Tag: no wheat

Lunchtime Quinoa Salad (in preparation for the week)

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Quinoa salad

Stuck on what to make as a healthy lunch? I also find quinoa salad to be such a good, easy and healthy option and today I made a HUGE batch of it which means it will last me until at least Wednesday. Cooking healthy food does take time and preparation, but this took me ten minutes to make and I’ve now got lunch for a few days. You can add homemade tahini with it or have it with other hot, steamed veg on top, on its own, or with any meat or fish-based protein if you like, although quinoa is a complete protein so you don’t actually need it if you don’t want it.

I always use whatever vegetables I have to hand so just use whatever you have in the fridge!

Ingredients

1 cup organic quinoa
1 red or orange pepper
1 red onion
1 fennel
7 chestnut mushrooms
1 tin organic sweetcorn
1 courgette (zucchini), spiralized
1 lemon
Himalayan salt and black pepper

Method

Make the quinoa as per the packet instructions.

While it’s cooking, chop all your veg up into small pieces.

Once the quinoa is ready, let it cool a bit before adding it to the bowl of veg, mix well with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

TIP: if you want more flavour add a tsp Bouillon to the quinoa while it’s cooking.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

White Chocolate Mulberry Fudge

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White Chocolate Mulberry Bars

This is such a simple recipe and so healthy. Dried white mulberries contain less than half the natural sugar of raisins and other dried fruits. They are high in fibre and in protein – just 1/3 cup contains 4 grams of protein and 20% of your daily fibre needs. They also contain powerful antioxidants which help to protect your heart from damage from some toxins. Raw cacao butter is a source of healthy fats, which optimise organ function.

I’ve added no sweetener as the natural sweetness of the mulberries is enough for me. However if you would prefer it slightly sweeter you could add a bit of raw honey or organic maple syrup.

Ingredients:

100g raw cacao butter
100g organic dried white mulberries
1/8 tsp Oryx Desert Salt
1/4 tsp organic vanilla powder
2 tbsp almond butter

Method:

Gently melt the cacao butter over a very low heat. Be careful not to raise the temperature too much as this will destroy the nutrients found in raw cacao products. I normally turn the stove on for a few minutes, then turn it off and put the saucepan on the plate – the residual heat is enough to melt the cacao butter.

Place the mulberries in a food processor and process until they are broken up into a meal. Alternatively you could grind them in a coffee or spice grinder. Add the remaining ingredients and process to combine.

Spread into a dish lined with baking paper or clingfilm and allow to set, then cut up into blocks. It can be kept at room temperature if it’s not too hot – you might want to put it in the fridge if you have temperatures over 30 C.

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine

Raw Grasshopper Pie

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Grasshopper Pie

Grasshopper Pie is an American favourite, using Oreo cookies for the crust with a mint cream filling. While I’ve never had the original version I’ve always liked the sound of it so I came up with this raw recipe.
Not only is it free of all the bad stuff like refined sugar and flour, it’s packed full of nutritious goodness in the form of avo, coconut and almonds. My son loves it and I love watching him eat something so healthy and yummy!

I’ve used agar (also called agar agar) to set the filling. It is made from a Japanese seaweed and is a very strong setting agent, so be sure to be precise with your measurements. Also be aware that agar powder and agar flakes require different measurements, so you would have to convert if using flakes (1tsp powder is equal to 1tbsp flakes.)

Ingredients

For the crust:

2 cups raw almonds, soaked for four hours, rinsed and layed out to dry (while this step is not necessary for the recipe to work, it’s always good to soak your almonds to release the digestion-inhibiting enzymes)
1/4 cup raw cacao powder
1/4 tsp Oryx Desert Salt
150g fresh medjool dates (about 8 dates)
2 tbsp organic virgin coconut oil

For the filling:

400ml organic coconut milk
2ml agar powder
200g avo flesh (ie. weighed without skin or pip) this is about 1 1/2 Avon
40g organic virgin coconut oil
pinch of Oryx Desert Salt
120g raw honey
8 drops organic peppermint essential oil
1/2 tsp spirulina or wheatgrass powder (this is optional – it simply gives you a more intense green colour for your filling)
15g raw chocolate

Method:

Place the almonds, cacao powder, salt and 2 tbsp coconut oil in a food processor. Remove the pips from the dates and roughly chop them. Add to the food processor. Process until you have a fine crumb which sticks together when pressed. Turn the mixture into a loose-bottomed pie dish or a pretty glass serving dish and press to about 5mm thickness. Refrigerate.

