August 26, 2015August 26, 2015 / emma@cookfasteatslow.com Leave a comment

Rich Chocolate Raspberry Cakes (gluten free, dairy free)

This is one of those recipes that came from a friend, who got it from a friend, who got it off a food blog (www.groovyfoody.wordpress.com) who had tweaked it from a recipe found in the cook book Quinoa 365 – The Everyday Superfood.

Once this recipe was in my hands, it didn’t take long for it to become one of my favourites when baking for family and friends who can’t have dairy or gluten.

I played with the original recipe too, halving the sugar and making it completely dairy free. Taking out some of the sugar did leave it needing some extra sweetness, my answer to that was a simple raspberry in the middle of each cake. It adds just enough natural sweetness to make this a gorgeous cake to eat.

These moist, fluffy and rich cakes will silence any critics who think you can’t make a beautiful cake without gluten or dairy.

And even though my boys know these are made on Quinoa (which they don’t like!) they love these cakes.

Ingredients

Makes 24 cupcakes.

2/3 cup uncooked quinoa (follow instructions below to cook, which will give you 2 cups of cooked quinoa)

1/3 cup soy milk, almond milk or coconut milk

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3/4 cup rice bran oil

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda

1 punnet of fresh raspberries (frozen can be used too)

Method

To prepare the quinoa, rinse under cold water and then place in a saucepan with 1 1/3 cups water (basically the ratio when cooking is 2:1, water to quinoa)

Cover the saucepan and place on medium heat. Simmer gently for about 15 minutes or until most of the water is absorbed and it’s cooked. Turn heat off and leave for another 10 minutes with the lid on. Remove the lid, fluff the quinoa with a fork and leave to cool.

Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius.

Line 2 x 12 cupcake trays with cupcakes cases.

Place milk, eggs and vanilla in a food processor and blend until smooth and thickened. Add cooled quinoa and blend again till smooth. Add the oil and blend until smooth and thick.

In a separate large bowl, using a hand whisk, whisk together sugar, cocoa, baking powder and soda.

Add the contents of the food processor and stir until all combined.

Fill cupcakes cases 3/4 of the way up and press a raspberry lightly into the top of each one.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the tops bounce back when you press lightly.

Remove from oven and allow to cool.

These will last for a couple of days in an airtight container and they freeze really well too.

August 14, 2015 / emma@cookfasteatslow.com Leave a comment

Dulce de Leche (Spanish Caramel)

I’ve been trying to work out when my obsession with all things caramel may have begun.

Back in my early school days it was a thrill to be able to walk into the milk bar across the road from the bus stop and for 10 cents, purchase a bag of Caramel Buds. I love the fact that my friends who were with me on these trips or helped in the eating of said Caramel Buds are probably reading this now and smiling at the memory. Those were the days……

Or was it my mum’s Caramel Dumplings? Coming home from school and finding out they were bubbling away on the stove for dessert that night just made everything okay with the world.

Fast forward to these days where I consciously eat a very balanced diet and try and keep sweet treats to a minimum and yet I still can’t quite say goodbye to caramel for good.

Put me in a gelato store and I will order the Salted Caramel gelato and maybe even more than 1 scoop. Hand around a plate of good old Chocolate Caramel Slice and I will find it hard to say no. When my local patisserie brought out a Salted Caramel croissant, I found myself with no resolve and just had to have it.

A few weeks ago I was celebrating my birthday snowed in at the family farm. If I was going to have a cake I would have to make it.

I had my eye on an Upside Down Apple cake, made with Dulce de Leche, a thick caramel made from milk and sugar or condensed milk.

So, armed with condensed milk, some jars and a slow cooker, I very quickly discovered the ease at which this delicious caramel can be made.

On a quick side note – for those who are dairy free, you can now purchase condensed coconut milk in the supermarket. I haven’t used it myself yet, but apparently you can use it to make a Coconut Dulce de Leche by following the same steps.

Ingredients

2 x 395gm cans of condensed milk

3 small jars, measuring approx 200ml

Method

Pour the condensed milk into the clean jars, seal the lids tightly and place in a slow cooker. Fill the slow cooker with water to completely cover the jars.

Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Store in the refrigerator for up to a few months.

August 2, 2015 / emma@cookfasteatslow.com 2 Comments

Raspberry & White Chocolate Scones

I know many people who find the thought of making their own scones a little scary.

Well if that’s you, this recipe is a great place to start.

You can’t really go wrong with these. They don’t need to be perfectly high, round or smooth on top like we often see with store-bought scones. In actual fact, these scones work best being a little thinner than usual and having a fairly rustic shape.

The main thing to remember when making scones is to ‘be gentle’ when mixing all the ingredients together. Using a knife instead of a spoon to mix the dough, is the best way to incorporate everything without over working the dough.

