Posted on September 28, 2016September 28, 2016 by janet — Leave a comment

Millionaire Tartlets

Been dying to try out something I thought would make a great alternative to caramelised condensed milk and this worked a treat. Have always loved Biscoff biscuits and when I discovered Biscoff spread I started wondering….

Ingredients

200g biscuits (I use mainly digestives with a few gingernuts)
50g melted dairy free spread (I use Pure)

1 jar Biscoff smooth spread

200g dark chocolate

Small tartlet cases with removable bases

Method

Whizz biscuits in a food processor, add melted butter and continue whizzing till biscuits are broken and begin to clump together slightly.

Pack biscuit mixture into tartlet cases, press and flatten firmly with back of a metal spoon. Put in fridge to chill and firm up, for say half an hour.

Spoon Biscoff spread evenly over biscuit bases, shake the cases and tap them to even it out a little, it is quite thick but does go pretty flat.

Melt dark chocolate in microwave or over a double boiler. Pour over Biscoff and add a decoration (we used dairy free white chocolate buttons) then allow to set.

When set, remove from cases and eat!

Definitely not part of a calorie controlled diet but very scrummy.

PS I made these with my 4 year old, really simple and unfortunately for me the kids couldn’t quite eat a whole one so I had to eat lots of leftovers – bummer!

Coming soon Banoffee Pie….

Posted on May 28, 2016January 23, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

Sultana Cake

My husband’s favourite cake!

OK so it’s maybe not the prettiest of cakes or the most difficult to make but if you’re looking for a tea time treat then this is it. Plus it has fruit in it so it must be healthy right?

…and it won’t make dresses shrink like chocolate does will it?!

Ingredients

6oz butter (we use dairy free ‘Pure’)
6oz sugar (golden caster sugar, unrefined sugar is just bad not really bad like the white stuff!)
1/2 tsp vanilla or lemon essence – optional (the Sicilian lemon oil supermarkets are stocking is great!)
3 large eggs (free range of course)
grated rind of a lemon (unwaxed if you can find them)
6oz sultanas
8oz plain flour
2 tablespoons milk (we use oatmilk)
1 1/2 level tsp of baking powder

Method

Grease and line a 20cm round springform tin. As this is going to take a while to cook I would double line it to stop it burning on the edges.

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C (150-155 fan oven)

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Whisk in the lemon oil and lemon rind

Whisk in the eggs one at a time with a tablespoon of flour to stop curdling (but don’t worry if it does, I find it always curdles with the dairy free stuff anyway, still looks and tastes just as good).

Whisk in the milk with a tablespoon of flour.

Fold in the sultanas with a metal spoon.

Fold in the remaining flour sieved together with baking powder with a metal spoon.

Put mix into cake tin, smooth top with back of spoon. Bake for 1 1/2- 1 3/4 hours till golden brown on top and cake tester comes out clean when inserted into middle.

Remove from oven, cool in tin for 5 minutes then remove tin to a cooling rack. Peel off paper when cold

Store in an airtight container, should keep a week easily, maybe two…like it’ll get chance!

Eat in big slices with your favoutite cuppa!

This recipe comes from one of my most used cook books ‘The Dairy Book of Home Cookery’. It was published and sold by the Milk Marketing Board about 40 years ago. My mother had a copy and I found mine in a charity shop for £1. While I find a lot of my recipes online now this is one book that I still use – simply because it has so much in it and all those recipes for basic cooking. Definitely one cookery book I would not get rid of. I wonder if you have it too?

If you like this you might like Elderflower, strawberry and almond cakes

PS Do leave a comment if you like this or any of my other recipes

Posted on February 24, 2016March 14, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

Sugar-free chocolate brownies

Lately I’ve been trying to cut out white flour and refined sugar almost entirely. It’s not easy when I’m nearly 8 months pregnant and craving chocolate, cake, crisps, biscuits, sweets….constantly. So I’ve had to find a few ‘sweet’ alternatives. I found this recipe for sugar-free brownies online by Davina McCall.

Sugar free chocolate brownies

As usual I didn’t quite have all the ingredients to hand and I’ll tell you what I did differently, but essentially the were the same. I would love to try them again and make them gluten free too – maybe tomorrow!?…and yes I did sprinkle a little icing sugar on the top but only a little and wouldn’t have if I wasn’t showing them to you!

Ingredients

125g Dark Chocolate (100% cocoa)
100ml milk
100g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the tin
175g honey
150g maple syrup
Seeds scraped from ½ split vanilla pod
50g cocoa powder, sieved
3 eggs
150g wholemeal spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder

My variations!

