Breakfast Club!

On the weekends I love to make homemade breakfast for the family.  For us, though, most weekends, like this past weekend, are jammed packed with things to do and I just don't have time to make the whole deal - you know, a big hearty breakfast of blueberry or chocolate pancakes with eggs, bacon, fried potatoes, I could go on. So in an effort to still have a really good and yummy fast breakfast, I am constantly on the search for new ideas and stumbled upon one recently that has been spreading fast in the cooking world....overnight oats. After making them this past weekend I see why. Not only are the super simple to put together and filling, all the work is done overnight in the fridge! Grab them the next morning and they are good to go. I have a few ideas for different flavor combinations, but really the possibilities are endless, go with what you like and you'll be sure to love this just as much as we did!

What's cooking in my kitchen this week:
Overnight Oats

What you'll need:
1/2 cup old fashioned oats per serving making
1/3 cup half and half* per serving
2 Tbsp brown sugar per serving
1/2 tsp cinnamon per serving
1/2 tsp vanilla extract per serving
1 Tbsp peanut butter per serving
1 Tbsp jelly per serving
1/2 banana sliced per serving
1 Tbsp chopped walnuts per serving
handful of fresh berries per serving
Mason jars or coffee cups

*Note: you can substitute half and half for heavy cream and it will come out with a more whipped cream texture. Heavy cream can be expensive so if you are making a lot of servings, like I do, half and half works just fine. If you can splurge, though, it's totally worth it! 

How to make it:
For starters get all the containers you are making the overnight oats in. I don't have a lot of mason jars on hand at the moment so I used coffee cups to make the majority of ours in. Measure out oats in 1/2 cup servings and put into containers. Pour half and half on top of oats.

Now comes this fun part in making the different flavors. Just add whatever combinations you want to the oats and half and half and then stir to mix all up. For my "original" flavor I use the brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. For a "PP&J" flavor I use the brown sugar (1/2 Tbsp this time), peanut butter, and jelly. You can make a "Banana Bread" flavor by using the bananas, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and walnuts or a "Fruit and Cream" flavor by using some berries and brown sugar and a pinch more half and half. Again, the possibilities are endless. You know the flavors you and your family like, so go with those.

After you have all the servings you are making done, cover the containers and put in the fridge overnight. Grab and go for breakfast the next morning and enjoy!

Did you know?
On this day in 1897 Victor Mills was born.  He was a chemical engineer who worked for Proctor & Gamble.  He improved Duncan Hines cake mixes, improved Jif peanut butter, and invented Pampers disposable diapers.