This recipe works best when you gently pat the dough into a rectangle shape and then score the dough with a sharp knife into 9 equal portions, without cutting all the way through.

Once they are cooked and have cooled slightly, you finish cutting through each portion and gently pull them apart from each other.

These are just gorgeous eaten fresh out of the oven, but will last 2 days in an airtight container. You can reheat in the microwave if you want them warm again.

I read about the original idea for these scones on an American recipe website called www.rockrecipes.com

Ingredients

(makes 9 scones)

1 1/2 cups plain flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 cup castor sugar

75gm cold butter, cubed

100gm white choc, chopped

1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

125gm fresh or frozen raspberries
(frozen is actually best as they will hold their shape better)

Method

Rub the cold butter into the dry ingredients using your fingers until you have a ‘clumpy sand-like’ mixture. It’s okay if you still have small clumps of butter.

(If you have a food processor, you can use this for this stage instead, and then tip into a medium size bowl and finish the recipe.)

Add in the chopped white chocolate.

Add the wet ingredients, mix gently with a knife, using a ‘cutting’ motion and then finish bringing it all together with your hands till it’s just combined.

Gently mix through raspberries.

Press into a rectangle and place on tray lined with baking paper.

Bake at 180 degrees celsius for 25-30mins till golden.

Cool slightly before cutting.

Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

July 23, 2015 / emma@cookfasteatslow.com Leave a comment

Apple Pikelets

Affectionately named ‘puglets’ by our youngest family member, these apple pikelets are a favourite afternoon treat in our house.

It doesn’t get much easier than whisking a few ingredients together in a bowl and cooking spoonfuls of batter in a frying pan.

Usually the hungry hordes hang around the frying pan and eat them straight away, but the more patient ones will enjoy them drizzled with some honey and a hot cup of tea.

Occasionally there are leftovers, and I wrap 2 at a time in glad wrap and pop them in the freezer for lunch boxes.

I like to use Wholemeal Spelt Flour to make these. It is much higher in protein, fibre and other nutrients than regular flour.

Ingredients

(makes approx 30)

2 cups wholemeal spelt flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

3 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 cups milk

2 eggs

1 apple, grated

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and sugar.

Add remaining ingredients and whisk until a smooth batter.

Heat a small amount of butter in a frying pan.

Drop a dessertspoon amount of batter into the hot frying pan.

Wait for bubbles to appear on the surface and then flip the pikelet and cook the other side till golden. This won’t take long. If they are browning too quickly, turn the heat down a little.

These freeze perfectly wrapped in glad wrap.

July 7, 2015 / emma@cookfasteatslow.com 2 Comments

Forgotten Cookies (gluten free)

Don’t you just love the name?

When I first read about these delicate meringue cookies, I instantly fell in love with the name. These French cookies are a combination of meringue, dark chocolate and nuts. What’s not to love?

5 ingredients in total, these cookies are simple to make and get their name from the way they are cooked. You place them in a preheated oven, shut the door, turn the oven off, and ‘forget about’ them as they cook in a cooling oven overnight.

When I know we have a picnic or get together coming up the next day that I need to take something to, I will make these the night before, pop them in the oven before I head to bed and when I wake, take them out of the oven and put them in a container and I am good to go!

If you want to make them in the daylight hours, they just need to stay in the oven till it is cool. That will take approx 3-4 hours after you have turned the oven off.

Roast your hazelnuts in the oven for 10 minutes. While still warm, place them in a clean tea towel and rub them carefully to remove all of the skins.

Use a metal spoon to fold chocolate and nuts through until just combined.

Leave a small amount of space between each cookie

This recipe was from a French food feature in DELICIOUS magazine, June 2008.

Ingredients

2 egg whites

120gm (1/2 cup) castor sugar

150gm roasted nuts, chopped (I love hazelnuts, but you can use almonds, walnuts or pecans or a combination)

*see tip above on photo for removing hazelnut skins

150gm good quality dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius

Line 2 baking trays with baking paper

Whisk egg whites with electric beaters on high speed until stiff. (If using hand held beaters, this may take a little while). You will know when they are stiff, when you pick the beaters up out of the mixture and the egg whites are firm and don’t flop over.

Gradually add castor sugar, a little at a time, without stopping the beaters, until the mixture is a thick and glossy meringue.

Using a metal spoon, fold the nuts, chocolate and vanilla through carefully until just combined.

Drop small spoonfuls onto baking trays, leaving a little space between each one.

Place trays in the oven and immediately turn the oven off.

Once the oven is cool (or the next day), remove trays from the oven.

Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

I love to give these away too – place in a beautiful gift box or wrap in cellophane to make a lovely homemade birthday or simple ‘thank you’ gift.