Ambrosia Overnight Oatmeal

Ambrosia reminds me of my high school days working in the deli of my hometown grocery store. Yes, your dear Lauren used to stand behind a counter and weigh super thin slices of smoked turkey, bread and fry chicken, and gobble down leftover chicken thighs at the end of her shift. I was basically a walking tub of grease for two years. To this day, I can't stand the smell of a deep-fryer...and most fried foods, actually.

However, our deli counter also offered a variety of salads. The standards were, of course, potato salad and macaroni salad, but there was also always a couple "sweet salads." The Midwest is infamous for its...erm...salads (Exhibit A and B). I think Ambrosia is actually "a thing" outside of the Midwest, but it was definitely one of the occasional offerings at my humble little deli.

Any excuse to take out my martini glass, yes?

The key ingredients for Ambrosia are mandarin oranges (blegh), pineapple, marshmallows (obviously), cherries (the faker, the better), and coconut, all mixed together in a creamy base. I have a strong disdain for mandarin oranges, so I used good ol' navel. I skipped the cherries because I'm too cheap to buy them. I omitted the marshmallows because...you know...breakfast. And finally, I subbed So Delicious yogurt <3 for the cream.

5 Back-to-School Oat-tastic Solutions for Students & Teachers

Some people think students and teachers live a different world. WRONG. I became a teacher because I wanted to be a student forever, and it's the closest I could get.

Either way, both students and teachers have some early mornings and long days. And both groups are known for skipping meals--particularly breakfast!

Here are 5 solutions for enjoying your oatmeal during that dreaded morning rush!

Mocha Almond Fudge Overnight Oatmeal

I need to confess my feelings. My strong, unwavering feelings.

I'm in love.

...with the So Delicious brand.

I've been eating their yogurt for a couple years now, but their pints of ice cream are a new world for me. I stopped buying prepared desserts and snacks several years ago--for a few different reasons. 1) Michael Pollan says to eat as much junk food as you want--as long as it's homemade (the result being you want eat that much junk food because it's hard work to make your own french fries, desserts, etc.). 2) I cut junk food from my budget to help me afford organic produce. 3) IBS, of course. Always.

Mango-Coconut Overnight Oatmeal with Puffed Wild Rice

Before I share the beautiful recipe pictured below, let me just declare my love and commitment to New York City. I love you, NYC, and there's nobody else for me than you. Please don't be jealous at what I'm about to say. At the end of the day, my rent money goes to you, and it's your beautiful bridges and skylines I drool over.

That being said, there's another city I adore: MSP, better known to the rest of the world as "Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota."

Strawberry Pretzel Overnight Oatmeal

:D

Yes! Pretzels!

Strawberry pretzel bars are a bake sale, potluck, and picnic favorite. They are a lovely blend of sweet and salty. They begin with a bottom "crust" of crushed pretzels. Above that is a thick layer of cream cheese. Finally, the top layer is jello-fied strawberries.

Melon Berry Overnight Oatmeal

So,, um....watermelon is not the most photogenic fruit. Forgive me.

Okay, so the idea behind this recipe is that you can endlessly combine various berries and melons together. Here you see blueberry + watermelon, but how about raspberry + cantaloupe? Blackberry + honeydew? Strawberry + cool exotic melon from the farmer's market (have you ever had a lemon drop melon?!).

Root Beer Float Overnight Oatmeal

I have so many recipe ideas. Unfortunately, some of them require obscure ingredients that I couldn't imagine myself using regularly (or, in the case of macadamia nuts, I can't afford to use them regularly!). This was my problem with root beer extract. Wouldn't it be cool to have a root beer float oatmeal? But what else could I possibly do with it?

Thus, I was pretty freakin' pleased when I perused my mom's baking cupboard and discovered root beer concentrate. You see, my mom's quite special. She may appear to be your standard accountant, but when she comes home, she transforms into a cake decorator. She used to just do average sheet cakes and basic wedding tier cakes, but when the cupcake trend blossomed, so did her repertoire.

She now pumps out all sorts of "hip" cupcakes: Oreo, dreamsicle, red velvet (of course), lemon, salted caramel, etc. If you've seen it on Pinterest, she's probably tried it. Anyway, sometime during her experiments, she must have done a root beer cupcake, and thanks to her, I can give you this recipe today.

