Showing posts with label healthy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label healthy. Show all posts

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Gorgeous granola


Granola is so expensive in the shops and the ingredients in it some seems to be of variable quality too, I have often hunted for the solitary pecan nut in maple, pecan granola !

So I decided I would have a go at making my own and wow can you taste the difference, plus you are in control of the ingredients in your mix, so you can ensure it has more of the things you like in it (in my case maple syrup and cinnamon) and less of the things you don't (in my case gluten, some commercially produced brands contain wheat flour to bind the ingredients). It also works out much more economical too as a box of quality granola often retails for more than £2.50 and this mix makes probably twice as much than in contained in a box.



So if you are on a health kick for the new year why not start by making your own granola, its healthy and very very tasty.

What you need
  • 3 cups oats (check gluten free if necessary)
  • 1 cup of chopped nuts (almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, etc)
  • 1 cup of seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, chia, flax, etc)
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp cardamon
  • 1/2 cup of melted coconut oil
  • 1/2 cups of maple syrup or honey
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup of dried fruit chopped (any you like)
What you do
  • Pre heat the oven to 180c
  • Mix the oats, spices, salt, maple syrup and seeds and coconut oil in a large bowl.
  • Tip onto 2 large baking trays and level off gently, bake for 15 minutes or so and then turn the oats over.
  • Bake for another 15 minutes or so until golden and the mixture is drying out and turning crispy (do not burn)
  • Mix the warm oats with the chopped nuts and dried fruit in a large bowl and then empty back on to the trays to cool.
  • Store in an airtight jar once fully cool.
  • Serve with yogurt or fruit, delicious .....

I am linking up to Credit Crunch Munch for this frugal yet wonderful granola recipe hosted over at Fuss Free Flavours and co hosted by Camilla at Fab Food for all.

                         Credit Crunch Munch

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Win a fabulous whole fruit juicer from Domu - Start the new year the right way !



Wow ! we have a fabulous giveaway of a Whole fruit Juicer just for you, this great juicer is from people at Domu from their Vonshef range.

This juicer has been Voted and Reviewed by Great British Food Magazine as one of their Top Five Juicers on the market and gives Fast and Easy juicing from a large chute, fitting whole fruits and vegetables with ease.
It also has an Impressive 2-speed rotary dial switch, so you can juice a variety of fruits and vegetables and an Extremely Large 2 Litre detachable pulp container, plus a Sleek and Stylish Stainless Steel Mesh Strainer.

So if one of your New Years resolutions is to start juicing this is the perfect juicer for you, juicing is great for you and a great way to up your fruit and vegetable intake.

The full Vonshef range is avaliable from Domu and also Amazon.

Entry to our fabulous giveaway is by easy reafflecopter entry, just follow the instructions below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Rules for giveaway

We have one juicer to giveaway, this can only be posted to UK addresses and will be sent direct from Domu.
  • Simply follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter widget above. 
  • To be in with a chance of winning you must complete ALL the required fields. 
  • All entries will be checked and verified before a winner is announced. 
  • You can increase your chances of winning by Tweeting on a daily basis. 
  • Rafflecopter will pick a random winner. 
  • The competition runs until the 19th January 2015
  • If you win, you MUST send me your delivery details quickly and within 24 hours or the prize will be passed to the next person drawn. 
Please see the Terms and Conditions on the Rafflecopter widget for the rules and more information.

    The Prize for this giveaway is provided by Domu (Designer Habitat) who will send the item direct to the winner.

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    Roasted aubergine and tomato soup



    We have another super easy soup recipe for you, this time using a bargain aubergine (eggplant for our American friends) unusually made in the oven, this recipe is based on a Hugh Fernley Whittingstall recipe.  Its frugal and very very tasty and the soup has a lovely comforting flavour, great for a cold winters day.

    What you need
    • 1 aubergine (chopped into chunky pieces)
    • Olive oil or rapeseed oil
    • 1 heaped tsp vegetable stock powder ( I use Essential Cuisine)
    • 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
    • Couple of cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
    • Water
    • Salt and pepper
    • Fresh thyme or basil leaves to garnish
    What you do
    • Preheat your oven to 180c
    • Place the chopped pieces of aubergine in a roasting dish and toss with a little oil
    • Roast for 20 minutes or so until the aubergine is soft and starting to colour a little
    • Add the contents of the tin of tomatoes to the dish, plus the garlic and thyme to the dish
    • Also add 1 tin of warm water and your vegetable stock cube / powder to the roasting pan
    • Return the roasting pan to the oven for another 20 minutes
    • Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly, then blitz with a hand blender or in a liquidiser or food processor until you achieve your desired consistency
    • Place the soup in a saucepan and warm gently until piping hot, taste for seasoning.
    This dish would also make a perfect starter to any festive celebrations as its a no worry, no hassle and could be made a head and stored in the fridge. Vegan, gluten free and very healthy its a great contrast to the rich festive fare, but its equally suited to make at any time of year.

