EPIC BREAKFAST(S)

What makes or breaks your breakfast?

For me it’s bananas. I have to have bananas or my day is, well, spoiled. That’s a habit I’ve acquired from my dad, a seasoned runner who won’t go a day without his natural dose of potassium.
Nonetheless, I find that often bananas get lonely. You need to top them off with something, such as soy yoghurt, cereals or other fruits. I come up with new concoctions to go with my bananas every day.

This bad boy was my epic Sunday breakfast: banana, chia seeds, rice milk, a pinch of maca flour, green banana flour, soy yoghurt, agave syrup and flaxseed. PHEW.

The key to me is to soak the chia seeds (about one tablespoon) in a bit of rice milk for about 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients, so they get a bit “puffy”.
I then added a pinch of maca flour and a tablespoon of green banana flour (both of which I got in Brazil last time I was there…). Mix it up, slice the banana, add the yoghurt, sprinkle with flaxseed and top it all off with as much agave syrup as you wish. Then, obviously, indulge.

So how’s your epic breakfast?

THIS VEGAN PÃO DE QUEIJO WILL BLOW YOUR MIND

Not from the creators of  I can’t believe it’s not butter!, here’s I can’t believe it’s not cheese. So what’s “pão de queijo”? If you’ve ever been in contact with Brazilians or Brazilian culture, you’ve probably heard of Brazilian cheese balls. The texture is uniquely mushy, which I adore, but I understand it can be peculiar for those who didn’t grow up with it. Now, Brazilian food is sooo not vegan, which is ok most of the time, but not when it’s about pão de queijo. I crave these babies every other day, so I figured I had to come up with an alternative. Lo and behold, the vegan “cheese” balls.

– 1 cup (200-250 grams) prepared tapioca flour
– 1 tablespoon olive oil
– 1 tablespoon of flaxseed oil (or two of olive oil)
– 1 teaspoon of salt
– 1 tablespoon of chia seed (optional)
– 250 grams of mashed cooked mandioquinha*

* I’ve seen it been translated as parsnip, but that’s not quite it. In any case, I feel like most potato-like vegetables will do the trick – I’ve heard it works just as well with sweet potatoes.

Mix the first 5 ingredients until it turns into a crumbly texture, then add the parsnip and mix well. For me, the “dough” became just perfect to roll into little balls, but if it’s sticky to just add a little bit of water and it should work. 10 minutes in a preheated oven and voilà!

PÃO DE QUEIJO VEGANO – VERSÃO BRASILEIRA

– 1 copo (200-250 gramas) de farinha de tapioca preparada
– 1 colher de sopa de azeite
– 1 colher de sopa de óleo de linhaça (ou duas de azeite de oliva) 
– 1 colher de chá de sal
– 1 colher de sopa de semente de chia (opcional)
– 250 gramas de mandioquinha cozida amassada

Misture os primeiros 5 ingredientes até virar uma farofa, depois adicione a mandioquinha e misture bem. Pra mim a massa ficou no ponto de enrolar, mas se tiver grudando é só colocar um pouco de água. 10 minutos no forno pré-aquecido e voilà!

SOL SEMILLA, A.K.A. HEAVEN ON EARTH

Sometimes you just need to eat out – and when you do, sometimes all you really need are super foods. Knowing me too well, this lovely fellow pictured below took me out for lunch at Sol Semilla.

The concept is not that simple. Sol Semilla is a South American vegan restaurant which uses almost exclusively super foods in its concoctions. And not just any super food (there were no chia seeds in sight) – expect some maca, guaraná, açaí, spirulina and other ingredients that make my Brazilian heart skip a beat with joy.

But that’s not all – if you happen to fall in love with the almost-instant benefits of these miracle fruits, roots and seeds, you can walk away with some of your own. The grocery shop part of Sol Semilla is sure to make one drool. Oh yeah, and they also host workshops and cooking classes. As I said, heaven on earth.

Now as for the price: c’est pas donné, as the French say. 14,50 euros for the assiette du jour makes my wallet cringe a little bit, but 22,50 euros for the menu (drink or soup + main dish + dessert) is a justified price. I chose to drink the hot xocolatl (raw cocoa, urucum, pepper, agave, cinnamon), which I highly recommend. The assiette du jour included açaí caviar, grains with spirulina, a bunch of veggies cooked with cocoa… and so much more I can’t even name. For dessert, I picked raw cocoa truffles which were simple to die for. I was the happiest camper by the time we left, not to say I was very tempted to just turn around and experience Sol Semilla all over again.

Sol Semilla

23, rue des Vinaigriers

75010 Paris