'Murica Overnight Oatmeal Parfait

The irony of this post is that I'm actually one of the least patriotic people you will ever meet. It's not that I'm not happy to be in America; I just don't care to celebrate it with some of the most annoying songs ever and the most obnoxious outfits of all time. Like seriously, calm down, Toby Keith.

(I should clarify that I by no means take my liberties for granted or do not respect those who protect our country; I just think that our flaunting of patriotism is what gets us so much flack from the rest of the world! Why do you think nobody likes Gretchen Weiners?)

However, I do like berries, and if eating berries means celebrating 'Murica, I'll be a little patriotic today. Here's to living in a country that provides me easy access to my favorite foods with minimal effort! Thanks, Founding Fathers!

Happy birthday, 'Murica. Oh, and I should also mention that--as of this week--I am a resident of Manhattan. SO. MUCH. PACKING. I liked Brooklyn, but the commute to work was terrible.

'Murica Overnight Oatmeal Parfait

Adapted from this recipe.

by The Oatmeal Artist

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 0 min

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Ingredients (serves 1)

For the Oatmeal

• 2/3 cup coconut milk (or 1/2 cup coconut milk + 1/4 cup plain coconut yogurt)
• 1/2 cup rolled oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 2 tsp liquid sweetener of choice (optional)
• pinch of salt

For the Parfait

• Blueberries
• Strawberries or raspberries

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients for the oatmeal in a mason jar.
2. Cover with lid and shake, shake, shake until combined.
3. Store in the refrigerator overnight (or for several hours).
4. When ready to serve, put a spoonful at the bottom of a fancy glass or mason jar. Drop a few berries. Repeat, alternating layers of oatmeal and berries.
5. Eat while listening to this and wearing your most obnoxious star-spangled overalls.

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**You can also find hundreds of other oatmeal recipes (as well as tons of other meatless recipes) on my Pinterest account!  You can also like The Oatmeal Artist on Facebook. Thanks!

Apricot Cherry Overnight Oatmeal

I achieved the impossible: I snapped an attractive photo of overnight oatmeal! What is it about overnight oats that make them so UN-photogenic? I think that's one of the reasons why I don't like posting overnight recipes. I always feel like I'm setting myself up for failure. I loathe putting up a post with sub-par photos (yet I do it all the time).

Confession time: this was the first fresh apricot I've ever eaten. Ha! I've had many a dried apricot, but never fresh. I bought one last year to make an oatmeal recipe with, but I waited a day too long and it turned rotten before I could cut into it. Dang...I hate wasting food!

I know many of you have requested for bigger helpings of overnight oatmeal, so I think you'll appreciate this one. It's massive! Having an entire fruit diced into it adds so much bulk.

Blue Raspberry Overnight Oatmeal

Can I get a high five for two overnight recipes two Thursdays in a row?

I found while making this recipe that the color of raspberries is far more potent than the color of blueberries. On my first attempt, I was stunned to see the vibrant red color of my blueberry-raspberry mixture. However, after sitting in the fridge overnight, the oatmeal mellowed out into a calm blue (like in the pictures).

Banana Mango Overnight Oatmeal

Readers, this one is for you. (I mean, I suppose all my recipes are for you...but this one is really, really for you.)

You guys are always ragging on me to post more overnight recipes. To be honest, I make overnight oatmeal pretty frequently, but only when I'm too lazy on the weekend to prepare enough oatmeal ahead of time for the week. In other words, when I'm making overnight oatmeal, it's at 10 pm, and when I'm eating it, it's 5 am. If you think I'm going to take pictures during these hours, you're crazy. :)

Tiramisu Overnight Oatmeal

The Thursday before my birthday, my friend and I were out and about in Manhattan enjoying some good eats. After some delightful vegan soul food at Red Bamboo, we moved on to Peacefood Cafe on 11th St. The dinner food is great there, but I particularly love their desserts. VEGAN. TIRAMISU. I didn't see it coming, but their vegan tiramisu was infinitely better than any tiramisu (vegan or not) I've ever had. The cream portion was unbelievable and I have no idea what it was made of.

