Dairy Free Hot Cross Buns

Easter is here, and that means as many hot cross buns and chocolate goodies as far as the eye can see. Sadly for me that means dodging all the lovely well meaning shop people trying to give the kiddies yummy treats. It's annoying being the parent of a child with a dairy allergy most of the time, but particularly difficult during Easter. So this year I have decided to bake my own hot cross buns in an effort to not let Lolo miss out on anything delicious that may be around.

By the way, this recipe works just as well with cows milk and butter if that is what you prefer.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups of plain flour
1 tbsp dried yeast
1 tbsp caster sugar
3/4 cup warm almond milk
1/2 cup cold almond milk
50g nuttelex margarine, melted
1 egg
200g mixed dried fruit (I add sultanas, chopped dates and apricots but you can add what you like)
1/3 cup caster sugar
2 tsp mixed spice
a pinch of salt

Flour paste
1/2 cup plain flour
4 or 5 tbls of water

Glaze
2 tbls caster sugar
a sprinkle of mixed spice(you don't have to add this but I like the way it tastes)
1/4 cup water

Method:
-Whisk the yeast, warm milk and 1tbsp of caster sugar
-Set aside for 10 mins or until the mixture goes frothy

-Whisk in the cold milk, egg and melted nuttelex
-In a separate bowl mix combine flour, dried fruit sugar, mixed spice and salt

-Make a well in the centre and add the yeast mixture
-Using a wooden spoon stir the mixture until combined then you will definitely have to use your hands to continue bringing the mixture together

-Transfer the dough to a clean and lightly floured surface and knead just as you would bread for about 10-15 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth.(I do it for 15 mins as I count it as an arm workout)
-Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap 










-Place aside in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours or until it has doubled in size.

-Turn dough back onto a slightly floured surface and knead for another couple of minutes
-Divide dough into 12 equal pieces and knead each piece into a ball
-Place on a greased tray approx 1cm apart
-Cover with a damp tea towel and once again place in a warm draught free place for about 30 minutes or until it has doubled in size again
-Preheat oven to 200C.
Flour paste
-In a small bowl mix flour and water until smooth, if paste is too thick for piping then add a little extra water until you are happy with the consistency


-Spoon into piping bag(or a small zip lock bag with the corner cut off)
-Pipe straight lines across and down each row to form crosses

-Bake for 10mins then reduce heat to 160C. and bake for another 20 minutes or until cooked through
Glaze
-In a small sauce pan combine water, sugar and mixed spice. Bring to the boil then simmer for a couple of minutes till the glaze thickens
-Brush glaze over hot buns then transfer to wire rack to cool
-Serve warm or at room temperature

As you can see my crosses are not perfect, but in my defence I'm not religious. It doesn't matter, what matters is that they taste great and that my little one can sit and eat her Hot Cross Bun just like any other little one around town.

Dulce de leche (cheats version)

Dulce de Leche literally translates to 'sweet of milk', and it is a delicious caramel that must be tasted to be believed. I have been wanting to write a post about this beautiful sweet gooey stuff for ages, but unfortunately my husband has a huge sweet tooth, so every time I would buy some condensed milk in order to make it, he would open it and start eating it from the can. But recently, as I flick through my foodie mags I have seen a lot of recipes that call for Dulce de Leche, a product which apparently can be found in speciality stores, pfft I say pfft.
In Chile we call it 'Manjar' and it is included in many of our insanely sweet pastries and desserts, although it is very popular throughout Latin America. Dulce de Leche can also be used in cakes, biscuits, bonoffee pie, on toast, or my very favourite way-with a spoon straight out of the can, needless to say I was a chubby child. Traditionalists will have you believe that you are required to heat milk and sugar and stir until the milk reduces and the sugar caramelises. This takes ages, and since I have better things to do with my time e.g: laughing at my daughter's attempts to put on her shoes or dance(that kid is so uncoordinated), I will give you the cheats version. The version that has been used in my household since I can remember.


