Healthy Overnight Oats Recipe (+18 Flavors)
This is the only healthy overnight oats recipe you'll ever need! The THOUSANDS of 5-star ratings can't be wrong. Packed with 20g+ protein and 10g+ fiber, these oats are as nourishing as they are tasty. And with 18 flavor options, you're sure to find your perfect meal prep breakfast.
🔍 Recipe At-A-Glance: Healthy Overnight Oats Recipe
- ⏰ Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🕰️ Chill Time: 4+ hours
- 🥣 Flavor Profile: The base recipe below is a amazing vanilla overnight oats flavor, but I also have nearly 20 other flavors to try like my strawberry cheesecake overnight oats, carrot cake overnight oats, or my super popular chocolate peanut butter overnight oats
- 💪 What Makes It Healthy: 20g+ protein and 10g+ of fiber per full-size serving, tons of gut-nourishing probiotics
- 🥄 Good For: Meal prep breakfasts, busy weekday mornings, kid breakfasts
- ↪️ Make Ahead: Designed for meal prep! Whip this up on the weekend to eat on all week.
- 🧡 Difficulty: If you can stir, you can make these overnight oats!
"I've been making overnight oats for a while now, using different recipes I've found online, and I gotta say, this is THE BEST recipe by far!
- FRAN -
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🧡 Why You'll Love This Recipe
"Hey! Aren't you the overnight oats lady?!" I've been stopped on the street more times that I can count to talk about my overnight oats (my job is so weird sometimes 😂). These oats are THAT good. I promise you'll love them, too!
Here's why you'll love this recipe:
- Make Ahead: Prep a batch of these overnight oats in literally 5 minutes
- So. Many. Flavors: I currently have 18 flavors (and counting) ranging from lemon poppyseed overnight oats to chai latte overnight oats to pina colada overnight oats-if you can dream it, I've probably already made it.
- Packed Full of Protein & Fiber: A full batch has 20g+ of protein and 10g+ of fiber without any added protein powder or fiber.
- So Easy To Make: If you can stir, you can make these.
- A recipe you can trust: The overnight oats recipes have been viral on the internet for well over a decade! With thousands of 5 star reviews, you can trust my oats recipes.
"LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! By far the best overnight oats I've made and tried"
- LYNN -
🥛 The Ingredients You Need
- Oats: I recommend rolled oats here. Quick cooking or steel cut oats won't have the same texture (but they are great in my slow cooker steel cut oats recipe).
- Greek Yogurt: any plain Greek yogurt will do, or you can use homemade yogurt, just make sure to strain it first (here's the yogurt strainer I use every week)
- Chia seeds: help them thicken up the oats as well as add protein and fiber, you can also swap in equal amounts of flax meal
- Honey or maple syrup: I prefer the flavor of maple syrup in these oats, but either option works-or leave out the sweetener all together if you want to cut back on sugar.
- Flavoring: the recipe listed here is for the base vanilla overnight oats recipe, but depending on what flavor you are making, you'll add all kinds of yummy goodies!
Make sure to check the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, along with quantities and my expert tips and tricks.
"I usually don't like oats, but this recipe...SOOO YUMMY, I want to eat it everyday, that's how good it is."
- IVANA -
🔁 Variations & Substitutions
- Make it vegan: Use maple syrup, plant-based milk (almond milk or oatmilk work great) and vegan Greek yogurt
- Make it gluten-free: These oats are naturally gluten-free as long as you choose certified gluten-free oats.
- No chia seeds? Swap in equal amounts of ground flax.
- Up the protein: Add a scoop of vanilla or unflavored protein powder!
- Make it sugar-free: Drop the sweetener and add a ½ mashed ripe banana. Or use stevia or monk fruit sweetener in place of the maple syrup or honey if you prefer.
🥣 How to Make Healthy Overnight Oats
Step 1: Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Step 2: Mix well to combine.
Step 3: Spoon into a jar or other food storage container. I like either Weck 742 Half Liter jars or Ball Wide Mouth Pint jars for the full batch. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Step 4: Serve cold topped with whatever toppings bring you joy: nut butter, nuts, chocolate chips, fruit, etc.
"I've almost tried all of the flavours now, and they're all amazing!! It's like having dessert for breakfast 🙂"
- TASH -
🙋🏻♀️ Healthy Overnight Oats FAQs
Yes! Overnight oats are packed with protein, fiber, and a good mix of macronutrients to make for a balanced breakfast.
