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Crispy Balsamic Brussel Sprouts with Honey Feta Caramelised Walnuts

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Let’s just agree on one thing; veggie side dishes are underrated. It is true, very true actually that all side dishes are underrated! To be honest, I do not need the main part of the meal, just the sides if I was asked. Imagine this: super crispy balsamic vinegar glazed Brussel sprouts baked in the oven and topped with warm walnuts that are coated with honey and molten Feta. Sounds good, right? If you tried this, you would agree that sides are underrated!

What is special about this dish?

The walnuts are prepared in a very special way, which I have never seen before. They are coated with a slightly sweet molten feta. I promise you, this is good (really, you could only eat this)! The Brussel sprouts are more „traditionally“ prepared but still equally as good! The balsamic vinegar adds very much taste and the oil and sea salt make them really crispy.

Is this dish healthy?

Yes and yes! Brussel sprouts = super healthy. Loaded with Vitamins, fibre and nutrients. They actually have been the food of the month October, you can read more about them here. The walnuts are incredibly high in healthy fats and they have many other health benefits. My uncle always said, eat them while studying because they improve your brain (it actually is proven that they improve brain function) – so yep, also these are healthy. And feta? It is pretty high in protein and way healthier than most other cheeses. So all in all, very very good.

How to make them?

This is incredibly easy. First you need to finely slice the Brussel sprouts and roast them in them in the oven. No mess in the kitchen but lots of flavour. Then, you need to prepare the nuts. This means, roughly chop the nuts and add them to a pan. When roasting nuts, you do not need any oil (when using a non-stick pan). Then you add the crumbled (or finely chopped) feta along with the honey and a pinch of sea salt. The heat of the nuts will melt down the feta and make it goey and creamy. This then combines with the honey and it is incredible. When you let it cool just a little bit, it will all crispen up, and then its perfect. When the Brussel sprouts are golden and crispy, take them out and to with the nuts. That’s all.

When and how to best have them:

I love this as a side dish for anything. Not only as a side but also as a topping. For example with a roasted meat, especially now in fall, it is amazing. But also on top of buddha bowls, rice bowls or even on top of pasta it would be amazing. There are no limits, it truly upgrades any dish. Plus, it is pretty family friendly because you get your nutrients through the veggies and it still tastes amazing because of the slightly sweet nuts. It kind of is like comfort food but still healthy.

Substitutes

Brussel sprouts – other veggies like pumpkin, sweet potato or broccoli would also work very well, just notice these would take longer to roast
Walnuts – almonds, pecans, hazelnuts
Honey – maple syrup, agave, other liquid sweeteners
Feta – I would not recommend substituting that (if there really is no way around, maybe with another soft cheese)

I hope that you will love this recipe and that you will enjoy it all throughout fall. Goes well with everything anytime. A must try – especially because it is so easy!

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Crispy Balsamic Brussel Sprouts with Honey Feta Caramelised Walnuts

Crispy and golden brussel sprouts topped with sweet and goey walnuts coated in molten feta. A perfect, comfortiung and still healthy side dish!

Course Appetizer, Side Dish
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 25 Minuten
Total Time 30 Minuten
Servings 4 side servings
Calories 245 kcal

What you will need

  • 600 g brussel sprouts
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 60 g walnuts
  • 60 g feta
  • 2 tbsp honey

How to

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Wash the brussel sprouts and pat them dry. Slice them into about 3-4 mm thick slices. Toss the in the oil and salt and lay them out on a baking tray, leaving space inbetween them. Drizzle with the balsamic vinegar and roast for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and crispy.

  2. Roughly chop the walnuts and crumble the feta into small pieces. Add the nuts to a non-stick pan and turn onto high heat. Roast them for about 2-3 minutes. Add the feta and honey. Let the feta melt down and the gently stir through until the walnits are coated with the feta cheese. Turn down to low heat.

  3. When the brussel sprouts are done roasting, top them with the caramelized nuts and serve! Enjoy!

Happy cooking,
Enjoy,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Chocolate Coconut Almond Dates

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Are the perfect snack to get you motivated for the rest of the day. Chewy dates, rich chocolate, crunchy almond, and fresh coconut. This is the perfect combination to make a super simple 4 ingredient, 10 minute snack. This will get you through a long morning, an afternoon-low, or work out as a super delicious dessert. 

I got the idea to make this recipe when I was in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Dates are from high importance there. Until the 1970´s they were the staple food for the inhabitants. While they are fasting, they only eat 2 dates a day. I did not know that and was blown away when I heared that. We visited a local date market, which was something I had never heard of before but it was real impressive. You could see how this food is super important in this part of the world. In the shop we went there were 18 (!!) different date sorts. I did not even know that there was more than one existing. We tried lots of them and then bought 2 different ones, Madjool and Ajwa. Madjool dates are larger, sweeter, and richer while Ajwa dates contain less sugar and are smaller. I really liked them both but for this recipe I used Ajwa dates because they are smaller, which I think is better as a snack. 

