Zizi's Adventures - Real Food, Real Stories

Superfood Breakfast: Oatmeal With Rice Milk And Roasted Almonds

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After 25 days our sugar-free and vegan diet challenge ended. Making a sugar-free diet can be a tough job and you would find that it is not as easy as you had expected. Over time, we are so used to having sugars as a part of our daily nutrition that it is almost impossible to remove the sugars instantly and get on a sugar-free diet.Thanks to the challenge I decided to have one or two sugar-free days a week in my life. This is just a small step to change one of my habits.

Do you want to see what was the first sweet thing we drank and ate?

This…

and this…

We enjoyed every little crumb of this croissant. It was so good. We had this yum breakfast at Bagatellini Café (MOM Park shopping center, Budapest) after visiting the organic farmers market.

Bagatellini Café, developed by the Villa Bagatelle team with the help of star chef Viktor Segal. They have created a café and bakery where everything is of the finest quality and prepared with natural or organic ingredients. The quality of their coffee is guaranteed by Viennese café master Daniel Moser. The Bagatellini food selection ranges from mouth-watering sandwiches and hand-made baked goods to gourmet salads, soups and fresh, organic French fries. They have even installed a small bakery to allow them to make the finest hand-made, natural and fresh baked goods right there on the premises, seven days a week and throughout the day.

Are you still here? If yes, a few words about the breakfast. It’s sugar-free, vegan, nutritious and easy to make. You can even make it during the week.

The natural rice milk tastes a bit sweet but if you want to make it a bit sweeter you can add one or two teaspoons of honey.

Roasted almonds are my favorite new snack. I love it. They make a great snack or appetizer. You also get the benefit of them curbing your hunger and containing plenty of nutrients. Roasted almonds are best enjoyed right after they are cooled.

Oatmeal with Rice Milk and Roasted Almonds

Ingredients (serves 2)

– 10 tablespoons oatmeal
– 400 ml unsweetened rice milk
– 1 small handful almond
– cinnamon
– clementine

Method

Roast the almonds in a dry non-stick pan for 6-8 minutes. Set aside to cool, then chop them roughly. In a pan heat the rice milk for 3-4 minutes (just to get a little bit warm). Divide the oatmeal in small bowls, pour over the warm rice milk, sprinkle with cinnamon and the toasted almonds. Serve with clementine.

Superfood Breakfast: Sugar-Free Cinnamon Granola

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Here is another superfood, sugar-free breakfast. I learnt the recipe from Maria. During this sugar-free (no fruits, no desserts, no chocolates, no honey, no agave/maple/rice syrup, etc.), vegan  challenge I got so much inspiration from her recipes. I can be a very sweet-tooth person so to be honest… sometimes I feel I’m craving just a piece of chocolate.

This granola is a new favourite of mine. I’ve never made it before – I always bought at the stores – but I realized it’s easy and quick to make and you can choose all the ingredients you want to mix.

Sugar-free Cinnamon Granola

Ingredients (serves 2)

– 70 g walnut
– 30 g cashew
– 30 g almond
– 70 g coconut flakes
– 20 g chia seeds (you can substitute it with flax seeds or sesame seeds)
– 20 g coconut oil
– 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

Preheat the oven to 120C (248F) and line a baking tray with parchment paper.

In a bowl mix together all the ingredients and spread the mixture evenly on to the baking tray. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown (half time turn everything around with a wooden spoon). Let it cool before serve it with almond/oat/rice milk or yoghurt. If you want to make it a bit sweeter add 1-2 teaspoon honey to it.

Spring Rolls With Citrus Soy Sauce

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Spring rolls are a large variety of filled, rolled appetizers. There are fried and non-fried version available. I made non-fried savory spring rolls (these are typically bigger than the fried ones). They contain crisp, fresh veggies and are served with a perky citrus soy dipping sauce. I filled the wrapping with raw ingredients: sweet crunchy carrot and red bell peppers, spicey spring onions, cooling cucumbers and cooked rice noodles.
They are lots of fun to make with friends. Get rolling! Spring is here!
Spring Rolls with Citrus Soy Sauce
Ingredients (serves 5-6)
For the spring rolls
– 1 long cucumber (or 3 smaller ones), thinly sliced
– 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
– 1 bunch of sping onion, thinly sliced
– 3-4 carrots, cut into julienne
– 200 g thin noodles, pre-cooked (use rice, Chinese or bean thread noodles)
– 1 packet (20 pieces) spring roll rice paper wrappers
– coriander, basil, chopped (optional)

For the citrus soy sauce
– juice of 2 lemons
– juice of 2 clementines
– 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
– 3/4 cup soy sauce

Method

To make the sauce in a bowl whisk together all the sauce’s ingredients and set aside.

