There are few things as positively wonderful as a homemade meal that’s been prepared for you.
This recipe comes pretty close.
A nutrient-rich powerhouse breakfast, these overnight oats require no cooking and are ready to eat upon waking.
Simply assemble the ingredients the night before (it should only take about 2 minutes) and allow them to soak in the fridge overnight. You can adapt the recipe however you like according to personal preference and dietary requirements.
It is a raw foodie’s delight however, if you prefer your oats warm, you can simply heat them prior to eating (another minute).
The variations on this recipe are endless, so I hope you have fun with it.
Healthy & Delicious Overnight Oats
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1/4 cup whole grain oatmeal
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1/4 cup ground flaxseed (flax meal)
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1/2 tsp cinnamon
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2 dried apricots, sliced thin
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1/3 banana, sliced
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1 cup milk (or milk substitute) + 1 tsp vanilla extract
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1 Tbsp sunflower seeds
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A few almonds and walnuts
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Sprinkle of agave nectar or honey
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Note:
In addition to its delightful taste and texture, dried apricots have a low glycemic index and are a good source of beta carotene and plant-based iron.
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Place oatmeal, ground flaxseed, cinnamon, apricots and banana together in a bowl. In a separate small bowl, whisk together milk and vanilla and pour milk mixture over oat mixture.
Place oat mixture in fridge overnight. In the morning, remove bowl from fridge and top with seeds, nuts and a sprinkle of agave nectar.
Serves 1
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Food for Thought
40% of North Americans don’t eat breakfast regularly. The most common reasons given for skipping breakfast are lack of time and lack of appetite.
Studies continue to support the idea that both children and adults who regularly eat breakfast outperform those who do not in cognitive function, memory, productivity, mood and physical performance.
Bovril on toast? How intriguing. I guess I can relate. I used to eat worcestershire sauce on toast! De.Lish!! :)
Mmmm, Bovril – liquid cow! Marmite definitely has a different flavour, but same sort of concept, yeah. A couple teaspoons of bovril and boiling water… such a lovely drink! Hot buttered toast and thinly scraped on Marmite though…. mmmmm!
Bovril is the one we use to have in the house when we were kids – same kind of stuff? – I think my mom added it to soups, etc.
Haha, all I need is my Marmite and I’ll be content. Did you try that stuff before?
ha-ha… yes, any liquid I suspect would work just fine! Hope you enjoy Linda.
Good to know the Monarchy is alive and well in… France :0
I’ve seen recipes on overnight oatmeal, but I’ve not yet tried it. I normally use just water as the liquid so I assume I could do the same in this overnight recipe. Your photo makes this look so good…and its 9am and I’m hungry again!
Usually whatever my wife happens to bring me in bed in the morning. I’m REALLY not a morning person, and I’m slightly ashamed to admit that she’s been bringing me breakfast in bed pretty much every morning for the past 5 years… now that’s true love for you :D Usually I have some cereal and a yoghurt, sometimes toast and a boiled egg… maybe once a month I’ll have a blow-out and eat something like this (lol).
It works like a charm – who would have known? :)
ha-ha! They’re quite good dressed up. Notice that I reserved the nuts/seeds for morning ;)
What’s your typical breakfast Charles?
Yogurt would be a delicious addition to these oats! ;)
Perfect! Thanks Ann.
Oh, thanks so much for letting me know Stephie! I love when a recipe connects with someone and I really appreciate you taking the time to share that with me. So happy you enjoyed! :)
I am a absolute bear in the morning if I don’t have breakfast. It really is the most important meal of the day. This recipe is fascinating. i’d never thought to not cook oats.
I gave this a try Monday morning and it was great! It’s currently in the fridge again for tomorrow morning. I think this may become a new regular breakfast!
I’m really trying to come around to overnight oats but they just haven’t quite done it for me yet. I bet it’s cause I haven’t tried these.
I don’t think I could imagine missing breakfast. I can’t function until I’m munching on something – the very act of eating makes me feel more awake too, so that’s a bonus. I don’t eat oats for breakfast that often, but this looks fabulously easy to prepare and I love how customisable it is too. My wife is a big fan of oatmeal (Swedish style though, so like cement) – I’ll tell her about this too!
What a healthy and wonderful breakfast. Much better than my boring yogurt this morning. Great recipe, Kelly! x
Good to know! Thanks for dropping by Katherine…
Thanks – I think topping them with nuts/seeds and apricot helped with the beauty factor (in addition to the health factor!) ;0
Ah, thank you Kim – your words are always appreciated :)
Funny enough, I ran out of chia this week and have to get more – we love our chia too!
Give them a try, simple is an understatement! ;0
hee-hee!
Ah yes, this could work nicely to cool you down and top-up your glycogen stores after bikram for sure :)
Thank you Angie!!
ha-ha! I have a backlog of posts too – some get published some don’t. And I always find the latest thing I’m working on is the one I’m most excited about even if it’s not what I had planned to publish on a given day… the weird and wonderful world of blogging!
Thanks Claudie! Hope you’re having a great day.
Thanks Kiran – a lot of it is the habits we get in to. But hopefully ideas like this can make a difference is some folks lives. Cheers, k.
I’ll certainly be visiting… (imagine 3 in a row?!!)
