I grew up eating muesli. Actually, let me rephrase that, I grew up eating something out of a cereal box resembling this hearty breakfast as I now know it. The pulp in the box was loaded with sugar, peppered with a few token raisins and a scattering of oats. Oh, don’t get me wrong, it was delicious but it was not true muesli.
Almost 20 years ago, on a buffet at a hotel, I tried real Bircher-style muesli for the first time and I was hooked. It was like dessert for breakfast. As a pastry chef I firmly believe in the philosophy that life is short and uncertain: eat your dessert first. (First thing in the morning is acceptable also, at least in my book but I still made a healthy alternative, without compromise.)
The hotel version was loaded with fruit, plump raisins and anointed with cinnamon scented cream. It was a luxurious way to start the day, albeit slightly too decadent for everyday sustenance, but just perfect for a short getaway.
Back to my kitchen where I recreated it my way.
My kids now love my version and this is breakfast many days a week in our house. Feel free to mix up the ideas using the base ratio of oats to milk. Pear, cranberry and hazelnut, or grated apples, cardamon and walnut combinations come to mind. It’s the perfect canvas for your favorite fruits, nuts, spices and seeds. As with so many recipes you have artistic license in your kitchen. The only limitations are your imagination.
Bircher-Style Muesli
Serves 4-6
2 cups quick oats, certified gluten-free if required
2 ½ cups dairy-free milk
¼ cup coconut or brown sugar to taste (optional)
½ tsp cinnamon
5-6 Tbsp raisins, such as Thompson
1 cup chopped peaches
Place all the ingredients in a large container, mix well and allow to rest overnight, covered, in the fridge. (See notes on a quicker version.)
Adjust before serving with additional milk or sugar, maple syrup or honey to taste.
Notes:
Traditional Bircher Muesli (Swiss oatmeal) is made with yogurt. If you wish to do so, use 1 ½ cups milk of choice and 1 cup of yogurt instead.
Cinnamon: I always use Organic Saigon Cinnamon. It’s inexpensive and readily-available at Costco. Tastes great!
Use fresh fruit when is season but a good quality canned peach or pear in its own juice is wonderful also.
In a pinch this can be ready to go in an hour. Simply plump the raisins in boiling water and drain before adding in.
For extra flavor add vanilla extract or, simply use your favorite vanilla unsweetened plant-based milk.
This keeps in the fridge for days so double up the recipe to have a quick breakfast to enjoy all week!
In 2012, on vacation in France, she discovered chocolate bark. Stores across Bayonne, Biarritz and that sunny, surfing region of France sold slabs of Belgian chocolate studded with exotic fruits, spices, nuts and oils: a new culinary adventure ensued. She started her second business upon return from that vacation before she unpacked her suitcase and her tan faded! Gusto chocolates was born, and two years later her chocolate bark creation won a silver medal in Canada, in the International Chocolate Awards, and a bronze in the world finals in London.
The word gusto means relish or enjoyment and vigor in doing something and while fitting for her business it was also very simply inspired from her children’s favorite movie,Ratatouille, and the imaginary character Chef Gusteau! The true meaning of Gusto, for Paula, is passion. Food is hers.
“Food has shaped me my entire life and I don’t just mean pants size. It’s what makes me tick.” she writes in the beautiful upcoming book Pursuit:365, launching March 8th on International Women’s Day in which she is a co-author with 364 inspirational women.
Her passion for baking took a turn in 2018 when she took a big step back from her wedding cake business to focus on another route, while keeping her feet firmly planted in the kitchen of course.
Her new operation – creating goods for those with dietary restrictions – slowly evolved from 2014 when her son got sick. Certain foods clearly didn’t agree with him and she had to recreate his menu, abandoning many of the cornerstones of her pastry diploma: flour, eggs, dairy and sugar. He’s been the inspiration behind this new launch and she wanted to create for others in the same predicament her family found themselves in. She created new recipes to cover these needs. (Her daughter was her inspiration to start her business in 2005 when she needed to be around her family more and less at work.)
Paula’s first book – Desserts with Gusto: Exploring La Dolce Vita – is packed with some of Italy’s incredible desserts and sweet treats. She’s busily working on her second book Plant-Based & Gluten-Free with Gusto coming out this fall. These recipes she now shares can be found among almost 100 creations that can be adapted to fit anyone’s diet and lifestyle. She firmly believes there’s nothing as unifying and gratifying as cooking for others. “There is no love sincerer than the love of food.” George Bernard Shaw. She couldn’t agree more.
