The Ultimate Guide To Overnight Oats: Base Formula and Recipe Inspiration

If you have oats in your pantry, you can prepare a make-ahead breakfast of overnight oats with almost anything! Find out how to make delicious overnight oats without a recipe every time with this guide for how to make overnight oats out of anything! Plus, get inspiration from a roundup of healthy and delicious overnight oats recipes.

It's no secret that I love overnight oats. Or oatmeal in general, for that matter. But I especially love the ease of overnight oats - how 5 minutes or less of prep time can leave me with a healthy, delicious breakfast the next morning that's ready to go when I am. And I also love how they're a blank canvas for any flavor you are craving, as well as for using up any spare ingredients you may have lying around.

I have lots of overnight oats recipes on the blog (see below!) but more often than not, I don't use a recipe for overnight oats. They're super forgiving, so I almost always toss some yogurt, milk, oats, and other odds and ends in an almost-empty nut butter jar or yogurt container and call it good. And it almost always works out deliciously.

So how do you make overnight oats that turn out great every time with seemingly nothing to eat in the house? Easy. Start with a rough base of liquid to oats ratio and add your favorite ingredients from there.

How To Make Overnight Oats Out Of (Almost) Anything

The formula: liquid/oat base + flavor + toppings + optional nutrition boosters

Overnight Oats Base Mixture

I typically use a ratio of 1 part liquid to 1 ½ parts oats for the base of my overnight oats. There is definitely wiggle room, though, and you can adjust based on how thick you like your oats and what type of oats you're using.

• For the oats, I like using old fashion rolled oats best, but I've also used quick oats, instant oats, and quick cooking steel cut oats with success. Use what you have!
• For liquid, I most often use a mixture of Greek yogurt and milk for the creaminess and added protein. Any liquid (or liquid-ish) substance works. Plain milk, non-dairy milks, plain or flavored yogurts. I love using kefir for ease and an extra probiotic boost, a splash of orange juice adds natural sweetness and vitamins, or get really creative with cold brew, chai tea, or anything else you can imagine. I've used hot cocoa, and even a golden milk latte for the liquid base before (it was amazing!). Really, anything works!
• To make the overnight oats base, simply add the liquid to a jar or other container with a lid, then add the oats. If you're using more than one liquid part (such as yogurt and milk), mix it together before adding the oats. So if I was making one serving, I'd add ¾ cup of liquid and ½ cup of oats to the jar.

Flavor Your Overnight Oats

Now that you have the nutritious overnight oats base, it's time for the fun part - the flavor!

Add delicious flavors to your overnight oats with spices, extracts, nut butters, powders and optional sweeteners. Mix liquids in with the liquid base, and dry ingredients in with the oats. For a single serving, here's what I recommend.

• Spices: up to ½ teaspoon each
  • Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, turmeric, or pumpkin spice, for example
• Extracts: ¼ to ½ teaspoon each
  • Vanilla, almond, lemon, or mint extracts are delicious
• Powders: ½ to 1 tbsp
  • Cocoa powder, matcha, or peanut powder
• Nut butter: 1-2 tablespoon (or just use the remainder of an almost-empty jar)
• Sweetener (optional): about 1 tsp
  • Honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, date paste, jam, etc., though I find that liquid sweeteners work best.

Toppings and Mix-Ins For Overnight Oats

Toppings are one of the best parts of overnight oats, and a great way to add more nutrition and interest with different tastes and textures. Add whatever toppings you like, such as fresh, dried or frozen fruit, nuts, seeds, and nut butters. I usually mix everything in when I'm making the jar, but you can also wait until you're ready to eat to add the toppings. Amounts really aren't specific at all with toppings, but here are some rough suggestions.

• Fresh or frozen fruit: ¼ to ½ cup
• Dried fruit: 2 tbsp
• Nuts: 2 tbsp
• Nut butter: 1 tbsp

Nutrition Boosters For Overnight Oats

Many people like to add little extras to boost the nutrition profile of overnight oats. Do I? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It just depends what I have on hand, how much time I have when I'm mixing up the oats, how lazy I'm feeling, and the other ingredients I'm using. For example, if I'm using almond milk, I might add a scoop of collagen to add some protein, but if I'm using Greek yogurt and dairy milk, I won't. Or I might add chia seeds for a little extra healthy fat, fiber and protein. Or I might not if I'm using walnuts or almond butter. Or sometimes I will add veggies for a little veggie boost (and more often just to use them up). Whatever floats your oats (see what I did there?)! Add powders with the liquid and mix well, or add seeds with the oats. Here are a couple of suggestions.

• Chia, flax, or hemp seeds: 1-2 teaspoon per serving
• Collagen or other protein powder (flavored or unflavored): 1 scoop per serving
• Veggies such as riced cauliflower, grated carrots, grated zucchini, or butternut squash puree: ¼ cup per serving

How To Make Overnight Oats

Now that you know what goes into overnight oats, you just have to make them!

1. Mix liquid ingredients in a jar or other container, including yogurt/milk/juice/etc for the base, any sweeteners, extracts, or nut butters, and any protein powders.
2. Add in dry ingredients: oats (of course!), seeds, nuts, fruit, and spices.
3. Stir well or close the lid and shake it all up!
4. Let the mixture sit in the refrigerator overnight or at least 5-6 hours.
5. Enjoy hot or cold in the morning with any additional toppings you'd like!

Can Overnight Oats Be Eaten Warm?

I love overnight oats both cold and warm. The beauty of enjoying them cold is that you can grab the jar straight from the fridge and head out the door. But if you want a hot breakfast in the morning that's still ready in less than 2 minutes, you can heat them up, too! To heat overnight oats, pour them into a microwave-safe bowl (if they aren't already in a glass jar) and heat, uncovered, for 1-2 minutes, stirring halfway through. You don't want to heat them too quickly or get them too hot, especially if you use real dairy milk and yogurt to avoid curdling.

There you have it! A simple formula for delicious, nutrient-dense overnight oats with anything you have on hand!

 The Formula for perfect overnight oats again:

1 ½ parts liquid + 1 part oats + flavors + toppings + optional nutrition boosters

Now you're free to make a quick, meal prep-friendly breakfast without being limited by what you have on hand! If you'd still like a little guidance for practice until your comfortable going freestyle, make sure to browse the recipes below for inspiration!

13 Easy, Delicious and Healthy Overnight Oats Recipes

1. Lemon Poppyseed Overnight Oats
2. Almond Peach Overnight Oats
3. Maple Tahini Fig Overnight Oats
4. Black Forest Overnight Oats
5. PB&J Overnight Oats
6. No Added Sugar Orange Creamsicle Overnight Oats
7. Pumpkin Spice Overnight Oats
8. Apple Pie Overnight Oats
9. Chocolate Covered Strawberry Overnight Oats
10. Buttermilk Overnight Oats
11. Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats
12. Healthy Carrot Cake Overnight Oats with Kefir
13. Thin Mint Overnight Oats

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