This post is from contributing writer Steph Jenkins of Cheapskate Cook.
Fall is the perfect time to make warm, comforting breakfasts. But on school mornings, hot breakfasts are hard to swing! I love making simple (allergy-free!) baked oatmeal or whipping up a batch of 5-Minute Egg & Cheese Muffins, but cooking oatmeal in the Instant Pot is one of the easiest fixes. With the Delay Start option, you can set your oatmeal up the night before, and by the time you wake up, breakfast is ready.
For a while, we were really broke and had severe food sensitivities. Oatmeal was the perfect gluten-free, dairy-free, budget-friendly breakfast solution. We ate it nearly every day. In the colder months, we made a pumpkin spice variation to add nutrients (vegetables for breakfast!) and variety to our favorite breakfast.
Quick Healthy Breakfast in Your Instant Pot
Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal adds vegetables to your breakfast in a way that feels and tastes especially seasonal and comforting. Sweeten it with just a touch of maple syrup, and you can use dairy-free milk (we like almond or coconut) to make this breakfast gluten-free and dairy-free.
When my kids were toddlers, I added faux pumpkin puree to our oatmeal all the time. It was just a mixture of whatever orange vegetables we had at the time – butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and occasionally, actual pumpkin.
Use your homemade squash puree or canned pumpkin to make this quick, healthy breakfast in your Instant Pot.
(Read about the benefits of pumpkin and other orange vegetables here!)
Back-to-School Breakfast
On busy school mornings, use the Delay Start option on your Instant Pot to set the oatmeal up the night before. By the time you wake up, breakfast is ready!
Personally, I think reheated leftovers taste even better the next day. The flavors have had more time to meld in the fridge, and we don’t have to make breakfast again!
Why Steel-Cut Oats?
I used to hate steel-cut oats. They took a really long time to cook and the end result tasted like a bowl of erasers.
When I tried them in the Instant Pot, it was a different story. It only took a few seconds to toss everything in and press Start. The warm, creamy bowl of oats from the Instant Pot was the exact opposite of my spongy stove-top fail.
There are a lot of reasons to consider switching to steel-cut oats instead of rolled oats. Find out why in this post!
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Warm and creamy nutrient packed oatmeal for a quick morning breakfast!
Ingredients
- 1 cup steel-cut oats
- 1 ⅔ cups water
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon pumpkin spice (or ¼ each: nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon)
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- The night before, stir together oats and water in your Instant Pot.
- Close the lid, seal it, and set it to Manual Setting for 10 minutes. Use the Delay Start feature to set it to start cooking the next morning, about one hour before you plan to serve it. Press Start.
- In a medium-size bowl with a lid, whisk together pumpkin, milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and salt. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
- The next morning, remove the bowl of pumpkin from the fridge. After the Instant Pot has finished cooking and the pressure has released naturally, open the lid and pour in the pumpkin mixture.
- Give it a good stir, then replace the lid and let it sit for about 10 minutes to let everything come to the same temperature.
- Open the lid, scoop the oatmeal into bowls, and top as desired with more milk, maple syrup, and chopped pecans or pepitas.
Notes
Rather Use Rolled Oats?
You can use rolled oats too! Simply reduce the cooking time to 6 minutes.
Didn’t Think Ahead?
If you decide not to soak the oats overnight, stir all of the ingredients into the Instant Pot and cook on Manual Setting for 10 minutes, letting the pressure release naturally.
Dairy-free?
Use dairy-free milk – we like almond or coconut.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 214
- Sugar: 8 grams
- Fat: 4 grams
- Carbohydrates: 39 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
- Protein: 7 grams
Keywords: pumpkin spice, steel cut oats, instant pot, quick breakfast, kids can make
Trouble Getting Healthy Food on the Table Every Day?
Enter Real Plans
Real Plans is an online meal planning software & app that is probably smarter than I am.
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Real Plans takes the stress out of meal planning and puts the nourishing food BACK on your table. There’s a plan for every diet type, including GAPS, Paleo, AIP, Whole30, vegetarian and more!
Kid-Friendly Breakfast
If your kids can operate the Instant Pot, they can help prepare breakfast and make this recipe themselves!
There’s a whole add-on class to the Kids Cook Real Food Course about cooking with slow cookers and Instant Pots to help you guide them.
Easy Instant Pot Oats
There are a lot of reasons to make this easy Overnight Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal – to help save your sanity on school mornings, sneak more vegetables into your diet, save money on allergy-friendly breakfasts, or simply celebrate the flavors of Autumn.
Whatever your reason, enjoy this simple recipe! Don’t forget to try these other oatmeal variations:
- How to Cook Steel-Cut Oats in the Instant Pot
- Sneaky-Veggie Baked Oatmeal (NOT Pumpkin!)
- Pumpkin Pie Baked Oatmeal
- Simple Allergy-Free Baked Oatmeal (No gluten, dairy, or eggs)
- Soaked Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
