Can I have a show of hands as to how many of you have succumbed to the latest fad that is Overnight Oats?
Me? I’m guilty as charged!
I was never a fan of oatmeal before this because I don’t really like it warm, but overnight oats presents oats in a chilled, almost dessert-like fashion….and I find that hard to resist! It’s healthy, it’s nutritious, it’s tasty, and best of all, it saves me time preparing breakfast in the morning!
The concept of this healthy breakfast (or even tea-time snack) is downright simple. Soak oats in milk or yogurt for at least 5 hours, thereafter the oats will be soft and mushy and ready to eat! It’s a wholesome and nutritious meal too, if you ask me.
The beauty of this is that we can add almost anything to Overnight Oats to suit our taste. Dried fruit, fresh fruit, nuts, syrup, marmalade…anything goes! Well, of course, if you add unhealthy stuff, you just reduce the overall healthiness factor of it. A caveat though is that if you are going to add fresh fruit to your overnight oats, you need to add it in right before you eat it, and NOT leave it overnight. This is also the reason why I hardly ever put fresh fruits in it…I’m too lazy to cut them up in the morning!
My current go-to Overnight Oats recipe is incredibly simple, and it’s all I ever make these days.
What I put in my Overnight Oats:
- Kefir (yes! I found another yummy way to consume my homemade kefir, and this is definitely the healthier option. It’s especially suitable for those who are lactose-intolerant and those who want to cut down on sugar from store-bought yogurt)
- Rolled Oatmeal (I use the baby-size ones, so when they mush up, it’s really smooth)
- Dried Cranberries
- Flaxseed meal
- Cinnamon powder
Yes! It’s that easy! I just mix these ingredients into a glass jar (like a recycled jam jar), give it a good stir, and leave it in the fridge before I go to bed.
The next morning, I have a sumptuous, nutritious breakfast ready!
Note: to make these kid-friendly, you could substitute the kefir for yogurt or milk, and add some chopped bananas in the morning.
My kids don’t take this on a regular basis, but they have, on occasion, tried it. Something is better than nothing, no?
So what’s YOUR favorite Overnight Oats concoction? 🙂
Little Miracles
Our Journey of Love
Love this recipe! My breakfast I usually comprises bread, Nutella and Milo. So unhealthy! I’m trying this tonight. I’m not sure what kefir is, so I added low fat milk instead. Let’s see how it turns out tomorrow morning 🙂
The Giddy Tigress says: Let me know how you like it! Kefir is a fermented milk drink, healthy and nutritious. Read about how I make my own kefir here.
Milk should work too, and so will yogurt.