Inside Scoop: These Apple Banana Oat Cups are vegan, gluten-free and make the perfect grab-and-go snack or breakfast.
This recipe was submitted by Jarka Crawford, holistic nutritionist and founder of CleverFamilyMeals.ca.
One bowl and a couple minutes of prep is all you need to create the easiest and healthiest breakfast oat cups of your dreams.
CHECK OUT THE BENEFITS OF THESE APPLE BANANA OAT CUPS
- Sugar-free
- Simple to make & simple ingredients
- Freezable
- Kid friendly
- Healthy & protein dense ingredients
- Keep you feeling full
- Grab & go breakfast or snack
We’re crushing hard on these Apple Banana Oat Cups because they make a great base for adding other ingredients, and because we’ve been experimenting with them, we wanted to leave you with 3 Banana Oat Cup modifications, you’ve gotta try the Chai Spiced variation (see below).
BANANA PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP CUPS
Add in ¼ cup dark chocolate chips and 1-2 Tbsp all natural peanut butter for a bit of a sweet treat and nutty taste.
ALMOND CHAI SPICED CUPS
Steep 1 chai tea bag in ¼ cup water for 2 minutes, and use it as a replacement for regular filtered water in the recipe. Add in 1-2 Tbsp of almond butter as well as ¼ cup chopped pitted dates, for a spicy, sweet and nutty taste.
BERRY MADNESS CUPS
Fold in 1 cup berries of choice before you’re about to bake. If you really want to step it up a berry notch, fill ¼ of your muffin liner with batter, add 1-2 tsp sized dollop of jam (we use Crofters Just Fruit– contains no added sugars, it uses grape juice to sweeten) in the center, and then top the jam with more batter.
We love a good oatmeal breakfast, whether it’s overnight oats, granola, oat cups, warm oats, oatmeal cookies (and so on…), there are so many amazing ways to use up your oats, and the classic porridge has definitely stepped up a notch. If you want more oat based recipes, definitely check out our Warm Peanut Butter Oats, and Easy Overnight Oats.
But our favourite thing about oats is the fact that they are a power food!
Oats are incredibly amazing for your digestive tract. It’s said that they increase the viscosity of our GI tract “Viscosity” means the thickness of the contents and their likelihood of flowing either too quickly or too slowly through our digestive tract. If you have too little viscosity it means that food can flow fast through your system, and vice versa, resulting in gastrointestinal irregularities. Too quick can result in difficulty with blood sugar regulation, and too slow can allow for toxins to be reabsorbed. This makes adding oats to your daily routine, one of the most perfect foods for toilet troubles.
Not only are they great for your GI, but they’re incredibly high in protein, fiber, minerals, complex carbohydrates, and they are said to help support healthy blood sugar balance, as well as decreasing your risk for cardiovascular disease (due to their high fiber content).
That’s why these Apple Banana Oat Cups are a win win in our books, because not only do you have taste, variety, but they’re wonderful for you as well.
CAN’T BEAT THE SIMPLICITY OF THESE OAT CUPS
Simple, yet totally delicious. We love that you can grab-and-go these apple banana oat cups and they make a perfect healthy – and easy – meal with no fuss, or no worries.
Since we’ve started experimenting with 5 ingredient recipes, we’ve found that healthy eating can really be unbelievably delicious and really fit into our busy lifestyles! For example, this 5 Ingredient Grain-Free Flatbread, and these delicious Vegan & Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies have become weekly staples and we know that we can fit cooking them into a 15 minute slot in our day. Then, healthy snacks and easy meals are at our fingertips.
Both recipes are part of our signature N5Diet, but if you’re looking for a simple strategy to bring healthy cooking into your kitchen, check out our 5 day, 5 Ingredient Challenge:
With this challenge you’ll get an instant downloadable Mini 5 Ingredient Cookbook, a challenge guide, access to our private nutrition community and much more!
