Caramel Apple Overnight Oats (24g Protein, Chocolate Shell)
Caramel apple overnight oats with 24g of protein and a chocolate shell on top that cracks when your spoon goes through it.
The chocolate shell is the main reason I make these!
Caramel apple overnight oats are oats, chia seeds, protein powder, and cinnamon soaked in almond milk overnight with diced green apple and caramel syrup stirred through. This version has 24g of protein and a chocolate shell that sets hard on top, so the first spoonful cracks through instead of sinking in.
Green apple is doing the work that stops this tasting like dessert in a bowl. Caramel and chocolate are both sweet, and a tart apple diced in cuts straight through them.
How to Make Them
- Stir the dry ingredients together in your jar. Quick oats, chia seeds, vanilla protein powder, cinnamon. Whisking these before the liquid goes in stops the protein powder clumping, which is the most common complaint with protein overnight oats.
Quick oats are what this is written for and they give a softer, more porridge-like result. Rolled oats work and hold more chew, but they need the full overnight rather than a short soak. Steel cut never soften enough, so skip those.
Protein powder matters here too. Whey blends dissolve smoothly. Plant proteins absorb more liquid overnight, so if you use pea or rice you’ll want an extra splash of milk or you’ll wake up to something closer to a paste. - Add the almond milk and stir well, scraping the bottom of the jar. Any milk works. Cold milk gives a better final texture than room temperature.
- Dice half a green apple and fold it in, along with the caramel syrup. Granny Smith holds its crunch overnight where softer apples go mealy.
- Refrigerate at least 4 hours, overnight is better. The chia seeds need that time to gel, and they’re what makes the texture thick instead of soupy.
- In the morning, make the shell. Melt the chocolate chips with the coconut oil, pour it over the cold oats, add the pecans, and freeze for 10 minutes.
- Crack through it with a spoon.
The Chocolate Shell
This is the part worth getting right, and it works on the same principle as magic shell ice cream topping.
Coconut oil is solid below about 76°F and liquid above it. Mixed into melted chocolate and poured onto something cold, it drops below its melting point almost instantly and sets into a thin brittle layer. Chocolate on its own would just sit there soft.
Don’t skip the coconut oil and don’t add more than the recipe calls for. Too little and you get soft chocolate. Too much and the shell tastes greasy and goes cloudy.
The oats have to be properly cold. Straight from the fridge, not sitting on the counter while you melt the chocolate. A cold surface is what makes it set fast enough to stay thin.
Ten minutes in the freezer is enough. Longer and the oats underneath start to freeze, which ruins the contrast you were going for.
Meal Prep and Storage
These keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, and the oats keep drinking liquid the whole time, so add a splash of milk before eating if they’ve gone too thick.
Make the jars, not the shells. Portion three or four jars on Sunday with oats, apple, and caramel, then do the chocolate the morning you eat it. The shell is a two-minute job and it does not survive being made ahead.
If you want to prep the apple in advance too, toss the diced pieces in a little lemon juice first so they don’t brown in the jar. That buys you about two days before the pieces start looking tired, so for a full week of jars I’d dice fresh apple partway through rather than doing all five on Sunday. The apple is the one component that doesn’t hold as well as the rest.
Variations
- Date caramel instead of syrup. Blend soft dates with hot water until smooth.
- Almond butter stirred through the base adds fat and makes it more filling.
- Swap the pecans for walnuts, or crushed pretzels if you want salt against the caramel.
Caramel Apple Overnight Oats
Ingredients
FOR OATS
- ½ cup certified gluten-free quick oats
- 1 tsp chia seeds
- ½ scoop vanilla protein powder
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- ½ tsp sugar-free caramel coffee syrup can use caramel sauce as a replacement
- ½ green apple
FOR CHOCOLATE SHELL
- 2 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ½ tsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp caramel sauce
- Crushed pecans for topping
Instructions
- Add all oat ingredients to a bowl or jar. Stir well and refrigerate for minimum 4 hours or overnight.
- Once oats are set, microwave the chocolate chips and coconut oil in microwave.
- Pour melted chocolate over top, mixing it all in and distributing equally.
- Put oats in freezer for chocolate to solidify. This will take about 10 minutes. Then top with caramel sauce and chopped pecans. Crack open and enjoy the rich chocolate flavor!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided is calculated based on industry-standard software and should be used as a general guide only. The information may vary depending on ingredient substitutions, cooking techniques, and individual serving sizes. It is the responsibility of the reader to ensure the accuracy and appropriateness of the nutritional information provided. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for personalized medical or nutritional advice.
More Overnight Oats to Try
- Biscoff Overnight Oats
- Brownie Batter Overnight Oats
- Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats
- Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
If you make these, leave a star rating and tag me @basicswithbails or save this for meal prep Sunday.
About Bailey
I love to bake, cook, exercise, and document all of the above. Nutrition is not low fat. It is not low calorie. It’s not feeling deprived or being hungry all the time. It’s nourishing your body with real, whole foods so that you are consistently satisfied and energized to live your life to the fullest! Read more…
I have a sweet tooth but this has clean ingredients and protein!!
I made these using my salted caramel protein powder (omitted the caramel syrup in the oats) and just topped them with some date caramel and pecans. SO good. I love the crunch and freshness of the green apple!