Feeling a bit bloated after Christmas? Aiming for a fresh, healthy start in 2017? This recipe from Clare Skelton, trader at Borough Market and owner of Flax Farm, is a great breakfast and doubles as a nutritious dessert, bonus! This recipe first appeared on the Borough Market website as part of my series, I Am What I Eat, where I interview Borough Market traders about the foods that are important to them and why.
"This is one of my favourite healthy foods,” says Clare. “It’s sort of a little treat, but also the basis of the Budwig diet”—a diet used by some people as a form of alternative therapy for a number of conditions. Thisrecipe makes enough for one for breakfast, but it’s also a great dessert.
"It’s uber-healthy but I’ve done it at dinner parties and everybody loves it.” She likens it to eton mess pudding, “but less sweet and with much more flavour”. The recipe is very flexible—you can add whatever spices and natural flavours you like. If you are making it as a dessert, Clare also recommends a bit of kirsch, rum or juices for extra flavour.
100g quark cottage cheese or fat free Greek-style yoghurt
50ml cold-pressed linseed oil
2 tbsp skimmed milk (optional)
1 tsp raw natural honey or stevia, or to taste
1 tsp fresh grated ginger (optional)
2 heaped dessertspoons ground linseed
200g seasonal fruit, chopped
Handful of fresh berries
Sprinkle of chopped nuts
To make the Budwig flax cream, blend the cottage cheese thoroughly with linseed oil in a blender until emulsified. Add milk if necessary to help it blend. If using yoghurt, put it in a bowl and whisk in the oil until emulsified.
Stir the honey or stevia into the cream. Add the ginger and any other spices or flavourings that you are using.
Place the chopped fruit in a bowl, add the ground linseed then pour over the cream.
Top with berries and nuts and serve. Always serve fresh, so that the cream stays emulsified.
You can read my interview with Clare here or on the Borough Market website.