Tag Archives: gluten free

Spiced Toffee Apples!

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Before I start with my glut of hallowe’en inspired pumpkin bakes I thought I’d quickly get this one in! Nothing says autumn, Hallowe’en and fireworks night like toffee apples! I’m always so disappointed with the ones you buy in the shops so I thought I’d make my own this year!

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These are easy to make but you just have to have a little faith and let that sugar boil! They’re great fun to make for the kids, though I certainly wouldn’t let the kids make them themselves – children and boiling sugar aren’t a great combo!

If you have a sugar thermometer for the toffee then that’s brill! I don’t, but luckily my mum does, so I borrowed hers! If you don’t have a handy mum to borrow one from then never fear, you can still make this by using a bowl of cold water to test when the toffee is ready (see below).

You will need:

300g Golden granulated sugar

100g Unrefined brown sugar

1 Star anise

1 large Cinnamon stick

2 Tbsp Maple syrup

100ml Water

75g Pecans crushed/chopped finely

6 Apples (Braeburns work well, as do Granny Smiths – you want an apple with a bit of tartness to combat the sweet toffee)

6 wooden sticks or lolly sticks

Put the granulated and brown sugar in to a large pan. Add the water and stir over a low heat until the sugar had dissolved. Add the vinegar and maple syrup and then bring to the boil.

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Once boiling allow it to boil rapidly without stirring until the toffee reaches 150 C on a sugar thermometer (or the “hard crack” level). If you don’t have a thermometer you can test when the toffee is ready by spooning a little in to a bowl of cold water. It should harden immediately and be easy to snap. Now it will take a while to get to this stage so don’t be afraid to leave that sugar bubbling away!

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Once it reaches “hard crack” remove from the heat and stir in the pecans.

Place a stick (I used lolly sticks) in to the core of each apple. Dip the apples in the toffee while it is nice and hot and then place on a baking sheet to cool. You need to work quite quickly. If the toffee gets too hard you can gently re-warm it (but be very careful not to overheat it).

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Once the toffee has cooled and set then you can tuck in! They’re definitely best eaten the day they’re made but can be kept somewhere dry and cool and enjoyed over the next few days too.

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Plum and Apple Chutney

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Believe it or not after making my plum and almond cake and egg-less plum cake, I still had some plums left! I also had the very good fortune to be given a massive bag of apples from my friend Zena’s garden (how lucky am I! 🙂 ), so I decided I’d have a go at my first ever batch of chutney! I am a massive fan of chutney but have never tried making it myself – mainly because my mum, and my very good friend Colette from Colette’s fitness kitchen, make THE best chutney and have kept me in good supply! But with this glut of autumn fruit I thought it was about time I repaid the favour!

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You will need:

1 kg Apples (bramleys will work best but I used the apples I was given which were some sort of eating apple, and then I added a few extra bramleys in)

1 kg Plums

2 large Onions

1 whole Garlic bulb

1 inch of Root ginger (or a piece approximately the size of your thumb!)

500ml Cider vinegar

450g Golden unrefined caster sugar

1 Cinnamon stick

1 tsp Cumin seeds

3 star Anise (you can substitute with 1 1/2 tsp of chinese five spice)

1 tbsp Himalayan rock salt

Prepare all the ingredients to start with. Peel the garlic and cut in to fine slices. Peel and grate the ginger, and thinly slice the onions. Peel, core and chop the apples.

Pop the onions, garlic and ginger into a large pan or stock pot. Add the apples and all the spices and vinegar. Bring the pan to the boil gently, stir well and then turn the heat down and allow to simmer for 30 mins with a lid on until the apples are soft.

While the apples are cooking slice the plums in to quarters (or eighths if they’re large) and add them once the apples are soft. Add the sugar and stir well. Leave it simmering with the lid uncovered for at least 40 minutes or until the plums are cooked and the chutney has thickened. You will know when it’s ready as if you drag a wooden spoon through it to reveal the base of the pan and takes it time returning then you know it’s done. Trust me this could take a while – it will depend how much juice comes out of the apples and plums. Just stick with it and keep stirring while it simmers down.

