Chocolate Leftover Oatmeal Cake Recipe - Don't Waste the Crumbs (2024)

By Tiffany Published June 28, 2022 • Last Updated: June 28, 2022 30 Comments

This healthy chocolate oatmeal cake recipe uses old-fashioned leftover oatmeal instead of flour. A brown sugar or cream cheese frosting makes it dessert!

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.

Why Make Leftover Oatmeal Cake

Hold on to your hats friends, your oatmeal making days are about to multiply because this cake is AMAZING.

I know that sounds weird, by the way… that leftover oatmeal tastes amazing. But really, it does!

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 leftover oatmeal cake 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.

As I was working on this new healthier version of an old recipe, I realized that our eating habits have changed just slightly for the better.

First, we avoid granulated sugar as much as possible as we continue to quit sugar. Instead, we use honey and maple syrup instead to sweeten.

It works in almost all of my baking… peanut butter chocolate chip muffins and strawberry lemonade donuts and banana nut muffins with crumb topping and pumpkin donuts and zucchini carrot apple muffins.

I’ve learned that 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.

Second, we’re re-committed to using whole wheat flours in our baking and eliminating all-purpose flour. We don’t do a ton of baking since we did the Whole30, but when we do, I want to make sure that it’s whole grain flours.

Third, I’ve streamlined my efforts so that I don’t have to work as hard in the kitchen. That means delicious recipes with less work and less dishes. YAY!

Chocolate Leftover Oatmeal Cake Ingredients

• melted coconut oil (or melted butter)
• honey
• maple syrup
• yogurt (or buttermilk)
• egg (or flax egg)
• vanilla extract
• extra thick leftover oatmeal (not runny)*
• whole wheat flour (or all-purpose)
• salt
• baking soda
• cocoa powder
• chocolate chips

Notes on Ingredients for Oats Chocolate Cake

Leftover Oatmeal

• Keyword, LEFTOVER. I don’t recommend making fresh oatmeal just to make this recipe. 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.
• With that said, there is a hack you can do if you absolutely cannot wait to make chocolate leftover oatmeal cake and you don’t have leftover oatmeal: make oatmeal as you normally would, and then add oat flour. I recommend adding 2 tablespoons at a time until your oatmeal is very, very, very thick.
• To save time, here’s how to make Instant Pot Oatmeal and oatmeal in a slow cooker.

Sweetener

As I mentioned before, I used honey and maple syrup to sweeten this chocolate leftover oatmeal cake. You can use one or the other, or both. I like to use both because then neither flavor really stands out in the end.

Flour

• Again as I mentioned, I used white whole wheat flour. You can use red whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour or even a gluten-free blend if you’re sensitive or allergic to gluten.
• I would not recommend using almond flour or coconut flour in this recipe because of how those flour work in baked goods.

How to Make Oatmeal Cake Step By Step

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 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 for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean.

Recipe Notes

• You can make thin leftover oatmeal thicker by adding oat flour. Add 2 tablespoons at a time until the oatmeal is so think you’d have to bite into it and chew it.
• I like to bake mine for 25 minutes for a gooier cake, similar to a brownie. If you want a more cake-like texture, bake for 30 minutes.

FAQs

More Money Saving Dessert Recipes

• Chocolate Chip Banana Ice Cream
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge
• Homemade Peanut Butter Cups
• Avocado Chocolate Mousse
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Chocolate Leftover Oatmeal Cake

Print Recipe

★★★★★4.9 from 12 reviews

This healthy chocolate oatmeal cake recipe uses old fashioned leftover oatmeal instead of flour. A brown sugar or cream cheese frosting makes it dessert!

• Author: Tiffany
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 35 mins
• Yield: 9 1x
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil (or melted butter)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup yogurt (or buttermilk)
• 1 egg (or flax egg)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup extra thick leftover oatmeal (not runny)*
• 1 cup whole wheat flour (or all-purpose)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour an 8×8 or 9×9 square baking dish. Set aside.
2. Combine wet ingredients – coconut oil, honey, maple syrup, yogurt, egg and vanilla extract – in a large bowl and whisk well to combine.
3. Add leftover oatmeal and whisk well to combine.
4. Add the remaining dry ingredients and chocolate chips and stir well. The batter will be thick.
5. Pour into the prepared baking dish and use a spatula to make the surface mostly smooth.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes**, or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean.

Notes

* You can make thin leftover oatmeal thicker by adding oat flour. Add 2 tablespoons at a time until the oatmeal is so think you’d have to bite into it and chew it.
** I like to bake mine for 25 minutes for a gooier cake, similar to a brownie. If you want a more cake-like texture, bake for 30 minutes.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 slice with icing
• Calories: 400