'Not as you know it' Nutella

Yes, yes I know there are plenty of 'healthy' 'vegan' nutella recipes already lurking around the blogosphere... and for good reason, who doesn't like a drippy spoonful of thick creamy chocolate?

So far I have avoided the temptation to make my own. Partly because  had concerns as to my self control once made, but also many of the recipes I'd come across had a number of time consuming steps and also many recipes also left a lot to be desired in the healthy department.

I made my first version of the 'Nutella' a week or so ago here for the Real Food Source. It was delcious and the coconut sugar gave a lovely caramelised touch.  I wanted to reinvent it again with a slight twist this time using my ever faithful date paste.

You'll notice there are no roasted hazlenutsa in this recipe, so technically its not Nutella at all...rather a chocolate almond spread. Somehow that description didn't tantalize my tatsebuds in quite the way it should! The chocolate really takes centre stage and the creamy almond paste (make your own or buy it) just brings it all together in a rich and creamy spread.

Plus if you add a little extra water you'll have an amazing chocolate drizzle sauce! Sooooo good.

Recipe: Healthy ‘Nutella’

Makes just under 1 cup

Ingredients:

1/3 cup almond paste*
1/3 cup date paste
3 tbs cocoa powder
1/3 cup boiling water

*almond paste is just blanched almond butter. Make your own or buy it for example here

Method:

Stir the cocoa into the boiling water until smooth. Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until very smooth. This works best with either a smallish sized blender or double the amount (the mixture had a tendency to fling itself to the edges of my large Thermomix and I had to scrape it down a few times)

Store in the fridge. it will thicken up a little. This would also be good mixed with a little hot water and served as a chocolate drizzle sauce. You may want to add a couple of drops of stevia to add sweetness if diluting as a drizzle.

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Easter Simnel Cake

This is very much a last minute post before I rush out of the door to drive 5 hours north to Snowdonia for a 'relaxing' break with the family. I say relaxing...but there will be lots of walkng involved. Relaxing my mind for a few days is the intention here and something I am very much in need of.

I'm planning on switching off from the internet...so I may be a little silent for a few days (other than the odd bit of dabbling on my phone!)

It's Easter Saturday and I hope for many of you that means enjoying a long weekend. Relaxing? DIY? Family time? What are your plans?

Yesterday I promised you one final Easter themed recipe...this one is quick and easy and can be made as a a single or double serving. I've made mine as a sharer as that was the size of my tin but you can easily half the ingredients (or save half for latter) if you prefer.  It uses the  coconut  cream that has been popping up in a few recipes...I've yet to write a full post dedicated to it, but it so simple and versatile its crept in of its own accord!

This cake is based on a fruit cake recipe but it would be equally nice using my single serve 2 minute carrot cake as a base. You can make any 'mazipan' style eggs or use some of the thickened  coconut cream. I had some vanilla energy bar mixture left over from my taster session so I used that. If you want to follow my basic recipe... it's based on these bars using just dates dessicated coconut and vanilla.

The top of the cake should have 12  'eggs' on it if you are following the biblical tradition of the 12 apostles but I struggles with space! Here's some brief info on the traditions behind the simnel cake if you are interested.  :-)

Right, i'm off...Have a lovely Easter. Eat lots of good food and be happy!

P.s apologies the photos aren't up to my usual efforts.... I was littering clicking and posting as fast as I could with my family clamouring to get out of the door!!

Recipe: Mini Simnel Cake

Ingredients:

1/3 cup blanced almond flour*
3 tbs ground almonds
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
pinch salt

1/2 cup mixed dried fruit and nuts roughly blended- I used cranberries, raisins and walnuts
1/2 tsp mixed spice and/or cinnamon
1 small apple grated (approx. 1/3 cup)

3 tbs orange or apple juice mixed with 1 tbs ground flax seed
1 tsb coconut oil- melted (or other)

*Note- this would probably work fine with regular flour or spelt too (but I haven't tried it that way)

topping:
3 tbs vegan yoghurt
2 tsp fine coconut flour
tiny pinch of stevia to taste
pinch turmeric (just for yellow colour)
few drops almond extract

Decoration: 12 'eggs' (or an many as you can fit around the edge!)

