carrot cake muffins

Hooray, the days are reaching summer proportions. It felt like the coldest winter ever, but we seem to be on the other side of it now and I'm looking forward to spending time at the beach.

Anyway, to celebrate the dramatic weather change, I decided to do some baking. I know, crazy.. why would you turn the oven on in 30C+ weather? Because I wanted some carrot cake, that's why.

I whipped these up, left them to cool then took a plate to my parents place to share. Because what better way to celebrate (and test) than to share. 

Mum said that the muffin was delicious. She even closed her eyes as she ate saying 'you better make sure you put in your blog that your mum loved these'. Done!

Dad said there's a real 'wang' to the icing before the coconut kicks in and that he loved the cake.

I told Joel what Dad said, and he started saying it. Great, now the word wang was being thrown around in reference to my muffins. Nice. Still, it didn't spoil the beauty of them!

Ingredients

(makes 12)

Cake

3 carrots, grated

1 c plain wholemeal flour

1 tsp bi-carb soda

1/4 c raisins

1/4 c walnuts, slightly crushed

1 tsp mixed spice

2 eggs, lightly whisked

1/4 c water

2 tblsp sugar

1/4 c coconut oil

'Icing'

2 tblsp creamed coconut, warmed

2 tsp water

1/2 lime, grated rind and juice

1 tsp agave syrup

Heat oven to 160C and line a muffin tray.

Combine all ingredients for the cake in a large bowl and mix until well combined.

Spoon a tablespoon size amount into each muffin hole in the tray.

Place in oven for 20-30 minutes until cake springs back to the touch.

Remove and cool entirely.

Assembly

Combine all ingredients for the icing in a small bowl until well combined.

Using a butter knife, spread the mixture over the cooled muffins.

Enjoy!

vegetable quiche

This is just a quick and easy recipe (bar the cooking time), that you can whip together in no time and leave in the oven to cook away.

I've used a variety of vegetables in this because it's so important to keep your diet varied with the vegetables and grains that you use. Each have a unique makeup of vitamins and minerals, so it really is vital that you vary what you eat so that you can get all the beneficial nutrition. If there is a vegie that you haven't heard of before, maybe consider trying it, if you're not sure ask around to see how others add it into their diet.

This recipe made enough to feed a family, but, with just the two of us at home we had a few leftovers. Making meals that are a little bigger is great for a quick lunch the next day or a meal stored in the freezer. This recipe is certainly no exception as it made the perfect healthy lunch for the next day, both cold and warmed up.

Ingredients

(makes 8-10 slices)

4 zucchinis, grated

2 potatoes, grated

3 carrots, grated

2 brown onions, grated

4 eggs, whisked

100g goats cheese, crumbled

¼ c nutritional yeast flakes

salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 150 C and grease a medium baking dish with olive oil.

Combine all ingredients well and press into dish.

Bake in oven for 1-1 ½ hours.

Remove from oven, cool for 5 minutes and serve.

dairy-free lamingtons

Lamingtons were a childhood favourite of mine.

They are one of my first baked treats that really worked out well for me, every time. From about the age of 13/14 I loved being in the kitchen baking. I have fond memories of hanging out on the bench helping mum while we made ANZAC cookies.

When I got the gist of baking on my own, most afternoons after school I would be straight into the kitchen and browse through my favourite cookbook of all time – Woman's Weekly ‘Sweet Old Fashioned Favourites’. The go-tos would be: Devil’s Food Cake, Vanilla Slice, Coconut Ice, ANZAC Cookies and of course Lamingtons.

Now that I am older and my tastes have changed, I find myself baking less and less. But I was feeling nostalgic and decided to come up with a dairy-free, low-gi option for one of my all-time favourite homemade bakes.

I was amazed at how similar to the old version these were! The main difference was the coconut sugar in the sponge as it added a deeper rich caramel flavour. Yum!

Ingredients

(makes 12)

Sponge

3 eggs

1/2 c coconut sugar

1/2 c self raising flour

1/2 tsp bi-carb soda

Icing

1/2 c cocoa powder

1/4 c agave syrup

1/8 tsp stevia powder

1 tblsp cocoa butter

1 tblsp creamed coconut or coconut oil

1 vanilla bean, scraped

1/4 c water

tiny pinch of salt

chipped coconut

Sponge

Heat oven to 150 degrees and line a 9"x12" baking dish with baking paper.

Beat eggs in a medium bowl until thick and creamy.

Slowly add coconut sugar until well dissolved.

Next, slowly fold through sifted self-raising flour and bi-carb soda.

Pour mixture into the dish and bake in oven for 20 mins.

Remove from oven and cool completely.

Icing

Bring a saucepan to boil, half filled with water.

Next combine all ingredients for the 'icing' in a small bowl and stir constantly over the boiling water until butter is melted.

Assembly

Slice sponge into small squares.

Dip each square into 'icing' then roll into the chipped coconut and place on a plate.

