Nigel Slater’s recipes for Baked Apple Bircher Muesli and Date and Raisin Bread | Fruit

IIn the large cupboard next to the fireplace is a row of large glass jars, like those in an old-fashioned candy store. Jars of oatmeal and golden raisins, pumpkin seeds and flaked almonds. There’s a screw-top jar of chia seeds as gray as a January sky and a bright jar of amber maple syrup. This cupboard is where I mix oats with seeds and dried fruit to make Bircher muesli and where I keep bread for toast – a breakfast cupboard if you like. It sits near the cooktop where slivered almonds are toasted in a cast iron pan. Almonds that will bring a nice shine and crackle to my winter breakfast, just like Ricicles did all those years ago.

These days, cereal soaked in apple juice or milk tends to be called “overnight oats”, but to me it will always be known as Bircher muesli, even though my own inclusion of kefir and chia seeds would have seemed heretical to the late Dr. Bircher-Benner. , the inventor of this healthy breakfast. His recipe for “little porridge” contained as many apples as oats. Mine a little less so, Russets or Cox’s coarsely grated and mixed late in the process to retain their winter crispness.

On particularly cold days, apples will be cooked rather than raw. When the oven is on, I take the opportunity to put in some fat Bramleys, apples which will foam in the heat. Scraped of its shiny brown skin, the flesh is stored in a bowl until ready to mix into muesli, a pot of custard or on top of a cold roast pork and crackling sandwich.

It’s also in the cupboard that I’ll find most of the dry ingredients for date bread. The not-quite-malty bread that I prepare to slice mid-morning. There are two versions, one made with eggs and a second that I made for a vegan friend, replacing the eggs with sunflower oil. Both good, staying in good condition for almost a week, getting darker and stickier day by day.

Bircher muesli with baked apples

My version, rather than Dr. Bircher’s eponymous version. Toasting the almonds gives a deep nuttiness to the finished recipe and, even after a night’s sleep in the fridge, a welcome crunch. The consistency will seem a little wet until the mixture has spent its time in the refrigerator, when the chia seeds and oats have a chance to swell. The muesli will keep for 2 to 3 days in a corked jar or covered dish in the refrigerator. Enough for 6 people. Ready in 12 hours

kefir 200ml
maple syrup 4 tablespoons
natural yogurt 250g
flaked almonds 4 tablespoons
oatmeal 80g
chia seeds 2 tablespoons
golden grapes 75g
apple juice 200ml
cooking apples 1kg

Pour the kefir into a mixing bowl, stir in the maple syrup and yogurt. Heat a shallow pan over moderate heat, sprinkle the flaked almonds on it and let them toast for a few minutes, shaking the pan from time to time so that the nuts brown evenly. Pour them into the blender bowl.

Stir in the oatmeal, chia seeds and raisins, pour in the apple juice and leave in the fridge overnight.

The next day, heat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Core the apples and draw a line down the middle of each, then place them securely in a baking dish. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the apples are risen and their flesh is tender and foamy. Remove from the oven and let the apples cool.

Using a spoon, scrape the flesh from the apple and add it to the Bircher muesli. Correct the texture if necessary by adding a little apple juice or yogurt if necessary.

Date and raisin bread

While cutting this dark bread for friends, we debated whether or not to butter it. The consensus was a resounding no, but a day or two later I found myself slathering liberally with Irish savory and that got my vote too. To make a vegan version, use 100ml of sunflower oil in place of the eggs, adding it to the tea, dates and raisins. Makes 1 loaf, enough for 8 or more. Ready in 1 hour and 50 minutes

black tea 125ml
prunes or dates 100g, broken weight
light muscovado sugar100g
date syrup 150g
blackstrap molasses 2 tablespoons
plain flour 250g
baking powder 1 teaspoon
salt a pinch
oatmeal 50g
eggs 2
raisins or sultanas 150g

To finish :
date syrup A little

You will need a deep rectangular cake tin measuring 20cm x 9cm and lined with baking paper.

Put the kettle on and make tea. Roughly chop the prunes or dates, then let them soak in the hot tea.

Heat the oven to 160°C/gas mark 3. Weigh the muscovado sugar then, with the sugar still on the scale, pour the date syrup and molasses over it. Heat the date syrup, light muscovado sugar and black molasses in a small saucepan, without stirring, until the sugar is dissolved.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and oats. Break the eggs into a small bowl, beat lightly with a fork.

Stir the warm date syrup mixture into the flour with the tea, dates, raisins and beaten eggs.

Pour the mixture into the lined cake pan. It will be quite soft, with a texture similar to that of gingerbread dough. Bake for 55 minutes to an hour, until risen and slightly elastic. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan. While the cake cools, brush the surface with a little more date syrup.

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