New breakfast ideas wanted or, can old oatcakes learn new tricks?

What do you eat for breakfast? Is the first meal of the day a rollercoaster ride of mind-bending new dishes, or more same old, same old?

You may be able to guess which one it is for me. In the wintertime, it's porridge all the way, and when the sun shines, it's oatcakes with something on top. 

I like oatcakes, I really do - we've been together for years. We've been through ups and downs, but you know - sometimes I feel a bit, well, bored. It's got to the stage where I need oatcakes to try something different, y'know dress up a bit, in order to keep me interested.

I mean hummus is fine, but it's a bit vanilla, isn't it? I want something that will set pulses racing, not send me sleep.

My first new oatcake attempt was actually a bit of leftover mole from a batch I made from Veganomicon - mostly a mix of tomatillos, pumpkin seeds and some herbs. It had originally been destined for keeping some tofu and rice and beans company, but it worked really well the next day on oatcakes. Voila:


Next up was a recipe from Green Kitchen Stories, the cookbook by the authors behind the blog of the same name. It's veggie rather than vegan, but all the vegan recipes are marked and there's many more that could easily be veganised.

The spread here is a simple mix of grilled red peppers, sunflower seeds and a bit of cayenne. It was nice, but not powerful enough to reignite my erstwhile love of oatcakes.

This is another Green Kitchen Stories pâté recipe I tried, a really simple mix of sundried tomatoes, walnuts and sage leaves.

It came out a weird pink colour that wasn't altogether appetising:


I loved all the ingredients in there, but I found the end result a bit too sweet from all the tomatoes. It needed a sharper touch so balance the overall flavour - maybe a bit of lemon juice to cut through it a bit?

My last attempt at reinvigorating my oatcakes of a morning was an attempt to make edamame hummus. I remembered buying some rather nice ready made stuff from Trader Joes when I was in San Francisco a million years ago, and decided I'd try and make some at home (what with the nearest Trader Joes being an Atlantic away.)

 

I blended some edamame, tahini, lime juice and olive oil together and hoped for the best. It was fine, but not a patch on Trader Joes - where did I go wrong people? Hints gratefully accepted.

And that's my four attempts to make breakfast a bit different. Turns out, I liked none of them quite as much as I like baba ganoush, my usual staple, and one which I've been consuming in superhuman quantities as the English aubergine season comes to an end.

Alas, autumn has come, and baba ganoush is off the menu for another year. It looks like it's back to the drawing board - and in the meantime, back to the hummus!

Comments

  1. I tend to go through phases with my breakfasts...I'll go through several weeks of muffins, followed by a few weeks of intensive overnight oat-making, followed by vegan omelettes, and then whatever else I try and can't stop eating... As for your oatcake topping, have you tried romesco sauce? It's this amazing Spanish sauce with roasted red peppers and almonds, I have a recipe on my site somewhere. I think it would be great on oatcakes!

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  2. Lately, I've been having soup for breakfast, sometimes oatmeal or dinner leftovers. Basically whatever is quick and easy. I'm not familiar with oatcakes, is it like a pancake? It sounds like it's savory, so maybe try some sort of cheesy topping?

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  3. I usually eat a big “brunch” whilst traveling. At home, I usually eat a buttery toast with cinnamon-sugar, or juice some greens. I use my juicer a lot when I’m at home.These oatcakes look adorb with the “mole”, I like to add that I love a bit of creamy raw cheese with raw crackers for breakfast and snack, too.

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  4. I'd never have thought to have oatcakes for breakfast though I do love them for lunch. Usually topped with hummus admittedly (of any variation) but I like peanut butter too and I also like to spread the mini ones with black olive tapenade then top with a little piece of red pepper for easy canapés.
    For breakfast I like to mix it up- smoothies, porridge, muffins and pancakes are all favourites.

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  5. Oh man I love oatcakes! Never thought of topping them with interesting things like you have though. I always just inhale them as soon as I get to London. They are so amazing. :) I love your ideas!

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  6. I've never had oatcakes before. All the topics sound and look lovely. For breakfast, I like something I don't have to "make"...usually overnight chia oatmeal with bananas and peanut butter thrown in in the morning. Sometimes just cereal and fruit. Usually I'm in a rush so breakfast has to be fast.

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  7. I only got into porridge this year and love it for breakfast - even more with some fruit on it. In summer we were eating lots of smoothies for breakfast. On weekends it is pancakes if Sylvia gets her way. And if there is good bread I love toat and whatever I have the energy for - peanut butter, avocado and tomato slices with seasoning is a favourite. I have also seen a carrot porridge that looks interesting - I think it is savoury.

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  8. Today I had waffles — but that was an aberration. Usually I have a fruit smoothie until it gets too cold. Then I have a variety of hot cereals topped with whatever is appealing at the moment. It might be polenta topped with olives and pumpkin seeds, or buckwheat porridge topped with raisins and cashews. Or I might have dinner leftovers — Asian noodles and veggies is a favorite.

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  9. I've been eating porridge since spring! Funnily enough on the way home tonight I was thinking that I must try a different breakfast so I went and bought bananas and frozen berries for smoothies.

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  10. The trader joes edamame hummus has quite a lot of oil and tahini in it- i actually prefer the version from ohsheglows:
    http://ohsheglows.com/2012/12/12/edamame-hummus/
    What about trying avocado and lime on the oatcakes? Or a cashew cream? Maybe some eggless salad or almond butter with hot sauce....?
    Ttrockwood

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  11. I'm super boring when it comes to breakfast. I tend to eat a mess of yougurt/fruit/granola/cereal or once it gets cold out I pretty much eat oatmeal every day. I get totally sick of it, yet if I try something else I find myself craving my old standby instead, so weird. I've never had oatcakes like that before, I always assumed they were sweet.

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