Overnight Oats are a perfect breakfast recipe to make ahead. They pack protein, probiotics, vitamin C, fiber, and healthy fats—and all you need to do to make them is to stir the ingredients together and let it hang out in the fridge while you sleep!
Easy Overnight Oats
I love making a batch of overnight oats—which are simply raw oats softened in liquid (often milk or yogurt)—for similar nutrition to oatmeal but without the cooking. They are an easy make-ahead breakfasts to have on hand during the week.
And this method for how to make overnight oats with yogurt, applesauce, and seeds is a super nutritious and easy option for breakfast for the whole family…babies and toddlers on up.
There’s nothing too complicated about this recipe, but there’s a balanced mix of protein, fat, and produce to help your kids get the nutrients they need without needing to add other foods to their meal (unless you want to!).
It also has a smoother texture than many other similar recipes, making it a great choice for babies and toddlers still learning to like complicated textures.
TIP: You can make them ahead and pull them out on busy mornings—and easily double the batch so you can enjoy a bowl too!
Table of Contents
- Easy Overnight Oats
- Healthy Overnight Oats Recipe with Yogurt
- Ingredients You Need
- Ingredient Substitutions
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- Tell me more about the texture of these overnight oats!
- How should I serve these overnight oats?
- How to Serve in a Reusable Pouch
- Favorite Storage Containers
- Frequently Asked Questions
- How to Store
- Best Tips for Success
- Easy Overnight Oats with Applesauce Recipe
Healthy Overnight Oats Recipe with Yogurt
Yogurt is a nutritious ingredient in overnight oats for babies and toddlers since it has protein, probiotics, and fat they need for their developing brains. To ensure you pick one the best yogurt for kids, look for whole milk plain yogurt.
I still like plain versions since they have lower amounts of added sugars, if any—and the applesauce in this recipe adds plenty of sweetness!
TIP: You can also use a favorite nondairy yogurt as needed for kids with a dairy intolerance.
Ingredients You Need
For this method on how to make overnight oats, you need to have the following ingredients on hand.
- Plain yogurt: You can use regular or Greek style. I prefer whole milk yogurt for kids because it contains fat they need for brain development. (And fat tastes good!)
- Crockpot Applesauce
- Hemp seeds (or chia or flaxseeds): These blend right in and add healthy fats and protein.
- Quick oats or rolled oats: I prefer the texture of quick oats or to grind up rolled oats a little in the blender or food processor. This makes the end result smoother.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Dairy-free: Use a favorite nondairy milk.
- Sub quinoa flakes for oats as needed.
- You can use chia seeds in place of the hemp seeds if that’s what you have. The final mixture may be a little thicker since chia seeds absorb liquid a little more.
- Trade in Pear Sauce or any other puree you like or have for the applesauce to vary the flavor.
- Add a little cinnamon or maple syrup to taste as you like.
Step-by-Step Instructions
This recipe so super simple with this easy stir together method. Here’s a look at the process. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full how-to.
- Gather your ingredients.
- Grind the oats into a finer texture. (You can also use instant or quick oats to save a step.)
- Stir the ingredients together.
- Portion into small airtight containers and let sit overnight in the fridge to soften. Serve for toddler breakfast!
TIP: Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full information.
Tell me more about the texture of these overnight oats!
The big difference between this overnight oats recipe and others is that I grind the oats first, or use instant or quick oats, so that the texture is smoother.
When you stir regular rolled oats into overnight oats, they soften, but they are still fairly chewy due to their size—so this method of using oats with a finer texture is often more accepted by toddlers.
This recipe also uses applesauce for natural sweetness and nutrients, so tastes really great.
TIP: This is also a great food transition food for babies and toddlers who are learning to like textures beyond homemade baby food purees.
How should I serve these overnight oats?
If your toddler is good (or learning!) to use a spoon, go ahead and let her self-feed that way. You can do preloaded spoons for babies or feed them depending on how you prefer to handle that stage. It’s a fairly thick mixture so usually it’s easy for littles to feed themselves, even if it’s a little messy.
TIP: They are meant to be served cold out of the fridge.
How to Serve in a Reusable Pouch
Since the oats are a fine texture, we love serving these overnight oats in a reusable pouch like the one from Squeasy Gear that’s virtually impossible to spill!
Favorite Storage Containers
We love the 4 ounce and 8 ounce storage containers from Wee Sprout, which are the ones with the colorful lids you see throughout this post.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use a flavored applesauce if you prefer or other pureed fruit, such as any other fruit or baby food purees. I’ve used peach puree with great success!
I call for hemp seeds, which are a wonderful source of healthy fats, fiber, and protein, and they don’t cause liquids to gel the same way that some other seeds can. Since the amount of seeds added here is small, you can use ground flaxseeds, or chia seeds if you have those on hand and the results will be similar.
