Gingerbread Overnight Oats
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Published Dec 13, 2023, Updated Jan 21, 2024
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These gingerbread overnight oats are made with cozy spices and molasses and packed with over 20 grams of protein. They’re an easy make-ahead breakfast option for the busy holiday season.
If you’re looking for a festive easy-to-make breakfast option to meal prep during the busy holiday season these gingerbread overnight oats are here for you!
They’re packed with all the classic gingerbread flavors you’d expect like molasses, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves and basically taste like you’re eating a gingerbread cookie for breakfast, which I’m all for!
Why You’ll Love These Overnight Oats
- Easy to make – They require just about 5 minutes of prep time and can be mixed together in one bowl.
- Protein-packed – These oats are packed with 32 grams of protein per serving so they’ll keep you full and satisfied longer!
- Grab-and-go breakfast – These oats are a great option for a grab-and-go breakfast. Just mix together the night before and in the morning, mix and eat!
- Meal prep – I love making a big batch of overnight oats during my weekend meal prep so I have a quick breakfast ready to go for the week.
Ingredients Needed
- rolled oats – the base of your overnight oats, providing a hearty texture. They soak up the liquid, which gives you a lovely creamy texture. Instant, quick-cooking and steel cut oats don’t work because they don’t absorb the liquid in the same way that rolled oats do. My favorite brand is Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free oats.
- milk – the liquid base for these oats. I like using unsweetened vanilla almond milk, but feel free to use your favorite milk of choice like oat milk or coconut milk.
- greek yogurt – adds creaminess to these oats and a boost of protein. I used full-fat Greek yogurt, but your favorite type of yogurt will work.
- vanilla protein powder – for an extra protein kick we’re adding vanilla protein powder to these oats. Your favorite brand will work, but I love Nuzest protein powder (use code eatingbirdfood for 15% off your order) and Sun Warrior Vanilla Warrior Blend.
- molasses – what adds that rich, gingerbread flavor to these oats. This is an ingredient I definitely wouldn’t skip!
- spices – ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. These are must-have spices for that classic gingerbread flavor!
- salt – a pinch to balance and bring out the flavors.
How to Make Gingerbread Overnight Oats
Step 1: Combine all ingredients in a bowl or mason jar. Stir the mixture well if you’re using a bowl. If using a mason jar, you can seal it and shake to mix.
Step 3: Place the mixture in the fridge to soak overnight, or for at least a few hours.
Step 4: When ready to eat, add your favorite toppings, and enjoy!
Substitutions & Notes
- Dairy-free/vegan: To make these oats dairy-free and vegan, swap the Greek yogurt with a dairy-free alternative like coconut yogurt. You can also skip the yogurt all together and use more of the dairy-free milk.
- Want to skip the protein powder? If you don’t have protein powder on hand or just aren’t a fan you can skip it altogether. You might just want to use a touch less milk since the protein powder does soak up some of the liquid. If you still want to add protein to these oats without protein powder you could add 1-2 Tablespoons of nut butter like peanut butter, almond butter or cashew butter.
- Want to make these oats sweeter? I think the molasses adds plenty of sweetness to these oats, but if you want more sweetness you could add some honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar or brown sugar.
Gingerbread Overnight Oats Variations
I love this gingerbread overnight oats recipe as is, but there are so many fun ways you can switch it up either with different mix-in’s or toppings. Here are some ideas:
- Chocolate: Want chocolate gingerbread overnight oats? Add a handful of chocolate chips to these oats or use chocolate protein powder instead of vanilla protein powder.
- Gingerbread cookies: For more gingerbread flavor you could crumble up some gingerbread cookies and mix them into the oats for an added crunch and additional sweetness.
- Granola: If you want some crunch without adding cookies, try adding some granola to the oats! This classic granola recipe would be a great option.
- Whip cream: For a more decadent twist on these oats top them with some whip cream or coconut whip cream.
- Fruit: These oats would be delicious topped with some banana slices or berries.
How to Meal Prep & Store
Overnight oats are great for meal prep. I’ll usually double, triple or quadruple this recipe for the week during my weekend meal prep so I have an easy and healthy breakfast ready to go throughout the week!
I like making and storing my overnight oats in wide mouth 16 oz mason jars. When stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator overnight oats should last for up to 5 days. They will soften more the longer they sit so I find they’re best on days 1-3, but they’re still safe to eat on days 4 and 5.
FAQ’s
You can definitely warm up these overnight oats, but the whole point of overnight oats is to eat them cold like muesli. Even if you think cold oats sound strange, I recommend giving it shot before you write them off. Of course, if you simply can’t do the cold oats you can always heat them up. Just pop the overnights oats in your microwave, cooking in 30-second increments until the oats are warm throughout and enjoy.
While it does take some time for the oats to absorb the liquid, they don’t necessarily have to be soaked overnight. I recommend at least 8 hours for true overnight oats, but there have been mornings where I decide I want overnight oats for breakfast even though I didn’t prep them the night before. When this happens I’ll make them the morning of and let the oats soak for just 2-4 hours. With this quick soak, they’re not as soft as overnight oats that have soaked longer and they’re a bit more liquidy, but they’re still delicious.
More Festive Recipes
- Healthy Gingerbread Loaf
- Gingerbread Baked Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Gingerbread Smoothie
- Gingersnap Cookies
- Dairy-Free Eggnog
- Nutella Rugelach
- Hanukkah Gelt Peanut Butter Blossoms
Be sure to check out all of my oatmeal recipes as well as the full collection of Christmas recipes on EBF!
Gingerbread Overnight Oats
Ingredients
- ½ cup rolled oats
- 1 cup milk, I used unsweetened almond milk
- ¼ cup plain full fat Greek yogurt
- 1 scoop (25 grams) vanilla protein powder
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Pinch of cloves
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Add all your ingredients to a bowl or mason jar and stir to combine. If you’re using a mason jar, you can put the lid on and shake the mixture to combine.
- Place in the fridge overnight or for a few hours to soak.
- When ready to serve, top with a dollop of greek yogurt and crushed up gingerbread cookies. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These overnight oats were so good! Thanks for all the great recipes you share with us. Happy Holidays!
YAY! I am so happy to hear you are loving these oats and they are a hit. Thank you for coming back and sharing your review & star rating, I really appreciate it!
I literally have eaten these every day since you posted. haha I love love love them!! thank you for all you do :))
Ahh this seriously makes me SO happy! Glad you’re loving these oats and they are on repeat. Thanks for sharing your review & star rating, I truly appreciate it!