Elvira’s Nuts – it’s not a comment on the sanity of Elvira Zaera Tamargo, though the Spanish momtrepreneur is certainly a big personality. Rather it’s the brand name under which she sells her popular homemade breakfast cereals and sauces.
“When I arrived here,” she told us, “I noticed that cereals were of high price and low quality and, at the same time, I noticed that I could get the ingredients from the local supermarkets to make my own. So I started producing for my family. Some friends were complaining too of the same problem, and they wanted to try mine. When they did, they thought that it was fantastic, and encouraged me to sell it.
Elvira Zaera Tamargo with her products
“At the same time someone asked me to do some onion chutney. I tried and it worked, they loved it, so i started producing the chutney, beetroot relish and tomato sauce, and they became a success too. Now due to time restrictions in my schedule I can only produce one of the sauces, the beetroot relish.”
We sampled the relish with a mature cheddar and some crackers. It was noticeably fresher than shop-bought sauce, with a subtle chili tang. The sweetness worked well with the bite of the cheddar; so much so that the tasting session turned into an unseemly scramble to scoff down as much as possible before it all disappeared.
Note the anxiety at the idea that we might snatch a cracker under the pretext of taking a picture…
Breakfast cereal is the bane of many a parent’s life. On the one hand, it’s quick, convenient, and kids love it. When you’re struggling to get them ready for school and out of the door in the morning, it can be a godsend. On the other hand, though the packaging boasts of vitamins and minerals, cereal is loaded with sugar. A bowlful of even an apparently plain cereal like cornflakes provides half of a child’s recommended daily sugar intake, and Frosties contain four times as much.
Zaera’s “Rocket Fuel” range includes not only healthy granola and muesli, but also homemade Cocoa Pops. These use natural maple syrup and stevia instead of processed sugar, and are noticeably less tooth-rottingly sweet. Without the sugar attack, the delicate flavor of the puffed rice comes through, giving the cereal an appealingly nutty feel.
Granola with added strawberries
We also tried the granola, which is deliciously munchable, the oat clusters mixed with a copious selection of nuts, seeds and berries. We added a few strawberries, just to top it off with a sweet treat. If you need something quick to feed the tribe in the morning, but don’t want to fill them up with additives, preservatives, and sugar, then Elvira’s Nuts Rocket Fuel offers a tasty and nutritious alternative.
Photos: Karen Killeen, Andrew Killeen
