Overnight oats are a sort of comfort food for us. Creamy from the yogurt, lightly sweet from the honey, and wholesome from the oats - they’re decadent and nourishing all in one. They also happen to be completely make ahead - so all you have to do in the morning is grab and go. Do whatever you please with these - pick your fruits, spices, and yogurts to your own tastes. We certainly do.
Mom likes juice, chia seeds, and honey yogurt - my yogurt is always plain, and my sweetener often maple syrup. She likes hers runnier; I like mine spicier. But we both agree that we love them, and when either of us has had a long day, they’re the perfect way to show each other a little love.
Mom’s recipe:
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons orange juice or cranberry juice
2 tablespoons Greek Gods Honey Yogurt (which I interpret as one large soup spoon)
1 to 2 teaspoons chia seeds
1 to 2 tablespoons golden raisins or dried currants
Fruit
In the fall, I like to chop 1/2 apple fine and add that to the oats (the juice keeps it from browning). In the summer, I like to add several tablespoons of blueberries (or, sometimes, raspberries). In the winter, I usually just stick with dried fruit, but it occured to me while typing this for you that I could be using canned peaches or pears, and then add the juice from those to replace the apple or orange juice. The canned peaches in this version were scrumptious. Thank you, readers, for helping me to improve my winter overnight oats experience.
Amelia’s recipe:
1/3 cup oats
1/3 cup (scant) milk
1/2 tsp maple syrup or honey (maple syrup is easier to incorporate)
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
Large pinch nutmeg or cinnamon
Fruit
If I have poached quince, I always add their leftover poaching liquid to my oats. I pick the sweetener and spice based off of the fruit. This winter I’ve found dates to be especially delicious, too.
BOTH:
Put the oats in a mason jar and pour over the milk. Mix in the yogurt with a tall and skinny spoon, and then add the sweeteners/juice, followed by the fruit. Mix, cap it, and store it in the fridge overnight. Enjoy the next day or up to four days after. The longer you wait, the more liquid the oats absorb and the creamier it gets.
Flavor favorites: blueberry and nutmeg (summer), banana, vanilla, and cinnamon (whenever), date and pomegranate (winter), apple, cinnamon, and golden raisin (fall/winter), and “PB+J” (peanut butter with strawberries, late spring early summer).
