Breakfast is the easiest meal of the day to throw by the wayside when life gets busy. That’s why I love to meal prep these PB&J overnight oats at the beginning of the week. I snag one on my way out the door in the morning and they keep me fueled up for hours. Now you have no excuses for skipping breakfast!

MEAL PREPPING OVERNIGHT OATS

Overnight oats are made for meal prep! Here are a few of the reasons why I’m absolutely in love with this recipe:

• The recipe takes five minutes to pull together
• It’s gluten-free if you make sure to use GF oats
• Oats are high in fiber and lowers your blood sugar levels
• Oats help you feel full so you’re less likely to snack
• By using almond butter and homemade chia jam you can keep the sugar levels to a minimum

Personally, I prefer mason jars because the lids screw on tightly, they can stack in the fridge, and are more eco-friendly than plastic containers. I like to layer the oats, almond butter, and chia jam in the jars so that I can choose if I want a bite that’s full of almond butter, or jam, or all of the above!

ingredients and substititions

I probably sound like a broken record at this point, but I try extremely hard to make sure that all my recipes are super customizable to your diet and tastebuds. This pb&j overnight oats recipe is no different! Here’s what you’ll need and how you can switch things up:

• Oats-Obviously! They are the main ingredient! Oats are naturally gluten free but sometimes get trace amounts of gluten during processing so if you’re sensitive to that, make sure you look for GF oats. You’ll want standard rolled oats and not instant or steel cut.
• Quinoa-I know it sounds super weird but the quinoa helps keep the overall mixture light and fluffy! You can of course use solely oats, but the texture will be a little heavier.
• Chia Seeds-These are also optional but I suggest you give them a try because chia seeds are full of fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. If you don’t have them, feel free to just leave them out all together.
• Maple Syrup-I love the flavor that maple adds to the mix but honey or agave would also work just fine.
• Oat Milk-Oat milk just enhances the overall oat flavor in this recipe. Almond, hemp, soy and dairy milk would also swap out beautifully.
• Almond Butter-I like to use unsalted, unsweetened almond butter to keep the sugar low but you can use any nut butter you prefer and it will still be delicious!
• Raspberry Jam-Making your own chia jam lets you reap the extra health benefits of the chia seeds while also keeping the sugar levels much lower than keeping store-bought jam. But if all you have is store-bought, then go for it!

Why add quinoa to your overnight oats?

It may seem strange to add quinoa to an overnight oats recipe, but don’t knock it til you try it! By cutting through the oats with quinoa, you get a light and fluffy texture with just the tiniest bit of crunch thanks to the chia seeds. You can use solely oats, but then you won’t get the major protein boost that quinoa provides.

Making a huge quantity of a grain like quinoa at the start of the week is one of my pillars to batch cooking! If you get into the habit of doing that, then you’ll have quinoa on hand to add to your overnight oat recipes too! Using my 1 minute instant pot quinoa recipe couldn’t be easier.

making your own chia seed jam

Sure you *could* just use store-bought jam in a pinch, but if you want to go the extra mile you should really give this chia seed jam a try! Chia seeds are great because they are:

• a true complete source of protein! (often found only in animal protein)
• packed with omega 3 fatty acids
• one tablespoon contains 5 grams of fiber
• can be used as an egg substitute for vegans

You don’t even need fresh fruit to make a your own chia seed jam! Since it’s almost November now, I rely heavily on frozen fruit. I defrosted two cups of frozen raspberries and then mashed them up with a fork. Then, I added the chia seeds and let it sit for about 5 minutes. The chia seeds will give the same effect as pectin and help the “jam” set up and thicken.

In just about 5 minutes, you have homemade jam! I didn’t add any additional sugar to this jam since I was already sweetening up the oat mixture with maple syrup, and I didn’t want the recipe to be overly sweet.

other overnight oat recipes worth trying

The beauty of overnight oats is that once you have your base recipe, you can sub out for a wide variety of different flavor combinations. Here are some that I think you should try!

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Oats from Fit Foodie Finds
• Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Overnight Oats from Simply Quinoa
• Mocha Overnight Oats from Bites of Wellness
• Banana Bread Overnight Oats from Fit Mitten Kitchen