Peanut Butter Cookies

I always like to have some kind of healthy treat in the house should the moment strike. Which seems to be a lot lately! These cookies are so quick and easy to make and taste so delicious with a warm cup of almond milk. They will last for about 5 days in an air tight container permitting you have the will power not too munch 4 in one sitting – oops!

I have been experimenting a lot lately with Spelt flour. It is really easy to substitute spelt (a grain) for wheat flour as it doesn’t seem to effect the texture of the baked good – I have particularly found this with pizza dough. Although spelt flour does contain gluten many find it easier to digest. It is also lower in calories but higher in protein than wheat flour. Personally I prefer the taste which is nutty and closer to whole wheat in flavour which works really well with these peanut butter cookies.

Although I have used spelt flour in my recipe you could use plain flour if you wanted or if you want a completely gluten free cookie you could sub out the flour all together and just use 250g of ground almonds.

I hope you give these a go and enjoy them as much as I do!

Makes 12 Cookies

Ingredients –

125g ground almonds

125g spelt flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g peanut butter – I like to use Meridian Crunchy Peanut Butter

100g coconut oil

4 tbsp maple syrup

Method

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl
2. In a food processor blend your wet ingredients until smooth
3. Pour your wet mix in to your dry and combine until a dough forms
4. Line a baking tray with grease proof paper
5. Roll your dough in to 12 balls and lightly press down with a fork to form into a cookie shape.
6. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes until the cookies are golden.
7. Allow to cool fully before enjoying – these are crumbly when hot!

Lemon & Goji Bliss Balls

I love making bliss balls to snack on as they are so easy to make. They are one of my favourite ways to have a satisfying and sweet but not too naughty treat. My love of chocolate usually means I load my nutty mixes with lots of delicious cacao but because I’m pregnant I need to limit my caffeine intake to less than 200mg a day. After my morning coffee I am not left with much wriggle room for chocolate. So I have been forced to kick the cacao habit and come up with a caffeine free version.

Ingredients – makes 12

 

1 cup of cashews

1 cup of goji berries (I used creative nature goji’s)

Juice of 1 lemon

1tbsp maple syrup

 

Method

 

1. Place your cashews in a blender until they form a fine powder.
2. Add your goji berries, lemon juice and maple syrup and continue to blend until a sticky dough forms.
3. Roll your dough in to 12 moreish bliss balls.
4. Super easy, yummy and caffeine buzz free!

Sea Salt & Dark Chocolate Popcorn

This is not so much a recipe but more of a serving suggestion. In our house a good movie isn’t complete without a snack. Our usual at home Friday night cinema snack normally consists of guacamole, hummus and lots of crunchy veggies or a huge bowl of cherries & a glass of red wine. However since I became pregnant the red wine has been shelved and only popcorn will do.

Ingredients –

1/3 of a cup of popcorn kernels

2-3 squares of good quality 90% dark choc

A good pinch of sea salt flakes

Method –

1. Place your popcorn kernels in a heavy bottom pan and turn on to a medium heat (don’t forget to put the lid on)
2. I don’t like to use oil in my popcorn which means I need to keep a close eye on the pan to make sure the kernels don’t burn or stick. To do this I take the pan off the heat every few minutes and shake the kernels around
3. Once the popping sound stops it’s your cue to take your pan off the heat
4. On a flat surface place a large sheet of greaseproof paper and tip out your popcorn to cool
5. Over a gentle heat and in a bain- marie melt your chocolate
6. Once melted use a spoon to drizzle your cooled corn with your chocolate – al la Jackson Pollock
7. Sprinkle with salt while your choc is still wet and then leave to cool
8. Enjoy with your movie of choice.

Oat, banana & hemp seed cookies

Happytummyfact- hempseeds are rich in protein, vitamins and minerals and are the only edible seeds that contain gamma-linolenic acid (GLA). Hempseeds are the highest source in the plant kingdom of essential fatty acids. These essential oils, linoleic and linolenic acids, are responsible for the luster in your skin, hair, eyes…..even more reason to have that second cookie!

