Oatmeal-Recipe-Update-8-Ways-to-Master-Overnight-Oats-MainPhoto

Oatmeal-Recipe-Update-8-Ways-to-Master-Overnight-Oats-MainPhoto
Why do I need another oatmeal recipe, you are wondering. These days everyone is searching for easy ways to maintain a healthy diet, without sacrificing the flavors they love. And if you want a nutrition routine that you will stick with, it has to satisfy you, fill you up and make you happy, and that starts with breakfast. Yup, your mother was right, breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. It sets the tone for all of your eating that follows, it helps keep you energized throughout your day, it defends against deprivation and it can help ease you into your day. If you weren’t sure before, now you know; a balanced and satisfying breakfast is a key ingredient in a healthy lifestyle.

But what should you eat? Allow us to introduce you to the latest breakfast trend taking the healthy eating world by storm: overnight oats. They are exactly what the name implies…raw oats that you allow to soak overnight in a liquid base made of milk, fruit, or yogurt. The oats expand in the liquid base overnight, taking on the texture of traditional oatmeal, but way healthier. As Livestrong reports, raw oats are packed with health benefits and nutrients. “A 1/2-cup serving of uncooked oats provides 74 percent of the DV for manganese and at least 10 percent of the DV for thiamine, iron, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus and selenium. Thiamine helps turn the food you eat into energy, and iron helps form red blood cells and carry oxygen throughout your body.” In other words, they are one of the absolute healthiest breakfast dishes you could enjoy—and they taste great too! Here are 8 tasty oatmeal recipe ideas to help you master overnight oats.

1. Carrot Cake Overnight Protein Oatmeal
Did someone say dessert for breakfast? We’re listening! If you love carrot cake you will love this take on overnight oats. The addition of grated carrots, cinnamon, apple pie spice, and Greek yogurt make the oats taste creamy, rich, and like a slice of carrot cake heaven.

Read Related: New Dawn: 10 Ideas to Make Your Everyday Oatmeal Recipe Fancy

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2. Overnight Oats with Banana and Chia
This simple recipe combines raw oats with mashed banana and chia seeds. The trick to getting the perfect dish is to make sure your proportions are right so that your oats aren’t too thick or too runny. Ideally you want a mixture that is a pudding-like consistency, and then you can adjust to taste and add toppings as needed. Start with a 1:1:1 ratio—1 part oats, 1 part milk, 1 part yogurt.

3. Soaked Oats with Coconut Yogurt
Sure, you could soak your oats in milk, almond milk, Greek yogurt or some combination of all of the above. But coconut yogurt takes your overnight oats to another level of healthy. The idea is that soaking your oats in yogurt makes the oats more digestible because the probiotics in the yogurt help break down the carbs in the oats, making them easier to digest. Coconut yogurt is great because it is dairy-free, higher in fiber, naturally sweet and it is packed with beneficial medium-chain-triglyceride fats.

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4. Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
This dish is amazing because—like all overnight oats concoctions—you can make it the night before (thus making less work for you in the morning) and because it is insanely creamy, rich, filling and naturally sweet. Thanks to the addition of peanut butter (or almond butter if you prefer) and maple syrup, your oats will be perfectly sweet without any added sugar.

5. Lemon, Thyme and Honey Overnight Oats
You might not think that thyme would go with oatmeal, but you’d be wrong. This recipe combines your raw oats with yogurt, milk, tart lemon juice and zest, plus vanilla, fresh thyme, and honey, resulting in a dish that’s slightly sweet, refreshing, and bursting with flavor.

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6. Chocolate Protein Overnight Oats
Any recipe that allows us to eat chocolate for breakfast is OK in our book. This dish is loaded with protein thanks to the Greek yogurt, and the cocoa powder adds just the right amount of chocolate flavor without the guilt. This is one of our favorite overnight oatmeal recipes out there.

7. Blueberry Vegan Overnight Oats in a Cantaloupe Bowl
Forget a Mason jar or bowl, these fancy oats are served in a scooped out cantaloupe bowl, making it twice as nice for breakfast. The oats themselves are mixed with fresh blueberries, almond milk, chia seeds and maple syrup, then left to sit overnight. The next morning when you’re ready to eat add in some of the cut up cantaloupe, pour the entire mixture into your cantaloupe bowl and breakfast is served.

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8. Peanut Butter & Jelly Overnight Oats
What kid doesn’t love a good old-fashioned PB&J sandwich? And while your inner kid might sometimes crave creamy peanut butter mixed with sweet fruity jelly, it’s not always the best option if you want to manage your weight or calorie intake. This version of healthy overnight oats mixed with peanut butter and strawberry puree is just what you need.