Something New

Passion fruit and toasted coconut porridge
I've never tried passion fruit before. As I am trying to focus on food being fun, I was excited to find out its in season now (Ok-so not in season in the UK, but available at the least). Seroisly excited, I WANTED to go food shopping. And not to ensure the right stuff was bought so I wouldn't freak out (I still get a bit panicky about food sometimes, if its out of the ordinary or 'wrong' e.g. peanut butter with added sugar), but to ensure that my passion fruit was remembered!
It's really nice, kinda sweet and sharp and very, very fruity tasting! Such a shame its so expensive-even when in season :/ I decided to stick with something safe for tring it out, a tropical fruit goes with tropical nuts so I added coconut and cashews. After the sucess the other day of toasting seeds, I tried toasting the coconut. Defiantly worth it for me- It made the whole house smell coconutty! My brother wasn't so happy though, I don't know why, its  a sweet, nutty smell.

 Ingreadents
1 tbsp dried coconut
small handuful cashew nuts
1/2 cup oats
1 cup milk
2 small passion fruit

Method

1. Heat up a small frying pan and add the nuts and coconut, stir until the coconut starts to brown and smell toasty-it changes very quickly!
2. Mix the oats, milk and toasted coconut, cashew mix (save some for the top if you like).
3. Chop the passion fruit in half, scoop out the seeds onto the oat mixture.
4. Microwave for 2-3 mins, then enjoy!

You have what for breakfast?

Carrot and Blueberry Porridge

I promise this is not as weird as it sounds! I tell people I have carrot in my porridge and they freak out! I do not get it. Just because its a vegetable doesn't mean its not good in sweet stuff...Hello, carrot cake?! I could understand if I said 'oh yeah I put cabbage in my porridge' but not carrot! I thought combining it with blueberries would be a nice gentle introduction of carrot in porridge.  I topped it off with some ground cashew nuts I had left over. Once stirred in they make the porridge lovely and creamy, for some reason I'm not quite sure of!

 I actually made this a few weeks ago and I also added a few cranberries, because they'd been sitting there for a while and needed using up... OK I lie-I just wanted them. this bowl is about 1/3 of what I started off with. And  I didn't even feel guilty!! :D Trying to remember that now!

As It would feel dishonest of me to blog about something I didn't actually have today, I recreated it this morning. According to my grandmother it looked 'interesting' . I just smiled brightly and offered her some grated carrot...wrinkled nose and a "I'll pass". Hopefully you'll be more adventurous!?



Ingredients:

• 20g ground cashews/almonds or small handful (20g) cashew nuts
• 1/2 carrot
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 cup milk

Method

1. If you want ground cashews, blitz them in a food processor, or with a hand blender (it works if you cover the bowl with a tea towel, else they go everywhere!!) or bash them with a pestle and mortar if you don't have a processor or blender. If you want normal cashews, feel free to chop them up or just chuck 'em in whole! (why not after all?).
2. Wash/peel the carrot, Then Grate.
3. Mix the oats, carrot, milk, blueberries and half of the nuts in a bowl.
4. Sprinkle with the rest of the nut mixture.

Strawberry syrup Porridge

Coconut porridge with hot strawberry sauce

My favorite thing to do with strawberries, is heat them up into a hot sauce, and pour onto yogurt. But since finding out I’m lactose intolerant and allergic to soy  there isn't really a yogurt I can eat right now. So I made a plain (but lovely) oat mix, with coconut and cashews and topped with my hot strawberry sauce. Quite nearly as lovely as with yogurt..

 Recipe

• 1 Handful of strawberries
• ½ cup oats
• ½ cup milk
• 1 tbsp dessicated coconut
• 1 palm full of cashew nuts

Method

1. Chop the strawberries into very small chunks, put in a small cup or bowl
2. Chop the cashew nuts finely
3. Mix the nuts, coconut, oats and milk
4. Put the strawberry mixture and porridge in the microwave for 2 mins.
5. Remove oats and microwave the strawberries for another 30 secs
6. Pour sauce on top of oats
7. Enjoy!



I decided to splash out and have strawberries while I can. My parents leave for a 3 week holiday tomorrow and despite being nearly 18 I have to stay with my grandparents. I don't really mind, i get on very well with them and it means I can look after my grandma. It just through up a few issues for me.
Number one is food. I think over the last month or even two months, I haven't worried about food at all. The odd wobble  (sugar encrusted dried  pineapple...my brain starts to scream "so much sugar, unnatural, colourings, CALORIES" and I just ate it anyway! I felt pretty proud for over coming that. I don't want to go backwards because I know I will have lots of ready made frozen stuff there. (My grandparents do not understand vegetarianism) I think it'll be OK though, as I cant cope with being hungry any more, and I'll just have healthy lunches-but I'm not looking forward to it. They defiantly wont be buying any strawberries, so I had them today, whilst I can still just ask my mum to buy stuff for me!
Number two on a similar point is, I wont have my scales, so for three weeks how will I check I'm not loosing weight? this I know is silly, but its taken me months to put on.
Number three is sleep. Last time I stayed down there, I didn't sleep more than 4 hours per night...and its 3 weeks.
I think that's enough of me admitting my life and silly problems to the world!

A special treat

Chocolate and Raspberry Porridge

 This is my all time Favorite porridge. ever. Its the best! I love raspberries  and they'd be great on their own, but combined with a chunk of  lovely dark and bitter chocolate it makes a completely irresistible bowl. I think the cashew nuts look like white chocolate chips too-which isn't a bad idea, why not double chocolate!
 Raspberries are expensive at the best of times, but right now they are 3 pound a punnet :O. Thank goodness for frozen berries! They work just as well, and once microwaved you don't notice the difference really. Normally I'd have this as a treat, but today there was no special reason-but hats no bad thing, sometimes its good to just treat yourself isn't it?!

Recipe

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 cup milk
• 80g/a handful of raspberries
• cashew nuts/other nut
• 1-2 squares chocolate

Method

1. Gently mix together oats, milk, nuts and raspberries.
2. Microwave for 2-2.5 mins
3. Add the chocolate and microwave for 20 seconds further  ** the chocolate wont melt fully at first, but it will do once you start eating as the oats heat it up.
4. Enjoy!