Overnight oats are a great choice for breakfast!
You don’t have to cook anything to make our famous overnight oats base recipe. It only needs a few things.You also get at least 10 grams of protein in each serving!You will need milk, oats, chia seeds, Greek yogurt, and maple syrup.
We are known for our overnight oats here at Fit Foodie Finds.We’ve been writing about them since 2010, and there are more than 30 different ones on the site! A lot of you love our overnight oats recipes, and you should!They taste like dessert and are thick and creamy.
This is our guide to making oats overnight.We’ll show you how to make overnight oats and how to add flavor to them in this post. We have a basic recipe that we swear by, and we’ve tried eight easy flavor variations so you don’t get bored.
Gus, who is one year old, loved all of these oats. If he could talk, he would tell you that his favorite flavor is peanut butter and jelly (he even had seconds!).
Ingredients for Overnight Oats
- 1/2 cup rolled oats or quick-cooking oats
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
How to Make Overnight Oats That Are Good for You (2 Steps)
- Mix: Put all the ingredients for your overnight oats in a bowl or jar and stir them together.
- Soak: Cover the oatmeal and put it in the fridge overnight or for at least two hours.
Do I really need to let my oats sit overnight?
Your oats will get thicker the longer you let them soak in the liquid. We suggest at least two hours, but overnight is best.
Are your oats too thick or too thin?
If it’s too thick, add more milk and stir to thin it out.
If it’s too thin, add more oats and let it sit for at least 30 minutes.
What do you need to make overnight oats?
You only need oats and liquid to make the simplest and easiest overnight oats recipe. But our famous overnight oats recipe needs a few more things to make them creamy and dreamy!
- Oats: We’ve tried this recipe with both rolled oats and quick-cooking oats, and both work well. Quick-cooking oats will be creamier, while rolled oats will have more of a “bite.”
- Milk: You can use any kind of milk in this recipe. Cow’s, soy, oat, and other types of milk work too, but we like almond milk best.
- Chia seeds: Chia seeds are the secret ingredient that makes our overnight oats thick. When chia seeds are in water, they swell and turn into a jelly-like substance. Don’t forget the chia!
- Greek yogurt: Greek yogurt not only adds protein, but it also makes your oats taste like cheesecake. If you want to keep things vegan, you can use a yogurt made from plants.
- Vanilla: Vanilla is always a good choice. We almost always add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to all of our overnight oatmeal recipes.
- Sweeteners: Honey and maple syrup are our favorite natural sweeteners, but you can also use agave or even brown sugar.
Make them blended overnight oats!
- Put everything into a blender that works quickly.
- Blend on high for about a minute. This will turn the oats into a fine powder and make them very creamy.
- Put the overnight oats in a container that won’t let air in and put them in the fridge for at least two hours or overnight.
- You can eat it as is in the morning, or you can add a little milk to make it thinner.
8 Healthy Overnight Oats Flavors
We are sharing eight different flavors of overnight oats below. You can make overnight oats in eight different ways by adding the extra ingredients to the base recipe.
Snickers
- Two tablespoons of peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon of chopped peanuts
- 1 tablespoon of small chocolate chips
- One more tablespoon of maple syrup is optional.
Peanut Butter and Jelly
- 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons of jam
Protein from Chocolate
- ¼ cup of chocolate protein powder
- 2 tablespoons of tiny chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup of any kind of milk
Blueberry Lemon
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest and 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries, mashed
Latte with Vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- Swap out half a cup of almond milk for brewed coffee or strong brew.
Pie with Apples
- 1/2 cup of shredded apple
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons of sliced almonds
Banana Strawberry
- 1 medium banana, mashed, and 4 medium strawberries, cut into small pieces
Pie with Banana Cream
- 1 medium banana, sliced or mashed
- 2–4 vanilla wafer cookies, crushed
Do you serve overnight oats warm or cold?
I like to serve overnight oats cold, which is how they are usually served. But there’s nothing wrong with heating them up!
Putting away
The best place to keep overnight oats is in the fridge in a glass container. You can keep your overnight oats in one big meal-prep container or in separate jars (we like the W&P jars) so you can grab them and go.
How long do oats that you leave overnight last?
In the fridge, overnight oats will stay good for 3 to 5 days. We recommend days if you’re using fruit, but if you’re not, they will last 5 days.