Vegan Protein Gingerbread Baked Oatmeal

posted by Britt Berlin on Nov 30, 2018 (last updated Apr 6, 2022) 0 comments »

Single-serving Gingerbread Baked Oatmeal that’s filled with plant-based protein for a filling and festive breakfast! These oats are perfectly spicy and sweetened with natural sugars.

Baked oatmeal, in my book, ranks as one of the easiest breakfasts to make while still be satisfying. You don’t have to constantly stir it while cooking, making sure you’re getting the best consistency, and while it’s baking, you can get other things done, like make that all-too-neccessary cup of hot cocoa to go along with it!

You better believe I’m having hot chocolate with these baked oats!

Seeing that it’s the holiday season and I love all things spicy and warming, I thought what better way than to present to you Gingerbread Baked Oatmeal! Vegan and filled with protein, these oats are possibly one of the very few breakfasts that checks off all the boxes (filling, tasty, full of nutrients) and still gets you into the holiday cheer!

Trust me, I’m all for indulgence. Every Christmas, my mom makes these incredible double chocolate pancakes that essentially taste like you’re eating the fudgiest and richest piece of chocolate cake in the history of chocolate cakes. It’s made with butter, whole milk, regular sugar, and a whole lot of love. I love every single bite of it.

These types of meals are just as important as your “balanced” meals that are full of nutrients. How I see it, the double chocolate pancakes serve as another form of nutrient that’s just as important. I’m going to sound like a cornball, but I see it as filled with love and freedom and tradition. That being said, we can’t just sustain ourselves on just that. We need the traditional macro and micronutrients, like proteins, carbs, fats, Vitamin B6, magnesium, and phosphorus (to name a few that are in this recipe).

It’s all about balance, and balance isn’t perfect. Sometimes we lean more one way than the other, and we’re constantly striving for that middle. Never do I ever berate myself for not being more centered in my “balance” because guilt does nothing but make you feel worse. I never found guilt motivating so don’t waste your time. Just tune into your body and listen to what she’s telling you. Also, try not to overthink this. I think the holidays tend to be a time where our Type A personalities come out, trying to control every outcome, especially food, but I guess I’ve finally started to see that as wasted energy. It’s not going to help me in any way if I’m sitting here feeling guilty and worrying about just eating a cookie, just like it’s not going to help me worrying about how I can make sure I have something to eat at every family event or if someone will judge me for eating differently. Maybe I should take into account more of what other people think, but at this point, I really don’t care haha! There’s a freedom to that.

Okay, I’m sure you didn’t come here to read me ranting about true food freedom (being able to eat whatever you want, be it a vegetable or a cookie, and not giving a f*** about what someone else thinks), so let me get to the recipe (500 words later lol). Like I said, it’s one of the easiest recipes in the history of breakfast recipes.

All you have to do is mix everything together in a bowl, pour it into a ramekin, let it bake, and voilà! You have your gingerbread baked oatmeal! What I love about this meal is that it really does hit all of the macronutrients, so you’re getting that holiday flavor while also making sure your body is getting exactly what it needs to keep going through this holiday season (it requires a lot of energy, believe me!).

Let me talk about the protein for a second. There are a few options that you could use. I always like to add protein into my oatmeal, whether it’s regular or baked oatmeal. In this recipe specifically, I used Gainful protein- essentially it’s a protein powder designed specifically to your needs and preferences. I completed an online survey stating what my physical stats were, what I like to do in terms of exercise, what my goals were, and what my taste preference were. I wanted my protein powder to be vegan, as I’m not a huge fan of whey in general, but you could certainly opt for that being your protein! I also made sure my powder was vanilla because #moreflavoroptions. Vanilla is such a good base flavor for essentially everything! Most of the ingredients are also organic too, which is a huge plus for me (as I really like choosing organic!). And finally, how I assess which brands to support is by looking at the people behind it and what their mission is. The founders of Gainful happened to be Georgetown alums (where I went for undergrad!), and I really aligned with their value of personalized nutrition.

To try out Gainful, you can use the code: BANANADIARIES for a 20% discount!

Another vegan protein powder I love is sacha inchi! It’s made from the ground sacha inchi or Inca peanut (that also happens to be not really a nut!) and it’s contains more omega-3 fats and proteins than a serving of salmon. Pretty good, right? My favorite brand is Imlak’esh Organics, but I believe Thrive also has their own version!

These are just two of my favorite proteins. You can also swap in collagen powder if that’s your jam, but I found these two to be more complete forms of protein, rather than just getting the very specific amino acids profile of collagen (which if you’re using collagen on a daily basis, you could probably stand to switch it up a bit 😉 ).

What else makes this gingerbread baked oatmeal recipe amazing? The subtle sweetness from the banana and just a teaspoon of blackstrap molasses! Blackstrap molasses is fantastic because it’s actually chock full of nutrients, as is the banana.

Alright, I’ve rambled on enough about this recipe (I was truly only planning on writing a few words, and now here we are lol). Get to making this baked oatmeal, top with some pecans, and enjoy!

Did you like this recipe?! If so, let me know by sharing it on Instagram, commenting down below, or pinning it to your recipe page on good ol’ Pinterest! Be sure to tag me @the_bananadiaries and use the hashtag #iyamlove so that I can see your beautiful creations!