On a Budget: Overnight Oats
My husband and I both grew up in homeschool families. Not only were we homeschooled but our younger siblings were as well. When we married we never had to have a serious talk about whether or not we wanted to homeschool -- it was a given. We both grew up with our moms at home and we wanted that for our children as well.
I knew growing up that my parents made sacrifices to make homeschooling work. I grew up consignment clothes shopping, hunting for deals, eating on a budget, and using pre-owned curriculum. But I never fully understood the sacrifices that would be required of us when we took the first steps to make this dream a reality by me quitting my job and staying home with our new little one. Especially in a society that is moving more and more towards a two-income family lifestyle. It wasn't uncommon for my friends to have stay-at-home-moms growing up, homeschooled or not, but as I am now in several parenting circles I see less and less stay-at-home-parent families and more and more career families. I am not trying to say one way is right or one is wrong; each must decide what is best for their own family. But we have decided that me staying home with our kids is best for us and our current culture standards makes it feel like we are swimming upstream most days.
In an effort to make this possible, my husband and I have gone in and out of debt and learned to use our money wisely, save when we can, eat cheap, shop cheap, and try to be content with what we have. Over the years I have slowly developed standards and guidelines I like to shop by. Simple things like deciding that for us a snack should never be over $1. That means protein bars, fruit, homemade goodies, and packaged on-the-go snacks need to be $1 or less (preferably less). We try to keep breakfast under $1 as well, though that is not always possible. Lunch is leftovers or simple things I have thrown together and dinner is almost always made in bulk to provide leftovers for the next day as well as to cut costs by making a double batch.
And that leads me to our favorite breakfast option: Overnight Oats.
I had heard internet buzz for a little while about overnight oats and wasn't sure what to think but then we went through a particularly tight season and decided to give it a try.
I buy my oats at Sprouts in bulk. When they run a sale I stock up by buying several pounds of oats at once. I have a couple of airtight cereal containers I store them in so they don't get stale or old.
The nice thing about overnight oats is that it takes very little effort to make each breakfast taste drastically different while being similar in preparation. This makes it so easy on me to prep breakfast each night without even having to think about it.
My prep looks something like this:
1. Collect Mason jars or glass bowls to prep your oatmeal in.
2. Fill 1/3-1/2 full of oats.
3. Add your toppings (ideas for toppings listed below). Pictured you'll see two of our favorites: peanut butter (with chia seeds and crushed pecans), and frozen mango (with chia seeds).
4. Fill with milk. We use Almond milk but you can use cow milk, soy/cashew/any kind of milk substitute options.
You want to go over the top of your oats and possibly toppings as well because the oats will absorb the milk as they soak. Once you do this a couple of times you'll figure out what amount is best, I don't even think about it anymore. You just want to make sure the oats are covered to soak up with milk they will turn out just fine; you can always add a little more milk in the morning when you go to eat them.
5. Put a lid or cover over the oats and store in the fridge overnight.
In the morning we just remove our lids and microwave the jar to the desired temperature, stir, and enjoy! It's super simple and the kids love that their yummy, personalized oatmeal is ready in seconds thanks to prep last night!
Topping Ideas:
- I add chia seeds to all of the different types of overnight oats I make. They do not change the taste at all and add fiber.
- Peanut butter, almond butter, or any other favorite nut butter works great. A tablespoon full is perfect. You can add anything from chia seeds and crushed pecans (as we often do), to honey, bananas, or chocolate chips to the nut butter for a little variety, although personally I just prefer my peanut butter by itself most of the time.
- Fruit (frozen or fresh). Depending on the season we use a variety of fresh and frozen fruit. When certain favorite fruits are in season I will buy extra and freeze them. We pick blueberries each summer and usually freeze several pounds to have year round for instance. And then when some of our favorites are at their most expensive, I'll buy them frozen. When you let the oats soak overnight that gives the frozen fruit plenty of time to thaw out and get their juices all in your milk, which makes it great the next morning. Our favorite fruits are strawberries, mango, peaches, blueberries, bananas, and cherries.
- Protein powder. When used sparingly, protein powder can add a nice flavor and fuel to your breakfast. Chocolate powder used with cherries or peanut butter is great. Vanilla goes especially well with peaches and blueberries.
- Honey or a pinch of brown sugar goes a long way as well. We try to avoid extra sugar consumption (it's already in everything!) but occasionally I'll add just a little sweetener to make it taste especially good.
There are so many different combinations and options ranging from coconut flakes to cinnamon to coffee. Think of what you like best and give it a try! The nice thing about this meal is even if it turns out not-so-great, it is a really cheap experiment and you never know, you might just find a new favorite!
