Orange, Hazelnut + Coconut Bircher Muesli

Breakfast is one of the simplest but most appreciated meals in my day, even though for years now I've essentially been stuck on repeat - whole food muesli with coconut yoghurt, almond milk and berries. (Except for Sundays when it's poachies et al). I really do love this combo. However! Earlier this year I moved in with my fiance and this appears to be bringing about some change. Andrew gets up at 4.45am several mornings a week to cycle (he has a pretty admirable devotion to a strict training routine) and prepares his breakfast the evening before. This habit now appears to be wearing off.. hence this delightful bircher recipe.

Recently I got my hands on a most beautiful recipe book, Everyday by Emma Galloway. Now I'm not a big recipe book user. In fact, I moved house 5 months ago and I gave away most of them because they were gathering dust. There's something about this book though, that has me grubbing up the pages and making recipes on repeat. Its vegetarian and gluten free recipes are super easy to follow, which I suppose accounts for the choice of the name of the book 'Everyday'. 

I'm delighted to be sharing one of Emma's recipes with my community. If you're looking for some kitchen inspiration I honestly can't recommend this book enough. 

This bircher muesli is the perfect make-ahead meal. It is a grain free riff on the original recipe by Swiss physician and pioneer nutritionist, Maximilian Bircher-Benner. With the goodness of coconut yoghurt, protein-rich chia, toasted hazelnuts and orange, it’s packed full of flavour and is super-quick and easy to make. If you’re fine eating dairy, use thick plain yoghurt instead of coconut.

Serves 4

Grain-free | Vegan

Ingredients

250ml (1 cup) plain coconut yoghurt
250ml (1 cup) orange juice (ideally freshly squeezed)
70g (1 cup) shredded coconut
75g (½ cup) almonds, lightly toasted (see NOTE) + roughly chopped
75g (½ cup) hazelnuts, lightly toasted (see NOTE) + roughly chopped
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste/extract
finely grated zest of ½ orange
2 apples, finely grated
orange segments,
extra coconut yoghurt,
sliced apple + toasted nuts, to serve

Optional addition - 4 teaspoons of unflavoured marine collagen.

Method:

Combine coconut yoghurt and orange juice in a bowl. Add shredded coconut, almonds and hazelnuts (reserve a few for the top, if desired), chia seeds, vanilla and orange zest and mix well. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight. To serve, stir through grated apple, spoon into bowls and top with orange segments, extra coconut yoghurt, sliced apple and reserved toasted nuts, if using.

Without the apple added, the bircher muesli will store in the fridge up to 4 days.

Note: To toast nuts, spread onto a tray and cook in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 8–10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Rub the skins off the hazelnuts before roughly chopping.

Extract taken from My Darling Lemon Thyme: Every Day by Emma Galloway, published by HarperCollins. You can purchase a copy here.