Lemon, Thyme and Honey Overnight Oats

You know those dreams where you’re in a lecture theater or classroom, only to discover that it’s the day of your final exam and you haven’t studied? And in some extreme cases, it’s revealed that you’re wearing nothing but your underpants – and since you lack the body of a lingerie model, it’s extremely embarrassing. I have those dreams all the time.

Every time I’m stressed about anything, even if it’s only the tiniest bit, I’ll have hideous dreams. The most extreme case of this was last year when I was studying taxation law at university. I know, I’m very weird for choosing to study tax law. But let’s move on from that for the moment. My lecturer was an absolute jerk who turned a lot of people off tax law – not that he needed to; the subject turns a lot of people off by itself. This lecturer would literally refer to people in the class as “bastards” and continuously reminded us that most students would fail the subject.

After having the fact that I’d fail drilled into my brain, I had horrible dreams before the mid-semester and final exams. In my dreams, I’d show up to the exam having forgotten to study, I’d be accused of cheating, I’d miss the exam altogether, or someone would say, “Time’s up!” when I’d barely started the exam.

But in the end (despite severe sleep difficulties), I actually achieved a very good grade in tax law!

This week was another week of frightening dreams. One thing you wouldn’t know about me is that I recently began working as a debating coach for high school debating. All I had to do this week was conduct some workshops on recent current events (i.e. what people should have seen on the news), and then meet the team I’d start coaching. I didn’t think I was worried about it – after all, speaking in front of people isn’t a fear of mine. Small talk is, but I’m fine with public speaking. Hence why I was part of the debating team all through high school.

But for some reason, this week I dreamed that I’d show up knowing nothing about what was happening in the news and would desperately try to wing-it by simply making up what happened. Then I started dreaming about turning up ridiculously late because I missed the bus and the next one was an hour away. I was wide awake at 3am, only to realize I was yelling “the bus!” in the dark.

Ugh, such ridiculous dreams. I always know what’s happening in the news, and I wasn’t even going to travel to the school via bus.

So you’re probably wondering where I’m going with this (to be honest, I was for a while back there as well). Anyway, the point is that after days of hideous dreams, there’s nothing like relaxing and unwinding with a nice breakfast. Call me crazy, but after nights of waking up saying “the bus” to no-one, each spoonful of this sweet and slightly unconventional breakfast was like a mouthful of heaven. No missed buses, no forgotten news stories – just lemon, thyme and honey.

*Sigh of relief*

This was an idea I’ve borrowed from The Oatmeal Artist. What can I say, Lauren has good ideas! Her recipe was for stove-top Lemon, Thyme and Honey Oatmeal – which sounded amazing (and I suggest you check it out), but I was in the mood for overnight oats. I also had to add in some lemon zest (because lemon zest is amazing), and I omitted the lemon extract (mostly because I don’t have any and are too cheap to go buy some). Also, since my overnight oats already have yogurt and some extra honey, I left out the banana.

The result: I loved it! And to be honest, I wasn’t sure that I would. I knew that lemon and thyme work well together, and lemon and honey work a treat – but all three? And in an overnight oats form? Well, don’t worry, ye of little faith – lemon, thyme and honey is a winning combination.

And while I know mornings can be a frantic rush, I sincerely hope you can take a few moments for yourself to enjoy a delicious (and nutritious) breakfast. Even if you have to eat it on the bus.

Lemon, Thyme and Honey Overnight Oats

 

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Overnight oats are given a fancy twist! Fresh herbs, lemon and honey add an unexpected burst of flavor to these creamy oats.

Recipe type: Overnight Oats

Yield: 1

Ingredients

• ½ cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup Greek-style yogurt
• ⅓ cup milk
• 2 - 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon honey
• Extra honey, to serve

Directions

1. In a bowl or container, mix together the oats, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla extract, yogurt and milk. Remove the thyme leaves from the stems, and mix the leaves into the oatmeal along with the honey.
2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap (or put the lid on the container) and leave in the fridge overnight.
3. In the morning, transfer the overnight oatmeal into a prettier dish if desired. Drizzle over some extra honey and enjoy!

Notes

Yogurt
I used a thick, vanilla-flavored yogurt - although Honey Greek yogurt would be ideal for this recipe. If your yogurt is quite sour, consider adding more honey (or other sweetener).
It's not necessary to use authentic Greek yogurt, but a thick and creamy yogurt is definitely preferred.

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