88 Ideas for Oatmeal Toppings and Mix-ins with Free Download

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Oatmeal is one of the most versatile, universally liked, and frugal breakfast staples that any home should have! If you buy oats in bulk, this gives you much better value for your buck and it also allows you to enjoy oatmeal hundreds of different ways!

We love oatmeal and it’s versatility that we actually have it a couple of breakfasts a week! But the fun part is that we rarely have any same two bowls of oatmeal really ever! You can top or mix-in hundreds of different foods to create a different flavor of oatmeal every time with things that you already have on hand to save even more money.

We will provide this quick list in a downloadable sheet that you can print and hang on your fridge or to keep in your homemaking binder so that you can quickly glance at it and get some ideas.  These are ideas that we have done and know about, but we are sure that there are dozens and dozens of more ideas that can be added to the list.  If you come across a fun combination that your family likes, write it down so you don’t forget.

These items can be topped singly or in fun combinations.  We highly recommend adding a few toppings from the list to make it more unique and exciting.  Perhaps we can do a separate post one day with fun combinations, but in the mean time we actually found that a fun resource is the Quaker Oats site HERE where others have shared a combination of a few ingredients to create some super fun oatmeal creations.  It is a fun list to explore, but we don’t always have the combination of ingredients on hand, which is why it is nice to have a list that you can pick and choose from to make your own!

One thing that is great, each family member can create something unique with creating an “Oatmeal Bar” with a few items you have from the list.  The kids think it is more special and tastes even better when they create it themselves! We usually only set out 4-6 toppings from below each time so that it isn’t the biggest process in the planet! You can even keep small containers for oatmeal morning to quickly pull-out and then quickly put the lid back on and put away. This works especially well for the dried ingredients!

Sweet Toppings

• Brown Sugar
• Coconut
• Coconut Milk
• Coconut Oil
• Jams or Jellies of any type
• Pie Fillings
• Sugar
• Powdered Sugar
• Maple Syrup
• Any other syrup
• Agave
• Honey (flavored honey is good too)
• Chocolate Syrup
• Caramel Syrup
• Butterscotch Syrup
• Orange Marmalade
• Chocolate chips (Milk, Dark and White)
• Butterscotch chips
• Peanut Butter Chips
• Crushed Graham Crackers
• Crushed Nilla Wafers
• Crushed Gingersnaps
• Crushed Cookies of any type really

Fruity Toppings

• Fresh or dried Blueberries
• Raisins
• Fresh or dried apples
• Currants
• Dates
• Golden Raisins
• Craisins
• Pomegranate Seeds (fresh or dried)
• Any dried fruits
• Pineapple (canned is nice ;))
• Fresh or dried Raspberries
• Fresh or dried Strawberries
• Fresh or dried Bananas (our kids dislike dried, but we always have fresh!)
• Peaches (peaches and cream is awesome!)
• Applesauce
• Canned pumpkin
• Apple Butter
• Orange Zest

Savory Toppings

• Butter
• Salt
• Pepper/Pepper blend
• Cinnamon
• Ginger
• Garlic
• Pumpkin Pie spice
• Pumpkin Butter
• Sesame Seeds
• Herbs (dried or fresh)
• Nutmeg
• Cheeses – cream cheese, Parmesan and feta are all good.  Cream cheese can be used to make a mock cheesecake flavor.
• Cottage Cheese
• Chicken or beef broth
• Onions – any type (including dried)
• Bacon or Sausage crumbles or cubed Ham
• Cayenne pepper
• Turmeric
• Red Pepper Flakes
• Soy Sauce (Healthier Option is Bragg’s Liquid Aminos HERE)
• Tabasco or other hot sauce
• Salsa
• Tomatoes
• grated carrots (add raisins and cinnamon and sweetener for mock carrot cake)
• grated zucchini
• Bell pepper diced
• mushrooms
• crispy chow mein noodles
• French’s Fried Onions
• Eggs – Scrambled, or a fried egg on top!

Protein Filled Toppings (in addition to the ones listed under Savory)

• Milk
• Cream
• Buttermilk
• Yogurt in plain, vanilla or fruity flavored (if using plain, add more fun toppings to sweeten)
• Any combination of nuts – Almonds and pecans are especially awesome!
• Peanut Butter
• Almond Butter
• Nutella

Healthy Additions

• Granola
• All Bran Cereal Flakes (sneaky way to sneak more fiber)
• Wheat Germ (we use raw)
• Chia Seeds
• Ground or whole Flax seeds (the health benefits are much more useful with ground)
• Wheat Grass Powder
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Sunflower Seeds

So have fun and share any combinations that your family loves.  We are sure that there are many more ideas – what ideas do you have?  Share in the comments below!

Now the fun part is that you can download and print this list to hang on your fridge or tape to an inside cupboard or to keep in your home binder to have quick access to it!

<== Download your printable list HERE.

Do you have any ideas to share?  Please leave your comments below for us all to get more ideas.  We would love to hear from you!

Don’t forget to check out our growing list of Building Better Breakfasts for Less.