Muesli is the mix of oats, seeds, and nuts alongside dried (often dates, raisins, or apricots) or even fresh fruit. At the center of this dish are the rolled oats soaked in water, milk, juice, or yogurt. There are other common ingredients like cream, cheese, apples, bananas, berries, grapes, lemon juice, cinnamon, etc. If it is homemade, you can pretty much mix anything that pops up to your mind.

There is also a muesli package that you can purchase at the stores. This muesli often contains the dry ingredients - oats, nuts, seeds, and dried fruit. But it is always better to make the homemade muesli because you are the creator of the mixture, and you choose all the ingredients. Plus, this way muesli doesn't have any fat or sweetener (meaning no oil, butter, sugar, maple syrup, etc.) so if it's made right, it can be one of the best choices for breakfast.

The history of muesli

Swiss doctor Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner experimented with raw food, first when he was at the University of Zurich, and later, at his health clinic. He came up with a dish called "Apfeldiätspeise" which means apple diet dish/meal. The name "muesli" showed up later, and it is also a German word which means "puree". What is interesting is that this dish was not served only as breakfast. It was served at the start of every meal. Today, the muesli is based mostly on oats. But back then, his muesli was based more on the apples. The doctor published a book in 1926 in which he described the original recipe.

The original "Bircher-Benner" recipe

In order to make the original "Bircher-Benner" recipe, you will need:
- 1 tbsp of rolled oats - soaked in three tbsp of water for 12 hours
- Two or three small apples or one large apple
- 1 tbsp of nuts - almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts
- Lemon juice from half a lemon
- 1 tbsp of cream or honey or sweetened condensed milk
Directions - Mix all ingredients except apples. When it is well mixed, grate the apples in it while stirring. Serve fresh.

Muesli's commercialization

The commercial muesli also originates in Switzerland. In 1954, a Swiss baby food company called "Solamon" struggled to stay competitive in the marketplace. So, they contacted one of the family members of doctor Bircher-Benner. They managed to get permission to make and sell this product which they called "Bircher muesli". And it was launched in 1959 and became popular very fast, so not long after the launch they exported it to Netherlands, Germany, the UK, the USA, and Austria.

Different ways of eating muesli

1. Hot or warm (like oatmeal) - in the simmering milk or water
2. Cold - in yogurt or milk (cow milk, almond milk, flax milk, soy milk, etc.)
3. Overnight traditional style - it is prepared in the evening and eaten in the morning. Usually, the muesli is soaked in milk or yogurt and mixed with fruits. Then it is left overnight for the oats to become softer.

A healthy choice for breakfast

Muesli is a tasty combination that provides fiber, protein, and fat, which have great benefits for your health. It is the food that is not processed, doesn't have any added sugar or fats, so it is definitely a healthy choice. Why is muesli healthy? Because of the ingredients. 

Oats - provide nutrients that help with reducing cholesterol, improving heart health, and boosting the immune system. Nuts (walnuts and almonds) good for heart health and they are anti-inflammatory, but they also keep you full for a longer period of time. Dried fruit - have potassium and they are helping with lowering blood sugar levels and cholesterol levels. They are a great replacement for sugar. Honey (when used) - boosts immunity, it is antibacterial and anti-inflammatory. Also, it is great for fighting allergies.

One serving of muesli (one cup - 78g) on average contains 2.6g of fat, 59g of carbs, 8.7g of protein, and 7.1g of fiber. However, you can always play around with these figures when you make the homemade version of muesli. That is the reason why it is recommended to make your own muesli comparing to the one you buy at the store. You can always add more flavor, or boost the proteins or fibers. You can add all sorts of ingredients, like berries, herbs, different syrups, pears, etc.

The difference between granola and muesli

Both granola and muesli have the same ingredients - seeds, nuts, grains, dried fruit. Granola usually consists of rolled oats, honey, nuts, and sweeteners like brown sugar or maple syrup, alongside the fruits and sometimes even chocolate. It is served either with milk or yogurt. Sometimes, it is used as a topping on the desserts, ice cream, or baked goods. Granola is served as breakfast, but it can be used as a snack, usually in the form of a granola bar, which is great for outdoor activities.

The crucial difference between muesli and granola is the way they are prepared. Muesli is unbaked and can be served cold or hot (in hot milk or water). While, on the other hand, granola is always baked with a sweetener and fat (olive oil or butter) to bind all the ingredients together and it is always served cold.

And the last difference concerns taste. Muesli is rather chewy because of the raw ingredients (not cooked) and granola is crunchy and sweeter.

Refrigerating the muesli

You can keep muesli in the fridge for a day or two, but depending on the fresh fruit you use, it can turn brown very soon. You can (and you should) prepare the muesli the night before you eat it. It will be tastier and you can eat it right away.

Fruit muesli recipe ingredients

Before we move on to the recipe for fruit muesli, we need to clarify a couple of ingredients on this list, just in case you are encountering them for the first time.

Rolled oats

Rolled oats are made from oat groats. They are first taken out of their shell, steamed and then rolled into flat flakes. After that, they are a bit toasted. The rolled oats are a part of many meals like porridge, granola, and muesli.

Slivered almonds

Slivered almonds are those almonds sliced into very thin little sticks or splinters. They are not just sliced almonds, which are the bigger pieces that are sliced across the length of the almond. There are machines that make slivered almonds. These machines first heat the almonds to 160 degrees then cut them. If you don't have this machine at home, it would be very hard to make slivered almonds from the whole almond. That extra work is the reason why they cost a bit more compared to the whole almonds.