Incredible Hulk (Spinach) Muffins

February 15, 2017December 15, 2019 ~ desertcook ~ 4 Comments

My boys are big on ‘getting muscles’ at the moment and my little miss is loving her gymnastics classes and is also very keen to get “super strong and even gooder” than she is now 😉 … I’d like to think they’re aiming to be like their mum …. but really I know that there is just a bit of uncle worship happening and they want to be super buff like him!! Oh well, if they are keen to eat healthy and exercise, I’m all for it!!

These were created to use up the serious mass of spinach we currently have in our garden. I wanted to make them a muffin that was a bit sweet but packed in a punch for great energy. And one that looked a little different to try and push them to eat some new things…. Normally, except for the big one, they’re not huge fans of ‘green stuff’.

I ‘hide’ veg in a lot of things, but this, well, this wasn’t hidden at all!!! I took one look at the colour of the batter and knew I was going to have to sell it well if I wanted them to taste – it’s all about the marketing!! So … Incredible Hulk muffins it is. “Probably best not to eat these guys. They’re just for Mummy. You’ll get too too strong if you eat them” ….. queue 4 children digging in … my fussiest eater polished off 4 of them and asked for them in her lunchbox!!!

They are sweet and fragrant, a fabulous breakfast or a great afternoon pick-me-up and they’re quick to whip up … you just need your blender/processor. Hope you like them too!

3 tbsp of aquafaba OR 1 whole egg OR 1 flax egg
1 1/2 cups spelt/rye flour – we do half wholemeal
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup almond/seed meal
1.5 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp GF baking powder
1/2 tsp bi carb soda
good pinch salt flakes
100g fresh spinach (you can use frozen but you won’t get the vibrant colour)
8 medjool dates OR 1/2 cup honey/maple syrup/coconut sugar
3/4 cup milk of choice (I love unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
1 medium banana, overripe
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
half a medium avocado, very ripe (OR 2 tbsp butter of choice)

If you’re using a flax egg – Start by mixing together your flax meal and water, then set aside.

Blitz the oats until they are fairly fine (Speed 6, 6 sec)

Mix together all dry ingredients and use a whisk to evenly combine.

Soften the dates for about 8 seconds in the microwave or cover in boiling water for 1 minutes and then drain.

In your blender/processor/thermal appliance, place the spinach, softened dates, avocado, banana, milk and vanilla and then blend until smooth – and bright green! (Speed 6, 10 seconds, scrape down and use Speed 7 for 8 seconds) Add the egg (or substitute) here and blend quickly until combined (Speed 5, 6 seconds)

Pour the wet mix into the dry and fold through until just combined (Speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat if required)

Pour into greased muffin tins and place into a preheated moderate oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the are well risen and the top springs back to a light touch.

Allow to cool briefly before eating. My kiddos enjoyed them cut open with some butter spread on the inside.

Makes about 16 – they freeze and defrost well.

20170322_071028-1 — The less vivid version made with frozen spinach.

Enjoy 🙂

Mango parfait

February 1, 2017January 31, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

One of the trickiest things about ‘allergy’ food is when you have to share it with other people…… ‘everything free food’ doesn’t sounds appealing to most 😉 But they don’t need to know that is is everything free. It can just be simple, wholesome, delicious food.

This is a delicious, quick and easy (so easy!) summer breakfast …. that looks bright and happy – a tray of these looks so inviting for breakfast or brunch.

Per glass you need:

1/4 cup rolled oats OR mix of sunflower and pumpkin seeds
1/3 – 1/2 cup yoghurt or choice (dairy/soy/coconut)
1/4 cup pureed mango*
a small handful of chopped roasted nuts or roasted seeds to top.

*To make my mango puree, I placed the cheeks of 2 very ripe, medium mangoes into a blender/processor together with 1/4 tsp ground ginger and a squeeze of lime juice then blend until smooth.

Layer the ingredients into your glass; oats or seeds at the bottom, 1/2 of the yoghurt next, followed by the mango layer, the rest of the yoghurt and then sprinkle on your choice of topping and enjoy straight away.

