Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal With Cranberries
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This pumpkin baked oatmeal with cranberries is destined to become a family favorite. Start your holiday mornings off right with a big bowl of oats, pumpkin, cranberries and so much more!
This delicious breakfast casserole dish is a perfect way to start off a holiday morning, and it’s packed with antioxidants!

Why You Should Totally Make This Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal Casserole
It’s the perfect casserole breakfast for a holiday morning. I love making this on Thanksgiving morning when I have to feed everyone AND be in the kitchen all day. It’s quick and easy, and everyone asks for seconds. Whole grain goodness AND everyone loves it? Oh yes, please. I need more of that in my life.
Is Baked Oatmeal Healthy?
Absolutely! But as with most things, it all depends on what you put in it. If you keep the other ingredients healthy (which this recipe does!), then the whole thing is healthy!
Recipe Adaptations
If you want to mix up the flavors a bit, you can try any of these additions or substitutions:
- Pumpkin pie spice – No sugar added. The amount below can be adjusted within a range of 1 tsp. to 1 tbsp., depending on how strong you want the flavor.
- Dried cranberries – Use them in place of the raisins. Just make sure they are fruit juice sweetened instead of sugar-sweetened.
- Cinnamon – Not a pumpkin spice fan? Substitute the pumpkin pie spice for ground cinnamon instead.
- Ground ginger – Use ½ a teaspoon at most.
- Ground nutmeg – Use up to 1 teaspoon at most.
- Ground cloves – Use up to a ¼ teaspoon at most.
- Eggs – Whisk in some beaten eggs for extra protein. Anywhere between 2 and 3 eggs should be more than enough. Flax eggs can work, but I haven’t tried it myself so I cannot advise on it.
- Unflavored protein powder – Just make sure to read the ingredients list! 1 to 2 scoops should be plenty here.

Can I Cook Oatmeal And Then Refrigerate It?
Absolutely! In fact, that’s the only way I ever make and store oatmeal. Just remember to wrap it well so it doesn’t dry out in the fridge.
Topping Ideas
If you really want to make this more decadent, you can add some delicious toppings. Here are some ideas:
- Greek yogurt
- A drizzle of maple syrup
- Chocolate chips – put them on while the dish is still hot so they get a little melty.
- Any nut you like if the pecans aren’t enough for you.

About The Ingredients
Unsweetened almond milk – You can also use unsweetened oat milk or light coconut milk. Dairy milk works fine too.
Pumpkin pureé – canned or homemade. Just make sure it’s not pumpkin pie filling. That’s a very different animal.
Pecan pieces– You can buy them in pieces, or chop whole pecans into smaller pieces
Fresh cranberries – Stock up and store them in the freezer for the coming months if you want to make this again.
Pumpkin pie spice – see link below under “recipes used”.). No sugar added if purchased
Honey – Any honey you have on hand will work. Maple syrup will work too, but the finished recipe won’t be as sweet.
Pure vanilla extract – Don’t use vanilla flavoring. Use the real stuff.
Steel-cut oats – You can also use traditional oats, but you won’t want to bake this dish as long if you do. Never use quick-cooking oats for this!
Golden raisins – You can leave these out if you wish, but they are so tasty in this dish!
Salt – This is optional, but helps to bring out the sweetness. The recipe below does not call for it. If you choose to add it, use a quarter of a teaspoon. Any salt you normally cook or bake with will do. I used pink Himalayan salt.
How To Make Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. and measure all your ingredients.

In a casserole dish (9×13), stir together all of the measured ingredients in the casserole dish. You can use a large mixing bowl if you think it will be easier to mix that way, but I just mix it directly in the casserole dish.

Bake for 45 minutes or until the casserole is soft and cooked through.

