Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeal (gluten-free + dairy-free)

This Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeal is the most perfect intersection of a nutritious meal + a decadent treat. Studded with strawberries + melty dark chocolate, this baked oatmeal is gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free…but you’d never know.

Guys, if you’re new here, let me introduce myself: I’m Jessica + I’m addicted to baked oatmeal. I already have a handful of baked oatmeal recipes here on this blog which are so yummy (looking at you pumpkin spice, apple pie, spiced cranberry + mixed berry!). But Y’ALL! THIS OATMEAL. This Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeal is next level. It is the breakfast (or brunch or dessert or midnight snack) you never knew you needed + I’m about to tell you why.

I’ve been a gluten-free and dairy-free eater for nearly a decade. I have endometriosis, and while I don’t want to prescribe a diet for anyone else, this specific way of eating has helped my symptoms so, so much. But, I also LOVE food! I love good food + I freaking love breakfast foods, in particular. My heart is to create recipes that bring joy + cater to food sensitivities, so here we are.

This Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeal tastes nothing like an allergen friendly meal in any way. It doesn’t contain any gluten, dairy, nuts, soy or refined sugar, but it is luxurious + sweet + okay, let’s get into it!

Ingredients in Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeala

Baked Oatmeal recipes are generally pretty simple, and this chocolate strawberry baked oatmeal is no exception. We’re going to use pantry staples + chuck in a few special items (looking at you, strawberries!) and call it a winner! Here’s what you’ll need:

• Oats: PLEASE USE ROLLED OATS. If you use instant oats in this recipe, the final texture will be gummy rather than a beautiful cake-like oatmeal. Rolled oats or jumbo oats both work really well. Be sure to grab gluten-free if you need that!
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Maple Syrup: You can use any natural sweetener that you like, but I’d keep it a liquid sweetener (so honey or agave) to ensure the wet/dry ratios stay the same!
• Eggs: You can absolutely swap these for flax eggs if you need to!
• Dairy-Free Milk: Cashew, oat, coconut…any milk will work! You can even use normal ole dairy milk if you don’t have any allergies in your house.
• Mashed Banana: This really adds to the sweetness, but more importantly, to the texture of this oatmeal! It makes it so delicious. If you can, make sure these are as ripe as possible! (The browner, the better!)
• Strawberries: Obviously this is a chocolate STRAWBERRY baked oatmeal, but feel free to swap out the fruit to what you desire! Raspberries? Yum!! Mandarin oranges for a chocolate orange vibe? Do whatever you want!
• Chocolate: I love dark, dark, dark chocolate, so that’s what I use here, but my husband would for sure choose white or milk. Any of the options would work + be totally divine.

Making + Storing Baked Oatmeal

Making this chocolate strawberry baked oatmeal is really, really simple. (In fact, kids could even do it on their own if someone made sure the chopping of fruit was done safely!) It’s really just a bit of mixing!

I love to bake this oatmeal in a 9×13 dish and slice into squares, but you could really use whatever sized pan you prefer. Just be sure if it’s a smaller vessel, like say baked oatmeal muffins, you’ll need to adjust the time accordingly!

To get the oatmeal together, it really is just a bit of dumping, a bit of mixing, a bit more dumping + a bit more mixing! You don’t need any special equipment + the hardest part is using a fork to mash the banana!

My only little tip would be to hold back a few pieces of the strawberries and chocolate to decorate the top of the oatmeal before it goes into the oven! If you don’t really care what it looks like as long as it tastes great, skip this step!

This chocolate strawberry baked oatmeal can be eaten as soon as it comes out of the oven – in fact, I’d encourage it, ha! But it also stores beautifully. We just slice it into pieces and keep in an airtight container in the fridge, where it’ll last for up to a week. I actually love it cold from the fridge as a snack. Any longer than that, I place it in a container with parchment paper separating the squares + pop it into the freezer. It defrosts beautifully + will keep in there for months!

This Chocolate Strawberry Baked Oatmeal really is a meal on it’s own, but feel free to serve it with some eggs, bacon or sausage to up the protein intake a little bit. We love to serve it with some coconut yogurt and a little extra maple syrup for pouring! But even on it’s own, this oatmeal is a TREAT!

It’s sweet, tangy, decadent + rich. It feels like a restaurant style breakfast, but it’s so quick, so easy + honestly, really inexpensive!

If you give this chocolate strawberry baked oatmeal a try, which you SHOULD, be sure to pop back and let me know what you think in the comments 🙂 It makes my heart smile SO much to hear how they’re fitting into your life! I also love getting to chat about food (or whatever) on Instagram, so feel free to tag me over there in your creations too!

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