Enjoy 🙂

Of course, if it isn’t mango season, or you don’t like mango (…no, really …. apparently some people don’t!!), then go with another fruit puree (pear or apple are great with some cinnamon and lemon juice, or blueberries with vanilla).

And if you prefer a sweeter parfait, then you can use a granola in place of the oats.

Date Paste

January 28, 2017February 11, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ 5 Comments

Medjool dates are my friend! I head to our local markets and buy 1kg at a time. They store really well in an airtight container in the fridge for about a month.

Now – yes, dates have a quite a high sugar content (roughly 80%) … BUT… and it is a big but, they are loaded with other beneficial nutrients and fibre that reduces the load on your body and mutes your insulin response when compared to regular sugar. So if you are after a small amount of sweetener in you food – dates are a great option.

I use 1 in a smoothie, or 4-6 in a whole batch of muffins or cookies, or even 12 in a batch of about 24 bliss balls. So you get the sweetness and the benefit of the whole food but the overall load is quite small.

I have been experimenting with date paste as my sweetener in cooking when I want a smoother option (or less obvious ‘bits’) and it is divine!

There are 2 ingredients (if you count water?!) and 2 steps – so very very easy!!!!

Pit 12 medjool dates, place them in a bowl and cover them with 1/2 cup boiling water.

Leave them sit for 1/2 an hour, then transfer the dates, with habout 1/2 of the water, to a high powered processor/blender/nutribullet/thermal cooker and blitz until smooth. If the mix is to chunky to blend, add 1 tsp of the remaining water at a time until you can form a smooth paste.

Store in a glass jar in the fridge for a couple of week, or freeze in ice cubes for later use.

1 heaped tsp = 3/4 of 1 date.

Enjoy 🙂

P.S. If you want a yummy ‘caramel’ – blitz equal parts of this paste together with my sunflower seed butter, a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of pink salt and a bit of vanilla bean pastes – heavenly!!!!

Apple, pumpkin and oat muffins

January 26, 2017January 24, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ 1 Comment

Next week our little people to go back to school – cannot believe that our beloved holidays are already at an end! Of course with school comes lunchboxes …. and this year we have 3 at full time school. Eek!! That’s a lot of pre-made snacks every week!

I created these muffins to use the produce we had growing well in our garden – apples and pumpkins. I love that they are loaded with fibre and whole foods and that their sweetness comes from fruits. They are soft and fragrant and a massive hit with my kids – I know there will be smiles and satisfied tummies when they open their lunchboxes 🙂

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce*
1/2 cup mashed pumpkin
1/2 cup milk of choice (vanilla almond is fabulous here)
3 tbsp aquafaba OR 1 whole egg
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
70g vegan butter or tasteless coconut oil, melted
4 medjool dates, pitted (or 4 tsp of my date paste)
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup wholemeal spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
pinch salt

*To make my apple sauce I just core my apples and cut them into quarters (don’t peel – keep the benefit of the skin’s nutrients!) and steam them until soft with a little bit of water and a pinch of cinnamon and then blend or process until you reach the consistency you like. (Speed 2, Steam Temp for about 10-12 minutes, then turn off temperature and increase speed gradually up to 6). I make it in bulk and store it in reusable squeezy pouches in the freezer.

Blitz the oats until you have a rough flour (Speed 8, 6 seconds). Add to all other dry ingredients and whisk to combine (Speed 4, 6 seconds)

Place all wet ingredients, including dates into a blender/processor and process until smooth (Speed 4 whilst you drop the dates in then gradually up to speed 7 for about 20 seconds).

Pour the wet ingredients into the centre of the dry ingredients and gently fold through until all combined (Speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat)

Put a spoonful of mixture into a lined muffin pan and place into a preheated oven for about 20 mins or until a inserted skewer comes out clean.

Makes about 15 …. or apparently fewer if you turn your back for too long and your little people can’t wait!!!

These freeze and defrost well.

Enjoy 🙂

P.S. I haven’t made a gluten free version of these ones yet, but try replacing the flour with equal quantities of a good GF flour mix and replacing the oats with 1/2 cup almond meal and 1/2 cup rolled quinoa.

Loaded pumpkin pancakes

January 19, 2017November 25, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

I’m doing some extra training at the moment …. Seriously, who thought 6am boxing sessions were a bright idea?!

