Pecan & almond muesli

I always find that museli off the shelf has either too much of one ingredient or not enough of another, so I like to make my own. It’s so easy and way cheaper than buying shop bought; the only effort you have to make is toasting a tray of nuts and seeds then you’re done. This batch will last me absolutely ages for a fraction of the price.

Ingredients

Makes approx 1kg

• 500g oats

• 70g desiccated coconut

• 150g raisins, or any dried fruit you prefer - need to add 120g

• 70g pumpkin seeds, toasted

• 70g sunflower seeds, toasted

• 100g pecans (almonds, hazelnuts or cashews if you prefer), toasted

• 100g flaked almonds, toasted

• 50g flax seeds

• 150g buckwheat flakes, optional

• 50g quinoa flakes, optional

Method

• Preheat the oven to 160ºc.

• Tip the nuts and seeds on to a large tray, spread them out and them place in the oven for about 7 minutes. Keep checking every 2-3 minutes if you put them back in as they can turn very quickly. Put a timer on! My trick is not to put the timer on, get distracted and burn 5 quids worth of nuts!

• Leave the nuts and seeds to cool before adding to a large bowl or tub with the rest of the ingredients.

• Serve with fruit compote, nut butter and slices of banana. It also works well to mix with coconut or Greek yoghurt instead of milk.

Tip

• I added the buckwheat and quinoa flakes to vary the texture a bit, but if you don’t have them it’s not a major problem. The muesli will still be great with just oats.

• But if you want some variation, other alternatives for the base are: wheat, barley or spelt flakes, bran or jumbo oats

Cashew nut butter

Once you've made your own, you'll never go back! I'm a complete convert to making my own nut butters, they're so much smoother, cheaper and tastier. Try them stirred into overnight oats (recipe here), smoothies or even quinoa. Next I'm going to try adding some coconut oil and dates as suggested by Deliciously Ella - sounds utterly amazing!! 

Ingredients

• 2 cups of cashew nuts

• 1 serious food processor

Method

• You'll need a 'proper' food processor like a Magimix, or Heston Sage to make any kind of nut butter as the small ones aren’t powerful enough unfortunately.

• Put all the nuts in the processor and blend for around 4-5 minutes, or until smooth. Cashews don't take very long.

• Store in an air-tight container.

Cashew butter overnight oats with coconut yoghurt & almonds

I discovered a whole new world of breakfast recently when I cut out dairy, wheat & refined sugar. Instead of staggering bleary-eyed to the Alpen every morning, it make me think about alternatives and I ended up discovering loads of new options that I now really enjoy. I love making overnight oats, especially now its summer as porridge is way too hot.

Ingredients

Serves 3-4

• 120g oats

• 375ml almond milk

• 2 tbsp of cashew butter

• 2 tbsp of maple syrup or honey

• 1 tbsp of chia seeds

• Handful of raisins, about 40g

• Pinch of salt

To serve:

• A dollop of natural yogurt, or coconut yogurt)

• Handful of chopped nuts

• Another drizzle of nut butter

Method

• Place the almond milk, nut butter, oats, chia seeds, raisins, maple syrup and salt in a tub that has a lid and mix together well.

• Place the container in the fridge and leave to thicken overnight.