Broccoli bread with a quinoa and brown rice salad

Broccoli has a long season that starts in May and runs all the way through to November, which is a good thing because it’s an ingredient we couldn’t live without at The Detox Kitchen. We are always experimenting with this original super food and our broccoli bread is definitely a keeper. It’s simple to make, full of goodness and surprisingly tasty. Even our boys in the kitchen were gobbling it back! We have served it with a delicious quinoa, brown rice, avocado and pomegranate salad.

For the broccoli bread

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. Line a 24cm by 18cm baking tray with greaseproof paper.

Cut the broccoli into small pieces and place in a food processor. Blitz until the broccoli it the consistency of cous cous. You may need to do this in batches. You will need 4 cups of the blitzed broccoli. Place this in a bowl and add the eggs, ground almonds, salt and pepper. Tip the mixture into the lined baking tray and then flatten with your hands so that it is about 1cm thick. Place in the oven for 20-25 mins until lightly golden and cooked throughout. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Cut into 6 pieces. The broccoli bread is best served on the day you made it but will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days and can be toasted.

For the salad

1. Place the brown rice in a pan and cover with three time the amount of cold water. Bring to the boil, add a pinch of salt and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the quinoa to the same pan and cook for a further 7 -10 minutes until the quinoa is cooked. Tip into a sieve and rinse under cold water to cool. Drain well and tip into a large mixing bowl.

2. Remove the core of the apple and dice into small cubes, keep the skin on for extra crunch. Add this to the mixing bowl.

3. Cut the cucumber in half down the centre and remove the seeds and discard. Dice into small cubes. Add this to the mixing bowl.

4. Slice the avocado in half. Remove the stone and scoop out the flesh, then roughly chop and add to the mixing bowl.

5. Finley slice the spring onion and add this to the mixing bowl.

6. Place a small pan on a medium heat and gently fry the pumpkin and sunflower seeds until they are golden brow. Then add them to the mixing bowl along with the oil, lemon, salt and pepper. Combine well and serve on a big serving platter. Garnish with chopped coriander or micro coriander.