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These cocoa and banana overnight oats are perfect for adding some fruit and protein into your morning routine without the extra hassle.
Want a great way to have a quick, grab-and-go breakfast?
Overnight oats is the answer!
These cocoa and banana overnight oats are the perfect option when you’re looking for delicious food while still being easy and simple.
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The ingredients are easy to find and to put together, and you can even add extra mix-ins if you prefer like additional fruit or even chocolate chips.
Whatever you decide, this simple breakfast is a great one to teach your kids so they can make it independently, or you can make them in batches so the whole family has their own portions to eat on the way out the door in the morning.
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What are overnight oats?
If you’ve only ever heard of regular oats, heated up on the stove or in the microwave, you might be confused at what the deal is with overnight oats.
For overnight oats, there is no heat source required! All you need is a fridge and some patience.
Every overnights oats recipe starts with a blend of liquids (for this recipe, water and yogurt) and then the oats soak up the liquids overnight. This gets them to the point where they are creamy and edible about 8 hours later.
Lots of people love overnight oats all year round, but we’re particular fans during the summer where you don’t want a hot breakfast but instead something fulfilling and fresh-tasting.
Cocoa & Banana Overnight Oats Ingredients
For this particular recipe, you’ll want the following ingredients:
- rolled oats or steel-cut oats – these are the main attraction! I prefer this brand.
- cocoa powder – whichever kind you prefer, though preferably sweetened
- greek yogurt – I use full-fat, but you can use your favorite brand or type (this brand is my favorite)
- water – to help the oats become edible and provide liquid to the mixture
- bananas– another important mix-in!
How to Make Banana & Cocoa Overnight Oats
It is incredibly easy to put together the ingredients for these overnight oats and takes about 5 minutes (the real time comes from letting them sit in the fridge).
First, combine the water and greek yogurt in a bowl and mix together.
Add in the oats, the cocoa powder, and chopped up bananas and mix.
Put this into a mug with saran wrap over it or just put saran wrap over the bowl, and put it in the fridge for about 8 hours (basially overnight).
In the morning, enjoy as is or add more chopped banana fresh on top.
Storing Overnight Oats
I’ll let you in on a secret, and that’s that I take pictures of my overnight oats in mason jars like these to look good, but really I just store and eat them out of a mug (like this sloth mug).
Put a piece of plastic wrap over the mug, stick it in the fridge, and then in the morning you can just pull it out, grab a spoon, and eat out of the mug while you’re walking around the house looking for a shirt without a stain on it.
You can also store it in a mason jar if you really want to be fancy, or a bowl works just fine.
I eat my overnight oats within 48 hours of first refrigeration, otherwise they can go off.
Can You Eat Overnight Oats Warm?
Sure, you can eat overnight oats warm, but it’s not on my “must recommend” list.
I find that they taste much better cold, and if you’d prefer to have warm oats, then use a warm/regular oatmeal recipe rather than making overnight oats and heating them up.
Can I Make Substitutions?
Yes, here are a few suggestions:
Make it dairy-free by swapping out the Greek yogurt for more water.
Replace the water with milk if you want a tangier taste.
Replace the Greek yogurt with milk if you prefer a thinner texture that’s less creamy.
Just remember that you should aim to keep at least a 1:1 ratio of oats to liquid/yogurt.
In my recipe, I have 1/2 cup oats to 3/4 cup liquid/yogurt, which gives us that extra creaminess, but if we tried to do 1/2 cup oats to 1/4 cup liquid, you would find that you might not have enough liquid to soak into the oats to make them edible.
Best Ever Cocoa & Banana Overnight Oats
These cocoa and banana overnight oats are comforting and sweet, filled with nutrients and easy to take with you on the go.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup steel cut oats or rolled oats
- 1 banana, chopped
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, unsweetened
Instructions
1. Add the greek yogurt and water to a bowl and mix.
2. Add the oats, banana and cocoa powder and combine.
3. Put the bowl in the fridge with saran wrap over it (or store in an airtight container).
4. Leave for 8+ hours, preferably overnight.
5. Enjoy!
Notes
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Do You Have Other Overnight Oats Recipes?
Yes! I’ve got plenty more overnight oats recipes if you want to try something else!
