Banana Overnight Oats are a classic make-ahead breakfast that really satisfies. Once you have this “base” recipe down, get creative with the flavor combinations to personalize it based on your mood.

It’s back-to-school season aka a time for make-ahead and meal prep recipes to really shine! No, I’m not personally going back to school but it still seems like everything starts to pick back up around this time. I know a lot of you probably have kids and things are about to get way busier. What better time to intro my all-time favorite overnight oats recipe?

What are Overnight Oats?

For those of you who aren’t familiar, overnight oats are typically made by soaking old-fashioned rolled oats (preferably the thick-cut variety) in some sort of liquid overnight, then adding flavorings and your favorite toppings the next morning before eating.

The benefit: breakfast is essentially ready when you wake up, and is also portable if you’re someone who likes to eat at your desk. It also happens to be delicious when made properly (key words = when made properly). It isn’t easy to mess these up, but it can happen. More on that below!

Heres’ what you’ll need for this recipe:

Old-fashioned rolled oats
Milk of choice (in this recipe I’m using oat milk but any will work!)
Overripe banana – for subtle sweetness
Chia seeds – to help thicken up the oats and make them “spoonable”
Cinnamon – because it makes everything better, am I right?
Kosher sea salt – to bring out the flavor

Why You Should Add Bananas to Your Overnight Oats

This classic recipe involves adding mashed bananas to the overnight oats for a subtle sweetness but you can certainly omit them if you aren’t a fan. In this case I would recommend adding a bit more sweetener like brown sugar or maple syrup (especially if your milk is unsweetened too).

Bananas also prevent these from turning into paste, which can happen when there isn’t enough moisture to counteract the oats. The oats and chia seeds will soak up more liquid than you think, so the mashed banana helps with that.

How-to Meal Prep Overnight Oats

As I mentioned earlier, these are popular because it’s simple to scale the recipe and make multiple servings in almost the same amount of time. So whether you have a household of two or six, you can make enough for everyone as long as you have some storage containers.

When I make overnight oats, it’s typically in these wide-mouth jars because the lids screw on tight and they are easy to store in the fridge. Once finished, you can toss in the dishwasher for easy cleaning. Note: I do recommend at least rinsing right after eating because once those oats harden, they get pretty tough to clean.

Once ingredients are out and ready to go, follow these simple steps:

Divide the ingredients evenly among all of your jars/containers.
Give each a good stir to incorporate the chia seeds. They tend to pool at the bottom if you don’t mix, and then the consistency might be off.
Cover and refrigerate for at least several hours, up to two days.
Add toppings when ready to eat!

Flavor Combinations

Now that you have the base recipe down, here are three ideas for customizing your basic banana overnight oats to take them over the top.

Carrot Cake

2 Tbsp finely shredded carrot
1 Tbsp raisins
1 Tbsp pecans, chopped
Drizzle maple syrup

Stir all ingredients into banana overnight oats in the morning before eating.

blueberries peanuts and peanut butter on a plate

Blueberry Peanut Butter (high in protein!)

1/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 Tbsp roasted unsalted peanuts
1 Tbsp peanut butter

If using frozen blueberries, add them to your oats prior to refrigerating. Note that this will create extra liquid so adjust your milk accordingly. If using fresh blueberries, add them in the morning before eating along with peanuts and peanut butter.

instant espresso powder and chocolate on a plate

Mocha Latte

1 tsp instant espresso powder (affiliate)
1 tsp cacoa powder (unsweetened)
1 Tbsp dark chocolate chips
Splash of half & half

Stir in espresso powder and cocoa powder before refrigerating. Top with dark chocolate and drizzle of cream in the morning before eating.

And that’s it!

Whenever I get back from vacation and want to stock the house with great-tasting healthy food and meal prep for the week, overnight oats are always something I add to the list. What better way to start your day than with a healthy and satisfying breakfast that doesn’t require any brain power. The only question you have to answer now is… which flavor variation will you try first?