ginger cherry & peach oat parfait

morning sunshine :)

how’s everyone doing today? while it’s friday (the 13th….) and that means the weekend for most, i’m working all day tomorrow so while i can’t quite share in the positive energy that friday brings, i know that when other people are happy, my work day is easier, which makes me happy. so yay for friday anyway!

i got a couple requests after my what i ate wednesday post for the oat parfait i posted. ask and you shall receive! i’ll make apologies ahead of time- pictures aren’t the best since when i made it i wasn’t planning on posting the recipe. but as i was eating it, i was enjoying it so much, i just had to offer.

i made the parfait up with 2 goals in mind:

1. use up some of the many cherries I purchased this weekend. i’ve been eating big bowls multiple times a day and just loving it. but i figured i should try and incorporate even a few of them into a recipe
2. incorporate a source of iron- this is a goal for pretty much every meal i have now (for reasons why see this post)

what seemed like the easiest source to incorporate with the cherries for breakfast was blackstrap molasses. i’ll always remember the first time i tasted it. i had just taken a vegan cooking class to help me learn how to prepare some vegetarian dishes (i wasn’t quite vegan yet) and my teacher said one of the breakfasts she enjoyed most was peanut butter and blackstrap molasses on toast. i figured if she ate it all the time it had to be good! so i went and bought myself some, didn’t smell it or taste test it or anything but instead smeared it liberally onto my toast and took a huge bite. i’m guessing i looked something like this:

let’s just say i didn’t touch the stuff for a while after that.

since then though, it’s become one of my favourite natural sweeteners! it has a wonderfully rich taste, almost like deep brown sugar. there is a slight bitterness to it, but since i tend to like my sweets on the less-sweet side (does that even make sense??) i really like this aspect. in fact, i should probably try it on toast again, i’d probably like it this time!

brands of blackstrap molasses vary, so try a couple to find one you like. i think this may have been my problem in the whole toast debacle. the brand i like is wholesome sweeteners which is sweeter than others i’ve tried.

now what’s so great about blackstrap molasses? well it’s actually a by-product of sugar production and is rich in vitamins and minerals contained in the sugar cane plant including iron, calcium, magnesium, vitamin b6 and potassium. obviously, what interested me the most was the iron! 2 tbsp of blackstrap molasses has about 7.2 mg of iron! that’s pretty awesome if you ask me.

what’s also great about this parfait is that it includes sources of vitamin c- the cherries and peaches! absorption of iron is enhanced when consumed with vitamin c-rich foods. so it’s really important to make sure you get some in!

now that you know why you should eat it, you probably would like to know what you want to eat it. this parfait has a quick chia cherry ginger jam (whoa that’s a mouthful) that is left in the fridge overnight so the flavours can meld. the oats are soaked overnight to make digestion nice and easy and then in the morning they are mixed with some coconut yogurt, blackstrap molasses, tahini and a little stevia which complements the ginger in the cherry jam beautifully. add in some chopped peaches and this breakfast is ready!

it’s also very easy to make too- you just need to get your jam made and oats soaking the evening before and then assemble in the morning. the hardest part is pitting the cherries- the fact that you have to do this is probably the only thing i dislike about fresh cherries!

ginger cherry & peach oat parfait (vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free)

the ginger in the cherry jam compliments the blackstrap molasses perfectly which the tahini provides and earthiness that ties everything together. chopped peached add some brightness for a beautiful and delicious breakfast!

• 1/4 cup rolled oats + 2 tbsp oat bran, soaked overnight in water and a little lemon juice (for why this is important check this post). you could also just used 6 tbsp rolled oats
• 1 recipe quick chia ginger cherry jam (recipe below)
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp non-dairy yogurt (i used so delicious plain coconut yogurt)
• 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses (start with less if you are new to it’s flavour)
• 3/4 tbsp tahini
• stevia to taste (1 used 2 drops english toffee stevia)
• diced peaches
• granola/buckwheat groats to top (for some crunch)
• a dollop of yogurt and a cherry to finish

prepare your cherry jam the night before. also, soak your oats overnight then in the morning rinse them well.

mix the oats with the yogurt, molasses, tahini and stevia.

spoon about 1/3 of the oats into a bowl or glass, top with 1/2 of the jam and diced peaches. do this one more time. finally top with the last 1/3 of the oats, peaches, sprinkle with granola/groats, finish with a dollop of yogurt and make it feel extra special by adding a cherry on top!

quick chia cherry ginger jam (vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, raw)

this makes only what you need for the parfait but definitely feel free to make more!

• 1/4 cup diced cherries
• 1/2 tsp agave
• 1/2 tsp chia seeds
• 1/8 tsp ginger

pulse a couple times in a blender/food processor or just mix everything together, mashing with a fork a bit. let sit in the fridge overnight so the flavours can intensify and meld together.

i’m submitting this post to wellness weekends!

mmm check out them layers!

now i’m sure you all noticed, but this post has no capital letters in it. i really like the look of lowercase letters, much more so than uppercase. so i decided to write this post just how i like it. fun no?

questions for you all!

• any big plans for the weekend? none for me! i’m working then hopefully sunday will be restful with a lazy brunch and lounging in the sun
• do you have any weird little quirks when it comes to writing? i tend to even write lists, journal entries etc. entirely in lowercase- looks so much nicer to me!

want a hint for what’s coming up next?

have a great weekend!