Place the coconut milk in a saucepan and sprinkle the agar powder over the top. Whisk thoroughly. Bring to a simmer, and simmer for 3 minutes exactly. Agar needs to boiled to be activated, but its setting properties are destroyed if it is brought to too high a temperature, so use a timer! Allow to cool to room temperature.

Place all the ingredients for the filling, except the chocolate, into a blender and blend until completely smooth. Taste to see if you are happy with the sweetness and the mint flavour, which you can adjust if you like. Pour into the crust. Grate the chocolate over the top, and refrigerate until set (at least 4 hours.)

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine

Fruit & Nut Loaf

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Once again my appetite has increased. Apparently this happens at the 23 week mark as the baby goes through a big growth spurt. I’m wanting to snack all the time so I’m needing to make healthy snacks that are filling and nutritious and this is honestly one of the best things I’ve made!

Ingredients

2 apples
1 tbsp coconut palm sugar
1/4 cup water
1 and 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
1/3 cup pecans
8 medjool dates
1/3 cup raisins
1/3 cup almond milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tsp cinnamon

For the glaze:
2 tbsp almond butter
2 tbsp almond milk
Pinch Himalayan salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 / gas mark 6 and prepare a silicone loaf tin by cutting enough baking paper to cover just the bottom then grease the whole thing with vegan margarine.

Prepare homemade applesauce by putting the apples with the water and sugar in a saucepan and cook until soft. When soft, mash the apples into a puree and add to a large bowl. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.

Chop the dates into small pieces and add these to the bowl, then put the pecans into a pestle and mortar and bash until chopped but not crushed into a meal, add to the bowl.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix thoroughly.

Once mixed, pour into the loaf tin and bake for 20-30 minutes depending on your oven. It should come out the oven as soon as the fork comes out of the cake clean, you don’t want to over bake it.

Leave to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before turning out onto a plate.

Make the glaze by mixing all the ingredients then spreading it over the top, If there is any left you can use this to spread on each slice as a spread.

Serve hot out the oven or once cooled.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Vegan White Chocolate Cookies

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White choc cookies 1

Pregnancy cravings have struck! I am craving cookies and biscuits like never before, especially in the afternoon. I’ve given in and had a few ‘naughty’ Belgian chocolate covered biscuits because I don’t agree with depriving yourself to the point of being miserable. I’d say that my healthy lifestyle makes up for 80% of the time, and the other 20% is when I eat out or at other people’s houses or fancy a treat. I don’t want to be the person who goes out for dinner and can’t have anything on the menu. Since cleansing myself and getting into remission, I no longer have any intolerances so my body accepts everything, I just don’t agree with eating all that unhealthy stuff all the time. But every now and then, if I fancy a biscuit, I have it! That being said, the cravings have got a bit mad so I had to make some healthy ones to keep at home and these really do satisfy the craving 🙂

Ingredients

1 can chickpeas, rinsed then patted dry
2 tbsp organic natural peanut butter (I use Meridian)
3 tbsp almond milk
1 tbsp coconut oil
3 tbsp maple
1 tbsp sized chunk of cacao butter
3 tbsp buckwheat flour
1 tbsp coconut palm sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (not essential, but I find it gives the outer layer of the cookie a crunchier texture)
Pinch of Himalayan or Oryx salt (I used Oryx desert salt)
Generous handful of vegan white chocolate chips (or any chocolate chips of your choice)

Method

Preheat oven to 180 (gas mark 6) and line a baking tray with baking paper and grease it slightly with coconut oil.

Put the chickpeas, peanut butter, almond milk and coconut oil in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Then add the maple, cacao butter, buckwheat flour, coco sugar, baking powder, bicarb and salt and process again until smooth and sticky.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the chocolate chips and mix in.

Take cookie sized balls of the mixture in your hand, roll then press down to a cookie shape on the prepared baking tray. Dampen your hands slightly if it is too sticky. Repeat until mixture is finished.

Put in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until you see they are very slightly golden but do not over bake. They will continue to harden once they come out the oven. Transfer baking sheet that they are on, onto a cooling tray or wire rack until fully cooled.

Served best with a cold glass of almond milk!

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Paleo Brownies

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Paleo Brownies

These brownies are gluten- and grain-free, and by using stevia and only a small amount of honey to sweeten they are very low in carbs too. The use of almonds, flax, egg and avo means that they’re a decent source of protein; and the coconut oil, along with the flax, is great for controlling cholesterol. A truly guilt-free treat!

Ingredients

65g raw cacao paste
80g organic virgin coconut oil
60ml raw almond butter
60ml raw honey
2 eggs
1/2 cup ripe avo
2 tsp vanilla extract or 1 tsp vanilla powder
1 cup ground almonds
60ml ground flax seed
1 tsp stevia powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
a pinch of Oryx Desert Salt
1 tsp aluminium-free baking powder
1/4 cup chopped raw pecan nuts

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C and grease a square baking dish with coconut oil.

