The nectarous, irresistibly sweet-sour flavor of cooked strawberry and rhubarb shines in these seedy overnight oats. Warm vanilla and maple syrup round out the hearty breakfast pots with rolled oats, chia, hemp, and sunflower seeds. I incorporate soaked raw cashews to make a strawberry rhubarb “milk” of sorts that gets poured over the dry ingredients before setting in the refrigerator. The end result is tangy, fruity, creamy, and sweet.
A few years ago, I was playing around in the kitchen and made a basic rhubarb strawberry compote. I blended that with soaked cashews to make a “milk” of sorts, which turned out to be the perfect vehicle for overnight oats. The result was tangy, fruity, and really reminded me of kefir–super rich texture and all.
Whenever I buy bunches of rhubarb at the farmer’s market for a dessert, I inevitably have 3-4 stalks leftover. This strawberry rhubarb overnight oats recipe is perfect for that precise situation. I have you chop it up along with an equal amount of strawberries, which then get cooked down into a soft compote with maple syrup and vanilla.
There’s something about the cooked rhubarb that makes the cashew milk base here so luscious and silky. Once you blend the compote with soaked raw cashews, water, and a bit of salt to wake everything up, I think you might be shocked at the richness/depth achieved with such simple ingredients.
Of course this is the perfect prep ahead breakfast. Once the milk is made you pour it over portions of rolled oats, chia seeds (the gelling/binding ingredient), and mixed seeds (I like hemp and sunflower). Stir all of the little pots up, tighten the lids and set in the fridge for up to a week.
Don’t skip my tips in the recipe notes for a premium overnight oat experience. I’m a little particular about this style of breakfast myself, so I’ve got some opinions haha. Enjoy!
Seedy Strawberry Rhubarb Overnight Oats (Vegan)
Ingredients
- 210 grams chopped rhubarb (about 1 ½ cups)
- 210 grams chopped strawberries (about 1 ½ cups)
- 2 ¼ cups water, divided
- 6 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¾ cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ⅔ cups rolled oats
- 5 tablespoons chia seeds
- 5 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds or hemp seeds
Notes
- You may need more sweetness added once the post of oats and seeds have sat overnight. That part is all down to personal taste. For me, the overall taste experience is like that of a tart yogurt or kefir with the ripe berry/warm vanilla flavors humming in the background. If you need more maple, go for it.
- I tend to need a little extra milk added to my overnight oats in the morning to loosen up the texture. If you’re like me, just use whatever you have on hand!
- I like to make a little extra rhubarb strawberry compote to garnish the oats with later, but it’s not 100% necessary. It just looks nice :)
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, combine the chopped rhubarb, strawberries, ¼ cup water, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Place it on the heat over medium. Once the mixture starts simmering, stir it up a bit here and there. Let the mixture simmer for 8-10 minutes or until quite sauce and rhubarb is soft.
- In an upright, high speed blender combine the strawberry rhubarb mixture, drained cashews, remaining 2 cups water, and salt. Blend on high until completely smooth, about 1 minute.
- Set out 5 seal-able jars. In each jar, combine ⅓ cup rolled oats, 1 tablespoon chia seeds, and 1 tablespoon sunflower/hemp seeds.
- Take the rhubarb strawberry cashew milk and pour roughly ⅔ cup over each portion of oats. If you have leftover, just divide it amongst the jars. Stir up each jar to combine and then place the lids on top.
- Let the oats set up in the refrigerator overnight. Enjoy with more strawberries and extra maple syrup if you like. Oats will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Sheer genius! Thank you for inventing this!
This is a very delicious, indulgent-feeling (yet still healthy!) breakfast. It’s perhaps extra work than normal (for overnight oats) to soak cashews and make a compote and blend the whole thing together before mixing the oats…But it’s absolutely worth it. The flavour balance is spot-on, between the sweet strawberries and tangy rhubarb.
I will say that I like my cold oats a little looser than this recipe gave me, using 2/3 cup of the strawberry-rhubarb cashew milk…But thankfully I had extra milk leftover, because I only made 3 jars of oats. Likewise, I had leftover compote too, and swirling it into the oats in the morning made it feel extra special. I really recommend keeping a bit of both the milk and compote aside for these reasons.
Also, the strawberry-rhubarb-cashew milk is SO delicious on its own that I think I will whip up more batches as a kind of cold foam to top my iced coffee on a hot day…
delicious recipe, I had mine topped with pomegranate jam!
Any idea how much the 3/4 cup cashews weigh?
Hi Claire! About 105 grams.
-L
Thank you! That’s really helpful as this ticks all my boxes. Cashew milk/creams are a lovely twist but even better with rhubarb as this avoids the issue with calcium from dairy and oxalates.
This looks like the perfect summer breakfast (or snack)! I can’t wait to try it. Do you have any suggestions for if I can’t find rhubarb? Would additional strawberries work or is there a better choice?
I would keep it simple and do extra strawberries! The texture of the milk might be a bit different (not as thick), but it should work all the same.
-L
omg looks so lovely!!! do you think maple could be swapped for dates?
I think dates could work. I’d start with 5 pitted Medjool dates and maybe 1/4 cup extra water in the milk mixture. Taste test for sweetness and go from there! You might need extra water for the compote step as well!
-L