Ingredients

-can of condensed milk


Method
-Place the can of condensed milk in a large pot and fill with water.
-Boil water and ignore for 2-3 hours.

-The longer you boil it the thicker and more caramel-y the condensed milk becomes.

WARNING

Do not under any circumstance let the water fall below can level as this will cause the can to overheat and explode, as my brother discovered much to my amusement. Months later he was still finding sticky caramel in odd places, mainly behind the fridge. If the water level starts to drop then immediately top up.

-Leave the can to cool before you open it

Don't be surprised if in the morning you open the fridge to find it looking like this.
Seriously, how my husband is not fat is beyond me.

Enjoy!

Silverbeet Frittata

When my daughter Lolo was born she was a whopping 4kg, 55cm baby. She honestly looked at least 2 months old. Obviously a lot of this has to do with genetics as neither my husband or I are short people. I have no doubt however that some of this also had to do with diet.
I have mentioned before that my lovely man is a chef, he is a perfectionist and incredibly anally retentive when it comes to food. As soon as we found out I was expecting, this character trait tripled. He become The Pregnancy Commando. Everything that I ingested was critically analysed for it's nutritional value. This time it is no different, and I love him for it. So in order to ease his worry, I make this Silverbeet Frittata, as it has so much of what we pregnant ladies need.
Silverbeet is great source of folate, which as we know is essential for making healthy babies, fibre, vitamin c and iron. Add to that all the protein in eggs and that makes Silverbeet Frittata an awesome pregnancy food.
The version below is what I make for dinner as I have added a little cheese, however for lunch I omit the cheese and substitute the milk for oat milk so the the dairy allergic Lolo can enjoy it too.

half bunch of silverbeet
1 medium or 2 small onions
2 garlic cloves
6 eggs
30 ml of milk
30 grams grated cheese
1 tbls olive oil

-Preheat oven to 180°C
-Wash and double wash silverbeet in plenty of water to get rid of all the dirt
-Drain well and chop into small pieces
-Add oil and chopped onion to oven safe fry pan and cook on stove top on medium heat until onion is soft and transparent
-Add silverbeet in small amount as all of it won't fit in a medium pan in one go(it ends up cooking down)
-Add crushed garlic

-In a bowl beat the eggs with the milk
-Add cheese (or leave out-it doesn't matter)










-Add mixture to cooked silverbeet and continue cooking on the stove top for a few minutes

I know it looks like it is not enough egg mixture but once cooked, it does rise and cover the silverbeet.




-Pop in the oven and ignore for 35-40 minutes.

You'll know it's cooked when the entre feels quite firm.
I like to serve it with a simple side salad, but add what you like.

Super Natural Every Day cookbook (and Membrillo Cake)

Every year millions of people around the world decide to welcome in the New Year by making a New Years resolution. Whether it be to lose weight, save money, travel or find love. Not even a week into 2012 and no doubt most people have already thrown in the towel. There are 2 resolutions that make it onto my list every years, 1- to be healthier and 2- to learn to walk in high heal shoes. I've gotten no where with the shoes, but I am slowly making good on eating better and being healthier. For those of you out there who share this resolution  and also the want to lower your carbon footprint I'd like to present to you Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Every Day, a beautiful cook book filled with lovely photo's, cooking tips, healthy recipes and most importantly some damn tasty food.      

First of all lets talk a little about Heidi Swanson. In 2003, Heidi looked at her giant cookbook collection and decided to chronicle them one recipe at a time, and so started a blog called 101 Cookbooks. She came to the realisation that like many of us, she had amassed a huge amount of recipe books and yet found herself cooking the same recipes over and over. She wanted to break that cycle by visiting new ideas and exploring the recipes that she already had at her disposal. What a brilliant concept. The site exploded in popularity and it has since won award after award including in 2007 Food Blog of the Year. Clever girl, maybe if I had thought of that she would be writing a a review on my book. But alas I have been slow off the mark. Heidi is a San Franciscan based photographer, cookbook author, designer and vegetarian Her focus is mainly on natural, whole foods and ingredients all while delivering on taste.