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Pop some jars in to the oven to sterilise (20 mins at about 180 C will do it), remove the star anise and cinnamon stick and ladle the chutney in to the jars. Seal and label the jars. It’s best to let the chutney mature for a month if possible before you eat it. It will keep for up to a year, but once opened it’s best to keep it in the fridge and eat within a month.

Makes a great gift or, just enjoy it yourself with some cashew cheese!

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Goodness, gracious, great balls of…. biscuit!

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I love a good biscuit with a cup of tea and am always searching for gluten and dairy free recipes for biscuits / cookies that actually work! I’ve tried so many and so often they end up too soft or too crumbly or too much effort to make! But I think with these little beauties I’ve found the perfect biscuit! It’s so easy to make and so quick – you can whip up a batch in 20 minutes!

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To make about 24 small biscuit balls you will need:

260g Ground almonds

60g Cacao nibs

5 tablespoons Coconut oil (melted)

1/2 tsp Baking powder

1/2 tsp Himalayan rock salt

2 tsp Vanilla extract

4 tbsp Maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener such as agave or honey)

Preheat the oven to 170 C.

Put the dry ingredients in to a mixing bowl and combine thoroughly. Add the coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix together. You should find the mixture will stick together when you squeeze it between your fingers.

Take tablespoon sized portions of the mixture and form in to a ball. Pop on a greased baking tray and flatten a little. Place in the oven for 10 – 15 minutes (start checking at 10 minutes). Remove when they are starting to brown. They will feel very soft when you take them from the oven but just leave them to cool on the tray and they will harden.

Enjoy with a nice cuppa! 🙂

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Plum cake – gluten, dairy and egg free!

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When I posted my recipe for my plum and almond cake I promised I would post a recipe for plum cake that was also egg free, so here it is! 🙂

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This cake uses fine cornmeal or polenta and so does have a little bit of a nutty texture to it around the edges but it is moist and soft in the middle.
It also uses coconut milk but not the kind you get in a carton – the canned kind, often called coconut cream. For this to work you need one with a high coconut fat content so you’re looking for one with 65 – 70% coconut extract. You will need to prep the coconut cream the day before.

This one works well:

coconut creamPop the can in the fridge overnight and try not to move it. The coconut fat solidifies and separates at the top, leaving clear liquid at the bottom. When you are ready to make the cake remove the can carefully from the fridge and turn the can upside down in one move (i.e. no shaking!). Then open the can at the bottom – yes – trust me, open the bottom! You should find that the fat has solidified and you will see a few cm’s of clear liquid. Pour this off (don’t throw it away – you can pop it in a smoothie!) and then you are left with the coconut cream to use! 🙂

So for the cake you will need:

1/2 cup fine Polenta

1/2 cup Rice flour

1/2 cup Raw coconut sugar

1 tsp Baking powder

1 cup minus 1 tbsp of the coconut milk/cream

1/2 cup of apple puree (recipe here)

6 – 8 English plums (less if you’re using the bigger imported plums!)

Preheat the oven to 180 C and line and grease a 20 x 20 cm baking pan.

Put all the dry ingredients in to a bowl and mix well. Add the coconut cream and apple puree and mix together well. Allow this to rest for 15 minutes so the polenta can start to absorb the moisture.

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Cut the plums in to halves (or quarters if large). Pour the batter in to the baking pan and use a spatula or the back of a spoon to smooth it out evenly. Then place the plum halves into the top of the batter, spacing them evenly across (I managed to get 3 rows of 4 in mine!). Press in lightly.

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Then place in the oven and bake for 25 – 30 mins. Start checking it at 25 mins and remove when the top is golden and a skewer comes out clean.

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Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour. Then cut in to squares and serve!

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Plum and Almond Cake – Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free

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English plums are in season right now so it’s an ideal time to use them for something yummy! This cake definitely qualifies! I was really unsure how this would turn out but it’s actually amazing! If you are a fan of almond macaroons or frangipanes you will absolutely love this. I had the pleasure of getting some English plums from Riverford Organic so I thought I’d better put them to good use!

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This went down really well with my husband and even George the cat was curious about it 😉 so it must be a winner!

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This is gluten and dairy free but does contain eggs. I’ve got an egg-free plum cake coming up soon so never fear!

