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Can you imagine eating Bananas Foster for breakfast and calling it healthy? With this banana overnight oats recipe, you’ll be ready to eat a delicious and filling meal first thing in the morning!
Bananas Foster Overnight Oats
One of my favorite restaurants in New Orleans, Brennans, makes the most amazing bananas foster dessert. Ordering it, is an experience on its own. The waiter brings a cart next to the table and combines the bananas, brown sugar, butter, liquor, cinnamon, and rum right on the skillet. Then, cooks it and flambés the dessert prior to serving it over vanilla ice-cream.
It sounds amazing, right? I won’t even tell you how delicious it tastes. Let’s just say… that if you ever come to New Orleans, Brennans is definitely a place you want to experience.
These oats are clearly super easy to make but still have all the “wow” factor in the taste department. Check out this quick video to see how easy they are to make.
Banana Overnight Oats Ingredients
It doesn’t take much to make a batch of delicious oats for breakfast; here is what you’ll need:
- Coconut oil: to sauté the bananas. Butter is also welcome!
- Bananas: with deep yellow color and a few specks.
- Vanilla: really revs up the banana foster flavor.
- Cinnamon: will make your kitchen smells A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
- Maple syrup: helps the bananas caramelize.
- Old-fashioned oats: the optimal choice this recipe.
- Ground flax: a great source of healthy fats and thickens the mixture.
- Milk: use regular or your favorite non-dairy option.
The recipe works best with steel-cut oats and with old-fashioned oats. Using quick or instant oats will yield a cup of delicious runny mush. The measurements are a little bit different if you want to make Banana Overnight Oatmeal with Steel Cut Oats.
How exactly did I decide to make a healthier version for breakfast? Well, my husband loves oatmeal. He used to buy oatmeal packets with the different flavors, bring fruit with him and mix it all up at work with milk. Feeling bad about the high content of sugar and fake flavors, I began pre-mixing his oatmeal in single-serve jars.
After a while, I had to get creative making overnight oats… so I began adding fruits, cream, maple syrup… and recreating some of our favorite desserts right in the jar. The entire process is so easy and comes together rather quickly; so this is one breakfast staple you’ll often find in my fridge.
Making the Banana Topping for Overnight Oats
The caramelized bananas are what take these oats to the next level, and it’s so easy to make.
- Heat the coconut oil in a small saucepan. Add the bananas, vanilla, and cinnamon.
- Saute for 2 to 3 minutes or until the bananas become golden brown and begin to soften.
- Drizzle on the maple syrup, cook for an additional minute, and remove from heat.
Easy, right? By now, your kitchen should smell A-M-A-Z-I-N-G, and you are ready to make these overnight oats.
How to Make Banana Overnight Oats
Once you give overnight oats a try, you will have a hard time going back to the stove-top version. The oats practically cook themselves overnight, and in the morning, you know you are waking up to a delicious and satisfying breakfast.
Grab your ingredients, glass jars, and let’s get to it!
- Make the Bananas Foster
Prepare the bananas foster on the stove-top. - Make the Oat Base
In a glass jar, combine the oats, ground flax, and milk. Stir to combine. - Combine
Top each jar with the bananas foster and seal. - Chill out
Refrigerate overnight or up to 5 days.
And that’s all there is to it. When you’re ready to eat, give the oats a good stir, and enjoy chilled or warm up in the microwave- there’s no wrong way to eat them!
Assembly is fast and the fridge does the rest. While I like to make these overnight oats when bananas are at their prime, you can also use the overly ripe bananas you meant to use to make banana bread but somehow never got to baking. The mixture will be a bit more saucy, but just as delicious.
Make next: Easy Banana Waffles!
How Long to Soak Overnight Oats
Instead of cooking, overnight oats get their creamy, thick texture from slow soaking in milk. It takes about 4 hours for the oats to absorb the liquid and soften, but they can sit a lot longer, which is why you can make them the night before and eat the next morning.
Hot Or Cold Overnight Oats
Overnight oats can be enjoyed straight from the refrigerator or reheated. It’s entirely up to your taste and preference. Personally, I love them chilled, straight out the jar. It’s refreshing and just as hearty as oats cooked on the stove-top.
How Far Ahead Can You Make Overnight Oats
Once you make the overnight oats, you have up to 5 days to enjoy them. That’s a long time and another reason this is the perfect breakfast meal prep recipe.
Just combine the ingredients, refrigerate, and you have satisfying, delicious breakfasts on hand for the week. I often grab a jar after a run or pack them with me to the office for lunch; they are good any time of day!
More Overnight Oat Recipes
If you are eager for more tasty breakfast ideas, you’ll definitely want to check out my recipe for Honey Almond Butter Overnight Oats. This is another great one to make ahead so you have a healthy and hearty breakfast every day of the week!
I have many more healthy overnight oats recipes, and I’ve shared a few favorites in the list below. You’ll find ones made with old-fashioned oats as well as steel-cut.
- Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats
- Cinnamon Apple Overnight Oats
- Strawberry Overnight Oats
- Peaches & Cream Overnight Oats
- Pineapple Upside Down Overnight Oats
- Strawberry Overnight Steel Cut Oats
- Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats
Banana Overnight Oats Recipe
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon butter or coconut oil
- 3 very ripe bananas, sliced
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 cups old-fashioned oats
- 2 teaspoons ground flax
- 3 cups milk*
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, heat up butter or coconut oil over medium heat. Add the bananas, vanilla, and cinnamon to the heated pan and begin to sauté until they begin to break down and juice out their natural sugars - about 2 minutes.
- Add the maple syrup, stir to combine, and cook for another minute, remove from heat.
- Inside each jar, place ½ cup oats, ½ teaspoon ground flax, and ¾ cup milk. Divide the cooked bananas evenly over each glass jar
- Stir to combine, place the lid on, and refrigerate overnight.
Notes
- You can use butter instead of coconut oil and your favorite dairy-free milk as well.
- You can eat your oats cold right out of the fridge or warmed in the microwave.
Yvette Yasui says
So you are not cooking the steel cut oats? Is soaking them in milk overnight in the fridge enough to soften them for eating? Like muesli?
thanks
Laura Fuentes says
they have a soft muesli feel..you can also use old fashioned oats. I prefer steel cut.
Elena says
I made these last night and enjoyed one this morning. It was so yummy. Thanks Laura for another great recipe. Not only do you save my kids from boring lunches, you save me from boring breakfasts. Lol! You’re the best!
Laura Fuentes says
So glad everyone loved them Elena!
Jenna G says
sorry to be ignorant, but do you cook the oats first?? (since steel cut oats take so long to cook, I am having trouble imagining that the overnight ‘soak’ ‘cooks’ them??)
Laura Fuentes says
no. just as they are. if you are concerned, you can use old fashioned oats.
Cindy A says
This recipe sounds amazing! I can’t wait to try it! Mmmm! One question before I make this…do I cook the steel cut oats first? It seemed too good to be true if I don’t cook them first as they take a while to cook, at least for me…I need to try making them overnight in the crock pot (after I search for tht recipe). : )
Thank you!
Laura Fuentes says
Cindy, you place them as is in the jars… but you can also use old fashion oats.
Miranda Gonzales says
My husband loves bananas foster, so I’m trying this tonight! I don’t have coconut oil though, what would be an easy replacement? And could I use regular old Quaker brand old fashioned oats?
Laura Fuentes says
Yes, and butter is just as good… 🙂