Are you ready for the most delicious choc chip blondie? A soft, fudgy almond meal blondie studded with dairy free choc chips and sweetened naturally with a generous scoop of peanut butter and maple syrup. It’s gonna rock your world, I promise! …
vegan
Chickpea pancakes
Hello, friends! How’s 2018 treating you so far? Time is flying here and I’m thrilled to say this is my first month as a full time food blogger, I’ve finally given up the day job! It’s been a hot minute since I updated the blog, but I’m back with a simple, delicious savoury recipe for you. Perfect for anybody who is trying Veganuary or having a bit of a health kick, it’s free of any animal products, gluten or sugar and packed with protein. …
Gingerbread cupcakes
Happy December! It’s been a hugely exciting and busy month for me, which has unfortunately meant my backlog of recipes to post here is bigger than ever! To say thank you for bearing with me, I’ve uploaded this special gingerbread cupcake recipe. …
Pumpkin spice muffins
Hey, friends! How’s November treating ya? Aside from the shorter days and chilly mornings, I think Autumn has so much to offer. An excuse to snuggle up under blankets, drink even more herbal teas and play with new seasonal ingredients, pumpkin being a favourite right now! These pumpkin spice muffins are gently spiced and warming, just the thing with a hot cuppa for breakfast. They’re also the perfect way to use up any pumpkin or squashes you have hanging around your pantry, I’m still working my way through the backlog.
I’ve used cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg and allspice in these babies, but feel free to adjust the spices according to your taste, I just love any excuse to use all of them together. Nothing smells more seasonal to me than the smell of cardamom and nutmeg baking in the oven. They’re also made with spelt flour, which I’m diggin’ for it’s wholesome, subtle nutty flavour. If you find regular flour bloats you, give spelt a go, spelt gluten is water soluble and easily broken down by heat, so it’s easier to digest. It’s also packed with many nutrients, minerals and vitamins that you just don’t get in regular wheat flour.
I rarely see pumpkin puree in tins over here, so tend to make my own. I’ve included some instructions on how to make your own pumpkin puree below, if you make too much it’s great for adding to pancakes, oatmeal and pasta sauces, win win! Much better for the environment to make your own too.
Thank you for stopping by and feel free to leave me a comment below or on my page on Instagram, I’d love to hear from you!
Bo xoxoxoxo
- 2½ cup spelt flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- Pinch of ground cloves
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp allspice
- 5 tbsp vegan marg
- 1 cup light brown sugar/coconut sugar
- ¼ cup veg oil
- 1 cup pumpkin puree*
- 2 flax eggs (2 tbsp flax mixed with 5 tbsp water)
- ¾ cup buttermilk (3/4 cup soya milk and 1 tsp apple cider vinegar)
- Preheat oven to 190•c and line a 12 cup muffins tin with cake cases. In a large bowl, mix spelt flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, all spice and cloves.
- In a medium bowl beat together vegan margarine and coconut sugar until well combined, or cream together with the paddle attachment of a stand mixer. Make flax eggs and set aside for 2 minutes to thicken.To the margarine and sugar, add oil, pumpkin puree, flax eggs and vegan buttermilk. Mix well until smooth. Fold in the flour mix until just combined into a batter. Try not to overmix, or the muffins will be heavy.
- Fill each cake case ¾ full with the mixture and sprinkle on pumpkin and sesame seeds and extra coconut sugar if desired. Bake for 23-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely. Extra delicious served warm with a piping hot cup of tea, but keep well for up to 4 days in a tin.
Chai latté donuts
Happy October, friends! It’s that time of year when I’m baking almost every day, it’s my favourite way to spend time indoors. These chai latté donuts are so delicious and moreish, plus they’re mini so you can get away with having a few at once. They’re frosted with a seriously creamy cashew icing, that’s refined sugar free but just as creamy and lush as you’d expect. I added some cacao to the mix, as I think it gives that rich latté flavour I was craving. Finished with a dusting of cinnamon and cacao, these little chai donuts are a joy to eat….
Coconut caramel tarts
I’ve been making these all week to perfect the recipe. Currently third batch deep and I’m relieved to say I’m finally happy with the pastry. These coconut caramel tarts are pretty much all the things I love squeezed into one sweet little sized pud. My kinda self care. Vegan, gluten free pastry, baked into sweet little shells in the oven and then filled to the brim with layers of sweet dairy free heaven! There’s a little disc of chocolate at the bottom, followed by a lush salted date caramel and then a peanut butter coco whip on top. Yep… I went all out. They’re rich, but not too sickly sweet, in fact I just had one for breakfast. It’s the weekend so that’s totally okay, right?
I wanted to make these as easy to prep as possible, with ingredients you’ll likely have in your pantry at home. Of course they taste sweet and creamy, but they aren’t laden with refined sugar and grains like your standard fancy pud. They’re easily made gluten free too, just be sure to grab some gluten free oats, or sub the oats for more almonds.
