July 17, 2020
updated
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These Strawberry Overnight Oats have the perfect texture, creamy taste, and fresh flavor we all love from that strawberries & cream combination.
Plus, making them is so easy, you’re going to want to make this breakfast on repeat.
The Best Oats for Overnight Oats
When I first made this recipe, I used steel cut oats. I had bought a huge bag to develop some recipes, so I used those and they were delicious!
Since, I’ve mainly switched to old fashioned oats, mostly because they still have that hearty texture I love without being grain-like, which is what you get when you use steel-cut oats.
You can also use quick-cooking oats for the recipe, keeping the measurements the same. In the end, the best oats for overnight oats are the ones you love to eat!
Strawberry Overnight Oats Ingredients
It doesn’t take a lot to make this delicious breakfast all you need is:
- Old fashioned or steel-cut oats – for thickest texture don’t use quick oats
- Ground flaxseed – to help thicken and add a dose of healthy fats and fiber
- Milk – regular or your favorite non-dairy option
- Pure vanilla extract
- Sliced strawberries
- Maple syrup – All you need is a little to sweeten the oats. If you don’t have maple syrup on hand, use honey, agave nectar, or equal parts brown sugar.
While this is a recipe for Strawberry Overnight Oats, if you take out the strawberries it leaves the perfect base layer you can use to create your own recipe of overnight oats.
More Add-Ins
Add-ins are where you get to dress up overnight oats to your heart’s content. You can make this recipe as is or stir in a few more items like the ones below.
- Blueberries
- Sliced bananas – for delicious strawberry banana overnight oats!
- Peanut butter or nut butter alternative
- Greek Yogurt
- Coconut flakes
- Mini chocolate chip
- Pumpkin seeds
- Cinnamon
- Nuts
How to Make Strawberry Overnight Oats
Once you make oats this way, you’ll find it hard to go back to the stovetop method. Overnight oats require no cooking, only stirring and refrigeration.
Before you head to bed, grab a glass jar or airtight container, and let’s get to it!
- In a glass jar, combine the oats, ground flax, milk, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Top with strawberries and refrigerate.
- In the morning, stir to combine, drizzle with a little maple syrup and enjoy.
More Info: Best Mason Jars for Overnight Oats
Dairy-Free Strawberry Overnight Oats
Swap the regular milk for your favorite dairy-free alternative to make this a dairy-free breakfast. I prefer almond milk but you can do soymilk, rice milk, even oat milk! As long as the oats have liquid to absorb, you’re good to go. And for this strawberries and cream recipe oat recipe, the creamier the milk substitute, the better.
The same can be done if you wanted to add yogurt to the recipe for a creamy delicious twist. Instead of Greek yogurt use coconut or almond yogurt.
How Long do Strawberry Overnight Oats Last?
When stored in the refrigerator overnight oats with strawberries can last for up to 3 days!
Yes, you read that right- 3 days. It’s easy, healthy, delicious, and the smartest meal prep breakfast EVER!
Other overnight oats recipes can last up to 5 days in the fridge, but I’ve found. that after 3 days, the strawberries begin to break down and take on an unpleasant texture, so I recommend sticking to 3 for this recipe.
How to Serve Overnight Oats
Depending on where you plan to spend breakfast, you can enjoy overnight oats chilled and straight from the jar (my personal favorite). If you’re a hot breakfast kind of gal transfer them to a bowl and warm them in the microwave.
The important part is having them ready to go for a filling and balanced breakfast first thing in the morning.
Strawberry Overnight Oats
Ingredients
- 2 cups old fashion oats
- 2 teaspoons ground flaxseed
- 3 cups milk, your choice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups strawberries, sliced
Instructions
- Place four jars on a flat surface. Fill each jar with ½ cup oats, ½ teaspoon ground flax, ¾ cup milk, and ½ teaspoon vanilla. Stir to combine. Top with strawberries and refrigerate.
- In the morning, stir to combine. Warm-up if desired or enjoy cold.
Notes
Nutrition
Want more overnight oats? Check out these other delicious recipes
Koketso
I have try it & it tested nice …love it
Sherrill
I would love to see a strawberry banana overnight oats recipe!
Laura Fuentes
Sherill, you ask… I deliver. Check out the recipe for my apples and cinnamon overnight oats here.
Maryanne
I have just tried overnight oats for the first time this week. Had them right out of the frige and I just loved it. Wish I knew of this years ago. I’m trying your strawberries and cream tonight. I am replacing the milk with greek yogurt since I dont have milk. I’m looking forward to trying all your recipes, they sound yummy.
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Traci
I was wondering how the yogurt was? I have raw yogurt and it’s pretty runny so thought I could substitute it or add a bit of milk if needed?
RT
Awesome, looks delicious. Never tried overnight oats before. Thinking of adding blueberries, and dare I say dried cranberries.
Vicky
If I warm these up in a pan of hot water on stovetop (no microwave), will it affect the strawberries? Will they get mushy?
Laura Fuentes
they will soften up Vicky but I wouldn’t say “mushy”. Enjoy!
Vicky
Thank you! I ate it cold and loved it! My husband ate the bananas foster and just loved it! This is a man who has never eaten oatmeal in the 23 years we’ve been together! So thank you!! I just received both your cookbooks today and I’m so anxious to try out the recipes. I have 4 sons (6-15), so I always have hungry taste testers 🙂
Laura Fuentes
I’m so excited that the overnight oats were a big success! I hope you enjoy the recipes in the book. It looks like you’ll have some happy testers! 🙂
Teresa
These are great! I included some chopped raw almonds. They add a very nice occasional crunch, as well as protein. These are going to be a stable during strawberry season for me. 🙂
Teresa
lol, *staple
Laura Fuentes
chopped almonds? what a great idea! I’d love the crunch too.
