PB & J breakfast cookies

Makes 15

1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
3/4 cup natural peanut butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup rice malt syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried cherries (or sultanas)

Pre-heat oven to 180 and put coconut oil in a small saucepan in the oven to melt.

Mix together the oats, almond flour and sea salt in a large bowl.

Stir peanut butter, syrup & vanilla through oil. Add to dry and mix. Fold in cherries. Chill in the fridge a few minutes.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a small ice cream scoop to form perfect cookie balls and place evenly spaced on the cookie sheet. Keep batter chilled while you’re working since coconut oil turns to liquid above room temperature.

Bake in the center of the oven for 13 minutes. Allow cookies to cool.

Note: delicious but very crumbly. Next time try with psyllium - see if it binds them a bit.

Milo cupcakes with condensed milk buttercream

makes 12 MUFFINS

200g plain flour
200g caster sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarb soda
200g Milo (reserve a few tsp for decoration)
1 tsp vanilla extract
180g sour cream
170g unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs

150g unsalted butter + a pinch of salt
300g icing sugar
5 tbsp sweetened condensed milk

 

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease tray or fill with liners.

 

Sift flour, bicarb and baking powder in a bowl and set aside. Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large mixing bowl and then beat in eggs one at a time until combine. Add sour cream, vanilla and milo and beat until just combined. Add flour mixture and beat on low until just combined.

 

Fill cupcake liners until 3/4 full and bake for approx 20 mins or a skewer inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean. For the best texture, the cakes should be dark golden brown on top and firm to the touch and after cooling for 1 minute out of the oven. Cool on a wire rack.

 

To make the icing, remove butter from the fridge 30 mins ahead of time. Beat butter until light and fluffy and then beat in icing sugar until combined. Add sweetened condensed milk and beat until combined. Pipe or spread over the top of cupcakes when they are cooled and drizzle some extra condensed milk over the top. Finish with a sprinkle of Milo. Can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge overnight.

 

Banana bread experiment 2

115g almond meal

35g rolled oats
50g whole spelt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt flakes

3 large bananas

2 eggs

1 Tbsp psyllium, 3 of water

1 tsp vanilla

75g O oil

 

Oven at 160C fan. Grease loaf tin. Bake 55 mins.

Very moist. Good level of sweetness. Next time - more oats, less spelt? Try mixed spice? Cardamom?

Godsmark's choc truffle cookies

 

25 cookies:
170g dark chocolate
125g unsalted butter
2 eggs
55g brown sugar
100g castor sugar
¼ tsp vanilla essence
45g plain flour
30g cocoa
6g baking powder
pinch of salt
120g toasted hazelnuts, chopped
115g dark chocolate, chopped
115g milk chocolate, chopped
115g white chocolate, chopped

1. Boil a small amount of water in a pot. Meanwhile chop the dark chocolate into large pieces. Place in a bowl with the butter and fit the bowl in the pot. Turn the heat off and stir the chocolate until all the butter has melted. Remove the bowl from the pot.

2. Beat the eggs on a medium to high speed until fluffy. Add the sugars and vanilla. Continue beating until very light and creamy. Now add half of the melted chocolate and mix slowly to incorporate. Scrape down the sides of the bowl then mix in the other half of melted chocolate.

3. Blend in the sifted dry ingredients and mix for one minute. Now add the chopped nuts and chocolates gently until combined.

4. Spoon cookies on to a nonstick mat (heaped Tbsps) keeping them compact as they will spread a lot. It is better to have a thick cookie so they become crisp on the outside and remain soft in the middle.

5. Bake at 150C for 15 minutes. Allow to cool.

Chipotle butternut & silverbeet enchilada casserole

6 serves:

1 medium butternut pumpkin, 1 inch dice & roasted with oil & salt

5 large silverbeet leaves, sliced

1 can black beans

6 tortillas, halved

Block of cheddar

1 brown onion, diced

3 cloves garlic

2 tinned chipotles in adobo sauce

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp sugar

800g tin tomato

Oven to 220C fan.

Spread some sauce in lasagna dish & layer with 3 tortilla halves. Top with half the silverbeet, pumpkin, bean mixture. Sprinkle with cheese & spread with some sauce. Layer with 4 tortilla halves & then remaining silverbeet. Top with 5 tortilla halves, remaining sauce & cheese. Bake 20 minutes then turn off fan (use pizza setting) for another 10.