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    Oaty Date slices



    These oaty date slices are perfect with a brew after returning from the frantic streets packed with Christmas shoppers, it a satisfying bake and fairly healthy due to the wholesome filling and the fact that it contains oats. Once baked it keeps well in an airtight tin and ideal served as part of a packed lunch or as suggested with tea or coffee.

    What you need
    • 200g plain flour
    • 200g rolled oats
    • 75g granulated sugar
    • 150g melted butter or vegetable margarine (if you wish to make vegan)
    • 250g stoned dates, roughly chopped
    • 100ml apple juice
    • Generous splash of lemon juice
    What you do
    • Oil spray an oblong tin approx 4" by 10" 
    • Pre heat the oven to 180c
    • Mix the oats, flour, sugar and melted butter in a large bowl to make a soft crumbly dough, if needed add a few drops of water to help bind
    • Press half of the oat /flour mixture into the prepared tin
    • To make the filling , cook the chopped dates in the apple juice and lemon juice in a small pan until you have a sticky soft filling
    • Allow the filling to cool slightly then spread the filling on the base
    • Top off the filling with the rest of the dough, press down firmly
    • Bake for 25-30 minutes
    • Remove from the oven when slightly golden and cool fully in the tin before cutting into generous slices.



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    Roasted red pepper and garlic soup

























    Recently I managed to snaffle a couple of beautiful sweet pointed red peppers at the local shop for a bargain price, so as we love roasted peppers I decided to make a warming soup.

    I love roasting red peppers as its really enhances the flavour of the pepper and intensifies their sweetness, We love them in our household even using them on rustic bread as a sandwich filling with a splash of balsamic and a couple of basil leaves to create an amazing flavourful vegetarian snack.

    This soups uses the roasted pepper flesh along with a couple of  roasted garlic bulbs as the basis of a tasty hearty soup which is rich in antioxidants and all things good for you. Its also an amazing colour as you can see from the photographs.

    What you need

    • 2 large red pointed peppers - split, seeds removed
    • 2 bulbs garlic - sliced across
    • Fresh rosemary and thyme
    • A little olive oil or virgin rapeseed oil
    • 1 white onion - peeled and roughly chopped
    • 1 medium potato - peeled and diced
    • Vegetable stock ( I used Essential Cuisine)
    • Salt and Pepper - to taste
    • Creme fraiche or yogurt - omit if you want diary free


    What you do 

    • Prepare the pepper and garlic and rub with a little oil before placing on a baking tray, strewn with some fresh herbs and a little salt and pepper
    • Roast for 20 - 25 minutes at 180c until the pepper skin is slightly charred and blistering
    • Remove from oven and cool fully on the tray
    • Once fully cool remove the charred skin from the pepper flesh and squeeze the garlic cloves to remove the cloves from the papery skin
    • In a large saucepan in a little oil saute the onion and the chopped potato for a few minutes, now add the roasted red pepper flesh and garlic cloves 
    • Add enough vegetable stock to cover the vegetables and simmer until the potato is soft
    • Blitz using a stick blender until you have a smooth consistency 
    • Add as much additional vegetable stock or water to thin to your preferred soup thickness.
    • Re heat and taste for seasoning
    • Serve swirled with creme friache or yogurt 


    We are linking up to No Croutons Required hosted this month over at Lisa's Kitchen 


    Extra Veg challenge hosted this month over at Fuss Free Living

    Extra-Veg-Badge1
    November's family foodies hosted over at Eat your Veg 

    family-foodies
    Credit Crunch Munch hosted this month by My Little Italian Kitchen 

    Credit-Crunch-Munch


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    Gluten free chicken goujons - quick and easy recipe


    For the last couple of weeks its be pretty warm in these parts (well for Lancashire anyway) and I wanted a dish that could be served both hot or cold depending on the weather. This is an easy dish and is great finger food served with dips and sauces or on a more formal basis with vegetables or salad. I would image it would be popular with kiddies too as it very similar to chicken nuggets, except a lot more healthy as its gluten free and not cooked in oil, another added benefit is that a meal can be on the table quickly and ideal for eating outside in the garden whilst the lovely weather lasts.

