AuthorChandniThe perfect breakfast for not-morning-people. No, you don't have to cook the night before.
If you’re the type of person that wakes up with a spring in their step every morning and then goes about meditating, working out, showering, answering emails and basically having a whole day before I manage to drag myself out of bed at 8am, please tell me HOW!?
I’m one of those people who needs every last second of bed-time in the morning and by the time I coax myself out of bed, I have another problem—I want a comforting breakfast but I don’t want to pull out the chopping board.
I had a good thing going with eggs and toast for awhile. It’s low-effort, comforting and gives me a good dose of energy to start my day. One of my favourite variations is an egg-in-the-hole sandwich that also has cheese. It’s delicious, cheesy, comforting and not messy, perfect for a low-fuss breakfast. So of course I overdid it and am now thoroughly bored of it.
That said, you should check it out because it really is delicious and convenient. Get the recipe here >>
Anyway anyway, I needed a new no-fuss breakfast that would also check all my criteria from above and after a discussion with a friend, I zeroed in on Overnight Oats.
I’m not going to lie, I’ve attempted to eat oats a million times before and always hated them for being gooey and having no taste or texture. But I decided to give it one last chance, knowing fully well that if I didn't like them, I’d hand over the whole bag of oats to said friend who convinced me to buy them in the first place.
Luckily, I didn’t have to.
On a Sunday night, I mixed together one portion of Overnight Oats. And on Monday morning, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn’t hate the oats for being gooey and having no taste or texture. In fact, once I’d thrown on some fruit, it was quite nice?
What if I don't want to eat cold overnight oats in the morning?
On days I don't particularly feel like eating something cold first thing in the morning, I pop the jar in the microwave for 30 seconds and that brings it up to room temperature.
I’ve eaten these Overnight Oats a few more times since then and I’m happy to report I really enjoy them now. While I can surely eat them everyday, I’m not going to make the same mistake I did with eggs and toast. So, at this point I eat them twice a week.
Do try these out and let me know what you think in the comments. If you have more ideas for quick no-fuss breakfasts, please tell me! I’m always looking for more easy breakfasts to add to my rotation.
Easy Overnight Oats Recipe
To make these easy overnight oats, start by mixing the dry oats and chia seeds in a jar. I like to use a glass jar for this, but you could use whatever you have on hand. Add the milk, yogurt, honey and vanilla extract and give it a thorough mix. Chia seeds tend to clump up, so mix well until everything is well distributed. Put this jar in the fridge at night, and you’ll have tender but not gooey oats in the morning.
In the morning, all you need to do now is top it off with some fruits and enjoy. I’ve tried this with banana, walnuts and chocolate chips; chopped apples, walnuts and cinnamon; even some papaya one morning when I couldn’t find any other fruit in my fridge - all were absolutely delicious but I personally come back to the banana and chocolate chip combo on the regular.
These Overnight Oats stay good in the fridge for 3-4 days so you can make a few portions at a time. You could even add the chopped fruit on top when you put it in the fridge the night before if you need something more grab-and-go in the morning. If you don't want your oats and fruits mixing (don't worry, that's totally normal), you could use a glass bento box with partitions, make the oats in one section and add the fruit in the other.
Ingredients
Directions
To make these easy overnight oats, start by mixing the dry oats and chia seeds in a jar. I like to use a glass jar for this, but you could use whatever you have on hand. Add the milk, yogurt, honey and vanilla extract and give it a thorough mix. Chia seeds tend to clump up, so mix well until everything is well distributed. Put this jar in the fridge at night, and you’ll have tender but not gooey oats in the morning.
In the morning, all you need to do now is top it off with some fruits and enjoy. I’ve tried this with banana, walnuts and chocolate chips; chopped apples, walnuts and cinnamon; even some papaya one morning when I couldn’t find any other fruit in my fridge - all were absolutely delicious but I personally come back to the banana and chocolate chip combo on the regular.
These Overnight Oats stay good in the fridge for 3-4 days so you can make a few portions at a time. You could even add the chopped fruit on top when you put it in the fridge the night before if you need something more grab-and-go in the morning. If you don't want your oats and fruits mixing (don't worry, that's totally normal), you could use a glass bento box with partitions, make the oats in one section and add the fruit in the other.