DAY TWENTY FOUR: Dark chocolate oatmeal thins

You got a sneak preview of these in yesterday's Halloween post!  

The original intention wasn't as halloween crosses (surprise surprise!) but as my own copy-cat version of Nairns Dark Chocolate Oat Biscuits.



I came across a packet of these biscuits for the first time a few weeks ago and they tasted so good...a cross between a biscuit and a crackers, thin and crisp like a biscuit but much more substantially filling and also a semi-sweetness which I really loved, perfect for when you want a slightly indulgent but not sugar-coma inducing snack. 

It took me a couple of attempts before I succeeded with the flavour, these are subtly sweet and spiced biscuits so I wanted to get the right balance. I used a little rapadura along with cacoa nibs for an intense and slightly bitter chocolate hit and just a tad of cocoa powder. I also included a little salt, cinnamon and a pinch of chilli to give some subtle undertones. You could use dark chocolate chips for a slightly sweeter taste but I can't vouch for how they will alter the overall flavour. I would also advise using a granulated sweetener such as rapadura or coconut sugar, others such as fruit sugars may work but won’t have the slight caramelly depth of flavour.

The biscuit base is so easy to make up in a food processor and I really encourage you to taste test as you go so that you can add a little extra sugar, salt or spice as you need it to make sure the flavours work for you, it is down to personal taste after all. I still think these could do with a little extra work to get a really crisp bite...but the recipe as it stands still tasted good to me so I thought I would share it with you.  Feel free to let me know any changes you made to the recipe!

Similar to this recipe are these bitter chocolate thins posted way back at the beginning of this blog! 

Recipe: Dark choc oatmeal thins

Makes approx. 10 round biscuits (or Halloween crosses)

Ingredients

1 cup oats- coarsely ground

3 tbs buckwheat flour (or other mild GF flour)

1 tbs ground chia/flax

3 tbs rapadura

¼ heaped tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

Pinch chilli powder

2tsp cocoa powder

¼ heaped tsp baking powder

2 tbs softened coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

Up to ¼ cup soy milk to mix

3 tbs cacoa nibs

Method

Process the oats (or just use coarse oatmeal) and add all ingredients other than the soy milk. Process/pulse to combine and achieve a crumbly mixture. Add the soy milk a little at a time to reach a slightly sticky dough that holds together well.

Roll thinly (approx. 3mm thick) on a silicone or parchment lined and floured baking sheet and use a cookie cutter to make circles.  Or slice and overlay to form crosses before baking to use for the ‘Halloween graveyard’.

Bake at 180C for approx. 10-12 mins until just beginning to turn golden at the outside edges.

What Vegan MOFO means to me.

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.

Classic Easter biscuits

Raisins, currants, sultanas… I never used to like these dried fruits until a year or so ago. Another one of the ways in which my tastes and appreciation for food has changed along with my diet.

Other food loves (from previous food hates) are… herbal teas, peanut butter and dark chocolate.  There is one thing that I still just can’t get my head around, and that’s mushrooms. It’s a shame as I have seen so many amazing and versatile recipes that use mushrooms, often as a meat substitute. I have come far though since I now enjoy mushrooms raw with a dip, but just not cooked (yeah, it’s ok I think I am odd too!)

Anyway, back to dried fruit. Namely currants. Classic Easter biscuits are reminiscent of garibaldi biscuits with a delicate crumb and the sweetness of the currants coming through. The tops are often glazed and sprinkled with a little extra sugar and the biscuits have a subtle warming spice.

These classic biscuits are also classically filled with refined sugars, flours, butter and egg.

Not here! 

I wanted to play around with achieving a moist delicate and slightly chewy biscuit using unrefined sugars, whole grain GF flours and coconut oil. I made a couple of different batches and each work really well, so it would seem this is a pretty versatile recipe.

The first batch I made used my classic mix of GF flours (buckwheat, ground almonds and tapioca flour) plus polenta to give a slight crunch to the texture. The second batch used predominantly blanched almond flour that I have had some fun playing with recently. The almond flour, along with various other flours and GF ingredients came from The Real Food Source, and now I have the pleasure of my almond flour variation being featured on their blog in the run up to Easter…..please check it out here.

