Dairy Egg Nut Soy free recipe

Spiced Apricot Muffins

~ desertcook ~ 3 Comments

These little delights are a bit of a twist on my Spiced Plum Cake.

So easy to make and speedy to get in the oven, the kids love them … and I might be quite partial to one with an afternoon cuppa too!

  • 225g stewed/tinned apricots (drained from their juices) – this is about 8 whole fresh fruit
  • 50g Nuttelex/vegan butter/tasteless coconut oil, melted
  • 160g milk of choice
  • 1 medium overripe banana
  • 4 tbsp honey (use rice malt or maple syrup for the vegan version)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 cups spelt flour (i do half whomeal and half white) OR 1 1/2 cups GF flour mix plus 1/4 cup almond/seed meal
  • 2.5 tsp GF baking powder
  • pinch Himilayan salt
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place the apricots, banana, Nuttelex, vanilla, milk and syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt, spices and flour (and almond/seed meal if using).

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Pour into a lined muffin tin and sprinkle with coconut sugar.

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Place into preheated moderate oven and bake for about 18 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

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Makes about 20 and they freeze and defrost well.

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Enjoy 🙂

Gingernut Biscuits

~ desertcook ~ 4 Comments

I grew up dunking hard gingernut biscuits in hot drinks … Ultimate comfort food!

When William was really little and we’d go to visit his grandparents, he’d want to copy us and ‘dunk’ too. We found a pretty decent substitute in the Leda brand of gingernut … But they have a lot of sugar and they are quite expensive… And on the whole I always prefer to make my own if at all possible.

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He’s still a keen dunker!

 

So I’ve been playing around with a ginger bikkie to dunk into our afternoon cuppa … And this seems to be the winner!!

  • 1 1/4 cup spelt flour OR 1 cup plain GF flour mix plus 1/2 tsp psyllium
  • 1 tsp GF baking powder
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
  • 80g coconut sugar
  • Pinch pink salt
  • 2 heaped tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 60g nuttelex/vegan butter, room temperature
  • 30g maple syrup
  • 3 tbsp aquafaba (liquid drained from a can of chick peas)

Place all dry ingredients in a bowl and use a whisk to combine evenly (speed 4, 10 seconds)

Add in the Nuttelex, syrup and aquafaba and use a wooden spoon to mix well and bring together to a stiff dough (speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat).

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Make small balls of the mixture (about 1 teaspoon full). Place on to a lined baking tray and press down gently.

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Place into a preheated 150 C oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.

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The bikkies will still be slightly soft when you remove them from the oven but will harden on cooling. Leave on the tray for 10 mins before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.

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Makes about 24, and they store well for about a week in an airtight container.

Enjoy…. And happy dunking!

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Upside down spiced Banana cake

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I have been really busy lately and don’t feel like I’ve spent as much time with my kids as I’d normally like – so today, at her request, my little miss and I had a really lovely afternoon together. We watched Lady and the Tramp cuddled on the couch and then she asked to make a cake together for afternoon tea – how could I resist this face …..

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We had a whole bunch (pun intended!) of bananas that needed using up, sooner rather than later, so we quickly made this cake. So  deliciously moist and sweet. My kids were in afternoon tea heaven!

  • 1 1/4 cups plain spelt OR GF flour mix
  • 1/4 cup almond OR seed meal
  • 2tsp GF baking powder
  • Pinch pink salt
  • 2tsp mixed spice
  • 90g Nuttelex/vegan butter, melted
  • 30g Sunflower seed butter (or other nut butter that suits)
  • 1/4 cup yoghurt of choice (I’ve used soy or coconut)
  • 1/2 cup honey OR maple syrup
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 4 medium, overripe bananas
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar.

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place 2 of the the bananas, Nuttelex, seed butter, yoghurt, vinegar and honey/syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, meal, baking powder, salt and 1 tsp of the mixed spice..

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Line the bottom of a cake tin, then mix together the coconut sugar and 2nd tsp of mixed spice, the sprinkle evenly over the bottom of the tin.

Slice the remaining 2 bananas and spread them evenly around the tin on top of the spiced sugar mix.

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Pour the cake mix over the top of the bananas and sugar, then place into a preheated moderate oven for about 30 minutes or until well risen, golden and an inserted skewer is just clean.

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Allow to cool in tin for 10 minutes, then invert onto a plate, slice and serve.

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Especially delicious served warm!

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Enjoy 🙂

Lemon Thyme Mushroom risotto

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It is really chilly in Perth today – delightful! But it does trigger the desire for some serious comfort food.

I have been working really hard to add some more vegan meals into our regular menu – so we’ve been eating a lot of mushrooms. I also have copious amounts of lemon and thyme from my garden – so risotto it is!

  • 5 cups chicken or vegetable stock (for an instant variety I use ‘Massel’ stock powder)
  • 4 tbsp garlic olive oil
  • 1 small brown onion, finely diced
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, finely chooped
  • 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
  • 2 cups chopped green beans
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • 1/2 tsp pink salt
  • 1/3 tsp ground black pepper
  • fine zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • OPTIONAL – 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped

In a large, heavy based pan, heat 1 tsbp of oil. Add in the mushrooms, salt, pepper, thyme and lemon zest.