Super Natural Every Day, published by Hardie Grant Books, brings together a collection of wholesome food, great kitchen tips and a handy list of what to have in your pantry in order to follow through with the healthier you. Is it weird to say that the book even feels organic? Because it does, with it's beautiful matte pictures and pages that feel like recycled paper. Everything looks delicious and filling, in fact many of the pictures took me straight back to my Grandma Mimi's kitchen-except Mimi would have added pork. It is divided into Breakfast, Lunch, Snacks, Dinner, Drinks, Treats and Accompaniments so it is very easy to navigate. Most of the ingredients are easily accessible either at the super market or fresh food market, or worst case scenario the whole food or Asian grocers where you go in for 1 thing and come out with 10, at least that's what always happens to me.

I was given the opportunity to ask Heidi a few questions, and my first was regarding dairy substitution in her recipes, a topic very close to my heart due to my little girl Lolo's allergies. 

Me: I have enjoyed reading through your recipes and am ready to get cooking, however I have 17months with very severe dairy and soy allergies so will unfortunately need to substitute the dairy for her benefit. In order to make the most of your recipes, which milk substitute would you recommend? Oat, almond or rice milk?

Heidi: Actually, I like coconut milk. It's a good swap in many cases, and particularly in baked goods.                                                                                                                                                

She was right, I had never thought to use coconut milk as a substitute, but it adds a whole new dimension of richness and sweetness to the dishes, and best of all, Lolo has been able to enjoy something new.

Me: Were you brought up with the love of eating wholesome natural foods, or was it a conscious decision that came later in life?

Heidi: I was a terribly picky eater as a kid. And it wasn't until I began cooking a lot in my mid-twenties that I really started exploring unfamiliar flavors, ingredients, and a range of cooking techniques. At that point in my life cooking struck me as something creatively interesting, as something I wanted to explore more and more. And it's how I eventually settled into the natural foods palette of ingredients I tend to highlight now.                                                                                 

Great news guys, you can teach an old dog new tricks. There is hope for me.

I have been granted permission by the Author and the good people at Hardie Grant to use one of Heidi's fabulous recipes for this post and I have chosen the Membrillo Cake. It is incredibly rich, luscious and just screams to be enjoyed with a big mug of tea. You can purchase Membrillo(Quince Paste) at any super market these days, but if you are feeling up to it I have a brilliant recipe that I always use in the Blog Archive in May titled Quince Paste (Vegan) .

Ingredients:

310g wholemeal flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

70g golden caster sugar

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

60g poppy seeds

Grated zest of 2 lemons

2 large eggs

355 ml buttermilk

60 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled a bit

255 g membrillo(quince paste), cut into tiny cubes

2 tablespoons raw sugar or demerara sugar

20 g flaked almonds, lightly toasted

Method:

Preheat oven at 200°C  with a rack in the top third of the oven. Butter and flour a 23cm x 33cm baking dish (or equivalent).

Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, poppy seeds, and lemon zest in a large bowl.

In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs and the buttermilk. Whisk in the melted butter.

Add to the flour mixture and stir briefly, until just combined. Gently fold in two-thirds of the membrillo cubes until they are evenly distributed.

Transfer the cake mixture into the prepared dish. Arrange the remaining membrillo across the top in a pleasing pattern. Sprinkle with the sugar, then the almonds.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This cake is fantastic. I had feared that it would be quite dense because of the wholemeal flour, but it isn't. It's light yet rich, and the fact that you can enjoy it warm means that you are able to appreciate the quince paste oozing in every bite. I love it. I just hope my family does too because I am going to make it constantly.

