Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: This crunchy oat topping is like a very simple granola. Enjoy for breakfast, or use it as a topping for fruit, yogurt, ice cream, and so much more.
How long it takes: 15 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: mixing bowl, rimmed baking pan
Servings: 8 (2 tablespoons each)
Simple Crunchy Topping
This crunchy oat topping reminds me of granola. It’s very easy to make with only oats, butter and brown sugar. The topping is baked on a sheet pan, just like you would with granola, until it’s lightly browned and crispy.
The topping is nut-free, it’s made with only three ingredients, and you can make it in less than 15 minutes. Seems like a win-win-win to me! It’s super versatile, too. You can use it as a topping on lots of different treats.
How To Serve Crunchy Oat Topping
You’ll find yourself putting these crunchy oats on all sorts of things. Add the sweet crunchy oats to a yogurt parfait, or even plain yogurt (serve it at a yogurt parfait bar!). You can make a faux fruit crisp by topping fruit (either fresh or canned) with crunchy oat topping. It’s not quite the same as my apple crisp but it’s a quickie dessert that’s satisfying.
One of my favorite ways to use this crunchy sweet topping is on ice cream. I highly recommend it! I also like to use it as a topping for this delicious yogurt tart! Try it on pudding, too, like this homemade vanilla pudding.
You can enjoy the crunchy oats for breakfast too, like a simple granola. You can throw in a few add-ins, like toasted nuts, coconut, or sunflower seeds.
More Granola Recipes
Crunchy Oat Topping
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats (either old-fashioned or quick oats)
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Mix the three ingredients together until well combined. Spread the mixture out on a rimmed baking pan (not all jammed together but with some space).1 cup rolled oats, ¼ cup packed brown sugar, 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- Bake for about 10 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time or until dry and lightly browned. Stir lightly to separate and let cool completely before storing.
Notes
- Storage: Cool the topping completely before storing it in an airtight container. It will keep at room temperature for a week or more. If you want to store it longer, I’d refrigerate it, where it will keep for a couple of weeks.
- Make a bigger batch: This makes a fairly small batch but the recipe can easily be multiplied for bigger batches. If you multiply, make sure you can still spread it in a fairly thin layer on your baking sheet.
- Possible add-ins: You can pretty much add what you want to this mixture. Add a ½ teaspoon of cinnamon. Stir in chopped nuts or seeds. After you bake the mixture, you can add dried fruit, like raisins or cranberries.
- Serving ideas: This is like a very simple granola. You can use it to top fruit (fresh or canned), yogurt, ice cream, pudding, oatmeal, or whatever you like. Make easy yogurt parfaits or a faux fruit crisp.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
H! Do you think I could use maple syrup in place of butter?
I haven’t tested it that way, and maple syrup is a sweetener, where as butter is fat, so you may not get the same results. Let me know if you give it a try though!
I was tired of oatmeal, even though I put nuts, raisins, apples etc. in mine. I needed a change and this is perfect. Easy, basic, & delicious. I added pecans.
Glad to hear it! Thank you for leaving a review!
I loved the simplicity. So good on yoghurt with strawberries! I also tried it with a little cinnamon, which is delicious too.
So happy to hear it! Thank you for leaving a review!
Delicious! I was looking for a simple oat topping to put on air fried apples. I had a powerful sweet tooth after the holidays and needed to wean myself off of sugar. Instead of brown sugar, I used 1/4 cup of vanilla hot chocolate powder-just to help use it up. It turned out really yummy and no higher in calories than the brown sugar.
I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, it means a lot!