Chocolate – I only had 50% chocolate to hand but would like to try again with darker, my 50% was dairy free though.
Milk – I use oat milk as we’re dairy free, it’s great for baking.
Butter – as we’re dairy free I use Pure sunflower spread in all my baking, it’s perfect, you wouldn’t know the difference – unless you need a ‘buttery’ taste.
Honey – didn’t have much honey left in the cupboard so made up with maple syrup, obviously made it a bit more expensive but yummy!
Spelt flour – didn’t have spelt flour in the cupboard so used ordinary wholemeal flour, figured it was better than white.

Preheat the oven to 190c/170c Fan/Gas 5.

Grease a 30cm x 20cm brownie tin and line it with baking parchment. Leave the paper sticking up at the sides to make it easier to lift the brownie out when it’s cooked.

Method

Put the chocolate, milk, butter, honey, maple syrup and vanilla seeds in a saucepan. Warm over a very gentle heat, stirring regularly, until everything has melted and you have a rich, glossy – looking batter. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the cocoa powder.
Allow the mixture to cool for a couple of minutes and then beat in the eggs. Finally add the flour and baking powder. The mixture at this point will look grainier than usual because of the texture of the flour.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake it in the oven for about 15 minutes until it is just set in the middle but still nice and gooey
Remove the tin from the oven and use the baking paper to help you slide the whole brownie on to a cooling rack as soon as possible so it doesn’t continue to cook
Cut into squares when cool

SERVES: Makes 15 squares
PAN TO PLATE IN: 20
FROM NEW BOOK: 5 Weeks to Sugar-free

This is the first time I’ve made brownies and cooked them perfectly – usually they’re either too soggy in the middle or too hard on the outside because I’ve been paranoid they weren’t cooked right – these were just perfect. I would try them again with spelt flour, or with gluten free flour, or maybe just with ground almonds instead and definitely with darker chocolate and possible dark chocolate chips – or just chunks!

PS If you liked this recipe then you’ll love coconut oil chocolate fudge!

PPS I am a little obsessed with cake, that’s why I became a Flamingo Partner – cos eating cake is part of the job!

Posted on February 3, 2016January 23, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

“Coconut and orange scented rice pudding” Recipe

Coconut and orange scented rice pudding

This recipe is completely vegan and completely delicious (just cause it’s vegan doesn’t mean it’s not delicious!). It has a mellowness from the coconut milk and a tartness from the orange juice taste. It’s also very healthy for you. The ginger and orange zest livens the pudding and makes it a memorable experience. You can eat this as dessert, breakfast or even as a snack. The pudding is fresh and pungent.

400
milliliters of Canned coconut milk
1
cup of Water
3/4
cup of Orange juice
2
teaspoons of Natural vanilla extract
1
pinch of Kosher salt
1
cup of Basmati rice
4
tablespoons of Honey
2
teaspoons of Cinnamon
2
teaspoons of Ginger root, chopped
2
teaspoons of Orange peel, chopped

In a sauce-pan mix the coconut milk, water, orange juice, vanilla extract, salt, and rice. Put the pan over a medium heat. Bring the mixture to the boil and then turn the heat down so that it comes to a simmer. Slightly cover the pan leaving a small space for the steam to escape. Stir the rice every 5 minutes so that it doesn’t stick and burn. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. Once most of the liquid has been absorbed turn the heat off and place the lid over the pan. Let the cooked rice sit for about 5 minutes.

Mix the honey, cinnamon, ginger, and orange zest in a bowl (leave a little ginger and orange zest for the garnish). Pour this mixture over the rice and mix gently with a fork.

via “Coconut and orange scented rice pudding” Recipe.

If you like this, you might also like Coconut Oil Chocolate Fudge

Posted on October 28, 2015January 23, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

Lime and Courgette Cake

Courgette cake with lemon and lime marmalade

I took this to a coffee and cards and told everyone it was a lime cake, not a courgette cake, it was very strongly lime flavoured. It makes a lovely moist sponge and with the lime was quite ‘refreshing’ according to one taster.

The original recipe for this lime and courgette cake comes from Nigella Lawson’s book ‘How to be a Domestic Goddess’…but as usual I modified it quite a bit!

There are reasons why I modified it but they all hinged around making this a dairy free cake. That meant I didn’t try and do a cream cheese icing on top (dairy free cream cheese is, in my opinion, just yuk, though with plenty lime it might have been ok I didn’t want to risk it). Then there was supposed to be a lime or lemon curd filling and as I didn’t have the time or energy to make my own I shop bought one, only to realise seconds before putting it on that it contained butter, if I had made my own I could have made it dairy-free.

