Ingredients
Serves 8-10 (Makes 1 loaf)Prep time: 10 mins + soaking
Cooking time: 45 min
1 cup processed bran cereal
435ml skim milk
1 cup sultanas
1 cup cranberries
½ cup dates
1½ cup wholemeal self raising flour
½ cup brown sugar
2 tbsp wheatgerm
Five Vege Pasties
Prep time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 35 mins
Makes 12 small pasties
2 tsp olive oil
250g beef, minced
1 finely diced onion
¼ cup peeled and grated sweet potato
¼ cup peeled and grated pumpkin
1 peeled and grated carrot
¼ cup peeled and grated turnip
1 tbsp tomato sauce
3 sheets puff pastry
1 beaten egg
Method
Breakfast Cake
Cake for breakfast, need I say more? What child, picky or not, would not like cake for breakfast. This cake is rich with fibre and the goodness of 3 different fruits. It has only half a cup of added sugar. As it is so rich in fruit, it is a heavy cake, like a loaf and so is very nice toasted with a little butter on top or, if they are not breakfast eaters, it can be eaten on the way to school, in the pram in the morning or packed for morning tea.
Set the oven at 180°C.
Grease and line a standard loaf tin.
Mix together the bran, milk, sultanas and cranberries.
Set aside for at least 45 minutes.
Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the soaked bran mixture, sugar and wheatgerm. Combine well.
Spoon mix into the prepared tin.
Bake for 45- 50 minutes or until cooked through.
Keeps 4 days in airtight container
Five Vege Pasties
These pasties are packed with vegetables rich in vitamin A, which is great for their skin, immunity and sight. We call them super sight pasties and the boys love them. They think they will miraculously get x-ray vision after eating them. The vegetables can be changed; just ensure you don’t use more than 1 and 3/4 cups of vegetables or the pasties may become soggy.
Set oven at 180°C.
Place a frypan on medium heat and add the olive oil.
Lightly fry the onions until soft but not browned (this will sweeten them and add sweetness to the pasties).
Add all of the grated vegetables to the onion and stir fry for 2-3 minutes until they are just soft and begin to release their aromas. Don’t leave them in the pan too long as they will become too watery and make the pasties soggy. Leave them to cool slightly.
Remove vegetables from pan and use your hands to combine them in a bowl with the mince.
Mix well.
Cut each sheet of pastry into quarters. Round the corners off the quarters so that you are left with four circles from each pastry sheet.
Place a tablespoon of the mixture into the centre of each circle.
Brush the edges of each circle with some water and join the edges of the pastry together over the top of the mixture.
Pinch the pastry edges together so that you get a frill or zig-zag like pattern at the top.
Place the pasties on a baking tray lined with baking paper and pierce the tops with a fork.
Brush the tops with beaten egg to aid browning.
Bake for 35 minutes or until crispy and golden brown.
Will keep for 2 days in the fridge.
From Feeding Fussy Kids by Julie Maree Wood with Antonia Kidman, ABC Books/HarperCollins Publishers