Vanilla Overnight Oats

These vanilla overnight oats are an easy and healthy breakfast idea that you can prep ahead of time to ensure you always have a delicious breakfast ready in the morning. This recipe is both vegan and dairy free using just 6 simple ingredients. Overnight oats will become your go-to breakfast for busy weekdays!

Overnight oats have been popular for a while now, with people (myself included) loving that you can simply prep the night before a delicious and healthy breakfast that tastes so good. In the morning all you need to do it top it with some fresh fruit and you’re set!

I originally published this recipe back in 2018 and since that time have gone through seasons of being totally obsessed with overnight oats. For weeks it’s all I’ll eat. Then I’ll revert back to avocado on toast only to come back to oats as I find myself craving something sweet.

Having these oats prepped means that I know I am going to start my day strong. It also makes me really excited as knowing there is a sweet and creamy brekkie waiting for me that I get to top with my favourite fruits (yes to all the blueberries) just makes me really excited for mornings!

If you’re wanting to level up your morning routine without it feeling like too much effort then meal prep a few days of these vanilla overnight oats and you’ll be ready to get into some good and nutritious habits. I know you’ll be just as addicted to them as I am!

If you’re looking for something a bit different, then also try my pumpkin pie overnight oats which are thick and creamy and perfectly sweet and spiced.

Key Ingredients

Overnight oats are so easy, inexpensive and wonderfully creamy, plus this combination is completely dairy free and vegan. This recipe uses just 6 ingredients for the base vanilla overnight oats but is super flexible based on your preference.

Note all ingredients and their quantities are laid out in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• Rolled oats – old fashioned rolled oats are key to ensuring these work properly. Do not use quick oats or steel cut oats as the texture will not be right.
• Dairy free milk – you can use any that you prefer. I usually use oat milk as that’s what I prefer using but you can use almond milk or soy milk instead.
• Coconut yoghurt – keeping things dairy free and vegan we use a coconut yoghut. You can use a vanilla flavoured one or a greek-style for the creamiest texture.
• Maple syrup – depending on how sweet you like things and whether you’re using a sweetened yoghurt or not you can adjust the amount of sweetener to taste.
• Vanilla – just a little bit of vanilla extract ensures a delicious vanilla flavour.
• Chia seeds – adds not only a heap of nutritional value to this breakfast, but also helps give it a pudding-like consistency. You can use white or black chia seeds, they work the same.

Step-By-Step Instructions

To make overnight oats you of course just need a bit of foresight and planning because as the name suggests – you need to make them at least the night before you plan to eat them.

You’ll also need some jars or small containers with a lid to keep the oats in.

You can choose to make just the next day’s breakfast as the recipe is for a single serve or you can increase the quantity so you can prep the week ahead all at once as these oats will keep in the fridge for 4 days.

If you’re batching, then I recommend mixing it all together in a large bowl and then dividing it between your jars otherwise for single serves, it’s really easy to just add everything directly to your jar and mix it in there to avoid any unnecessary dishes.

Mix everything together in the jar, and let sit for a couple of minutes before mixing again. This is similar to making a matcha chia pudding where we want to make sure the chia seeds are evenly mixed through.

Once everything is combined, simply put on the lid and pop your oats in the fridge overnight.

In the morning you can take off the lid and top the jar with fresh fruit, granola, nuts and a drizzle of extra maple syrup if you’re feeling sweet.

Honestly this breakfast could not be easier and is so filling and delicious – it’s almost treat-like for breakfast so puts me in a really good mood to start the day.

Plus thanks to the combination of the oats and chia seeds, I don’t get snacky and it keeps me full right through to lunch.

Recipe FAQs

More breakfast ideas:

Honey Nut Granola
Dairy-Free Blueberry Muffins
Strawberry Yoghurt Parfait with Pistachio Granola
Banana Pancakes (Vegan, GF)
Vegan Banana Walnut Muffins