I asked a paediatrician recently what the most common condition children presented with each week at ER. Constipation. Seriously!
Gastroenterologists – the specialists who look after our pipes – recommend that children ideally get around 25g of dietary fibre every day. This week’s oat balls will help your little one do exactly that. Expect bowel movements to be practically Instagrammable.
There are two types of fibre chillaxing inside each oat flake and flaxseed. Soluble fibre is a gift for the gut, and works by helping to normalise bowel movements and balance blood sugar levels. The other type of fibre is insoluble, and has the ability to police our bowels, improving congestion and reducing transit time like a tenacious traffic warden. We like. Oats and flaxseed contain astral amounts of the stuff. Plus, we are totally addicted to these and make them every single day. Our bowels have never been more beautiful.
100g oats (Ireland’s own superfood)
3 tablespoons milled flaxseed
5 tablespoons runny tahini
4 tablespoons maple syrup
Generous smattering of flaky salt
Pinch of ground cinnamon or freeze-dried strawberry powder
3 tablespoons coconut sugar
Using a coffee grinder or blender, pulse your oats and milled flax into a fine flour. I find that whole flaxseeds tend to get stuck in our teeth, and so we favour milled flax.
In a medium sized bowl, beat together the tahini, maple, salt and vanilla until luscious and sticky. We get our tahini on tap from our local bulk store for a fraction of the price. It also happens to be the most exquisite tasting tahini in our postcode’s orbit.
Mash in the blitzed oat mix, and leave aside to soak for 30 minutes. Roll into lots of oat balls and chill on a tray inside your fridge.
When they’re firm enough (say 30 minutes), tumble the batch of oat balls into a bowl of coconut sugar. Shake to coat. Return to the fridge.
Feel free to roll in melted dark chocolate and dust with freeze dried raspberry powder for extra snazz.
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