Heidi's book has made me want to cook. It makes me want to spend time in the kitchen creating a meal that I know my family will enjoy and that will be good for them. It makes me want to get up early on Saturday mornings and head down to the farmers market and hunt for the freshest produce, to talk to the growers and producers and feel like I'm doing something good for my world and the people in it by buying locally.

We have never really eaten badly but since Lolo came along we have endeavoured to buy organic and eat as well as possible, and now that I am expecting my second child, the need to stay healthy is even more important. I am not unfamiliar to legumes, I am Chilean after all and my people like a bean, however this book has given me a lot of very different and interesting ideas. Green Lentil Soup with coconut milk and curry powder for example. I can hear Mimi from the other side saying WTF? But it is delicious.

I was able to ask Heidi one more question so I thought I should make it a good one.


 
Me: Have you found that in general people are finally starting to embrace the good healthy foods that our grandparents ate, and are steering away from overly processed foods, or do we have a lot more work to do?

Heidi: Both. Natural foods – whole grains, less-refined sweeteners, and the like seem to be finding their way back into more and more kitchens because people like how they taste. For a long time, you'd rarely see baking recipes call for anything other than white sugar or white flour, but that has changed over the past few years. I think everyone is excited by the exchange of ideas between cooks, chefs, and bakers playing around in this realm now.
That said, there is plenty of room for improvement (and experimentation!)…At the end of the day people want delicious, satisfying food first. If that comes out of ingredients that happen to be considered "healthier" - great. People embrace that. And sometimes, home cooks just need ideas related to what they might make with quinoa, or whole wheat pastry flour, or heirloom beans.
 
Amen to that sister, amen to that.

 

Caramalised Onion Tart 2 Ways.

We have the wonderful honour of welcoming 2 new babies into our family at the start of next year(no not mine), and so yesterday we celebrated one of those bubs and his/her mum. I appointed myself party planner and cooked up a storm so that her guests would be well fed.
During the cooking frenzy I whipped up 2 savoury tarts that were so yum, they were the shizzle! I didn't actually have plans to write about them, but because they were so tasty, quick and easy, I thought it only right to share the love.
For both tarts you will need:
Sheets of puff pastry(store bought is fine) and caramelised onions

Caramelised onion recipe:

• 2 tbl olive oil
• 4 brown onions, sliced
• 1 tbl brown sugar
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar
• salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Method:
-Cook onions in olive oil over medium heat for approximately 10 minutes or until they are soften
-Add the vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or until nicely browned -Remove from the heat and allow to cool

Caramelised onions, Meredith Goats Cheese w/basil oil Tart

• 1 sheet of puff pastry
• Caramelised onions
• 100 gms goats cheese
• 2 tbl freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 ripe tomatoes
• Basil
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Caramelised onions, Meredith Goats Cheese w/basil oil

-Finely chop 10 basil leaves and place in a small bowl, add enough olive oil to cover and put aside
-Pre heat oven at 210°C
-Place a sheet of puff party onto a tray that has been lined with baking paper
-Spread half the amount of pre-prepared caramelised onion over the pastry sheet leaving a 2cm border
-In a bowl place goats cheese and Parmesan together, blend well
-Scatter cheese combo over the onions
-Slice tomato and place on tart and season each slice with salt and pepper
-Bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is crispy and puffy
-Spoon basil oil over the tomatoes


Caramelised onion, Roasted red capsicum and Chorizo Tart

• 1 sheet of puff pastry
• Caramelised onion
• 1 small red capsicum
• Olive oil
• 1 Chorizo sausage
• Salt and pepper to taste

Caramelised onion, Roasted red capsicum and Chorizo Tart

 

-Preheat oven at 230°C 

-Cut the capsicums into quarters

-Remove the seeds and the membranes.Place on a large oven tray, skin side up and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper

-Roast in preheated oven until the capsicum softens and skin blisters

-Remove from oven and put aside until cool

-Lower over temperature to 210°C

-Slice chorizo and fry in a large frying pan over a medium heat, brown slightly. Put aside till needed

