Maple Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins (for Breakfast or Pre-Workout)

I've been super pressed for time lately. Like scheduled to the point that my calendar looks like a lost game of Tetris. That kind of busy. That kind of pressed. Much of it has to do with the fact that I've been technically fulfilling two roles at my day job for the last few months. I will officially emerge from this ordeal developmental period beginning Monday and have been smiling nonstop. Things are still busy but fI eel like I can breathe more easily, ya know? What does any of this have to do with maple cranberry oatmeal muffins? Keep reading, boo.

It's never more obvious than when I'm scheduled to the max just how much convenience tends to trump all. Ordering food to the office has seemed way more attractive than meal prepping and packing my breakfast, snacks, and lunch lately. So meal ideas that are not only quick and easy to execute but also convenient to heat and eat are like my nutritional lifelines. And maple cranberry oatmeal muffins definitely fit that bill. And they don't just work for a grab-and-go weekday breakfast option. They're also good sources of energy and protein before a workout. I first added protein powder to a batch of vegan banana nut oatmeal muffins a few weeks ago and the result was too good not to share...then replicate with other flavors.

Different Ways to Make Oatmeal Muffins

Most of my baked oatmeal recipes incorporate nut butter (aka solid protein source) of some kind. Adding protein powder to the mix makes them an even more fitting pre-workout snack choice. You can do this with any of the flavor variations currently on the blog. After you try these, I recommend moving on to almond butter blueberry then the pumpkin walnut then the piña colada. Yes, piña colada for breakfast is a thing. 🙂 The full maple cranberry oatmeal muffins recipe is below and be sure to pin this one on Pinterest--thanks for reading!

P.S. More protein-packed options:

• Almond Breakfast Smoothie
• Post-Workout Smoothie
• Sheet Pan Power Bowls

How to Make Maple Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins

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Maple Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

25 mins

 

Convenient grab-and-go breakfast option that doubles as a pre-workout snack with protein

Course: Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: baked oatmeal recipe, how to make baked oatmeal, pre-workout snack ideas, protein breakfast idea, protein muffins

Servings: 12 muffins

Author: Jazzmine from Dash of Jazz

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup maple syrup
• ½ cup maple almond butter
• 4 cups oats
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 ⅔ cup warm almond milk or milk of choice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ⅓ cup walnut pieces
• ½ cup protein powder or about 2 servings according to your package instructions

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oats, walnut pieces, dried cranberries, sea salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl and stir until well mixed. Set aside.

2. In a smaller bowl, mix together almond milk, protein powder, banana, maple syrup, and vanilla extract until smooth and uniform.

3. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until there are no dry "pockets" left.

4. Scoop about ½ cup of oatmeal mixture into each cavity of a non-stick (or greased) 12-count muffin pan. Lightly press mixture into each cavity so that the top of each muffin is smooth.

5. Bake for about 25 minutes or until tops of muffins are firm when pressed. Allow muffins to cool completely in pan before removing.