Strawberry cream granita

Summer is slowly drawing to a close…..nooooo!

The kids areback to school, the nights are getting shorter (making it increasingly difficult to get daylight shots of my evening meals) and the air is getting cooler…not that it really hotted up an awful lot round here. Maybe we’ll have an Indian summer. One can all but hope!  I really need to get my 'night mode' photography equipment sorted (lighting and tripod etc), these shorter evenings have turned my priorities to it since the window of daylight during the winter is so restrictive otherwise.

So, before the summer turns into a full on Autumn, I thought I’d best get this recipe out there. I still have a little stock pile of summery recipes to share, so we’ll see how many I can get through over the next few weeks.

This recipe is super simple, an extension of my ice cream making efforts. This freezes hard making it perfect for a ‘scrape your own’ granita. Make sure you blend everything up together really well and you should be fine. You could also try using coconut milk for an alternative creamy texture to the cashew butter- note: I have not tried it this way.

Perfect served over a simple fruit salad.

How do you like to serve you granita?

Recipe: Strawberry cream granita

Makes 1 tub (approx. 2 cups)

Ingredients:

2 cups berries (I used strawberries)

1 cup water

2 tbs agave plus a pinch stevia (more or less to taste)

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup cashew butter

Method

Puree everything together and pour into a tub suitable for the feezer. Whisk with a fork a coip;e of times as it freezes.

To serve, scrape with a form to form crystals. This mixture freezes hard and makes the perfect chilled dessert topping.

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.

Cheesecakes Galore!

I’ve been going cheesecake crazy! Once I’d made the turtle cheesecake and realise it tasted so good…I simply couldn’t resist having a play with a few more flavours. So here you get a super sized post with:

Orange glazed cheesecake

Double strawberry cheesecake

Lemon chocolate mini cheesecakes

I figured since cheesecake was such a  summery dessert I’d get this post in whilst the sun was still here…no doubt it will hide away again soon, at least here in England (or we might be lucky like last year and have an October heat wave!)

So, you might have spied this little teaser a few days ago in celebratory Blog Birthday post! I shared that cake with my family (though I was sorely tempted to eat it all myself) the other two cheesecakes arrived shortly after.

I know that not everyone chooses to or can eat soy, so I am working on a soy free/cream cheese free version…watch this space. But until then you have another variation of the turtle recipe, although this time I added some polenta and nuts to the base to give it a little oomph. Play around with the base ingredients however you wish…it won’t mind!

Recipe: Cheesecake variations

Makes one 8” or two 4” pans (or 8-12 mini muffins cases)

Ingredients- cheesecake base

½ cup oats*

3tbs polenta

1 tbs finely crushed nuts

1tbs buckwheat flour (other flours would probably be fine too)

1 tbs ground flax/chia

Ground cinnamon and vanilla extract to taste (optional)

2 tbs cocoa powder

2 tbs agave or maple syrup (plus a pinch of stevia for optional extra sweetness)

Approx. ¼ cup vegan yoghurt (or regular yoghurt for non vegan)

Ingredients- cheesecake

1 package of silken tofu (I used Mori Nu)

½ cup cashew butter (or an mild light coloured creamy nut butter)

1/3 cup agave plus ¼ tsp pure stevia (add extra to taste if desired)

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp orange or lemon extract (for the citrus cakes only)

1 tbs orange or lemon zest (optional for the citrus cakes only)

1 tbs ground chia (I used white chia for a lighter colour but it’s not necessary)

Toppings:

Chia jam (see note) and strawberries

Sugar free marmalade glaze

Dark chocolate drops and extra citrus zest

Method

For the base, mix all ingredients together until you have a soft sticky ball of dough. Press the dough into the bottom of a lightly greased cake pan (use one with a removal bottom for ease later on).

For the cheesecake, blitz all the ingredients together in a blender/food processor (I used my Thermomix) and then pour over the base layer in the cake pan(s). Add the sprinkling of choc chips and zest across the top of the batter (for the choc drop version).