Place the cacao paste, coconut oil, almond butter and honey in a glass or steel bowl which can fit over a saucepan. Fill the saucepan with water and bring to a simmer. Place the bowl over the saucepan, gently melting the ingredients.

Mash the avo with a fork until smooth. Whisk the egg and vanilla, and combine with the avo. Set aside.

Combine the ground almonds, ground flax, stevia, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Set aside.

Once the chocolate mixture is completely melted and whisked together, slowly pour it into the egg mixture whilst whisking vigorously, to prevent the heat from scrambling the egg. Stir in the dry ingredients and the chopped pecans.

Spread the batter into the baking dish and bake for about 20 – 25 minutes. Allow to cool before cutting into squares.

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine

Fig, Berry and Coconut Cake

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IMG_0938

I love fresh figs, and they’re even better roasted with a bit of honey. This cake is very simple and quick to make, as well as being wheat-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free. Perfect for afternoon tea 🙂

Ingredients

60ml raw honey, plus a little extra
60ml organic coconut blossom sugar
125ml organic virgin coconut oil
2 free-range eggs
1/2 tsp organic vanilla extract
1/4 tsp Oryx Desert Salt
2 tbsp acaì powder
2 tbsp tapioca starch
1 cup organic or homemade coconut flour
1 tsp aluminium-free baking powder
1/2 cup frozen mixed berries
2 large fresh figs

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 C.

Cream the honey, sugar and coconut oil with an electric beater. Add the eggs one at a time while beating. Add the vanilla, salt, acaì powder and tapioca starch and beat well. Add the coconut flour and baking powder, and lastly stir in the berries.

Spread the batter into a 20cm cake tin lined with baking paper or a silicon liner. Cut the figs into quarters lengthways and push them into the batter in a neat circle, with the inside of the fig facing upwards. Drizzle a little honey over the figs.

Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the cake is golden, the figs caramelised and a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool before turning out.

Health and happiness!

Love,
Raine

Raw Chocolate Tart

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Raw Chocolate Tart

This is a favourite with my family and friends, and no one can ever believe what the main ingredient is… avocado! Don’t let that put you off – it is rich, creamy and delicious; everything you want from a chocolate tart. And it’s so simple and easy to make.

This year I made it for Pesach dinner (we don’t eat wheat during Pesach and our desserts always have to be dairy-free as we don’t mix meat and milk.)
Word of advice: don’t tell people that there’s avo in it until they’ve tried it!

Ingredients

Crust:
2 cups whole raw almonds
60ml raw cacao powder
1/4 tsp himalayan salt
150g fresh medjool dates
2 tbsp organic virgin coconut oil

Filling:
500g ripe avo flesh (about 4 or 5 avos)
180ml raw cacao powder
60ml organic virgin coconut oil
40g raw cacao butter, gently melted
180ml organic maple syrup
1/4 tsp himalayan salt
1/4 tsp organic stevia leaf powder
1 tsp organic vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp vanilla powder

Method

Remove the pits from the dates and chop them up. Place all the ingredients for the crust in a food processor and blend until you have a fine crumb that sticks together when pressed. If the mixture seems dry just keep processing until it’s sticky. Turn it out into a 23cm loose-bottom flan tin or glass serving dish. Press the crumb evenly across the bottom and up the sides of the tin, making sure that the top edges are straight and even. Refrigerate.

Place all the ingredients for the filling in a high-speed blender and blend until completely smooth, but be careful not to blend for so long that the mixture heats up.
Pour into the set crust and use a spatula to make swirly patterns on top or just smooth it out, as you prefer. Refrigerate overnight or minimum 4 hours.

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine

Lemon & Basil Truffles

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Lemon & Basil Truffles

I love to use savoury flavours in desserts, and in these truffles the basil compliments the lemon really well. They are perfect to finish off a dinner or to give as a gift. Put them in a pretty glass jar and tie a ribbon around the neck… people always appreciate something that you have made yourself!

Ingredients

200g creamed coconut (or coconut butter, not coconut oil)
zest of 3 lemons
30ml lemon juice
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp organic stevia leaf powder
pinch of organic vanilla powder or 2 drops vanilla extract
1 tbsp baobab powder
pinch of himalayan salt
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
about 40g cacao butter
an empty egg carton and toothpicks

Method

Place all the ingredients except the basil and cacao butter into a food processor. Process until well combined. Then add the chopped basil and pulse to combine. If the mixture is very soft you can refrigerate it until it firms up. Take about a heaped teaspoon of mixture at a time and use your palms to roll it into a neat ball. Place on a plate as you go. You should get about 21 truffles. Place them in the freezer to harden.

