I love overnight oats. I eat them almost everyday. Mine have come a long way, from a pool of mush made in a half-empty yogurt container to this.
Now I will share with you my tips on how to make a bowl of overnight oats look sexy for the Insta—including switching up regular oats for ones that are tastier, full of superfoods with no added sugar and the best toppings along with how to assemble it all.
The first step is definitely making the oats. You can simply soak plain rolled oats in your liquid of choice, but my favorite overnight oats are made from a blend of whole grains such as oats and quinoa, other super foods like chia seeds, hemp seeds and flax seeds, and dried fruits.
My favorite is the Right Foods super food oatmeal. They come in a number of different flavors, and the sugar is in a separate sachet so you can personalize the level of sweetness or use your own sweetener. If you buy the one in a paper cup, you can soak the contents in the cup and simply add toppings in the morning and take it to-go.
To make your overnight oats bowl really shine you have to add toppings and that's the time to get really creative. Apart from using fruit, granola is great for adding crunch to your bowl. I've been obsessed with Michele's ginger hemp granola. It recently won the 2016 Sofi Award from the Specialty Food Association in the category of Best Breads, Muffins, Granola or Cereal, which is a pretty big deal in the food industry.
Want your oats to be super creamy? Add a dollop of your favorite yogurt. If you're vegan, coconut yogurt is a great option.
Craving something tropical? Bare makes coconut chips that come in a range of flavors and serve as great toppings for overnight oats, chia pudding and smoothies. My new favorites are their coffee bean coconut chips, perfect for getting some caffeine before your morning lecture.
Another must-have topping for me is a nutrition bar. Depending on the calories, I usually use 1/3 to 2/3 of a chopped up bar. Many nutrition bars have added protein and super foods. The extra protein really makes a difference in the overnight oats, as it keeps me full and energized till lunch time.
My absolute favorite nutrition bar is Perfect Bar. It comes in almond, peanut or cashew based, and has added plant protein and lots of super foods powders. It tastes like freshly ground nut butter in a bar form, and has no preservatives added. So fresh that it needs to be stored in the fridge as opposed to at room temperature.
Once you've chosen your toppings, the last step is all about assembly. To make your bowl really Insta-worthy, you need to get artistic. For example, slice your banana uniformly and spread the pieces evenly around the edge of the bowl; cut your kiwi fruit into a flower; selecting a few contrasting colors and so on.
Finally, to add icing on the cake, drop in a spoonful of nut butter. Not only is it drool-worthy, but when you dig in and mix up a spoonful with fruit and the oats you will be very, very happy.
I also tried adding a spoonful of kaya instead of nut butter, and it was fantastic. Kaya is a coconut jam, popular in Southeast Asian countries, made from coconut milk, sugar and egg. You can find it in most Asian grocery stores.
Now it's time to get cooking. Have fun with making your version of the overnight oats bowl and don't forget to snap and 'gram.