New Year, New You: Elvis Would Love This New Year’s Day Breakfast

Overnight Oats Recipe

New Year’s Day is the day that many folks promise to start fresh, but most end up staying up way too late to watch the ball drop, partying with friends, and engaging in a slew of shenanigans well after the calendar has turned over to the new year. This typically leads to sleeping less or sleeping in, but regardless, the whole “start fresh” idea gets thrown out the window—or at least put on the backburner.

I mean, how many times have you woke up groggy and tired—especially after a late night filled with debauchery—and thought to yourself, “Man, I can’t wait to dig into a wholesome, veggie-filled salad!”

Yeah, me neither.

So, rather than pour a bowl of sugary cereal or reaching for your favorite donut (or two…or three…or…), why not prepare something super-simple, yet super-healthy in advance the night before? Enter overnight oats.

The first ingredient in this overnight oats recipe is, of course, oats.  Oats contain a boatload of nutrients like copper, zinc, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, phosphorus, and some B vitamins, and they’re also a good source of fiber, including a very special type called resistant starch.

What is resistant starch? Well, I’m glad you asked.

Resistance starch is so-named because  is a non-digestible carbohydrate (i.e., fiber) that may improve satiety (i.e., feelings of fullness), digestion, and insulin sensitivity, reduce food intake, increase fat burning, and decrease fat storage, which are perfect for those trying to lose body fat. In other words, resistant starch is a diet’s best friend and your secret weapon.

Fun Fact: Cooking dramatically reduces the amount of resistant starch in oats; in fact, there’s about 55 TIMES more resistant starch in raw, uncooked oats. Since you’re not cooking the oats in this recipe, you’ll reap the benefits of resistant starch.

Fun Fact: While resistant starch is not digestible by us, it is considered a “prebiotic” fiber that serves as “food” for our beneficial gut bacteria (e.g., probiotics). In other words, gut bacteria feed off resistant starch through the process of fermentation, which results in the production of key chemicals (i.e., short-chain fatty acids) that fuel our immune cells and stimulate the release of key hunger-suppressing hormones.

Fun Fact: Soaking oats overnight helps break down phytic acid, an “anti-nutrient,” allowing for better absorption of the nutrients in your food. In other words, you’ll get more bang for your buck out of this overnight oats recipe. #winning

The next ingredient is protein courtesy of our Low Carb Protein Blend. Low Carb provides you with 24 grams of time-released protein, which will keep your muscles nourished, your appetite satisfied, and your cravings at bay for hours. And it’s darn delicious too.

What you do next is really up to you.  We recommend that you include full-fat or partially-skim plain Greek yogurt, raw nuts and seeds (e.g., walnuts, sunflower seeds), and the fruit of your liking.

Once you make your selections, combine all your ingredients in a Mason jar (or other container with a tight-fitting lid) and store in the refrigerator overnight (or, for at least 6 – 8 hours).

When you roll out of bed on January 1st, just open the jar, stir, and enjoy!

The following overnight oats recipe is one I will be preparing to kick off my 2017, and I can’t help but think that if Elvis Presley was alive today, he would enjoy it too.

Overnight Oats Recipe

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup rolled oats
  • 2 scoops of Low Carb Protein Blend (I used the Vanilla Cream flavor in this recipe, but feel free to experiment with different flavors and combinations.)
  • ¾ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 1 tbsp natural creamy peanut butter
  • ½ banana, diced
  • ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • Dash of cinnamon (optional)

Directions:

  1. Add all the ingredients to the Mason jar and stir thoroughly until mixed.
  2. Pop it in the refrigerator overnight (or, for at least 6 – 8 hours).
  3. In the morning, open the jar, give it a stir, and enjoy!

Nutritional Info (per serving):
Makes approximately 2 servings

  • Calories: 280
  • Fat: 11g
  • Carbohydrate: 26g
  • Sugar: 6g
  • Fiber: 6g
  • Protein: 23g