Cereal Killers

We seem to have three containers of cereal 'on the go' - porridge oats, bran flakes and rice crispies. The bran stuff is mine, Bob doesn't eat that [it's "too worthy"] and the crispies were bought as an alternative to oats, for days when you don't want a big bowl of porridge. But cereals can go a bit stale after a while. I used up the flakes in my super easy Bran Loaf Cake. Mix the following in a bowl

• 1 cup bran cereal
• 1 cup dried fruit [sultanas, raisins, currants or a mixture]
• 1 cup sugar [granulated, demerara, caster or soft brown]
• 1 cup liquid [milk or cold tea]
• 1 tsp cinnamon or mixed spice

Stir well and leave for at least two hours, or overnight. Preheat your oven to 170°. Now stir into your bowl 1 cup of self raising flour and 1 beaten egg. Mix well, ensuring all the flour is incorporated. Line a loaf tin and pour in the mixture. Smooth the top. Bake for 75 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool. Serve sliced, with a cup of tea. With butter if feeling rich and decadent!

Recently, in the Guardian's Waste Not section, Tom Hunt gave this recipe for Maple and Coconut Crispies  

Prep 10 min
Freeze/chill 1 hr 10 min
Makes 12 squares

• 90g milk or dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
• 50g coconut butter
• 40ml maple syrup
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 75g puffed rice and other grains (millet, quinoa, etc)
• 40g mixed dried fruit and seeds, plus extra to finish 

In a heat-proof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate with the coconut butter, maple syrup and salt. Stir in the cereals until combined, then pour into a small, lined tin. Scatter dried fruit and seeds over the top, if you like, then freeze for an hour. Transfer to the fridge until fully set, cut into 12 small squares and enjoy.

I had no coconut butter, I used real butter and a heaped tsp of desiccated coconut**.

I thought mine looked OK beside his . I don't know what his red bits are though. I am mean, I cut into 16 smaller pieces!

**helpful spelling hint - if you cannot spell desiccated, remember it is just like coconuts - one S and two CC

Thank you everybody for the kind birthday wishes for Liz. We had a surprise Zoom Family Birthday Party on Wednesday afternoon - with cake!