Our blueberry bush has gone berserk this year. What started out as a little plant only a few years ago has now grown into this mammoth lanky thing that’s absolutely loaded to the brim with fruit. It still grows in a large pot out back, but this doesn’t seem to bother it and the kids take turns picking the juicy fruit every evening when I water the garden. It started out producing just a couple of berries which I’d give to the kids, mostly. But just before we left for Vietnam we were picking whole bowlfuls and gorging on them like crazy people. It’s also what we’re paying Si’s sisters with for watering our garden while we are away ๐
Our flight over to Vietnam was one of those budget no meal kinda ones, so I knew I’d have to prepare something special to keep the troops happy on the flight(s) over. I packed tortillas wrapped around omelette, fruit, vegies and nuts, muesli bars and a big container of this lovely blueberry, lemon and quinoa slice, which we ate in Malaysia while on the most confusing stopover of my life! Lets just say we were lucky to even make it to our connecting flight…
If you follow on Instagram you would have already been bombarded with photos from over here (I’ve tried really hard not to post a new photo every 5 minutes!). But if ya don’t, I’ll share some photos here when we get home again too. I’ve only been to Vietnam once before, nearly 10 years ago and I know this may sound really weird, but in a way I feel like we’ve come home. I don’t know if it’s having the kids with us this time or the fact that I’m pretty used to the Vietnamese way of life having been part of Si’s family for so long now, but coming here hasn’t at all been the shock to the system I was anticipating. We just seem to have slipped right into life over here without any dramas at all. Everything is so full of life and alive, everywhere you look people are going about their lives in the kinda ordered chaos that is Asia.The kids have been little troopers, taking it all in- eyes well and truly wide open. We are having a few days at the beach before heading back to the hustle and bustle of Saigon, and then on to Si’s families village about 4 hours south, where the real celebrations will begin…
I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas, I’ll try and pop in again once more before the years end. Have an awesome day with your families and loved ones! I know I will be ๐
Recipe inspired by my friend Sash’s Blueberry and Oat Slice, from Inked in Colour.
blueberry, lemon + quinoa slice
This slice sits somewhere between a cake and baked oatmeal in texture, lovely and sturdy and filling too, which is exactly what I was looking for in a good plane snack. The little pops of blueberry are awesome and I reckon next time I’m gonna try it out with raspberries. Using 1/2 cup honey results in a mildly sweet slice, or use 2/3 cup for a sweeter version. I use quinoa flakes for a 100% gluten-free slice, however if you tolerate oats by all means use them like Sash does. I’m thinking buckwheat flour or quinoa flour would also work as great substitutes for the brown rice flour if that’s what you’ve got.
Makes approx 15 slices
2 cups (200g) quinoa flakes
1/2 cup (70g) fine brown rice flour
1/2 cup (45g) shredded coconut
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
a good pinch fine sea salt
1/3 cup (80ml) virgin coconut oil
1/2-2/3 cup (125ml-160ml) runny honey
3 large free-range eggs
The finely grated zest 1 lemon
1 cup (125g) blueberries, fresh or locally grown frozen ones
Preheat oven to 160C/ 320F. Grease or line a 28 x 18cm slice tin with baking paper, extending up and over the sides by a centimeter or two. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl, mixing well to combine. Heat coconut oil and honey in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until melted. Pour into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add eggs and zest and mix well. Fold through blueberries at the last second then transfer mixture to the slice tin, pressing down with the back of a spoon to even it out. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden around the edges and firm to the touch in the centre. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool before slicing. Will store airtight for 2-3 days, or in the fridge for longer.
31 Responses
These are an absolute delight! YUM!
That slice looks and sounds delicious! There is a blueberry farm near where my parents live so I'll definitely be stocking up when I head home for Christmas – I've got this on my list of things to make with my blueberries ๐
These sound delicious, I'll have to give it a go.
Cheers,
Lynda.
These sounds delicious! I wish I had a blueberry plant haha.
Enjoy your holiday! ๐
Thanks Reanna ๐
Looks so delicious! Beautiful recipe.
