Having made this beautiful breakfast recently to feed a crowd of friends staying with us in the country I was reminded of just how sublime the combination of Pear, Blueberry, Cinnamon and the crunchy roasted almonds truly is. I don’t feel like eating porridge much in summer and its not very easy to eat Jumbo Rolled Oats raw – plus they don’t digest as well as when they are soaked or cooked. You don’t have to soak the oats in Apple juice – water or almond milk will do – but I find the apple juice gives them a hint of sweetness and then there is not need to add any honey or maple syrup. I use freshly squeezed apple juice to benefit from the minerals and enzymes contained in it.

When oats are soaked their starches break down which improves digestibility and  more importantly their natural phytic acid is greatly reduced that makes them more easily absorbed by your body. The soaking acts like a long cooking, without destroying any of the nutrients.

There are so many combinations of this style of muesli – have a play and find your favourite…. Apple & raspberry works well too 🙂

Serves 4

200g Jumbo Rolled Oats (NOT porridge oats – you will get a horrible sludge if you do)

375ml fresh apple/pear juice

2 pears, skin left on and grated

125g plain full fat yoghurt (Greek if its a special occasion 🙂

1 1/2 tbsp toasted chopped almonds

80g blueberries

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla powder (or a few drops of extract)

Method:

• Soak the oats overnight in the juice – cover and leave in the fridge.
• Have the toasted chopped almonds ready before you start to prepare the muesli in the morning.
• Mix all the ingredients reserving some blueberries and almonds for garnish.
• Dish up – find a spot in the sun somewhere – close your eyes – take a mouthful – and savour 🙂