Method:

Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Roughly blend the dried fruits/nuts and then add to the dry ingredients along with remaining ingredients. Mix lightly to combine.

Spoon into a smallish tin (I used two extra large muffin tins approx 8cm diameter).

Bake for approx. 20 mins at 180C until golden on top. Note this probably also work in the microwave for 2-3 mins cook time but it wouldn't go golden.

Allow to cool before mixing the topping ingredients together to form a thick spreadable frosting and spreading over the top of the cake. Decorate with eggs to the perimeter to serve.

P.s for some random reason I added some strands of saffron.. it didn't add anything... i'd leave it off ;-)

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Chocolate almond crackles

I recently posted this little gem of a recipe over here at the Real Food Source.... I have quite a collection of recipes over there now, some of which are a variation on my own posts.  This recipe is one such recipe, and instead of going for toasted coconut flakes and chia seeds I opted for an 'almondy' concoction! I think chocolate and almond pair so beautifully.

If these don't make for the perfect beautiful and healthy Mothers Day alternative to a box of chocolates then I don't know what does! Can you beleive this recipe still holds true to my sugar free Whole Food Lent Challenge.

These little treats only take 5 minutes to create and look almost too cute to eat. Plus true to my nature this recipe provides plenty of scope for changing things up exactly as you wish, and if you'd like to add a little agave or other syrup then you can my all means. I was simply going for the truly sugar free option and in my opinion the intense darkness of the chocolate is perfectly complemented by the sweet aftertaste of the dried fruits.

I have used raw cacao liquor but a semi sweet dark chocolate or in fact any melty dark chocolate would work here. Just make sure its not too sweet since the darkness really does add to the indulgent nature of the recipe. The almond extract is also a perfect companion- my favourite flavour combination so far. I also find the almond tastes amazing in these ultimate dark chocolate truffles for the same reason.

Use crinkle edged mini petit four cases if you can find them, simply because they give such a pretty finish to the moulded chocolate. You will see in some of the photos below that there are also some longer misshapen circles with 'white stuff' on top. I ran out of fruity filling but still had melted chocolate mix left, so I placed a date in a few cases and enrobed it with the mixture and then sprinkled ground almonds on top. Even simpler but just as good! Yay for dates :-)

You can find more simple no-bake treats perfect for Mother's Day here.

Or for a crazy indulgent special breakfast (or dessert) for two... you have to try these hot chocolate cream cups. They first made their debut for Valentines Day but I cant help by parade them again here- just too good to miss!

Recipe: Chocolate almond crackles

Makes 8 mini cups

Ingredients

1/3 cup chopped or flaked almonds

3 tbs fine oats or almond flour (other flours should also work)

¼ cup dried fruit paste (I used prunes and cherries)

--------

¼ cup cacao liquor (or low sugar dark chocolate)

1 tbs coconut oil

Pinch stevia

½ tsp almond extract

Method

Blend dried fruits to form a thick sticky paste. Add the almonds and oats/flour and pulse lightly to mix through.

Spoon small teaspoon sized dollops of the mixture into small petit-four cases (or in ice cube trays).

To prepare the chocolate drizzle, place all ingredients in a small bowl and microwave on medium power for approx 90 seconds or until full melted. Stir through and lightly drizzle across the top of each mound, the mixture will pool in the bottom of each case. Add a few extra nuts if desired.

Chill to set until serving. 

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Fresh almond milk.... in one minute!

I’ve been having a bit of a ‘dietary reshuffle’ as of late, not in a big way, simply challenging a few routines and habits and trying alternative ways of going about things things. This all ties in to my Lent Challenge, along my extra Six-Pack Challenge. 

So today we’re going to talk about milk!

