Name: Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 2 cups quick or rolled oats; 4 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder; 4 tbsp. chia seeds; 4 cups unsweetened almond milk; 2 tsp. vanilla extract; 1 cup chopped fresh or frozen cherries; 8 tbsp vanilla protein powder (or sub in 2-4 tbsp. maple syrup); Additional chopped cherries; Shaved or chopped dark chocolate

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These Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats are a decadent yet healthy way to start off your mornings! The chocolate and cherries form a mouthwatering combo that will keep you feeling satisfied for hours. Perfect make-ahead breakfast option for the whole family! {gluten-free, vegan, & no refined sugar}

It has been stinkin hot over the past few weeks and I’ve been feeling it especially first thing in the morning.

The mornings basically consist of me getting out of bed, trying to pry my eyes open and pump myself up for another day. It doesn’t help that our house has been warmer than usual with the super hot temperatures, so I already feel a little sluggish.

BUT the fun really begins when I get our 19-month-old out of bed.

Scramble to get his breakfast ready, feed him, clean up the mess off the floor, chase him around when he takes random objects out of our bathroom that he’s not supposed to have, plaster him to his change table while he’s flopping around like a walrus and try to get his diaper on, chase him around to get his pants on, chase him around to get his shoes on, and then try to fuss around with his car seat buckle and get him to daycare on time and drive to work in 40 degrees Celsius temperatures.

Man, I’m out of breath just thinking about it.

I’m basically a hot mess.

The one thing that has been helping my mornings go a little bit more smoothly is relying on my pre-made overnight oats.

But these aren’t just any old overnight oats.

These are decadent Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats.

Guys. It’s basically like having Black Forest Cake for breakfast.

I seriously fell in love the first time I scooped some of these oats into my mouth.

And as an added bonus, you can eat it straight out of the fridge, so it’s the perfect refreshing breakfast to kickstart the day.

What you’ll need for these Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

Oats — you can use quick or rolled oats
Chia seeds
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Unsweetened almond milk (or sub in preferred milk)
Vanilla extract
Vanilla protein powder (can also sub in maple syrup for added sweetness)
Fresh or frozen cherries
Dark chocolate

Preparation Tips for Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

If you’ve never made overnight oats before, prepare to have your mind blown.

It’s basically the best food invention EVER.

It makes for a complete breakfast and all of the work is done ahead of time, so all that you have to do is sit down and enjoy it in the morning.

Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me!

I recommend making up a few servings all at once so that you have breakfast ready to go for the week. Or at the very least, have enough to share with your family. Even though it’s very tempting not to share and just eat them all by yourself. ;)

First, you’ll want to measure out half a cup of oats into four separate mason jars or bowls.

Add equal amounts of chia seeds, unsweetened cocoa powder, unsweetened almond milk, vanilla extract, protein powder or maple syrup to each of the jars.

Give each serving a good stir or place on the lid of the mason jars and shake them to combine all of the ingredients together.

Next, add fresh or frozen diced cherries to each serving and give it a stir.

Now this is the really fun part.

Top off each serving with some additional diced cherries and dark chocolate. I happened to find some pre-shaved dark chocolate curls in my grocery store, which seriously made it taste like Black Forest Cake.

If you can’t find this item, you can either shave the dark chocolate yourself using a vegetable peeler and a block of dark chocolate, or just chop up some dark chocolate to place on top.

You could use chocolate chips too, but I really liked the taste and consistency of the shaved dark chocolate because it wasn’t big honking pieces of chocolate. Just enough to give you that nice chocolatey taste, without being overwhelming.

How to Sweeten the Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

I tried sweetening these overnight oats a few different ways and found that each method was equally enjoyable.

The first method I tried was using some vegan vanilla protein powder. The ones that I enjoy the most are Kaizen Vegan Vanilla or Sunwarrior Vanilla protein powder, however, you can sub in your favourite kind.

I added two tablespoons of protein powder to each serving and found that was the perfect amount.

The beauty of this method is that it adds a dose of protein and sweetness without being high in sugar since the protein powder is sweetened with the natural sweetener stevia.

If you’re not a fan of protein powders or don’t want to buy a whole tub of it for the sake of this recipe, you can also sweeten the overnight oats with half to one tablespoon of maple syrup per serving depending on your personal preferences.

Keep in mind that with the maple syrup, you won’t get the added protein and it will be higher in sugar, but it does add a nice taste to the oats.

It really is a personal preference as to how you choose to sweeten up these overnight oats.

Nutritional Benefits of Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

Dark chocolate is especially high in antioxidants and can help to lower blood pressure (when consumed in moderate amounts).
Chia seeds are a source of fibre, protein and omega-3 fatty acids.
Cherries are boasting of vitamin C and…you got it! More antioxidants.
Oats are a great source of soluble fibre, which can help to lower cholesterol and keep you feeling full for longer.
Almond milk adds a dose of calcium and vitamin D (just make sure it’s fortified)!

Who said decadent can’t also be healthy?!

How Long Can you Keep these Overnight Oats in the fridge?

These overnight oats should keep in the fridge for up to four to five days, which makes them the perfect breakfast option for those busy weekdays.

I recommend making up the whole batch so that you have breakfast all ready to go in the morning.

Such a time saver!

And did I mention seriously decadent??

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