Snickers Overnight Oats (Vegan)

These Snickers overnight oats feature all the classic candy bar flavors, but it is made using much healthier ingredients! This recipe includes rolled oats, chia seeds, dates, peanut butter and dark chocolate. Perfect as a filling breakfast, snack, dessert and also made vegan and gluten-free.

If you love sweet breakfasts or treats, then you will love this Snickers overnight oats recipe.

I make overnight oats multiple times a week with my most regular ones being these easy frozen fruit overnight oats and strawberry overnight oats. But this time I wanted something a little more special and that would feel like eating dessert for breakfast. So I was inspired by my chocolate-covered peanut butter dates to make a new overnight oats recipe!

This vegan overnight oats recipe has all the amazing flavors typical of the popular Snickers chocolate bars, but in a much healthier and wholesome way. It features an ultra-creamy vegan overnight oats mixture, a healthier date caramel that's studded with crunchy peanuts and a dark chocolate topping. 

It makes for a dreamy sweet little jar of goodness you can enjoy for breakfast or even dessert and that you can feel good about. It also makes for a delicious snack after working out. And the best part is that you can make it ahead to be able to simply grab and enjoy whenever you crave a treat!

Hope you like it! ❤️

Highlights of this recipe

• Features the classic flavors and layers from a Snickers chocolate bar, but uses healthier ingredients like oats, dairy-free milk, chia seeds, dates and dark chocolate.
• Perfect make-ahead breakfast or dessert.
• Makes for a yummy and filling post-workout sweet bite and perfect for your kids's afterschool snack cravings.
• Easy to make
• Vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and can be made nut-free

Ingredients you will need

(See below in the recipe card for the measurements)

• Oats: thick rolled oats, also called old-fashioned oats, are best for making overnight oats. You can also use quick oats if that's all you have, but expect a softer consistency with less texture. Instant oats and steel-cut oats do not work for this recipe. If necessary, look for a brand of certified gluten-free oats. 
• Chia seeds: they add a whole lot of nutrition to overnight oats, such as fiber, plant-based protein and healthy fats (omega-3 fatty acids), but also, they add more texture. Can be omitted, see below.
• Non-dairy milk: I used oat milk from Oatly, but any kind of milk will work, such as almond milk (nice nutty flavor), soy milk (higher in protein) and cashew milk (super rich and creamy).
• Peanut butter: included in the overnight oats mixture, it adds an amazing flavor and more protein, too. I prefer smooth peanut butter, but feel-free to use chunky peanut butter to add more texture.
• Medjool dates: dates are so naturally so sweet, they are nature's candy! They are an amazing wholesome ingredient to use when looking for a wholesome caramel sauce. Large soft Medjool dates work better for making a caramel sauce, although other kinds of dates are fine too. 
• Peanuts: I like to include a few roasted peanuts in the caramel sauce to mimic the classic Snickers bars.
• Dark chocolate: I like the vegan chocolate chunks from the brand Enjoy Life.
• Coconut oil: used to make the chocolate topping. You can use refined (no coconut flavor) or unrefined (mild coconut flavor), both work. 

How to make Snickers overnight oats

(See below in the recipe card for the full recipe)

Make the date caramel layer

Pit the dates and transfer them to a tall container (see video). Then, cover them with the boiling water and gently press on the dates to ensure they are all well covered. Let them soak for about 15 minutes.

Then, use an immersion blender to blend them into a smooth mixture. Set aside.

Make the creamy overnight oats mixture

In a glass storage container or jar, combine the rolled oats, chia seeds, plant-based milk and peanut butter. Then, add 1-2 tablespoons of the date caramel to sweeten the mixture to taste and mix well.

Cover and transfer the mixture to the fridge. Allow at least 2-3 hours of resting time, but ideally more than 4 hours (I usually do overnight).

Also, transfer the date caramel to an airtight container, stir in the peanuts, cover well and transfer it to the fridge.

Prepare the chocolate topping

The next day or once the oats are done resting, then you can layer the overnight oats and enjoy (or store for later).