With 7 sessions a week I am having to careful to be kind to my body which means enforcing a rest day and being careful with my nutrition so that I can recover well.

I have added these delights to my breakfast rotation and I hang out for them each time.

I had no intention of offering them to my kids! However, miss fussy pants saw me digging in and said ‘where’s mine?!’. She promptly demolished 3 and has asked for them every day since! Wonders never cease!

These will boost your fibre, good fats and calcium, contribute to your fruit and veg intake for the day and keep you full for ages … But best of all they taste fabulous – hope you love them as much as we do!

1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1 tsp mixed spice
1/4 tsp pink salt flakes
1 tsp each of GF baking powder and baking soda
3 cup wholemeal spelt flour
1/2 cup steamed, diced pumpkin
6 medjool dates
1 overripe banana
1/2 cup stewed pears
1 tbsp sunflower seed butter (or other nut butter)
3 cups milk of choice (I use unsweetened vanilla almond)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar

In your processor place all of the dry ingredients, except the flour and blitz them until fine(Speed 10, 8 secs).

Add in the flour and mix to combine (Speed 6, 8 seconds). Then set aside.

Place all wet ingredients into blender/processor/nutribullet/thermal cooker and process until very smooth. If you’re using a machine that has a chute at the top, add the dates after you have begun processing, to protect your machine. (Start on speed 4 until dates are added, then increase speed up to 8 for 10 seconds, scrape down and repeat).

Add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix well to combine (Speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat).

Spoon the batter into a hot, lightly greased frying pan, for about 90 seconds or until the first side is a deep golden colour, then flip and cook until both sides are done. This is a thick mixture and you may need to use the back of the spoon to spread the mix out a little.

Enjoy with a small amount of whichever butter suits your diet.

Makes about 40, and the leftovers freeze well. I always make pancakes in bulk … but this recipe halves easily if you don’t have as many staaaaarrrrving mouths to feed 😉

Enjoy 🙂

Pistachio and Pomegranate Yoghurt cake

January 16, 2017January 12, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

Today was our traditional family school holidays ‘ladies lunch’. We are always delighted to have 4 generations of us together.

Of course, ladies who lunch, must also have cake. Special cake. And this was my offering today. Beautifully moist and tart, it was well received by everyone. Phew!

The idea of the yoghurt cake was based on Indian Chef, Nita Mehta’s Basic Eggless Vanilla Cake.

For the syrup:

2 cup pure pomegranate juice
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp coconut sugar
Seeds from 1 pomegranate

Place all ingredients, except seeds, into a saucepan, stir well and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce to a simmer for about an hour until it has reduced by more than half, stir regularly. (or Speed 2, Steam Temp for about 3 mins, then reduce down to 90C for about an hour).

While the syrup is simmering, de-seed your pomegranate. I find the easiest way to do it is in a bowlful of water – the seeds sink and the pith floats. No mess!

Once the syrup has reduced, add the seeds and set aside.

For the cake:

1 1/4 cups spelt flour (or 1 cup GF flour mix)
1/4 cup pistachio meal (or roasted pepita meal)
1/4 tsp pink salt
1/2 cup milled coconut sugar
1 cup yoghurt (dairy, soy, coconut)
1/2 cup light tasting oil (rice bran or tasteless coconut, melted)
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp baking powder

In a stand mixer, mix together the yoghurt and sugar until sugar has dissolved (speed 4, 8 seconds, scrape down and repeat)

Add in baking powder and soda, mix to combine then sit aside for 5 minutes, allowing it to bubble (speed 4, 6 seconds)

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, nut meal and salt.

Go back to the yoghurt mix and add oil and vanilla. Mix well (speed 4, 10 seconds).

Then, whilst mixing (on speed 4) gradually add in the flour mix (about 1/4 cup at a time), until well combined and light.

Pour into a greased 9inch round tin and place into a pre heated 160c oven for about 45 minutes, or until golden and a skewer comes out clean from the middle.

Allow to cool for 5 minutes before poking holes over the cake for the syrup to soak into a little later.

This cake cuts best if allowed to cool for a couple of hours before slicing. So gently rewarm the syrup and spoon it over the cake before serving.