Grape Salad Overnight Oatmeal

I'm not positive about this one, but this is probably another crazy Midwestern thing. We just LOVE take fruit, stirring in cream cheese, and calling it a salad. Hey, at least this one doesn't have marshmallows!

Grape salad was first introduced to me by my godparents. They brought it to some celebration we were having at my house (perhaps my sister's confirmation or something??). Cripes, this stuff is good. It consists of red and green grapes coated in a mixture made of cream cheese, sour cream, and a little brown sugar. It sounds pretty terrible written out like that (especially to someone like me who hates sour cream), but it's truly divine.

Peach and Blueberry Overnight Oatmeal

First there was Peach & Blueberry Oatmeal. Then Peach & Blueberry Oatcakes. Now, I present Peach & Blueberry Overnight Oatmeal. Three cheers for the best fruit combo known to mankind! (Or can you nominate a better one?)

I made my version diced, but I bet it would be marvelous with pureed peaches (if you're okay with dirtying your blender).

Applesauce Overnight Oatmeal

If you've tried (and enjoyed) my Applesauce Oatmeal, you will likely appreciate today's recipe. It's truly one of my easiest recipes in the history of EVER.

Also, it tastes wonderful. I kid you not, this oatmeal tastes like straight-up apple pie. It's one of the few recipes that I eat cold (I have a bias for hot porridge), but only because I am so desperate to shovel it in my mouth as fast as I can.

3 New Overnight Oat Recipes!

Overnight oatmeal has been my "thing" for a few months now, which inevitably resulted in me creating recipes that were never shared with you. Most of them align with my stove-top recipes, so I didn't feel too guilty about it. However, lately, I've been enjoying these so much that I just had to put them on your radar!

Strawberries and Cream Overnight Oatmeal

I hope the surge of overnight oat recipes is appreciated. I've been shaking them up quite frequently this month! I believe they are perfect for this time of year; many mornings in New Jersey are hot and muggy, and steaming oatmeal doesn't always appeal to me then. In those times, I really crave a refreshing, cool, creamy oatmeal.

You can really tinker with this recipe. Add chocolate chips, use dried strawberries, slice in a banana, etc. It's an incredibly basic recipe that you could adapt to your liking. You could even swap in real cream, if your lifestyle allows it. I'll stick to my almond milk. :)

Almond Berry Overnight Oatmeal

What's the general consensus on almond extract? Sometimes, I truly love it. It's dynamite in my Pear and Almond Baked Oatmeal and killer in Almond Joy Oatmeal. Other times, I can't help but be a little peeved by it. I mean, it doesn't actually taste like almonds, in my opinion.

Anyway, the perk of almond extract is that it steals the show, meaning it's perfect for a "hidden banana" recipe. I make this overnight recipe whenever I'm in the mood for a creamy and fruity porridge, but I'm not in the mood for the taste of bananas. (Lately, I've filled this need with my Lemon Drop Oatmeal, but hey, it's good to have options!)

How do you feel about almond extract? Yay or nay?

Key Lime Pie Overnight Oatmeal

Question: how necessary are key limes for a key lime pie? Would anyone be offended if I used, say, your average lime? Because that's what I did, and I'm not apologizing for it.

Since my Strawberry Limeade Oatmeal turned out so well, I thought I'd stick with the lime theme and test this Key Lime Pie Oatmeal. It's citrusy, vibrant, and ever so creamy, thanks to the addition of coconut yogurt.

Strawberry Limeade Overnight Oatmeal

This week, I did something I've never done before: I purchased a fresh lime.

Gasp! I know, I know. That's pathetic. Using fresh limes and lemons was never something my family opted to do. We used those sketchy bottled juices and called it good. Recently, living with my roommate Allison has taught me the value in using fresh citrus. First of all, the taste is unmatched and incredibly bright and refreshing. Furthermore, it's cheap!! Sure, I will continue to have the bottles on hand for unexpected citrus needs, but I will be turning to fresh limes and lemons more often.

The lime was purchased for this recipe. I'll be honest - I was exceptionally nervous about its result. I tried a similar recipe once upon a time, but I did not blend the strawberries and citrus together, and the strawberry became unpleasantly sour, to the point that it tasted nearly rotten! As it turns out, blending the fruit together before letting it sit overnight cures this fluke. Don't ask me why; I'm an artist, not a scientist. :)