Chocolate Chia Overnight Oats with Blueberry and Dates

Hannah Sunderani
Jan 20, 2017
3 min read

Chocolate Chia Overnight Oats with Blueberry and Dates. What a way to start the morning! This combination is a recent favourite of mine. Especially on these cold winter mornings. I find that I'm constantly craving berries, which can be problematic at this time of year as they are so hard to find. But thank goodness they sell them frozen. And this bowl takes full advantage of the frozen berry taste and texture!

Honestly, I think frozen berries were created with breakfast in mind. We all know they are a go-to for smoothie recipes, but they are so much more versatile than this when looking for a fruity filled breakfast bowl. Frozen berries are delicious when thawed - they offer this ooey-gooey jammy texture and sweeter taste that is so comforting for the winter time, not to mention better on the budget!

This recipe uses my favourite berry of all - frozen blueberries. I've let them thaw overnight and added them to overnight oats made with homemade almond milk, cocoa powder and dates. This combo is KILLER. The blend of blueberries, chocolate and dates offers such a warm and velvety taste that makes it worth getting out of that cozy bed come the morning. And in addition to the berries, the dates are a close second. You won't want to forget them! It offers this delicious caramelly flavour to the bowl, which acts as such a nice natural sweetener. I finely chop them so they are plentiful with every spoonful. For this reason I only add a little bit of maple syrup for extra sweetness, but feel free to add more to suit your preference.

And of course this recipe is made with the busy-bee in mind because it's ready in minutes; making it perfect for breakfast during the work-week. You can prep everything the night before: soaking the oats and chia, and thawing the blueberries. Then come morning simply mix together and sprinkle on the toppings. Did I mention it's delicious warm or cold? If you like a more porridge style breakfasts you can pop this on the stovetop with a splash more almond milk and heat to your liking. Or, if you prefer pudding-style you can eat it straight outta the fridge.

There isn't much more to say except enjoy every spoonful of this chocolatey, caramely, blueberry bliss. It's a favourite of mine, and I hope it will be one of yours too. :)

Chocolate Chia Overnight Oats with Blueberry and Dates

Serves: 1| Prep Time: Overnight + 10 minutes (10 minutes active prep)| Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

For the overnight oats: (to be made the night before)

1/2 banana, mashed
1/4 cup large flake oats, gluten-free
2 tbsp chia seeds
3/4 cups almond milk
1 1/2 tsp cocoa powder
pinch salt

For the toppings:

1 medjool date, chopped
1/2 cup frozen blueberries, thawed overnight
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
1 tbsp coconut shavings
1 tsp sunflower seeds
pinch cocoa powder
1 tsp maple syrup, or to taste
more almond milk if desired

Directions:

Prepare your overnight oats the night before: add 1/2 banana to a bowl and mash until smooth. Add oats, chia seeds, almond milk, cocoa powder and a pinch of salt. Stir well to combine. Then, place in the fridge overnight to absorb. In addition, toss frozen blueberries into a bowl and let thaw in fridge overnight.
In the morning remove overnight oats from the fridge.* Top with chopped date, thawed blueberries, pomegranate seeds, coconut shavings, sunflower seeds and pinch more cocoa powder. Drizzle with maple syrup to taste. Pour in more almond milk if desired for preferred consistency.

*To serve warm: remove overnight oats from fridge and add to a saucepan with a splash almond milk. Bring to medium-high heat stirring occasionally until it's desired temperature. Then top with the topping ingredients.

Approvals: