Chia bircher with winter fruits and candied walnuts

Tam West

This simple, yet delicious winter breakfast is full of omega 3, protein and calcium-rich chia seeds, as well as vitamin C and fibre-rich fruits. Feel free to substitute any of the winter fruits — persimmon, tamarillo, grapefruit or orange would all work well. You can also experiment with different spices. Cardamom works well with persimmon, and star anise with tamarillo. For the candied activated walnuts, I soak walnuts overnight and dry them in the dehydrator with a little maple syrup, cinnamon and salt. I realise most people won’t have these on hand, so feel free to substitute with activated nuts, lightly roasted nuts, or try making your own candied walnuts in the oven or dehydrator.

Ingredients

¼ cup	Chia seeds (Main)
1 ¾ cups	Almond milk, or coconut milk (preferably homemade)
2	Apples, or pears, use up to 3 (Main)
3 Tbsp	Lemon juice
2 Tbsp	Currants, or sultanas
½ tsp	Cinnamon
1 tsp	Ginger, finely grated (optional, if you like things spicy)

For the toppings

2	Mandarins
2	Golden kiwifruit
¼ cup	Candied walnuts, activated, or alternatively use lightly toasted walnuts (Main)

Directions

1. Mix the chia seeds and almond milk in a bowl. Continue mixing every now and again for a few minutes, to make sure there are no clumps as the chia seeds start to absorb the milk. Leave for half an hour until the chia seeds have fully absorbed all the almond milk.
2. Grate the apples or pears and mix with some of the lemon juice, to prevent them from browning.
3. Mix the currants, cinnamon and ginger, if using, with the chia seed mixture and grated apple/pear, leaving around ½ cup grated apple.
4. Place into bowls and top with remaining grated apple, sliced kiwifruit and mandarin. Sprinkle with candied walnuts and a little extra cinnamon if you like.

Megan May is the creator of Little Bird Organics and the Unbakery cafes.