    What you need
    • Chicken breast - per portion ( I used 2)
    • Lemon juice - freshly squeezed ideally
    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Polenta -fine grain
    • Freshly grated parmesan cheese
    • Salt and freshly ground pepper
    What you do
    • Pre heat your oven to 200c
    • Locate a suitable oven tray or pan, I used my Pampered chef stoneware tray and it worked a treat
    • Slice the chicken breast fillets into finger thick strips
    • Place in bowl and season well with salt and pepper, toss in the lemon juice and a slug of olive oil
    • Ensure they are coated well
    • On a plate pour out a good layer of polenta and grate over a good quantity of parmesan cheese, mix together.
    • Coat each strip well with the polenta and parmesan mixture, pressing in the coating.
    • Place on a baking tray and bake for 15 -20 minutes, until golden and cooked through. This will all depend on the thickness of your strips
    • Serve hot or cold with salad, dips and sauces or with oven baked "chips"
    The featured salad is avocado, mizuna and rocket tossed in a lemon juice and olive oil dressing. This dish would be great served cold al fresco with a selection of dips as part of a picnic feast.

    Four Seasons Food is being hosted this month at Eat your Veg with the theme "Al Fresco"  , its hosted in rotation with Delicieux 
                                                             


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    Spiced apple chickpea cake


    Recently I have been experimenting with cake recipes that are naturally gluten free or are made with alternative flours or no flour at all. I have previously dabbled with cakes made with chickpeas and beans previously including one that ended up being featured in The Clandestine Cake club cook book and they turned out well. The gluten free chocolate cake is of particular note , the link is here.



    This recipe is based on the same basic recipe but I fancied including grated apples and spices to provide a fruity flavour in place of the chocolate plus I have bought a lot of apples recently as I am also planning on having a go at using apple sauce / puree as a butter alternative in baking so watch out for that post too.



    Chickpeas or garbanzo beans (as our friends across the pond call them) are used as the flour substitute yet you still get some rise, the recipe is also lower fat as it has no added oils or butters. The cake is lovely and moist and is great served on its own or as a dessert if served with cream, custard or yogurt. You would never know it contains chickpeas at all, plus it smells amazing whilst baking all cosy and comforting.



    What you need
    • 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
    • 3 eggs beaten
    • 1 cup of caster sugar
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 2 tsp lebucken spice (I used Steenbergs but you can come up with your own spice mix, may be incorporating cinnamon, cloves, ginger or what ever else takes your fancy)
    • A couple of cox apples - grated keep the skin on 
    • Lemon rind
    What you do
    • Grease a square cake tin roughly 9" by 9"
    • Pre heat your oven to 180C
    • Pulse the chickpeas in a food processor until they become a fine paste , now pulse in the rest of the ingredients.
    • Pour the mix into your prepared tin, don't be alarmed the mixture will be very runny
    • Bake for at least 45 minutes until golden, set and risen. Test with a skewer to make sure its cooked through
    • Cool fully on a wire rack
    • Cut into squares and store in an airtight tin for a couple of days if it lasts that long










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    Cereal bars for walkers

    Mr Lancashire Food joined a walking group last year and one of the hot topics of conversation on the walks is cereal bars and flapjacks and the dubious quality of  the commercially available versions and also the expense of them.




    Quite a few of the walkers don't bake so over the last few weeks I have been sending Mr LF with parcels of different recipes. This one have proved the most favourite so far, making you own cereal bars is a much better idea as you know what ingredients are in your bar and also the cost per bar is around half what a commercially available bar retails at.

    What you need
    • 225g oats
    • 75g sunflower seeds
    • 100g dried fruit (dates / raisins)
    • 50g pumpkin seeds
    • 25g sesame seeds
    • 25g rice crispies
    • 75ml vegetable oil
    • 75g honey or maple syrup
    • 50g light brown sugar
    8" square tin (lined)

    What you do 
    • Preheat the oven to 150c 
    • Place all the dry ingredients except for the sugar in a large bowl and stir until well mixed
    • In a small saucepan bring the vegetable oil, honey and sugar to the boil
    • Mix the honey/oil mixture with the dry ingredients and stir until everything is coated with the mixture.
    • Scoop into the prepared tin and press down firmly
    • Bake for 30 -35 minutes until lightly golden
    • Cool in the tin
    • Once cold cut into slices, squares or bars.
    Serve to hungry walkers ! 

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    Cereal loaf cake

    On this years schedule for the Lancashire Federation of Womens Institute county show one of the set recipes is a Weetabix cake. I remember this cake from my childhood as one that my Nanna would bake, I think she also did an All bran version too which would give a very similar result. I haven't decided as yet if I am going to enter any of the baking classes and do foray with the local equivalents of Mary Berry but in the meantime I baked this classic to remind me how it tastes. Its a pretty easy recipe and the secret is the soaking of the fruit overnight to ensure that the dried fruit is plump and juicy. There are a myriad versions of this recipe on the internet but I am using the classic supplied by the WI (the measurement is in ounces so its old time for sure).


    The cake is better if wrapped for a couple of days as it improves with keeping , its great served plain or buttered.