Recipe: Classic Easter biscuits

Makes approx. 12 biscuits (depending on size and shape of cutter)

Ingredients

½ cup coconut butter- melted (if using coconut oil reduce to slightly over ¼ cup)

¼ cup agave plus a pinch of stevia if necessary

2 tsp vanilla extract (or make your own)

2 tbs ground flax or chia plus 3 tbs hot water (mix and allow to sit for 1 min)

3 tbs polenta

1 ½ cup GF flour mix (see above or use you own)

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

½ cup currants

1 tsp cinnamon and mixed spice mixed

Pinch salt

Method

Mix dry ingredients (except currants) together in a large bowl. Mix wet ingredients together in a small bowl and then add to the dry. Add the currants last (my currants were partially blended into smaller pieces but you can keep them whole if you prefer). Bring the dough into a ball with your hands. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to a little under 1cm thick. Cut into shapes and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Lightly brush the tops with soy milk and sprinkle with a little coconut sugar or rapadura if desired.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for approx. 10mins until slightly golden.

These biscuits will store in an airtight container for up to a week, there will also freeze. The biscuits are dense and chewy by nature and so do not need to retain their crisp 'freshly baked' feel.

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.

Scones- back to basics with a difference!

I like a challenge, the chance to do something a little different, the chance to explore a common theme with a little of my own imagination thrown in. I also enjoy seeing how others respond to an idea…

…for example if you were asked to make scones (aka American biscuits)  what would you come up with?

Sweet, savoury, a circle of wedges, round scones cut with a cutter, fruity scones, chocolate scones, scones served with jam and cream for afternoon tea, scones served as a side with a casserole or broth…the list goes on!

I have recently joined the Daring Bakers and this was my first monthly challenge….scones! The challenges are set on the 1^st of every month with a publishing date of the 27^th of every month. It’s been very interesting to check out the results of the other bakers and to see just how different the outcomes can be.

For me the basic scone recipe presents simply the principle, one which I can then tweak to create a healthy vegan adaptation.  I opted for sweet scones as would be traditionally served with jam and cream (or in my case sugar free jam and a dollop of soy yoghurt). This is the type of scone with which I am most familiar; I remember days gone by cuddling up on the sofa with a warm wedge of light and fluffy baked scone slathered in jam and squirty cream!

I haven’t had too much experience with baking healthy vegan scones (or any scones for that matter), other than the first batch I ever made- my Halloween pumpkin scones which were a resounding success! This gave me a little confidence boost and I was keen to get cracking!

Traditional scones, whether sweet or savoury, consist primarily of plain flour, butter and milk. I adapted the basic recipe to incorporate spelt flour, almond milk and coconut oil and I’m pleased with the overall result…a good base for many flavour combinations.  I had three attempts at this challenge, tweaking as I went and reducing the liquid slightly and adding a little baking soda along with the baking powder, and adding a little dried fruit.  The original Daring Bakers January recipe challenge can be found here.

So, question time...Do you call them ‘biscuits’ or ‘scones’? Do you prefer sweet or savoury? What’s your favourite flavour combination?

Recipe: Scones with walnut and cranberry

Makes approx. 6 wedges or circles (I made one batch of each)

Ingredients

1 cup mix of white and wholemeal spelt flours

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

Tiny pinch of salt

2 tables coconut oil (not melted)

Slightly over 1/3 cup almond milk (or other non-dairy milk of choice) plus extra for glaze

2 tsp agave syrup

¼ cup mix of chopped cranberries and dates (optional)

Method

Mix/sift dry ingredients well to maximise air in the mixture. 

Rub through the coconut oil with fingers to achieve a breadcrumb like consistency, then mix through the dried fruit if using. 

Mix agave into the milk and add liquid to the dry ingredients. Use hands to create a soft dough ball that should be slightly sticky but manageable.

On a floured surface, knead dough into a circle approx. 2cm thick and either cut into 6 wedges or circles using a cutter. Brush a little ‘milk’ over the tops to glaze.

Lay close together on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 210C for 8-10 minutes until tops are golden. You may need to rotate halfway through to ensure an even rise.

Blog-checking lines: Audax Artifex was our January 2012 Daring Bakers’ host.. Aud worked tirelessly to master light and fluffy scones (a/k/a biscuits) to help us create delicious and perfect batches in our own kitchens!