Not much! I usually buy rolled oats for oatmeal, so it’s easy for me to grind up a cup or two at a time to keep on hand for overnight oats (and for other recipes like these Peanut Butter Balls with Oatmeal).
But if you want to skip that step or you have instant or quick oats on hand, use them. They’re basically the same thing!
If you mix up this recipe for Easy Overnight Oats with Applesauce in the evening and store it overnight, it will be perfect in the morning. I often send this easy overnight oats recipe for my toddler’s lunch, topped with homemade granola or plain, so 4 hours is a good amount of time for it to sit too.
Once stored in airtight containers or jars, they can stay in the fridge for at least 3 days.
How to Store
Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in an airtight container. Stir before serving cold.
Best Tips for Success
- Use Crock pot applesauce to avoid added sugars as desired.
- Grind up rolled oats in the blender or food processor, or use instant or quick oats for a smoother final texture.
- Make this recipe the night before you plan to serve it and store it in the fridge.
- Serve these overnight oats chilled.
- Swap in any other fruit or baby puree for the applesauce if desired.
- Know that you can use chia seeds in place of the hemp seeds, but the consistency will be thicker.
Related Recipes
I’d love to hear what your family thinks of this recipe, so please comment below to share!
Easy Overnight Oats with Applesauce
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce (plain or cinnamon flavored)
- ½ cup plain whole milk yogurt
- ¼ cup rolled oats, ground finely in a food processor (or quick or instant oats)
- 2 teaspoons hemp seeds, chia seeds, or ground flaxseeds
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
Instructions
- Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.
- Divide among storage containers and seal. Store in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours or overnight.
- Serve cold.
Notes
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Use unsweetened applesauce tor another fruit puree.
- Grind up rolled oats in the blender or food processor, or use instant or quick oats.
- Make this recipe the night before you plan to serve it and store it in the fridge.
- Serve these overnight oats chilled.
- Swap in any other fruit or baby puree for the applesauce if desired.
- Know that you can use chia seeds or flaxseed in place of the hemp seeds, but the consistency will be thicker.
Nutrition
This post was first published April 2018.
Hello,
Can baby oatmeal be used in place of oats?
Yes, though it sometimes has a different, strong flavor, so just a warning that it might taste different. (But for a baby or toddler who has been used to eating baby oatmeal, this is likely fine. For an adult, it may not be the best choice!)
If I don’t have yogurt, can I replace with oat milk? Same amount of milk?
Hi Amy, I made this for my 10 month old but spoon feeding is a challenge now, she prefers to feed herself with finger foods. Could I turn this mixture into a waffle so it doesn’t go to waste?
Hi- you can try loading the spoon and handing it to her to feed herself or put it into a reusable pouch. Both should work! It won’t work as a waffle due to the higher content of yogurt.
Thank you!
This recipe is delicious! I’m wondering if there’s a reason to store this in separate containers instead of one.
You can do it in one large container if you prefer!
Would nonfat yogurt work for this recipe? My 18 month old cannot tolerate fat very well.
Sure
Hi, this may seem like an odd question hahaha
So I don’t have yogurt right now, could i mix some ricotta with milk and do overnight oats? Would it work similar to yogurt?
Thanks, i truly love your recipes
Hi! Is it 1/4 cup of rolled oats that you then grind? (Not 1/4 of already ground up oats?). Have been meaning to do overnight oats for my one year old for ages, so am excited to try your recipe 🙂 Thanks!
Hi- the amounts are very similar so I’ve done it both ways and it turns out basically the same!
Is there any reason these shouldn’t be warmed in the morning?
You usually don’t warm up yogurt, so we eat this cold.
Thank you for a simple guide. This should be the official guide everyone gets on their beginning of chef journey. But, honestly, I know this stuff is often a no brainier for people who cook everyday. But I am learning more about cooking each day. Awesome post. I will make them tonight.
Could you just cook the oats first? If you have regular oats and no food processor?
You an add rolled oats to this recipe and put it in the fridge the same way. The point of overnight oats is that you don’t have to bother to cook them and they soften in the mixture. You could make regular oatmeal, let it cool, and stir in a little of each of the ingredients here.
Can you store in a large glass Tupperware and portion as needed? Or should they it be portioned in individual containers?
A large container is totally fine!
I made this the other night so my toddler could try it for breakfast. When she took her first bite she said “cold oatmeal, yummy!” I made another batch for both of us to share. We LOVE it! It has just the right amount of sweetness from the applesauce, and I love the boost of protein and consistency from the yogurt. I also added 2 tsp of flax and it didn’t alter the taste at all. This will be going in our lunch box rotation for sure! Thanks, Amy, for another wonderful recipe!!