I sort of have this thing for dootying up overnight oats. Pumpkin cheesecake overnight oats? Yes… yes, please. Tiramisu overnight oats? Where have you been all my life?
And I refuse to stop there… because Dubai chocolate overnight oats.
OK, take the sheer viral-ness out of the concept, and what do we have? Pistachio-spiked overnight oats, topped with a layer of crispy-crunchy chocolate. What about this could possibly be wrong?
In fact, there is so very much right about this recipe, and it’s really such fun that I think you have to try it. I don’t live in a viral city, so kadayif is pretty hard for me to find. Instead, I hacked the texture for accessibility and ease by using… shredded wheat.
I was shocked that it retained its texture and crisp so well and think we might be on to something here, when you can’t access kadayif. But it makes this recipe that much simpler, with the pistachio butter being only ingredient that you may not have on hand. You can order some or you can make it! Let the blender do here thing, and look at you, basically a 3-star Michelin chef now with your house-made pistachio butter.
Do I need to use protein powder? Absolutely not, and frankly, I sort of prefer it without the protein powder. It absolutely works with a lovely scoop of vanilla protein powder, but you can go au naturale, too. If you do want to use it for that nice hit of protein in the A.M., make sure it’s a good-quality powder so it enhances the taste… instead of delivering that sickly sweet artificial taste that some can impart.
Dubai Chocolate Overnight Oats
Makes 2 servings
1 ½ cups rolled oats
2 scoops vanilla protein powder, optional
1 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk, or pistachio milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tsp. chia seeds
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
2 Tbsp. pistachio butter
Pinch of salt
Chocolate topping
¼ cup chocolate chips
2 Tbsp. shredded wheat cereal, broken gently
2 tsp. liquid oil like avocado, vegetable oil, light olive oil, etc. (Not coconut oil; it will be too hard to crack)
2 tbsp pistachios roughly chopped, for garnish, optional
Make overnight oats: Stir all ingredients together. Spoon into serving containers and refrigerate while you make the kadayif topping.
Make kadayif topping: Combine chocolate chips and oil in a medium, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, then stir very well. Repeat, microwaving in 30-second bursts and stirring very well after each burst, until mixture is completely smooth. Gently fold in lightly broken shredded wheat and coat in chocolate. Spread over chilled overnight oats, then sprinkle with chopped pistachios for garnish. Refrigerate overnight.