Choloate covered dates are no rarity in Arabia. You can find them everywhere and with almost everything; white chocolate, milk chocolate, dark chocolate, matcha chocolate, camel milk chocolate (which I think is the most fancy hehe), soo many different types. Since we already had packed so much and bough 2kg of dates before, I decided not to buy any more but recreate them (as a healthier version) myself at home. 

So now I am back home and recreated them. I used the Ajwa dates, which are dried or course, dark vegan chocolate. The one I use is from HuKitchen, and is with all natural and healthy ingredients, and it is soooo good! Other than that I only use raw almonds and shredded coconut. This is as simple as it is. I love simple snacks because who likes to spend an hour in the kitchen with 100 ingredients when you are hungry or hangry RIGHT NOW. I can tell you, no one! 

Dates actually are a super healthy food, which made is possible for emirates to mainly eat those for hundreds of years. Dates contain 7 grams of fiber per 100g. This helps your digestion. There are lots of studies that show that eating dates increases your digestion. Moreover it helps you regulating your blood sugar levels. Plus dates are really high in antioxidants which protect your cells and reduce the risks of several deseases such as diabetes, Alzheimer or cancer (certain types). These are just some benefits of dates, but other than their health benefits, they are really delicious! Really!

I love pre-making this snack and just grab a few dates when I am hungry or pack some for work or school. I really like them when they are chilled and straight out of the fridge, because the chocolate is extra crunchy then, but they are delicious any way. I hope that you will like this recipe and enjoy it! If you do recreate it be sure to tag me on insta with @uneptcuisiniere or #uneptcuisiniere .

Enjoy, 

Katie // Une Petite Cuisiniere 

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Chocolate Coconut Almond Dates

A really delicious & healthy snack or dessert! Super simple and super good.

Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine arabian, asian
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Total Time 10 Minuten
Servings 16 dates
Calories 45 kcal

What you will need

  • 16 small Dates I like to use Ajwar dates (this equals about 150g)
  • 16 Almonds
  • 25 g chocolate
  • 2 tbsp shredded coconut

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Cut the dates in on one side (do not cut them in half totally!). Take out the seed and put an almond in it instead. Do the same with all of the dates.

  2. Stick/ squeez the size where the date had been cut in, together with your fingers, so it sticks together and it is closed.

  3. Melt the chocolate in a water bath or the microwave. Dip the dates in the molten chocolate as you like. You can completely dip them, you can dip the half horizontally or vertically, or whatever you wish. Then dip it in the coconut flakes. Place them on a plate and store in the fridge.

Notes

If you do not like coconut, do not use it. You can leave it out or substitute is with chia seeds or crushed nuts. The same accounts for the chocolate. You can also go for white chocolate, whole milk chocolate, or whatever you want. 

Bircher Muesli with Honey Poached Apple

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This Swiss style overnight oats is going to bring your breakfast to the next level! It is a great meal if you don’t have too much time in the morning because it littleraly takes 5 minutes when you have prepared it the night before. 

What even is Bircher muesli?

Bircher Müsli has actually been invented around 1900 by a Swiss doctor called Maximilian Bircher Brenner who served it his patients in the hospital as a medicine. The original recipe calls for rolled oats, water, cream, lemon juice, Apple and honey. In my recipe I have used almost the same ingredients but even made it a bit healthier.

Overnight oats vs Bircher muesli

Overnight oats are traditionally made either only rolled oats and milk soaked overnight. Bircher muesli also is made with oats being soaked in milk overnight but most of the time. To make it « Bircher » usually there are some nuts, seeds, dried fruits and yoghurt added overnight. When making “normal” overnight oats, you would only top them with fresh fruit, granola, nut butter and yogurt (usually but really depending on the preference) while for Bircher rules like the recipe calls for a freshly grated apple that you add to the yoghurt base. It then is topped with berries, bananas or apple, so just fruit. 

What do I need for this?

My basic recipe is really simple. You just have to add almond milk, yoghurt, rolled oats, seeds and/ or nuts, and some dried fruit to a jar and let them soak overnight! In the Morning all you have to do is take it out of the hat, mix under some grated apple and more yoghurt and serve! Honestly it already is incredibly delicious like that!! I love to eat it that way! 