Ingredients

2 cups of oats

2 ripe peeled bananas

¼ cup of Creative Nature shelled hemp seeds

You could also add the following ingredients if you want a little variation –

Cinnamon

Vanilla essence

Dried fruit

Chopped nuts

Cacao nibs

Peanut Butter

Cacao

Method –

1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees
2. Combine your oats and bananas in a food processor until dough starts to form (This shouldn’t take too long; you don’t want it to be smooth, just well combined
3. Mix through your shelled hemp seeds
4. Line a baking tray with some grease proof paper
5. Scoop out a generous tbsp of mix and use use hands to create a cookie shape
6. Place the cookies in the oven for 12-15 or until the cookies are golden

Purple Corn Flour Pancake

When a lovely friend gifted me some organic purple corn flour I was both intrigued and excited by this new (at least to me) food. Stumped as to what to do with it, I decided there was no better way to put it to the test than in a pancake. The result? A deliciously light and sweet pancake that feels like a treat thanks to the addition of honey and cacao. To finish my pancake I warmed up some almond butter and berries and enjoyed with a large mug of green tea – Yum!

Happytummyfact-  Packed full of phytonutrients and antioxidants purple corn flour also contains anthocyanin which give plants, fruit and vegetables (such as aubergines, tomatoes, cherries and berries) their blue, purple or red hue!

Ingredients –

2 eggs

1 tbsp water

1 tsp Maca

1 tsp purple corn flour

1 tsp cacao

A few drops of vanilla

½ tsp manuka honey

½ tsp coconut oil

½ cup frozen berries

1 tbsp almond Butter

 

Method

1. Place all your ingredients (apart from the frozen berries & almond butter) in to a blender and blend until fully combined.
2. Meanwhile place your berries in to a pan with a few tbsp of water and heat through until softened.
3. Melt the coconut oil in a frying pan.
4. Pour your mix in to your hot pan and tilt the pan so that the mix evenly covers the bottom.
5. Wait until little bubbles start to appear on the surface of the pancake. Now is the time to flip.
6. Cook the other side for a few minutes until cooked through.
7. Spread your almond butter over one half of the pancake and allow the heat to melt it a little.
8. Fold the pancake in half and serve up with your warmed berries.

Cacao & Goji Crispy Snack

Easter = chocolate treats! In a prior tummy life I loved chocolate crispy cakes topped with mini eggs. You know the ones I mean 😉 With my tummy in mind I have created a healthier version of these. While they still contain sugar they are free from the refined white stuff, gluten free and full of antioxidants from raw cacao and goji berries.

Happy tummyfact – Raw Cacao is a rich source of antioxidants and flavonoids which are linked to cardiovascular health and antiaging. However do not confuse cocoa power with cacao as they two are very different. Raw Cacao is cold press unroasted cacao beans meaning they retain all their goodness. Cocoa has been roasted at high temperatures and in the process depleting the nutritional value of these delicious beans!

Ingredients

2 cups of puffed rice

½ cup of Creative Nature Goji Berries

2 tbsp coconut oil

3 tbsp tahini

4 tsbp maple syrup

4 tbsp raw cacao

Zest of half an orange

Method

1. Place a pan on to a low heat and melt your coconut oil. Remove from the heat.
2. Add your tahini, cacao, maple syrup & orange zest to your melted coconut oil and mix until smooth and well combined.
3. In a bowl combine your puffed rice, cacao mix and goji berries and mix well.
4. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and pour in your mix.
5. Place a second piece of greaseproof paper over the top and with palm press down the mix so it is tighty packed in to the tray.
6. Place in the fridge and allow cooling and set. Once set slice into squares and enjoy!

Chicken, Tumeric & Goji Berry Soup (GF)

If I’m ever feeling a little poorly or like I have over indulged I always crave a big steaming bowl of chicken soup. It’s a dish I find so comforting and nourishing but light and cleansing at the same time. After getting caught in the rain without a brolly last week this Chicken, Turmeric & Goji Berry Soup is just what I needed to warm me from the inside out.

Happytummyfact –

The Goji Berries I used in this recipe are from Creative Nature and are sourced from Ningxia province in China. Aside from tasting deliciously sweet Goji’s contain more Vitamin C than almost all other food sources, including oranges and have more Beta-Carotene than carrots.

Serves 1

Ingredients –

½ tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

2 cups water

1 small chicken breast

1 small grated carrot

¼ cup of cooked quinoa

Small handful of torn coriander

Small handful of Creative Nature goji berries

Method –

1. Place your turmeric, ginger, chicken and water in a pan and on a medium heat bring to a simmer.
2. Gently simmer for 10 – 15 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken breast) until the chicken is cooked through.
3. Add your cooked quinoa, grated carrot and goji berries and heat through for a few minutes.
4. Add your torn coriander just before serving.