:)
I haven’t looked at a package of instant oatmeal in a bit but my usual issue with them (can you guess?) you got it, sugar!! Love the WG oats because then you have control over how much of the good stuff to put in ;0
hmmm… interesting question….I would say mostly soft with the milk close to fully absorbed. The nuts/seeds lend crunch and texture and I you can also add more milk to taste.
ha-ha! Nothing like those hanger-on food memories from childhood. I feel that way about slippery, uncooked eggs – it still gives me the hibby jibbies ;0
Isn’t that a fun concept? Soon your boys will be making these for themselves while mom sleeps in – ha-ha!! (do those days still seem far, far away? lol) ;0
Glad to hear it. It is a nice time saver in particularly busy days – I also like the idea of getting students to put this together before bed so that they have a nutritious meal before school the next day.
Me too Dzoli, thanks!
Thanks Kay – I hope it works better than the beans for you – lol- ;0
I love the way the flavours come together overnight – the cinnamon and vanilla mixed in with the oatmeal, is a delight. Thanks Yummy.
Thank you Reem – I hope it helps those who are in a hurry in the morning. Such an important star to the day!
Oatmeal is comforting isn’ it? There’s something about fall and oatmeal, that make me happy! ;0
I’m pretty certain I eat ground flax *almost* every morning. Love those soluble fibres! :)
ah yes, sometimes it take the engine a bit to get going in the morning and caffeine can delay hunger cues, for sure. Brunch certainly works! :)
Thanks so much – a wonderful, health building tummy filler for sure ;0
It’s the ultimate in convenience, isn’t it. The apricots are a nice touch with the vanilla. Have a good day Emily.
isn’t it funny how food memories can stay with us forever… hotel muesli, who would have known? ;0
Hi Simona, thanks for dropping in – let me know if you give them a try! Hope your husband enjoys them; we do.
Oh wow, Kelly these are way better than the oatmeal I had this morning. I love this recipe.
What a wonderful idea. These oats are gorgeous!
Kelly, who would have imagined that oats could look beautiful? They DO!! They do! Oh, MYY. Xx
Kim http://myinnerchick.com
i love overnight oats!!! its been so long since i’ve had some. my favorite is similar, but only with chia seeds! :)
I really need to try overnight oats! This looks so delicious and filling. Perfect for breakfast!
This truly is an inspired edible! ;)
I love this recipe. The overnight soaked oats are fantastic, especially in the summer when a hot breakfast is not appealing. It really is surprising how delicious soaked oats are. Thank you for posting it. It’s a lovely reminder to make a batch for when I get home from bikram. I haven’t tried it with apricots, so I will definitely try this new addition. It is also lovely with coconut milk as a dairy free solution.
I would love this for the breakfast! Looks so healthy and nutritious.
Yum, omg one of my posts that was suppose to be for last month was overnight oats! lol I like how you added the apricots to naturally sweeten the cereal.
The addition of apricots makes those oats look really delicious and colorful! :)
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day- It’s a shocker when people claim they don’t have time to eat breakfast.
That’s one bowl of deliciousness. I love oatmeal, for breakfast lunch or dinner :D
Wow—great minds think alike! Let’s see, can you envision what I will post tomorrow? :) I have seen a few recipes for soaking oats overnight. I love all the extra nutritious ingredients!
I’ve been eating oatmeal every morning since the weather turned. I’ve never made my own real oatmeal before. I usually eat the high fiber instant maple and brown sugar kind. I do happen to have some whole grain oats, walnuts, bananas and flax meal on hand now though. ;) I think I’m going to give this a try!
Interesting breakfast recipe – I am curious about the texture, but feel that I’ll probably like it.
Saving this one for soon….
Kelly, I don’t know how you do it, but even the hated oats with milk (bad childhood experience…) sound and look luscious when you present them. Your idea of soaking oats overnight reminds me of the Swiss bircher müsli.
Love overnight oats! Breakfast waiting for you in the morning! Perfect for our fast pace mornings. I love all the toppings you put on yours too.
Kelly, this sounds delicious and healthy and I’m always looking for ways to save a bit of time in the morning – what a great combination – it works for me!
I am all for it.My idea of nice tasty healthy start of teh day:)
I love the agave nectar added along with this oatmeal.. it just sounds delicious. I can’t wait to try out this recipe
This sounds delicious and comforting!
That’ll do it! I fixed it on the printable recipe, too….
all those years pouring over contracts in my prior life as a lawyer – ha-ha!
Wonderful Kelly!!!!
This is such a great recipe….
I love oatmeal, i am gonna try this soon.
This looks incredible! I love oatmeal and enjoy the wintery, comfort appeal of it!
Sorry I missed the amount of sugar used in the cranberry glaze! I’ve fixed the recipe. It’s 1.5 Teaspoon of Splenda blend brown sugar, or one TABLESPOON of regular brown sugar! Good eye….
Oh, this sounds good. I actually have some ground flax that I have been wondering what to do with – I think I will give this a try tonight (tomorrow morning!)
What a fantastic breakfast! Love all of the fruits and nuts. I am one of those that do eat breakfast but not until around 9 to 10 a.m. I just don’t get hungry prior to that, plus I have to have a couple cups of tea first. :) So I guess I would say I eat brunch. This is a good one!
I love overnight oats! Love all the goodies in yours!
I make these any day I have a very early morning. Just grab them from the fridge on the way out. I have never tried dried apricots though. Sounds delicious!
I keep hearing about overnight oats and always want to try it but haven’t gotten around to it yet. This sounds so good! It reminds me of this muesli I had once at a hotel that I seriously haven’t been able to stop thinking about since…and I was only like 10 years old when I had it! Maybe this could finally recreate my memory :)
My husband loves oatmeal for breakfast. The raw idea sounds really nice: I will certainly give it a try: thanks!