Yes, you can use steel cut oats to make overnight oats but the final texture will be more chewy than creamy. Because steel cut oats are inherently less processed, you should increase the amount of liquid by ¼ cup, and prepare for a chewier oatmeal in the morning.
The recipes with fruit mix-ins, eat within three days. The ones without fresh fruit, you could get by with letting them chill in the fridge for up to a week.
👩🏻🍳 My Expert Tips & Tricks
- Make lots: doubling or tripling this recipe takes no extra time but gives you lots of extra breakfasts-perfect for big families!
- Boost the nutrition: add in protein powder, collagen powder, fiber supplements, oh my!
- Wait at least 4 hours: yes these are called "overnight" oats, but you can get away with eating them after at least 4 hours in the fridge
- Sweeten to taste: some people like breakfast foods sweeter than others, so start with a small amount of maple syrup or honey, taste your oats, then add more if you like.
🥣 All of My Healthy Overnight Oats Flavors
- Lemon Poppyseed Overnight Oats
- Chocolate Chip Banana Overnight Oats
- Chai Latte Overnight Oats
- Blueberry Overnight Oats
- Strawberry Cheesecake Overnight Oats
- Key Lime Pie Overnight Oats
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
- Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
- Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats
- Chocolate Coffee Overnight Oats
- Cherry and Toasted Almond Overnight Oats
- Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
- Chocolate Peppermint Overnight Oats
- Piña Colada Overnight Oats
- Coconut Chocolate Overnight Oats
- Eggnog Overnight Oats Recipe
- Pumpkin Overnight Oats
If you tried these Healthy Overnight Oats or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments!
📖 Recipe
Healthy Overnight Oats Recipe (+18 Flavors)
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ½ cup heaping rolled oats
- ⅔ cup milk of any kind
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds or ground flaxmeal
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 0-2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
Instructions
- Whisk together all ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Spoon into a jar with a tight-fitting lid.
- Close and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight before eating.
Notes
- This recipe is delicious on it's own, but it really shines topped with fresh fruit, nuts, or peanut butter!
- Doubling or tripling this recipe takes no extra time but gives you lots of extra breakfasts-perfect for big families!
- Feel free to add in protein powder, collagen powder, fiber supplements, or other nutrition boosters.
- This recipe is the base for all my other 18 overnight oats flavors! Find links to all of those in the post above.
Nutrition
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This blog post is sponsored by Almond Breeze. The content and opinions expressed here are mine.
Cassie - I have been curious about overnight oats and have yet to try it. I am one to always add more milk to my oatmeal and cook for longer to make it extra creamier (I don't want to be "chewing" my oatmeal). Well, I made my first batch tonight....we'll see how my boys and I enjoy it in the morning. 🙂
Side note - just wanted to say how well designed and pointed your post is! Quick intro, helpful background info (for those of us who don't quite understand what overnight oats are and what the difference is). Beautiful photography with clear and simple text overlay. Consistency with recipe graphics and text. Helpful substitutions for each recipe and FAQs to close it up. I am am an Interior Designer and my husband is a Brand Strategist and User Interface Designer so I very much appreciate clean visuals, consistency and thorough, thoughtful design. Very well done! Keep it up!
I know this has been asked roughly 17 times but, do these have to be eaten cold or can I heat them up?
Shout out to Cynthia the church going craft lady. You made my day.
They really are best cold, but you can see if you like them warmed up!
Can you heat these
They are meant to be eaten cold. If you’d prefer warm oats that you can prep in advance, these would be a good fit: https://wholefully.com/8-healthy-instant-oatmeal-cups/
Hi,
Unsweetened milk is very expensive in Malaysia. Can I use regular fresh milk instead? Thank you.
Absolutely, that's what is meant by unsweetened milk!
Thank you for these! I blog about attempting to stay healthy and sane as a busy mom and will definitely send my readers to this page for the best overnight oat recipes.
What purpose does the yogurt serve? Can I omit it and just use a bit of extra almond milk or will it be too runny?
You can leave out the yogurt completely (I’d swap in 1/4 cup of milk for the yogurt), but it won’t be quite as dreamy creamy. But still delicious!
Wow, I've tried the tropical and the strawberry cheesecake.....yummmmmmmmmmmeeeeeeee
Why unsweetened milk? If I use 2% milk will that change the recipe?
Overnight oats!!!! I'm so glad I found this post! So far have tried the peanut butter and chocolate ones and today the carrot cake... Absolutely delicious and sooooo incredibly easy. I'm so excited to keep trying new variations.
