Muesli

What could be more delicious and sustaining than this chewy mixture of raw oats, nuts, and raisins! Pour a little soymilk, fruit juice, rice beverage or other plant "milk" over a bowl of muesli for a quick and easy breakfast or snack. Important: Store muesli in a tight container in your refrigerator.

4 cups raw rolled oats
1 cup raisins
2/3 cup hazelnuts or almonds
Shredded apple or other fresh fruit (optional)

Place almonds or hazelnuts in a food processor and pulse until they are broken into small pieces, leaving a few slightly larger pieces for texture. Remove nuts to a large bowl and place the oats in the processor. Process the oats until they are slightly reduced in size, then add the raisins and reserved nuts. Briefly whiz all ingredients, transfer to an airtight container, and store it in your refrigerator. You may substitute other dried fruits such as chopped dates, chopped apricots, or dried cranberries for the raisins, and add some fresh fruit, such as shredded apple, just before serving. Makes 4-5 cups muesli.

Breakfast Smoothie
Use almost any combination of frozen or unfrozen fruit plus wheat germ and nut butters. Important: Store wheat germ and ground flax seed in your freezer.

1 banana
1 cup of rice beverage, soymilk, OR fruit juice
1 orange, peeled, in chunks
3/4 cup frozen strawberries
2 Tbsp. wheat germ or ground flax seed
1 Tbsp. almond butter

Whiz all ingredients in a blender until smooth and creamy, stopping blender occasionally to push down ingredients with a spatula.

Suggestions for other fruit combinations with or without banana: mango, fresh orange and strawberries; blueberries and raspberries; cantaloupe, orange, and mango; applesauce, seedless grapes, and kiwifruit; blackberries, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 5 pitted, sliced dates; peaches, apricots, and strawberries. Add wheat germ/ground flax seed and nut butter, if desired. For a very cold drink, blend in a couple of ice cubes, or use frozen strawberries.

© Copyright Kay Bushnell