Bowled Over by Super Bowls

I've been asked frequently what the inspiration was for my second cookbook. The concept from the beginning was a series of books, all based on the LCF principle I've developed. Super Bowls was one my priorities, for the very simple reason that I just love eating fragrant food out of bowls with a spoon.

I first encountered the bowl food trend in New York and immediately fell in love with it and I'm glad those brightly coloured, spoonable dishes have made it across the pond and are starting to spread around these parts as well. One thing is for certain: smoothies or breakfast bowls like the Acai bowl, aside from being delicious, look magnificent as well, decorated, as they are, with figs, honey and nuts or chia seeds, goji berries and crushed almonds. That was what inspired me to write my second book about these "Super Bowls" .

The third cookbook in my series will be published in the autumn of 2017. The topic? Not allowed to talk about it yet!

Eating from bowls is very trendy at the moment and all manner of bowl dishes are now offered in restaurants and cafes everywhere. And then there's Instagram and Pinterest - both social media platforms are teeming with bright, yummy, healthy bowls.

Where does this trend come from? Maybe it's because ingredients can be combined more easily in a bowl with a spoon and nutritious dishes drizzled with a sauce or juice can be mixed and served quickly, which looks fresh and delicious and saves space. The Chinese have been on to this for centuries.

Bowls spread comfort - you can warm up your hands on a bowl - and the ingredients and flavours can be combined in a variety of different ways to offer entirely new dishes each time. A beautiful arrangement of shapes and colours makes them look stunning and inviting.

For me, creating bowls has a meditative component. As you'll be able to see in my book, I went to great lengths to arrange ingredients in myriad different ways because I think it improves the taste, increases the enjoyment of the dish and produces a kind of visual harmony as well.

What else do I love about bowls? They're a great option for any occasion: as your daily morning muesli, a healthy grain and veggie salad for lunch, a fancy steak bowl with polenta and rocket salad dinner, a vanilla ice cream crumble for dessert or the elaborate 3-course bowl menu for family and friends - bowls are always appropriate and definitely always taste amazing.

Have a look at my friend Sophie's page sophiehearts. She cooked one of my favourite breakfast bowls and blogged about my book.
And today, you'll get this very recipe exclusively here on this page.

Fotos (c) Julia Stix für Brandstätterverlag

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Millet Porridge Bowl with Caramelised Pears

2 Bowls

Ingredients:

For the porridge:

  • 100g organic millet
  • 450ml almond or coconut milk
  • 1 small cinnamon stick
  • 1 clove
  • 1 lemon
  • 3 TBSP honey
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 2 TBSP chopped hazelnuts

For the pears:

  • 3 ripe pears
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 TBSP coconut sugar
  • 1 vanilla bean

Topping:

  • maple syrup or honey for drizzling
  • 2 figs
  • 2 TBSP cornflower petals (if you have some and like them)

Preparation:

  1. Rinse the millet in a fine sieve under running water (to avoid a bitter taste). Add the milk, cinnamon stick and clover to a pan and simmer over a low flame for 5 minutes. Rinse the lemon in hot water, rub dry and zest. Take the spices from the milk and add a pinch of lemon zest, the millet, honey and salt. Let the millet soak for around 10 minutes (add more liquid, if it needs it).
  2. Just before the end of your cooking time, juice the lemon. Wash, halve, pit and quarter the pears. In a separate pan, heat up the lemon juice, sugar and vanilla seeds and add the pear pieces. Let them caramelise briefly.
  3. Chop the hazelnuts. Arrange the porridge in bowls while it's still warm (although it's perfectly delicious eaten cold as well). Add the pears and top with the chopped hazelnuts. Halve the figs and add two pieces each to one piece of pear. Drizzle with maple syrup or honey and garnish with the flower petals. Serve!

To go: You can prepare this dish several days in advance to have a delicious quick breakfast that just needs to be heated on the day.

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