Enjoy 🙂

Real Protein Powder

January 12, 2017January 30, 2021 ~ desertcook ~ 7 Comments

I should preface this post by letting you know that I’m not much of a fan of commercial protein powders.

It’s actually really fairly easy for the average healthy person to meet their daily protein needs – even with an hour or so of exercise, special dietary needs or a totally plant based diet if you focus on eating real foods.

Our dietary guidelines suggest 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. If you have special dietary needs through malnourishment or illness, or are an elite athlete – please make sure you seek advice from your doctor.

But if you are looking for something to add to shakes, pancakes or sprinkle on your porridge or cereal to give it a boost, then why not stick with the good stuff available from nature?

Nuts and seeds are an amazing source of protein, iron, calcium, folate, magnesium, great fats …. And the list goes on! And by getting your protein boost from them you an avoid all of the fillers, flavours and additives etc that come in most commercial powders.

I blitz up this mix and leave it in a glass jar in my freezer for a scoop when needed.

3 tbsp each of sunflower, pumpkin, chia and flax seeds
1/2 cup roasted almonds
1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts (skin off)

Place nuts and seeds in high power processor and process until fine – be careful not to overdo it and wind up with a butter! (Speed 8, 8 seconds).

If you are using a smaller machine like a nutribullet, then you need to blitz one ingredient at a time and mix together at the end.

For a nut free version:

3 tbsp each of chia and flax seeds
3/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds
3/4 cup roasted pumpkin seeds

To dry roast the seeds, place them in a large baking tray under the grill, on the shelf furthest away in the oven. Watch them carefully … it only takes a few minutes! Flip seeds in tray a few times during cooking process to ensure even cooking coverage.

Allow seeds to cool before adding to processor with chia and flax.

If you want a chocolate flavour or sweetened version of this powder, you can check out my Chocolate Drinking Mix – which is especially awesome for kids milkshakes.

The protein powder goes great in our vanilla hotcakes too!

Enjoy 🙂

Chocolate Bliss Bars

December 20, 2016November 15, 2017 ~ desertcook ~ 4 Comments

These delicious little bars are a cross between my chocolate bliss balls and my muesli bar slice.

So very yummy, loaded with great stuff to keep you going and really easy to make – and my little Miss Fussypants loves them …. in fact, she had one for breakfast this morning (together with a banana and a glass of oat milk!).

12 medjool dates, pitted
1/2 cup nuts of choice (I used almonds and hazelnuts)
1 tbsp, heaped, sunflower seed butter (or other nut butter to suit your diet)
1/4 cup rolled oats/desiccated coconut/rolled quinoa
2/3 cup mixed seeds (I use a mix of pumpkin, flax, chia and hemp)
2 tbsp cocoa
1/4 tsp pink flaked salt

To make these Nut Free simply replace the 1/2 cup of nuts with an additional 1/2 cup of seeds – roast the seeds first for a ‘nuttier’ taste.

Place all of the ingredients, except the seed butter and the dates into your processor/thermal cooker and process until fine (Speed 8, 8 seconds)

Add in the seed butter and begin processing again (speed 4), then drop the dates one at a time through the chute at the top. Process until dates are totally combined (increase to speed 7 for a thermal cooker once dates are all added). At the right consistency the mixture will clump together in the mixer.

The moisture content of your dates will have quite an effect on the mix. If it is too crumbly, the add a tsp of cold water at a time whilst mixing until the clumping begins.

Tip the mix into a lined baking tray and, using damp hands, press down firmly.

Place into the freezer for 30 minutes before removing from the tray and cutting into bars.

These need to be stored in the fridge (or even the freezer) – and they work better if there is a sheet of baking paper between the layers.

Makes 15-18 bars depending on the size you cut them.

Enjoy 🙂

Apricot walnut loaf

November 30, 2016June 15, 2021 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

Our garden is giving us an absolute abundance of beautiful apricots at the moment. We are so thankful!! It is my biggest boy’s tree and he has been helping himself to the fruit at the rate of about 5 or 6 a day!!!!!! So when he walked inside with 9 more of them last night I had to put a stop to it for fear of a boy with a very sore tummy!!!