    Ingredients
    • 2 weetabix or similar quantity of all bran, bran flakes, etc
    • 1/2 pint of milk (I used skimmed)
    • 8 oz demerara sugar
    • 8 oz mixed dried fruit
    • 1 egg - free range
    • 8 oz self raising flour
    • 1 tsp mixed spice ( this is my embellishment or not to schedule in WI speak)
    Method
    • Crush the weetabix in a bowl, add the sugar, milk and dried fruit. Stir well and leave to soak overnight
    • Add the egg and flour and mix well
    • Scoop into a lined 2lb loaf tin
    • Bake at 160c for 1 hour or so (mine took 1-20 mins) until tested cooked with a skewer
    • Cool on a wire rack

    I was recently on BBC Radio Lancashire and took a sample of this loaf in with me and it proved very popular with the presenters.

    I have been having a rummage in my old recipe archive some of which has been passed to me by my Mum and have found a couple of postcards with variations on a theme for this recipe in my Nanna's writing.

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    Another banana loaf


    A while ago as part of a blog post I was sent some coconut oil, the jar has sat in the cupboard doing nothing, every time I go in that cupboard it waves at me and I think I must come up with a recipe that uses the ingredient.

    My coconut oil was from The Groovy Food Company , Coconut oil is a source of lauric acid which is good for your cardo vascular system and despite being a saturated fat assists in regulating your cholesterol levels and boosting your immune system, it tastes from the jar like a coco-nutty wax, not unpleasant and faintly tropical tasting.

    Coconut oil can be used like other oils  and in a warm kitchen will turn runny, I had an idea that the faintly tropical flavour would combine well with banana in a loaf cake, one of the staples in my kitchen.

    The resultant loaf cake was deliciously aromatic and faintly tropical flavour as I hoped, moist too, it would may be benefit from a cream cheese buttercream icing if you wanted to take it towards a passion cake. Talking of additions you could also may be add blueberries or pineapple or mango if you wanted to up the fruitiness further.

    Ingredients
    • 2 ripe bananas - peeled and mashed
    • 2 tbsp low fat plain yogurt
    • 2 large eggs - free range please
    • 1 1/4 cups of granulated sugar
    • 1/2 cup of coconut oil - melted
    • 1/4 cup soft light brown sugar
    • 1 tsp vanilla paste
    • 2 cups plain flour
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
    • 1 tsp nutmeg
    Method
    • Pre heat the oven to 180c
    • Line 2 x 2lb loaf tins ,I use the ready made ones (i buy them from the £1 shop)
    • In a bowl whisk the eggs, coconut oil, yogurt, sugar and vanilla paste until well incorporated.
    • Now sieve in the flour, nutmeg, baking powder and soda, mix gentle and then stir in the crushed banana
    • Pour the batter into the lined tins and bake for about 40 -45 minutes until tested cooked with a skewer
    • Cool initially in the tin and then on a wire rack
    • Stores well wrapped in foil or alternatively freezes beautifully.






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    Healthy Fish Pie


    Comfort food for a cold winters day and healthy too, what more could a girl want hey ! The pie also freezes fabulously too, so you can make double and freeze for another day , its fab served with broccoli or garden peas. Make sure when you are choosing the fish for in the pie you get a nice mixture of oily fish (salmon / trout), smoked and white fish. Pollack and number of other sustainable fish work fine in pies.
    Its British pie week this week, so a very opportune posting this one, after all pies don't have to be all pastry ! 

    Ingredients
    • 1 packet of fish pie mix or ask your fishmonger for a mixed selection of fish suitable for a pie (white, oily and smoked),
    • 100g prawns if using
    • 1 large white onion - finely chopped
    • Fish stock
    • A little white wine
    • Creme fraiche - 1 tbsp
    • Parsley - dried or finely chopped fresh
    • Dill - dried or finely chopped fresh
    • 3 large white potatoes - suitable for mashing, peeled and chopped in to large chunks
    • Vegetable oil
    • Freshly ground black pepper
    • cornflour - for thickening sauce (1 tbsp mixed with a little water to make a smooth paste)

    Method
    • Put the potatoes onto boil in a large saucepan
    • Heat a little oil in a large frying pan, gently seal the fish until just coloured then remove to plate
    • Cook in the large frying pan the onion gently until softened, now add a little wine to de-glaze the pan of the lovely fishy juices
    • Add fish stock and bring to a gentle simmer, now add the herbs and slaked cornflour to bring the sauce to the desired thickness
    • Simmer and add the fish back to the sauce, reduce the heat and add the creme fraiche
    • Stir and remove from heat
    • Pour into your pie dish and allow to cool a little
    • Now on to the mash, by now the potatoes should be tender, remove from the heat and drain and mash adding a little butter and pepper if so required
    • Once you have a smooth mash, top the pie with a generous layer of mash
    • Bake in a pre heated oven at 180c for approx 30 minutes until lovely and golden and bubbly
    • Serve with a green vegetable.



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