Stunning photos.
Cheers love!
How fabulous to have your own blueberries in your backyard. Inspires me to try to grow one.
They are easy as to grow and like I said, they happily grow in a large pot if you don't have a space to plant one or are renting like us ๐
This looks like EXACTLY the kind of thing I would take on a plane too, SO much nicer and more nutritious than anything they would give you ๐ Yum. Ps oh to own a blueberry bush that goes beserk!
I have to say, we did feel pretty special eating this while travelling!
These look delicious! I wish I had blueberries in my backyard. Also, a backyard.
So yummy looking! Just the type of real, stick-to-your-ribs cake I like, much better than style over substance:)
I'm very jealous, my blueberry bushes have barely a handful of fruit, but my raspberries are coming along nicely though.
Have a wonderful trip, and enjoy your family time, Merry Christmas! X
Oh yum, I want to grow raspberries too! They are my all time favourite berry ๐ Merry Christmas to you too love xx
I've been hoping that you were going to share this recipe – perfect lunchbox fodder! I've been absolutely loving your pictures from Vietnam too, it sounds like you guys are having a wonderful trip. Merry merry Christmas to you and your family xo
Stoked you've been enjoying all my Vietnam photos! They've been just a few, hehe ๐ Merry Christmas to you too! xx
Looks great. I'm going to make this today for the family and the only thing I will need to substitute is maple syrup for the honey, which has too much fructose for me (on a low FODMAP diet for fructose malabsorption). It is hard to find recipes that are almost perfect as is so thank you.
An overactive blueberry bush is perhaps the best inconvenience I could dream up. I hope your time in Vietnam is absolutely lovely, and happy holidays!
Vietnam's one of the most incredible places i've ever been, not just because of the amazing food! Have an amazing trip ๐ And this slice looks awesome!
Those blueberries look delicious they would not have even made it back to the house with my family!
Quinoa flakes and shredded coconut on my grocery list…definitely making this one. Thanks!
What I wouldn't give to have a thriving blueberry bush in my backyard!
Love making baked goods with quinoa – always gives it a wonderfully filling touch so I don't eat the whole pan…
Saw this on Pinterest and came here for the recipe. Disappointed to find it has sugar as well as honey in it. Does it really need all that sweetness? Sugar is sugar even if it's raw.
Thanks for stopping by Sandy. I don't post recipes to cater for everyone. If you would like to cut out the sugar, go for it! I don't do the whole sugar-free thing and have no problems eating unrefined sugars in moderation. A lot of the time I would rather eat unrefined cane sugar than the many, many refined 'healthy' alternatives. In saying that though, if you actually took the time to read my post you will see that I did mention I found this a little sweet for my tastes and would use brown rice syrup in place of honey next time and use raspberries in place of blueberries.
Hi Emma, I made this yesterday – what an amazing recipe! My kids usually won't go near quinoa, but they didn't even know it was in this slice! It was really quick to make, I would say pretty much fool-proof, and just so so yummy! I actually cut back on the honey by quarter of a cup and used frozen blueberries (thawed) and they turned out just the right amount of sweet!
Hey love, so stoked to hear your little ones love it! I actually make this slice using only honey nowadays and it comes out perfect (1/2 cup honey in place of the honey + sugar). Also, don't worry about thawing the berries next time, frozen is totally fine xx
I made this yesterday with 1,5 cups millet flakes and 1 cup small oat flakes, only a small half cup of honey and no sugar, and it came out amazing! But I just saw in rereading the recipe that it called for 1/2 cup of rice flour, which I'm pretty sure I forgot… I did add quite a lot of extra millet flakes for coating the thawed blueberries so they wouldn't color the whole pan blue upon mixing, and I used really dry, fine shredded coconut, but it's so weird I completely missed the rice flour and it still came out amazing! Anyways, it's absolutely fantastic both at room temperature and in the fridge, great recipe ๐
What if you dont have quinoa flakes?
If you're ok with oats, use them xx