Carrot Cake Slow Cooker Oatmeal

Why You’ll Love This

Convenient:  The fact this is a slow cooker recipe means you can simply dump all the ingredients in there and flip the switch. Cook it overnight for eight hours on low and it will be ready to serve as soon as you wake up! And if you happen to sleep in, it still won’t dry out.
Flavorful: This isn’t plain old oatmeal. It boasts all kinds of delicious flavors including carrots, raisins, nuts and spices like cinnamon, for that distinctive carrot cake taste, plus brown sugar, coconut and more.
Customizable: Not only can you change up the spices, type of sugar and even the carrots, but you can use any kind of milk and also add other tasty garnishes on top before serving.

Crockpot Carrot Cake Oatmeal Ingredients

A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below

Steel cut oats: These oats will hold their shape over the long cooking time. If you were to sub instant oats or rolled oats, they would disintegrate or at least get very soft. Some people might not mind but I like the slight ‘chew’ steel cut oats deliver.
Milk: Feel free to use absolutely any kind of milk here: rice milk, almond milk, soy milk, whole milk – anything goes.
Carrots: The ingredient that makes this recipe special! Make sure you grate them as finely as you can.
Raisins: To add sweetness. You can use any kind of dried fruit. If you’re using something larger, like dried apricots, chop them into smaller pieces.
Coconut: This adds a tropical taste as well as a contrasting texture. Not a coconut fan? You can leave it out.
Brown sugar: I find brown sugar works best in this slow cooker oat recipe, but you can use white sugar or your preferred artificial sweetener.
Spices: Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves add beautiful flavors to this dish. However, feel free to omit one or two if you want.
Unsalted butter: This adds a little richness to the dish. I like to use salted butter or unsalted butter with a small pinch of salt, as I find this balances out the sweet flavor, but use your own judgement.

How to Make Crockpot Carrot Cake Oatmeal

For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card

Add the ingredients:  Add the oats, milk, carrots, raisins, nuts, coconut, sugar, butter, and spices to a lightly greased 5-quart (or bigger) crockpot.
Cook: Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or until the oats are tender. The cook time isn’t set in stone, so don’t worry if it’s an hour off when you come to serve it up.
The finishing touches: Add more milk if the oatmeal is too thick or more sugar if you want it sweeter, then serve hot with a splash of milk or cream plus your favorite oatmeal toppings.

Substitutions and Variations

Make it creamy: Feel free to substitute heavy cream for half the milk for a richer taste.
Different sweeteners: You can use any kind of sweetener – coconut sugar, stevia, dark brown sugar, molasses – just about anything will work here. I like to swap the sugar for a quarter cup maple syrup! I also like to add a few drops of vanilla extract!
Fruity options: Any dried fruit, such as golden raisins, dried cranberries, chopped dried apple rings, apricots or even pineapple would work in this delicious oatmeal recipe.

Serving Suggestions

I love topping mine with a dollop of Greek yogurt, a drizzle of maple syrup and some more nuts, but you can add any garnishes you want, or even make some other dishes too if you’re making this as part of a brunch:

Brunch dishes:  If you’re serving this as a brunch dish, other dishes to offer alongside include Starbucks inspired egg bites, rainbow unicorn toast or sheet pan buttermilk pancakes.
On the side:  You can’t have a fancy brunch without something sensation to sip on! Consider slow cooker pumpkin lattes or, for an extra-extra-special brunch, clementine creamsicle martinis!

How to Store Oatmeal with Carrots and Spices

Store:  Keep leftovers in a covered container, maybe a glass bowl or plastic dish, in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat:  Warm it back up in a pan on the stove or in the microwave until hot.

Top Tips

Get creative: This recipe is wide open to interpretation and you can add anything your heart desires, such as any kind of nuts, any kind of dried fruit, any spices, and any kind of milk! Go ahead and make it your own!
Don’t let it stick: Spray plenty of nonstick cooking spray over the inside of your crock pot before adding the oatmeal ingredients.
Garnish it beautifully: Your toppings can turn this from standard overnight oatmeal to something Insta-worthy. Go to town with that dollop of yogurt, the chopped walnuts, sprinkling of cinnamon, extra carrot shreds, orange shreds, mini chocolate chips, freeze-dried fruit slivers… anything you like!