Creative Nature was ever so kind as to send me some of their Goji Berries but they are also available to buy from Ocado and Tesco.  They have also kindly given me a discount code to share with you which entitles you to 10% off orders from www.creativenaturesuperfoods.com. Just enter CNSF10 at the checkout for your discount.

Ginger & Lime Fruit Salad (GF) (V)

Fresh ginger is one of my favourite flavours. It is aromatic, spicy and oh so warming. This morning I decided to spice up some super ripe mangoes I had sitting in my fridge in this ginger and lime fruit salad.

Happytummyfact – Ginger is great for an uneasy tummy especially if you are suffering from motion sickness.  It is anti-inflammatory and great for boosting your immune system to ward of pesky colds. In ancient times the Greeks would even wrap ginger in bread to help sooth their tummy woes. This eventually led to the invention of the delicious treat we now know as gingerbread.

Ingredients-

2 small mangoes

1 cup of thawed frozen berries

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

Juice of ½ a lime

2-3 tbsp natural or coconut yogurt

2 tsp hemp seeds

Method –

1. Chop your mangoes in to small bite size pieces
2. In a mixing bowl add your mangoes, lime juice and ginger and mix well
3. Repeat step two but this time with your thawed berries
4. In your serving bowl/glass create layers with the mango and berry mix and then top with your yogurt and hemp seeds

Note- serves 2

What I was loving in February

• Deliciously Ella Cookbook

Admittedly I have only had this book a few weeks but as an avid reader of the Deliciously Ella blog I knew I would love it. And love it I do. Every recipe sounds delicious. My favourite so far is her Sweet Potato Brownies – YUM!  Her passion for healthy eating truly comes to life on each page and I am looking forward to recreating some of that passion in my own kitchen as I work my way through her recipes.

http://deliciouslyella.com/

• Choc Orange Tea

This month I have been enjoying sipping on Charbrews choc orange tea after dinner. I often crave something sweet around 7pm and this helps take the edge off that craving. Made from Roobios tea it’s naturally sans caffeine which means it won’t turn you into an insomniac and it’s also thought to assist with digestive problems. Without milk the orange flavour is uplifting however add a dash of creamy almond milk and it transforms into a comforting hug in a mug.

• Coconut Oil

Coconut Oil is everywhere just now and I am a true believer.  About 2 years ago I started using coconut oil as way to help sooth my dry and occasionally eczema prone skin. Now I use it at any given opportunity. I put it in smoothies, cook and bake with it, slap it on my hair when it looks frazzled, remove make up and moisturise with it, heck sometimes I eat it off the spoon when I’m in need of a coconut fix. I’m not loyal to one particular brand, as long as it organic and cold pressed and has not been refined, bleached or deodorised I don’t mind.  I repeatedly find Biona in my shopping basket.

• Sweet Potatoes

Nothing new here right? Wrong. I have always reserved my sweet potatoes for lunch and dinner but in January I had the urge to devour these beautiful spuds for breakfast roasted and topped with coconut yogurt, raw cacao nibs and plenty cinnamon. This Vitamin A packed breakfast was warming on a cold winter morning and so satisfying I wasn’t hungry again until lunch! Try it, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Savoury Porridge Oats aka ‘Svoats’ (GF)

During my lifelong love affair with porridge I have never experimented with savoury flavours, never even considered it an option.  As a child I loved my porridge topped with spoonful’s of dark sweet treacle and while I have since moved away from my sugary childhood favourite, my bowlful of oats are nearly always topped with sweet fruit in some form. This morning however something strange happened. I was feeling brave and daring and topped my oats with avocado, poached egg and a touch of spicy chilli sauce and I may just have started a whole new love affair.

Happytummyfact- Studies have shown that eating oats may help lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. They are a good source of protein, complex carbohydrates, iron and full of both soluble and insoluble fibre helping keep you full and also to keep things moving.

Ingredients-

30g oats

1 ½ cups of water

1 egg

½ an avocado

Franks hot sauce (optional)

Salt & Pepper

Vinegar

Method –

1. Soak your oats overnight in the 1 ½ cups of water.
2. Place you oats on the heat and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for 4-5 minutes. Then season with salt and pepper.
3. While your oats are cooking bring a pan of water to a steady simmer. Add a dash of white vinegar and a pinch of salt.
4. Crack your egg in to a cup.
5. With a spoon create a whirlpool in your water and slowly lower the egg into the water and leave for 3 mins. This will give you a soft yolk in the centre.
6. Once your oats are cooked, plate up and top with your avocado, egg and hot sauce.