Bake the cheesecakes for 15-25 minutes depending on the size of the tins ( the mini muffins took 15 minutes and my 4” tins took just under 20 minutes) Once just golden and a skewer come away clean they are ready- note they may be puffed up when you take them out of the oven (mine were which surprised me!) It’s ok they settle down flat again as they cool.

Chill for a few hours or overnight in the fridge. Once chilled add the citrus glaze or chia jam and strawberries, if using, prior to serving.

Note: to make chia jam, first seen on these pancakes, simple mash or blend a large handful of strawberries and then lix through chia seeds and a little extra agave if needed. Wait for the chia seeds to thicken the ‘jam’ mixture before using.

* 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.

Strawberry cream pancakes

I told you my cashew custard would be making another appearance!

Here it is used as the dressing but also as part of the pancake mix (this can be substituted for regular cashew butter if you are not planning on making cashew custard). The pancakes are perfect for a summer brunch or dessert and you can dress them up however you fancy… I warn you now, they are pretty filling!

When cooking pancakes, I find that it helps to keep them fairly small, no larger than fist sized rounds as otherwise it can be tricky to flip them…or maybe I just haven’t got the knack!

I have also topped my with chia jam, such a simple recipe of mashed berries and ground chic seeds. The sweetness of the berries really shines, but you could add some extra sweetener to the mix if you prefer.

Recipe: Strawberry  cream pancakes

Makes approx. 6 medium thick pancakes. (serves 2-3 for brunch or dessert)

Ingredients

½ cup mix of white spelt flour (or GF mix-* I used buckwheat and tapioca)

3 tbs rolled oats (GF if necessary)

1 tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbs agave

1/3 cup soy milk

1 tbs softened cashew butter (or 2 tbs cashew custard)

1/3 cup chopped strawberries (add last)

Method

Mix the wet ingredients together in a small bowl. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl then add the wet and mix. Add chopped strawberries last and lightly mix through. Spoon  dollops on a lightly oiled hot frying pan and fry till golden for a couple of minutes each side.

Serve with cashew custard, yoghurt or fruit.

You'll find more pancake recipes 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.

Angel delight

I know the name of this dessert will confused many of you...because Angel Delight is simply a British phenomenon. I did a little search to see what the US equivalent was and there didn’t seem to be one (feel free to correct me if I am wrong!)

Angel Delight is an instant powdered pudding mix whisked with milk to create a mousse-like custardy sweet dessert. It comes in various flavours and is something of a childhood staple in the memories of most of the UK population.

So, I wanted to create a healthy vegan equivalent that cuts out the dairy, the sugar and all the scary 'unknows’ of the powdered packet mix. I think I’ve cracked it…well it certainly went down well for dessert when I layered it up in little glass bowls and served it up for my family at the weekend.

‘Angel delight’ makes your perfect creamy moussey parfait.

Give it a try, I know you are curious now!

There are so many flavour combos you could try, here I went for strawberry and mango (I preferred the strawberry out the of two), but you could also go for other berries, banana, chocolate or maybe even orange although I think fruits with a higher level of natural pectin would work best as they would give the creamiest result when combined with the tofu.  I made my dessert by mixing the ‘base’ i.e everything but the fruit, then divided it into two before mixing in the fruit separately. The key is to blend really well.

Chill first (to allow the cashew and coconut butters to thicken slightly), then either serve it straight or with fruit and granola crumbs as I did here…basically layer up your own parfait. So pretty!

Recipe: Angel delight

Serves 1-2 (can easily be doubled)

Ingredients

½ cup silken tofu

½ cup fruit (mango/strawberries)

1 tbs cashew butter

1tbs coconut oil melted

1tbs agave plus a pinch stevia if needed

1 tsp vanilla extract

1tbs tapioca flour (or alternative thickener)

Method

Mix all ingredients together in a high powered blender (ideally with whisk attachment) until smooth. Pour into serving bowls and chill for min. 30 mins prior to serving.

Seving suggestion: Layer up different flavours with nuts/granola in between and chunks of fruit on top.

This will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.

This recipe is shared at Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Hearth and Soul Blog Hop 

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.