In a small saucepan, gently melt the cacao butter (don’t be alarmed that it turns brown as it melts, this is normal.) You will need to melt more cacao butter than what you actually end up using – simply allow the remainder to set again and return to the packet. Spear a truffle onto a toothpick and then dip it into the melted cacao butter, swirling to remove any excess and ensure an even coating.

Lemon & Basil Truffles 2

Then stick the other end of the toothpick into an empty egg carton, allowing the cacao butter to set.

Lemon & Basil Truffles 3

Repeat with all the truffles. Once they have set you can give them a second coating if you like, and then keep them refrigerated. This is actually the first time I’ve made truffles in years and I really enjoyed the process, but if this seems like too much hard work for you, you can omit the last step of coating them in cacao butter!

Health & happiness 🙂

Love,
Raine

Chocolate Birthday Cake with Berry Chia Jam & Chocolate Mousse Icing

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Chocolate Birthday Cake

For my son’s first birthday I made a cake without refined sugar but still used stoneground wheat flour and organic butter. Last year for his second birthday I was determined to come up with a completely clean cake recipe, so I began The Cake Trials (which you may have seen if you followed my old Instagram account @unsinfully_divine.) I must have baked about 10 cakes in the month leading up to his birthday, and finally came up with the perfect recipe!
This cake was so good I made it again this year for his third birthday. You would never guess that it is so healthy… it’s rich, moist and has a good crumb (very hard to do with gluten-free baking!) Berry chia jam and my awesome Chocolate Mousse Icing finish it perfectly.

INGREDIENTS

For the cake:

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
70g raw cacao paste
150g pitted fresh dates
180ml boiling water
150ml organic maple syrup
200g organic virgin coconut oil
4 eggs
1/2 tsp organic vanilla powder or 1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of himalayan salt
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 cup almond flour
60ml raw cacao powder

For the Chocolate Mousse Icing:

320g mature coconut flesh and 1 1/2 cups hot water, OR 2 cups organic coconut cream
80ml raw honey
pinch of himalayan salt
1/4 tsp organic vanilla powder or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
5ml agar agar powder (not flakes – they require different measurements)
40ml organic virgin coconut oil
90ml raw cacao powder

For the Berry Chia Jam:

1 cup frozen mixed berries
1 tbsp raw honey
1ml organic vanilla powder
small pinch of himalayan salt
2 tbsp chia seeds

METHOD

Set aside the frozen berries to allow them to defrost.

Firstly make the icing. If using fresh coconut to make your own cream, blend the coconut and hot water in a high speed blender for 30 to 60 seconds. Strain through a nut milk bag. Allow it to cool slightly before squeezing so that you don’t burn your hands! Return the coconut cream to the blender, along with the honey, salt, vanilla, agar agar and coconut oil. Blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer for three minutes exactly and then remove from the heat. Boiling activates the agar agar, allowing it to set, but over boiling will destroy it, so use a timer. Refrigerate.

Preheat the oven to 160 C. Line two 20cm cake tins with baking paper or silicone liners.

In a clean, dry blender, grind the oats until you have a fine flour. Sift together with the almond flour and 60ml cacao powder. Set aside.

Place the cacao paste, dates, boiling water and maple syrup in the blender. Blend until completely smooth. Add the coconut oil, vanilla and salt, and the eggs one at a time. Blend until the mixture is smooth, thick and glossy. Add the bicarb and blend just to disperse it thoroughly. Pour the mixture onto the sifted dry ingredients and fold them together. Pour into the cake tins, dividing the mixture evenly, and bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

While the cake bakes, make the jam. Blend the berries with the honey, vanilla and salt. You can make it smooth or leave it chunky, as you prefer. Pour into a bowl and stir in the chia seeds. Refrigerate until needed.

Once the icing has set, blend it again with the 90ml cacao powder. Agar sets much firmer in comparison to gelatine, but blending it breaks up that glassy texture, giving you a smooth and creamy end result. Refrigerate again to firm up.

Once the cakes have cooled, turn them out. Use the berry jam to sandwich them together and then top with the icing.

My son asked for a Maleficent cake. I made two 20cm cakes and two 10cm cakes, and sandwiched them together with the jam. I then used coloured cardboard and ribbon to decorate, rather than using fondant icing which is full of refined sugar and chemical colours which are so bad for kids! Once the cardboard was on, I carefully piped the icing ontop, and placed a Maleficent figurine we got from the toyshop on the top of the cake.

Maleficent Cake

Health & happiness!

Love,
Raine