Rhubarb & Oat Crumble

Crumble is a great dessert to feed a crowd. I like to make mine with an oat & almond crumble topping and vary the fruit to whatever is in season. Rhubarb is one of my favourite versions, I've thrown a handful of strawberries into this one too for good measure and perfect for this time of year when strawberry and rhubarb are in season for a short while. Enjoy it as it is or maybe with a little cream or coconut cream for those with dairy intolerances, you could also sub the butter in the topping for coconut oil.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 900g rhubarb, trimmed and chopped into small chunks
• 2 oranges, juiced
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 handful strawberries, hulled and quartered

Oat & almond topping:

• 175g rolled oats
• 100g ground almonds
• 2 tbsp coconut sugar
• 125g butter, melted

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4.
2. Place the rhubarb into a ceramic ovenproof dish with the orange juice and vanilla extract. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile to prepare the topping mix the oats, ground almonds and coconut sugar together in a bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir to combine.
4. Remove the rhubarb from the oven and stir through the sliced strawberries. Scatter the oat topping over the top of the rhubarb, then place in the oven and bake for 25 minutes or until lightly golden on top.

Quinoa & Oat Granola

Now that the weather is a little more mild my attention has shifted from warm bowls of porridge to lighter bowls of goodness, containing grains, fruit and yoghurt. I love experimenting with different combinations of grains, seeds, nuts and dried fruit to make the kind of granola which is tailored to your own taste buds. It's also an amazing way of using up all those random nut and seed packets you might have sitting in your cupboards. The recipe below is more of a guideline to show you what I used for depending on what was in my cupboards but feel free to use whatever is in yours and put your own stamp on it.

Ingredients:

• 100g quinoa flakes
• 200g rolled oats
• 100g cashew nuts
• 75g sunflower seeds
• 50g desiccated coconut
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 4 tbsp coconut oil
• 3 tbsp honey
• 125g raisins

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and line a baking tray with a sheet of baking paper.
2. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the quinoa flakes, oats, cashew nuts, sunflower seeds, desiccated coconut and ground cinnamon. 
3. Melt the coconut oil and honey together in a small saucepan over a low heat.
4. Pour the melted ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
5. Tip the mix onto the prepared baking tray and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden.
6. Leave to cool, then lastly stir in the raisins. Ready to serve however you wish, perhaps with some sliced fresh fruit and yoghurt or a splash of nut milk.