Apple and Banana Overnight Oats

These Overnight Oats with sweet banana and crisp apple are the perfect balance between refreshing and comforting, which is why I personally love to eat it through the warmer months of the year.

To help us start off the day in the best possible way, I also love to pack these overnight oats with protein, nutritious seeds and other flavours like vanilla essence and cinnamon. As well as the chai and flax seeds you can add in, the peanut butter is going to give more added protein. It really goes so well with the apple and of course banana. If you’ve ever had peanut butter on apple before, you know what I’m talking about!

As this is a family recipe, we’re not going be making an individual portion in a jar, we’re going to be making a larger amount and storing it in a mixing bowl. Of course, if you aren’t a family you can still use this recipe! For example, if there are two of you, this will do you breakfast for two days.

If you have a toddler, weaning baby or fussy eater and are wondering how to adapt this recipe for your family, see here >

The Stars of my Apple and Banana Overnight Oats

The Base

For most overnight oats I like to add base of rolled oats, greek yogurt and milk. I usually use just semi skimmed milk but if I have it, I’ll also use oat milk which I actually think works even better in overnight oats as it really amps up that oaty flavour. If you’re vegan, you can use an oat based greek style yogurt, as well as the oat milk to eliminate diary completely.

The Bananas

Make sure these are very ripe, we’re talking plenty of black spots on the skin. If you think they are not ripe enough, once you’ve added in the honey or agave (I only add ½ tablespoon), just taste check the oats and add a little more if needed. Equally, if the bananas are super sweet you can taste before adding the honey and leave out if you think it doesn’t need it.

The Apples

You want to go for dessert apples so they are sweet; gala, jazz, pink lady, golden delicious and honey crisp apples work really well. 

The Peanut Butter

Definitely use smooth peanut butter, but also you need one that’s a runnier texture as opposed to hard, so it’s easy to mix in. If you or someone in your house has a peanut allergy, you can skip this addition but I will say it won’t taste quite as good without it. If you do that I would add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract instead of s few drops and 1 teaspoon cinnamon instead of ½ just to amp up the flavour.

The Seeds

Chai seeds and flax seeds are my go to additions for any overnight or porridge oat breakfast. You don’t have to add these in, but I really recommend you add at least one of them! Chai and flax seeds are packed with fibre, protein and omega-3s as well as well as anti-oxidants and many other vitamins and minerals which are great for adults and kids alike. For adults, these seeds may also help reduce cholesterol, high blood pressure, stabilise blood sugar and help protect against cancer.

They also give oats a coarser texture and deeper flavour which I absolutely love.

FAQ’s For My Apple and Banana Overnight Oats

Do I have to prepare this Apple and Banana Overnight Oats in advance?

Yes, because of the oats not being heated through with a liquid they need time to soften in the cold milk. The only way to get around this would be to turn these overnight oats into an oat smoothie bowl instead. To do this, add the oats to your blender and whizz until it looks like flour. Then add all other ingredients and blend until smooth. As the oats are broken down so finely now, you can enjoy them straight away.

Can I feed more people with this recipe?

You certainly can, just adjust the servings slider on the recipe. Bear in mind the recipe is for 4 adult servings though, so if all your kids are young you will be able to make this stretch much further than four people.

How can younger children help make it?

I love to get younger kids helping in the kitchen and overnight oats are great for doing that, especially as there are no hot pans and minimal if any chopping or grating involved. 

Can I Store Apple and Banana Overnight Oats leftovers?

You can store any Apple and Banana Overnight Oats leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days (make day + 2).

For more on safe food storage and reheating read here >

What diets is this recipe suitable for?

My Apple and Banana Overnight Oats are suitable for vegetarians and can be made vegan or suitable for those who can’t have diary by switching to an oat based greek style yogurt and oat milk. They are also gluten and egg-free.

Adapting My Apple and Banana Overnight Oats For Your Family

Eating together is beneficial for families of all ages and stages, for a multitude of reasons; nutritional, behavioural, psychological and for healthy family functioning. This section will show you how to tweak this Apple and Banana Overnight Oats recipe for sharing with a weaning baby, toddler or a fussy eater, which will help make it easier to eat together as a family.

Keeping Picky Eaters Happy

If your fussy eater isn’t great with fruit, this is a great one for them as the grated apple and mashed banana gets hidden amongst the oats.

If your fussy eater isn’t into cold oats, no problem! You can heat up their serving in the microwave and turn it into a fruity porridge for them.

See more from me on fussy eaters here >

Making My Apple and Banana Overnight Oats Suitable for Baby Weaning  

These overnight oats are perfect for sharing with a baby or toddler! If your little one hasn’t had peanuts or peanut butter before, I would advise giving them this breakfast on a day you don’t have to rush off out, just in the rare case that they do end up having a peanut allergy. 

If sharing with a little baby under 12 months, use agave instead of honey. I only add ½ tablespoon as you will use very ripe bananas. Also, you could add all your ingredients apart from the agave and then give it a taste. You might find that if the bananas were super sweet, you don’t need to add any sweetener at all.

If you have 6-7 month old, you might want to leave out the seeds for a smoother texture and also you can finely grate the apple if you like.

If this is the first time giving overnight oats to your baby and they usually have warm baby porridge or baby rice they might not easily accept these. And if that’s the case, you can microwave theirs just to warm it up. You should find they will accept it then.

I’ve also added these notes to the bottom of the recipe so you have them to hand when you come to cook. For more info on how I keep my family meals suitable for baby weaning, read here >

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