The Perfect Muesli and the Importance of a Good Breakfast

I have spent thirty years searching for the perfect muesli. This pursuit has taken me to several continents, a range of climates, and involved reading a number of books.

First, let me be very clear. I am talking about muesli, and not its false friend, granola. Granola, with its crunchiness and sticky glaze, may be superficially appealing, but it is ultimately an agglomeration of sugar, its satisfactions soon spent.

Let me share some of my insights about muesli, then. For too long, I mistakenly thought that jumbo raisins enriched the experience. I now realise they were a wrong turn. Small Cape raisins are the thing – moist, chewy but not too dominant a note.

Definite no-nos include dried bananas and coconut. I have nothing against coconut, but those white flakes are a distraction. And while dried banana offers a hard visual accent, it feels cheap in the mouth. To prove a successful accessory, a banana must be fresh – a little chunky, sliced at an angle and, crucially, not yet ripe.

Oats form the bedrock of any muesli. It’s hard to go wrong with this, but be aware of the muesli disproportionately weighted with this staple. Many a dispiriting morning has seen me shaking out the remnants of a packet with nothing but desiccated oats.

When it comes to nuts – allergies aside – walnuts are good, but hazelnuts add just the right amount of snappiness and crack – the perfect foil for those Cape raisins. Add pumpkin seeds if you want to rebrand your muesli as a power breakfast.

Finally, do not soak your muesli in milk overnight – a technique I have tried and regretted. The soggy sensation is ruinous. Add the milk slowly until it becomes visible, without ever covering the whole. The result should be liquid but crisp.

What about yoghurt, you ask? There is something joyless about yoghurt in the morning. Leave it for later in the day. Milk is king in the morning, ideally not full fat.

I’ve taken some time to describe my personal breakfast because it is what gets me up in the morning. I wake up hungry and want my muesli. Without it, I feel empty and desolate.

To my surprise, then, when I asked in a recent assembly how many students eat breakfast regularly, about a third said no. Research shows that to begin the day with a healthy, nutritious breakfast gives students energy, which aids concentration and ultimately helps learning.

There is a strong correlation between students who eat breakfast, sleep at least eight hours, exercise regularly, and who then perform well at school.

You might speak to your children about what would constitute their ideal breakfast. See if you can encourage them to start the day well. As for me, I will go on pursuing the perfect muesli. It’s a ceaseless journey, possessing the quality of a quest, with its promise of enlightenment and secret treasure at the end. Yummy.

Chris Greenhalgh
Principal and CEO