ANZAC biscuits with a healthy twist

ANZAC biscuits with a healthy twist

I feel privileged to share a public holiday with my family on a day that remembers those who have fought for our country and fallen.  And today really was a glorious day.  A cool morning turned into a pleasant day, perfect for a morning walk on the beach, ramble through the rockpools and a play in the playground.  In the afternoon the kids made ANZAC biscuits in the Thermomix almost on their own (so much safer than a hot pan on the stove).  A few eaten still warm was a perfect energy boost for a late afternoon bike ride.

Summer and Finn taste testing their creations

The almonds and Chia seeds in this version add fibre and plenty of nutrients.  I just can’t resist the addition of the spices to add a slight twist on the traditional taste (I add cinnamon to most things I bake if you haven’t noticed).  And while there are healthier sweeteners than golden syrup I find this keeps the tradition alive.  Yum.

ANZAC biscuits with a healthy twist

100 almonds

120g butter (or coconut oil)

40g golden syrup or honey

1 tbls chia seeds

100g rolled oats

80g coconut

100g rapadura or raw sugar

1 tsp bicarb soda

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 160°
• Grind almonds in Thermomix for 10 seconds on speed 8 then set aside
• Place butter and syrup in bowl and melt for 2 minutes at 60°C on speed 2
• Add bicarb and Chia seeds and mix for 3 seconds on speed 3
• Add all remaining ingredients, set to Reverse and mix for 30 seconds on speed 3
• Roll spoonfuls of mixture into balls, place into a baking tray and flatten to about 5mm
• Allow enough room for them to flatten further and spread when baking
• Bake for 15 minutes or until golden
• Allow to cool on tray for 5 minutes to set before cooling on wire racks
• Enjoy while still a little warm or completely cooled for more crunch!

Beautiful morning for a play in the park...

or kissing the baby by the beach.

Raw Strawberry Cheesecake

Raw Strawberry Cheesecake

We've been berry picking and are in berry heaven! I can't believe we've never been before especially when there are so many berry farms within an hours drive. Now we have and there's no turning back.

 

You can imagine little blueberry Finn when he stepped between the first row of blueberry bushes. Not many were making it to the bucket. But with some team work the bucket was soon full (and he finally said "no" to a blueberry!) so we moved onto the strawberries.  It was like finding plump red fairies under the gorgeous green leaves. I think veggie daddy was getting the most excited and the strawberry bucket was soon overflowing. The kids were all berried out and ready for a blueberry milkshake, blueberry ice cream and blueberry buckle. Time to balance with a little savoury so we popped into the veggie barn next door for plenty of locally grown supplies.  What a gorgeous way to spend the morning as a family. And we'll certainly be back.

So what to make...

I recently saw this gorgeous Raw Strawberry Cheesecake on the Thermomix Recipe Community so today I knew this was the was to celebrate all things strawberry.  It's delicious, quite rich and hard to believe it's not full of sugar and cream cheese.  In fact, I think's it's way better the alternative.


Raw Strawberry Cheesecake

250g macadamia nuts (I used 150g macadamia and 100g almonds)
100g dates
45g coconut
400g cashews soaked for at least 1 hour then drained
juice and pulp of 2 large lemons
50g Agave nectar
100g coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla
Pinch sea salt
80g water
1-2 punnets fresh strawberries

Base 

• Place macadamias, dates and coconut into Thermomix bowl and blend for 30-40 seconds on speed 6 until well combined and forming a moist dough
• Press into lined 20cm spring form cake tin and place in freezer

Filling

• Place all remaining ingredients into Thermomix bowl and blend together until smooth and creamy for 1 minute on speed 7
• Pour on top of base and set in the fridge over night
• Remove from cake tin and decorate as desired!

 

Zucchini, Corn and Ricotta Pancakes

Zucchini, Corn and Ricotta Pancakes

Living near the beach and being an active family, swimming has been a part of our kids' lives since they were each only a few months old.  Summer has been doing lessons since 4 months old and now she’s in the big kids group swimming on her own.  I just can’t believe how well she’s improved in the past few months, swimming proper strokes and diving like a duck.
 

It’s a busy morning on swimming lesson day but these Zucchini, Corn and Ricotta Pancakes are a perfect pre and post swimming snack for the kids.  They are great as cold finger food for little olds but also serve up delightfully for a light lunch or dinner with chutney and Greek yoghurt.  The chutney we used to day was the delicious Red Hot Apple Chutney that Summer made at kinder for Father’s day.

 

These fritters are high in protein and low in fat with the egg whites and are a great way to disguise veges for fussy kids.  You could substitute 2 whole eggs for the eggs whites and they just wouldn’t be quite as light. I had egg whites left over from making a Custard Tart yesterday and thought this was a healthier option over macaroons or meringue.  While the ricotta adds some protein, using cottage cheese or haloumi instead would boost this even further.

 
Zucchini, Corn and Ricotta Pancakes

4 egg whites
1 spring onion
1 zucchini
100g red capsicum
200g corn kernels
200g flour (I used 1/3 wholemeal)
120g ricotta
Salt & Pepper optional

• Place egg whites in a clean Thermomix bowl with butterfly attached
• Whisk for 2-4 minutes 50° speed 4 until no liquid remains then set aside
• Place spring onion, zucchini and capsicum in bowl (no need to wash between) and chop for 4 seconds speed 6 (you may need to scrape down and repeat for 1 second)
• Add corn kernels, flour, ricotta and seasoning if using and mix on Reverse 5 seconds speed 4 using spatula if required
• Add egg whites and mix until only just combined on Reverse 4 seconds speed 3
• Heat frying pan to moderately hot with a little melted butter
• Place spoonfuls into fry pan and cook approx 4 minutes or until bubbles just start to pop before flipping and cooking a further 2 minutes

Little fritters make a great sized finger food for little hands!

