These Sugar Free Overnight Oats are a perfect sugar free make ahead breakfast for babies, kids, and the entire family! Simply stir the ingredients together and place in the fridge overnight and you have your breakfast ready in the morning.
You can make a plain batch and add toppings separately throughout the week for a nutritious and quick meal.
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Table of Contents
What are Overnight Oats?
Overnight Oats are an alternative no-cook method for preparing oatmeal. Old fashioned or quick oats are soaked with milk and yogurt overnight in the fridge for a creamy pudding that is both delicious and nutritious.
Reasons to Love Overnight Oats
- Quick to make and healthy. Oats are full of fiber, minerals and vitamins that are essential for small kids. They are also iron rich.
- Once you master the basic recipe you can use your creativity to add different flavor combinations and toppings.
- Great to practice eating with a spoon.
Ingredients
- Milk of choice: Use breast milk or formula for younger babies or full fat cow’s milk or a dairy free alternative.
- Oats: Old fashioned (Babies > 12m old) or Quick oats for a smoother texture (from 6+ months). You can grind up rolled oats in the blender or food processor.
- Yogurt: added for creaminess and protein and fats. Look for whole milk plain yogurt (regular or Greek style). You may choose to replace it with unsweetened apple sauce.
- Banana: Source of sweetness.
- Chia seeds: For a pudding like texture while adding essential nutrients such as iron and fat.
- Your favorite toppings: (peanut butter, grated carrots, raisings, mashed sweet potatoes, ground nuts/seeds).
Step by Step Instructions
- Mash the banana.
- In a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. Portion into smaller mini glass food jars if desired.
- Store in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 4 hours.
- Remove from fridge, stir, and top with your favorite add ins! If serving to babies, add the toppings before refrigerating to soften.
Tips for Success
- If serving to younger babies, make sure to use quick oats for a smother texture. Grind up rolled oats in a blender or food processor or use instant or quick oats for a smoother final texture.
- Toppings such as raisings and grated carrots should also be added BEFORE refrigerating to soften before serving.
- After stirring in a container, you can portion into smaller ones with different toppings.
Storage Instructions
I like storing overnight oats in smaller containers for babies and toddlers. I recommend these jars, they have the perfect portion size.
You can store overnight oats in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Serving Suggestions and Substitutions
For Babies: Overnight oats are a great way to introduce your baby to different textures. I suggest starting using quick oats in this recipe instead of rolled oats for a smoother and creamier texture. Also, if adding raisings or grated carrots make sure to add them BEFORE refrigerating to soften.
This recipe is great to practice eating with a spoon. This one is our favorite spoons for preloading. Simply add some overnight oats to it and hand to baby to self-feed. If your baby prefers to eat with their hands this is a great sensory food to let them have fun and enjoy it! This will make a mess but is such an important milestone for babies to develop a great relationship with food.
For Toddlers and Older Kids: You can start introducing them to a coarser texture by making overnight oats with old fashioned oats. There is no need to add the toppings to soften the night before. Simply make a batch of plain banana overnight oats and let them choose their preferred topping in the morning. You can serve cold or warm up in increments of 15 seconds in the microwave until it reaches the desired temperature.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, oats are a healthy and safe cereal to offer to babies showing signs of readiness (from 6+ months). You may start with instant/quick oats and slowly migrate to old fashioned oats. Make sure that you prepare recipes that use only fruits as a sweetener, like this banana overnight oat recipe. You can use formula or breastmilk for preparation and can replace the yogurt with unsweetened apple sauce if you desire.
Yes, you can use your milk of choice. If your baby is under 12 months, you may use breast milk or formula. For babies older than 12 months you may also use whole cow’s milk as an alternative.
Yes, make this recipe using instant quick oats the night before and store it in the fridge. You can serve it chilled or warm it up for 15 second increments in the microwave until reaching the desired temperature.
Old fashioned oats (rolled oats) can be served to babies closer to 12 months of age. For younger babies 6-12 months I always prefer to add instant / quick oats as they are less coarse.
Either way, these are delicious. If you prefer warm, simply microwave in increments of 15 seconds until reaches the desired temperature; or warm up using a saucepan over low/medium heat.
Ideally overnight, minimum of 4 hours!
🥣Recipe
Sugar Free Overnight Oats
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 banana ripe and mashed
- 2/3 cups quick oats or rolled oats (use quick oats for younger babies)
- 1/2 cup milk of choice
- 1/4 cup yogurt or apple sauce (unsweetened)
- 1 tsp chia seeds
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon optional
Instructions
- Mash the banana.
- In a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. Portion into smaller mini glass food jars if desired.
- Store in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 4 hours.
- Remove from fridge, stir, and top with your favorite add ins! If serving to babies, add the toppings before refrigerating to soften.
Notes
- If serving to younger babies, make sure to use quick oats for a smother texture. Grind up rolled oats in a blender or food processor or use instant or quick oats for a smoother final texture.
- Toppings such as raisings and grated carrots should also be added before refrigerating to soften before serving.
- After stirring in a container, you can portion into smaller ones with different toppings.
Nutrition
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