Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal (5-Minute Recipe)

This chocolate oatmeal recipe gives you that rich chocolate flavor in the morning through unsweetened cocoa powder and rolled oats for a creamy oatmeal breakfast you’ll love. Make it a good day by starting it off on a sweet note that the whole family will enjoy while getting those essential daily values of healthy nutrients, too!

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Quick and Easy: Breakfast oatmeal is one of the quickest and simplest things to make for a nutritious meal first thing. This easy recipe can be made in just minutes and satisfy that early morning tummy rumble.
• Tasty: If you love chocolate, this oatmeal is for you! It tastes like a brownie in a bowl with a rich and delicious flavor. It’s a chocolate lover’s dream! (If you want actual brownies, these Vegan Banana Chocolate Brownies are for you.)
• Healthy: Quick-cooking oats, cacao powder, and oat milk all have the things your body needs for proper nutrition. Plus, this chocolate oatmeal recipe fills you up, so you’ll stay satisfied and nourished all morning long!

Nutrition For Mental Wellness

Here at Raepublic, we are all about diving into nutrition and how it can impact your mood!

One serving of this easy chocolate oatmeal recipe contains 241 kcal, including 8g protein, 45g carbohydrates, 6g fiber, and 4g fat. It also contains 252mg potassium, 246 IU vitamin A, 204mg calcium, and 3mg iron.

A meta-analysis showed that consumption of cocoa-rich products improved mood, including symptoms of depression and anxiety in the short term [1].

Participants in a double-blind placebo-controlled pilot study who consumed a cacao flavanol-rich drink experienced improved negative mood and promoted positive mood compared to the placebo control group [2].

Ingredients + Notes

With just a few pantry staples and plant-based milk, you’ll be able to make this healthy breakfast in no time at all!

• Oats: Old-fashioned oats or quick-cooking oats make this recipe a breeze to whip up in just minutes. The shorter cooking time ensures they’ll be ready fast. 
• Cacao powder: Unsweetened cacao powder brings that deep, dark chocolate taste to your bowl. With the added sweetness from maple syrup, it won’t be bitter. 

Recipe Variations

With only a few ingredients, this chocolate oatmeal recipe is easy enough to make. However, you may be wondering if you can make some changes based on what’s in your pantry rather than having to run to the grocery store. 

• Sweeteners: If you’re all out of maple syrup, don’t worry! You can use date syrup, coconut sugar, brown sugar, stevia, or another sweetener. Just a little is all you need to sweeten things up. 
• Non-Dairy Milk Options: Maybe you don’t have oat milk, or it’s just not your favorite non-dairy milk choice. You can use almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk, or any other kind of plant-based milk. If you don’t have any of those, you can use boiling water.
• Extracts: Why yes! You can add vanilla extract to this if you like. I find that it helps add a layer of warmth and makes this taste even more like a treat. 
• Oats: This recipe calls for old-fashioned oats, but rolled oats or instant oats will work as well. You will want to avoid steel-cut oats because they don’t cook quickly and won’t work in a recipe like this. 
• Warm Spices: Warm spices like cinnamon can also give this a gourmet flavor if you’d like to shake things up. 

How To Make Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal

Simply follow these easy step-by-step instructions to make chocolate oatmeal. It literally takes only a few minutes to get the best delicious breakfast full of rich chocolate tastes. 

1. Pour your oat milk into a microwave-safe cup and microwave for 45-60 seconds. (Alternatively, you can heat your oat milk in a small saucepan on the stovetop until it just starts to simmer.)
2. Add rolled oats, maple syrup, cocoa powder, and salt to your bowl and pour hot oat milk over top.

3. Stir thoroughly and let sit for about 5 minutes until the oats have soaked up most of the liquid.
4. Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Topping Ideas

Chocolate oatmeal is even better with toppings. Grab your favorite toppings and add them just before digging in with your spoon!

• Nut Butter: With a spoonful of peanut butter, almond butter, or even seed butter, you can add more protein to your breakfast oatmeal and give it the taste of Reese’s. Yum!
• Seeds: Chia seeds on top will also give this a contrasting crunch you’ll adore.
• Banana: Add some mashed banana in for a chocolate-covered banana flavor.
• Coconut Flakes: Turn your chocolate oatmeal into a tropical twist of flavors with some coconut flakes.
• Chocolate Chips: Of course, dark chocolate chips are one of my favorite toppings for this easy chocolate oatmeal recipe. It’s always the right time for more chocolate!

Serving Suggestions

Enjoy this healthy chocolate oatmeal on its own or pair it with a smoothie such as this Banana Almond Butter Smoothie or a warm drink like this Golden Latte.

Storage Tips

Oatmeal recipes are always best when you make them and enjoy them right away. But if you can’t finish it up, you can store it to enjoy later or make delicious chocolate oatmeal cookies. 

• Fridge: Be sure to contain your chocolate oatmeal in an airtight container for freshness. You’ll have up to 5 days to enjoy the leftovers, though it’s definitely better the sooner you get to it. 
• Freeze: Freezing this recipe is another option, especially for meal prep or to use in baking. You can keep it there for up to 3 months. 

If you tried this Chocolate Oatmeal Recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!

Recipe

Reference

[1] Fusar-Poli, L., Gabbiadini, A., Ciancio, A., Vozza, L., Signorelli, M. S., & Aguglia, E. (2022). The effect of cocoa-rich products on depression, anxiety, and mood: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Critical reviews in food science and nutrition, 62(28), 7905–7916. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2021.1920570

[2] Murakami, R., Natsume, M., Ito, K., Ebihara, S., & Terauchi, M. (2023). Effect of Flavanol-Rich Cacao Extract on the Profile of Mood State in Healthy Middle-Aged Japanese Women: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study. Nutrients, 15(17), 3843. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15173843