-Place a sheet of puff pastry onto a baking tray that has been lined with baking paper

-Place the remaining caramelised onions onto the pastry sheet leaving a 2 cm border 

-Thickly slice the capsicum and scatter over the onions

-Place sliced chorizo over the capsicum

-Bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is crispy and puffy

Dairy free vanilla cupcakes

My daughter is now at the age where she is invited to lots of kids parties. She is also at the age where she can get up on her tippy toes and reach up to any table to grab some food. Unfortunately because of her dairy and soy allergies, alot of the party food lurking on the tables is a no-no for her. So after alot of investigating and tweaking of recipes I think I am onto a winner, and I make a batch of these bad boys to take and have at arms reach for her. This way she doesn't feel like she is missing out.
Please don't think that they are a healthier options, because like most cupcakes, they are loaded with sugar, so don't blame me if your kids are bouncing off the walls after a couple.

These particular cup cakes were for a garden party to celebrate my neice' 1st birthday, so they are quite girly and were decorated with icing and fondant which were also dairy free.

The recipe will give you 24 cupcakes to enjoy.

3 1/4 cups of self-raising flour

2 cups of caster sugar

1 tsp of baking powder

1/2 tsp of bicarb soda

1/4 tsp of salt

1 1/2 cups of oat milk

1/2 cup of vegetable oil

1 tbls of white vinegar

2 tsp of vanilla extract 

Preheat oven to at 160°C. Line two 12-hole cup cake trays.  

Sift flour, sugar, salt,  baking powder and  bicarb soda  into a large bowl. Don't be tempted to cheat and not sift, as sifting really is an integral part of the recipe. It unclumps your flour and also adds air to the mixture.

Make a well in centre of your dry ingredients.

Place oat milk into another smaller mixing bowl and add the oil and vinegar. Lightly whisk until just combined. 

Pour this mixture into well. Combine all the ingredients with a wooden spoon and then using an electric mixer, beat for a few minutes. Add the vanilla and then beat  for an additional minute or until the batter starts to look pale and creamy.

Spoon the mixture into each case filling them about 3/4 of the way up. 

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until cupcakes are cooked all the way through. Use the skewer test.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Decorate them whichever way you like, or don't they are tasty anyway.

Fondant recipe

3 tbls of warm water
5 tsp of unflavoured gelatin
1/2 cup of liquid glucose
6 cups of icing sugar

In a bowl, mix warm water with the gelatin until dissolved.
Add glucose and mix until dissolved, then set aside for a couple of minutes till the mixture has cooled.
Sift the icing sugar into a large bowl. Make sure you do this a couple of times in order to get rid of any lumps.
Make a well in the centre of the icing sugar and pour in glucose. Mix with a wooden spoon until it starts to combine.
Dust your hands and a clean and smooth work surface with some icing sugar and turn over the fondant mixture.
Knead the mixture the way you would bread dough.
Divide the fondant if you intend to colour it.
Put a couple of drops of food colourant onto the fondant and knead until it distributes evenly. Once you are happy with the result, wrap it in cling wrap so that it doesn't form a crust.
I pop it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes so that it is easier to work with, but after that get creative.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

I love a good chocolate cake and this recipes is one of my favorites. I have made this beautiful rich cake many times and it is always a hit, so it was the perfect choice for hubby's birthday cake as well. Especially considering that I have bragged about how good it is and had never made it for him. Sadly it didn't make it to the big even as it was so delicious we ate it the night before.


Ingredients
125 gm unsalted butter
185gm dark chocolate
5 large eggs (separated)
pinch of salt
250 gm almond meal
230 gm castor sugar

Preheat oven at 180 degrees
Prep tin. A very important lesson that I learnt from hubby is to get your tin ready before starting the cake. Otherwise you can risk losing all the air that you have worked so hard to incorporate into the mix.

In a medium heat proof dish place the chocolate and room temperature butter

Over simmering water stir butter and chocolate till melted. set aside  to cool.