Lee
can you only make this the night before or could you make a few in advance for the week?
Laura Fuentes
I make these once and keep them in my fridge 3-4 days.
KB
Hi Laura, I dont follow your blog, but I found your recipe on Pinterest for the Strawberries and cream overnight oats. Just wanted to let you know that we absolutely LOVE this recipe. At first glance I wasnt sure about it…It seemed too soupy…But that’s actually what I love most about this recipe! Its nice and creamy and just sweet enough. And once heated its the perfect consistency. I use 2% lactaid free for mine and fat free for my husband and we both love it. I heat for 1 minute then add the syrup. Perfection. I also find that I like it with the strawberries chopped up into tiny pieces better. Thank you for a great recipe!
KB
Oh! forgot to mention, I also use the old fashioned oats instead of steal cut…I love the texture the old fashioned oats give.
Laura Fuentes
I’m so glad you liked the recipe KB!
Cristina
Yummy! I made this for my niece first with steel oats. She loves oatmeal but didn’t like the texture and said it didn’t taste strawberry enough and I left it in the fridge for two days before she ate them. I made them a second time with old fashion oats and added some strawberry syrup from your strawberry milk recipe and score she loved it, it had that extra strawberry taste she wanted!
Laura Fuentes
Yes, steel oats are definitely an acquired texture.. my kids don’t like them. I do! 🙂 I am thrilled they were a success with that additional strawberry touch !
Erin
Oh wow. This was delicious. The oats were a different texture, but it had an addictive quality. This will be awesome to make when school starts again and our mornings get crazy.
I didn’t have strawberries, so I used raspberries and blueberries.
Thank you!
Laura Fuentes
blueberries work too!! yum!
Kelly
This is the first overnight oats recipe that I’ve liked. It’s DELISH!! I eat it quite often for my yummy brekkie. Thanks!!!!
Colleen W
This is just what I’ve been needing. We are always rushed in the morning and end up eating unhealthy prepackaged cereal or oatmeal. I love that I can prep thiis the night before and its just waiting for me. Thanks! And, I ordered your cookbook…can’t wait.
Laura Fuentes
thank you Colleen! forward me your pre-order receipt and I will send you a signed plate!
marie
Is there a reason I should wait until morning to add the maple syrup? In your bananas foster version, the maple syrup goes in the night before. I’d rather put it all together and be done with it 🙂
Kelly
Tried this with steel cut oats. By morning they were still hard; had to then cook them on the stove for a long time, continuing to add more liquid until they were soft enough to eat (even then they were a little chewy, but I didn’t feel like waiting anymore). May try this again with rolled oats, but won’t try steel cut anymore.
Laura Fuentes
I’m so sorry this didn’t work for you Kelly. I use steel cut oats for this all the time and the work fine.
Polly
I am psyched to try this. I saw the bananas foster recipe first, but we don’t like bananas cooked, so this idea looks super! I’ve got some In the fridge for tomorrow!
Laura Fuentes
Let me know how you like them Polly! Of course, heating up is optional 🙂
Amy
Could chia seeds be sub’d for the flax seed? I’m new to using his seeds so don’t quite have a grip on how these work yet lol
Laura Fuentes
You sure can Amy. the flax is ground though.
marie
I would add the chia seed when you are ready to eat it rather than the night before, or add more liquid if you are going to add it the night before. Chia will absorb the milk much more than flax. Though that sounds interesting adding it the night before with additional liquid – it would be chia pudding oatmeal 🙂
Laura Fuentes
You are right on this one… which is why I suggested the additional liquid. My kids can’t stand the “crunchy” seeds.. which is why when I use them I add them the night before… super pudding like!
marie
I don’t see where you suggest the additional liquid when using the chia seeds…?
FYI – I added chia in my last batch of bananas foster. I used rolled oats, but did not reduce the milk. Then I added 2 tsp chia (note to those that not made the bananas foster – one batch is 4 servings, or 2 for me :-), and so if I were to add the chia in the above, it would be 1/2 tsp). I also kept the flax.
Laura Fuentes
Sorry Marie, I mentioned it in a comment above. This recipe will work the same as the bananas foster. Glad you were able to adjust it to your needs!
Janet
Made last night delicious!!!! I didn’t have ground flax. I used almond milk and regular rolled oats and honey. I usually don’t like oatmeal but this is great and ready to eat in the am! Making again tonight !
Laura Fuentes
So glad you loved those Janet! If you loved these, try the bananas foster recipe. They are out of this world.
Gary
Can we use honey instead of maple syrup?
Laura Fuentes
absolutely. Honey is an option too.
Jenny
How much of this can your children eat each? Do they each get their own jar or do you double (triiple?) the recipe and use a larger jar?
I’d like to make these but not sure how much my kids will eat They are 10, 8, and 6.
Laura Fuentes
This is a single serve recipe. If you double or tripe the recipe I still recommend you put it in individual jars. My 8 year old eats nearly all of one. 1/4 cup of oats is the same thing that’s inside a single serve oat packet.
Amy
Have you tried this with frozen strawberries? Does it work as well? We can buy fruit much faster than we eat it, so I have a bunch of frozen that I thought I could use for this.
Laura Fuentes
frozen strawberries will work fine if you don’t mind them being a bit slushy when they defrost in your oatmeal.