Cook down until the mushroom are just tender. Set them aside.

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Bring the stock to boil in a saucepan then turn it down to the lowest possible simmer.

In the same pan that you used for the mushrooms, heat the remaining oil and add in the onion. Cook, stirring for a couple of minutes until the onion is just soft.

Add rice and stir for about 1 minute, ensuring the rice in coated with the onion mix.

Add in the juice of the lemon and stir well, to deglaze the bottom of the pan.

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Add approx 1/2 cup of stock at a time to the rice and stir consistently over a low/medium heat until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is creamy and just tender.

Meanwhile, lightly steam the green beans.

Remove risotto from as you add the final half cup of stock. Stir through the mushrooms and beans, cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

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Still a bit wet after the last stock addition …

Top with hazelnuts if your diet allows.

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Serve immediately. Feeds 5-6 adults.

If your diet allows it, you could also stir though a handful of finely grated parmesan cheese before the mushrooms…. but I think it is creamy and flavourful enough without it!

Enjoy 🙂

 

Super Simple Hot Chocolate

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A cold, rainy day and my kids beg for hot chocolate … but I’ve just started a 1 month no extra grocery shoping challenge….

No problems!

My crazy babies love this powder and it made for a very happy afternoon tea 🙂 (together with my Honey and Banana Pancakes)

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  • 4 tbsp cocoa
  • 4 tbsp coconut sugar (or your choice of sugar)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1/4 tsp pink salt

Place all of your ingredients in a powerful blender/processor/nutribullet/thermal cooker.

And blitz until fine and really well combined (there should be no clumps or hint of the wet paste left). (use Speed 9 for 10 seconds).

Use powder as you would for any hot chocolate. And store in an airtight container.

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My kids have 1 teaspoon, half a cup of hot water, then topped up with their milk …. and a few mini marshmallows (egg, dairy and gluten free of course!)

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Enjoy 🙂

 

 

Vanilla Almond Pikelets (Hotcakes)

~ desertcook ~ 7 Comments

Light and fluffy pikelets (or you might know them as hotcakes?!)  –  are a very popular weekend breakfast in our house.

These are light, fluffy and fragrant and they get absolutely demolished …. by all 6 of us!

  • 1 1/2 cups flour (half wholemeal) OR 1 1/3 cups plain GF flour mix
  • 1/2 cup almond meal OR a seed meal mix
  • 2 tsp GF baking powder
  • 1 1/2 cups milk of choice
  • 30g melted butter/nuttelex/light tasting oil
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 whole egg OR 3 tbsp aquafaba (liquid drained from can of chick peas) OR 1 medium, overripe banana, well mashed
  • Optional- 1 tbsp sugar or maple syrup*
  • Optional – 1/4 cup hemp seeds
  • toppings of choice to serve
  • 1/2 cup frozen blueberries (optional)

*We don’t add any sweetener when we use a ripe banana in the mix, but taste test and adjust according to your preference.

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In a large bowl whisk together all of your dry ingredients (Speed 4, 10 seconds). Then set aside.

Mix together the oil/butter, milk and vanilla and whisk until well combined. If you are using the maple syrup, aquafaba, banana or an egg, add in at this step. (Blend all together on speed 5 for 8 secs)

Pour the wet mix into the dry mix and whisk well to combine. (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat).

Fold through the blueberries (Use speed 3 for 15 seconds), if using. Vanilla, almonds and blueberries go so well together!

Pour the batter into a preheated (medium heat) lightly greased frying pan, wait until bubbles appear on the surface, then flip and cook until both sides are golden brown.

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Add your topping of choice and serve warm.

These ones also freeze and defrost really well. I tend to make a double batch and then freeze 2 together, sandwich style, with vegan butter or sunflower seed butter in the middle for an easy, low mess snack -perfect for lunchboxes or rushed school morning breakfast!

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Enjoy … We sure do!

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For Easter we have tuned our pikelets in to bunny butts! So cute as they run away!

A bigger one for the body and 2 smaller ones for the feet – decorate with your imagination.

We like Bananas, dates and seed butter as a great combo, or if you’re a serious sweet tooth, whipped cream and dark chocolate!

Roasted Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

~ desertcook ~ 2 Comments
  • pumpkin (approx 900g before peeling and de-seeding)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3/4 tsp pink salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground pepper
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
  • 400g tin chic peas, drained (but keep the brine ‘aquafaba’ as an egg replacer)
  • 1 brown onion
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 cup hot chicken or vegetable stock (I used Massel)
  • 1 tsbp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp coconut cream (optional)

Peel, de-seed and cut up pumpkin into small pieces. Try to keep them roughly the same size.

Drizzle 1 tbsp of oil plus the salt, pepper and thyme over the pumpkin and toss well to coat. Place into a large baking dish and spread out evenly.

Place into a pre-heated hot oven and roast for about 45 minutes, tossing after about 25 minutes.

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In a large pan, heat the remaining oil. Finely chop the onion and garlic and add to the oil, and cooking, stirring until translucent.

