Roasted Fennel Agrodolce
Wednesday, November 20, 2024This Roasted Fennel makes a great side dish because it’s incredibly easy to make, and so delicious. Raw fennel is sharp and tastes like aniseed, but it transforms when roasted, losing all of its anise flavour and crunchy texture to become buttery and caramelized.
Agrodolce is an Italian sweet and sour sauce with a sticky consistency. Its name is Italian for “sour” (agro) and “sweet” (dolce). A classic agrodolce recipe contains reduced honey (or sugar), vinegar, pine nuts, red onion/shallot and a mixture of dried fruits, such as raisins, cranberries or dried apricots. The sauce is fantastic with Brussel's sprouts, cauliflowers or broccoli too.
Gluten Free Beetroot Chickpea Pancakes
Saturday, November 02, 2024Fancy a change and lots of colour in the morning? Then you should these beetroot pancakes for a vital start to the day. Not only are they beautiful to look at, they are also made with some healthy ingredients. You don't have to compromise on flavour and sweetness even if you are trying to cut back the consumption of refined white sugar. These pancakes are sweetened with honey and if you want it sweeter, then serve them with maple syrup. In case you want to avoid sugar completely, I would recommend using erythritol or xylitol, which gives a more natural sweetness and mouth feel.
Beetroot is very healthy and always looks great when used to colour food. The bright red colour is simply special. Any cooked beetroot works, use roasted beetroot if you prefer a deeper purple colour and richer flavour. I used chickpea flour as an alternative to wheat flour. This makes these pancakes lower in carbohydrates and richer in fibre, as well as being gluten-free.
Whole Spelt Banana Bread with Honey and Applesauce
Friday, October 04, 2024Homemade banana bread is one of life’s simple pleasures. It's sweet, tender and delicious. However, classic banana bread is usually loaded with refined sugar and calorie dense. This quick bread is made with freshly milled wholegrain spelt flour, homemade applesauce and naturally sweetened with very ripe bananas and honey, and it tastes as flavourful and supermoist as a traditional one and no-one will guess it’s better for you.
Fig Pavlova
Saturday, September 14, 2024Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert usually with whipped cream and fruit. Created in either Australia or New Zealand in honour of the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who toured Australia and New Zealand in 1926.
I used Greek yoghurt instead of whipped cream and if you don't have or like pistachios, lightly toasted flaked almonds are just as good. You can also tweak the fruits to suit your tastes and the seasons.
When you whip egg whites, be sure to use clean, dry utensils and a clean bowl (metal, glass or ceramic bowls do better job than plastic). Also, the egg whites are best used at room temperature when whisking as they have a better ability to incorporate and hold more air. The white wine vinegar (or lemon juice) helps stabilize the whipped whites, so don't skip it. You might want to add one or two teaspoons of cornstarch to the meringue to help absorb extra moisture if the weather is hot and humid. Last, but not the least, don't add sugar too quickly, or the meringue will collapse. Mine took about 10 minutes. The meringue base can be baked the day before and left to cool in the oven overnight.
Spiced Pumpkin Whole Spelt Loaf
Saturday, August 31, 2024This spiced pumpkin and honey bread from Matt Moran on DELICIOUS is fantastic for afternoon tea with honey mascarpone or toast a slice for breakfast and top with a pat of butter. If there are any leftovers slices, they make the perfect lunch box filler. The orginal recipe called for white spelt flour, I used a mixture of white and whole meal spelt. Feel free to use 100% whole spelt flour or just plain flour.
Super Seedy Vanilla Bars
Wednesday, June 12, 2024These seedy vanilla bars from Donna Hay are scratch-made from chia, pepitas, sesame, Corinthian raisins (dark black currants) desiccated coconut, vanilla and honey. Lots of healthy fat are packed into these little treats, which make a perfect, clean, on-the-go snack to keep you full and nourished.
Vanilla powder is whole vanilla beans that have been dried and processed into a powder. It has a more concentrated and intense vanilla flavour than vanilla extract or paste.
