THE BENEFITS OF OVERNIGHT OATS

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Unlike oatmeal, which is cooked in boiling water on the stove or zapped in the microwave, overnight oats are not cooked at all. They're actually just rolled oats that are left to soak in liquid overnight in the fridge.

Perfect for meal prep, you can also substitute oats for quinoa!

Because you'll be using rolled oats, which are already pre-cooked, allowing the oats to soak in a liquid overnight is enough to soften the grain to the same texture as would cooking.

There are countless health benefits of overnight oatmeal.

A cup will help you feel full and satisfied. People who eat oatmeal for breakfast feel full for longer and consume fewer calories at lunch than when they consume regular cereal.

Overnight oats are good for your gut health. Uncooked, rolled oats that you use in overnight oats contain 8.5 grams of resistant starch. 

Cooked oatmeal, on the other hand, only contains 0.3 grams of resistant starch. Resistant starch is a type of prebiotic fiber that your body doesn't digest. Instead, it passes through your digestive system untouched until it reaches your gut, where it is fermented by your gut bacteria and helps to promote a healthy gut environment.

Oats are high in fiber. A half a cup of rolled oats (the standard serving size for overnight oats) contains 4 grams of fiber. That's equivalent to 14 percent of how much fiber you should eat per day. Fiber benefits include keeping your digestive system regular, keeping you full, and protecting your heart.

Oatmeal is good for heart health. A specific oat fiber called beta-glucan has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels by 5 to 10 percent.

Although overnight oatmeal has health benefits, how healthy your overnight oats can be depends on how you make them. Make sure you're not adding unhealthy ingredients to them, like white sugar, and flavored syrups.

A well-balanced breakfast should contain clean carbs, fat, protein, and fiber.

Add-ins

•healthy fats (nuts or nut butter)
•protein (protein powder, dairy milk, yogurt, nuts)
•fibre (seeds, whole fruit)

Making overnight oatmeal is easy and can be broken down in a few, simple steps.

Pick your flavor combination. Get creative!

You can throw in some seeds, add-ins like protein powder or Greek yogurt, savoury flavourings, fruit, and other ingredients like cinnamon or coffee.

While you're sleeping, the flavors fuse together, so all you have to do is eat it in the morning. No cooking required.

*NOTE: You can also use instant oats instead of rolled oats. This swap allows your overnight oats to be ready quicker because instant oats are partially cooked even more than rolled oats.

Overnight oats should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container immediately after you mix.

Oats are not pasteurized, meaning that there could be microbial pathogens present in the oats. Typically, you can keep oats in dry storage because the low moisture content of the oats prevents the pathogens from growing at room temperature.

However, when you add milk, water, or nut milks, the oats can allow for these pathogens to increase in numbers if stored at room temperature,which may lead to foodborne illness. Storing the oats in the refrigerator will prevent or at least slow down the growth of pathogens if they were present in the oats.

Here is one quick and easy overnight oats recipe.

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HONEY NUT OATS

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INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup rolled cut oats
1/2 cup milk or milk substitute (I like to make these with almond milk)
1 tablespoon peanut butter or nut butter 
1 teaspoon maple syrup or honey 
1 teaspoon chia seeds, optional
Mason jar with lid

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METHOD

Add in the dry ingredients—oats and chia seeds (if desired)—to the Mason jar first.

Pour in the milk or milk substitute then add in the nut butter and maple syrup or sweetener of choice.

Mix the ingredients together until the nut butter has been evenly added to the oat mixture. 

Make sure all of the oats are submerged in the milk.

Seal the lid, and place the oats in the refrigerator.

The next morning, sprinkle in desired fruit toppers.