No 1 - Denise's Mueslei Biscuits

Mueslei Biscuits.

Rather unusually I started my Odyssey with a new/newish recipe gleaned from the internet.  The inspiration for the search had been agreeing to join a team of work colleagues taking on the 3 Peaks Challenge http://www.thethreepeakschallenge.co.uk/ to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House at Guy’s Hospital – right next door to where we worked.  I wanted a high energy, no-holds-barred biscuit such as might sustain and fortify flagging (city type) hill walkers.  Mueslei is full of sustaining stuff and I had a packet of some commercial brand languishing in the breakfast cupboard at home.  (I make and prefer my own concoction, so my partner’s attempts to cater for my breakfasts, although gratefully received, were going to be ‘re-assigned’.)

I have no idea now where the recipes came from and at any rate I cobbled 2 or 3 of them together by trial and error to produce the favoured end result.  So apologies to anyone who thinks they recognize their recipe behind this.

The really important part of cobbling up a mueslei biscuit is to know what is (or isn’t) in your mueslei mix, what you want out the other end of the process, and what suitable additions and substitutes inhabit your pantry. I had a basic mueslei, wanted lots of slow release carbs , a dangerous dose of fat and flavour, and had a cupboard full of dried and glacé fruit, nuts, seeds, and spices .  Make them to suit your own taste.  I happen to like adding preserved citrus peel and some crystallized ginger, lots of cinnamon, cloves and allspice, and raisins.

Basic Mueslei Biscuit:

2 cups of mueslei

1cup flour

I tsp cinnamon

cloves, mixed spice, allspice, or nutmeg to taste

¾ cup brown (or raw) sugar

2 tablespoons  golden syrup

125 grams melted butter

1tsp Bicarb Soda dissolved in 2 tablespoons of boiling water.

Variations:

½ cup desiccated coconut, handful raisins or other dried fruit, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, or flaked nuts, zest off two oranges (or some preserved citrus peel like you would put in Xmas cakes), chopped crystallized ginger.  Replace the golden syrup with honey, or use wholemeal flour ....... anything else you enjoy in your mueslei or your biscuits.

Put spoonfuls on a greased baking tray (or baking paper) and bakes at 180^o C
(160 ^o C if you have a fan oven) for about 15 minutes.

They survive hikes up mountains and commutes on motorbikes, but get consumed fairly quickly.