The other week, one of my readers asked me if I could share some healthy and easy vegan breakfast recipes. I then realized that I really needed to post some everyday breakfast dishes on the blog. I mean tofu scramble, pancakes, and banana quinoa bread are awesome, but sometimes we just don’t have enough time for a fancy breakfast. So this might be the perfect time for these super easy vegan chocolate zoats with berries and bananas.
For those of you who are now wondering what zoats are: no it’s not a cool new slang word that kids are using, it’s an abbreviation for zucchini and oats. Zucchini and oats?! This might sound even weirder than zoats, right? Haha! If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you probably know that I love smuggling in some veggies in all kind of dishes.
Beans in brownies and donuts? No Problem!
Zucchini in muffins? Check!
So when I first heard of zoats (it’s pretty popular on Instagram), I just had to give it a try!
It’s made of shredded zucchini, oats, and milk. To make it vegan I usually use almond or oat milk, but other plant-based milks work just as fine. I also added some cacao and chia seeds and topped it with almond butter, coconut flakes, and some more chocolate.
I’m always trying to use as little sugar as possible, so I added a mashed banana to the vegan chocolate zoats instead of sugar. This works great in other desserts as well (for more check out my recipe for gingerbread avocado chocolate mousse). If you want it to be a little bit sweeter, you can also puree the banana together with a couple of dates or stir in a teaspoon of agave.
I just love healthy breakfast bowls like this one. They’re not only super easy to make but also sooo delicious and pretty with all the different colors!
I hope you had a good start into the new year! If you give this vegan and healthy bowl of zoats a try, let me know how you liked it!
As always, I love hearing from you guys and seeing your fabulous pictures on Instragram (don’t forget to tag me with @_veganheaven_ so I can see your creations).
Talk to you soon! xx
Vegan Chocolate Zoats
Ingredients
For the zoats:
- 1/2 cup oats
- 1 cup shredded zucchini I used one medium zucchini
- 1 cup almond or oat milk
- 1 banana, mashed
- 1 tablespoon cacao powder
- 1 teaspoon agave (if using)
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 6 tablespoons plant-based milk
For the topping:
- fresh berries
- kiwi
- banana
- coconut flakes
- almond butter
- dark chocolate, chopped
Instructions
- Put the chia seeds in a small bowl and stir in 6 tablespoons of plant-based milk. Allow to thicken while you make the rest of the zoats.
- Place the oats, the shredded zucchini, and the almond or oat milk in a small pot and cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat.
- Then stir in the mashed banana, the cacao, the soaked chia seeds, and if using the agave.
- Put in two bowls and top it off with fresh berries (I used blueberries and raspberries), bananas, kiwi, almond butter, coconut flakes, and chopped dark chocolate.
Delicious and filling!!!
First time making zoats and used this recipe. Added in some chocolate protein powder and topped with blueberries and pistachios. Will definitely be on my regular meal prep from now on!
Can these be made as overnight oats? I like to make mine ahead. This sounds delicious!
Hi Melinda, Thanks! So glad you like it. :-) Oh, absolutely no problem. Just make everything the night before and put it in the fridge. But you should probably still heat it up in the morning for like two or three minutes.
Oh beauty! I absolutely love zucchini & chocolate together, even in smoothies, etc. Haven’t tried it in oats, but that sounds pretty genius. Will have to try! ♥
Interesting!! I never thought of eating zucchini for breakfast but this looks actually pretty legit!
Thanks, Howie! Glad you like it. :-)
Yum! Oats are one of my favorite breakfasts and I’m all for sneaking veggies in anywhere I can! And of course you can’t go wrong with chocolate! Definitely going to try this one!
Thanks, Melissa! :-) I love oats too. I usually have overnight oats with chia seeds, but this is great as well! And it’s so easy to smuggle in the zucchini.