How Do You Make Protein Oats

Ever wondered how do you make protein porridge? Here are 10 healthy ways to easily increase the protein content of your morning bowl of oatmeal!

Confession time:

I LOVE OATMEAL. I could eat oatmeal every single day of my life forever and ever the end.

However, I am also a protein-a-holic. Or, at least that is what Mr. FFF says.

Sooooo, I am alwayyyyys looking for new and exciting ways to make protein oatmeal and  increase the protein content of my morning favorite-food and I figured that Y-O-U probably are too!

Because I love you, and want you to have delishly-healthy, muscle-building breakfasts, I am answering your burning question of “how do you make protein porridge?” by giving you my top 10 favorite additions to your morning bowl!

But first, why should you add protein to your porridge?

Protein helps our muscles grow which helps us function in life. Also, muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so muscle tissue is key to having a healthy, fast metabolism. This is one of the main reasons why it’s important to make sure that you’re getting enough protein in your daily diet.

Also, protein is the slowest digested macro nutrient so, adding it to your morning bowl of porridge is going to make it keep you fuller longer. This ensures that you’ll consume less food and also prevents you from getting hangry! So, let’s look at how to make your next breakfast a protein oatmeal recipe!

10 ways to make protein Oats:

1. Make it with milk (or almond milk)

A 1 cup serving of 2% milk is naturally high in protein – 8g per cup –  so, swap out your usual cooking water, and use milk instead! Not only does this add a protein boost, but it makes it SO creamy and smooth.

• Cookie Dough Overnight Oats
• Snickerdoodle Vegan Overnight Oats

2. Add nut butter or nuts/seeds

Adding nuts and seeds are an awesome, plant-based way to increase both the protein of your morning oats, and make them SO delicious. I mean, who doesn’t love creamy swirls of nut butter or crunchy bursts of nuts and seeds! My top picks, since they are higher in protein, are almonds, walnuts and pepitas! 1 oz of almonds has 6g of protein, 1 oz of walnuts has 5g of protein and 1 oz of pepitas packs another 5g of protein!

Recipe ideas:

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
• Vegan Pecan Pie Overnight Oats
• Apple Pie Vegan Overnight Oats

3. Add egg whites

Just one egg white has 3.5 g of protein and almost zero carbs. I like to use the liquid egg whites, for convenience and like to add about ¼ cup or so. This is equivalent to 2 egg whites, or an additional 7g of protein! The best way to make egg white oatmeal is to add them in closer to the end of cooking time. You want them to cook enough to not be runny, but to not become hard. This also adds a TON of volume to your oatmeal. I love feeling like I am eating MORE food! 🙂

4. Add protein powder

I find that a half scoop of protein is the perfect amount to add to oatmeal, to make it super delicious, but not give it a funny texture. A half scoop of your average protein powder has about 12g of protein. PLUS, they come in all kinds of fun flavors! The trick is to stir the powder in right at the end, after cooking. This makes it really creamy and doesn’t make your protein powder chunky

Recipe ideas:

• • Cinnamon Roll Protein Oatmeal
  • Funfetti Protein Overnight Oats
  • Cookie Dough Protein Oatmeal

5. Add flax seed or chia seed

1 oz of flax seed packs 6.5g of protein and 1 oz of chia seed has about 4.5 g of protein. Both are also VERY high in fiber, which is going to make that morning bowl of oats last you BEYOND lunch! You can either sprinkle them on top, for crunch, OR add them in the last few minutes of cooking time, so they absorb some moisture! If you do the later, you may need to a little more liquid, because these seeds are thirsty!

6. Go savory and add an egg

I know this sounds weird, but it’s one of my favorite ways to eat oatmeal (and I LOVE sweet stuff!) Cook your oatmeal in water (or milk to add MORE protein!) with just a pinch of salt – no sweetener! I then love to stir-fry some veggies (loving Brussels Sprouts and peppers right now!) add them on top, and then top it off with a sunny-side up egg. Breaking into the egg adds this rich, creamy texture – and about 6g of protein!

Recipe ideas:

• Egg Muffins with Savory Oatmeal Vegetable Crust

7. Add cheese – sweet OR savory!

Piggy-backing off the savory idea, I love to add a little bit of low-fat cheese on top of my egg (Parmesan is my go-to!)  A 1 oz serving of reduced-fat cheese averages about 7g of protein! You could also make a sweet version, and swirl in reduced-fat cream cheese – use the Greek yogurt kind to increase the protein further!

Recipe ideas:

• Oatmeal Recipe with  Blueberry Cheesecake Swirl
• Strawberry Cheesecake Overnight Oats

8. Add Greek yogurt or cottage cheese

A ½ cup serving of plain, nonfat Greek yogurt packs a WHOPPING 11g of protein, and a ½ cup serving of low-fat cottage cheese packs about 14g. You can also add fun Greek yogurt flavors! Both cottage cheese and Greek yogurt almost make oatmeal even more filling, and add a creaminess that I LOVE!

Recipe ideas:

• • Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
  • Pina Colada Overnight Oats
  • Gluten Free Cinnamon Roll Overnight Oats

9. Add peanut butter powder

Going back to the idea of adding nuts or nut butter, you can also stir peanut flour into your oatmeal near the end of cooking (just like protein powder.) This gives it a rich, peanut-buttery taste, without adding the fat found in nut butter (although it’s the ‘good fat!’)   A 1 oz serving (about ¼ cup) has 12g of protein!

Recipe ideas:

• Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

10. Make it with quinoa

So, I guess this isn’t really oatmeal. But, did you know you can make porridge with quinoa? It’s such a nice change, if you’re looking for something a little different every so often! You only need about ¼ cup for one serving, which has 7g of protein. ½ cup (one serving) of oatmeal has 5g!

Recipe ideas:

• Funfetti Breakfast Quinoa
• Earl Gray Breakfast Quinoa
• Breakfast Quinoa Recipe with Pumpkin

Now go! Go! Go! And eat some protein packed protein oats!