So here is my version:

Ingredients

250g courgettes (2 large ones – zucchini if you’re across the pond)
2 large eggs
125ml vegetable oil
150g golden caster sugar
225g plain flour
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate soda

2 x 20cm sandwich tins, greased and lined (I only lined the bottom but it is definitely easier if you line the whole tin!)

Filling
1 jar lemon and lime marmalade (in my case a last minute decision, and a home made marmalade found hiding at the back of the cupboard!)

Icing
300 g icing sugar, sieved
100g dairy free spread (I use ‘Pure)
juice of 1 lime

To decorate
2-3 tablespoons of chopped pistachio nuts
lime zest curls

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C

Wipe the courgettes, don’t peel them and grate but not too finely as they can go a bit soggy. I squeezed out some of the excess juice before I added them but you can decide how squishy they are.

Put the eggs, oil and sugar together in a bowl and beat with a hand mixer until creamy. Sieve in the flour, baking powder and soda and beat again until well combined. Stir in the courgette, pour mixture into tins and bake for 30 minutes. They should be slightly golden and firm to the touch. Leave in tins for about 10 minutes then cool on a rack.

To make the icing, beat the icing sugar and dairy-free spread with a hand whisk and add the lime juice. Add more icing sugar if necessary to thicken it. (To be honest I guessed the quantities above, I just made it up when I did it!)

Spread the marmalade over the bottom layer. Stack the second layer on top and cover with the dairy-free ‘buttercream’ icing.

Sprinkle with lime zest curls and pistachios just before serving (best to allow the buttercream to set a little first).

When serving you can decide what to call the cake. I started calling it lime cakeinstead of courgette cake and I did own up to the courgette after they’d eaten it!…and as for the lemon curd, well my husband loves the stuff and was delighted to be told he’s got a whole jar that’s been opened and needs to be eaten!no

Update August 2018, I can now get an Oatly dairy free creme fraiche which I think could be used to make an alternative topping with lime juice and some icing sugar. Haven’t tried it yet but confident it would work.

Posted on October 9, 2015January 23, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

A tale of two cheesecakes

Dairy free raspberry cheesecake to go with blueberry cheesecake

It was my daughter’s 7th birthday this week and for her ‘cake’ she wanted a blueberry cheesecake, her favourite dessert. As two of us in the family are dairy free I also had to make a cheeseless cheesecake, so here are my recipes for both. These are adapted from Nigella Lawson’s recipe in ‘Nigella Express‘. I’m not sure the cheeseless one is the best dairy free cheesecake and I would love suggestions on how to improve it but it was edible and a pretty good alternative.

‘Real’ cheesecake

Ingredients

100g digestive biscuits
25g ginger biscuits
300g cream cheese
60g icing sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon juice
250ml double cream
Blueberry conserve and fresh blueberries for topping

Method

Whiz the biscuits in a food processor until beginning to turn to crumbs (don’t whizz too hard!) then add the butter and whiz again until the mixture clumps.

Press the mixture into a 20cm springform tin, press a little up the sides to form a slight ridge. (As you can see from the picture I didn’t have two springform tins so I used a heart shaped silicon cake mould for this cheesecake and didn’t try and take it out of it before serving, looked pretty enough in the mould)

Beat together the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla extract and lemon juice in a bowl until smooth.

Lightly whip the double cream and fold it into the cream cheese mixture.

Spoon cheesecake filling on top of biscuit base and smooth off. Put in the fridge overnight of for at least 3 hours.

When you are ready to serve, unmould (or not!) and spread blueberry conserve over the top and sprinkle with fresh blueberries.

Serves 6-8 (if you don’t like it as much as my husband does!)

Cheeseless cheesecake

Ingredients

100g digestive biscuits (make sure they are dairy free, most supermarket own are)
25g ginger biscuits (again make sure they are dairy free, most supermarket own are)
255g soya cheddar-like cheese spread
60g icing sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon juice
250ml soya yoghurt with almond
For topping I used 1 x 284 jar St Dalfour Rhapsodie de Fruit Raspberry Spread and some fresh raspberries.

Method – exactly the same as for cheesecake substituting the cream cheese for the cheese spread and beating the yoghurt in with this mix (it’s not going to whip!).

I find the soya cheese spread revolting on its own so I used the almond plain yoghurt to add flavour and used a whole jar of raspberry spread and lots of fresh raspberries again to counteract the cheese spread. In the picture I had tried to make the raspberry spread look pretty but I ended up spreading it all over and adding fresh raspberries, much like I’d done with the blueberry – was much better but I forgot to take a photo! I think it worked (made a previous version of this without so much added flavour and couldn’t get past the horrible cheese spread taste!)

You can of course use whatever fruit topping you like, these ones worked for us.

