Upgrade your usual breakfast with our Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats — a healthy and satiating breakfast that tastes like apple pie in a jar!
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When it comes to overnight oats, people usually fall into one of two camps: you either love them…or you just haven’t tried them yet. Meal prepping a batch of ready-to-eat oats is just such a game-changer for hectic mornings. Throw it together on Sunday, portion the oats into individual jars, and eat them all week long.
These creamy oats are packed with the classic fall flavor combo of sweet-tart apples and warming, fragrant cinnamon. They’re the star ingredients in a quick apple compote that goes on the bottom of the jars, and makes this healthy and satisfying breakfast taste just like apple pie.
Looking for more ways to liven up your breakfast routine? Try our Sheet Pan Sweet Potato Hash, Maple Pecan Overnight Oats, Breakfast Egg Cups, or Oatmeal Breakfast Cake.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- These overnight oats and brimming with the cozy and warming fall flavors of apples, cinnamon, and maple syrup
- Make a batch on Sunday and eat well for the week
- Only 15 minutes total to prep and cook!
Overnight Oats Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make these delicious overnight oats. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- An apple – For 4 servings of these oats, you’ll need one large diced apple. You can either peel the apple or leave it whole – it’s your preference!
- Pure maple syrup – If you’d like, you can sweeten these oats up a bit with 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup.
- Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and vanilla – These spices help infuse the oats with classic apple pie flavor.
- Oats – we like to use rolled oats for our overnight oats. These oats from Bob’s Red Mill are a great certified gluten-free option, and these sprouted oats from One Degree Organics are another good option, especially if you feel like you have a bit of trouble digesting whole grains!
- Milk – for this recipe, you can use whatever milk you like best! We’ve tested successfully with whole milk and almond milk. Cashew milk or boxed coconut milk (not the full-fat kind in cans) will also work well here.
- Chia Seeds – the chia seeds help thicken up the oats just a bit and give them that delicious, creamy consistency.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
Here are a few ideas for making this recipe your own:
- Swap the fruit – While we love the classic combination of apples and cinnamon, this recipe is flexible. Maybe you want to try a version with pears and cardamom instead?
- Milk/nut milk – Unsweetened almond milk is our go-to for making delicious, vegan overnight oats. But feel free to use whatever kind of dairy or non-dairy milk you have on hand, or like best. Whole cow milk, or non-dairy milk made from coconuts, cashews, hemp, and soy would all work well. Or, double up on your oats by using oat milk!
How to Make Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
You can make these apple overnight oats in just a few minutes with these steps.
Step 1: Dice up the apples, then place them in a pot over medium heat along with a bit of water, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Cook the mixture for about 5 minutes, until the apples are soft.
Step 2: Cool slightly, and spoon the apple mixture into the bottom of 4 Mason jars. If you’d like, you can reserve a little extra for topping.
Step 3: Add 1/2 cup of oats, 1 teaspoon of chia seeds, and 1/2 cup of milk to each mason jar.
Step 4: Give the jars a good shake to distribute the milk and refrigerate overnight. Finally, place the jars in the refrigerator – by morning they’ll be ready to eat!
Recipe Tip
Ch, Ch, Ch, Chia! – Don’t skip these little seeds. Not only do they add texture and crunch, but they’re a natural thickener too.
How to Serve
Once they’ve had a chance to chill the jars overnight, you can serve them straight from the fridge, or remove the lids and warm them in a microwave.
How to Store
The oats will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Old-fashioned rolled oats tend to be the best choice for making overnight oats. They do a great job of soaking up the milk overnight, but still retain just the right amount of texture…without turning to mush.
These little seeds serve a dual purpose in overnight oats. First, they add texture and a little pop of crunch. But more importantly, they’re a natural thickener, and can absorb many times their weight in liquid, which helps make these oats thick and creamy as the jars sit overnight.
Here at Fed and Fit, we are big advocates of eating a diet filled with the foods that work best for you. That being said, if you find that you can tolerate oats well, we think they make a great easy breakfast option. Oats are whole grains that are packed with fiber and low on the glycemic index. They have great benefits for digestion and have been shown to have a positive impact on metabolism and blood sugar as well. Oats have gotten a bad rap in the past partially because so many commercial oatmeals are loaded with excess sugar. In this recipe, we are keeping it simple with the only added sugar coming from the apple compote.
While oats do pack a conservative amount of protein in each serving, if you’re looking for a more protein-heavy breakfast, you can either pair your overnight oats with eggs or sausage, or add a scoop of protein powder when assembling your jars.
More Favorite Oat Recipes
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Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
Ingredients
- 1 large apple, peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup, optional
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- Pinch sea salt
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 2 cups unsweetened almond milk, whole milk, or other milk of choice
- 4 teaspoons chia seeds
Instructions
- Place the apple, maple syrup, water, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and cloves to a small pot over medium heat. Cook for 4-5 minutes, until softened, then set aside.
- Line up 4, 8-ounce mason jars, then spoon the apple mixture into the bottom of the jars.
- Pour 1/2 cup oats, 1 teaspoon chia seeds, and 1/2 cup milk into each jar. Place the lids on the jars, then shake them up to distribute the chia seeds.
- Refrigerate overnight, then enjoy! Oats will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
These apple cinnamon oats are so good! I heated mine up after they were on the fridge overnight. (I prefer alarm oats over cold) I look forward to tomorrow’s jar, too!
We are so so happy you love it, Lindsey! Thank you for taking a moment to share!
If I wanted to blend because I don’t like the texture of the oats without blending, would I blend everything the next morning or just the oats part
Hmmm, that’s a good question, Monica. I’m not totally sure. My gut says blend afterward, but I haven’t tried, so I’m not positive!
If i don’t have mason jars, can I make this is one container? Then scoop out portions in a bowl
Absolutely!!
Do you cook the oats before putting them in the jar or put them in raw?
No, they go in raw!
Thanks so much! My daughter and I loved this recipe. This is going in the regular rotation.
Super minor question, but where does the pinch of salt go!
In with the apples!
Been making this regularly for a few weeks now. Delicious and so convenient for quick breakfasts on my way to work. I’ve also started adding a scoop of collagen for extra protein.
Why not canned coconut milk? Is it just too thick to absorb properly?
Why does the ingredients say maple syrup but instructions coconut sugar? Which is best?
That’s corrected now! You can use whichever you have on hand, but we prefer maple slightly.
Do they keep in the fridge for a few days?
Yes, they’ll keep for about 5 days!
Do you reheat these in the Mason jars?
Yes, you can either eat them cold or heat them in the jars for about 1 minute!