It doesn’t have to be your birthday to enjoy this sweet breakfast. Deceptively healthy, you’ll love waking up to a jar of birthday cake overnight oats.

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Add a pop of color to your morning with this healthy birthday cake overnight oats recipe

When it comes to birthday cake, it’s a tight race between lemon cake with cream cheese frosting and super moist funfetti cake. 

Growing up dessert was considered an acceptable breakfast. Have leftover cake? Sure, just pour a glass of milk to go with it. Leftover cookies? Absolutely!

But now as a registered dietitian, I have a hard time justifying eating a slice of birthday cake in the morning. Which is why I decided to take the flavors of birthday cake and infuse them into a jar of healthy overnight oats. 

These cake batter-flavored oats are healthy enough for breakfast, but celebratory enough to bring a little pep to your morning! Learn how to make them now!

Why you’ll love this recipe

• High-protein breakfast to keep you nice and full. 
• Just the right amount of sweet.
• Studded with pops of color from sprinkles. 
• Perfect for meal prep.
• Easily adjusted to be more kid-friendly! 

Ingredients Used to Make Birthday Cake Overnight Oats

• Rolled oats: To keep the consistency soft, but still a little chewy, I recommend using traditional rolled oats. However, if you want to go all-in on the batter-like texture, you can use quick-cooking oats. Just know they’ll be more on the mushy side. 
• Chia seeds: Chia seeds are key for making overnight oats nice and thick. Plus they add a serious punch of essential minerals and healthy fats.
• Greek yogurt: I like my oats thick and not overly sweet, so I opt for a 2% unsweetened Greek yogurt. For less thick oats, you can use non-fat Greek yogurt or regular plain yogurt. For sweeter oats, you can use vanilla Greek yogurt instead. 
• Vanilla almond milk: Unsweetened vanilla almond milk is the perfect base to give these oats a cake batter flavor. You can use oat milk too, but I don’t recommend coconut or soy milk as the flavor will be altered. 
• Vanilla & almond extract: Don’t leave either of these out! The combination of these two extracts is essential for that birthday cake flavor. You can buy both vanilla extract and almond extract online. 
• Sprinkles: It’s not a birthday cake without sprinkles. Again, you can buy rainbow sprinkles online. 
• Vanilla protein powder: Vanilla protein powder is needed for the taste and texture of these oats. Plus, it provides a nice boost of protein too. I recommend using SunWarrior Vanilla or Owyn Vanilla for plant-based options. For a whey-based protein, I like Less Naked Whey Vanilla. 

What can I use instead of protein powder?

Whether you’re making these for kiddos or just don’t like protein powder, there are other ways to get both the thick, batter-like texture and sweet flavor:

• Vanilla almond butter.
• Regular almond butter.
• Cashew butter.

I don’t recommend using peanut butter as it’ll way overpower the flavor of the oats. 

Can you heat overnight oats?

I prefer the flavor of cold overnight oats as I find it tastes more cake batter-like straight from the fridge.

However, if you prefer your oats hot, I recommend making the oats the night before but leaving out the yogurt. In the morning, heat them up in the microwave for 1-2 minutes and then top with Greek yogurt. 

Tips for adjusting the consistency of your overnight oats

For full tips on how to make overnight oats, be sure to check out my Ultimate Guide to Making Healthy Overnight Oats.

But briefly, here are some ways to adjust your oats based on personal preference. Note that this recipe is designed to have a thick, cake batter-like consistency.

How to make overnight oats thinner:

• Leave out the Greek yogurt and add a splash or two of more milk.
• Cut the yogurt in half and add 50% more milk.
• Use plain yogurt instead of Greek.
• Skip the chia seeds. 

How to make them even thicker:

• Use a tablespoon or two less milk.
• Leave out the Greek yogurt, but don’t add any extra liquid other than the ½ cup of milk.
• Add extra protein powder or nut butter. 

More healthy birthday cake-flavored recipes to try 

• Fluffy Greek Yogurt Birthday Pancakes
• Funfetti Breakfast Bake from Running with Spoons
• Chia Pudding from Edible Perspective
• Cake Batter Protein Balls from Love and Zest

If you tried this birthday cake overnight oats recipe, or any other recipe on the blog let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment/rating below! Be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook for even more deliciousness!

Print Recipe

Birthday Cake Overnight Oats

It doesn’t have to be your birthday to enjoy these sprinkle-filled overnight oats. Healthy enough for breakfast, but celebratory enough to bring a little pep to your morning!

Prep Time10 mins

Course: Breakfast

Keyword: Birthday Cake Overnight Oats, Healthy overnight oats

Servings: 2

Calories: 407kcal

Author: Kelli

Ingredients

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or oat milk
• ½ cup plain Greek yogurt I used 2% fat
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• ¼ cup vanilla plant-based protein powder Can leave out protein powder and use vanilla almond butter or cashew butter instead.
• ½ tsp almond extract
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon sprinkles

Instructions

• In each jar, place 1/2 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1/4 cup greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon chia seeds, 2 tablespoons vanilla protein powder (or 1-2 tablespoons almond or cashew butter), 1/4 tsp almond extract, and 1/8 tsp vanilla extract. Stir well with a knife.
• Add 1/2 tablespoon of sprinkles to each jar. Option to stir in or leave on top.
• Cover, and place oats in fridge overnight or for up to 5 days. Enjoy cold in the morning, or let the oats come to room temperature.

Notes

Nutrition for 1 serving with Sun Warrior Vanilla Protein Powder:

355 calories, 12 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 41 g carbs, 10 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 22 g protein

 

Nutrition for 1 serving with 1 tablespoon of Almond Butter (no protein powder):

395 calories, 19 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 43 g carbs, 11 g fiber, 7 g sugar, 17 g protein