To assemble rolls, dip one piece of rice paper in warm water to soften (for about 15 seconds) and shake gently to remove excess liquid. Lay wrapper on a clean, dry surface. (Don’t forget that this paper is very thin and the more you pack in, the harder it will be too seal without it breaking.) Arrange some of the noodles in the center of the wrapper. Lay a small handful of carrots, cucumber, red bell pepper and spring onion slices on top of the noodles.

The roll up… I like to pull one side of the rice paper (that is closer to me) completely over, trapping in the ingredients. Then, fold your edges in and bring the remaining side over for a complete seal. Repeat until all ingredients are used up. (Here are two videos that help you to learn how to roll.)

Serve spring rolls sliced on the bias with dipping sauce and enjoy!

 

Udon Noodles With Creamy Tahini Sauce, Roasted Kale & Tofu

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I love tahini sauce thanks to this easy vegan noodle salad. The creamy lemon-y tahini sauce with roasted tofu and kale is so divine. This can be a great weekday dinner. I love the contrast of the crunchy greens and tofu with the creamy sauce. You should give it a try!

Udon Noodles with Creamy Tahini Sauce, Roasted Kale & Tofu

Ingredients (serves 2)

– 200 udon noodles
– 300 g firm tofu, cubed
– 1 bunch of kale, cut the leaves into bite size pieces
– 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
– 1 teaspoon chili flakes
– 4 tablespoon tahini
– 2 teaspoon soy sauce
– juice of 1 lemon
– salt, pepper
– coconut oil (you can use sunflower oil too)

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Press the block of tofu for about 20 minutes to remove most of the moisture, and then dice into very small cubes as well. Arrange the tofu cubes on the parchment paper, sprinkle with 2 teaspoons coconut oil, season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 20 minutes at 180C (350F) or until golden brown. Set aside.

Cook the udon in salted water according to package directions, then drain well and set aside.

Heat 2 teaspoon coconut oil in a pan and saute the garlic and chili flakes for a minute. Add the kale and cook for about 10 minutes until a bit crunchy.

In a small bowl whisk together tahini, soy sauce and lemon juice. Toss the kale and udon together in a large bowl with the roasted tofu and add the tahini sauce.

Superfood Breakfast: Pumpkin Almond Milk Smoothie With Cinnamon

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Superfood is the one which has high concentrations of essential nutrients with proven health benefits. This smoothie is healthy, creamy, tasty and nutritious. It is made from homemade pumpkin purée with love.
Pumpkin has many health benefits, as it is a good source of vitamins (A, beta-carotene, B2, B5, C) and minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium). Almond milk contains no cholesterol or lactose. The nut’s soft texture, mild flavour, and light colouring (when skinned) make for an efficient analog to dairy, and a soy-free choice for lactose intolerant people and vegans. Almonds are a rich source of vitamin E. About 20% of raw almond is high quality protein, a third of which are essential amino acids. They are also rich in dietary fiber, B vitamins, essential minerals and monounsaturated fat, one of the two fats which potentially may lower LDL cholesterol. Typical of nuts and seeds, almonds also contain phytosterols, associated with cholesterol-lowering properties. Potential health benefits, which have not been scientifically validated, include improved complexion and possibly a lower risk of cancer.
I usually start my day with a glass of lukewarm water with freshly squeezed lemon juice (1/2 lemon per person). It flushes the kidneys and the liver and alkalizes the blood. Then I have a mug of herbal tea (milfoil, chamomile, field horsetail, etc.). Half an hour later I have my green or fruit or vegetable smoothie. At work I drink lots of water and I usually have an apple. That’s all I have until lunch and I feel fresh and full of energy.
What do you have for breakfast?

Note: Thank you for everyone who voted for me The Kitchn Homie Awards contest (Best Healthy Cooking Blog). My blog got 45 of your votes (!!!) that was enough for the 14th place. I’m extremly happy! Thank you for everyone!
Pumpkin Almond Milk Smoothie with Cinnamon
Ingredients (serves 2)
– 500 ml almond milk (unsweetened)
– 12 teaspoon pumpkin purée (unsweetened)
– 2 teaspoon cinnamon
Method
Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. If you find it too thick, add more almond milk. Pour into prepared glasses.