(In a Thermal cooker, blitz the onion and garlic on speed 5 for about 8 seconds, then add oil and cook on steam temp, speed 1 for about 3-4 minutes with the m/c off).

Place the pumpkin, chic peas, nutritional yeast, stock and onion mix to a processor and process until smooth.

(In a Thermal cooker, add the pumpkin, stock, nutritional yeast and chic peas to the onion mix, then process on speed 5 for about 20 seconds, scrape down and repeat until smooth, combined consistency is reached).

Add coconut cream if using and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds).

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Stir through your favourite al dente cooked pasta.

I love to add a large handful of baby spinach and top with a sprinkle of toasted pine nuts or toasted sunflower seeds.

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Yum – Enjoy 🙂

 

Chocolate banana muffins

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I meant to make my Pear Surprise muffins the other day …. but it turns out that I didn’t have the stewed pears left in the fridge that I thought I did. Oops.

I did have extra overripe bananas frozen and a little miss begging me for chocolate muffins …. so this was the result. These are lovely, light and moist.

  • 75g butter/plant based butter, melted OR light tasting oil
  • 180g milk of choice (we use almond or soy)
  • 1.5 medium overripe bananas
  • 4 tbsp sugar (honey or rice malt syrup work well too)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 2 cups flour (half wholemeal)*
  • 2.5 tsp GF baking powder
  • pinch salt flakes
  • 2 rounded tbsp cocoa
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 egg**

*To make this one coeliac friendly: replace the spelt flour with 1 1/2 cups GF flour mix plus 1/4 cup almond/seed meal

*To make this one egg free: replace the egg with an additional 1/2 banana

*To boost the nutrients: replace the 1/3 of the flour with equal quantities of almond or seed meal.

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place the bananas, butter, vanilla, milk and sugar/syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour baking powder, cocoa, salt and cinnamon (plus almond/seed meal if using).

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Line a standard muffin tin and spoon fill.

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Place in a preheated moderate oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until well risen and they spring back when gently touched.

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You can eat these as is, dust with pure icing sugar or ice them like cupcakes. And if you like a sweeter treat you could add a handful of choc chips to the mix.

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Makes 12-14.

Enjoy 🙂

Spiced plum cake

~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

Such a speedy, light and tasty afternoon tea cake.

My kids absolutely demolished it!

  • 225g stewed/tinned plums (drained from their juices)
  • 50g Nuttelex/vegan butter/tasteless coconut oil, melted
  • 160g milk of choice
  • 1 medium overripe banana
  • 4 tbsp maple syrup/coconut sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 cups spelt flour OR 1 1/2 cups GF flour mix plus 1/4 cup hazelnut/seed meal
  • 2.5 tsp GF baking powder
  • pinch Himilayan salt
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place the plum, banana, Nuttelex, vanilla, milk and syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt, spices and flour (and almond/seed meal if using).

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Pour into a greased baking tin and sprinkle with coconut sugar.

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Place into preheated moderate oven and bake for about 45 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Allow to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

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P.S. This one works really nicely if you replace the plums with equal weights of apricots or peaches and switch the ratio of ginger to cinnamon (so 1 tsp of ginger and 1/2 of cinnamon) – you can find it in an Apricot Muffin form here

Enjoy 🙂

Pear Surprise Muffins

~ desertcook ~ 3 Comments

I love these muffins – sweet and fluffy, without being loaded with too much sugar – and the gooey, surprise middle makes my kids happy every time 🙂

Great for a lunchbox treat, or even served warm with some cream or icecream, as dessert.

  • 225g stewed/tinned pears (drained from their juices)
  • 50g olive oil
  • 170g milk of choice (unsweetened vanilla almond milk is fabulous here)
  • 1 medium overripe banana
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup OR honey OR coconut sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 2 cups spelt flour (Half wholemeal) OR 1 1/2 cups GF flour mix plus 1/4 cup almond/seed meal
  • 2.5 tsp GF baking powder
  • pinch Himilayan salt
  • 100g dark chocolate of choice

Into your blender/processor/nutribullet/thermo cooker place the pear, banana, oil, vanilla, milk and syrup. Blitz until smooth (Speed 7, 10 seconds)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt and flour (and almond/seed meal if using).

Add the dry mix to the wet and mix to combine (Speed 4, 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat). Don’t over beat. I often just tip the wet mix into the bowl with the flour mix and combine by hand.

Line a standard muffin tin, then spoon fill to about 2/3 capacity.

Place some broken chocolate in the middle of each muffin, then add approximately another heaped teaspoon of muffin mix to the top of the chocolate.

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Place in a preheated moderate oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until well risen, golden and they spring back when gently touched.

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Sometimes some of the surprise escapes!

Transfer to a rack to cool (mostly …. the chocolate surprise is especially good if it still a bit gooey!)

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Makes about 14 and they freeze well.

P.S. I have also made these with a white Chocolate filling by Sweet William – so delicious but no longer soy free.

P.P.S These are also really yummy if you replace half of the pear with very ripe strawberries. Mmmmm!!

Enjoy 🙂