Featured/ Sides & Snacks/ Vegetarian

Goat’s Cheese & Roasted Beetroot terrine

Featured/ Vegetarian

Rainspotting Porcini Mushroom Risotto

Bread/ Salads/ Vegetarian

Blackberry, Goats Cheese & Spelt Toast Salad

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Cakes & Bakes/ Puddings/ Recipes/ Vegetarian

Pecan & Banana Cake

Once again we are set for rain….I’m looking for some cake indulgence to beat wet weekend blues. This recipe balances a spiced banana bread sponge with a smothering of caramel infused mascarpone & toasted pecans.

Best served whilst sat in a comfy chair with a good book & a pot of tea watching the wet world go by from your window…..

Pecan & Banana Cake
 
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Pecan & Banana Cake with Cream Caramel
Author:
Recipe type: Cake
Cuisine: Baking
Ingredients
  • The Banana Bread:
  • 140g Softened Organic Butter
  • 140g Caster Sugar
  • 140g Organic Self-raising flour
  • 2 Organic Large eggs
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 Very ripe fair trade bananas
  • 1 tbs mixed spice
  • 1 handful of crushed pecans
  • The Caramel topping:
  • 60g Caster sugar
  • 30ml water
  • 60g unsalted butter
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 200g tub Mascarpone
  • 1 Handful of whole pecans for decorating
Instructions
  1. Start with the Caramel, as it needs time to cool down. Heat the water and sugar in a heavy bottomed pan. DO NOT STIR(as tempting as it might be!)
  2. Once it starts to turn a golden brown and thicken up take it off the heat an whisk in the butter and the pinch of salt(salt optional).
  3. Be warned: This mixture will be scalding hot – this is definitely NOT a lick the back of the spoon moment!
  4. Before the caramel starts to change colour and thicken up – add the mascarpone and whisk.
  5. This mixture can now be set aside to cool down transfer into a ceramic bowl and place in the fridge.
  6. Turn the oven on! 180C/160C fan/ gas mark 4
  7. Line 2 x 20cm cake tins.
  8. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy,
  9. Add the eggs and mix a little longer.
  10. Slowly fold in the flour, baking powder, mixed spice, bananas and the crushed pecans.
  11. Once mixed, split and pour equal amounts into the two tins
  12. Bake for about 30 - 40 mins until a skewer comes out clean.
  13. Cool in the tin for 10 mins, then remove to a wire rack.
  14. I like to fill mine with Nutella, but you can also just use the caramel topping – entirely up to you! Fill, top, spread to the edge and let the saucy topping ooze down the sides of the cake – it’s beauty lies in its imperfect and free style finish. Toss pecans (or place carefully – depends on how reckless your feeling) over the top of the cake.
  15. Eat quickly for full satisfaction!

 

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Recipes/ Super Food

Seed Me!

I have problems at work. I have a desk job, and I often get the munchies, not because I’m hungry, mainly because my senses require stimulation. I get bored.  With my recent switch to Sustarianism, I’ve  developed a vending machine vendetta. The Mars a day (helps you work rest and play, as the tag line went…in the 90’s) was making me sluggish, the diet coke break was not living up to any of my expectations and as for the crisps pfff… it had to stop.

I avoid all contact with my old vending friend – I’ve got new friends now, but more about them in a minute.

Interesting article on chocolate bars, the bitter truth a great insight into some of the scandalous practices that go on within this industry, From human trafficking, to child labour.

And as f0r snacking, It was virtually unknown before the second world war, It is now one of the main cause of obesity and considered a constant major growth sector for the food and drink industry. On average people eat around 3 snacks a day on top of their ordinary meals.

Needless to say, the world isn’t getting any lighter or healthier for that matter, So with this lot in mind, I made the switch, to seed.

Now if I’m at my desk in need I have a ‘seed me’ moment. Could sound a bit dodgy, but stay with me:

The are healthy, low in calories and  full of nutrients. Check out my mix:

Chia seeds

These seeds are from the mint family. Extremely tiny, yet extremely potent, these small seeds are packed full of fiber, protein, nutrient oils, various antioxidants and even calcium.

Studies show that chia seeds stabilize the blood sugar, promote heart health, as well as increase weight loss. These amazing little seeds are an excellent source of high-quality fats, as they are made up of  34% pure omega-3.

Sesame seeds

Sesame seeds are very high in calcium, magnesium, zinc, fiber, iron, B1 and phosphorus. Possessing important cholesterol-fighting fibers, studies show that these seeds can lower blood pressure, as well as protect the liver from damage. Sesame seeds also may help prevent many health problems, including PMS

Sunflower seeds

The perfect phytochemical-rich seed for those of us looking to lose weight, as they promote healthy digestion and increase fiber intake.

Sunflower seeds are also extremely rich in folate, a very important nutrient for women. They are packed full of good fats, antioxidant-rich Vitamin E [1], selenium and copper, all crucial elements in supporting heart health and balancing troublesome cellular damage.

Hemp seeds

Hemp seeds are truly a super food, as they are packed with an impressive list of nutritional attributes. Perfectly balanced with a three to one omega-6 to omega-3 oil ratio, they are also an excellent source of gamma linoleic and acid.