 

There are so many dairy free choices out there, many of which can be found in regular supermarkets, the idea of dairy free cooking shouldn’t be a daunting one (though I appreciate the challenge of eating out is another thing entirely).

My choice of ‘milk’ would typically be organic soya due to its viscosity, widespread availability and low cost. However in more recent weeks and months I have begun questioning whether this is the best option out there since there are so many mixed reports of soy products. Almond milk does seem to be a favourite in the health world and it does taste wonderful...but it is so pricey in the stores (over here in the UK at least!)

So, I decided to make my own. I will step in here and say that I have NOT used a nut bag to strain my milk- most people do take this additional step (and you can by all means)  but since I predominantly use milk in my oatmeal or as a liquid in baking then straining was not a key concern for me and it sped up the process dramatically. This milk literally takes 1 minute from start to finish provided you made some almond butter up in advance, this is the easiest way and ensures the smoothest milk.I made a cup's worth which should keep me going for a while.

I added the milk to a bowl of oatmeal and it made for a super creamy bowl...so good! I am planning on making a 1.5ltr batch every weekend and then dividing into two smaller batches and freezing one whilst I use the other over the course of a few days, that way I always have fresh milk to hand for minimal effort.

Four easy steps....almonds....meal...butter...milk!  (plus bowl of creamy oats mmmm)

I will also be building up a bit of a product profile over the next few weeks and months, I will add posts like this to a separate category as soon as I have my new blog layout sorted!

This recipe can join the homemade coconut butter (from way back at the beginning- cue dodgy photos) and also the more recent homemade date sugar experiments.

 

Recipe: Fresh almond milk

Just over 1.5 ltr

Ingredients

scant ¼ cup almond butter* (homemade from blanched or ground almonds without salt added)

1.5 ltr filtered water

1 tbs date paste or other sweetener (if desired for a touch of sweetness)

*You can add more or less almond butter depending on preferred viscosity. You can also make a thicker cream this way by increasing the proportion of almond butter.

Method

Mix the almond butter and date paste with approx 200ml water until well blended, add the remaining water and blend for 1 minute until very smooth. 

Pour into a container and stored in the fridge for 2-3 days (or freeze). 

Note this milk has not been strained and is best used for adding to oatmeal etc where a little ‘texture’ is not noticeable. If you want a finer milk for drinking straight  you can strain this through a nut bag prior to bottling. Shake the container before using as there will be some settling occur.

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Healthy chocolate candy

I still have so many Christmassy and chocolately recies to share...lets see how many I can pack in before New Year hits, and then there may even be a few more then too since my healthy recipes will tick the box for a 'healthy' new year too. 

Today's recipe is a perfect gifting recipe for all the relatives and friends still to be visited this holiday season!

This chocolate candy was an accident, as many of my recipes are ;-)  I like accidents like this, a little bit of spontaneity and surprise....just when you think something has gone totally wrong it morphs into something totally new. This began life as an idea for a drippy chocolate sauce, but as I stirred the agave in it began to thicken...oh no....oh yes! You note in the method that I have stated 'melt the cacao until it has melted but not overheated' since one batch I made compromised the texture when it went beyond its optimum, I still used it, it was just harder to handle.

I have now experimented with this idea a few more times, its so simple and you can make small batches so it is the perfect base for experiments and flavour combos....go ahead and throw you own ideas into the comments section! If you have an idea for me to try let me know.

almond and roasted hazelnut and peppermint with sprinkles!

Recipe: Chocolate Slices

Ingredients:

1/2 cup raw cacao chip/chunks
4 tbs agave
1 tsp almond, peppermint or orange extract
pinch stevia
2 tbs topping/mix ins e.g toasted hazelnuts or almonds, desiccated coconut sprinkles, chopped dried fruit

Method:

Melt the raw cacoa on the stove or in the microwave until melted BUT before it begins to go hard and 'grainy'.

Mix in all ingredients other than topping. Mix well until the mixture begins to stiffen.

