Make Your Own: Plastic-free, Sugar-free Muesli

I used to be a huge lover of breakfast cereals. I’d hoard them. I actually had a cupboard dedicated to breakfast cereal. I liked to have a minimum of 5 different choices in my cupboard, and I remember once having 11 different types on the go. I’m not the only one either, it seems. In 2011 Australians spent $1.17 billion on breakfast cereal, and consumed almost 8 kilos per person!

My tastes changed over time of course – as a kid I loved Frosties (I cringe at that thought now), as a teenager my staple cereal was Fruit ‘n’ Fibre, and as an adult I fell for those luxury muesli lines with the beautiful packaging.

But then I began to fall out of love with cereals. Firstly there was the media reports revealing how cereals are way too high in salt and sugar. Low fat cereals are particularly high in sugar, and a UK study found cornflakes that contained as much salt as ready-salted crisps. Next was the constant bombardment of adverts and marketing. Oh we’ve made this new product. Oh we’ve made that new product. Oh we’ve made a chocolate version! A cereal bar version! A chocolate cereal bar version! I started getting cereal company fatigue. And then there was the packaging. Boxes that would appear enormous until I opened them to find the contents only half-filled the bag inside. Or packets that would declare “contain 20 servings”, only for me to discover that their interpretation of a serving was 4 teaspoons, and for my portions, the box contained nearer to four servings. Which actually made cereal a rather expensive habit.

And the final straw? Plastic. When I gave up buying anything in plastic, only a couple of options remained. Some super fancy muesli sold in glass jars for exorbitant prices, or plain oats in cardboard. The love affair was over.

But recently, I’ve started craving cereal again, and so I’ve started making my own using the ingredients I get from the bulk-bin stores. It’s super easy and there are limitless possibilities. This recipe is my current base.

I wanted to keep it sugar-free so it doesn’t contain any dried fruit. If one morning I fancy something sweet I add some fresh fruit, or blend a banana with some (cashew) milk and sprinkle the muesli on top.

Or I add a teaspoon of bee pollen or a tablespoon of cacao nibs. You can always add the sugar in, but you can’t take it out!

Recipe: plastic-free, sugar-free muesli

Ingredients:

3 cups coconut flakes
2 cups oats
1/2 cup brazil nuts
1/2 cup peanuts
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds/pepitas
80ml macadamia oil (or other high quality, flavourless oil)

Method:

[I soak my almonds and pumpkin seeds overnight to activate them and make them more digestible, and then dry them out before chopping and adding to the mix. If you can’t be bothered with this step or are short of time, just skip it.]

Roughly chop the brazil nuts, peanuts and almonds. Combine in a bowl with the coconut flakes and oats. Stir in the oil and mix well until everything is well coated.

Line a baking tin with baking paper. Spread the mixture evenly over the paper and bake at 100ºC for 30 minutes, until golden. Leave to cool.

Store in a glass jar. It will keep for a few weeks, but I think it is better to make small batches and more often to keep it fresh.

Enjoy!

mueslimix

muesli4

mueslijar

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This delicious breakfast was made using half a banana blended with half a cup of cashew nut milk to form the base, and topped with half a cup of muesli. I like doing things by halves, it seems!

Make Your Own: Plastic-free, Sugar-free Muesli
16 replies
  1. flythesevenseas
    flythesevenseas says:

    Looks tasty! I also gave up store bought cereals a few years ago and realised how much tastier it was making my own. I add a little spice to mine before baking, makes the house smell delicious!

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Yes, it is far tastier : ) There’s never enough of my favourite bits in the ones you buy! I have tried mixing cinnamon in too; do you have any recommendations for other spices? I bet vanilla would be awesome…

      Reply
      • flythesevenseas
        flythesevenseas says:

        I’ve tried vanilla with cinnamon – really good. I made a “christmas special” late last year with some all spice, cinnamon, nutmeg and star anise – that was also really delicious!

        Reply
  2. Wilma
    Wilma says:

    I make my own muesli for more than 10 years now, buy all ingredients in bulk and mix them when the glass jar is empty. But I don’t bake my muesli.
    I mix oats, cocos flakes, variety of nuts and seeds chopped up, variety of dried fruits chopped up. A big glass jar lasts us about 3 weeks but I guess it stays good much longer.

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      My boyfriend used to make his own before we met, and he would make it raw. Personally, I like the extra crunch that comes with toasting it : ) Do you stick with one recipe or mix it up depending on how you’re feeling?

      Reply
      • Wilma
        Wilma says:

        It changes every time, depends on what I have bought from Angry Almond; other nuts, other dried fruits, different seeds, etc.
        I like the toasting too but it’s extra time so I skip it. Sometimes I make porridge with dried prunes and linseed topped up with honey and cinnamon and fresh fruits.
        =Women over 35 need to eat linseed and prunes to prevent female cancers=

        Reply
        • treadingmyownpath
          treadingmyownpath says:

          I love linseed (flax seed); super tasty! I add them to all kinds of things. I do like prunes too but haven’t bought any for a while. I’m not over 35 yet… : p

          Reply
  3. Simone Johnston
    Simone Johnston says:

    I’m also interested in a costing per 100g or per kg – some of my bulk stores have their own mix varying from 10-15$/kg. I never know if I’m better off mixting it myself or buying their one.

    Reply
  4. abigail m haddock
    abigail m haddock says:

    I make my own dried cereal too and always add some hemp hearts because they are so high in protein. They are tasteless to me but I like the added protein oomph I get.

    Reply
  5. Nieves
    Nieves says:

    I am a late starter to making my own muesli, at first I did not cook the oats but now I do (bit of a pain) but think it’s more digestible. This is a very interesting group and would like to be part of it. Thank you

    Reply
  6. Anjali Rai
    Anjali Rai says:

    This is one of the best sugar free muesli recipe I’ve read about. Also, I tried this recipe and the muesli tasted amazing like it was super delicious. I used True Elements Pumpkin Seeds in the preparation and the results were outstanding. Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe with us.

    Reply

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  1. […] is another breakfast basic. I make my own using this no sugar muesli recipe. Sometimes I’ll use it as a topper for porridge or a smoothie if I want some extra […]

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