If you are using the small English plums you will probably only need 6 – 8, if using larger ones you will need no more than 4 at the most.

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You will need:

125g unrefined Raw sugar or Coconut palm sugar

200g Ground almonds

2 Eggs

100 ml Almond oil (you can use mild Olive oil if you prefer

1/4 tsp Vanilla extract

1/8 tsp Almond extract (if you have it)

Plums 4 -8 depending on size

Ground cinnamon (for dusting)

Pre-heat the oven to 180 C and line and grease a 20cm cake tin – if you have a springform tin then use that as it makes it easier to get it out without it breaking. If not a loose bottom tin is the best option.

Add the oil and sugar to a bowl and use a hand mixer to beat together (you can do it by hand with a fork if not). Beat in the eggs one at a time. Then add in the extracts and mix well. Fold in the ground almonds with a metal spoon. Once mixed pour in to the tin.

Half (or quarter if they’re big) the plums, remove the stone, and place in to the batter. Push them down a little bit so they’re well bedded in there. Sprinkle the top with ground cinnamon.

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Pop in the oven for 25 – 30 minutes. It is worth starting to check it at about 20 minutes. Once a skewer comes out clean then it’s done.

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Let it cool for 10 minutes in the tin and then carefully remove it and allow it to cool on a wire rack. Slice and enjoy! 🙂

Blackberry and Apple Tray Bake!

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Now obviously with all those yummy blackberries I had to make something cake-based too… so I had a go at a blackberry and apple tray bake. It’s topped with meringue so isn’t egg-free, though it is dairy-free. For the cake itself you can either use eggs or an egg replacement (see below). This is super sweet and super moist and siuper yummy! It’s a perfect Autumn afternoon snack.

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You will need:

140g dairy-free Margarine

140g Coconut sugar

1 egg and 2 egg yolks beaten together (or 3 tbsp Chia seeds soakes in 9 Tbsps water)

1/2 tsp Vanilla extract

100g white Spelt flour and 1 tsp Baking powder (OR 100g self-raising gluten-free flour mix)

100g ground Almonds

1 tsp Baking powder

1/2 tsp ground Nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground Cinnamon

pinch of Himalayan rock salt

1 large Bramley Apple, sliced (approx 140g once peeled and cored)

125g Blackberries

For the Meringue topping:

25g Blackberries

100g unrefined Golden caster sugar

2 Egg whites

1 tsp Lemon juice

pinch of Himalayan rock salt

2 tbsp toasted Almond flakes

Pre-heat oven to 160 C or 140 C (fan oven) and grease and line a square tin (approx 23cm).

Beat the margarine and coconut sugar together until pale and creamy. Then beat in the egg and yolks (or chia seeds), and the vanilla. If you are using a self-raising gluten-free flour mix then sieve that in together with the baking powder and spices and salt. If you are using spelt flour sieve the baking powder (both measures of baking powder) and spices in to the spelt flour and then sieve it in to the butter mix. Next add in the ground almonds and fold it all together to form a thick batter.

IMG_0081Chop the apple up in to small chunks or slices (whatever you prefer) and fold in to the mix. Pour the batter in to the tin and then scatter with the blackberries. Poke the blackberries down a bit so they are well bedded in to the batter.

IMG_0084Pop in the oven and bake for 40 – 45 mins until a skewer comes out clean. Once you remove the cake leave the oven on.

IMG_0085While it is baking you can prepare the blackberry sauce for the meringue. If you are not using meringue this sauce can be drizzled over the cake 🙂

Put the remaining blackberries and 1 tsp sugar in a bowl and cover with cling film. Pop in the microwave for 30 secs and then mash until saucy! 🙂 You can also do this in a saucepan over a low heat. Set aside to cool.

Take the 2 egg whites and whisk with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt until they form stiff peaks – and if you’re brave do the whole “holding the bowl upside down above your head” test to see if they’re stiff enough! Add the sugar 1 tbsp at a time and whisk in well. Add the blackberry sauce and ripple through with spoon. Then spoon the mixture in to a piping bag or in to a plastic freezer bag and snip off the corner.