Repeat the process for all the squares and place the plate in the refrigerator to cool.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

everything from scratch pizza

I love to make everything from scratch. Knowing what goes into the food you make/eat is so important these days. So many times have I looked at the back of packaging and not known 9 out of 10 of the ingredients listed.

Recently, I was having a lunch with my dad and we were at this café where their specialty was crepes. Dad was egging me on, so when I asked if it was dairy-free, the lady informed me that they pre-buy their crepes and that she would check. She started reading the list on the back to me: Energy, Fibre, Protein, Carbohydrates, Sodium. She then proudly announced that ‘nope, no dairy here’. I was stunned! She was reading out the nutritional information rather than the ingredients! I had no idea that some people may not know the difference between the ingredients and nutritional information. Not to mention that maybe everyone isn’t as much of a control freak as I am, and may not even pay attention to the ingredients of the food they are eating. It sure was an eye opener..

Anyways, to finish the story, I got my hands on the packet and read that it did in deed have dairy, so opted for a smoked salmon salad instead.

For a while now, I have been wanting to make this caramelised onion and pumpkin spelt pizza - ever since the organic food festival a couple of months back.

Ingredients

(8 slices)

300g pumpkin, skinned, deseeded and cubed

1 tsp olive oil

Dough

7g dried yeast

2 tsp raw sugar

2/3 c warm water

1 c wholemeal spelt flour (+ extra for kneading)

1 tblsp olive oil

pinch of salt

Sauce

5 fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped

8 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tblsp water

2 tsp malt extract

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

pinch of salt

Caramelised Onions

2 large brown onions, finely sliced

1 tblsp olive oil

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

fresh parsley to serve

Firstly, heat oven to 200 degrees.

Toss pumpkin and olive oil and place on a baking tray, in the oven for 30-40 mins.

Next, you will need to start the dough.

Whisk yeast, sugar and water in a small jug and set aside for 2 mins to activate.

Place spelt flour, oil and salt in a medium bowl.

Once the yeast is bubbly and activated, mix it into flour - knead until elastic and smooth (adding extra flour as needed).

Roll into a ball and place into a flour lined bowl. Cover and set aside to double in size (I find it helps to place the bowl above the warm oven).

Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a heavy based pan.

Simmer on medium heat until sauce-like (approximately 10-20 mins).

While you are waiting for your sauce to simmer down, add onions, oil and vinegar to a medium saucepan.

Heat on medium and toss the onions until softened and caramelised.

Remove from heat and set aside.

Assemble

Ensure the oven is on the highest heat setting.

Roll out dough on a floured pizza stone or baking tray (approximately 1.5 cm thick).

Spread over the tomato sauce, then the caramelised onions.

Finally, sprinkle over the roasted pumpkin.

Place in hot oven and bake for 35 mins or until the edges start to darken.

Remove from oven, garnish with parsley and slice into 8 portions.

Enjoy!

vegan curried 'egg' salad cups

I love a good curried egg salad. It reminds me of staying at my Grandma’s house when we were younger ‘kidlets’ . My Grandparents are/were mad water skiers and we would spend hours on end out on their ski boat in the summertime. My attempts of water skiing were never a great success. You see, I wouldn't let go of the rope when I fell and would be dragged under the water to the point of nearly drowning. This made me develop a bit of a phobia. So, I spent most of the time clinging for my life on the donut and cruising on the kneeboard.

Grandma would always make up a massive eski full of sandwiches and come lunchtime we were always famished. With my brother and sister we would sit with our feet in the water enjoying a super satisfying lunch of curried egg sandwiches.

As well as the lunches on the boat, during the school term when we would stay with our Grandparents, Grandma would always be up first thing in the morning making our lunches. Adding lots of homemade goodies like biscuits, fruit cake, Grandad’s dehydrated bananas and of course homemade bread with fresh curried egg and lettuce. There’s nothing better than meals full of nostalgia so that’s what this one is.

Although veganised and totally adapted from the original, it still takes me back to the summer days on the ski boat as the texture and flavours are still all there.

Ingredients

(serves 2)

300g organic firm tofu (homemade or otherwise)

2-3 tsp mild/stong curry powder

1 tsp hemp seed oil (or oil of choosing – olive also works great)

1 tblsp nutritional yeast flakes

pinch of salt and pepper

iceberg lettuce leaves

snow pea sprouts (optional)

Crumble the tofu into a small bowl, using fingers.

Stir in all other ingredients until well combined.

Lay out a lettuce cup and fill with curried ‘egg’ and sprouts (as much or as little as you like).

Roll and munch down straight away.

If you want to make it a take-away option, pack the lettuce cups and curried egg in a separate containers and make the rolls later - perfect for a picnic.

orange soup

I am calling this one my 'orange' soup because of the intense rich colour of the ingredients I've used.

Orange foods are high in carotenoids, which have been shown to decrease the risk of cancers, such as; lung, colon, bladder, cervical, breast and skin. Carotenoid consumption also protects against the risk of macular degeneration and cataracts - which is where the old wives tale comes in, that eating carrots will make you see in the dark.

