All of these warm spring mornings have brought back my cravings for no-cook parfaits. Parfaits are one of my favourite summer foods because they are virtually effortless, don’t require a stove, and are different every time I make them.
Lately, I’ve been enjoying this breakfast quite a bit and it only dawned on me recently that maybe I should share it with you. Ok, well I knew I wanted to share it with you, but my real problem was stopping myself from inhaling it before I could snap some pictures! It was nothing short of a miracle that I restrained myself enough this morning to snap a few pics.
At night, I soak raw buckwheat groats in water separately from the chia seed, almond milk, and banana mixture. I did this because buckwheat groats get super slimy when soaked and I wanted to be able to rinse them very well before adding them to my breakfast. Soaking also makes it more digestible, but be sure to really chew the buckwheat. It’s easy to just swallow it down and then it doesn’t digest well, if you catch my drift.
After rinsing the buckwheat in the morning, I stirred it into my chia mixture. The soaked buckwheat remains crunchy and gives the overnight mixture a completely different texture than regular overnight oats. Mind you, it’s not crunchy in a break-your-tooth kinda way, but crunchy-soft if that makes any sense.
If you want, you can throw your toppings on and enjoy it in a bowl or you can layer it into a parfait like I did this morning. Whatever floats your boat!
In today’s parfait:
- overnight buckwheat mixture
- blueberries
- strawberries
- sliced banana
- crumbled up Rustic Banana Oat Cake (made it yesterday and thought it would be nice in here…it was!)
- cashew nut butter
- Strawberry nut cream
- Maple syrup drizzled on top
I tried hard to make my layers pretty for the camera. :)
Other things you can add into your own parfait:
- granola
- crumbled up muffins/loaves
- crumbled up granola bars
- nuts/seeds
- nut or seed butter
- apple/pumpkin butter
- dried fruit
- shredded coconut
- other fresh fruits
- smoothies
- banana soft serve
- carob powder
- mini dark chocolate chips
- homemade chocolate sauce
- chocolate avocado pudding
- protein powder
- etc
Easy Overnight Buckwheat Parfait
Yield
1 serving
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Similar to vegan overnight oats, but with a fun, crunchy texture. Roll out of bed and enjoy this no-cook parfait all summer long with barely any effort at all. Buckwheat and chia seeds are both high in protein and fibre and chia seeds contain all kinds of healthy omega fats. Add in some fruit and you have yourself a well-balanced breakfast.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup raw buckwheat groats (I buy them at Upaya Naturals and Whole Foods bulk bin), soaked in water overnight
- 3/4 cup almond milk (I used 1 cup, but it was a bit too liquid-y)
- 2 tbsp chia seeds (no subs)
- 1 ripe large banana (mash half, chop other half)
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon and vanilla extract, optional
- rolled oats (optional)
Directions
- Add the buckwheat groats into a bowl and cover with water. Stir. Place in the fridge overnight, or for at least a few hours, uncovered is fine.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the chia seeds, almond milk, banana, and optional cinnamon and vanilla. Whisk well until no chia clumps remain. Place in fridge overnight, uncovered is fine.
- In the morning, rinse the buckwheat with cold water in a strainer until no slimy bits remain. Add rinsed and strained buckwheat into the chia mixture and stir well. Top with your desired toppings or make a parfait. Just before serving, drizzle a small amount of pure maple syrup on top to bring it all together.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Feel free to make this into a breakfast, snack, or even jazz it up for dessert.
Then grab a spoon and dig in!
Ok, so maybe I couldn’t wait after all…
For other no-cook summer breakfast recipes, check out my Raw Buckwheat breakfast Porridge (a big batch made in the processor), easy vegan overnight oats, and VOO Parfaits.
Happy breakfast!
Crunchy-soft, that explains buckwheat! I think the worst thing was when I thought roasted buckwheat was the same as regular/raw buckwheat. I made a big bowl of porridge and it was horrendous! Never again.
I love that you’ve been using a gluten-free grain in your overnight parfaits. I’ve tried time and time again to eat oats and I react no matter what. So frustrating because oats are just so darn tasty.
I love the texture in all the layers. A party in the piehole! (Or I guess parfait hole?) I’m disturbed…is it the weekend yet? :)
That looks soooooo good – you just made me hungry! I have to get back to WF and check out the bulk bin – it was empty of buckwheat groats when I went last week :(
You can probably blame me for that one…hah.
Haha…..I will just have to check back often not that I need an excuse ;)
I can give you some on Saturday if you want!
I might just take you up on that. Thanks!
There you go again…. Making me hungry!
Love parfaits! I never thought to use overnight oats as part of one but I love that idea!!
Ooh I love that tall glass photo! My stomach is grumbling out of control right now. Haven’t had buckwheat in far too long but I think I’ll get some when I’m at Bulk Barn this weekend. Thanks for the great idea Ange! Had I been in your house this morning, there’s no way you’d have been able to snap any pics of this before it ended up in my belly lol!
Does BB carry buckwheat groats now?
Yep, mine does! They seem to come and go though.
Oooh, nice! I love all your poridge/oat/parfait/breakfasts! Such good ideas! :)
“Ok, well I knew I wanted to share it with you, but my real problem was stopping myself from inhaling it before I could snap some pictures!”
This happens to me all the time!
I always say that breakfast is the hardest thing to blog about!