Pipe the meringue on to the cake – I aimed for one meringue per piece so it was about 16 little meringues but you can do whatever pattern you like! Scatter the almonds over the top and place the cake back in the oven for 10 – 12 minutes until the meringues are set.

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Then remove and allow to cool in the tin for 30 mins. Cut in to little squares and enjoy!

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Blackberry Chia Jam

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I have spent a few lovely hours for the past couple of weekends foraging for wild blackberries in the local parks near me. I’ve had the pleasure of thinking up ways to use them (some of which will follow!), but the first and (in my humble opinion) most exciting thing I did was make up a lovely batch of chia jam! This recipe is also up on Colette’s Fitness Kitchen 🙂

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This stuff is lovely, it’s easy to make and totally raw so doesn’t require any cooking or setting or anything difficult. It will last for about a week in the fridge but could also be frozen too. The beauty of this is not only is it delicious but it is a great way to boost your omega-3 and fibre intake 🙂

You will need:

1 1/2 cups Blackberries (or any soft fruit)

3 Tbsp Chia seeds

1/4 – 1/2 cup Water

1 – 2 Tbsp Maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener) – if required (personally I like my blackberries tart so didn’t add any!)

Place the blackberries or other fruit in a bowl and mash with a fork until smooshed up but not completely liquid. If you need sweetener then add it to taste and then add the chia seeds and mix well. Depending how juicy your fruit is you may need to add more or less water but start with half a cup and add more if required. The chia seeds take time to soak up the water, so once you have added it allow it to stand for 30 mins to an hour before seeing if you need to add more. If the chia seeds are still crunchy add more (unless you like them crunchy, in which case don’t!). The longer you can leave the jam the better – ideally overnight, but at least for an hour or so. Enjoy it spread on toast, dolloped on top of yoghurt or just eaten straight off the spoon!

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Experiment with different fruits depending on what is in season. Raspberries also work well and I was lucky enough to pick up some discounted, very ripe nectarines in the market which made a delicious change.

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Spice up your summer! Chocolate chilli cookies (dairy free, low/no gluten)

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Chocolate and chilli – what better combination can there be?

I recently baked up another batch of these to welcome home a lovely friend from a trip away and they seemed to go down well so I thought I’d share! They were inspired by a chocolate cookie recipe I found years ago and modified but I can’t now find the original link – when I do I’ll add it! They’re quick and easy to make and taste divine! Oh, and a warning, they smell so good when cooking that it’s pretty hard not to eat them all right there and then!

Makes about 20 (depending how big you make them!)

You will need:

1 and 2/3 cups of white Spelt flour or a gluten-free blend
1/2 raw Cacao powder
1/2 cup Almond oil
1 cup Raw coconut sugar or other raw sugar
1/4 cup Maple syrup (the best quality you can get)
3 tbsp Almond milk (you could use soya or coconut milk too)
1 tsp Bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp hot Chilli powder (I used dried chillies, ground up – and they are hot!)
1/2 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp Himalayan rock salt
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1 tsp Chocolate extract (optional – available from whole food stores, online, or Waitrose for those in the UK)

You will also need some cinnamon chocolate chilli sugar to coat them in 🙂 You can buy pre-mixed sugar, but I prefer to make my own. It’s easy! Just mix 100g sugar with 10g of cocoa powder, 2 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp chilli powder (or more if you want it hotter!). Adjust the amounts depending how much you need but keep them in those ratios. Make up a batch and keep it in an airtight jar. Just shake before use as the sugar tends to sink to the bottom, leaving the lighter cocoa etc at the top.

Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease and line a baking tray (or 2!).

Put the oil, sugar, maple syrup and milk in a bowl and mix together using a fork. Add in the vanilla extract and mix well. Mix the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl and sieve in to the wet ingredients. Mix until you have a dough. The dough will be quite moist and sticky.

Put the cinnamon chocolate chilli sugar on a plate. Take small, walnut sized, balls of the dough and pat into the topping sugar to make discs about 2 inches across. Make sure they are well covered in sugar. Put them on to the baking tray with the sugar facing up. Cook for 10 – 12 minutes until they are crackly on the top and have spread a little. Allow to cool on the baking tray for 5 mins then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy! :)

Ninjabread men! Chocolate, cherry and ginger dairy free biscuits

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Gosh it’s been a long time since i’ve had time to bake – sorry! Real life has got in the way (in good and bad ways!), but oh how i’ve missed it!

