Healthy Pumpkin Pie Protein Overnight Oats

 
Every year towards the end of August, our California weather turns bipolar for a couple of days. Although the exact dates vary, this year the drastic change happened to fall last week. The sun blazed down on Thursday and Friday, heating up our town to nearly 100°F and making it almost unbearable to walk outside, let alone drive anywhere… Steering wheel burns on your hands hurt!  

But when I opened my eyes on Saturday morning, light gray clouds covered the entire sky, and the stone patio in the backyard looked a few shades darker than normal because of a very faint drizzle lightly falling from above. Even without a breeze, it barely felt 60°F outside, and as much as I adore summer, I still nearly twirled around in a happy dance.

It felt like fall — and fall means pumpkin season!
 

 
As I laced up my shoes for a run, my mind whirled around, brainstorming all of the possibilities of pumpkin baking. Muffins… Scones… Quick breads… Cupcakes… Cookies… Cinnamon rolls… Granola… Anything and everything full of warm, cozy spices that make my house smell like Thanksgiving Day!

I returned home full of ideas, but I decided to hop in the shower first before tackling my quickly growing pumpkin baking list. As I scrubbed, I sorted through the recipes in my head, prioritizing which treats I was dying to make first. When I threw on clothes and walked into the kitchen to start…

The clouds had parted, the sun was shining, and the temperature quickly rose to over 80°F. Back to summer again… So much for fall baking!
 

 
But because I just couldn’t give up my pumpkin ideas, I compromised with an easy no-bake recipe that tasted like a combination of summer and fall: Pumpkin Pie Protein Overnight Oats! A thick, creamy bowl of pure comfort food flavors that’s still perfectly acceptable for warmer summer mornings… And basically tastes like dessert for breakfast!

That’s practically a dream come true. 😉
 

WHAT ARE OVERNIGHT OATS?

For those of you unfamiliar with overnight oats, they’re incredibly easy to make. Simply mix together the ingredients in a mason jar or plastic container with a tight-fitting lid, place that in the fridge, and wait until morning. That’s literally all there is to it!

While you sleep, the oats soak up the moisture in the wet ingredients, and this softens the oats as much as if you had cooked them in a pot on the stove or in the microwave. Because overnight oats oats are meant to be served cold straight from the fridge, that gives you a few extra minutes to sleep in instead of cooking breakfast!
 

HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY PUMPKIN OVERNIGHT OATS

There are two key ingredients in this recipe: Greek yogurt and pumpkin purée. Greek yogurt is my favorite ingredient in healthier baking because it adds a lot of protein! It packs in around 21g per cup, compared to regular yogurt with only 7 to 10g. Greek yogurt is one of the easiest ways to get a big boost of protein in the mornings without a lot of effort!

Make sure to use pumpkin purée, not canned pumpkin filling. The latter contains added sugar and flavorings, which we’re trying to avoid to keep this recipe clean-eating friendly! Instead, we’ll sweeten these oats with Truvia, a no-calorie plant-based sweetener. It’s one of the cheapest stevia-based sweeteners and the easiest to find in grocery stores, but feel free to substitute your preferred sweetener instead.
 

 
Now all that’s left to do is stir, sleep, and eat! 😉 And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy pumpkin pie protein overnight oats!
 

Healthy Pumpkin Pie Protein Overnight Oats

© Amy's Healthy Baking

Yields: 1 serving

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Inactive Time: 8 hours hrs

Total Time: 8 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

This super easy recipe tastes like a slice of pumpkin pie straight from the Thanksgiving table! It’s easily doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled to serve more. The oats will keep for at least 4 days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. (They're great for meal prepping!)

4.80 from 62 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients 

• ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• ½ cup (122g) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie mix!)
• ¼ cup (25g) old-fashioned oats (gluten-free if necessary)
• 1 tbsp (12g) Truvia (see Notes!)
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon (see Notes!)

Instructions

• Add all of the ingredients to a mason jar or plastic container with a tight-fitting lid, and stir until thoroughly combined. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Serve cold.

Notes

OAT ALTERNATIVES: For the best results, use either old-fashioned rolled oats or instant oats (also called "quick cooking" or "one-minute" oats!). If using steel-cut, your oats won't soften as much, and they'll remain somewhat crunchy.

 

SWEETENER ALTERNATIVES: Any sweetener will work in place of the Truvia (ie honey, pure maple syrup, coconut sugar, etc!). My other favorite (and the one I've started using more!) is ⅛ teaspoon of this liquid stevia. You can also adjust the amount of sweetener to suit your tastes!

 

CINNAMON NOTE: This is my favorite cinnamon because it tastes a bit stronger and sweeter than regular cinnamon. (I buy it online here!) If you prefer, you can substitute pumpkin pie spice for the cinnamon instead.

 

GLUTEN FREE VERSION: Use certified gluten-free old-fashioned oats (I love these!) or gluten-free instant oats (I love these!).

 

CAN YOU HEAT OVERNIGHT OATS TO EAT WARM?: I’m hesitant to recommend heating these overnight oats to eat warm, whether in the microwave or on the stovetop, because of the yogurt. When heated too much or too long, it can curdle, which doesn’t taste all that great! However, if you’re cautious, it might work. (I just can't personally vouch for it!)

 

{gluten-free, egg-free, clean eating, low fat, high protein, sugar-free}

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.

View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points