Add the chocolate chips and coconut oil to a small bowl and warm up using the microwave for 60-90 seconds or until mostly melted (some pieces of chocolate still intact are fine). Then, let it sit for another 30-60 seconds and stir until completely melted. It will look like a chocolate sauce at this point.

Assemble and enjoy

Divide the overnight mixture into 3-4 small jars, then garnish with some of the date caramel and finish up by drizzling the melted chocolate over. 

You can decorate with more chopped peanuts and shaved dark chocolate.

You can enjoy it right away or you can place the jars in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes so the chocolate layer sets and hardens slightly.

Helpful tips

• These overnight oats are super sweet, just something to keep in mind. If you are worried it will be too sweet for your taste, then add only a small amount of the date caramel and keep the extra for another recipe (we love it simply spread on toast for breakfast!)
• You can also add some sea salt to the date when making the caramel to balance the sweetness.
• To preserve the crunchiness of the peanuts, then you can add them to the date caramel just before serving.
• If you have a smaller blender or a smoothie blender, then you can use this to blend the dates. I like using a tall container with my immersion blender for smaller volumes since my regular blender's container is quite large. A food processor should work too.

Serving suggestions

Snickers overnight oats are great with lots of "crunch". So, once you garnish the jars with the melted chocolate, you can place them in the fridge, even for a few minutes, to allow the chocolate to set and form a nice crunchy top. Then, you can use your spoon to break the top and dig in!

Add some more crunchy peanuts on top as well. Salted peanuts are great for a yummy sweet and salty combo. 

You can also add more toppings that you like, such as:

• Chopped almonds
• Granola
• Chocolate chips
• Peanut butter
• Coarse or flaky salt over the melted chocolate
• Shredded coconut

Variations

You can easily adapt this recipe to your taste, needs or what's available to you. Here are a few ideas:

• Higher in protein: you can add some protein powder to the overnight oat mixture. I think a chocolate-flavored powder would work best here. Also, a little more peanut butter would add more plant-based protein to your breakfast. One more way I like to boost my overnight oats with more protein is by adding some cooked quinoa to it. I know it sounds odd, but quinoa adds great texture, is pretty much taste-free and brings a whole lot of nutrition. Check out my quinoa overnight oats recipe for more details!
• Creamier: to make the oats even creamier, then feel free to add a spoonful of vanilla-flavored coconut yogurt. Almond butter also makes overnight oats more rich and creamy.
• No chia seeds: you can make overnight oats without chia seeds very easily. Simply omit the seeds and add 2 tablespoons extra of rolled oats. You can also swap for ground flax seeds (they are also packed with omega-3).
• Blended: if you are not a fan of the textured pudding consistency from overnight oats, then you can also blend the oats, milk, chia and peanut butter until creamy, then let it set as recommended.
• No dates: if you do not have the Medjool dates to make the caramel layer, then try out this tahini caramel instead!
• Chocolate: add some raw cacao powder (about ½-1 tablespoon) to the oat mixture for an ultra-chocolatey version! 

Storage tips

This overnight oats recipe stores well for about 3 days once assembled. Simply make sure it is well covered and keep it in the fridge. You can meal prep a few jars ahead of a busy week to enjoy a yummy breakfast treat in the morning.

The chocolate layer will be quite hard and completely solid if kept in the fridge for a little while, so you might want to take it out 20 minutes before enjoying it.

FAQs

Can I make it without a blender?

Yes! Simply use a fork to mash the dates after they are done soaking in the boiling water. This will likely keep a coarse texture with some small pieces of dates still intact, but it will be just as good.

How can I make it nut-free?

To make this recipe nut-free, then swap the peanut butter for pumpkin seed butter or sunflower seed butter. You can also simply omit the roasted peanuts or swap them for seeds, such as pumpkin seeds. 

More overnight oats recipes to try

• Cherry overnight oats
• Vanilla overnight oats
• Chocolate orange overnight oats
• Maple pecan overnight oats
• High-protein vegan overnight oats
• Mango overnight oats
• Pumpkin overnight oats
• Berry cheesecake overnight oats

I hope you like this Snickers overnight oats recipe as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!

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