Birdseed breakfast.

I love lazy weekend mornings, they are the highlight of the week, and part of that is breakfast in bed. Having made the cinnamon rolls last week I've definitely caught the special breakfast bug. Since I am trying to cut down on the amount of cupcakes and general baking indulgence (I could bake every weekend but I know I shouldn't) I decided that making something tasty for breakfast that's indulgent and healthy (well, kind of at least, come on it's the weekend and we're not monks or anything!) would hopefully satisfy both my baking wants and set us up for the day.

So, I took the cinnamon rolls dough recipe (which can be found here), and instead of using a butter and sugar/cinnamon filling, adapted a birdseed filling from "Mad about Bread" by Diana Bonaparte that I had purchased last weekend from the second hand bookshop. The result was a lovely bread roll filled with high fibre delicious seeds and fruit. Crunchy and doughy; lovely. I can see that this formula will become a real winner for breakfasts. I fully intend to try a fresh berry version when our raspberries and blueberries appear in the garden. Ah, just the potential of fresh blueberry and cinnamon swirl rolls is making be hungry all over again!

I won't post the dough recipe again, I will just post the filling ingredients and instructions.

1/3 cup of peanut butter (or just butter if you don't like peanut butter - although what mad fool that could be I don't know!)
Sprinkle of mixed spice and brown sugar (literally a sprinkle, you won't need much, just enough to add some spice)
25g cranberries
25g raisins
30g pumpkin seeds
30g sunflower seeds
20g sesame seeds
20g linseeds

Place the pumpkin and sunflower seeds on a baking tray and place in a oven preheated to 180C for five minutes to toast them. Meanwhile dry fry the linseeds and sesame seeds until just lightly browned. These techniques will bring out the flavour of the nuts more and make them nice and crunchy. Then place all these ingredients in a bowl with the raisins and cranberries and combine as well as possible. Put the peanut butter in a heat proof jug and microwave for 30-40 seconds to make it warm enough to spread thinly and easily.

Roll out the dough into a large rectangle. Thinly spread the peanut butter over the dough, sprinkle with the sugar and spice and then cover with the seed and fruit mixture trying to get as even a distribution of the various ingredients as possible. Roll the dough towards you into a swiss roll and seal as well as possible. Cut it into 3/4 inch pieces. Place on a baking tray that is either greased of covered in baking parchment. Allow to rise for 30 mins. When risen bake for 15-20 mins (mine took 15) until golden.

You can easily do all this the day before (as I do) and then just toast under a preheated grill for a few minutes to make them crispy again.

Mmm, tasty birdseed breakfast!