But in case you want to go next level, you can add the poached apple on top. This is not difficult either but takes some time. You can make this by adding an Apple into some simmering water with honey and apple sauce and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. Then you take it out, peel it if you want but it’s not necessary, drizzle some more honey and add it to the muesli! This takes it next level and is super good

My favourite honey utensil!

I think if you have been following me along on the blog, you probably know that I am in love with honey. The only thing is that it always is some plastic whenever you finish a packaging when squeezing it out. Because of this reason I have ordered the honey spoons from Tuuli kitchen ( http://www.tuuli-kitchen.com )! They are made out of natural wood and such a great utensil for honey! This way I can always buy and use honey from glasses and produce less waste. Plus they look super cute when serving! 

Is this Healthy?

Also the Bircher muesli is really healthy and nutritious. The oats provide you with good carbs, essential fiber, a good amount of protein and a lot of vitamins. The ains milk also adds some vitamins and liquids while the Greek yoghurt is packed with protein. The nuts and seeds give you the healthy fats you need and the dried fruit add some natural sweetness. The Apple also provides you a lot of vitamins and deliciousness. 

I hope that you will really enjoy this recipe! I honestly do and think that you will do so too! If you decide to recreate it be sure to tag me with @uneptcuisiniere or #unepetitecuisiniere! If you have time it would mean a lot to me if you would leave a comment and rating here on the blog too! 

Enjoy! 

Katie 

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Bircher Muesli

A delicious swiss breakfast recipe. It is similar to overnight oats, packed with nutrients and incredibly delicious! Enjoy!

Course bowl, Breakfast, brunch
Cuisine swiss
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Total Time 10 Minuten
Servings 3 servings
Calories 250 kcal

What you will need

The night before:

  • 100 g rolled oats
  • 200 ml almond milk
  • 1 heaped tbsp greek yoghurt can be substituted for a thick plant based yoghurt if making it vegan
  • 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
  • 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
  • 1 tbsp dried cranberries or raisins
  • 1 tsp honey

The morning of:

  • 1 large apple
  • 3 tbsp yoghurt preferably thick such as greek yoghurt or skyr
  • a few nuts
  • some fresh berries for serving

How to

That is how it works:

  1. In a large jar or bowl add all the ingredients for "the night before" and stir until all mixed up. Place it in the fridge for at least 6 hours to overnight.

  2. In the morning take the jar out of the fridge and transfer it into a bowl. Grate an apple and add it to the soaked oats along with the yoghurt. Gently mix until evrything is combined. Sprinkle some more nuts or seeds and top with some fresh fruit or honey poached apple (see recipe below). serve and enjoy!

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Honey Poached Apple

This is a great way to prepare apples to use as a topping for bircher muesli, overnight oats, yoghurt or anything you like!

Course Breakfast, brunch, Dessert, Snack
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 25 Minuten
Servings 1 apple
Calories 171 kcal

What you will need

  • 1 Apple
  • 2 tbsp apple Sauce
  • 1 tbsp honey

How to

This is how it works:

  1. Bring a pot with water to a boil. Add the apple sauce and honey and reduce to a simmer. Add in the Apple and let it simmer for 20 minutes.

    Once done take the apple out. You can peel the apple if you want, but it is not necessary. Drizzle some more honey and enjoy!

Breakfast Quinoa 2 Ways

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This recipe is for all of the breakfast lovers out there who want to switch up their usual morning game. With these breakfast quinoa recipes you can add a healthy twist to the absolutely best meal of the day, which, with no doubt is breakfast! If you do not know what breakfast is so important you can go check out my Ultimate Breakfast Tacos Blog Post. 

Ok, I get it, you know how important this meal is but still do not want to spend a lot of time in the mornings cooking your meal because sleep?! Well, no problem! I got you. These recipes are super quick and come together in under 10 minutes in the morning, which is so amazing! This also works great if you are the type of person, which I am, who eats breakfast food for every meal of the day, no matter what time it is, because these meals are perfectly balanced meals with great nutritional value. The contain carbohydrates, protein, fibre, vitamins, and fats. So what do you want more? Delicious, quick, healthy, and super nutritious!

Although I rather am the savory type of person, I know that not all of you are so I decided to make both, a version for the sweet tooth, and one for hearty lovers. And honestly, I could not say, which one I like more. They are both super delicious and can be adapted to whichever season it is if you want. 

The sweet breakfast bowl is made with frozen fruit to sweeten it up and give it flavor, which I love because if you buy frozen fruit you 1) can be sure it is fresh because it is frozen directly after being harvested and 2) it does not vary depending on the season, which means you can have berries in winter, since they have been grown and frozen in summer. The frozen berries are mixed with the pre cooked Quinoa, the sweetener of your choice and the Almond milk when the grain is reheated. This actually is great because you do not have to heat them up separately! 

