Vanilla Overnight Oats

Why You'll Love This Recipe

You will love these vanilla overnight oats because:

• It's a cheap and easy breakfast that takes less than five minutes to make.
• They have a lovely flavor that you can enjoy all year round. 
• You can eat these cold and straight from the fridge in the summertime or warm the oats up in the microwave oven for winter.
• This recipe makes one serving, but you can increase the quantities to make more.
• You can meal prep and make a big batch of these oats over the weekend to enjoy quick and easy breakfasts during the week.
• You can make it dairy-free by using plant-based milk and yogurt.
• It is also naturally gluten free.

Ingredients

Oats – You can use old fashioned rolled oats or quick oats to make this recipe but avoid using steel cut oats.

• Overnight oats made with rolled oats are thick with an almost smooth, creamy texture. 
• Overnight oats made with quick oats, when soaked overnight, are creamier and smoother than rolled oats.
• Overnight oats made with steel cut oats remain grainy and soften to a chewy and gummy texture. Also, steel-cut oats don't soak up as much liquid as rolled and quick-cooking oats. 

Oats are naturally gluten-free but may contain traces of gluten depending on how they are processed, so always read the label before buying if you need them gluten free.

Milk – You can use dairy milk, almond milk, soya milk, coconut milk, oat milk, or other types of milk.

Yogurt - use plain dairy or dairy-free yogurt. We used our homemade yogurt in this recipe.

Seeds – Chia or basil seeds can be used. These thicken the oats by soaking up moisture and are high in fiber.  

We used basil seeds in this recipe because it is budget friendly.

Both chia and basil seeds are good sources of minerals and are rich in plant-based omega-3 fatty acids.

Maple Syrup – if you like your oatmeal sweet, it can be sweetened with maple syrup, agave, or honey.

Vanilla - Use whatever vanilla you have extract or essence, and add the vanilla to taste.

Equipment

You don't need any special equipment to make these oats, but if you are planning to make these for a grab-and-go breakfast, store the oats in mason jars or old jam jars with lids for easy transportation.

Step By Step Instructions

Step 1 – Place the milk, yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla into a mixing bowl. Stir until well combined. 

Step 2 – Add the oats, and seeds and mix well. Taste for flavor and adjust if necessary by adding more vanilla and maple syrup. Cover and store in the fridge overnight.

Step 3 - In the morning, if desired serve the oats with a topping of yogurt and berries, and toasted nuts.

Recipe Notes

• Oats too thick the next day - If you find the overnight oats are too thick, mix in a little more milk to achieve the consistency you like.
• Use vanilla-flavored milk, vanilla yogurt, or both to make this even more delicious.

Serving Size

This recipe serves one and make about 267 grams (9.45 ounces) or just over 1 cup of overnight oats.

Calories Per Serve

A single serving is about 315 calories.

Serving Suggestions

Serve vanilla overnight oats hot or cold with or without a topping. 

If you would like to add a topping or two, here are some ideas for you to try:

• Fresh fruit is always a nice topping. You could top these vanilla overnight oats with slices of banana, diced apple, strawberry pieces, blueberries, grapes, peaches, or whatever fresh fruit you have on hand.
• Dried fruit adds texture to the oats. You could use dried apricots, apples, pears, cranberries, blueberries, or sultanas. Use the smaller dried fruits as they are, but cut larger pieces like dried apricots into smaller pieces.
• Nuts -  like toasted almonds, peanuts, or cashews add crunch and extra flavor.
• Coconut - shredded toasted coconut is a lovely topping and goes so well with chopped toasted nuts and pineapple pieces.
• Nut butter - for extra protein, top the oats with a spoonful of peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter.

Serve cold or hot

Traditionally overnight oats are served cold as a summer breakfast idea, but there is no reason not to eat them hot.

Heating overnight oats

Stove top - Overnight oats can be warmed on the stove top in a small saucepan over a medium heat.  

Mix in some extra liquid like water or milk because it is thick, up to third of a cup if needed.

Microwave oven - Transfer the oats to a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes or until hot. 

Variations

Milk – use milk suitable for your diet, such as unsweetened milk for a sugar free diet or plant milk for vegans, and if you don't like milk, use water instead.

Sweeteners – like honey, sugar, or artificial sweeteners can be used instead of maple syrup.

Yogurt – can use vanilla flavored yogurt instead of plain yogurt. 

Use flavored milk - like vanilla almond milk instead of plain milk.

Make it sugar free - by using sugar free sweeteners instead of sugar, and use sugar free milk.

Storage

Refrigeration – Keep stored in the fridge until needed.

Meal Prepping

These overnight oats are great for meal prepping because they will last five days in the fridge.

FAQ

More Easy Recipes

You might also like to read our easy overnight oats recipe page for helpful tips and ideas or see all our overnight oats with yogurt recipes or try these easy recipes:

• 3 Ingredient peanut butter oatmeal balls
• Oatmeal banana blueberry muffins
• No bake peanut butter oatmeal balls

If you are looking for some other breakfast recipe ideas and love bananas, see our collection of Healthy Banana Breakfast Recipes.

I do hope that you will make these delicious vanilla overnight oats. If you do, please come back and leave a comment below because I would love to know how you went.