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 8: Gingerbread parcels

Photoshoot complete before breakfast…oh and then these became breakfast!

I really wanted to put together a healthy gingerbread recipe. I love gingerbread and typically I would cut out the dough into gingerbread men, but gingerbread men are everywhere at Christmas and as cute as they are I really wanted to do something a little different from the norm this year.

I wanted to combine the idea of gingerbread with something equally as Christmassy…. Enter the Christmas gingerbread parcel, packed full of sweet and spicy mincemeat!

Mmmm, a crisp and chewy gingerbread cookie shell with a soft and juicy fruity centre. These are so moreish, rich and filling but not so sickly sweet. Using homemade mincemeat makes such a difference, as I mentioned yesterday in this post, I never used to like mincemeat at all….please give it a try!

I’d originally tried to create a gluten free gingerbread dough which tasted great (in dough form) but rolling it out presented an issue as the dough was quite crumbly. I think it would have been fine for a flat cookie, but these really needed the extra elasticity to allow them to be folded up into the individual parcels. So, I opted for the tried and tested spelt version as I am still quite a novice when it comes to GF baking. I’d be interested to know of any tips or comments other may have!

Of course this dough could be used for traditional gingerbread men if you prefer!

Recipe: Gingerbread parcels

Ingredients

1 ½ cups mix of whole and white spelt flour

½ cup arrowroot

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1tbs ground ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

3tbs coconut oil- melted

1 tsp flax and 2 tbs hot water mixed

1/3 cup agave nectar plus ¼ tsp stevia

2 tbs molasses

2 tsp vanilla extract

Half a jar of mincemeat- bought or (ideally) homemade

Method

Preheat oven to 180C. In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients. Mix the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.  Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet until you get a stiff dough. I didn’t feel that the dough needed time to chill, but feel free to chill for a short while if you feel it will make it more workable, particularly if a little sticky.

Roll out the dough using lightly floured parchment paper. Roll out to approx. 5mm thick and cut into squares approx. 8cm wide. Spoon a teaspoon of mincemeat mixture into the centre of each square and pinch the corners together sealing them at the top  to form a parcel (it’s simpler than it sounds!)

Bake for approx. 8-10 mins until they begin to colour at the edges. Cool completely and decorate with a dusting of icing sugar if desired.

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.

Bitter chocolate thins

Following the cracker success I posted yesterday, I had a mini eureka moment when I figured that I could translate the thin and crispy nature of the cracker into a semi-sweet chocolate biscuit that didn’t used processed ingredients but still retained it’s crispness…magic!

The ‘Bitter Chocolate Thins’ were born.

Being semi-sweet they are very moreish and don’t feel too naughty at all! You can easily increase the sweetness a tad if you prefer, but I love this way…oh and wait till you see what else then happened!

If that wasn’t enough…it all got a little bit crazy and somehow a dollop of thick and creamy chocolate frosting made its way in between two chocolate thins. Thus, Chocolate Creams were born. These are even gluten free.

Seriously good, just wait for the moment that the crisp chocolate biscuit crust cracks as you bite through it, so that the sweet soft and creamy chocolate frosting fills your mouth. The perfect combo!

Recipe: Bitter chocolate thins

Makes approx. 20 biscuits

Ingredients

1/2 cup brown rice flour

3/4 cup ground almonds (if making your own do not over process so that oils are released)

2 tbs cocoa powder

2 tbs tapioca flour

2 tbsp ground flax

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp bicarbonate soda

½ tsp cinnamon

3 tbs cacoa nibs or dark chocolate chunks- quite finely ground

1 tbs water

½ tsp vanilla extract

2tbs agave nectar plus ¼ tsp stevia

1 tsp olive oil

Method

In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix well with spoon. Knead dough with hands until it comes together. Place ball of dough on parchment paper or a non-stick mat. Roll out dough until it’s about 1/8th inch thick, or as thin as you can get it without ripping. With a sharp knife, slice into squares.

Preheat oven to 180C and line a baking sheet with parchment. Bake for approx. 15 minutes until just beginning to brown at the edges. Cool on baking sheet, then store in air-tight container once fully cool.  

Note- these biscuits took less time to cook than the original crackers that inspired this recipe. I also found that it was very easy to burn the squares around the edge so watch out.