Holy cow!!! I have been testing various overnight oats recipes and this is THE ONE.
I work a very physically demanding job and find that I need a big filling & nutritious breakfast in the morning to keep me going. Most overnight oats recipes are too small for me and very difficult to increase by a 1/3 - 1/4 portion. These recipes really fill up the whole pint jar! If I don’t finish, I’m always happy to have a few remaining spoonfuls for an easy snack.
And then there’s the texture!!! Honestly, if you served the chocolate peanut butter recipe to me at a restaurant as a decadent chocolate mousse dessert, I would believe it and love it. I prepped 2 jars using coconut milk (in the carton), raw honey, and raw cacao and ended up eating both of them in the same day. Literally could not wait for breakfast the next day to dig into jar #2. So unbelievably fluffy and delicious! I am in love!
Cassie, I am so grateful to you for sharing. Much love & many thanks.
Can I use steel-cut oats instead of rolled? Will they soften overnight?
Yes, they won't be quite as pudding-like, but a little chewy. Still delicious, though!
I'm a high school student with a double zero hour time block, which means that if I want to eat breakfast in the morning I have to wake up at 4:30 am, which is definitely not ideal. I needed something I could throw in the car and eat during class, and I'm so happy to have found these recipes! I made the pumpkin spice one tonight- super easy. I can't wait to try the other ones. Thank you for somewhat saving my sleep schedule!
Hi!
These recipes are so great! However, I’ve tried every one of these and I always have the same problem. My batches never come out sweet enough. I’ve tried both maple syrup and honey. I’ve tried adding more than the recommended amount of both maple syrup and/or honey and I can never taste ANY sweetness in my oats. I realize these recipes are not meant to be very sweet (which is PERFECT for me because I don’t like super sweet things) but I can’t taste any sweetness at all. I don’t know what keeps going wrong. I’ve followed the directions exactly. Any suggestions?
I made the base overnight oats with lactose-free milk and joghurt and honey. I added some frozen berries and was super happy with the results - they were delicious. I doubled the recipe because DH gets grumpy if I don't make fancy stuff for him too 😉
But then I tried the pumpkin spice, and I agree with other commenters that something is very off with the clove amount. It overpowered the whole thing and my oats even ended up gritty because of the spice (I used measuring spoons, I promise). I ended up having to make a second double batch without cloves to try and make it edible, and even then I had to add a lot of extra sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon to get this to a point where I could eat it. I'm bummed that I had to make so much because in the end I'm not even a big fan of the general taste.
I too tried the tropical oats this morning.....I used fresh pineapple and coconut milk and it leaves a horrible bitter taste in my mouth but it looks divine. It's not bad just the oats etc but as soon as I spoon some pineapple init's so hard to swallow.
For some reason, fresh pineapples tend to go "off" on me every now and again when I use them in recipes. Try using canned next time, and you might have better results. 🙂
Just a note for anyone wondering how these portion sizes work with kids. I have a three-year-old, five-year-old and a six-month-old. The three and five together can eat one of the recipe’s “servings” in one sitting. I have also made it for baby (without honey, vanilla or salt) , and it’s smoothe enough as is. For who may be interested, the single portion amounts will nearly exactly fill 4 baby bullet containers. Also, even with chocolate being an option, my older kids ask for apple cinnamon or raspberry ( just drop a few frozen ones in when I make the jar). Oh! And my husband eats his with kefir instead of yogurt, and my kids can’t tell the difference, so that seems to be an acceptable swap, as well. Good luck, and thanks for a great recipe!
I just made the chocolate peanut butter oatmeal. Found it way too much cocoa powder....sooo strong and sickening. I usually only use like a tsp in a whole hot chocolate but I trusted the recipe. Nice texture though. I halved the jar and mixed it through another pot of plain oatmeal and I'm still struggling to finish
Had the same experience with the chocolate/peanut butter. If you use 100% unsweetened cocoa powder there is no way you can finish eating that recipe. I only used 1 tablespoon and it was uneatable.
The recipes are great for inspiration though. Just have to mix and match to your own liking.
Can you substitute cottage cheese for the Greek yogurt?
I've never tried it, but I think it'd work decently well. It might be a little lumpy, but still delicious!
I bought quick 1-minute oats.... so you think they'll work the same?
You can, but they will be a little more mushy, and not quite as pudding-y. Still delicious, though!
Delicious. Thanks for sharing!