Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal Cups

A recipe for the whole family, these oatmeal cups combine the fun of banana bread with baked oatmeal–a ‘muffin’ you can feel good about making and sharing with your kids. A splash of mini chocolate chips enhances their appeal!

Everyday romance in the kitchen, to me, is about making meals that you love and that make the people in your life happy and feel good. When you do that, it creates the space to enjoy food together and strengthen your connections. That includes being able to cook with family and for kids as well!

So today I’m sharing a recipe I love to make with my six year old son. Both of my boys love cooking in the kitchen with me, and I love sharing something I’m passionate about with them. It’s a wonderful way too for them to understand where food comes from and all the tips and tricks for making delicious meals. My six year old, in particular, loves anything he can help with in the kitchen. These Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal Cups in particular are a great recipe for him to help with because they allow him to mash the bananas, mix the ingredients, and fill the muffin cups. They’re super hands on and very foolproof. Professional tip, though–he ate an additional 3 bananas while making these, so have extras on hand!

Baked oatmeal cups are a really fun breakfast to whip together because they’re easy and so inviting when they come out of the oven. Just like banana bread, you will want to start with those bananas on your counter that are going brown–they’re the easiest to mash and use in this kind of recipe. Super simple to mix everything together and fill up your muffin cups, these oatmeal cups only need 15-18 minutes in the oven. I like to let them cool in the pan as I think it helps the oats to soak up any additional liquid and come out of the pan a little easier. I love adding mini chocolate chips to these because it makes them so appealing to the kids, but of course feel free to have fun with mix ins. Walnuts or pecans would be great too if you’re a nut-lover.

I also love these baked oatmeal cups for sharing with the kids to eat because, unlike a bakery muffin, they aren’t loaded with sugars and fats. Instead, they’re filled with oats and bananas and include just a third cup of brown sugar. That makes them more filling for the kids and less likely to end in a sugar high/crash. I also used oat milk in the recipe to enhance that oat flavor, but feel free to use whatever kind of milk you have on hand. I find my kids are so excited about the banana/chocolate chip combo that they are happy to gobble these up without missing a more traditional muffin.

These Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal Cups are also great as leftovers, and you can enjoy them all week. Just keep them in the fridge in an airtight container. I like to eat them cold straight out of the fridge, but you could always warm or serve them with milk. They are a fun afterschool snack as well.

On weekend mornings my kids first thought is always, ‘what can we make with mommy for breakfast?’ It’s usually pancakes or waffles or scrambled eggs, the old standbys. So try surprising everyone next time with super easy oatmeal cups–the adults will have as much fun eating these as the kids!