What’s your favourite thing about cooking simple and healthy meals? Let us know in the comments below.
Apple Banana Oat Cups
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas broken up to smaller pieces
- 1 medium apple cored and roughly cut up (or ½ cup apple sauce)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 2 Tbsp ground flaxseeds or chia seeds
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 3 cups rolled oats gluten-free if needed
- 1 tsp baking powder
Directions
Preheat oven to 375F.
- Place bananas, apple, water, and coconut oil in a food processor and process until smooth.
- Add flax/chia seeds and cinnamon and process until combined.
Mix oats with baking powder, add to processor and run the food processor until combined.
Use 1/4 cup as a measurement to fill a muffin tin – you can use unbleached muffin liners or use stoneware and grease with coconut oil.
- Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let the muffin tin cool for about 10 minutes, transfer muffins to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
Recipe Notes
Notes: Make sure blend thoroughly, and add apple chunks in last
Jarka Crawford
My name is Jarka, and I’m a holistic nutritionist and founder of CleverFamilyMeals.ca. My goal is to help families manage healthy eating by creating a personalized action plan tailored to your lifestyle, needs and preferences. With deliciously healthy recipes, natural medicine and valuable tips, I’ll help you manage: digestive issues, recurring ear/chest infections, eczema, asthma, sleep issues, behavioural problems, ADD/ ADHD, autism and more.
I have successfully used this holistic approach in my own family and look forward to sharing my expertise with you. Watch your family gather around the dinner table in a whole new healthy and delicious way!
You can follow Jarka's social media accounts here: Facebook & Pinterest.
I had baritric surgery 13 months ago and am looking for a healthy eating plan to lose the last 20 lbs. My question is I am eating a Paleo snd low carb. These muffins sound so good but I am afraid to add back in fruitding back in fruit I wil might start to gain back my weight. Would like your thoughts.
Hello Toni. Thank you, they are delicious and they can totally be incorporated as part of a healthy and balanced diet and lifestyle. They are only sweetened with natural fruit. With that being said and because we don’t know about your unique case/health and nutrition habits, we would advise that you consult with a qualified nutrition practitioner that will be able to help you create a healthy & balanced meal plan tailored to you and your health goals. We also offer similar one-on-one packages or personalized meal plans and if you are interested you can email us at hello@TheNaughtyNutritionists.com. Take care!
Hello. The servings amount says 12 muffins. How many muffins are considered a serving? One? Three?
Thank you
Hi James. It depends if you are having it as a snack size then 1 muffin should be good. If you are having it as a breakfast then 2 oat cups with the sides. The good thing is that there is no added sugar and all the sweetness comes from the bananas and apple.
Does this recipe (and its variations) freeze well? Before or after baking?
Great question, they most likely wont freeze before baking unless you can find something to hold them, because they are made of an oat mixture that is a bit wet, but you can definitely bake them and then freeze them for a couple weeks!
Hi! Thanks for sharing the recipe. They sound great. The recipe lists baking powder in the ingredients, but doesn’t say when in the directions to add it in. I ended up adding it at the end, when I realized it was missing, so we’ll see how they turn out. 🙂
Ops, we have updated that. You can simply mix it in with the oats and add it along with them. Let us know how it turns out 🙂
Should the apple be peeled before cutting it up and adding it to the mixture in the food processor? Also, the directions say to add the apple last; should it be processed until smooth or just enough to leave small chunks in the batter? Thank you.
We’ve used both peeled and unpeeled apple, I think it comes down to personal preference. If you prefer with peel off it might be wise to peel first. As for the adding apple last, we just recommend that because it’s easier to fold the chunks of apple into the batter. Small chunks are nice because you get a nice bite of apple, but you can also use 1/2 a cup of apple sauce instead of the chunks. Hope this helps.
How long can I keep these in the freezer for ?
They will probably stay good for at least 6 weeks. Since they contain no dairy or meat they will last a long time provided they are wrapped properly.