I’d love some comments on how to make a cheeseless cheesecake that sets, this goes slightly firm but nothing like a real cheesecake. I use that particular cheesespread as it’s the only one available locally, there may be alternatives near you, and again I’d love to know what works for you.

Posted on September 30, 2015January 23, 2023 by janet — Leave a comment

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever come across – I have been using this recipe for the past 20 years, since it was first published in Linda McCartney’s book ‘Linda’s Kitchen‘ 20 years ago. The recipe I use is slightly altered, just to suit personal tastes of added ingredients but these cookies are the most perfectly crunchy on the outside, soft and almost cake-like on the inside and I wouldn’t try anything different now.

Here’s my version of the recipe:

Preheat oven to 180 deg C (fan oven)

4oz (125g) Pure sunflower spread (we’re dairy free in our house, use whatever butter/margarine you prefer)
2oz (50g) Golden Caster Sugar
4oz (125g) Light Soft Brown Sugar
1 free-range egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
8oz (250g) plain flour (gluten free works but might need a little extra liquid and can be quite crumbly)
1tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
4oz (150g) dark chocolate chopped

Method
Cream the Pure with both sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg with the vanilla. Sift the flour with the baking powder and salt and sift into the bowl. Beat again – mixture is quite stiff. Fold in the broken chocolate pieces.

Use an ice cream scoop to drop spoonfuls of the dough on to a greased or silicon baking sheet, they will spread in the oven so leave space.

Bake at 180 deg C (fan oven) for 15 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to allow to firm up, then, if you can resist, cool completely (rarely happens in our house!).

Lovely on their own or still warm with vanilla ice cream. Can add nuts if you wish but huge blobs of melted chocolate suffice us!

I should add that Linda also has a couple of great recipes for Crispy Ginger Nuts and Oat and Raisin Cookies too.

And if you like these chocolate chip cookies, you might like Chocolate Coconut Oil Fudge!

Posted on July 6, 2015April 28, 2018 by janet — Leave a comment

Coconut Oil Chocolate Fudge

I found this Coconut Oil Fudge recipe and made it for my butterfly tea party. A few people have since asked for the recipe so here it is. I used a jar of coconut oil (costs about £5 in our local deli) and a little honey but I think it would have been sweet enough without any honey or syrup – but you can taste to see as you make it.

Coconut Oil Chocolate Fudge MARCH 13, 2015 BY THE COCONUT MAMA

Super metabolism boosting coconut oil fudge recipe made healthy with natural ingredients like coconut oil, cocoa powder, raw honey (stevia can be used if you prefer) and vanilla extract. That’s it! No corn syrup, marshmallows, frosting or chocolate chips needed. Enjoy!

Coconut and chocolate is a match made in heaven! They pair well together in many of my popular recipes like my homemade chocolate bar recipe, chocolate coconut butter bars recipe, homemade “Mounds” candy recipe, homemade junior mints recipe and my magic hard shell recipe.

I’ve been working on this homemade fudge recipe for months. I wanted a simple recipe that could be tweaked easily for special dietary needs. I used raw honey to sweeten our fudge but other natural sweeteners can easily be substituted in its place. Raw cacao powder can be used in place of regular cocoa powder and expeller pressed coconut oil can be used in place of virgin coconut oil (some do better with expeller pressed because it’s easier to digest). Add a few drops of Young Living peppermint essential oil or 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract for delicious mouth-watering peppermint fudge.

Ingredients

1/4 cup Coconut Oil

1/4 cup Cocoa Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Raw Honey (or other natural sweetener like maple syrup or stevia)

Pinch of Sea Salt

Optional: 2 Drops Peppermint Essential Oil

Directions

1. Measure 1/4 cup of coconut oil and scoop it out into a mixing bowl. Whip the coconut oil with a stand or hand mixer until it’s light and fluffy (like this). Note: If your coconut oil is room temperature and already liquid you can skip this step.

2. Mix the whipped (or melted if you live in warmer climate) coconut oil, cocoa powder, vanilla and salt together. Mix well and slowly add honey or sweetener of choice. Taste as you go to make sure you don’t over sweeten your fudge. Mix in 2 drops of peppermint essential oil if using.

3. Pour fudge into a 9×5 inch pan (this is a bread size pan). Spread fudge evenly cover the pan with a lid or plastic wrap. Refrigerate until fudge is set and hard, about 4 hours.

4. Cut fudge into small squares and serve.

via Coconut Oil Fudge – The Coconut Mama.

If you like this, you might also like A Tale of Two Cheesecakes

Posted on June 21, 2015 by janet — Leave a comment

Elderflower, strawberry and almond cakes

I think I need to make these…