Cherry Addiction
For those of you who have been following my blog for a while you will have realised that i have become somewhat addicted to the cherry. Cherry sweets, cherry cakes, cherry drinks, cherry coloured tops… much like my friend Abby who’s always been a cherry addict. It seems when i’m coming up with sweet recipes nowadays that i just can’t help but not include the wonderful fruit. I love how they are sweet on biting but they have a sour-ish core on the pip, which i generally suck for far too long than is necessary.
My friend Abby had bought me some Morello cherry cordial which is absolutely delicious with ice and lots of sparkling water. It’s flavour is so sweet and distinctive that you don’t really need more than 2 teaspoons to really appreciate the drink and is a nice thing to have about if you’re trying to avoid too much sugar. After hearing that you could warm this cordial up for a hot drink, it got me thinking on how to incorporate this cordial into recipes (as i am now fully stocked, as you can imagine).
And what better way than to have it every morning? Or as a cheeky dessert..
Granola is stupidly easy to make, and although it may be slightly high in fat, in small quantities it’s nutritious as as a filling snack or breakfast addition. I’m a big fan of having this with Frozen Yoghurt.. sublime.
- 100ml of Maple Syrup (I used Clarks)
- 2 Tbsp of Morello Cherry Cordial (Plus extra for drizzling. I used Blossom Cottage)
- 125ml Apple Juice
- Squeeze of Lemon juice
- 4tbsps of Vegetable oil
- 300g Gluten Free Rolled Oats ( I used Prewetts)
- 50g Flaked Almonds (I used Sainsbury’s)
- 100g Whole Almonds (half roughly chopped)
- 200g Dried Cherries half whole/ half chopped.
- 50g Desiccated Coconut (I used Sainsbury’s)
- 75g Coconut Flakes (I used Sainsbury’s)
- 25g Fresh Cherries
- 100ml Yoghurt, Milk or for a tasty dessert Frozen Yoghurt.
- Preheat oven to 160 degrees.
- Measure out the maple syrup, morello cherry cordial, apple juice, lemon juice and vegetable oil in a saucepan and heat until hot. Take off the heat and set aside.
- Measure out your oats, flaked almonds, desiccated coconut and coconut flakes and pop into a large mixing bowl.
- Measure out and do necessary chopping to the almonds and cherries and add these to the mix.
- Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture and give it a thoroughly good mix.
- Lay your granola on 1-2 baking trays and pop them in the oven for 15 mins at a time , each time take the granola out and give it a good mix to ensure it all goes golden.
- Nearer the end, drizzle on a little more cherry cordial to taste.
- Once golden, wait for it to cool- it will cluster together in parts as it cools.
- Store in an airtight container.
- Serve with fresh cherries, yoghurt or milk at breakfast time, or with Frozen Yoghurt/Ice cream for a cheeky dessert or snack. Yum.
- If you can’t find Cherry Cordial, Try using half cherry juice and half apple juice.
- Please make sure you are using Gluten Free Oats and Nuts if making Gluten Free.
- Makes 850g worth. Roughly 195 Calories per 50g – based on brands I’ve used.
