No Bake Amaranth Bars (Vegan, Gluten-free)
Friday, March 21, 2014These gluten-free vegan no-bake bars, adapted from Rapunzel, are filled with homemade popped amaranth, almonds, cocoa powder, a combination of cocoa and coconut butter, and sweetened with maple syrup and dried cranberries. They are great on the go, super healthy getting your daily fiber and protein.
No Bake Amaranth Bars (Vegan, Gluten-free)
adapted from Rapunzel
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- Line a 9-inch rectangular pan with parchment paper. Place the coconut butter and cocoa butter in a saucepan. Melt over the low heat.
- Mix the melted coconut and cocoa butter together with the rest of ingredients. Spread and press the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Slice into bars. Store the rest in the airtighter container in the fridge.
Vegetarian Black Bean Soup
Saturday, March 15, 2014A hearty, healthy black bean soup with the full flavour of garlic, onion, tamari, cumin and chilli that will keep you warm and fill you up. I love topping the soup with a large dollop of low fat yogurt and more chilli threads for extra kick. Leave out the yogurt or use soya yogurt if you want to veganize the recipe.
Black Bean Soup
adapted from drhyman
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- Heat olive oil over medium heat in a soup pot. Add the garlic and onions, and cook until onions are translucent.
- Add cooked black beans including their liquid, water or stock, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the cumin, chilli threads, and sauté a few more minutes. Add tamari sauce and lime juice and simmer one minute more. Serve the soup garnished with a dollop of yogurt and chilli threads.
Seeded Sourdough Emmer Soda Bread
Tuesday, March 11, 2014The ingredients of traditional soda bread are flour, baking soda, salt, and buttermilk. Other ingredients can be added such as butter/oil, egg, raisins or seeds/nuts.
I am so excited to give this recipe a try, a sourdough take on the traditional soda bread recipe found on King Arthur Flour site, especially with St. Patrick's Day just around the corner.
This is a quick rising soda bread with flavour and texture twists by replacing buttermilk with rye sourdough starter, olive oil instead of butter, molasses instead of honey, and using a mix of wholegrain emmer and white spelt flour (modern wholewheat and all-purpose flour are great alternatives here), hemp and poppy seeds (or sunflower and sesame seeds). While not an authentic Irish soda bread, it tastes absolutely delicious and full of flavours.
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- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the ground emmer flour, white spelt flour, seeds, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the rye starter, olive oil, molasses, and milk. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Depending upon the absorbency of the flour, you may need to add another tablespoon or two milk if the dough seems too stiff but it should not be too wet or sticky.
- Knead the dough a couple of times to make sure it's holding together, divide it in half, and shape each half into a ball. Flatten the balls slightly, and place them on the prepared baking sheet. 1^Dust generously with flour. Mark a deep cross in it with a sharp, serrated knife, cutting about two-thirds of the way through the loaf. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until they're golden brown or sound hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.
Chickpea and Feta Patties
Thursday, March 06, 2014High in fiber, low in fat and calories, and yet loaded with protein, chickpeas are by far one of the best sources of protein for vegetarians. But their wonderfully nutty flavours means that even the non-vegetarians will love them.
Served with some seasonal salad, tucked into a pocket bread, sandwiched between sliced bread or simply on their own, these patties make a delicious vegetarian meal. They are easily veganized by substituting the egg for egg replacement, and utilizing tofu instead of feta.
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- In a food processor add in chickpeas, onion fritters, crushed garlic, grated carrot, feta and egg, and process until combined.
- Transfer to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Add the breadcrumbs and mix until combined. Season well with salt and pepper. Press into 6 patties. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the patties and cook for 4-5 minutes each side until nicely golden brown.
Flourless, Sugarfree Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
Saturday, March 01, 2014These flourless peanut butter cookies are a dream if you're going gluten-free and sugar-free, especially with the perfect pairing of chocolates. I have used Martha's recipe and replaced caster sugar with pure stevia extract powder and they turned out fantastic.
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- Preheat oven to 160C/320F, fan-forced. Line two baking sheets with parchment papers. Set aside.
- Cream peanut butter, pure stevia, egg, baking soda and salt i na large mixing bowl until well combined. Stir in chopped chocolates and peanuts. With damp hands, roll level tablespoon of dough into a ball. Place on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten slightly.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes until golden and puffed, swapping baking sheets halfway through cooking.
Shirataki Spaghetti Stir-fry with Shrimp
Saturday, February 22, 2014Shirataki (shee-rah-TAH-kee) noodles are made from Konjac flour, which comes from the roots of the yam-like Konjac plant grown in Japan and China. They are mostly composed of a dietary fiber called glucomannan and contain very few calories and carbohydrates. ( or even carb-free). Some shirataki noodles are made out of tofu, which have a small amount of carbs.
Shirataki are typically sold in wet form -- the noodles are bagged in liquid. All it requires is rinse and drain them before using for the recipe. They do not have much flavour by themselves, but absorb flavors well from other ingredients you can combine them with. You can easily find shirataki noodles at Asian stores or online.
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- Drain and rinse shirataki noodles very well. Set aside. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add in seasoned shrimp and cook until they turn pink. Remove and place them in a bowl.
- Add the remaining olive oil into the skillet, then garlic and ginger. Cook for a few seconds, then add in all the shredded vegetables. Cook for a minute. Add shirataki spaghetti, stir-fry 2 minutes. Stir in sweet chilli sauce and shrimp, heat through. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Serve immediately.
No Bake Molasses Granola Bars
Monday, February 17, 2014These granola bars were adapted from No-Bake Granola Bars from David Lebovitz. They are soft, chewy, but won't stick to your teeth, sweetened with molasses and rich in nutrients and fiber. These make-ahead granola bars travel well and are perfect for the office or on-the-go breakfast.
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- Line a 12x28-cm rectangular or 24-cm square-shaped pan with plastic wrap. Place sesame seeds in a small oil-water-free pan over medium heat. Shake the pan so that they are evenly spread in a thin layer. Toast, stirring from time to time with a wooden spoon, for 2-3 minutes until lightly golden brown. Transfer them into into a bowl. Add oats, chopped almonds, peanuts, chocolates and dried fruits. Set aside.
- Heat peanut butter and molasses in a saucepan, stirring until warm, but not boiling. Pour the mixture into the oat mixture. Stir until completely incorporated.
- Transfer the mixture into the prepared pan and press it down until uniformly flattened. Cover and freeze for 30 minutes. Remove and cut into slices.
Emmer Quick Bread with Molasses
Wednesday, February 12, 2014This is a delightful quick bread that is fast and easy to prepare, healthy and delicious. The molasses, which is a good source of calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium, adds a hint of sweetness and nicely compliments the nutty flavour of the emmer flour. It tastes great plain or with a little butter.
Emmer, also known as farro, is a low gluten, nutrient dense grain with a sweet, nutty flavour. If you cannot find emmer in your local stores, simply replace it with kamut or modern whole wheat flour.
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- Preheat the oven to 160C/325F. Line a standard-size loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the ground emmer, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and add in buttermilk, egg and molasses. Whisk to combine.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with rolled oats. Bake in the middle of hot oven for about an hour until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack. Cool completely.