We Love Cooking!:
oats

I am still playing catch up with all the photos from the last few weeks, so you will have to excuse me if my timeline is slightly skewed! We were in Sweden to celebrate Sofie's grandad's 80th and on the day of his birthday, we all rented snow mobiles and went on a guided snow mobile safari through an amazing snow covered forest. We drove to this little cabin in the woods which had a blazing fire going and we were given sticks to cook hot dogs on!

I had made a chocolate fudge birthday cake and after everyone had had a slice and we had sung happy birthday in both English and Swedish we were ushered into a changing room to get ready for an outdoor hot bath. Everyone sat in a massive indoor sauna to get really hot and then when I was adequately cooked I was sent out to tip toe across the freezing wooden floor to jump into a massive wooden bath filled with water at 42 degrees! Not being used to any of this my weak Irish body was ready for a serious lie down after but when were done, I was hoisting myself back up on the snow mobile for the journey back!

One of Sweden's big things in my experience is that they love their dairy products, and cheese is served at breakfast on a daily basis, so it can get a little heavy going. Plus I'm more a porridge with honey and cinnamon type of guy when it comes to breakfast, so I did bake these little muffins to keep myself going. They went down well with the Swedes too! :)

Big Boy Apple Breakfast Muffins
I made these lovely muffins when we were in Sweden skiing. They are like a whole breakfast in one muffin, with everything you could need, porridge oats, raisins, apple and yoghurt oh my! To make the cool paper cases in the photos, cut squares of parchment paper, wrap them around a tumbler glass and tie them tightly with some kitchen string. Then simply remove the glass and your left with really cool homemade paper cases!

Makes 12-16 muffins
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
150g of flour
150g of rolled oats
4 eggs
125ml of natural yoghurt
240g of honey
4 apples, cored, peeled and chopped in small chunks
110g of raisins
A few slices of apple and a sprinkle of brown sugar to top the muffins

Preheat the oven to 190oC/Gas Mark 5. Place baking cases on a baking tray.
Sift the flour, baking powder, ginger and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl and stir through the rolled oats.
Mix the natural yoghurt and honey in a large measuring jug until combined. Separate the eggs, placing the whites in a large steel bowl and the yolks in with the yoghurt and honey.
Make a well in to the oats and flour bowl and pour the yoghurt, honey and egg mix and raisin and apple chunks in. Using a wooden spoon mix gently until everything is combined.
Using a whisk, beat the egg whites until soft white peaks form, then gently tip this in to the muffin mix and fold through gently until it is evenly incorporated.
Spoon heaped tablespoons of the mix into the paper cases and place a slice of apple and a sprinkle of brown sugar on top. Place in the oven to bake for around 25 minutes.

All this week I will be out and about promoting the book, and this morning I am on Limerick's Live95FM. They asked me to pick out my favourite breakfast recipe from the book for their breakfast show so I had to go with my all time favourtie breakfast muffins! But these aren't any regular light and empty muffins, these babies packed full of chunky oats, bursting blueberries and bananas to keep you on the move!

Blueberry and Banana Breakfast Muffins

Healthy muffins are perfect for a quick breakfast on the go. These blueberry and banana muffins are packed
with healthy ingredients, which will keep you going for any busy morning. I normally make them the night before I have them and grab one or two just before I leave the house.

Makes 12 muffins
125g/4½oz blueberries
2 bananas, mashed
125g/4½oz plain flour
75g/3oz wholemeal flour
200g/7oz rolled oats
75g/3oz brown sugar
250ml/8½fl oz milk
2 large eggs, separated
3 tablespoons of sunflower oil
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of salt

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, rolled oats, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and sugar.
Create a well in the dry ingredients and add the banana, egg yolks, milk and oil.
Mix everything gently until a wet batter forms.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks.
Fold the egg whites and blueberries into the muffin batter until everything is mixed evenly.
Divide the muffin mix into individual paper cases and place in an oven for 25 minutes at 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.
The muffins should be fine to eat for 4–5 days and can easily be frozen in zip lock bags.

Myself and Sofie made this bread to go with the Spatchcock chickens the other weekend. It is Sofie's adaptation of a Swedish recipe. The bread is a really great discovery and I would definitely try other flavour combinations for the filling.

Sofie's Rocket and Feta Cheese Bread
This is a really healthy tasty bread with a really different filling.

3 x 7g sachet of dried yeast
2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon of honey
600ml lukewarm water
125g oat flakes
Approx 500g wholegrain flour

2 large handfuls of rocket
200g feta cheese
A good handful of fresh herbs of your choice.
A good handful of green olives roughly chopped.

Put the yeast in a bowl, and mix it with the salt and honey, add half of the water and let the yeast dissolve. Allow the mixture to sit for 10-15 minutes or until it has become frothy.
Add the rest of the water and mix the oats and flour into the bowl.
With a wooden spoon, combine the ingredients until a dough forms. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoon of flour over the dough and leave it for an hour and a half.
While the dough is rising, in a bowl mix together the rocket, feta, herbs and olives.
Preheat the oven to 225°C and dust a baking tray 30x40cm with flour.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and divide in two. Roll out both halves into equal shaped oval pieces.
Put the first piece on the baking tray. Sprinkle the rocket, feta cheese, herbs and olives evenly over the dough. Gently put the second piece of dough over the filling and squeeze the edges so that they are sealed.
Place the bread in the oven for 30 minutes or until it is nicely browned. When the bread is cooked leave it to cool on a wire rack before serving.