Hormone Balancing Overnight Oats
As a grad student, I discovered overnight oats as a quick and portable breakfast that I could throw in my backpack on my bike commute to campus. I quickly fell in love, and it’s been a staple ever since!
In my experience, one of the best ways to start improving your hormonal health is to add in a well-rounded breakfast every day. This helps lower cortisol and improve blood sugar balance throughout the day.
While oatmeal is always a great, fiber rich carbohydrate source to include at breakfast, some recipes lack the protein and fat needed to balance your blood sugar, and keep your full and satisfied for the whole morning. I’m a huge fan of adding all sorts of ingredients without restriction to all kinds of recipes! Remember, every time we ADD a food or ingredient, we’re ADDING nutrition.
One of my absolute favorite ingredients to add to oats in general is chia seeds. My recipe for hot Satisfying Cinnamon Vanilla Chia Oats has stayed viral on Pinterest for a reason! Chia seeds soak up liquid very similarly to oats, and add great texture while also being a source of fiber, protein, fat and all sorts of vitamins and minerals. Definitely a hormone balancing staple to keep on hand!
I love to experiment with other types of seeds and nuts as well. While seed cycling doesn’t have much evidence for hormone balance, we do know that adding in a variety of nuts and seeds to your daily eating pattern CAN help. No need to eat them on any sort of schedule! Just go for it, and have fun experimenting
This recipe is super versatile, and can be modified with all sorts of flavors including swapping maple syrup for honey, adding cocoa powder, trying out your favorite protein powder, or swapping the hemp seeds for something like flax seeds or walnuts. You can even sub the cinnamon for pumpkin pie spice and add a tablespoon of canned pumpkin for a fall inspired breakfast!
Remember, eating should be FUN, and nourishing your body should fit with your values. You can easily scale this recipe up to meal prep a few jars for the week, but make sure you leave some room for additional options if you know you might get bored.
TIP: If you commute to work and aren’t one to eat super early in the morning, try making the oats portion in the evening, and then top it with frozen fruit in the morning. This will keep the oats cold until you’re ready to eat your breakfast!
Hormone Balancing Overnight Oats
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1 Tbsp chia seeds
- 1 Tbsp hemp seeds
- A few dashes cinnamon
- 1/4 cup full fat plain greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup oat milk
- Splash of vanilla
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- Optional: 1 tbsp almond or peanut butter
- 1/3 cup frozen or fresh fruit of choice
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a mason jar except fruit and mix well. Top with fruit. Refrigerate overnight and enjoy cold in the morning!