Walnut Pear Spelt Cake
Thursday, February 02, 2017Pears and walnuts make a winning combination in this tender and moist spelt cake, based on this recipe. It is a perfect companion to a hot cup of freshly brewed tea on a chilly afternoon and guaranteed to become a favorite!
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- Peel and cut pears into quarters. Remove the cores and thinly slice one pear. Dice the rest of pears. Place sliced and diced pears in a bowl and toss with lemon juice.
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Grease and flour a standard loaf pan. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy and the sugar is dissolved. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Whisk together the spelt flour, ground walnuts, baking powder and spices. Add half of flour mixture into the creamed mixture, fold to combine. Add in coconut milk, then rest of flour mixture. Fold until combined. Now fold in diced pears and sultanas.
- Spoon into the pan and smooth the surface. Arrange the sliced pears in the center of the cake and gently press into the mixture. Bake for 60 - 70 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and brush with the maple syrup or honey. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with a little icing sugar if desired.
Spelt Emmer Twisted Bread with Almond Butter
Thursday, January 26, 2017The homemade almond butter between layers of soft dough makes this sweet yeast bread absolutely irresistible and perfect for breakfast or brunch. It is so easy to make and versatile-feel free to use any nut butter, chocolate spread or pesto for a savoury version.
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- Combine spelt bread flour, wholemeal emmer flour and coconut sugar in the bowl of your mixer. Make a well in the center.
- Heat the coconut drink until warm and add in coconut oil. Stir until melted and combined. Dissolve the fresh yeast in the coconut drink.
- Add yeast mixture and eggs, reserving 1 tablespoon to brush, to the well of the flour mixture. Mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed and knead until elastic and soft, about 7 minutes. Put the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic film or a clean tea towel and let rise until doubled in size, anywhere from 1 to 2 hours.
- Punch down the dough and divide into 8 portions and shape each into a ball. Roll each dough out to a 15-cm disc. Spread 40 grams of nut butter over the dough, leaving a 1-cm border. Roll up and press edge to seal. Using a sharp knife, cut roll in half lengthwise. With the cut sides facing up, press together one end of each half, one over the other, and continue until you have ‘braided’ the entire roll.
- Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Cover with a tea towel and let rise a second time for approximately about 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven 190C/375F. Brush the Bake the braided bread in the hot oven for about 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Rotate the tray halfway through cooking time, if needed, to ensure even baking.
Emmer Breakfast Cookies
Thursday, January 19, 2017These deliciously 'clean' breakfast cookies are wholesome make-ahead treats packed with oats, hazelnuts, emmer flour, flaxseed, almond butter, chocolate chips and lightly sweetened with maple syrup. Emmer flour can be substituted with oat flour or gluten-free flour mix to make this recipe gluten-free. Pour a glass of coconut milk, or brew a pot of steaming hot tea and enjoy!
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- Preheat oven to 190C/375F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix the hazelnut meal, flaxseed meal, rolled oats, emmer flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until thoroughly combined.
- Combine the almond butter, flaxseed oil, maple syrup, mashed banana, egg, and vanilla extract in a blender and process a few seconds until well blended.
- Transfer the almond butter mixture to a large bowl and fold in the raisins and chocolate chips. Mix the oat nut mixture into the almond butter mixture. The dough will be thick.
- Scoop up heaping teaspoons of dough and form into balls. Place the dough balls onto the prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and flatten the cookies with a spatula. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes on the baking sheets before removing to finish cooling on wire racks.
Poppy Kefir Spelt Muffins with Erythritol and Coconut Sugar
Thursday, January 12, 2017
The flavours of almond milk, coconut, raisin and poppy seed pair nicely in these jumbo spelt muffins, that are sweetened with erythritol and coconut sugar. Feel free to substitute spelt flour with the regular wheat flour.
Erythritol is a sugar substitute that looks and tastes like sugar, yet has almost no calories. It is available in both granulated and powdered forms. It is approximately 70% as sweet as sucrose and is safe for people with diabetes.
Poppy Coconut Filling | Batter |
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- Place almond milk, coconut sugar, erythritol, lemon zest, cinnamon, coconut oil, ground poppy seeds, coconut flakes in a saucepan. Bring it to a simmer. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes. Stir in raisins. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F.
- Whisk together flours, baking soda, coconut sugar, erythritol and salt in a mixing bowl. In another bowl, whisk together olive oil, eggs and kefir until well combined.
- Make a well in the flour mixture and pour in the egg mixture. Mix until just incorporated. Divide half of the batter into 6 jumbo muffin cups or 10 regular ones. Fill each muffin with 1 tablespoon of poppy mixture. Save the rest of the filling for other recipes. Now cover them with the rest of batter.
- Bake the muffins in the middle of the hot oven for 30 minutes if using the jumbo muffin pan, and 20 minutes for a regular one, until nicely golden brown.
Marinated Red Cabbage Slaw with Pine Nuts and Leek
Thursday, January 05, 2017A light, crunchy and refreshing coleslaw made with red cabbage, leek, cranberries and pine nuts, tossed with a simple yet great Balsamic vinaigrette. It is a perfect accompaniment to almost any hearty meat dish.
