Slow Cooker Blueberry Banana Steel Cut Oatmeal & Quinoa

Ripe bananas and juicy blueberries mixed with wholesome steel cut oats and nutritious quinoa and then slow cooked into a creamy delicious oatmeal. You will want to eat this for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Yes I know I’ve been a blueberry banana kick lately – and I still have 1 recipe more after this. But what can I say? It’s blueberry season and I always have ripe bananas on my counter so whether I like it or not that’s the theme for this month 🙂

So far I made a blueberry banana muffin and blueberry banana baked oatmeal. YUM YUM YUM! Today I give you blueberry banana steel cut oats made in the slow cooker!

Slow cookers are often thought about during the winter months when making chili, soup, or hearty roasts. But I love using my slow cooker during the hot summer months because you can cook a delicious meal without heating up the kitchen. Slow cookers are also great for making big batches of food to stock your freezer with – perfect for food prep day.

Over the last year I made a few steel cut oat recipes in the slow cooker and loved every single one. Last fall I made one with pumpkin and another with apples – both were OMG! Earlier in the year I made a steel cut oat recipe filled with carrots, raisins, apples, and tons of amazing goodness. Scrumptious. Yesterday, as I stared at the mountain of blueberries and lonely ripe bananas I knew a slow cooker recipe was going to be in my future.

I did things a little different with this recipe. Instead of using all steel cut oats I substituted in some quinoa. If you are an avid reader of my blog then you know I’m a quinoa lover all the way. I put it in everything from breakfast egg bowls to bakes to salads and more. Love the stuff! I thought it would be a great way to add in some extra fiber and protein to an already nutritious breakfast.

If you like quick recipe videos then here’s one I created to bring this oatmeal to life.

Okay here’s what I did. I started with 1 1/2 cups of steel cut oats, 1/2 cup dry RINSED quinoa (if you’re unsure about quinoa then check out my tutorial) , 1 1/2 cups of frozen blueberries, 3 medium ripe mashed bananas, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 cup pure maple syrup.

Let’s talk quickly about the blueberries. I decided to freeze the fresh blueberries before putting them in this recipe. My reason for this is I felt they would hold up better than fresh blueberries in the slow cooker. Fresh would probably do fine but I wasn’t sure and I knew the frozen blueberries would keep their shape and not turn mushy.

To keep the oatmeal from sticking I sprayed the slow cooker with cooking spray before putting the ingredients in.

Then I stirred in 6 cups of water and 2 cups of unsweetened coconut milk. You can use any milk you like or all water. I love unsweetened coconut milk because it gives a creaminess without a lot of calories or fat.

Then I put the cover on and cooked for 5 hours on low and then let it sit on warm for another hour or so. At 5 hours the oatmeal will still seem a touch liquidy but it thickens up as it sits.

The texture turned out absolutely perfect. The steel cut oats have the right amount of bite and you can’t even tell the quinoa is there. The flavor is amazing! I honestly think this oatmeal recipe might be my new favorite.

The oatmeal is naturally sweetened with the bananas and touch of pure maple syrup but you can add more pure maple syrup if needed.

Top your bowl with sliced banana, extra blueberries, and some walnuts.

Every bite is packed with juicy berries and delicious banana.

It’s hearty, wholesome, and will keep you satisfied all morning. This recipe makes a lot so plan to portion it out and stick in the freezer for breakfast later in the month. I used the containers you see in this picture. I get them from Amazon and they’re perfect for portion control.

I’m telling ya you will love having this delicious oatmeal ready to heat and eat!