Place egg whites with salt and 1/3 of sugar in a large bowl

Beat egg whites with salt and 1/3 of sugar until soft peaks form.

Beat egg yolks with remaining sugar till creamy.

Fold yolks into chocolate and butter mixture, then add the almond meal.

Fold the egg whites in.
Pour mixture into pan and bake for 45-55 minutes or until the cake is firm in the middle.

Cool on a wire rack.

If you want to jazz it up, or are a huge chocoholic like all 3 people in my house(myself included), Melt about 100gms of good quality chocolate using the simmer method and pour over cooled caked. I take no responsibility for any diabetes that may ensue. 

Peri peri pheasant

Because we are a bit posh out here in the west, we just so happened to have a beautiful pheasant in the fridge. We have one from Glenoth Game who have the most amazing produce. Their property is located east of Wycheproof in the Victorian Mallee as was established in the early 90s . They use no growth hormones, antibiotics or chemical additives in rearing the birds, and all Glenloth Game birds are processed on site, in order to maintain the highest quality standards and eliminate stress on the birds. Their range also  includes squab, Muscovy duck, pheasant and guinea fowl. They may be a little hard to find, but really worth the money and effort.

...but back to my roast. I was feeling a bit zingy and sassy and I thought, spicy! I realised that it had been a while since I had had peri peri anything, so the decision was easy. 

Everyone has their own version of popular sauces, this is mine. In no way am I going to claim that it is remotely authentic, just tasty.

My version of peri peri sauce

Ingredients:

1 fresh long red chilli

2 fresh small chillis (add more if you like it really hot)

2 tsp of paprika (I like to alternate with 1 smoked paprika and 1 mild)

1 tbs of olive oil

1/3 cup of lemon juice

4 crushed garlic cloves

2 tbs of fresh oregano-finely chopped

Combine all ingredients and that's the sauce done-yum! However we will be using this as a marinade for the bird.

Preheat oven at 180C
Rinse and pat dry your bird
Pour over the sauce. I also like to put some in the cavity in hopes that the taste infuses even more.

Pop into the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes per 450g/1lb plus 20 minutes
Baste the pheasant frequently
Check that the bird is done by inserted a sharp knife, if the juices run clear then you are good to go.

Allow the pheasant to rest outside of the oven for about 10-20 minutes before serving.

Now that's a good dinner! Bon appetit!

Dairy free banana cake

Yesterday we celebrated Lolo's 1st birthday. It was a wonderful celebration for a wonderful and cheeky little girl. We had about 20 people over at the house to wish her a great day and to let her know how loved she is. Being the paranoid mum that I am, I decided to undertake the cake preparation is order to make sure it was 100% dairy free. My initial plan was to make a chocolate cake, but at the last minute I changed my mind and went with a banana cake instead. It had to be tasty for the kids, suitable for grown up taste and most importantly I had to disguise the dairy free factor!

Cake ingredients

2 large  bananas, mashed, ripe 

2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 cups plain flour

1 cup corn flour

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup nuttelex, softened

2 1/2 cups caster sugar 

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2 cups oat milk 

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees

2. Grease cake tin (I also add baking paper)

3. Mash bananas and lemon juice in a small bowl, set aside

4. In a separate bowl mix flour, corn flour, salt and baking powder then set aside

5. In a large bowl cream nuttelex and 2 1/2 cups of caster sugar until light and fluffy(I use a food processor)

6. Add in the eggs 1 at a time and then stir in the vanilla, transfer to a large mixing bowl and slowly add oat milk till well combined

7. Mix together with the flour mixture

8. Stir in the mashed banana

9. Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, you can test this by inserting a toothpick into the centre, if it comes out clean then it's done. My oven has a serious hot spot problem at the back so I have to rotate the cake every 20 minutes, you probably have a better oven than mine and won't need to do this at all

10.Once cake is done, remove from oven and place on a cooling tray for an hour