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Thursday, June 18, 2026

Batcat nachos

s found a kids comic book series in the library about a character called Batcat (half bat, half cat), by Meggie Ramm - and it really caught his imagination! I think when we first found it, there was only one book, but now there are three. The third one just came out, and it's all about food - Batcat loves to eat, and his roommate Al loves to cook. In the book, Al enters a cooking competition at the Nightfest harvest food festival, and everyone loves Al's entry, especially the griffin kids (and of course Batcat). 

Brilliantly, a recipe was included, so we gave it a whirl... s loves these nachos! And, amazingly, I like them too (I am not usually that into nachos). The genius is in the layers, and in the personalisation of the toppings - s likes his with tons of sour cream (or creme fraiche - we've not yet found sour cream in DK) and some lime, I like mine with toasted pumpkin seeds, skyr, avocado, chopped coriander, lime, and a little bit of hot sauce. Also brilliant is that once the butternut squash is prepped (nb I have been chopping into quite small dice and roasting at 200C for about 30-40 min) you can make as much or as little nachos as you like within about 15 min - so as long as you have all the ingredients including the squash ready to go - so it is perfect for a quick dinner or snack - only downside is that nachos don't really keep. 


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Overnight chia oats

I got into a bit of a porridge phase over the winter, and when it started warming up felt like it was time to experiment with more alternative breakfasts, having been (happily enough) stuck in a muesli rut for years...
 
I ate some overnight oats that I bought when travelling, and realised these could be good. I'd tried making Bircher muesli ages ago, and at that time decided cold soaked oats weren't really my bag. But on reflection, maybe this had more to do with the sour-sweet-crunch of the grated apple. Also, it was a while ago, maybe I should try again. And I liked the idea of making a combined oat-chia situation, similar to this. Turns out I do like overnight oats! The basic combo was a hit from the start, so I haven't changed that much. Toppings are essential, and I have experimented with different combos, but keep coming back to this one.
 
(amounts for one portion) 
 
Overnight mix:
1/2 cup oats
1-2 tsp desiccated coconut
1 tsp hemp seeds (hulled)
1 tsp cacao nibs 
1 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
2/3 cup oat milk 

Toppings:
1-2 tbsp frozen wild blueberries
big tbsp skyr
sprinkle of dried blueberries
sprinkle of chopped almonds 
swirl of almond butter
drizzle of maple syrup

The day before you want to eat them, put all the ingredients for the 'overnight mix' in a big jar or a bowl you can cover, mix well, and put in the fridge.
 
In the morning, take it out of the fridge, mix well again, and put in a bowl if not already in one. Sprinkle with frozen blueberries and let sit for maybe 10-30 min - so they defrost - can be expedited by a few seconds in the microwave if more haste is desired. When ready to eat, add a big dollop of skyr in the middle, sprinkle with dried blueberries and chopped almonds, swirl on almond butter and a drop of maple syrup, and it is ready to go.
 
Notes: 
* the frozen wild blueberries make delicious juice when they melt, so these are the best - better than fresh, or frozen cultivated ones.
* you can batch prep these - they are just as good after a day or two in the fridge - recently i have been making two jars at a time ready for weekend breakfasts, and sticking with muesli during the week (easier to transport). 
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