Serve as is, or with your favorite topping.
Make Ahead Directions
Yes, you can prep this the night before and store it in the fridge. Just add everything except the oats. You can stir those in last minute before putting it in the oven.
How Far In Advance Can You Make Oats?
It depends on the recipe you use them in. But for this particular recipe, three days is the longest stretch of time that you can make ahead.
How To Store Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal
Wrap the dish in plastic wrap, or transfer the leftover oatmeal to an airtight container. Store this in the fridge for up to three days.
Can You Freeze Baked Oatmeal?
You sure can! In some recipes, there may be ingredients that won’t freeze very well, or discolor while in the freezer (such as bananas). But with a recipe like this, you can freeze for up to six months. I highly recommend freezing in single servings to make life easier, unless you plan on feeding many people at once. Once thawed, you can reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or in the oven at 400 F. with foil over the top so nothing burns, until warmed through.
Recipe Supplies
You’ll want a good casserole dish and some pumpkin pie spice for this recipe. If you need either, you can click on either image to be taken to that product on Amazon. (Affiliate links)
More Healthy Oatmeal Recipes
- Apple Pie Oatmeal
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal
- Peanut Butter Cup Oatmeal
- Buttery Cinnamon Oatmeal
- Gingerbread Oatmeal
- Banana Bread Oatmeal
Recipes Used
Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal Recipe Card


Baked Oatmeal with Pumpkin and Cranberries
Equipment
- 1 Casserole dish (9×13)
Ingredients
- 4 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 1 cup prepared pumpkin (canned or homemade)
- ½ cup pecan pieces
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (see link above), no sugar added if purchased
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups steel cut oats
- ½ cup golden raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. and measure all your ingredients.
- In a casserole dish (9×13), stir together all of the measured ingredients in the casserole dish. You can use a large mixing bowl if you think it will be easier to mix that way, but I just mix it directly in the casserole dish.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until the casserole is soft and cooked through.
- Serve as is, or with your favorite topping.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe from the Gracious Pantry archives, originally posted 11/19/11.
Do you cook the oats first?
Kristy – No, they are dry.
Hi Tiffany,
The recipe sounds wonderful! I have a question on the steel cut oats….are you putting them in dry, soaked, or cooked? I always soak my grains, nuts, and seeds to help break down the phytic acid.
Thanks,
Deb Casey
Deb – They are dry.
I will be on the oatmeal pumpkin recipe. THANK YOU so much
Melanie – You’re welcome! I hope you enjoy it!
oh I am so excited I actually have all the ingredients!! I will make this today! I really love your blog and refer a lot of my friends to it! Thanks for sharing all your wonderful recipes!
Cate – Thank you! I’m so happy you are enjoying my recipes!
Emily – Fantastic! I hope you’ll enjoy it!
14murphy – I don’t recommend it. The oats would soak up a lot of the liquid and I’m not sure they would bake very well at that point. You could certainly mix everything else together, put in the fridge overnight and then stir in the oats last minute before baking in the morning though.
Heather – That’s what we use it for! It’s a fantastic holiday breakfast!
tjlowe – Why thank you! I’m so happy you’re enjoying my recipes!
Anki – Haha!! Wonderful! Hope you enjoy it!
MJ – Haha!! Hope you enjoy it!
Tracy – I could be wrong, but I believe that all pumpkins are edible. The difference in them comes down to the flavor. Some are far better than others. I have used a cinderella pumpkin to make soup with and the big orange ones are usually just fine, though not as sweet as the sugar pie pumpkins (the smaller ones intended for baking). I’m not sure about the whites ones though as I’ve never tried to make anything with them. Hope that helps.
SS – for sure! Enjoy!
Mama Jo – Glad you like it! Enjoy!
Toby – Fantastic! You could probably mix everything except putting the oatmeal in. Do that at the last minute before baking. Hope you enjoy it!
Denise – I’m sure you could, but I’ve never tried, so I’m not sure what the cooking time would be.
Tricia – Yes, but you’ll need to adjust the cooking time. Steel cut oats take longer to cook/bake. So keep an eye on it.
Barbara – They are dry. Uncooked. I bake them in the casserole. Enjoy!
Lindsey – No. The cooking time will be shorter. Steel cut oats take the longest to cook which is why I used them. So you’ll need to keep an eye on it. Enjoy!
Robin – You can use it, but it will have a shorter cooking time. I used the steel cut oats specifically because of their longer cooking time. So you’ll have to play around with this to get it to work out correctly. Sorry, wish I could be more help here.
Was to ill for Going out to our planned thanksgiving event. Made this prior to getting put in the bed rest mode and it was a wonderful meal for thanksgiving, have enought energy to do it for the next meal however I have a pineapple that is needing to be used so going to sub that for the pumkin and add fresh bluberries from the freezer plus the rest of the stuff.
Mama Jo – Sounds wonderful! I hope you’re feeling better soon.