This simple Bircher muesli is made with jumbo rolled oats and apple juice. I topped it with goji berries and pumpkin seeds for a healthy and nourishing breakfast. Feel free to use any toppings that you prefer.
Lately we’ve been working on developing and finding new foods to serve at the coffee shop. I’ve been digging through files, reading blogs, asking around and flipping through cookbooks. Last week I came across a newspaper clipping that the owner of the shop had given me the first week I started working there. It had a beautiful picture of bircher muesli on it. “Can we do this? I loved it when I was in Australia,” he had asked then.
At that time, I had never heard of bircher muesli. I looked at the recipe — oats soaked in apple juice and left in the refrigerator overnight. “Wouldn’t that just become a cold soggy mess?” I thought to myself. But after that, I kept coming across bircher muesli. I saw it on menus. I saw it on blog posts. I saw it in magazines. The pictures always made it look so delicious. What was this bircher muesli and why was everyone so in love with it?
It turns out, as nicely described by Food Coach, “it’s European, hijacked by the Australians, and ignored by the Americans.” Now that, I thought, explains why I’ve see it in London, but never in America. I started looking at different recipes for it. Word such as wholesome, delicious, nutritious, and simple kept popping up. All words that I liked. And the pictures all looked so inviting. Like something I would definitely want for breakfast.
Feeling a little silly that I had dismissed it a few months ago, I decided I needed to get a bag of oatmeal and apple juice and give it a try. The morning I woke up to it, I ran to the fridge. Sprinkled on a handful of goji berries and pumpkin seeds, and could not have been happier the moment I ate my first spoonful. It was a little nutty, slightly sweet, and a good hearty texture.
There are so many variations to bircher muesli. Some recipes add in yoghurt. Most add on grated or cooked apples. The original swiss recipe actually calls for sweetened condensed milk. The Ritz Hotel in London even uses apricots, orange juice, pears and crème fraîche.
This recipe makes a a very simple bircher muesli. The very basic. It essentially gives you the basic ratio of oats and apple juice to use. In the photos, I added a handful of goji berries and pumpkin seeds. But there are so many add-ons you can use – any fruits, yogurt, nuts, and seeds. But what I’m sharing is the simple, nutritious, wholesome recipe that gives you the blank canvas to start creating your own bircher muesli. And in case you are wondering, bircher muesli is now coming soon to the coffee shop!
Simple Bircher Muesli
Print RecipeIngredients
Basic bircher muesli to prepare the night before
- 2 cups old fashioned oats (jumbo rolled oats) (use GF if needed)
- 1 1/2 cups apple juice
In the morning
- 2 whole apples (green or red)
- regular yogurt (any type, including vegan works)
- seed mix - I like mix of sunflower seeds, pepitas, brown and golden flax seeds
- nuts - my favorite is walnut
- dried fruit - I use raisins and cranberries
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the jumbo rolled oats and apple juice. Cover, and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
- In the morning, grate 2 apples (including the peel), and mix into the bircher muesli. I use one red and one green for the photos, but both varieties work. See post for more info.
Serve with your favorite toppings
- After the bircher has soaked overnight, serve with your favorite toppings. I use a spoonful of regular yogurt, then add on walnuts, sunflower seeds, pepitas, brown and golden flax seeds, raisins and cranberries. You can also add in a swirl of jam if you like.
Notes
Angela @ my Golden Pear says
I was converted a couple of years ago to this delicious breakfast. It is now one of my favourites. Thanks so much for taking part in Credit Crunch Munch.
Tina Jui says
Yes, it is such a delicious and healthy breakfast. I don’t know why it took me so long to discover it!
Camilla @FabFood4All says
I’ve never heard of this Muesli and it sounds lush so must give it a go – thank you for bringing it to Credit Crunch Munch:-)