Carrot cake piklets

pancakes (for 4 restrained people):
2 tbsp ground chia seeds
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp water
3/4 cup yoghurt
3/4 cup whole spelt flour
1/2 cup white spelt flour
zest of 1 mandarin
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
2 tbsp maple syrup + more for serving
1 tbsp melted coconut oil + more for cooking pancakes
2 cups finely grated, loosely packed carrots
handful of toasted walnuts, chopped

Stir the ground chia seeds and 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp water together until combined. Set aside for 5 minutes or until the mixture gels.

Combine the whole spelt flour, white spelt flour, orange zest, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a large bowl and whisk together. Form a well in the middle of the flour mixture. Add the maple syrup, coconut oil, chia gel and yoghurt. Stir until just combined. Fold in grated carrots gently.

Cook pancakes: Heat a large frying pan to medium-low. Oil & place 1/4 cup portions of batter into the pan (not too many at a time!). Cook until bubbles start appearing on the surface and bottom edge looks slightly browned. Flip it over and repeat cooking process.

Serve hot with cashew cream, maple syrup and chopped pecans.

Banana bread experiment

180g almond meal

20g rolled oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

3 small bananas

2 eggs

1 tsp psyllium, 3 of water

75g coconut oil (topped up with O oil)

Oven at 160C fan. Grease loaf tin. Bake 40-45 mins.

Spinach, white bean & taleggio pizza

Serves 2 or 4 as a starter

450g pizza dough (used 1/3 HFW's recipe)
2 to 4 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup cannellini beans
2 cloves garlic, minced
100g to 150g Taleggio cheese
Parmesan cheese
4 handfuls fresh spinach or baby spinach
 
Preheat the oven to 250°C. Place a baking sheet on the rack to heat with the oven. Heat the oven for at least 30 minutes before baking.

Roll out the dough and transfer it to baking paper. Spread a couple teaspoons of olive oil over the dough, then evenly scatter the white beans and garlic over top. Slice or pinch off pieces of the Taleggio and scatter them over the pizza, then grate a little Parmesan over the pizza.

Toss the spinach in a large bowl with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper, and set aside. Gently shuffle the pizza onto the baking sheet. Gently mound the spinach leaves in the centre of the pizza. Close the oven and cook for 10 or 15 minutes, until the crust is brown on the edges and the spinach is wilted.

Could try with cauliflower base?

Nut brittle

1 cup of nuts, toasted

2/3 cups caster sugar

1/2 cup water

1/8 tsp salt

2 tsp butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/8 tsp bicarb

Heat water, sugar & salt over medium high heat. Bring to boil & swirl occasionally until brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, quickly stir in vanilla, butter & bicarb until it stops foaming & goes glossy.

Fold through nuts & tip out onto baking paper to cool, then chop.

To serve as dessert with strawberries & vanilla yoghurt.

Roast cinnamon pumpkin

4 serves:
1/2 jap pumpkin
100ml O oil
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup plain yoghurt
Juice of 1/2 lemon
4 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted
1 red chili, sliced
Coriander leaves

Heat oven to 200C.

Cut pumpkin into moons & toss with oil, cinnamon & salt. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until soft.

Drizzle with yoghurt, sprinkle with pine nuts, chili, coriander and finish with lemon juice.

Crispy roast curry cauliflower

For 4 serves:
Cauliflower (about 1/2)
Olive oil
Curry powder
Salt

Preheat oven to 240C. Snip cauliflower into florets, toss in baking tray with oil, curry powder and salt. Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes. Remove foil, reduce heat to 220C and bake another 30 or so minutes, tossing every 10.

Sweet potato cake with buttermilk glaze

For the cake:
3 ¼ cups plain flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. bicarb soda
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
½ tsp. salt
½ cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
225g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
4 large eggs
2 cups mashed cooked sweet potato

For the buttermilk glaze (optional):
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup sugar
4 Tbsp. (55g) unsalted butter, cubed
1 ½ tsp. cornstarch or flour
¼ tsp. bicarb soda
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 175. Grease and flour a Bundt pan.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk well. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the milk and vanilla.

In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the sweet potatoes, and mix until the batter is combined. (The batter may look terrible at this point: curdled, weird, terrible. Don’t worry.)  Fold in half of the flour mixture. Then add half of the milk mixture, and beat on low until well blended. Add the remaining flour, followed by the remaining milk, and beat on low until the batter is thick and smooth.

Scrape into the prepared pan, and bake for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes, then carefully invert onto a rack.

Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a medium saucepan, combine the buttermilk, sugar, butter, cornstarch, and baking soda. Place it over medium heat, and bring it just to a gentle boil. Immediately remove it from the heat, stir well, and set it aside to cool to room temperature. Add the vanilla, and stir well.

Set the wire rack - with the cake atop it - over a rimmed sheet pan. Spoon the glaze over the warm cake.