Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Banana Overnight Oats

I’ve only recently discovered the beauty that is overnight oats and now I am obsessed! A healthy, easy, filling and satisfying breakfast you can make several different varieties of with stuff you probably already have in your kitchen! Amazing.

I’ve been trying out a few different flavours but this one has to be my favourite so far. It’s probably the most indulgent, dessert-style one but it is actually still healthy, and you can make it healthier by using less peanut butter if you want. It’s so amazing when you come across a little chewy lump of peanut butter that I’m not sure that you’ll want to use less though!

This amount made me one full glass of the stuff but it’s so rich and thick I could only get through 1/3 of it so the actual number of calories you’ll consume will be pretty low but with maximum satisfaction.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quick cook oats
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 overripe banana, mashed
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• Optional walnuts for topping

Method:

Combine all ingredients (except the walnuts) in a lidded container and shake up to mix well. Leave in the fridge overnight.

In the morning transfer to a glass for serving and top with the walnuts, if using. Then, dig in with a spoon and see how much you can get through!

Courgette and Sweetcorn Egg Bake

I love egg bakes!!! Actually let’s face it I just love eggs! If it involves an egg I’m in, full stop. But egg bakes are particularly awesome because they’re so versatile. You can have them for breakfast, lunch or even dinner depending on what you fancy putting in it – meat, veg and fish are all acceptable egg bake ingredients. You can even add rice to make it more of a substantial meal (see my risotto pie). I also like making them for picnics (another one of my favourite things) as they’re just as enjoyable cold as they are hot.

This one is vegetarian and so flavourful with all the herbs and seasonings (feel free to adjust to your taste). I think sweetcorn really works in an egg bake to give it a nice crunch. I like it with a bit of hot sauce on the side too (which goes for most things tbh).

Crispiness.

Juiciness.

For less liquid in the bottom of the pan, let it stand for 10-15 min before serving.

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 1/2 cups sweetcorn (I used canned)
• 2 large cougettes, thinly sliced
• 225g sliced mushrooms
• 1 tbsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• Generous sprinkling of season-all
• 350g grated cheese (mozzarella is a good choice)
• 3 eggs, beaten

Method:

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C.

Heat the butter in a large, deep frying pan over medium high heat. Add the onion, courgette, and mushrooms. Sauté for about 3-4 mins, before adding the sweetcorn to the pan. Continue to sauté until all the veggies are soft, 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add the herbs and seasonings and stir once to combine. Add the cheese and the beaten egg.

Spray a pie dish (9 inch or larger) with non-stick spray. Transfer the mixture to the dish. Arrange most the courgette slices flat on the top so it looks all lovely and nice. Top with a little extra cheese so it goes all crispy later, cover loosely with foil, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes to brown the top.

Let it stand for 10-15 minutes before cutting into slices. This will give it time to set more and become less liquidy (you can see from my photos I didn’t wait that long when I made it!).

Serve with a nice fresh salad, bread and a condiment of your choice!

Yumminess.

Embassy East: Haggis in Hoxton

Tried out a cool new little breakfast/brunch place last Sunday, which we haven’t done in a while. For a change I was not feeling like death, thanks to an early Saturday night after a (fairly) civilised picnic on Hampstead Heath 🙂 So, feeling good and fresh, we headed to Embassy East to fuel up before an afternoon’s shopping.

What a cool little place! It’s very small, with most of the simple wooden tables being in the front (all full at around 11:30am) and another couple around the back, where we sat. Light bulbs inside large jars made for cool lighting. The staff were uber laid back, one of the young gents even telling us upon our arrival that everyone was suffering major hangovers that day! Which was kind of obvious to be honest, they all seemed a bit out of it, but nonetheless very friendly.

I ordered ‘eggs and meat’ (£10), which was a large portion of haggis, sausages, thick cut streaky bacon, poached eggs (you could have scrambled too), grilled tomato and a large slab of thick crusty toasted bread. All of this was lovely and kept me full until dinner time. I did try a bit of my boyfriend’s scrambled eggs and salmon and realised the eggs to be ordered at that place were  ten times out of ten the scrambled variety. I would go as far as to say they were the best scrambled eggs I’ve ever had; really wet and saucy, but not so much that they seemed raw, with a creamy buttery flavour. Anyway, that’s what I’ll have next time we go!

 

So definitely recommended, 8/10 (two points off for hungover staff and the bacon could have been crispier). Oh and the coffee (my favourite: black, no sugar) was awesome too. Look at this:

 

My Favourite Breakfasts

My favourite meal of the day is probably breakfast. I suppose it’s because that’s when I’m most hungry and so I really enjoy ‘breaking my fast’. Perhaps consequently, one of my favourite foods are eggs, which always feature in my first meal of the day if it’s a weekend (unfortunately not so much during the week due to time constraints). So it should come as no surprise that my two favourite breakfasts are eggs royale and a croque madame (arguably not a breakfast, but this will do as brunch and lunch as well).

If you are not familiar with these (I feel sorry for you if that’s the case), eggs royale is smoked salmon and a poached egg on top of half a toasted muffin with hollandaise sauce over the top (other variations are eggs benedict or eggs florentine which substitute the salmon for bacon or spinach respectively). A croque madame is a french creation of a toasted cheese and ham sandwich topped with more melted cheese and a fried egg (there is also a croque monsieur which is without the egg).

So, the point of this post is that I want to share with you where I have come across the best I’ve ever had of these two dishes, as they really were both amazing. The finest croque monsieur I have experienced so far was in Bordeaux, France, as a room service breakfast at the Grand Bordeaux Hotel & Spa. I guess you have to go to France to get the best!

 

The most amazing eggs royale I’ve had was a bit closer to home, at Tom’s Kitchen in Chelsea. I’d highly recommend the place for weekend breakfast or brunch as they have a great menu. I even did a bit of impromptu celebrity spotting on my visit when Frank Lampard and Christine Bleakley walked in ahead of me!