This creamy apple cinnamon oatmeal recipe is studded with fresh apples and loaded with fall flavor. It comes together quickly and is the perfect warm breakfast to enjoy on chilly mornings.
I have a few different apple oatmeal recipes on the blog like this apple cinnamon baked oatmeal, apple steel cut oatmeal and apple pie overnight oats, but I figured it was time to share a simple stovetop version of apple cinnamon oatmeal! It’s packed with fresh apples and cinnamon flavor and has just a touch of sweetness.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Oats provide a good amount of vitamins, minerals, fiber and even antioxidants. They are basically a “super grain.”
The combo of apples, cinnamon and maple syrup = chef’s kiss!
You’ll have breakfast on the table in about 10 minutes!
It’s dairy-free, vegan and totally customizable.
Ingredients Needed
old fashioned rolled oats – old fashioned rolled oats are best for this recipe. Make sure you grab gluten-free oats if needed. I use Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free rolled oats. If you have steel cut oats, try my recipe for apple steel cut oatmeal instead.
apples – I prefer to use Honeycrisp, Pink Lady or Granny Smith apples, but your favorite variety will work.
water or milk – I like using water in my oatmeal and think it’s plenty creamy, but if you prefer you can always use your favorite non-dairy milk! My go-to is unsweetened almond milk. Try making your own almond milk.
maple syrup – maple syrup is the perfect natural sweetener to use because it’s liquid so it blends in nicely with the oat mixture and I personally love the flavor. Just make sure you grab pure maple syrup and not pancake syrup as that’s loaded with corn syrup! Honey, brown sugar or coconut sugar would be good substitutes if you don’t have maple syrup on hand.
ground cinnamon – the perfect warming spice for this oatmeal. You can’t go wrong with the combo of apple + cinnamon!
vanilla extract – an optional flavor enhancer.
sea salt – just a pinch to bring all the flavors together.
chopped pecans – a nice crunchy topping. You could also use walnuts, almonds, cashews or peanuts. If you have a nut allergy, skip the pecans altogether or top your oats with pepitas (aka pumpkin seeds).
How to Make Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Add your oats, diced apples, milk (or water), maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla and salt to a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a low boil, reduce heat to low, simmer and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. You’ll know the oats are ready when they’ve soaked up most of the liquid and are creamy.
Transfer to a bowl and top with pecans, some more diced apples, a sprinkle of cinnamon and additional sweetener if needed.
Customize Your Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
This apple cinnamon oatmeal is a simple recipe that requires minimal ingredients. That said, you can totally customize your oats with the toppings and mix-ins! I love adding protein to my oatmeal and some added toppings! Here are a few ideas that would be delicious with this apple cinnamon oatmeal:
Protein: want to boost the protein in this oatmeal? Stir in 1/2-1 scoop of vanilla protein powder after cooking. Check out my full post on protein oatmeal for other ways to add protein to your oats.
Spices: want to amp up the flavor of this oatmeal? Add some additional spices like cardamom powder, allspice or nutmeg.
Sautéed apples: instead of cooking the apple chunks directly in the oats you can sauté your apples with cinnamon and a touch of maple syrup in a separate pot for about 5-7 minutes until they’re soft, tender and start to caramelize. Then top your bowl of oatmeal with the sautéed apples. SO good!
How to Make in The Microwave
Just add all ingredients into a large microwave-safe bowl with plenty of room for the oats to bubble up. Microwave for 1 minute, stir and then microwave at 30 seconds increments, stirring between each one.
Cook until the oatmeal is the consistency you like – I typically cook mine for about 3 minutes but you’ll know it’s ready when most of the liquid is absorbed and the oats are hot.
How to Meal Prep And Store
This apple cinnamon oatmeal recipe is great because you can easily double or triple the recipe for meal prep so you have breakfast ready to go for a few days. Just store your leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days. When you’re ready to eat them warm them in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until they reach your preferred temperature. You might want to add an extra splash of milk or water because as the oats sit they’ll likely thicken up. Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
This creamy apple cinnamon oatmeal recipe is studded with fresh apples and loaded with fall flavor. It comes together quickly and is the perfect warm breakfast to enjoy on chilly mornings.
Add oats, apples, water, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla and salt to a saucepan over medium-high heat.
Bring mixture to a low boil, reduce heat to a low simmer and continue to cook for about 5-7 minutes; stirring occasionally. Oatmeal is ready when the oats have soaked up most of the liquid and are creamy.
Transfer to a bowl and top with pecans, additional diced apples, a sprinkle of cinnamon and additional sweetener if needed.
Yes! Just add all the ingredients to a large microwaveable bowl (with plenty of room) and microwave for 1 minute, stir and then microwave at 30 seconds increments , stirring between each one. Keep cooking until the oatmeal is at the consistency you like. I hope you enjoy this recipe!
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Is the nutrition with milk or water
The nutrition listed is with water. It would vary depending on what type of milk you choose to use. Hope you enjoy this recipe!
Is it possible to make this in a microwave?
Yes! Just add all the ingredients to a large microwaveable bowl (with plenty of room) and microwave for 1 minute, stir and then microwave at 30 seconds increments , stirring between each one. Keep cooking until the oatmeal is at the consistency you like. I hope you enjoy this recipe!