Spoon onto a layer of non-stick parchment and place another layer over the top. Using a rolling pin, roll out to a even rectangle approx. 3mm thick. Slice into squares (or use a cutter for other shapes), and sprinkle with toppings pressed lightly into the surface.

Chill until solid.

raw cacao chunks

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

The ‘worlds healthiest’ chocolate truffles!

What better way to begin my ’12 Days of Christmas’ than with rich and indulgent truffles….but not any truffle recipe, this may even be my biggest triumph to date.

Remember the ‘world's healthiest’ fudge? Well these are a spin-off with a different ratio of ingredients to create a soft and squishy truffle dusted in cocoa.

Those who have already tried them a) raved about them or b) requested an order of around a 100 in various flavours to give away as Christmas presents…result!  Hence my various flavour trials undertaken today (see notes below)  I am now categorically totally truffled out…maybe there can be too much of a good thing!

Ok, so here’s the deal, these truffles are rich and melt in your mouth, they don’t require cooking or heating of any sort- just a food processor. In addition they are also sugar free, fat free, nut free, soy free and gluten free (plus dairy free egg free and vegan…but that goes without saying).

It’s crazy…but oh so crazy good!

I can see your tempted…but then you read the word ‘black beans’…I promise you that you won’t be able to tell there are beans in them and the same with dates/raisins/banana…they all just blend together and the chocolate and almond (or flavour of choice)  takes centre stage.

Recipe: The ‘worlds healthiest’ chocolate truffles

Makes approx. 15 truffles

Ingredients

½ can black beans- rinsed and drained

1 mashed banana

½ cup cocoa powder (or raw cacoa powder)

¼ cup dates

¼ cup raisins

3 tbs agave syrup

2 tsp almond extract  (see notes for options)

½  tsp cinnamon (optional to add depth of flavour)

½ tsp stevia

¼ cup GF flour (see notes for options)

2 tbs chia seeds

Coating

2 tbs cocoa and 1tbs powdered unrefined sugar (e.g rapadura). The sugar is not necessary if you prefer a  ‘bitter’ coating. You could also add crushed nuts or coconut here.

Method

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until a smooth dough is formed. The dough will be fairly soft and sticky, it might help to chill for a little while for easier handling.

With slightly wet hands, scoop up the mixture and roll into small balls. Rolls each ball in the cocoa coating.  Store in the fridge or freeze for a firmer truffle (defrost for 5 minutes prior to eating for best flavour).

Notes:

Flavours: You can replace the almond extract with vanilla for a more neutral dark chocolate flavour. Or 1 tsp orange extract and grated orange rind also works well for a fruity citrus truffle. I also tried adding dried cherries and sugar free blackcurrant jam (increase flour content) for a ‘black forest gateau’ truffle. Oh and lastly I rolled some of thre almond truffles in crushed hazlenuts and dipped them in melted chocolate for a ‘Ferrero Rocher’ theme!

Flours: I have tried these truffles with various flours and they all give a slightly different texture. Fine almond flour (not ground almonds) gives a ‘stick to the roof of your mouth’ indulgence. Buckwheat flour has more of a firm bite, and coconut flour is the least ‘gummy’. Sorry- it’s hard to describe…in general all mild flavoured flours should work well since these treats are not baked and the ratio of flour to other ingredients is quite low, its is simply down to personal preference as to the subtleties of texture , or simply what you have to hand (note: all options taste amazing!).

ferrero rocher truffle!

Oh...one final thing!  I have a little bit of excitement to share. A number of my recipes have been featured in a newly release e-book of recipes...the first time I have ever been published in a book!

*happy face, dances excitedly around the room*

The book has been compiled by Little Miss Nutrition and features lots of recipes under various categories: paleo, high protein, clean eating, allergy friendly, vegan/vegetarian, these are then split down further in to the various meals of the day.

Intrigued? Feel free to check it out here.

