I’m still recovering from the gastritis associated with my GERD. Eating healthy, very low-fat, and in small, regular portions rather than a set 3 meals per day. It just takes time to get back to feeling “normal” and pain free.
We’re still eating the dhal and rice I cooked a few nights ago. Who would have thought that 3 small potatoes, 2 small carrots and 1 cup of lentils would have made so much food!! This will be our 4th night. Just as well it’s yummy. And it’s very soothing comfort food for an inflamed stomach (as long as you leave out any hot spices like chilli or curry powder).
Lunches have been delightful affairs. Take a small pita bread, warm or toast lightly. Spread with light Philly (cream cheese, 80% reduced fat version). Cover with a small handful of assorted lettuce & salad leaves (I use mignonette, baby spinach & cos). Throw some fresh, chopped basil and lots of parsley on top (I use continental or flat-leaf parsley for its stronger taste). Finally, a few halved kalamata olives. Eat. Enjoy! This tastes so fresh and green!
In spite of the heat (we’re back to days of 39 and higher temperatures again) I opted to do some baking yesterday. I followed the recipe in Nigella Lawson’s book Nigella Express, for Breakfast Bars. It was incredibly easy to throw together and only made a few, slight alterations to the recipe.
Pre-heat the oven to 130C (a very slow oven). Mix together in a very large bowl:
- 250g rolled oats (not the instant oats)
- 75g shredded coconut (I used moist coconut flakes)
- 50g dried cranberries (craisins – available in the dried fruit/baking aisle of Australian supermarkets)
- 50g mixed dried fruit (I use Angas Park’s Dried Fruit Medley)
- 125g mixed seeds (I used pumpkin seeds, sunflower kernels and pine nuts, conveniently packaged together by the “Lucky” brand in Australia.)
- 100g chopped, unsalted macadamia nuts (Nigella’s recipe calls for 125g peanuts but I prefer macadamias and I only had 100g.)
Open a 395g can of condensed milk and pour into saucepan. Warm gently. (I used the “skinny” or reduced fat version of condensed milk. If you read the nutrition label on the cans you’ll see there’s an incredible difference in fat content!)
When the milk is warm, pour over the mixture and stir thoroughly. You want everything coated. Spread the mixture into an oiled rectangular baking tin or use a throw away foil one, 23 x 33 x 4 cm. Bake in slow oven for 1 hour.
I found the top was beginning to crisp a little too much after 45 minutes so covered the top with some foil. Next time I’ll bake covered for the first 20 mins, then uncovered to ensure it turns golden and slightly crisp.
Let the tray cool for 15 minutes, then cut into 16 chunky squares. Let cool completely. Store in airtight container.
I have to say, this recipe is definitely a winner. I have tried a number of differing recipes for muesli and breakfast bars, but this has been the best. And it’s healthy. Although do remember that because of the condensed milk and the dried fruit, the sugar content is high.
Rather than eating these for breakfast, I eat them as a hefty snack. Preferably in two sittings. Each of those 16 bars was a fair size.
I think you could also make “biscuits” (cookies) out of this recipe too if you didn’t want the bother of cutting up slices. I’ll experiment next time I make this. I think it would work out well if I rolled out small balls for biscuits and they’d make a lot more than 16. Cooking times would need to be adjusted.
