Bircher Muesli/ Overnight Oats

I tried making Bircher Muesli a few times, however it’s traditionally made with a squeeze of lemon and apple juice; something I personally find too tangey (... I have an English Literature degree... can you tell?). I experimented with all sorts of methods; grating an apple into the oats, sweetening the mix with copious amounts of honey, but I still didn’t like it. So instead I thought I would try overnight oats, but most recipes require the use of chia seeds if you want a dairy free option and I find that they just don’t provide the creamy texture I'm after.

So I tried again. I stopped being all fancy and went for a much, much more simple method. I upped the oat content and lowered the almond milk measure them left the concoction to soak in a jar overnight. The Bircher/ overnight oat concoction was just the right amount of creamy and not too sour or too sweet – perfect. And so this time Goldilocks got her overnight porridge just right.

Ingredients: {serves 1}

½ cup of oats

2/3 cup of almond milk

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Method:

Mix the ingredients well and store in an airtight jar or container overnight. In the morning pour into a bowl (adding a little more almond milk if desired) and serve with a drizzle of honey and fresh fruit!

Baked Porridge

I love baked porridge! It just adds a whole new dimension to your morning oats. As the title suggests it means cooking your oatmeal in the oven rather than using the conventional stove method. The result is something much more sweet and gooey. It is also a really simple receipe, which is always a bonus! Long story short this is amazing, I suggest you try it... porridge for dinner?

Ingredients: {serves 1}

½ cup of oats

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup almond milk

1 banana

1 tsp of vanilla extract

A few strawberries (optional)

Method:

Begin by pre-heating the oven to 180 degrees.

Combine the oats and baking powder in a mixing bowl.

Mash ¾ of the banana and add to the dry mixture along with the almond milk and vanilla. Mix well.

Lightly grease a baking dish with a little oil (I like to use coconut oil for this) and then pour the mixture into the dish.

Slice the remaining banana (and strawberries if including these) and arrange on top.

Pop in the oven for half an hour.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes (it will be super hot!) Top with honey, peanut butter, fresh fruit... and enjoy!

Baked Sweet Potato topped with an Avocado-Veggie Mix

Sweet potato is the bomb. I mean seriously. Have you ever baked one because if you haven't I am pretty sure you want to stop what you are doing and do it right now. Like. Right. Now.

I think one of the best things about baked sweet potato, aside from it's great health benefits, is that if you bake it for long enough it caramilises. And when topped with avocado it is one of the most delicious things ever. So I thought I would share the recipe for my favourite lunch - baked sweet potato topped with an avocado-veggie mix. This is gooey, healthy and most importantly tastes amazing. You have to try this because I promise you you won't regret it.

Ingredients: {serves 2}

2 medium sized sweet potatoes

1 avocado

1 red bell pepper

8 cherry tomatoes

40g (half a small tin) of sweetcorn

2 large handfuls of spinach

Greek yogurt to serve

Method:

Begin by pre-heating the oven to 180 degrees. 

Place a metal skewer through each sweet potato (if you don't have skewers you can pierce each with a knife a few times) and cook for one and half hours. 

With about fifteen minutes cooking time remaining make the avocado-veggie topping. Begin by removing the stem of the pepper and slicing into small chunks, and quartering the cherry tomatoes. Place these into a bowl. Cut the avocado in half, remove the stone and scoop out the flesh. Slice this into chunks and then mash well with a fork. Add this to the bowl with the pepper and tomatoes and mix well. Drain the sweet corn and add 40g (half the can) to the mixture and mix again. 

Once the sweet potatoes are ready (they should be very squidgy, soft the whole way through and caramilsing where they have been pierced) remove them from the oven and serve! Place each potato on a plate and slice in half. Put a handful of spinach and half of the avocado mixture on each. Finish them with a dollop of Greek yogurt. 

These are delicious, I really hope you love them!