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Raspberry ripple chocolate torte slices (fat free)

These chocolate torte slices are the perfect summery twist on my tried and tested chocolate brownie torte recipe. Super healthy and indulgent…yet light and fruity!

The perfect summer snack to put a smug smile on your face, knowing that you can indulge guilt-free without worrying about undoing all your hard ‘beach-body’ work.

These are also the perfect pick me up….or in this case the ideal ‘get well soon’ gift. The recipe below makes a small batch of 4 slices (you could easily double the recipe) as I created this recipe for a friend who was laid up and recuperating after an accident. The criteria was simple….low fat but not low taste!

I often use coconut oil or coconut butter in my recipes, as a healthy good fat which I rarely skimp on, but in this instance I wanted to lower the fat as much as possible or even eliminate it. The obvious choice was the brownie recipe, and so to change things up a bit and create a unique dessert, here you have the raspberry almond version. 

I used crushed frozen raspberries to mix through the batter as they hold up better when they are mixed through (although you can barely see the pieces in the photos). I also sprinkled a few extra pieces on the top and then once out of the oven I glazed them with a layer of sugar free raspberry jam.  I made sure these brownies were not too overly sweet as I love the richness of the dark chocolate and tartness of the raspberries contrasting with the sweet topping, but you can increase the agave/stevia slightly to taste. If you add more agave (up to 1/3 cup it might be advisable to increase the flour by a couple of tablespoons also).

These chocolate slices  are by nature more dense and gooey than cakey when bitten into, although they do have a lovely firm texture. I think they are best served warm as a dessert, maybe with a little vegan icecream or cashew cream with some extra berries on the side.

Recipe: Raspberry ripple chocolate torte

4 slices (approx. 3x9” pan)

Ingredients

½ cup silken tofu

¼ cup agave and a pinch of stevia

1 tsp almond extract

1/3 cup black beans

1tbs ground chia plus 2tbs hot water

½ cup wholemeal spelt (or GF mix)

¼ cup cocoa powder

¼ tsp baking powder

Pinch salt

¼ cup frozen raspberries- crushed

Handful cacoa nibs or dark chocolate chunks- optional

Handful flaked almonds

Handful frozen raspberries- crushed

Method

Blend all wet ingredients together in food processor until well mixed and smooth. Mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl and then add the wet ingredients, mixing lightly until well mixed, add the cacao nibs (if using) and the ¼ cup crushed frozen raspberries last and fold through the mixture.

Spoon the batter into a smallish tin or mini muffin pans, scattering the remaining frozen raspberry pieces and flaked almonds across the top

Bake in a preheated oven for approx. 25 mins (less time for mini muffins). Test with a toothpick in the centre to check when done.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Bakewell oat-tart

So on Sunday it was Mother’s Day here in the UK. You may have noticed I gave you a little sneak preview as to the subject of today’s post….

Mmmmm, raspberries and almonds! I figured this was a very underused combo on my blog but I love bakewell tart so I can’t believe I haven’t attempted a healthy version before now. Plenty of time for all that, but this little oatcake certainly did the trick, and yes this is another single serving cake of the microwave variety. Oh how I do love them!

Perfect for mother’s day breakfast.

The original idea for this cake came via this recipe, when I was doing some ‘oatmeal’ research, and it simply looked too good to not to try out. I made a few tweaks to the ingredients, and the quantities simply because I wanted to make more of a single serving (though I’ll definitely be making a larger batch from now on!) I then also took the leap of faith and use the microwave to turn it into a super quick breakfast/brunch/dessert, and also because I resent having to turn the oven on for a single cake! 

It worked really well in a muffin case in a silicon muffin pan, as you can then simply peel away the paper case once cooked (you may well not even need the paper cake case). To me these had the lovely dense texture of oatmeal without the creaminess of a bowl of cooked oats (I love that too but I know some people don’t). It's really a kind of porridge cake but that doesn't sound as good as it tastes! Having not tried the oven version I was not able to compare the methods, I imagine the oven version would maybe have more of a crust on the top and simply taste more ‘baked’ so if that’s your preference go for it!

