Friday 20 June 2014

A Summer Breakfast: Carrot Cake Overnight Oats & Maple Ice Coffee

I thought I'd do something a little different today and show you how to make one of my favourite breakfasts for summer (or any time really), as well as a super easy "recipe" for some delicious homemade iced coffee. This breakfast takes close to no time in the morning as you prepare most of it the night before, so its perfect for those rushed weekday mornings. Even the preparation is pretty quick so there really is no reason to stick with your boring old buttered toast when you can have something so delicious and nutritious with the same amount of effort. So here are my new obsession, carrot cake overnight oats and some maple iced coffee!


While i love my porridge all year round, when temperatures start to drop i mostly crave something fresh in the mornings. This is where overnight oats come in perfectly, they have about the same texture as your usual porridge without the heat! All you have to do is mix your oats with some milk or water (although i really prefer milk for overnight oats) and whatever other ingredients you want to add the night before, let it sit in the fridge overnight(hence the name), and in the morning, you've got your oats ready to be devoured. I even think preparing oats this way can give them
more flavour than when you cook them on the stove, as the milk soaks up a bit of everything you put in there.
It might sound a bit crazy to put carrots into your oats at first (after all, they are a vegetable) but believe me on this one, it's incredibly good! So good in fact that i've had it for three breakfasts in a row this week. It kind of tastes like a healthy carrot cake dough and i find myself savouring every single spoonful of it, so I really hope you enjoy it too!

Carrot Cake Overnight Oats (vegan and gluten free)

Ingredients:
some kind of jar to store it in
1/3 cup gluten free oats (or regular if you're not gluten intolerant)
1/2 cup milk (i used unsweetened almond milk)
1/4 cup pineapple
1/2 medium carrot, grated
1/2 tablespoon flax seed (or chia seed if you like the texture)
1-2 dates, chopped
1 dried fig, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
optional:
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
a few drops rum extract



Method:
First of all, blend up the pineapple and milk in your jar by using a hand mixer (you can of course do this in your blender as well).
Then simply add your oats, flax seed, grated carrot, dates, dried fruit, cinnamon and any additional flavours to the jar and mix it all up with a spoon or by simply shaking the jar. Let it sit in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours or overnight.
When you're ready to eat, leave it as it is or top it with whatever you like. Fresh fruit  such as strawberries and banana, nut butter, granola and coconut flakes are my personal favourites!


The next "recipe" probably doesn't even deserve to be called that. It really is super  quick and easy and if you leave the coconut whipped cream aside, it takes close to no time at all to make while still being really tasty. I find that most of the time, the easiest recipes are the best ones!
 
Maple Iced Coffee (with coconut whipped cream)

Ingredients:

for the coffee:
~1/2 cup of freshly brewed or refrigirated coffee
enough ice to fill your glass at least halfway
as much milk as you like (i used oat milk)
1-2 teaspoons of maple syrup (depending on how sweet you want it to be)

(optional) for the coconut whipped cream:
a can if full-fat coconut milk
1-2 teaspoons maple syrup


Method:

for the coffee:
First of all, brew your coffee whichever way you like, i used my nespresso machine for this. Fill a tall glass of water with ice cubes, then simply pour the coffee over the top. Add milk and maple syrup to your liking and for a bit of a treat, top it with some coconut whipped cream. Enjoy!

coconut whipped cream:
 
Take your can of coconut milk out of the refrigirator after you left it there overnight. This step really is crucial so don't try to rush it.
Open up your can at the bottom so the coconut water just flows out and you're left with a more solid residue, the coconut cream (you can use the water for smoothies and such). Then simply beat it with a hand mixer until you get the  texture of whipped cream and add a bit of sweetener if you like. I find this much easier with non-organic coconut milk as the residue isn't quite as solid but you'll just have to beat the other onr a bit longer. Top your iced coffee with a tablespoon or two of your whipped cream and store leftovers in the fridge. This tastes delicious on basically everything: berries, crumbles(berry crumbles?), yogurt,...you name it!


I really hope you like this type of posts as i had so much fun creating it! I'd love to hear if any of you try out yhese recipes:)




5 comments:

  1. If you head to my blog you would see that I love Carrot cake oats :P I love the idea of blending fruit with the milk, I will try it next time i preprare ooaj :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am absolutely obsessed with them right now, still have to try the cooked version though ;) Thank you for your comment:)

      xx Lisa

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  2. sieht ja mal richtig lecker aus!
    folge dir nun auf Bloglovin und auf GFC liebes ! :-)
    Viele Grüße,
    www.fashionloverimran.blogspot.de

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ist es auch wirklich:)
      Vielen Dank, freut mich dass der Post dir gefällt!:)

      xx Lisa

      Delete