Chilled Breakfast Pudding
Fact: It's Summer. Fact: Pudding is delicious.
Fact: In Summer, pudding should be chilled.
In case my astonishingly articulate above three facts weren't convincing enough for you, let me present my Chilled Breakfast Pudding. This recipe is completely self-indulgent, made with ingredients that I love and adore. Hence it was a dream to create for Melrose…and sample... many, many times. You know, just to make sure it was perfect.
So yes, it is made solely with ingredients I love. But it is also very nourishing, which is why I knew it was a keeper, one to share. That makes me feel less self-indulgent. And I did show some restraint, I didn’t include my beloved nut butter in the recipe. But now that I mention it, I totally could…
Chilled Breakfast Pudding is popping up on my breakfast table more and more these days. This makes me happy. I particularly favour this pudding after a workout, when my cheeks are still flushed ruby red from morning exercise. Yes, it's chilling effect is very welcomed then.
While this pudding is confidently nourishing, naturally flavourful and refreshing, it’s also a bit different, possibly using some ingredients you’re not familiar with. If coconut oil is foreign to you, I’ll give you a crash course right now (just FYI, “coconut oil” is when it’s in it’s liquid state, “coconut butter” is when it’s in it’s solid state. Same same, but different). Oh, and go for the unrefined coconut oil. The refined stuff is more for cosmetic use, and does not have the coconut flavour.
Nutritionally, coconut oil is high in Saturated Fat, however the fat in coconut oil metabolised more efficiently than regular Saturated Fats (such as fatty meats and butter) - this is related to the length of the fatty acid chains. I feel fine to use it in small amounts every now and then. I would not go about using multiple tablespoons a day, which certain supermodels profess to doing, yet a drizzle here and there on salads or in a smoothie is fine by me. Use it sparingly.
Ok, now to the practicalities. Unless your kitchen is very warm, your coconut oil is likely to be in it’s solid state. So to allow it to liquefy, I sit the jar in a cup of hot water. Soon enough you’ll be able to get a liquid portion out of the jar.
What’s fabulous about coconut oil is that when you drizzle the liquid on something cold (like this pudding), it solidifies and turns rock hard - just like Ice-Magic! Remember Ice-Magic? Ahhhh childhood memories… It also helps to place the bowl in the freezer for a few minutes, to help this solidifying process along and get better results. It’s a lot of fun, and the texture change makes the eating process even more enjoyable. I love to play with my food.
Now the other ingredients: chia seeds swell when combined with liquid, so they’re really in their prime here, helping to create a delightful pudding texture. Rolled oats and flaxmeal provide a bundle of beautiful nutrients including fibre to help keep you full. I’ve said it before, but get rid of quick oats - nutritionally, rolled really are superior.
And there you have it!
Feel free to play around with the recipe to suit your preferences. You may like to add more oats and chia seeds if you like a thicker pudding. You might like to stir your flaxmeal through with the oats at the beginning rather than having a portion on top. I just love the flavour of flax, so that is why I left it on top.
All in all, I am rather in love with this recipe. It refreshes like nothing else, is truly nourishing and leaves me with a feeling of brightness and life. That’s totally my kind of recipe.
Chilled Breakfast Pudding
* This recipe requires a Blender and a pre-frozen Banana. For the frozen banana, peel and wrap a ripe banana in glad wrap and freeze for at least 4 hours before using. I always keep a few in my freezer, they’re great in smoothies and of course, this recipe!
Serves 1
Ingredients
1 Frozen Banana
3-4 tablespoons Yoghurt (larger bananas will require more yoghurt, smaller ones will require less) 2 teaspoons Chia Seeds
2 teaspoons pure maple syrup or 1 medjool date
1 ½ tablespoons Rolled Oats
1 tablespoon Melrose Organic Golden Flaxmeal
1/3 cup Berries (fresh or defrosted from frozen)
½ tablespoon Melrose Organic Coconut Oil (in it’s liquid state)
Method
1. Unwrap and then thinly slice your frozen banana. Add it to the blender along with 2 tablespoons of the yoghurt. Be careful to not add too much yoghurt to begin with, as adding too much will result in a thinner mixture. Blend (you might need to stop the blender and stir the ingredients to get it blending smoothly). Add your extra tablespoon of yoghurt, and syrup/date, and then blend until smooth (adding a fourth tablespoon of yoghurt if you need to). Once the mixture is smooth and thick, pour into a small, deep bowl (allowing room to add ingredients on top).
2. Add the chia seeds and rolled oats to the banana/yoghurt mixture, stir to combine. Pop the bowl in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes.
3. While the pudding is chilling, place your jar of coconut oil in a bowl of hot water - this will help the oil to move from a solid to liquid state (do not microwave it!).
4. After 10 minutes, remove your chilled pudding from the freezer. Top it with the flaxmeal and berries, then drizzle the liquid coconut oil over the top. Place your bowl in the freezer for 2 more minutes, to allow the hard shell to form. Enjoy!
Heidi xo