Blackberry Lemon Overnight Oatmeal Muffins are made with steel-cut overnight oats, whole wheat flour and almond milk, and are bursting with flavour from the lemon and blackberries!
This recipe was originally published in May 2017 and has been updated with new text and photos.
What are overnight oats?
Overnight oats have been a trendy make ahead breakfast for a few years now. If you’re into meal prepping, you’ve probably made your share of overnight oats. They’re simply oats soaked in milk, usually overnight, and topped with fruit, nuts and/or seeds for a quick and easy oatmeal breakfast. You can eat them cold, like in this Mango Avocado Oatmeal Smoothie, or warm them in the microwave for a hot bowl of oats.
What are overnight oatmeal muffins?
Overnight oatmeal muffins are essentially overnight oats with a few extra steps. The overnight oats are the base of the muffin batter, and if you enjoy oatmeal muffins, soaking the oats is a great way to ensure a creamy batter and soft muffin texture.
How do you make overnight oatmeal muffins?
Before you go to bed, just add one cup each of oats and milk to a glass container or jar, cover and let soak until the next morning.
Once the oats have absorbed the milk, you’re good to go. Whisk together the egg, oil, lemon juice, zest and vanilla, stir in the oats, and set aside.
Next, stir together all the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and stir until just combined. Don’t over mix the batter as this may result in tough muffins or cause them to bake unevenly. Fold in the blackberries and bake for 15 minutes.
You can also save yourself a few steps in the morning by preparing the lemon juice and zest the night before, and storing in a container in the fridge. And you can combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda, and salt), and leave covered on the counter.
What kind of oats should I use for overnight muffin batter?
You can use rolled oats or steel-cut oats, just make sure they’re quick cooking. This will ensure the oats are extra mushy, which is perfect for the creamy muffin texture. Quick cooking steel-cut oats will take longer to absorb the milk, so you’ll definitely need to soak them overnight.
If you prefer your muffins with a nuttier texture, you should use steel-cut oats. If you prefer a smoother texture, rolled oats are the way to go. Quick cooking rolled oats will absorb liquid quicker, so if you’re short on time, just use rolled oats and soak them for 30-60 minutes.
What kind of milk works best in overnight oat muffins?
I normally use almond milk, but other types of nut milk work too. Cashew milk will add an even creamier texture. You can also use cow’s milk, if you’re not concerned with these muffins being dairy-free.
For a nut-free option, you can use seed milk. And while I’ve never used coconut milk, I think it would work well too, as long as it is the coconut milk from a carton, not a can.
What substitutions can I make in these overnight oatmeal muffins?
This recipe is versatile, so you can make a number of substitutions based on the ingredients you have available. As mentioned above, you can use different types of oats, as long as they are quick cooking. And nut, seed or cow’s milk will all work well in this recipe.
If you don’t have whole wheat flour or coconut sugar, you can use white flour, and substitute brown sugar or granulated sugar. This recipe would also work well with cane sugar.
While I love the blackberry lemon combination, feel free to substitute any kind of berry – strawberries, blueberries, cranberries, cherries or raspberries, would all be delicious.
Dried fruit is always an option too, especially if your favourite berry is out of season. And for added taste and texture, chocolate chips, seeds and nuts, are a great addition.
If you’re out of eggs, you can use 3 tablespoons of egg whites, or substitute in a flax egg.
Are oatmeal muffins healthy?
When you eat them in moderation, these oatmeal muffins are a healthier snack or breakfast option. Oats are a good source of fibre and help keep you full longer.
These muffins also use coconut sugar, which is less processed than refined sugar, and whole wheat flour, which has more nutrients than white flour. So be careful when you make substitutions such as white flour and brown sugar, as this will add more processed ingredients to the muffins.
Can I make these oatmeal muffins vegan?
As mentioned above, this recipe works well with a flax egg. So if you’re looking to make these muffins vegan, use a flax egg instead of an egg or egg whites. Minimalist Baker has a quick and easy tutorial on How to Make a Flax Egg.
If you make these Blackberry Lemon Overnight Oatmeal Muffins, I would love to hear about it in the comments below. And for other delicious recipes, be sure to follow Crumb Top Baking on Pinterest!
Other Overnight Oatmeal Muffin Recipes you might like:
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Blackberry Lemon Overnight Oatmeal Muffins
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes (plus time for oats to soak)
- Yield: 12
- Category: Breakfast; Snack
- Cuisine: American
Description
Blackberry Lemon Overnight Oatmeal Muffins are made with overnight oats, whole wheat flour and almond milk, and are bursting with lemon and blackberry flavour!
Ingredients
- 1 cup quick cooking steel-cut oats
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Juice and zest from half a lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut (medium desiccated)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup blackberries
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add the oats and almond milk. Stir until combined. Cover and refrigerate overnight to allow the oats to absorb the milk.
- Once the oats are soaked, pre-heat the oven to 425F and grease a 12-cup muffin pan. (or use cupcake liners).
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the egg and oil. Add in the lemon juice, zest and vanilla, along with the oat mixture, and stir until combined.
