Autumn. I’ve realised it’s one of the nicest seasons from a foodie point of view. Warm, wholesome, comforting meals – and generous use of some of my favourite spices like cinnamon and ginger! My latest recipe is in celebration of the colder weather – it always makes me want to have a hot breakfast, and so today I’m sharing a recipe for my Carrot Cake  & Fig Breakfast Bakes! You can make these as bars OR muffins for a quick, balanced and delicious protein packed breakfast on the go. After @superhealthysteph and I created a Cake for Breakfast Baked Oats recipe I’ve been keen to create some kind of handy muffin or baked bar version for you guys! Ready…Steady…BAKE!

Recipe (Makes 2 Servings)

Ingredients

• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp hazelnuts, chopped
• 1 banana, mashed
• 1 medium carrot, peeled & grated
• 100g Quick Cook Oats (I used Flavahan’s)
• 2 scoops of Vanilla Protein Powder (I used Nutri-Strength Vegan Protein)
• 1.5 cups of milk of choice (I used Alpro Coconut Milk)
• 5-6 Figs, chopped into small chunks
• Optional: 1 tbsp honey or maple/date syrup

Pre-Bake – Bar Style with Figs on top!

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C (fan oven). Line a baking tin with tinfoil and grease the tinfoil with a little melted coconut oil or olive oil – this stops the mix sticking!
2. Take a large mixing bowl, and add your dry ingredients – oats, spices, seeds, baking powder and protein powder – and mix until combined.
3. Add your wet ingredients next – milk, mashed banana, and grated carrot. Stir until combined.
4. Pour the mixture into your baking tin, and smooth out with the back of a spoon until even.
5. Place the chopped figs on top – as artistically as you like!
6. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. If baking muffins, the bake time is about 30 minutes, and check at 25 with a toothpick to see if it comes out 99% clean (my golden rule!). If you’re baking bars, they need more like 35-40 minutes – but check at 30 minutes with the toothpick!
7. Leave to cool for 10-15 minutes until removing from the tin – then tuck in!

Enjoy guys! Tag me if you try this out – @theirishbalance on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook!

Ciara x