Oats and apples cooked overnight in the slow cooker is incredibly delicious and super easy to make. Flavored with the warm spices of gingerbread make this the perfect fall breakfast!
My favorite way to start my morning is with a bowl of oatmeal and some sort of fruit smoothie. I am usually pretty boring with my oatmeal since I don’t have that much time to get breakfast ready before the kids get up but ever since I tried making it in the slow cooker, the possibilities for flavor options are endless!
It’s so easy to toss everything in to the slow cooker the night before and wake up to a nutritious and tasty breakfast that makes you feel all warm and cozy! With breakfast taken care of, that leaves one less thing to worry about in the morning —> total winner for any busy person on the go!
You can have a ton of fun with all the different flavor combinations. This Gingerbread Apple Oatmeal made a small appearance back in October and it’s become one of my favorite ways to start the morning.
I like my oatmeal chunky with some crispy edges, but if you like it creamier, feel free to add more milk and apple cider. I usually add a little bit of milk after I scoop it into the bowl so it becomes just the right consistency. Rich with molasses and warming spices, this oatmeal reminds me of a gingerbread cookie combined with a warm slice of apple pie in oatmeal form. Especially with the crispy edges.
It’s all the flavors you love about fall and the holidays! It would even make a great breakfast if you are having overnight guests that are oatmeal lovers for the holidays too.
Warm up those chilly (and in my case snowy) mornings with a hot bowl of this healthy and delicious oatmeal that the entire family will love!
- 2 cups gluten free rolled oats can also use regular rolled oats
- 2 cups apple cider
- 1 cup milk of your choice I used almond milk
- 2 apples peeled, cored and chopped into cubes (I used 1 Gala and 1 Granny Smith)
- 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon molasses
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1-14 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 slices candied ginger chopped (feel free to omit if you don't have it already and just add an extra 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch salt
- 1/3 cup toasted pecans and almonds chopped for garnish
- 2 gingersnap cookies crushed for garnish (optional)
- Spray inside of slow cooker with cooking spray.
- Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.
- Pour into slow cooker.
Cook on low 2-3 hours or high for 1-1-1/2 hours (depending on your slow cooker - mine was done at around 2-1/2 hours on low and 1-1/2 hours on high).
- Divide into bowls.
- Serve with milk and toss with chopped pecans and sliced almonds and add more sliced apples for garnish if desired. For an extra gingerbread taste, add crushed gingersnap cookies on top.
This oatmeal is slightly chunky with crispy edges. If you like a creamier oatmeal, add more milk or apple cider. I usually add milk when I serve it in the bowl so this is the right consistency for me but feel free to adjust to your liking.
Add more ground ginger and cloves as desired.
For a more pronounced ginger aroma, add 2 slices of chopped candied ginger.
Top with crushed gingersnap cookies for a stronger gingerbread flavor.
Looking for more gingerbread?
Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls with Chocolate Chips
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Heather @ Shards of Lavender -
Kelly, what a brilliant idea to cook oats overnight in a slow cooker; I can’t wait to have the aroma of gingerbread and apples to wake up to in the morning. We eat oatmeal almost every day and will be trying this tonight:) Thank you for sharing the recipe with us!
Kelly -
So glad you like the idea, Heather – the aroma that fills your kitchen while this is cooking totally reminds you of all the things you love about fall and the holidays. Hope you like it if you try it 🙂
Heather @ Shards of Lavender -
Kelly, I made the oatmeal last night and we enjoyed it this morning. It turned out perfectly, even though I had to use apple juice instead of cider:)
Kelly -
Yay, I’m so glad to hear that you made it already and enjoyed it. Apple juice sounds perfect if you don’t have apple cider – thanks so much for coming back to let me know! Happy Friday and hope you have an amazing weekend 🙂
Monica -
Such a great idea, Kelly! You might remember I LOVE oatmeal so much. I recently tried making it in the rice cooker (I finally think I figured out how much water to use) but I still mostly do it on the stovetop. Have you tried the slow cooker method with steel cut oats? I eat that mostly. I bet it would work really well. My slow cooker is rather large and wide. This might be an excuse for me to buy a smaller one? : )
Kelly -
Thanks Monica! Haha, of course I remember how much you love oatmeal 🙂 I haven’t tried it with steel cut oats yet – I usually have steel cut oats too but I ran out when I was making this. I’ve seen recipes for it and I’m sure it would work but we would just have to adjust how much liquid to use. No worries if your slow cooker is bigger, you can always make a bigger batch too 🙂
Ceara @ Ceara's Kitchen -
I’m all about the oatmeal & smoothies in the morning too! Such a yummy power breakfast 🙂 And this gingerbread slow cooker oatmeal sounds so creamy and warming!! I can’t wait to try for an extra special oatmeal breakie 🙂 Pinned!
Kelly -
I totally agree, a great powder breakfast 🙂 Thanks so much for pinning Ceara!
Mira -
It looks delicious and comforting! Never tried making oatmeal in the slow cooker, but will try it pretty soon!
Kelly -
Thanks Mira, hope you get to try it 🙂
Shundara@savynaturalista -
Oh Kelly I just Love oatmeal in the slow cooker , this recipe looks so good especially with all the cold weather that were having 🙂