The best way to make overnight oats is with frozen berries.

This is One Thing, a column with tips on how to live. 

I tried Mason-jar meal prepping this year as a New Year’s resolution. Half a year in, I’m back to making lunches one day at a time—mostly because I’m now working from home; partly because half my Mason jars cracked in the freezer. The bit that stuck, though, really stuck. To start each week, I’m still zealously prepping overnight oats.

And, I just have to say: I get it now. I wake up every morning to a short, fat, bougie little Mason jar packed with a completely balanced breakfast that tastes good, feels healthy, costs next to nothing, and takes basically no time to prepare.

I usually prep my oats as I’m putting away my groceries: Into each of six mini Mason jars, I pour about a third-cup of oatmeal, a spoonful of chia seeds, plant milk to cover (water or milk milk also work fine), a couple of spoonfuls of plain yogurt or more plant milk, and a layer of mixed frozen berries. (In other words, all the things nutritionists say you need: complex, slow-release carbs, complex proteins, and a variety of antioxidants.) Then, I screw on the lids and stick them in the fridge. Overnight, alchemy happens, and the mixture becomes a fluffy, cold oatmeal with juicy berries. These premade mixtures stay good in your fridge throughout the week.

Did you read the Curbed article about how expensive it is to be upper-middle-class in New York City these days? Some people, apparently, are spending $75 a month on fresh berries for their toddlers. I’m dead. Frozen berries are cheap! They make overnight oatmeal taste great! They turn it a pretty purple color when you finally stir it up and eat it. Make this for your toddler. A three-pound bag of organic frozen berries from Costco will supply about two-thirds of a toddler’s entire recommended monthly fruit intake; it will cost you all of $10.