Marinated Red Cabbage Slaw with Pine Nuts and Leek
adapted from Taste
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- Combine cabbage, onion, pomegranate seeds, leek, cranberries, coconut sugar, balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a bowl. Cover and chill for 3 hours or overnight to marinate.
- When ready to serve, add in toasted pine nuts. Season and toss to combine.
Gingerbread Spelt Scones
Thursday, December 29, 2016These tender, moist spelt scones are richly flavoured with warming winter spices, coconut sugar and molasses. They are delicious warm out of the oven and super quick to prepare and ready in less than 30 minutes. Perfect for snacking, afternoon tea and breakfast.
Gingerbread Spelt Scones
adapted from taste of home
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- Preheat oven to 200C/400F. In a large bowl, whisk the flours, coconut sugar, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt together. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- In another bowl, whisk molasses, buttermilk and egg yolk until blended. Stir into crumb mixture just until moistened.
- Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently 6-8 times. Pat into an 8-in. circle. Cut into 8 wedges. Place wedges 1 in. apart on a baking paper lined baking tray.
- In a small bowl, beat egg white until frothy and brush over scones. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
Einkorn Almond Linzer Cookies
Wednesday, December 21, 2016These jam-filled Linzer cookies satisfy the sweet craving and just happen to be healthy because of the use of wholegrain einkorn flour and stevia-sweetened jam. The Linzer cookie, originated in the city of Linz, is based on the Linzertorte, one of the most famous and beloved holiday classics in Austria.
Einkorn Almond Linzer Cookies
adapted from Küchen Götter
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- Whisk together the ground almonds, einkorn flour, cinnamon, clove and salt in a bowl.
- Beat butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla powder and egg. Finally beat in flour mixture on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Place onto a work surface lightly dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in a plastic and chill for 2 hours.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper to 3-mm thick and cut out cookies with a 5-cm heart-shaped cutter. Place them on the prepared baking sheets. Use a smaller round cookie cutter to cut out the centers of half of the cookies on the baking sheet. Reroll any scraps and cut out the remaining cookies. You will have 70 cookies. Chill for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 150C/300F. Bake cookies, one sheet at time, until edges are golden, 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool completely. Spread jam on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with powdered sugar and press the flat sides together.
Wishing you and your family all the warmth this Holiday Season has to offer. Have a very merry Christmas and a New Year filled with peace, love and happiness!
Vegan, Gluten Free, Sugar Free Saffron and Barberry Muffins
Wednesday, December 14, 2016These gluten-free seedy muffins make a great breakfast or snack, are actually perfect for any time of day. We even enjoyed it as dinner with a large plate of salad. You can of course bake these healthy treats without saffron, but a little saffron goes a long way. Barberries add tanginess, fruity aroma to these muffins and pair so well with saffron and clove. Dried cranberries or cherries would make a good substitute.
Vegan, Gluten Free, Sugar Free Saffron and Barberry Muffins
adapted from SBS
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- Place all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix well with a spoon.
- Add in melted coconut oil, maple syrup and water and stir with a spoon until well combined.
- Grease a 6-cup maxi muffin pan with a little melted coconut oil. Divide the mixture and flatten the surface with the back of a spoon. Leave it on the counter for at least 2-3 hours or overnight in the fridge, covered tightly with a plastic film.
- Preheat the oven to 160C/320F. Bake the muffins in the middle of hot oven for 30 minutes until lightly golden. Remove and turn out onto an oven rack and bake for a further 15-25 minutes until crisp on the bottom. Cool slightly and serve.
Coconut Mincemeat Filo Snails
Wednesday, December 07, 2016These Christmas filo snails with homemade boozy mincemeat are simple, straight-forward, vegan-friendly, and, best of all, taste amazing!
Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped dried fruit, booze, and spices that is popular in the UK and traditionally served around Christmas. Originally, mincemeat always contained meat ((hence the name) while modern recipes contain beef suet (fat around the kidney of the animal), which I have replaced with coconut oil. This mincemeat can be used straight away, but it improves with age and it will store well for up to 6 months in a cool place.
Coconut Mincemeat Filo Snails
Inspired by thisMincemeat | |
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- Place everything, except brandy, in your slow cooker and cook for 3-4 hours on low. Or mix all the ingredients, except brandy, together in a large oven proof dish with a lid. Cover and place in the preheated oven and cook gently for 3 hours, stirring every half hour or so.
- When done, allow it to cool, stirring briefly every half hour until cold. Finally, stir the brandy into the cold mixture before sealing in clean, dry jars. You need half of batch for this filo recipe. Save the rest for other recipes, for example, mincemeat pies.
- Lay 1 sheet of filo on the workbench, brush with a little melted coconut oil and place another sheet on top, then brush with coconut oil again. Place 200 grams of the mincemeat along the longest side. Roll pastry to enclose filling, then coil into a snail shape. Place on a baking paper-lined baking tray and brush with a little more coconut oil. Repeat with remaining filo, coconut oil and mincemeat to make 3 snails. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake for 20 minutes until crisp and golden.