NUTTY BREAKFAST

In foodie news - for this week I am bircher-ing/oatmealing it up. Breakfast is my happy place. The thought of coffee (bottomless would be preferable), reading the paper and a big bowl of nuts, fruit, carbs et al makes me unbelievably happy. What is it about breakfast that is so magical? Mornings are about opportunity, in my opinion. Unless of course it is a Sunday morning and it’s filled with remembering the horrors of the previous debaucherous night. A great friend of mine and I have started a new tradition where we meet every Wednesday morning for breakfast at one of Wellington’s fabulous culinary outlets. It’s like having one-up on a Wednesday. Perhaps this is a new era where I might even “exercise” in the mornings. I doubt it. #NewYearNewYou But nevertheless here is my oatmeal-bircher-esque recipe that makes me purrrrrr.

Ingredients:

¼ C rolled oats

½ C boiling water

⅛ C buckwheat

2 T LSA (linseed, almonds, sunflower seeds crushed)

Chia seeds, yes, I’m not part of the quinoa/kale brigade but chia seeds are da bomb and hey, it’s always good to try what the devil eats, right?

handful of sultanas, or a dollop of honey - you need something to fill the brown sugar void, in my opinion

NUTS all of the NUTS (strangely, speaking of hangovers I found my list of 2015 resolutions, which included “fewer nuts” - they are the best hangover cure, in my opinion but man, I tend to over do it).

Diced fruits - from frozen berries, to kiwifruit, go for it!

Milk if necessary.

All you need to do is cook the rolled oats. I tend to add the boiling water and biff it in the microwave for about a minute. Thereafter add all of the other ingredients and voila.

NOT ANOTHER BLOODY POLENTA CAKE

Yes, I know, I’m one of those drongos who has “waves” of being into things – whether that be sequins, wayfarers, almond croissants, all things Scandinavian and apparently, cakes including polenta. So my friend asked me to make her a cake for her work-do. Sure, me being the bloody muggans said yes. Perfect for the blog, I said (secretly)! Every Wednesday a group of my friends play croquet, drink in hand, for what we like to call “Whack it Wednesday”. Euphemisms are unintended. It was after this week’s #WhackItWednesday that I realised while stumbling home (on a school night) that I had forgotten to prioritise my cake-making. In a wave of hysteria I rushed to the supermarket and purchased oranges, walnuts, carrots and cream cheese. New trend alert! I mean how can you possibly go wrong with sweet, sour and tart – thanks to the cream cheese? 

Speaking of trends there’s definitely a “cake of the moment” that’s dominating the likes of instagram. Think gluten-and-dairy-free, ethereal dried flowers, powdered plum ornamentation and pistachios. What’s more, the aesthetic of this #ontrend cake is “slightly disheveled but equally put together” in other words, “shabby chic”. So here’s my take on the trend, in an easy – let’s-put-in-as-little-effort-as-humanly-possible kind of way. 

Ingredients:

About 200g of butter

4T olive oil

1 C sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

4 eggs

Handful of cut-up walnuts

1 ½ tsp baking powder

3/4C polenta

2 big carrots, finely grated

3 oranges, the zest of 2, the juice of all 3.

Tub of cream cheese

Up to 2 C of icing sugar

Dried flowers for decoration

Combine the sugar, oil and butter and whisk the heck out of it until fluffy. Add the eggs and beat, beat, beat. Add the vanilla, baking powder, polenta. Finally add the carrots, walnuts and orange zest and juice. Mix the heck out of it. By this point all the scents will be getting to you. Grease the heck out of a baking tin. Seriously, because this is a dense-healthy-ish cake, it’s inclined to be inordinately attached to its partner in crime, namely the tin. I’m losing my mind with all the aroma. So many innuendos with this recipe! Okay, biff the mixture into the oven 160 degrees Celsius for about 30 – 40 minutes. Leave to cool once it’s out of the oven. Now for the icing. Combine the cream cheese and icing sugar. If it tastes/feels/looks a bit “meh” add a bit of butter or orange zest. I tend to overdo it on the vanilla so I’m not going to suggest you add more. Once the cake is ready to be iced, gloop on as much icing as possible. The more, the better, I say. Huzzah!