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Here’s an oatmeal breakfast full of protein and sweetened with fresh bananas. It will take your oatmeal up a notch with a sweet taste that will really fill you up until lunchtime.
Ingredients to make the recipe
- Rolled oats: I love the texture of rolled oats in this recipe, but you can also make it with steel cut oats, which will take longer to cook or quick oats which will give you a softer consistency.
- Almond milk: To keep the recipe vegan, almond milk works really well balanced with water for the liquid to cook the oats in. You can use any kind of milk or cook the oats with just water alone.
- Protein powder: This vegan based protein powder bulks up the oatmeal to make you feel more satiated. I like using a vanilla powder to go best with the bananas, but any protein powder will work.
- Chia seeds: To add more protein and substance to the oatmeal, try adding some chia seeds or flaxseeds. Cooking them with the oats will bulk them up to become gel-like and they’ll make you feel more full!
- Sweetener: To sweeten the oats, but completely optional and I skip it often. You can also use maple syrup or granulated sugar.
- Bananas: This is added as a topping after the oats are cooked. For an extra treat, try caramelizing it in a separate pan with coconut oil and brown sugar. You can also try it with other fruits like apples or strawberries.
How to make protein oatmeal
- Boil the water, milk and salt in a small saucepan.
- Add the oats and chia seeds and stir to combine.
- Cook until the oats are soft, stirring a couple times until the liquid is absorbed.
- Remove from heat, add the bananas, dissolved protein powder, stir and cover until the bananas soften.
Tips for making the recipe well
- Whisk the protein powder with the milk and water before adding the oats. The protein powder can clump up sometimes when added with the oats and chia seeds. It helps to whisk first with the liquid for a smoother consistency.
- Reheat with the a splash of water or milk. If you’re prepping this ahead, the oatmeal will tend to dry up and even become one large clump. Make sure to add a splash of liquid before reheating.
- Don’t skip the salt. When making the oatmeal, a little salt really does make all the difference. It brings out the natural sweetness and nuttiness of the oats, and without it, it can taste quite bland.
- Make it quickly in the microwave. I like to make my oatmeal on the stovetop when I have extra time. But you can make it in the microwave if you are short on time. Add all the ingredients for the oatmeal into. a bowl, don’t cover it and heat on high for 2 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
I prefer to use rolled old fashioned oats for my oatmeal. They have the perfect texture and are fairly quick to cook. Quick oats will give you a much softer and mushy texture. Steel cut oats can be used, but they require a longer cooking time of around 20 minutes. Be sure to also check out my tutorials on how to cook rolled oats and how to cook steel cut oats.
I like a 1:2 ratio of the oats to liquid. However, since we are using chia seeds that protein powder that both absorb a lot of liquid, I increase the liquid slightly in this specific protein oatmeal recipe.
Oatmeal is great for meal prep. It will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days and can easily be reheated. It’s best to add the bananas just before you have the oatmeal so that they are fresh.
If the protein powder is added to hot liquid, it won’t mix properly and can get clumpy. I recommend to mix the protein with equal amounts room temperature water instead and add it after the oats are cooked.
The taste of this protein oatmeal simply magical for a seemingly boring breakfast staple. It tastes like dessert, smells like heaven and feels like breakfast victory!
For more oatmeal recipes:
- How to Make Oatmeal
- Baked Cranberry Pecan Oatmeal
- Baked Blueberry Oatmeal
- Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cups
- Quinoa Oatmeal
- Easy Overnight Oats
- Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Protein Oatmeal recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
Protein Oatmeal
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup+ 2 tablespoons water divided
- 1 ½ cups milk of choice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons vanilla protein powder
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 banana sliced
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, bring the water, milk and salt to a boil. Reduce the heat to low.
- While the liquid is cooking, dissolve the protein powder with 2 tablespoons water until smooth and consistent.
- Add the oats, chia seeds and light brown sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the oats are soft and have absorbed most of the liquid, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the dissolved protein powder and sliced bananas, cover and let stand for 2-3 minutes.
- Divide into two bowls. Sprinkle a dash of cinnamon, if desired and enjoy warm.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Delicious with plant based protein. 100% awful if using whey protein. Do not assume they are interchangeable. Heated whey will curdle and ruin the oatmeal. The only way to use whey in protein oatmeal is cold overnight oats.
Yes, my favorite protein powder to use is a vegan vanilla option!
My first foray into using protein powder! Turned out quite good. Left out the sugar and only had Quick oats on hand, so was a bit creamier than I would prefer, added blueberries in place of banana but all in all I enjoyed the meal and will use this recipe again. Maybe add nuts next time
Nuts do add a great texture and fats!
Great recipe! I personally do not like protein powder in my oatmeal. I left out the sweetener because there is enough sugar for me in the protein powder & banana. Next time, I will leave out the protein powder and maybe sub in almond butter, and sub the sugar for honey.
I just made this. So yummy and filling. I served a 5 oz portion weighed on food scale and that was plenty with about 6 Pecans. I subbed Coconut sugar for brown sugar. This will be my breakfast the next 4 days. Not sure how leftovers will be but I will make sure to add water as suggested prior to heating.
I’m glad to hear it! Yum!! Hope you continue to enjoy it.