Banana Overnight Oats

Banana bread flavors come together for a nutritious, easy breakfast that’s perfect for busy mornings.

Banana Overnight Oats will remind you of your favorite banana bread.

The struggle is real, my friends. Excel in school. Produce at the office. Care for the family. Show up for a cause. For better or worse, America is a performance society, and it can be tiring. Which is why self-care practices are vital.

This month, I’d like to suggest one simple self-care step is making sure we have breakfast. Now, there are different voices about this but I’m going with science (not current trends) and what Mom taught me. Start the day with breakfast. And for busy people, overnight oats just make sense. Easy to assemble and no cooking required, overnight oats wait for you in the refrigerator until you’re ready to enjoy them. And these Banana Overnight Oats give a banana bread vibe while giving you a shot of morning calcium, fruit, and whole grains.

To make Banana Overnight Oats, which yields 3 servings, you’ll need these ingredients:

• 2 ripe bananas

• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

• 1 cup milk

• ½ cup vanilla Greek yogurt

• 1 teaspoon maple syrup

• ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

• Pinch of kosher salt

• 2 Tablespoons pecans

It’s a fact in my home that there will be one or two uneaten bananas left to go bad in the fruit bowl. Rather than make banana bread, I’m going to make these overnight oats because I always have oats in my pantry.

If you prefer almond milk use that in this recipe. You also can swap walnuts for pecans. Chopped peanuts also would be good.

Directions for Banana Overnight Oats

In a small mixing bowl, mash peeled bananas with a fork. Add remaining ingredients—except for the nuts—and stir until well combined.

Transfer oat mixture to three containers with lids and place in the refrigerator for 8 hours. I like the convenience of individual servings, but if your mixing bowl has an air-tight lid, it’s fine to use that and serve portions in the morning.

After 8 hours, remove oats from the morning and stir. Add milk if the oats are too thick. Top with pecans. Additional topping ideas could include sliced bananas, your favorite nut butter or a small sprinkle of chocolate chips.

Tips from the kitchen

I think most nuts taste better when lightly toasted, so while your morning coffee is brewing, put the pecans in a small skillet over medium heat and heat up until you just start to smell them. Stir occasionally; they can burn quickly. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt. I wouldn’t oppose a drizzle of honey here, either.

And overnight oats will keep for 5 days in sealed containers inside your refrigerator.

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About the blog

Three Women in the Kitchen is an award-winning food blog offering today’s home cooks comforting, hearty recipes with a personal touch. The website also pays tribute to Deborah’s mother, Katie Reinhardt, and paternal grandmother, Dorothy Reinhardt (the “three women” in the kitchen). Whether you’re an experienced or a novice cook, you’ll find inspiration here to feed your families and warm your heart. Subscribe today so you won’t miss a single delicious detail.

White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats

Elevate a childhood favorite with dried tart cherries and white chocolate chips.

White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats

It’s back to school time in my part of the world and the yellow buses are rolling. While my child is now an adult, I still get a little sentimental in late August. I miss shopping for school supplies and making “small snacks” for the ride home.

This waxing sentimental and a still strong obsession with all things cherry (thank you, Wisconsin) combined to make this recipe for you—White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats. Yes, it’s those sticky squares made with marshmallow and puffed rice cereal, but a elevated with the addition of tart dried cherries and white chocolate chips. It’s the perfect way to close out this month’s focus on no-bake desserts, although you will have to heat the stove for this one. By the way, do you love my cherry apron in the above photo? My best find during the Door County vacation.

When was the last time you had a Krispy treat? Yeah, I can’t remember, either. Is there something in our brain that triggers “hands off” when we reach a certain age? Maybe it’s our adult reasoning that warns us about the sugar content! But everything in moderation, right?

Like so many nostalgic recipes, this recipe was developed to market an ingredient. Rice Krispies Treats were invented in 1939 by Kellogg Company employees Malitta Jensen and Mildred Day "in the Kellogg kitchens in Battle Creek, Michigan.” They’re known as Marshmallow Squares in the United Kingdom and in Canada. Down under, they are LCM Bars, although I’m still researching where that name originated.

Anyway, the milk isn’t getting any colder, so let’s head to the kitchen!

To make White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats, which serves 12 people, you’ll need these ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons butter

• 6 cups puffed rice cereal

• 1 (10-ounce) bag marshmallows

• 1 cup white chocolate morsels

• 1 cup dried tart cherries (dried cranberries are a good substitute)

A few ingredients are needed for White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats

Directions for White Chocolate Cherry Krispy Treats

 

In a large stockpot, melt butter over low heat. Be careful that it does not brown. This might take 5 minutes.