Once this mixture is heated up it can be transferred into a bowl and topped with whichever toppings are at your preference. Here you can totally decide on what you like most and be creative. I like to top mine with some plant based yoghurt, some fresh fruits such as bananas or other seasonal fruits, nuts and nut butters and some granola for that extra sweetness and crunch. That’s it is what you are thinking? Yes! It is as simple as that. And with such little effort you just created a super delicious and nutritious breakfast. Amazing, no?

The savory option is not much more complicated but you do need one more pan than for the sweet one (but it actually is not necessary). So first you fry up the bacon in a pan to get it nice and crispy. When it is done, you take it out of the pan and lay it out onto a kitchen paper to let any excess fat drip off. The bacon grease that remains in the pan does not have to wasted because we can use this to fry up an egg if you want to. I personally prefer poached eggs over fried ones so I would use the bacon grease if I wanted to add some more sautéed vegetables, but this is optional. 

So if you want to poach an egg you have to bring a small pot with water to a boil. Once it boil, add about 1 – 2 tablespoons of vinegar to it and reduce it until it barely simmers. Crack a room temperatured egg into a small bowl and let it slide into the hot water slowly and carefully. The whites will set around the yolk and the egg can be taken out of the pot after 3-6 minutes depending on how soft you want the yolk to be. Place it on a kitchen paper to let any water that is still on it drain off. Meanwhile reheat the quinoa in a small frying pan with some fat. Here you can use olive oil, butter, or even the bacon fat. When I made this I actually had some truffle butter leftover in the fridge and heated it up in this and it was heavenly. You can also find truffle oil in any supermarket which will totally bring this to the next level for your upcoming Sunday brunch. Once this is reheated you can assemble everything. The quinoa on the bottom, topped with the egg, bacon, some fresh greens, and some sliced up avocado. If you feel like doing it, add some hot sauce on top or sprinkle some grated cheese. This is a perfectly balanced meal which is so decadent and delicious while still being healthy!

I hope that you will really like these recipes and if you do so be sure to show me if you recreate them and tag me with @unptcuisiniere or #unepetitecuisiniere! 

Enjoy!

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Sweet breakfast Quinoa (Vegan)

This breakfast recipe is a new way to switch up your breakfast game with adding some more nutrients into your first meal, plus making it super delicious!

Course bowl, Breakfast, brunch, Dessert
Prep Time 4 Minuten
Cook Time 6 Minuten
Total Time 10 Minuten
Servings 2
Calories 310 kcal

What you will need

For the base:

  • 250 g cooked quinoa equals 100g raw
  • 140 g frozen blueberries can be substituted for other frozen fruit
  • 150 ml almond milk
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp agave or sweetener of choice

For the toppings:

  • 3 tsp nut butter
  • 4 tbsp plant based yoghurt
  • some fresh fruit & nuts

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Into a small pot add the pre cooked quinoa, the frozen fruits, almond milk, cinnamon, and sweetener of choice. Bring it to a boil. Once hot transfer it into two bowls.

  2. Add the yoghurt and nut butter and whichever topping you desire. I really love fresh fruit such as banana as well as granola on top!

    Serve and enjoy!

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Savoury breakfast Quinoa

This is my savoury twist on the breakfast quinoa recipe. It is perfect for all those who love something hearty in the morning but healthy, plus it comes together in only 10 minutes!

Course Breakfast, brunch, lunch
Prep Time 3 Minuten
Cook Time 7 Minuten
Total Time 10 Minuten
Servings 2 servings
Calories 355 kcal

What you will need

  • 250 g Cooked Quinoa equals 100g raw
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 handful greens
  • 4 thin strips of bacon
  • 2 tsp oil

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Heat up the bacon in a pan until crispy on both sides for about 4 minutes.Tka it out of the pan and place it on some kitchen paper so the remaining fat can drip off.

    Meanwhile bring a pot with water to a boil. Once it is at a boil add in the vinegar and reduce the heat so it barely simmers. Crack two room temperature eggs into two seperat bowl and gently slide one after the other into the hot water. allow the first egg to set a little bit before adding the second. Let them simmer in the water for abou 3-6 minutes depending on how soft you want to yolk to be. Then take them out and place them on a kitchen paper so the excess water can drip off.

  2. If this is too much work for you you can also simply fry up an egg or use a soft boiled one.

  3. In the meantime heat up the oil in a pan or simply use the dripped off fat from the bacon. Once hot, add the quinoa into it and stir it around until it is reheated and a little crispy.

  4. Seperate the quinoa onto 2 bowls. Top with the eggs, the bacon strips, the fresh greens, the sliced up avocado and a generous pinch of sea salt. Serve and enjoy!