Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Baked Oatmeal Cups

Tart, seasonal cranberries meet bright, sweet oranges to make a compact, portable, easy to make breakfast for little hands, or on the go!

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T’was the night before Christmas…

It’s the best isn’t it?! I take this picture the “night before Christmas” every year, and I seriously pinch myself with each passing year because it just gets better and better as the girls are at these amazing ages of understanding the wonder of this season. The kids always have a way of reminding me to be a kid again (ie chill out and just enjoy it all!)

Slowing down

The last couple years have given me this sense of needing to slow down and just enjoy it. I know that while the holidays will always be fun with my family, the type of “fun” will be in ever-changing ways as the girls get older, and I want to savor this little kid season we are in right now. While this foodie momma would just *love* to plan out an elaborate Christmas morning breakfast for everyone to help make and enjoy eating, breakfast is about the last thing on these little one’s minds on Christmas morning!

Fun and fast food prep!

A happy medium is the answer right?! Last year I created these super yummy blender batter cranberry breakfast cookies that became a huge hit on this blog even outside of the Christmas season. They made a fun, fast breakfast the kids could munch on while they enjoyed tearing into their gifts and playing with a new toy.

Last year they ended up working perfectly as a “first breakfast,” and then we had a nice brunch later in the morning when I had some time to cook. We fell in love with this concept, so I decided to create another fast holiday breakfast option to have fun with this year.

A faster, more portable baked oatmeal

This summer, a bushel full of peaches inspired me to fill my freezer with school morning friendly *portable* peach baked oatmeal cups. They have been so nice this fall on busy school mornings, and I thought maybe I’d do a spin on those with a more holiday season flavor profile!

Fresh cranberries versus dried…

Sweet and tart cranberries and a subtle bright freshness from an orange…what’s not to love?! I have made at least 6 batches of these cranberry orange muffin baked oat cups, and I’ve got some tips to help you customize them to your family’s preferences!

• I’ve made batches of all fresh cranberries, and some with all dried cranberries, and both turn out well! It all really boils down to your flavor preferences. If you love the tartness of a fresh cranberry, there is enough sweetness in the muffin to balance it so you aren’t puckering! This was our favorite way to make them. If you prefer sweeter dried cranberries, go for it! It turns out great too!
• I made one batch with chopped fresh cranberries – it does back off the tart punch if you are afraid of that. We still really loved the whole fresh cranberries as our favorite.
• Don’t leave the orange zest out! It really helps with the hint of orange flavor. The juice isn’t quite enough!

A practical solution to enjoying a childhood full of fun Christmas mornings!

I really hope that what has become a family tradition of fun, faster prep Christmas morning breakfasts for our family will help you to enjoy this precious time with your kids at this age even more. I’d love to see what you end up making – if you post to Instagram, hashtag #raisinggenerationnourished and give me a tag so I can see! Wishing you and your family a merry Christmas!

Print Recipe

5 from 19 votes

Gluten Free Cranberry Orange Baked Oatmeal Cups

Tart, seasonal cranberries meet bright, sweet oranges to make a compact, portable, easy to make breakfast for little hands, or on the go!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cranberry orange baked oatmeal, gluten-free baked oatmeal cups

Servings: 12 muffins

Author: Renee - www.raisinggenerationnourished.com

Ingredients

• 2 cups oats Not quick oats. If you are gluten free, make sure your oats say gluten free like these.
• 1 cup Namaste gluten free flour blend
• 1 cup coconut milk or raw milk if you tolerate dairy
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 eggs
• Zest from 1 medium orange
• ¼ cup juice from your zested orange (this has been about the juice of about 1 medium orange for me}
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• ¼ cup avocado oil or melted butter, coconut oil, or ghee
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 cup fresh cranberries or 1/2 to 3/4 cup dried cranberries
• Coconut sugar to sprinkle the tops optional, but the flavor is so good with these!

Instructions

• Put the oats and gluten free flour blend in a medium mixing bowl. Stir in the coconut milk and lemon juice. The mixture will be thick. Cover with a towel and let the mixture soak overnight about 8 hours. This soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the oats and flour, making it easier on digestion. It also allows the nutrients in the grains to be absorbed better.
• The next morning, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.
• Blend the eggs in a medium mixing bowl for 1 minute until frothy. Add the beaten eggs along with the rest of the ingredients to the oat/flour mixture that soaked overnight, and stir to combine (this takes a minute at first as the oat/flour/milk soaked mixture is a bit thick – do NOT add more liquid. It will loosen up as you incorporate the wet ingredients you added.)
• Scoop the batter into a muffin tin lined with <a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SS5M7DM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00SS5M7DM&linkCode=as2&tag=simmomrev-20&linkId=4ea85b1dec383f1e88edfeca50f98d2a">silicone muffin cups</a><img src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=simmomrev-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00SS5M7DM" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> (or, if you don’t have silicone muffin cups, you can butter your muffin tin to prevent sticking). Sprinkle the tops of each muffin with coconut sugar if you choose.
• Bake the baked oat cups at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes until the tops are golden brown (check them around the 30 minute mark in case our ovens run differently). Let the muffins cool 5 minutes in the pan before turning them out to a cooling rack for 10 minutes before eating.
• Recipe makes 12 large muffins. You could make them smaller and get 18 – if you have real little ones in the house, I’d make them smaller so they can eat a whole muffin. You will probably need more like 30 minutes to bake if you make them smaller.

More real food recipes you might like ::

• Cranberry Orange Granola
• Grain Free Blender Batter Cranberry Breakfast Cookies
• Cranberry Baked Pears
• Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
• Holiday Real Food Eggnog
• Fermented Cranberry Soda