Add entire bag of marshmallows and stir frequently until they’ve completely melted. (I dare you not to eat at least one! It’s hard to beat a fresh marshmallow.) Take off heat.

I couldn't resist the urge to bite into one of the marshmallows. So good!

Fold in puffed rice cereal. This mixture will get sticky so recommend using a wooden spoon. Spray with non-stick to make this process easier.

Once cereal is incorporated, fold in about 2/3 each of white chocolate and cherries so there’s a taste of each in every treat square. Turn mixture out into a buttered 9x13-inch pan.

Spray hands with non-stick and press mixture evenly into the pan. Sprinkle remaining white chocolate and cherries on top and gently press into mixture.

Allow to set at least 30 minutes before cutting. Krispy treats will keep for a few days in an air-tight container.

Clean up tip

Soak the stockpot and spoon in sudsy water for at least an hour before trying to clean it! No amount of scrubbing otherwise will clean this sticky beast!

You don’t have to be a kid to enjoy these marshmallow treats; I gave the pan to my daughter to take to a party celebrating a team member who is being transferred and she brought back an empty pan! The sweet marshmallows and white chocolate are balanced by the tart cherries. I think you’d like this combo. Give them a try!

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About the blog

Three Women in the Kitchen is an award-winning food blog offering today’s home cooks comforting, hearty recipes with a personal touch. The website also pays tribute to Deborah’s mother, Katie Reinhardt, and paternal grandmother, Dorothy Reinhardt (the “three women” in the kitchen). Whether you’re an experienced or a novice cook, you’ll find inspiration here to feed your families and warm your heart. Subscribe today so you won’t miss a single delicious detail.

No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie

This easy recipe combines non-dairy topping, cherry gelatin and a graham cracker crust for a delicious, fluffy summer dessert.

No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie

If you need a cool dessert fast, easy No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie is the way to go. With only three ingredients plus a few fresh cherries as garnish, you can have a pretty pie without heating your oven for a late summer cookout, party, or game night.

This no-bake pie has a retro vibe. I’m reminded of the cherry fluff dessert that was the rage 40 or more years ago. If you’ve not heard of cherry fluff, it’s made with 2 cartons of Cool Whip®, 1 can of cherry pie filling, 1 can of pineapple chunks (I’ve also seen crushed pineapple here), 1 can of sweetened condensed milk, and 1 cup of sour cream. Ingredients are combined, spread in a 9x13-inch pan, and sprinkled with some type of chopped nuts (pecans, peanuts are commonly used) and chilled for several hours.

I’m not sure, but I think cherry fluff had to be served at a ladies’ bridge gathering or it wasn’t a party.

No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie is even easier than cherry fluff! You also could use any flavor of Jell-o, but because I recently returned from a fabulous getaway to Door County, Wisconsin, where cherries are plentiful in summer, my flavor profile was easy to choose.

No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie is pretty on a table.

To make Easy No-Bake Cherry Pie, which serves 8 to 10 people, you’ll need these ingredients:

• 1 premade graham cracker crust pie shell

• 1 (3-ounce) carton cherry Jell-o

• 1 (8-ounce) carton Cool Whip, thawed

Just as you could swap any flavor of Jell-o, you could use a chocolate wafer cookie crust here. I had leftover Maria biscuits and used those. If you want to make your own crust, you’ll add ¾ stick of melted butter to the finely crushed cookies or wafers. Mix until well combined and press into a pie pan to chill about 30 minutes before filling.

Directions for No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie

Mix Jell-o into thawed whipped topping until well combined.

Spoon into crust. Smooth top of pie and chill for 4 to 6 hours.

Garnish with fresh cherries and serve. Another pretty way to garnish would be making Reddi-Wip® “roses” around the pie and placing a cherry in each rose.

More pie tips

This sweet dessert is a splurge in calories. In fact, I recommend you don't look at the nutrition info on the recipe card. But look, we don't have to eat fresh fruit all summer for our desserts, right? I think it's a fun end-of-summer treat the family will enjoy.

You can freeze slices of this pie to enjoy later, too. Because our household is small, I didn’t want this in my refrigerator for several days, so I sliced most of it and froze in individual air-tight containers for later.

Give this recipe for No-Bake Cherry Cloud Pie a try. It delivers in presentation and taste with hardly any effort.

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About the blog

Three Women in the Kitchen is an award-winning food blog offering today’s home cooks comforting, hearty recipes with a personal touch. The website also pays tribute to Deborah’s mother, Katie Reinhardt, and paternal grandmother, Dorothy Reinhardt (the “three women” in the kitchen). Whether you’re an experienced or a novice cook, you’ll find inspiration here to feed your families and warm your heart. Subscribe today so you won’t miss a single delicious detail.