 
Enjoy!

Cavolo Nero, Mushroom and Capsicum Rice Bake

I love my greens…. the darker the better!

That’s why I love this recipe with Cavolo Nero or Tuscan Kale as it’s also known.  You could just as easily use other forms of kale, silverbeet or spinach and it would be just as delicious and nutritious.  In fact Cavolo Nero is a great source of many vitamins and minerals as well as sulforaphane (particularly when chopped) which has potent anti-cancer properties.

Cavolo Nero

This is a variation of a recipe by Jude Blereau in her fantastic book called “Wholefood for Children” adjusted a little to add more colour and for the Thermomix.  I also used a bit more brown rice to make it go a bit further.  I simply love brown rice and the nuttiness it adds to dishes like this.  The addition of amaranth increases the protein of the dish and in fact it is 30 per cent higher in protein than rice.

I used some lovely Swiss Brown mushrooms but button mushrooms work fine too.  And the tomatos I found at my local fruit and vege shop today were local mini black tomatos.  So sweet and cute, the way the kids ate them I was lucky there was any left for the dish.  And the best part is the kids simply devour this when we have it for dinner.  It’s super tasty and easy to digest particularly by soaking the rice first (note this step is optional).  It also makes great leftover’s and as grandma has reported is great in a toasted wrap the next day!

 

Cavolo Nero, Mushroom and Capsicum Rice Bake

 

200g brown rice

2 tbls amaranth

1 tbls lemon juice

40g Pecorino Romano or parmesan cheese

Approx 200g Cavolo Nero (thick stems removed)

1 onion

1 clove garlic
20g olive oil

100g Swiss Brown or Button mushrooms

50 g red capsicum

250g ricotta

2 eggs

3 or 4 cherry or grape tomatos sliced

30g pine nuts

Pepper to taste

• Combine brown rice, amaranth and lemon juice in a small bowl and add just enough water to cover.  Let soak for 6 hours or overnight to increase digestibility and reduce cooking time.
• Place 800g water in Thermomix bowl, insert basket than add rice mixture including any excess water.  Cook for 30 minutes at Varoma temp on speed 4. Set aside and empty water from bowl.
• Add pecorino to TM bowl and chop 8 seconds speed 9.  Set aside
• Add Cavolo Nero to TM bowl and chop 3 seconds speed 7.  Set aside (I placed it on top of the warm rice to lightly steam)
• Add onion and garlic and chop 5 sec speed 7
• Add oil and sauté for 2 minutes at 100° on speed 1
• Add mushrooms and capsicum and chop 3 seconds speed 6.  Saute 1 minute at 100° on speed 1
• Add eggs, cheeses, pepper and combine 5 seconds speed 4
• Add Cavolo Nero and rice and combine on Reverse 5 seconds speed 4
• Pour into a 20 x 20cm baking dish
• Cover with tomatos and pine nuts and bake 180° for approx 40 minutes until set.

Enjoy!

Children's Birthday Cakes

This is a retrospective post, and not about the healthiest of family food, but one I simply must share.  While the creative flair of motherhood has taken many journeys from sewing, knitting and even scrapbook paper types of decorating, I never thought I’d try cake decorating.   I guess until it came to my own kids birthdays.

 

I wasn’t until Summer’s 3^rd birthday that I gave it a real go.  She wanted a fairy garden party and a cake to match.  After what seemed hours of internet searching and creative visualisation I came up with the plan.  A green garden filled with colourful flowers, butterflies, ladybirds, leaves, toadstools and of course a pretty fairy on top.

 

The cake itself was Summer’s requested chocolate cake and the icing was buttercream with fondant decorations.  I found a fantastic buttercream recipe for the Thermomix at Gastronomy which includes copha so it holds well in warm weather and is great for piping, etc.  I’m a little reluctant to use food colouring so the colours are quite light on this cake (but watch this progress in subsequent cakes!)

Summer was delighted in her cake and the requests for further cakes rolled on from here….

 

The next cake was my niece Layla’s 3^rd birthday.  She was having a ballerina party so I had the perfect cake in mind.  A more formal design something like I remembered from the old Women’s Weekly Children’s Cakebook.  Pale pink with dainty ballerinas.  It was a basic buttercake inside made as always in the Thermomix but my favourite part was the layers inside.  Three layers filled with pink buttercream so it looked really pretty when sliced.

 

My assistant in the kitchen Miss Summer!

 Again, another happy little customer….

 

 

The third cake was more Finn’s 1^st birthday and we went with a theme that suited him and his name.  A beach scene with a dolphin in the waves and a retro surfboard on the beach.  And this cake was my favourite.  An Orange and Chocolate Almond cake.  Quite rich yet not too heavy but just devine in taste.  And the colours of the chocolate was set off well by the blue icing (and notice my depth of colour getting a bit heavier!)

 

From here the latest creation was from a friend’s little girl Alexis’s 3^rd birthday.  Her request was a Dora cake with a strawberry and cream filling.  I could envisage the design immediately.  Bright, bold colours (way heavier on the food colouring than I’ve ever dared to go!), with flowers and colourful dots for Dora to explore through, with Map of course.  My biggest worry was the strawberries and cream inside and would it stay fresh if I made the cake the day before.  With some trusty internet searching my fears subsided and the outcome was just fine. 

Another happy birthday girl!