Make Tomorrow’s Breakfast Tonight: Apple-Cinnamon Overnight Oats for One

The coffee is poured, your keys are somewhere on the counter, and you’re opening the fridge with one eye on the clock. There’s food in there. Turning it into breakfast is the part you haven’t allowed time for.

Now picture a container of apple-cinnamon oats waiting on the shelf. Give it a stir, grab a spoon, and breakfast is ready. You did the chopping last night.

That’s the charm of overnight oats: a little effort in the evening buys you an easier morning. Here, apple brings sweetness and crunch, cinnamon adds a little spice, and yogurt gives the oats a creamy base. There’s no pan to watch or porridge pot to scrub. The oats soften in the fridge while you sleep.

Five ingredients, one breakfast

Makes 1 serving · Refrigerate overnight

• ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• ½ cup milk, plus a splash for the morning if needed
• ½ cup plain regular yogurt
• 1 small apple
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Any apple will do. Peel it or leave the skin on—it’s your call. Use rolled oats here. Steel-cut oats need a different approach.

A jar or food container with a lid works well. Give yourself enough room to stir without sending oats over the edge.

Put it together tonight

Rinse the apple under running water, even if you plan to peel it. Remove the core, then finely dice or coarsely grate the apple. Dicing leaves little pieces to bite into; grating spreads the apple through the oats.

Stir the oats, milk, yogurt and cinnamon together in your container, reaching right to the bottom so all the oats get wet. Mix in the apple, cover and put it straight into the fridge overnight.

That’s breakfast taken care of before you turn out the kitchen light.

In the morning, make it yours

Give everything a good stir. If the oats are thicker than you like, add milk a tablespoon at a time until they’re how you want them. Eat them cold, straight from the container or in your favourite breakfast bowl.

The apple and cinnamon do plenty on their own, so there’s no need for a collection of toppings. If you prefer a sweeter breakfast, taste it first, then stir in a little honey or maple syrup.

Once you’ve made a serving, it’s easy to change things up with what’s in the fridge:

• Greek yogurt instead of regular: Use the same amount. It’s thicker, so you may want an extra splash of milk in the morning.
• A different milk: Swap in the same amount of lactose-free milk or unsweetened fortified soy milk. If you’re avoiding lactose, use lactose-free yogurt too. Lactose-free dairy still contains milk proteins, so it isn’t suitable for a milk allergy.
• Berries instead of apple: Leave out the apple and stir in ½ cup washed fresh berries in the morning. Keep the cinnamon if you like it, or skip it.

Keep it chilled

Make this serving for tomorrow morning and keep it covered in a fridge at 40°F / 4°C or below. Taking it to work? Pack it with an ice pack in an insulated bag and refrigerate it when you arrive. Throw it away if it’s been out of refrigeration for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour in temperatures above 90°F / 32°C. See the FDA’s cold-storage guidance for more.

Tomorrow may still start with a hunt for your keys. At least breakfast will be right where you left it.

For more help planning meals ahead, take a look at FYF’s 7-Day Meal Prep Guide.

Adapted from Ottawa Food Bank’s Overnight Apple Pie Oatmeal.