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Overnight Refrigerator Oats

Course: Breakfast, Snack
Author: Jennifer

Equipment

  • 8 or 12 oz jars - I used both wide mouth quart mason jars, which I found to be huge and 8 oz quilted jelly jars, which were just right. Recycled jars from other products worked too!

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup steel-cut oats. I bet oat groats would be good too! Most recipes call for rolled, but I don't even buy those, and steel-cut worked out just fine

MAPLE BROWN SUGAR OATS

  • 1 tbsp chia seeds, or ground flax (whole flax seeds would work, but I prefer ground)
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup - the real stuff
  • 1 tsp brown sugar or sugar substitute, but if you substitute, I'd add some molasses in, since that's the flavor you want from the brown sugar anyway
  • 1/2 cup almond milk or whatever dairy you use - unsweetened vanilla almond milk was delish!

PEACH OATS

  • 1 tbsp peach preserves
  • 1 - 2 tbsp diced peaches. I used frozen, and each jar got roughly 2 peach slices, diced
  • 1/2 cup almond milk or whatever dairy you use - unsweetened vanilla almond milk was delish!

ALL OTHER OATS

  • seriously, just throw some stuff in there. we've made all sorts, using everything from preserves to dried fruits to fresh fruits. flax seed, chia seed, protein powder, anything. really.

Instructions

  • Add everything to your jar in the order shown. Basically, oats, anything else that's dry, then wet, then milk. Cover and refrigerate overnight. I make these around 9 or 10 PM and the boys eat them around 6AM. Then the girl eats one around 7:45 if she eats at all. They keep for a few days without getting mushy. I've been told you can heat them in a pan of hot water. I suspect you can microwave them. We eat them cold.
  • Seriously, you can toss anything in there. I even threw a tiny scoop of probiotic powder in there since my kids refuse to take the chewable probiotics.
  • I'm thinking raisins in the next batch, and maybe some craisins for my oldest since he prefers them over raisins. Some cinnamon.
  • I like to cut out processed sugar, but I do let some slide through (ahem, brown sugar) and preserves certainly aren't low in processed or natural sugars either. It's a balancing act.