Recipe Works

No eggs are necessary for these chocolate baked oats! A lot of baked oat recipes call for eggs, but it’s really not necessary here. 

This recipe uses applesauce which serves as a fantastic egg replacer, plus it acts as a substitute for oil.

Since eggs also help leaven baked goods, we’re adding baking powder to help the baked oats rise and to give them a cake-like texture.

The Ingredients

This recipe packs as much chocolate flavor into the oats as possible by using cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and chocolate chunks. These easy baked oats without banana use 9 ingredients making them super simple and quick to whip up.

You’ll need to gather the following ingredients to make them:

• Old Fashioned Oats, not steel cut oats

• Unsweetened Applesauce

• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

• Baking Powder

• Dairy Free Milk, like unsweetened almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk or oat milk

• Sweetener of choice, like pure maple syrup, agave, stevia, or brown sugar

• Chocolate Chips & Chocolate Chunks

• Vanilla Extract

• Salt

The Lava Center

To make a gooey center, I like to scoop a spoonful of nut butter (peanut butter or almond butter) onto the oats prior to baking. You can also add a tablespoon of chopped chocolate. Below are some ideas for what you can add to the center:

• Peanut Butter
• Almond Butter
• Cashew Butter
• Biscoff Cookie Butter
• Chopped Chocolate
• Ganache 
• Peanut Butter Cup
• Coconut Caramel
• Chopped Protein Bars

Of course, this is optional and if you’d like to reduce the amount of added sugar in the recipe you can omit this step. But it adds some extra decadence and really makes this the best baked oatmeal recipe!

The more chocolate or nut butter you put in the center of the oats, the gooier the center will be after baking.

Substitutions & Add-ins

• Cocoa Powder: you can use raw cacao powder instead of cocoa powder

• Oil: add 1 tbsp of melted coconut oil for an extra moist texture

• Ground Flaxseed: I haven’t tried this in this exact recipe, but if you don’t have applesauce you can try using a flax egg instead. Mix 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed with 3 tbsp of water and add to the batter.

• Nut Butter: add a tablespoon of nut butter to the batter for extra flavor

• Chopped Nuts: you can also add in your favorite chopped nuts like pecans, almonds, or walnuts

• Shredded Coconut: to make chocolatey coconut baked oats you can add 1-2 tbsp of desiccated coconut. (You can even make an almond joy flavor by adding almond and coconut!)

• Fresh fruit: raspberries or strawberries would be tasty on top or in the batter.

• Sweetener: feel free to use your sweetener of choice
  • Maple syrup adds a nice flavor but you could also use agave nectar, cane sugar, stevia, coconut sugar, or one of the options listed in this post.

Helpful Equipment

• High-Speed Blender or Food Processor: if you’d like to blend your oats (blending the oats helps create a fine, cakier texture)

• Oven Safe Individual Ramekins: for baking the oats

Step by Step Instructions

*Video Tutorial is Above the Recipe Card Down Below*

STEP 1: In a blender or a food processor, add the rolled oats (this step is optional but recommended). Blend into a fine flour or powder. Transfer to a bowl.

STEP 2: Add the applesauce, cocoa powder, dairy-free milk, salt, sweetener, baking powder, and vanilla directly to the oats. You can also add the remaining ingredients directly to the food processor or blender.

STEP 3: Mix or blend the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until smooth and well combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix again.

STEP 4: Pour the oat mixture into a greased ramekin. Scoop a spoonful of chocolate chunks or nut butter (as much as you’d like) into the center and cover it with the baked oats batter.

STEP 5: Sprinkle chocolate chips or chunks on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes on the middle rack.

📌 Note: baking time will vary slightly based on how wide and deep your ramekin is.

Serving

The ramekin will be hot straight out of the oven, so be careful when serving it! 

You can let it cool for a few minutes, or if you’d like to serve it immediately, place the ramekin on a plate.

These oats are best served warm when the lava center and chocolate are still melted. Add fresh berries on top for a nutritious breakfast or snack!

Storage

While these oats are best when served warm straight out of the oven, they can also be stored for 1-2 days. 

• Keep them in an airtight container or wrap the ramekin with plastic wrap. 
• Store leftovers in the fridge. 
• Reheat them by warming them in the microwave for 1 minute.

Pro Tips

• Blend the oats for best results: blended oats have a flour consistency that helps create a cake-like texture.

• Add sweetener to taste: because this recipe doesn’t use all-purpose flour or eggs, it’s safe to eat before cooking- so go ahead and taste for sweetness prior to baking!

• Bake until a knife removes cleanly from the oats: test the oats by inserting a toothpick or knife into the outer edges (not the lava center). If it comes out relatively clean (except for some melted chocolate), the oats are done.

• Use cooking spray: grease the ramekin prior to baking for easier clean up.

Looking for more Vegan Breakfast recipes?

• Chocolate Almond Butter Granola
• Vegan Buttermilk Belgian Waffles
• Vegan Protein Waffles
• Oat Milk Chia Pudding
• Peach Crisp Overnight Oats
• Nutella Baked Oats
• Birthday Cake Overnight Oats
• Cinnamon Roll Overnight Oats

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