We decided instead to tweak our blueberry almond loaf to suit this bounty – and this was Will’s review “Oh! Except for the Masterchef guys, no one makes better food than you mum! This is way awesome apricot loaf!”. High praise indeed!! Hope you like it too.

45g light tasting oil (tasteless coconut or rice bran work well)
40g coconut sugar OR 1/4 cup honey/maple syrup
1 cup milk of choice
2 chia eggs OR 6tbsp aquafaba OR 2 whole eggs
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp GF baking powder
2 cup wholemeal spelt flour (or a good GF flour mix)
1/2 cup chopped almonds (omit or swap to pumpkin seeds for a nut free version)
1 cup chopped apricots (lightly stewed or tinned).

*if you are a real sweet tooth, you might want to up the sugar quantity to 80g.

In a large bowl (or your processor) mix together all of the dry ingredients (Speed 4, 8 seconds), then set aside.

Now place all of the wet ingredients in your processor/blender/nutribullet/thermal cooker and process until well combined (Speed 6, 6 seconds).

Mix the the dry and wet ingredients until combined – don’t over beat them. Then fold through the walnuts (Speed 3, 8 secs)

Then add the apricots – if you are doing this in a food processor, tip mixture into a bowl and fold through blueberries (recommended method for pieces of fruit that hold together better). In a Thermal Cooker, use speed 4 for 8 seconds.

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake in a preheated 170C oven for about 1hr 15 mins, or until cooked through.

Or pour into lined muffin tins and bake for about 25 minutes or until cooked through (makes about 18).

Allow to cool before slicing.

This one freezes and defrosts well.

Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bread

November 15, 2016November 15, 2016 ~ desertcook ~ Leave a comment

I was doing the green groceries at the markets with my tribe the other day, when William came up to me holding a package of something cakey looking. Preempting the spiel that he knew I was about to give he said ‘chocolate, choc chip banana bread – I know that you won’t buy this – but could you make me some?’ …. How could I refuse that?!

So here you go Will. You wish is my command (this time anyway!). This is the chocolate/dessert version of my normal Banana Bread.

1 3/4 cups wholemeal spelt flour (a Barley/Rye mix works well)
1/2 cup rolled oats/quinoa/desiccated coconut
1/2 cup coconut sugar (optional, but add it in if you’re a sweet tooth!)
2 rounded tsp GF baking powder
1/2 tsp pink salt flakes
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup milk of choice (oat, almond and rice work well – but unsweetened vanilla almond milk is my favourite)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 medium, very ripe bananas
1/4 cup tasteless coconut oil/vegan butter
3 tbsp sweetened condensed almond milk (use a dairy/soy/coconut variety to suit)
1 tsp vanilla bean paste (omit this if you use the vanilla almond milk)
80g toasted hazelnuts (or toasted mixed seeds for a nut free option)
4 squares dark chocolate (Optional)

Process the hazelnuts (or seeds) until they are a fine crumb (Speed 6, 5 seconds at a time). Be careful – don’t go too far and wind up with a paste.

Into a large bowl add all of the dry ingredients, including the nuts/seeds . I don’t do sifting (ever if at all possible!), so I use a whisk to gently mix this dry mixture until it’s even (or speed 4, 8 seconds)

In a large measuring jug, mix the milk and the vinegar and whisk vigorously for a minute. It should become slightly thicker and have lots of frothy bubbles on top. Then set aside for a few (3-4) minutes. Or you can blitz in your blender/nutribullet/thermal cooker for a few seconds (Speed 6, 6 seconds)

To the milk mix, add the banana, oil, condensed milk and vanilla and whisk until well combined. (or another few seconds in the blender/nutribullet)

Add the wet ingredients to the dry, folding them in until just combined – don’t over mix.

Fold through your choc chips or finely chopped chocolate.

Pour batter into a large lined loaf pan, bake at 170C for about 45 minutes, or until a skewer, inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack for another 10-15 minutes.

You can also make these into muffins if you don’t have as much baking time, takes about 20 minutes and makes 18-20.

This bread is yummy as is, or with a bit of Nuttelex, or even toasted. It freezes and defrosts well, just slice and wrap individually before freezing.