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Thankfully I had an excuse to bake again 🙂 yippee! I wanted to make something yummy to celebrate (or rather commiserate) the last body combat class with a very special friend of mine. What better way to mark the occasion than by baking some funky little Ninjabread men! I used ginger, dark chocolate and dried cherries in mine but you could flavour the biscuits any way you like 🙂

For the biscuits you need:

2 cups Spelt flour or gluten-free flour mix

1 cups Unrefined Icing sugar

6 oz Dairy-free margarine (get the best quality you can)

2 tsp ground Ginger

handful of chopped dried Cherries

handful of dairy free chocolate (I used Willie’s chef’s drops)

Ninja cutters (available online) or just use normal ginger bread man cutters 🙂

Pre-heat the oven to 180 C. Put the margarine in a large mixing bowl, sieve the flour, icing sugar and ground ginger in and cream it together. Try not to over mix but make sure the margarine is properly mixed with the dry ingredients. Add the cherries and chocolate and combine well. Once it’s formed a dough wrap in cling film and chill for 30 mins. If you find the dough is too sticky then add some more flour.

Once chilled, roll out and use the biscuit cutter to cut out your little ninjas. Use a palate knife to transfer them carefully to a greased baking tray. Sprinkle with a little raw sugar if you like and bake for 8 – 10 mins, or until golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the tray.

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Decoration

Once the biscuits are cool you can have some fun! I used a variety of ninja designs. For the dark icing you can get black food colouring or use melted dark chocolate. Unleash your best ninja using skills!! 🙂

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A bit of savoury baking! Grain-free pizza! :)

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I blogged this over at Colette’s Fitness Kitchen but wanted to share it with you all too 🙂 It’s divine! 🙂

Here’s the original post – Grain-free Pizza Recipe and I’ve copied the recipe for you below 🙂 This is a definite winner and I’m really pleased with how it turned out 🙂

I’m always on the look out for grain-free alternatives and had heard a lot about using cauliflower as a pizza base so I thought I would give it a go. I’m thrilled with the results – it’s absolutely delicious and really easy to make too! I whipped this up in about 30 mins! You can make this dairy free or vegan too if you want to (options below) 🙂

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For the base you will need:

1 large Cauliflower

a handful of fresh Basil leaves

a handful of fresh flat Parsley leaves

1/2 tsp dried Oregano

1/2 tsp Garlic salt

Himalayan rock salt and black pepper to taste

1 Egg OR 1 tbsp ground flax seeds/linseed soaked in 3 tbsp water

Optional – 1 cup of grated hard cheese (goat’s cheese, vegetarian parmesan, mozarella – whatever you like)

For the pizza topping you will need:

Pasata or tomato purée

Toppings of your choice – I used mixed peppers, onions, mushrooms, baby plum tomatoes and feta cheese

Preheat the oven to 220 C.

Remove the central stalk of the cauliflower and cut in to florets. Place in a food processor and pulse until it is chopped up nice and small. Pop it in to a bowl, cover with clingfilm and microwave on full power for 3 – 4 minutes (until tender). Allow to cool (unless you have asbestos fingers!) and then tip in to a clean tea towel. Wrap it up and then wring the life out of it! You want to get rid of as much water as possible. Place the wrung out cauliflower back in the bowl and add all the other base ingredients, with the egg or egg substitute going in last.

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Mix together well (hands work best). Once it’s all well mixed tip it out on to a lined, greased pizza tray (or baking tray) and press out in to a pizza shape. You want it to be well squished down and thin but not too thin – a couple of mm thick. Place in the oven and cook for 7 – 10 minutes until it just starts to colour.

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Remove and add your pasata or tomato purée and your pizza toppings. I like to pre-cook my peppers and onions in a frying pan before adding them as it means they are super tender. Once you’ve added all your toppings place it back in the oven for a further 7 – 10 mins. Remove, drizzle with some chilli-infused olive oil and serve with a side salad! 🙂

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