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.

quinoa&oatgranola

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.
granola-7.jpg

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sometimes you just need the crunch of a good cookie. On this occasion I was craving something chocolaty but a little healthier than the shop bought sugar-laden variety. The result was this recipe which is free from refined sugar, gluten and dairy but still tastes really good and provides that all important crunch.

Chocolatechipcookie

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 200g ground almonds
  • 1/2 tsp bread soda
  • 1/4 tsp sea-salt
  • 100g dark chocolate chips

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4.
  2. Lay a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. 
  3. Mix together the coconut oil and maple syrup.
  4. Add the egg and vanilla extract, whisk together gently.
  5. Place the ground almonds, bread soda, sea-salt and chocolate chips into a separate mixing bowl.
  6. Pour over the wet ingredients and mix together well.
  7. Scoop small balls of the cookie dough using an ice-cream scoop.
  8. Place these on the prepared baking tray and flatten with the back of a spoon.
  9. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.
  10. Leave to cool on a wire rack before enjoying.

 

 

Banana & Coconut Pancakes

These delicious pancakes are quick to make & weigh in pretty well on the healthy scale. They are gluten, grain and dairy-free.

Ingredients:

  • 3 large bananas, mashed
  • 2 eggs, whisked
  • 3 tbsp desiccated coconut
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Coconut oil, for frying
  • Blood oranges, peeled & sliced
  • Maple syrup, for drizzling

 

Method:

  1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.
  2. Spoon a little coconut oil into a frying pan & heat gently over a low heat.
  3. Once the oil has melted, scoop small ladles of the batter into the pan. Watch the pancakes at this point as they burn easily.
  4. Flip them over once ready. When they are golden and cooked through, serve immediately with sliced blood oranges & a drizzle of maple syrup.