Thanks Angela! I’ve had issues with overnight oats because I don’t like the kind of lack of texture, but this sounds absolutely perfect. Will try for sure!
It’s fun to make one with an equal portion of rolled oats & buckwheat….then you have the best of both worlds: creaminess from the oats and crunch from the buckwheat. :)
The colors are so fresh and beautiful, this is one great summer brekfast!
I love buckwheat! This looks like an awesome departure from my steel cut oatmeal routine.
I’m sure it will taste just as awesome slightly heated on the stove in the morning. I like my oatmeal/porridge warm in the morning, what can I say? I’ll give both treatments a try!
That looks delicious! Trying it tonight for tomorrow!
This is such a fabulous breakfast! Yum!
happy breakfast indeed! that looks delicious! i love buckwheat, but have never had it like this before! thanks for sharing!
Looks delicious!!! These really are great for summer :D
Think I finally have my excuse to try Buckwheat!
Ugh, your Rustic Banana Oat Cake is my FAVORITE recipe from the blog. To eat in a VOO would be heaven. Thanks for the idea!
i’m really intrigued to try this…I have a huge bag of raw buckwehat but always grind it into flour. I’ve never thought to use it as groats!
Yum! This is my favorite breakfast- filled with lots of nutritious mineral and vitamin rich foods
Can you use steel cut oats??
Crunchy-soft..yes! And those berries are gorgeous. I want to just cherry pick those right off the top :)
Hi Angela,
This looks really good! My husband and I have had your buckwheat porridge recipe multiple times and we both love it! Do you ever cook it? I was thinking of putting it in a pot the night before, bringing it to a boil, and then shutting it off and letting it sit that way overnight. I just thought it might soften it even more…let me know if you have any insight. Thanks!
I’ll definitely be trying this out this weekend!
I seriously just bought buckwheat for the first time so I’m glad to have something to do with it! I love me some parfaits, and overnight stuff makes life so much easier – I can think and prepare recipes much better at night when I’m wide awake than first thing in the morning ;).
Ooh I have been wanting to try buckwheat for awhile now, looks like this may be the recipe to get me to try it! It looks sooo good, especially the parfait! Yum!!!
I love doing these with barley. I’ll have to try buckwheat next. I like to mix in some almond flour or crushed hazelnuts with a pinch of cardamom and orange zest.
Yum – LOVE all the variations on vegan overnight oats I’ve been seeing! I love that they’re portable, too! Fresh blueberries and bananas for me :)
I would TOTALLY get up in the morning for one of those!!! :D
I could never do overnight oats, but I like the idea of trying it with something with a little more texture. Thanks!
Looks great, Ange. Have you ever tried to dehydrate the soaked buckwheat? I’ve done that and it is perfect for chia breakfasts! They become super crunchy and totally unlike the cooked stuff, and perfect because no need to soak!
Wow! it’s yummy.Thanks for these tips on how to prepare it. I love to try this also.
This looks amazing, I don’t blame you for eating it before taking photo’s. It must have taken some serious self control!
Thanks for sharing x
Who wouldn’t want to wake up to that? It looks AMAZING and SO healthy.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Berries are so gorgeous and delicious this time of year!
I really need to start switching up my breakfasts because these look absolutely delicious!
Hmm–I’ve heard a lot about overnight oats and even chia seeds, but never buckwheat! Will have to give it a try–probably with some of the new & exciting summer fruit. :)
That looks so amazing! I love how vibrant those berries look!
Looks wonderful!! so cheery for the morning :) I’ve been experimenting with oat groats and have to try buckwheat groats now!
Amazing, something I can eat all day every day for eternity. :-)
I just recently discovered overnight oats, and they have quickly become a favorite. I also love buckwheat groats, so I know I’m going to love this breakfast! I make something similar to this and it’s really good – I like to soak buckwheat groats overnight and put them on top of a bowl of popped amaranth with some fruit and almond milk in the morning.
I’m going to try this….it looks really good. And strawberry season is here…perfect!!
So i can use whatever floats my groat? get it? hahaha…..yea…i’m cheesy…. the non dairy kind of course…okay…i’m stopping now….
I’ve had oatmeal for breakfast every day for the past 4 weeks… so I think it’s way past time for a change! Thank goodness I can always count on you for some awesome breakfast recipes. ;)
Ooh, yummy. Oatmeal parfaits sound delicious, too. What a good idea!
That’s a perfect-looking dessert! I’ve never had buckwheat, does it have a strong aftertaste than oats?
Yummm!!!! This looks so perfect for the weekend, dessert for breakfast!
I love how versatile breakfast parfaits are. I never had buckwheat oats before, I’ll have to try it. Thank you fro a great recipe!
your food photography is awesome! that parfait looks so refreshing!
I made this last night for this morning. It was really good! I think it will become a regular summer breakfast! And I think the word to describe the texture of the soaked buckwheat is al dente.
I still have yet to try overnight oats, but I love this buckwheat idea. Your parfait looks so, so good. I cannot wait to try this – thanks for the recipe :)
I like this alternative to oats. I have never tried buckwheat but it has been on my to-do list!
i just bought buckwheat groats for the first time and put this together last night, expecting it to be hot out this morning. it was cold and dark though, but i wanted to try this so i just heated it up on the stove top and it was delicious! i love the texture. i topped it with a little granola, can’t wait to try it layered with yogurt and berries for a cool parfait. thanks for the recipe, i’ve been turned onto buckwheat groats :)