Cake with Oatmeal | Easy Chocolate Oatmeal Cake Recipe (+Video)

Make a cake with oatmeal left over from breakfast! This chocolate oatmeal cake turns out fudgy, moist, and delicious using leftover oatmeal and pantry staples.

We all know that eating leftovers is a great way to save money, right? But sometimes eating leftovers is just boring.

Or unappetizing…like the case of leftover oatmeal.

I recently learned how to make Leftover Oatmeal Cakes – thick slices of oatmeal that are pan-fried in butter and drizzled with syrup. They’re crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and so delicious you never would have thought leftover oatmeal could taste so good.

Hold on to your hats, friends! Your oatmeal-making days are about to multiply because I have another great way to enjoy leftover oatmeal.

I had to restrain myself from licking my fingers and forks and plates and picking at crumbs while taking the photos for this blog post because OH MY GOODNESS, this chocolate cake with oatmeal is like cake meets brownie meets there’s no way there’s leftover oatmeal in this because it’s too stinkin’ good!

Yep. That about sums it up.

WHY MAKE LEFTOVER OATMEAL CAKE

So why make leftover oatmeal cake? Aside from being super yummy, it’s also:

• Made with natural sweeteners. As we continue to quit processed sugar including brown sugar, I’ve shifted some of my baking to using honey and maple syrup instead. Unless you’re truly making a cake – like you would with Homemade Yellow Cake Mix or Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix – you can get away without using granulated sugar.
• A great way to prevent food waste. Even if your people aren’t excited about leftover oatmeal, they’re probably excited about cake!
• Frugal. Leftover oatmeal plus pantry staple ingredients (and plenty of substitution options) means you won’t need to run to the store to make this oatmeal cake.
• Easy! Mix up the cake batter, spread it in the pan, and bake.

Pretty soon you’ll have kids requesting oatmeal for breakfast just so there’s a chance to have cake the next day…

CHOCOLATE OATMEAL CAKE RECIPE INGREDIENTS

This chocolate oatmeal cake recipe includes plenty of ingredients you’d expect to find in a cake.

• Melted coconut oil. Melted unsalted butter works too.
• Honey + maple syrup. You can use one or the other, or both. I like to use both because then neither flavor really stands out in the end.
• Yogurt. You can substitute buttermilk if you have some leftover from another recipe and don’t know what to do with it, or try kefir.
• Eggs. A flax egg substitute will work in this recipe just fine.
• Vanilla extract. Here’s how you can make your own.
• Extra thick leftover oatmeal. See the note below if you don’t have leftover oatmeal, or your oatmeal is still runny.
• Whole wheat flour. You can also use einkorn flour or all-purpose flour, if that’s what you have on hand, or gluten-free flour for a gluten free oatmeal cake (assuming your oats are gluten free as well).
• Salt. Not all salts are made the same! I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because it doesn’t have microplastics (gross, right?) and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a free 8oz. bag of sea salt (just pay shipping and handling!).
• Baking soda. This is what gives the oat cake a bit of lift, so it isn’t just a dense blob of oatmeal.
• Cocoa powder + chocolate chips. This is leftover CHOCOLATE oatmeal cake, after all.

LEFTOVER OATMEAL FOR CHOCOLATE OAT CAKE

• You want THICK leftover oatmeal. Fresh oatmeal tends to be soupy, and the texture isn’t consistent. Leftover oatmeal is crazy thick, and that’s what you want for this recipe. You can use oatmeal made from old fashioned oats or quick oats.
• Add oat flour. If you absolutely cannot wait to make chocolate cake with oatmeal and you don’t have leftover oatmeal: make oatmeal as you normally would, and then stir in oat flour. I recommend adding 2 tablespoons at a time until your oatmeal is very, very, very thick.
• My favorite oatmeal methods. I make Instant Pot Oatmeal and Oatmeal in a Slow Cooker.

HOW TO MAKE CAKE WITH OATMEAL

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour an 8×8 or 9×9 square baking dish. Set aside.

Step 2. Combine wet ingredients – coconut oil, honey, maple syrup, yogurt, egg, and vanilla extract – in a large bowl and whisk well to combine.

Step 3. Add leftover oatmeal to the wet mixture and whisk well to combine.

Step 4. Add the remaining dry ingredients and chocolate chips and stir well. The batter will be thick.

Step 5. Pour into the prepared baking dish and use a spatula to make the surface mostly smooth.

Step 6. Bake the cake with oatmeal for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean.

Store leftover cake with oatmeal in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. I recommend wrapping individual slices in plastic wrap for the freezer so it’s easy to grab what you need.

CHOCOLATE OAT CAKE RECIPE TIPS

• You can make thin leftover oatmeal thicker by adding oat flour. Add 2 tablespoons at a time until the oatmeal is so thick you’d have to bite into it and chew it.
• I like to bake mine for 25 minutes for a gooier oat cake, like a fudgy brownie texture. If you want a more cake-like texture, bake for 30 minutes.
• A brown sugar or cream cheese frosting makes it dessert!
• If you want to double the recipe, I suggest using two 8×8 pans rather than trying to fit the cake with oatmeal in one larger pan.

CAKE WITH OATMEAL FAQS

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WATCH HOW TO MAKE LEFTOVER OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CAKE