Corinthian raisins are often called currants, and sometimes called Zante currants. But in fact they are not currants at all. They are truly raisins, dried versions of the sweet, seedless grape called Black Corinth. They are so much smaller than regular raisins or sultanas.
There are three different types of dried grapes: raisins, sultanas and currants. Raisins are dried white grapes. Sultanas are dried white grapes from seedless cultivars. Currants are dried, dark red, seedless grapes produced in Greece.
Coffee Honey Glazed Carrot Coins
Thursday, April 25, 2024These glossy carrot coins, flavoured with strong coffee, Kahlúa, honey, balsamic and chilli pepper flakes, and topped with a sprinkling of chopped mint leaves and toasted salted hazelnuts, are pretty enough for a special meal. Coffee and carrot-- an unexpected combination that works. The smokiness of the coffee works great with the sweetness of the carrots and honey, creating a spectacular side that goes great with burgers, casseroles or some grilled chicken. Use other herbs (parsley, dill or thyme) if you don't appreciate mint. You might need to keep an eye out for those big fat carrots for this recipe.
Roasted Red Onion Salad with Honey Pecans and Apple Vinaigrette
Sunday, April 07, 2024This is an utterly simple, yet quite unlike any other salad. The humble onion gets a makeover with honey glazed pecans and apple vinaigrette. I have roasted them in oven, but if you are blessed with a grill, then grill them on medium for 7-8 minutes until lightly softened and charred. The recipe works just as well with other types of onions, but red one looks prettier. Walnuts, hazelnuts or pine nuts are great substitutes for pecans. They are excellent with grilled fish, or kebab and flat bread.
Cumin and Fennel Hasselback Carrots
Saturday, March 16, 2024This healthy, budget-friendly carrot side dish, adapted from tesco, is fun to make and so flavourful with a lovely tender and sweet interior. They are one of the best side dishes to add on your dinner table and re-heat well too, so they're great for making ahead!
Upside-down Carrot Loaf with Honey and Fennel
Wednesday, March 06, 2024A fun twist to a classic pineapple upside down cake. Sweet, rich and delicious, the upside-down cake is one of the easiest cakes you can make. Honey caramelized carrots, Greek yoghurt and fennel seeds add sweet, unique flavour making this carrot loaf cake moist, yet light in texture. It tastes best when served warm with some sour cream and toasted fennel seeds.
Honey Harissa Carrots and Chickpeas with whipped Feta
Monday, February 05, 2024Delicious, harmoniously balanced spicy-sweet-smoky roasted carrots and chickpeas on a bed of creamy whipped feta and Greek yoghurt. This Middle-Eastern inspired, restaurant-worthy side dish is a real crowd-pleaser and a great option for last-minute entertaining. If you don’t have carrot tops for the salsa verde, simply use fresh parsley. Use rainbow carrots if you could find them. Great to serve with flatbreads to scoop up the feta sauce.
Wholegrain Quick Beer Bread with Greek Yoghurt and Honey
Friday, October 06, 2023A quick and simple recipe for wholemeal beer bread made from just a few of pantry ingredients. It does not require yeast or kneading. It's so delicious either plain or buttered. Good with soups, chilli or salads. Makes excellent toast too. Flavour of bread will change, depending on type of beer used. I used Pilsner, if you prefer a more robust, pronounced bread flavour, then use darker beer, like stouts and porters. Feel free to include some spices and herbs to the batter if desired.
Carnival Squash with Parmesan and Honeycomb
Friday, September 22, 2023A hybrid between sweet dumpling squash and the acorn squash, the carnival squash (or carnival pumpkin) is nutty and sweet in flavour. They are excellent in salads, soups, or roasted as a side dish. The skin of carnival squash is bright, has so many varied patterns and completely safe to consume.
Roasting brings out the best in this squash. And honeycomb and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano are just really special touches that take this autumn squash to the next level. This definitely deserves a place on your dinner table this season.