Orange coloured foods help cleanse the body of toxins and stresses. Vitamin C and zinc work together to provide an excellent detoxifying combination helping the body rid itself of heavy metals and other pollutants.

Also high in Vitamins A, C and minerals such as calcium, copper, selenium, zinc - orange foods are a 'must' in your diet.

I made such a large amount of this soup so that I could freeze individual portions to take for lunch at work.

It has been delightfully satisfying and warming over the past week, as we've had a bitter cold snap - I really don't mind, because it means more snow!

Ingredients

(makes 6-8 serves)

2 kg carrots, roughly chopped (skin on)

2 leeks, roughly sliced

2 brown onions, peeled and roughly chopped

2 c pumpkin, cubed (skin off)

1 kumera, roughly chopped (skin on)

1 tsp turmeric, ground

1 tsp cinnamon, ground

1 tsp curry powder

2 tblsp creamed coconut

coconut oil and salt to taste

Place all ingredients except for the creamed coconut, in a large heavy based pot.

Add enough water to cover the vegetables by an inch - bring to the boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 30 mins until vegetables are soft (ie. you can poke a knife easily through).

Turn off heat and stir through creamed coconut.

When cool enough, transfer contents to a blender and process until smooth (you may need to do this in batches).

Return to pot and reheat, adding salt to taste.

Serve and drizzle with a small amount of coconut oil.

activated vanilla walnuts

I love productive days.

My hours at work have gone back to normal, which means I was finally able to get on top of the house work. I'm not one to feel comfortable if there are lingering jobs waiting to be done.

But, now, I am at ease.

Tidying, sorting, washing, cleaning, ironing etc - all done! I've got the incense burning, fresh bunch of lilies from the garden and the fire on full blaze.

Not only all that, but I was able to catch a movie with my best friend (whom I love dearly).

So, after a busy day, it's time for a well deserved snack.

I've had these walnuts on to dehydrate for 24 hours, so now is as good a time as any to dig in.

Walnuts are super high in Vitamin E which has been found to significantly protect against heart problems. Also high in calcium, manganese, omega 3, copper, potassium and magnesium; walnuts provide so much of the good anti-oxidants that our bodies thrive on.

To properly engage these nutrients, I have activated these walnuts by first soaking them in water for 12 hours. This enables the nut to come alive again - literally. The enzymes in the nut start to break down as if it were about to grow. In doing this, your body is absorbing pure live nutrients rather than trying to break down the tough nut first. What better way to nourish your body than with living foods.

Even though they have been dehydrated, they are still activated as they have not been dried out too much to become dormant again.

Ingredients

(makes 3 cups)

3 c raw walnuts, soaked for 12 hours

2 tblsp malt extract

2 tsp vanilla extract

Thoroughly combine all ingredients in a large bowl.

Lay out on dehydrator trays and place on 40 C setting (level II for me).

Dehydrate for 24 hours.

Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

cherry and caviar lentil salad with sherry dressing

Joel did the groceries at the markets this past weekend.

It’s the first time since we’ve been married that he has done groceries on his own (over 4 years).

The reason being, that he wanted for us to have a whole day out together without having to worry about getting to the markets in time for groceries.

To be able to spend the day out, just us, as a bit of a belated birthday day for me.

He set the alarm for Sunday morning and got up super early. I know how he does not like getting up early, especially on a weekend! It means so much that he would do that for me - aw!

We went out for brunch and spent the day in each other’s company enjoying the sun. It was so lovely – but of course, time went too quickly.

Anyways, he went off to do the shop while I got to sleep in and praise be to him, he did well.

When he came back, I unpacked the groceries spying a bunch of fresh cherries. Trying not to think about food miles, I knew they were going to be part of a dinner this week.

Digging to the back of my pantry (a bookshelf cupboard), I pulled out a bag of caviar lentils - they are a favourite of ours.

Delightful little pops, they don’t require a massive amount of cooking time but can add a bit of class to the old brown lentil.

Mixed with a few other ingredients and topped with a sherry dressing, oh boy did this salad go down well.

Ingredients

(serves 4)

1 c caviar beluga lentils, soaked for 12 hours

¼ c pine nuts

1 c roughly chopped parsley

15 (or more) fresh cherries, deseeded and roughly chopped

5 shallots, finely sliced

1 lebanese cucumber, diced
2 celery stems, diced

Dressing

2 tblsp dry sherry

2 tblsp quality olive oil

pinch or two of Murray River salt flakes

Place lentils in a heavy based saucepan, cover with water and bring the boil.

Simmer for 15 minutes, drain and rinse with cold water to cool it down – set aside

Next, heat a heavy based saucepan and add pinenuts.

Toss constantly to ensure even toasting – once toasted remove from heat to cool and set aside.

Combine parsley, cherries, shallots and cucumber in a large bowl.

Toss through pinenuts and lentils.

For the dressing, whisk sherry, oil and salt together and pour over lentil salad.
Serve x.