I tried this recipe on the Saturday (in preparation for Mother’s Day) and ate the first ‘cake ‘plain and then the second with a dollop of super thick melted cashew cream, oh yeah…I’d recommend going for the topping!  By Sunday I’d run out of topping…so I served them with soy yoghurt for our mid-morning brunch which was still yummy!

Recipe: Bakewell oat-tart

Makes 2 cakes

Ingredients:

2/3 cup oats

1 tbs agave

¼ cup apple puree

¼ cup soy milk (or any milk alternative)

½ tsp almond extract

1 tsp ground chia or flax

Handful of fresh or frozen raspberries (I use frozen as they don’t ‘bleed’ so much)

Flaked almonds for decoration (add some extra to mixture if desired)

Method:

Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl, adding the raspberries last so the mixture doesn’t turn totally pink, unless that’s what you are aiming for!

Spoon into two silicone cupcake/muffin cases (or anything suitable for microwaving) and cook on full power for 2 minutes, though I would advise checking after 90 seconds to see if they are ready to your desired consistency since microwaves are all different.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

‘Twelve Days’ day 10: ‘sugar’ cookies

So what’s so special about these cookies you may ask? 

Well, if I said these ‘sugar’ cookies actually contained no refined sugar, and if I went further to say that these cookies were even gluten free and packed full of wholesome ingredients… I hope you would agree that it makes for a pretty special Christmas cookie!

So I guess these are not really sugar cookies at all but I think they still bare a pretty close resemblance, as the combination of almond and coconut gives these cookies a delicate bite without the need for refined sugar to do the job.  The cookies are best eaten on the day they are made or frozen to maintain their delicate texture. They only take a few minutes to defrost…so make a big batch!

Similarly to my gingerbread dough experiment, this dough was initially quite crumbly to roll out but it was fine with a bit of work once the dough become flatter, and they also cut out and baked perfectly.

These cookies are only very lightly spiced as I wanted to create a traditionally neutral sugar cookie base to be iced or frosted as you wish.  The simplest icing is traditional glace icing made with powdered sugar and water. But for me this was a sugar overload and so instead I used a little melted dark chocolate to trace some shapes. So little is needed this way (I think I used 4 melted squares for the whole batch) but it still gives you that little chocolate kick and transforms the cookies into so much more.   

My cookies were based on a this recipe by Whole Life Nutrition which also notes a healthy icing option as an alternative to glace icing which I am intrigued to try.

For this experiment I also tried making a cinnamon mousse to dip the cookies in (loosely based around my ‘go-to’ chocolate frosting recipe). It’s shown in the photos but i’m not yet providing the recipe here as I don’t yet think it’s quite good enough!  But you get the idea, the options are endless…..iced cookies…frosted cookie ….sandwich cookies

…..Just let your imagination run free!

 

Recipe: ‘Sugar’ cookies

Ingredients 

1 cup finely ground almond meal

½ cup shredded  coconut

½ cup arrowroot

½ cup buckwheat flour

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

Pinch of salt

3 tbs coconut oil

3 tbs coconut butter (or use another 3 tbs coconut oil)

¼ cup agave syrup

¼ tsp stevia powder

3 tbs soy yoghurt

1 tsp vanilla

½ tsp mixed spice (or cinnamon and nutmeg)

Makes roughly 15-20 cookies depending on their size.

Method

Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl and then add to the dry. Get you hands in and press together to form a stiff slightly sticky ball of dough, if it is not sticky enough to hold together to roll then add a tiny bit more soy yoghurt or water.

Chill to the dough if you find it easier to work with this way but I didn’t find I needed to.

Roll out in a floured surface or between two layers of baking parchment. Cut out shapes and lay on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven for approx. 10 minutes keeping a close eye to watch they don’t burn.

Allow to cool fully before decorating as you wish. They can be frozen either plain or decorated.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.