How to make HEALTHY overnight oats can sometimes cause confusion. Sure, the formula for making overnight oats themselves is super-simple…
(Oats + Liquid) x 8 Hours = Overnight Oats
But it’s the healthy part that can catch some people out. Are they still healthy if I add peanut butter? What about if I sprinkle them with sugar? Is honey any healthier?
So to address these common questions, we put together a handy infographic. It details exactly how to make healthy overnight oats, along with ideal ingredients. Feel free to share it with anyone who might find it helpful! We’ve also put together an FAQ section with more in depth answers – skip down to below the infographic to read this section.
How To Make Healthy Overnight Oats – FAQs
Here are the most frequent questions we see about making healthy overnight oats. Feel free to email us if you have a question that’s not listed…
Is Peanut Butter Healthy?
Peanut butter is a delicious flavour enhancer, and will add a solid dose of protein to your breakfast. But not all peanut butters are created equal. Some are highly processed, and contain added sugar, salt, palm oil and all sorts of other unnatural ingredients.
So be sure to buy the pure stuff, which is made from 100% peanuts without all that added stuff. We like Meridian Peanut Butter, as their products are completely pure, reasonably priced, and available online or in supermarkets. They also offer some tasty alternative nut butter flavours like Almond butter and Hazelnut Nut Butter. Yum!
Is It Ok To Sprinkle Sugar On My Overnight Oats?
Life is about balance, so we’re inclined not to worry about a tiny little teaspoon of sugar! Of course if you’re heaping on more than that, you’re probably sabotaging the healthiness of your breakfast. Processed sugar can quickly turn into fat, if it isn’t used up as energy by the body. Try stevia, honey or a flavour enhancer like cinnamon instead.
Is Honey Any Healthier Than Sugar?
Honey is sugar, and like anything we consume, it can turn into fat if we don’t use the energy. However honey tends to be less processed (particularly raw honey) and contains more beneficial nutrients than standard granulated sugar. The more natural something is, the better it’ll be for you, so try to use raw honey instead of sugar when you can.
How Can I Tell If An Ingredient Is Healthy Or Not?
Despite the complexity of ingredient labels, you don’t need a degree in nutrition to work out what’s healthy and what isn’t. Sure, it can seem confusing initially, since so many manufacturers use clever buzz words to misrepresent their products. The key is to block out the claims made on the packaging, since there’s little regulation as to exactly what ‘low fat’ or ‘high in fibre’ actually mean in quantitative terms. Go straight to the ingredients label and then make your own healthy choice based on two simple factors:
- The number of ingredients – fewer is better
- Whether you can pronounce the ingredients easily – if you can’t, then they’re probably not natural, which means they’re probably not very healthy