- In another medium-sized bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda and salt. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir until combined. Do not over mix. Fold in the blackberries.
- Using a cookie scoop, add the muffin batter to the prepared muffin pan. Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the muffins comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container on the counter and enjoy within 2-3 days, or freeze for later enjoyment.
Notes
- You can use rolled oats or steel-cut oats, just make sure they’re quick cooking. Steel-cut oats will take longer to absorb the milk, so be sure to soak them overnight. If you’re short on time, use quick cooking rolled oats and soak for 30-60 minutes.
- Nut, seed or cow’s milk all work well in this recipe. Just keep in mind that if you use cow’s milk, these muffins will not be dairy-free.
- To make these muffins vegan, substitute a flax egg for the egg.
- Don’t over mix the batter as this may result in tough muffins or cause them to bake unevenly.
- To save yourself a few steps in the morning, prepare the lemon juice and zest the night before, and store in a container in the fridge. You can also combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda, and salt), and leave covered on the counter.
So excited to make this! I love oatmeal
Muffins and have so many steel cut oats and lemons- and so many berry options!!! Question though- coconut I do not
Have- will no adding the coconut mess with the texture? Does the recipe need something in its it place? Or is it safe to omit it all together and still follow the recipe as written otherwise? Thanks!
Hi Julie. I’m so glad you’re excited to try these muffins. You can leave out the coconut and there’s no need to replace it with anything. Hope you enjoy them!
These turned out great! We subbed a couple of ingredients to use what was in the fridge. The blackberry & lemon flavour is lovely. We got 9 big muffins out of this recipe. Perfect as a late night snack without being full of sugar, nice and light!
Thanks Helen! I’m so happy you enjoyed the muffins!
It’s like dessert for breakfast! I love everything about these and how simple they are to make.
Thanks Deseree!
This is my kind of recipe!! I think I’ll use almond milk instead of regular milk but I’m loving the ingredients in here! Loving the blackberry and lemon!!! I’m so making these!!
Thanks Amanda. I usually use almond milk as well. Hope you like them!
love how fruity these sound! just found blackberries on sale at the grocery store and i know what i’m doing with them now (;
Yay! Hope you like them Heather! Thanks 🙂
My family would love these oatmeal muffins! The blackberry and lemon work so well together, perfect Springtime recipe.
Thanks Sharon! Lemon works so well with blackberries!
I love the combination of berries and lemon. Never thought overnight oatmeal would turn into something so delicious
Thanks Pearl! Lemon goes perfectly with so many berries!
I had never heard of overnight oat muffins – great idea! And Leanne, these photos are stunning- excellent update on this post!
Thanks so much Terri!
I’m yet to try overnight oats – it’s only the fact that I like a warm breakfast that holds me back. I can definitely see me eating these muffins for breakfast. Oats and berries are a favourite of mine and a great bonus with these muffins is portability too.
I hear ya Marie. Sometimes I warm up my overnight oats in the microwave to get a warm bowl of oats! And yes, the portability of muffins is the reason I love them. So great for a grab and go breakfast!
You know what’s funny? Even though I have a crazy obsession with oats, I have never made overnight oats! But these muffins look 10x better than overnight oats anyways, so maybe I will start with these 😉
Thanks Cathleen! I definitely think you should start with these! 😉
I’m a on massive muffin kick right now and am on a roll with making a different batch each time, using different fruits and such. These are definitely going on my list! So in love with the pairing of blackberry and lemon!
Thank you Dana! The blackberry lemon combo is a favourite of mine. We love muffins in our house, and I’m with you, I like changing up the add ins to make different muffins!
Move over blueberries! I need to make muffins with blackberries! These look so delicious, Leanne! Pinning. Can’t wait to try.
Thanks so much Colleen! Hope you like them!
These worked perfectly last sunday when I had to run around taking kids to sporting practices and games. Thanks for sharing this delicious, simple, and on-the-go recipe.
Thanks Jacquelyn! I love hearing that. So glad they worked out for you!
These muffins look so wonderful. I love oatmeal, and I have wild blackberries that grow in my back yard in summer – so I’m going to hang onto this!
Thanks Jeff! I would love to have blackberries growing in my backyard! Hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we do!
What a terrific idea to do a muffin version of overnight oatmeal! I love oats, fruit and citrus together so these look totally mouthwatering to me! Love that they’re portable too!
Thanks so much Marissa! Portable is a must! Love a stash of snacks in my purse! 😉
I love my overnight oatmeal. Never thought of making the overnight muffins though. This is simply Genius! I have to try these, especially since they can be easily veganized! Thank you for such a great idea and the recipe!
Thanks Nat! I hope you get a chance to try them. They’re my go-to muffin, and so easy to customize by adding different berries!
These look beautiful! How I love that lemon/berry combo in baked goods .
Thanks Kim! Totally agree. Lemon goes perfectly with so many different berries!
These are just lovely! I have never used oatmeal in muffins but I am so willing to try after seeing these beauties. Great breakfast!
Thanks Nicoletta! Appreciate it. Hope you get a chance to try them!