Cold-Soak Yogurt and Granola Bowl
Yogurt powder, oats, and dried fruit soaked overnight in a jar. Breakfast without a stove or a fridge.
- calories
- 610
- weight
- 5 oz
- cal / oz
- 122
- protein
- 20 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 3 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 3 min
- water
- 240 ml cold
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Cold soak
- No cook
- Backpacking
- Thru-hike
- Bikepacking
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Plain yogurt powder | 1/3 cup | sold in bulk bins or online, far cheaper than single cups |
|---|---|---|
| Rolled oats | 1/2 cup | quick oats work, steel cut do not |
| Milk powder | 2 tbsp | adds body and protein |
| Dried fruit | 1/4 cup | raisins, chopped apricot, or freeze-dried berries |
| Brown sugar | 1 tbsp | |
| Salt | a pinch | |
| Sunflower seeds | 2 tbsp | optional, for crunch |
Method
- Pour 240 ml of cold water into the jar with the dry mix already in it.
- Seal and shake for fifteen seconds. Break up any clumps against the jar wall with a spoon.
- Leave it overnight in your pack, or at least 45 minutes if you are eating it the same morning.
- Shake once more before eating. Add a splash of water if it set up thicker than you want.
- In freezing weather keep the jar in your quilt so it does not turn solid.
Yogurt is one of the few high-protein breakfasts that costs almost nothing per serving, and buying it as powder in bulk instead of in cups is what makes it work on trail. Rehydrated yogurt powder is thinner and tangier than the tub version, so the oats and milk powder are here to give it body. The oats soften in cold water on their own; the yogurt powder just makes them taste like something other than wet oats.
This is assembled the night before and eaten cold, which means no stove, no fuel, and no waiting around in the morning. The sugar and salt matter more than they look — without them the tang reads as sour rather than as yogurt. Freeze-dried berries hold their texture better than raisins do, but they cost more and crush in a pack, so pick based on what your food bag is already carrying.
Packing
Measure the dry ingredients into one quart freezer bag per morning at home. Seeds and freeze-dried berries go in last so they stay on top and stay crisp until you pour water in.
Variations
- Stir in instant coffee or cocoa powder for a different flavor and a caffeine hit.
- Swap half the oats for instant potato flakes in cold weather when you want more calories per ounce.
- A spoonful of powdered peanut butter adds protein, but it stops being nut-free.
https://www.cheapskatecook.com/save-money-eat-healthy-with-yogurt