This Carrot Cake Oatmeal recipe transforms a decadent dessert into a healthy breakfast. It helps you get your vegetables in early, keeps you satisfied until lunch, and squashes a sweet tooth craving. Dessert for breakfast, anyone?
Special days require cake for breakfast, like birthdays or holidays.
Other days (you know those cold, dark, or stormy winter days), the allure of cake for breakfast is the only thing that will get you out of bed in the morning.
Either way, cake for breakfast should be embraced instead of frowned upon. After all, cake can be healthy, right?
This beautiful bowl of oatmeal sure is. It’s full of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein, and won’t leave you crashing off a sugar high mid-morning the way normal cake would.
In fact, the sweeteners I used come straight from nature: carrot, raisins, and honey. This oatmeal will leave you feeling happy and energized straight through until lunchtime.
So go ahead and indulge!
And the next time someone jokingly mentions cake for breakfast you can let them in on your little secret.
The Best Carrot Cake Oatmeal Recipe
This breakfast tastes like you’re sitting down to a slice of Carrot Cake!
But one of the best things about this indulgent breakfast is that it’s full of nutrients to nourish your body and keep you full and satisfied until lunchtime.
Here carrot, raisin, and honey add natural sweetness. And if you like your sweets on the less sweet side, feel free to omit the honey and taste the Carrot Cake Oatmeal before you add it.
Carrot Cake Oatmeal Ingredients
- Carrot
- Water
- Quick-cooking oats
- Raisins
- Unsweetened shredded coconut
- Pecans or walnuts
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Cloves
- Ginger
- Sea salt
- Honey or maple syrup
- Pure vanilla extract
- Heavy cream or coconut milk
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Finely grate a small carrot.
- Add the grated carrot and water to a small saucepan. Bring the carrot and water to a boil, and then let it boil for 3 minutes.
- Stir in the oats. This recipe uses quick-cooking oats.
- Cook the oats for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. The oats will absorb the water and get a creamy consistency.
- And then add in the goodies! Our Carrot Cake Oatmeal Recipe has raisins, shredded coconut, pecans, and spices added for flavor and texture.
Tips
- If you want to use old-fashioned rolled oats, you can increase the amount of water and increase the cooking time.
- To make this vegan, use maple syrup instead of honey and coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
- Make this into overnight oats! Simply mix everything together, and refrigerate overnight instead of cooking it.
Healthy Oatmeal Recipes
When we hear the word oatmeal, a lot of us immediately think healthy. But that’s not always true! Depending on your add-ins, you can turn a healthy bowl of oats into something that will leave you sugar crashing mid-morning and famished well before it’s time to sit down to lunch.
That’s not the case here! This Carrot Cake Oatmeal is sweetened naturally and has a decent amount of fiber to help sustain you.
This recipe is also gluten free (look for oats that are certified gluten free if necessary), and it’s vegan-friendly (use maple syrup instead of honey and coconut milk instead of heavy cream).
More Oatmeal Recipes to Try
- Irish Oatmeal with Hot Buttered Cinnamon Apples
- Oatmeal in a Little Black Dress
- My Favorite Noatmeal (AKA Low Carb Oatmeal)
- Savory Oatmeal Breakfast Bowls with Smoky Garlic Greens and Chipotle-Honey Vinaigrette
- The Ultimate 90 Second Microwave Oatmeal
- Strawberry and Coconut Cream Overnight Oatmeal Parfaits
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xoxo, Faith
Carrot Cake Oatmeal Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 small carrot peeled and finely grated (about 1/4 cup packed)
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup quick-cooking oats see note below
- 1 tablespoon raisins
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2 tablespoons pecans or walnuts, chopped (divided)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg
- 1 pinch ground cloves
- 1 pinch ground ginger
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1/2 tablespoon honey or maple syrup (see vegan note below)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream or coconut milk (see vegan note below)
Instructions
- Add the carrot and water to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then boil 3 minutes (uncovered), stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the oats and cook until the oats absorb the liquid, about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Add the raisins, coconut, 1 tablespoon pecans, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, sea salt, honey, and vanilla.
- Transfer to a bowl and top with the heavy cream and the remaining 1 tablespoon pecans.
- Serve warm.
Faith’s Tips
- Quick-Cooking Oats: These are old-fashioned rolled oats that have been chopped a little bit finer. If you only have old-fashioned rolled oats on hand you can do one of two things: 1) pulse old-fashioned rolled oats a couple times in a food processor until they look like quick-cooking oats; or 2) use old-fashioned rolled oats and increase both the cooking time and water amount as needed.
- Vegan Version: Use maple syrup instead of honey and coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
- Gluten-Free: Remember, if keeping this dish gluten-free is a concern, but sure to buy oats that are certified gluten-free!
Nutrition
This post was first published on An Edible Mosaic on January 24, 2010. I updated it with more information on March 12, 2021.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
Made large pot for the week, x 2 weeks now! Delicious
What a great breakfast to start the day with. One would have to be happy all day long.
Super idea! You are brilliant. What is not to like? Breakfast, lunch or snack. I LOVE oats.
There is no such thing as too many oat recipes! Especially not when they are as delicious as this. I LOVE carrot cake. Perfect not-so-guilty way to eat it!
This is such a terrific idea!! You are just brilliant! I love oats and I’m always trying to come up with fun new ways to serve them. Can’t wait to try this one out on the family!
Oh my goodness this would be a treat for breakfast!
I’m the weird duckie who likes oats.
Faith, I can assure you that I’ll try this oat carrot recipe, we are eating oatmeal for breakfast, and this will be a totally a treat!
That sounds healthy, but delicious! Perfect breakfast!
Sounds like a terrific breakfast, I would love these carrot cake oats for sure!
That’s very creative and very healthy. I would love that for breakfast. Must give this a try.
Hehe I’m convinced we share the same mind sometimes! I made a carrot cake dish the other day :D This looks absolutely wonderful Faith and would definitely get me up in the morning!
I like how you think! :)
~ingrid
I have been eating oats religiously for breakfast almost every day. These look excellent! What a warming treat for a cold, winter morning.
That’s a great way to start the day! :)
OH MY GOODNESS…I just love this and I can’t wait to give it a try. I could eat carrot cake everyday but I think this would be a better alternative! Thanks for another fabulous recipe my sweet friend!
Love and hugs,
Karyn
This sounds like a winner. You think it’d work for breakfast, or is it more of a dessert?
This recipe looks so delicious! Wish I had seen it sooner, must make it NEXT weekend for a gorgeous breakfast. Can’t wait :)
A gorgeous idea! That porridge is so original and looks mighty delicious!
Cheers,
Rosa
This is just the kind of comforting dish that I enjoy. I would have been happy to pull-up a chair and join you.
this looks delicious! I agree, carrot cake is everyone’s indulgent dessert and why not adapt it to make it everyone’s meal! :D