Have any fun overnight oat combinations? We'd love to hear about them!
Happy soaking!
I knew growing up that my parents made sacrifices to make homeschooling work. I grew up consignment clothes shopping, hunting for deals, eating on a budget, and using pre-owned curriculum. But I never fully understood the sacrifices that would be required of us when we took the first steps to make this dream a reality by me quitting my job and staying home with our new little one. Especially in a society that is moving more and more towards a two-income family lifestyle. It wasn't uncommon for my friends to have stay-at-home-moms growing up, homeschooled or not, but as I am now in several parenting circles I see less and less stay-at-home-parent families and more and more career families. I am not trying to say one way is right or one is wrong; each must decide what is best for their own family. But we have decided that me staying home with our kids is best for us and our current culture standards makes it feel like we are swimming upstream most days.
In an effort to make this possible, my husband and I have gone in and out of debt and learned to use our money wisely, save when we can, eat cheap, shop cheap, and try to be content with what we have. Over the years I have slowly developed standards and guidelines I like to shop by. Simple things like deciding that for us a snack should never be over $1. That means protein bars, fruit, homemade goodies, and packaged on-the-go snacks need to be $1 or less (preferably less). We try to keep breakfast under $1 as well, though that is not always possible. Lunch is leftovers or simple things I have thrown together and dinner is almost always made in bulk to provide leftovers for the next day as well as to cut costs by making a double batch.
And that leads me to our favorite breakfast option: Overnight Oats.
I had heard internet buzz for a little while about overnight oats and wasn't sure what to think but then we went through a particularly tight season and decided to give it a try.
I buy my oats at Sprouts in bulk. When they run a sale I stock up by buying several pounds of oats at once. I have a couple of airtight cereal containers I store them in so they don't get stale or old.
The nice thing about overnight oats is that it takes very little effort to make each breakfast taste drastically different while being similar in preparation. This makes it so easy on me to prep breakfast each night without even having to think about it.
My prep looks something like this:
1. Collect Mason jars or glass bowls to prep your oatmeal in.
3. Add your toppings (ideas for toppings listed below). Pictured you'll see two of our favorites: peanut butter (with chia seeds and crushed pecans), and frozen mango (with chia seeds).
4. Fill with milk. We use Almond milk but you can use cow milk, soy/cashew/any kind of milk substitute options.
You want to go over the top of your oats and possibly toppings as well because the oats will absorb the milk as they soak. Once you do this a couple of times you'll figure out what amount is best, I don't even think about it anymore. You just want to make sure the oats are covered to soak up with milk they will turn out just fine; you can always add a little more milk in the morning when you go to eat them.
5. Put a lid or cover over the oats and store in the fridge overnight.
In the morning we just remove our lids and microwave the jar to the desired temperature, stir, and enjoy! It's super simple and the kids love that their yummy, personalized oatmeal is ready in seconds thanks to prep last night!
Topping Ideas:
- I add chia seeds to all of the different types of overnight oats I make. They do not change the taste at all and add fiber.
- Peanut butter, almond butter, or any other favorite nut butter works great. A tablespoon full is perfect. You can add anything from chia seeds and crushed pecans (as we often do), to honey, bananas, or chocolate chips to the nut butter for a little variety, although personally I just prefer my peanut butter by itself most of the time.
- Fruit (frozen or fresh). Depending on the season we use a variety of fresh and frozen fruit. When certain favorite fruits are in season I will buy extra and freeze them. We pick blueberries each summer and usually freeze several pounds to have year round for instance. And then when some of our favorites are at their most expensive, I'll buy them frozen. When you let the oats soak overnight that gives the frozen fruit plenty of time to thaw out and get their juices all in your milk, which makes it great the next morning. Our favorite fruits are strawberries, mango, peaches, blueberries, bananas, and cherries.
- Protein powder. When used sparingly, protein powder can add a nice flavor and fuel to your breakfast. Chocolate powder used with cherries or peanut butter is great. Vanilla goes especially well with peaches and blueberries.
- Honey or a pinch of brown sugar goes a long way as well. We try to avoid extra sugar consumption (it's already in everything!) but occasionally I'll add just a little sweetener to make it taste especially good.
There are so many different combinations and options ranging from coconut flakes to cinnamon to coffee. Think of what you like best and give it a try! The nice thing about this meal is even if it turns out not-so-great, it is a really cheap experiment and you never know, you might just find a new favorite!
Have any fun overnight oat combinations? We'd love to hear about them!
Happy soaking!
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