Rushing out the door to leave in time to make it to school at 9:00 AM often leaves many Paly students scrambling to their classes on an empty stomach. It’s easy to label breakfast as unimportant or skippable, but — as many doctors have commonly told us — breakfast is the most important way to start your day off right.

However, we also resonate with the many students who would rather swap out breakfast for an extra ten minutes of sleep. For this reason, we found the most delicious and filling on-the-go breakfast that can be made the night before in five minutes: overnight strawberry matcha chia pudding!

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour+, or overnight

Ingredients for 2 servings:

1.5 cups milk of your choice (we used oat milk!)

0.5 cups chia seeds

0.5 teaspoon matcha pudding

0.25 teaspoon vanilla extract 

maple syrup, to taste

2 cups strawberries, chopped

Step 1:

Add milk, matcha pudding, vanilla extract, and maple syrup to a mason jar. We would recommend either sifting the matcha or mixing vigorously to get rid of any clumps.

Step 2: 

Then, add chia seeds to the mason jar and mix until fully combined. Set aside in the fridge for the chia seeds to expand for at least 45-60 minutes, or overnight. The chia pudding should be thicker by the morning time.

Step 3:

Chop strawberries into little squares to add as a topping. You can do this step the night before and store in a container, or cut up a few strawberries in the morning to add as a fresh topping.

Step 4: 

Add strawberries to the ready-made chia pudding in the morning, and have a wonderful day at school!

Dylan and Talia’s tip: add granola from Trader Joe’s for an extra bit of fiber.

Recipes like these that are quick, easy, and can be prepared the night before really makes a huge difference in how student’s feel in class and throughout the day. As school ramps up, it is essential to fuel ourselves and get in the habit of keeping ourselves healthy. Happy cooking!