Containing 10 essential amino acids, hemp seeds are composed of over thirty percent pure protein, making them an excellent daily protein source. They are also composed of 40 percent fiber, the highest amount of any grain on earth!

Method: Mix a few good heaped spoonful’s of each into an airtight container, preferably one that fits a small spoon. Shake and take a few spoons if your energy dips. Try it for a week, you’ll be amazed. Then come back and tell me what’s in your mix??

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Lunch/ Recipes/ Salads/ Vegan

Lunch Box Slaw

It’s always difficult to find healthy lunch options that don’t involve a ton of bread – here’s one I knocked up today for my lunch box tomorrow. Easy to make and packed full of vitamins & nutrients. Crisp and crunchy, better than a stodgy sandwich! Make sure you take the nuts in a separate airtight container, otherwise they will go soggy.

Lunch Box Slaw
 
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Carrot, Courgette & Chai Seed Slaw
Author:
Recipe type: Lunch
Cuisine: vegan
Ingredients
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 courgette
  • 1 tablespoon lemon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon chai seeds
  • 100g mixed nuts of your own choice
Instructions
  1. Use a julienne slicer, shred the carrots and courgette
  2. Add chai seed
  3. Toss with lemon olive oil & balsamic vinegar
  4. Take a separate airtight box, fill with seeds and nuts.
  5. Make a big enough batch to last two day, take to work, scatter with the nut mix

 

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Drinks/ Lifestyle/ Out & About

Beer & The Beach

There is nothing quite like a walk on the beach on a windy day, and windy it was. 35km/hr at Bloemendaal. 12km of walking up and down dunes and along the waterfront, the taste of sea salt & tangled hair on the tip of the tongue.

It felt like I was walking some alien landscape, stones peaking, casting sand shadows,  low streaming sand clouds whipping around my ankles. Brutally beautiful.

My daughter found a message in a bottle, a letter from a child to long passed relative, dated 2007. Hoping that it was ‘gezellig’ in heaven (Dutch for cheerful), sending their regards to a lost aunty and apologizing for not visiting more often. Sad. On a positive note, the child did inform the deceased of their recent reward for coming first in a colouring competition. On realizing there was no treasure to be found, my daughter pushed the note back into the bottle & cast it out, back into the arms of the sea. A track from Florence and the Machine played in my mind….

It made me think about life & death, the fragile line between living & existing, the balancing acts, struggles and sacrifices, then the wind caught my thoughts and blew them all away.

Off to the beach hit to sit round the blazing fire, we picked on salty fries and came across a hidden gem: Budels Organic larger, made with water from Brabant!  A local brew with the taste of summer, (no I’m not being paid to advertise) to liven our windswept spirits. A great way to to end a great walk.

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Lunch/ Recipes/ Soups/ Vegetarian

Spicy Squash Soup

spicy squash soup

To kick-start, a more sustairian way of living, I dragged my family to a local organic veg farm, just a 10-minute cycle ride from our house. Couldn’t actually quite believe we’d never ventured here before. Check it out.

We entered, to be presented with a truly authentic farm shop, stacked with vegetables of all shapes and sizes. The first thing that struck me was the smell. I could actually smell the earthiness of the potatoes, the faint waft of onion & leeks and the rich irony tones of green cabbage and broccoli. This was so far removed from my usual sterile supermarket experience. I’d forgotten how good it was to be able to fill the nostrils with the whiff of the healthy stuff. The owners of this place have been busy since 1987, under ever increasing pressure from the supermarkets who are also starting to cotton on to the fact that ‘organic’ means big business, sadly this place is struggling to keep up.

Get down to your local organic farm shop and give these environmental guardians a hand. In the meantime, using my purchases I knocked up this beautifully rich and spicy squash soup.

Spicy Squash Soup
 
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Rich and Spicy Squash Soup
Author:
Recipe type: Soups
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Ingredients
  • Organic Ingredients:
  • Squash: Around 500g
  • 1 onion
  • 1 leek
  • Chopped garlic
  • 2 tbsp. Olive oil
  • Cayenne Pepper
  • 100ml soya cream.
  • 30g toasted pine nuts
  • 1 spring onion
  • 1.5 litres of water
  • Sea salt and cracked black pepper
Instructions
  1. Method:
  2. Finely chop the onion, leek, garlic & chilli. Add to a large pan (one that you have a lid that actually fits) add the Cayenne Pepper and fry in olive oil until golden brown.
  3. Chop the squash into large chunks, toss into the pan with the water and bring to the boil. Simmer slowly for around 7 minutes.
  4. Turn off the heat, add the cream and blitz until smooth. Salt and pepper it up to taste. Scoop into bowls.
  5. Toast the pine nuts, finely chop the spring onion and sprinkle over the top.
  6. Add a little more pepper to finish. Ensure you have some chunky organic bread to dunk in.
  7. Top tip: Leftovers ( if you have any) eat the following day as the spice and chilli will have had time to develop. It tastes even better the second time around!

 

 

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