I got a DM from a fellow date lover on Instagram this week, saying how addictive salted date caramel is. I have to agree, this stuff tastes dangerously good. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed dunking my failed pastry cases into it. Medjool dates are also dangerously expensive. Her tip was to buy Deglet Noor dates, much cheaper but still plump and juicy when soaked in boiling water. You can use any dates really, or even raisins! I have had great success with them in other recipes, the boiling water soak works a treat.
The pastry almost defeated me, but the trick is to make sure the dough sticks together a little in your fingers before you press it into the tin. Too crumbly and it will fall apart when you take them out the tins. The second most important thing is to not over bake – I foolishly cooked them for 12 minutes and ended up with rock solid tart shells. Thankfully third time round they came out perfectly, so I’ll hope you give this one a whirl!
I’d love to know if you try this recipe, please leave me a comment below or on my Instagram.
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1.5 cups ground oatmeal
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1-2 tbsp water
- 1 cup medjool dates, pitted, soaked in boiling water
- 1 tsp salt
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 bar of sugar free dark chocolate
- 1 tin of coconut milk, chilled overnight, cream only
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- edible stars, coconut chips and cacao nibs/chocolate shavings for topping
- Preheat oven to 180•c. Grease 6 mini tart pans with a little coconut oil. Add almond meal, ground oatmeal, vanilla extract, ½ tsp salt and 4 tbsp maple syrup to a food processor and pulse until combined. With the processor still on, slowly pour in coconut oil. Process until incorporated and you have a crumbly dough. The dough should be moist enough to stick together between your fingers. If not, add a tbsp of water and blend again, checking again and adding a tbsp more water if needed.
- Push dough into prepared tart pans, using a teaspoon to flatten out the bottom evenly and pop in the oven for 8-10 minutes, until slightly golden. The dough may puff up a little, so you can use some baking beans/dried chickpeas in the middle of each tart. Take out from the oven and allow to cool.
- Make your caramel filling. Drain soaked dates, saving the water. Add dates, ½ tsp salt and ½ cup or the date water to food processor. Blend until smooth.
- In a small bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt bar of chocolate slowly. Gently pop tarts out of their tins and pour a tbsp of chocolate into the bottom of each tart. Spread out evenly with a teaspoon. Pop in the fridge to set, then remove and spread over a tbsp of date caramel on top of each tart, leaving a little room on top for the coconut cream.
- Prepare coconut cream topping. Open can of coconut milk and drain off the water, scoop out the solid coconut cream at the top. Using an electric whisk blend up until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add peanut butter, a pinch of salt and maple syrup and whisk again to combine. Taste and add more salt or sweetener if needed. Your whipped cream should be thick and spreadable, but if it's runny, pop in the fridge to set a little. As soon as it's thick enough to spread, dollop some cream in each tart and smooth over with a spoon. Leave to chill for an hour, then remove and drizzle with melted chocolate. Top with coconut chips, candy stars and cacao nibs.
Bagels
Happy Autumn! I love this time of year, time to rock the big jumpers and snuggly coats, buy huge pumpkins and relish the comfort of home baking again. No better way to kick off baking season than with one of my favourite recipes, BAGELS! …
Blackberry aquafaba muffins
Blackberry season is in full swing here. Muffins are always in season though, right? That’s why I had to make these seasonal sweets extra special with my fave vegan magic, aquafaba. Aquafaba is the brine from a tin of chickpeas, and when whipped it creates a beautiful fluffy egg substitute, just like egg whites for meringue. I’ve used it a lot in waffles lately, but I’m really enjoying trying it in baked recipes too. Next time you open a tin of chickpeas, save the brine! You can also make your own if you soak and cook your chickpeas at home.
Feel free to sub the flours for gluten free, a good all purpose gluten free would work well. I used a combination of plain and rye flour in these, I really love the flavour of rye flour.
These are refined sugar free, favouring coconut sugar over traditional cane sugar. I haven’t used white sugar in what feels like years now and to be honest, I don’t miss it at all. Coconut sugar adds just the right amount of sweetness without overpowering the flavour of blackberries. I like to enjoy a muffin with my cup of coffee for breakfast, so I prefer them to be naturally sweetened. I like to sprinkle a little coconut sugar over before baking to give them deliciously crackly muffin top. I’ve also added cinnamon and a little lemon zest, which just brings these muffins to life.
I’d love to hear what you think if you make them, or if you did anything differently. Please comment below or take a snap and tag me on Instagram! I always love to see your creations.
- 1.5 cup plain flour
- 1 cup rye flour
- 2.5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- pinch salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 5 tbsp aquafaba
- ½ cup oil, coconut, rapeseed or avocado
- 1 cup coconut sugar plus 4 tbsp, for topping
- ¾ cup almond mylk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups blackberries
- Preheat oven to 180•c. Line a muffin tin with paper cases or coat with oil.
- Add all dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and stir well.
- In a well cleaned medium bowl, add aquafaba and whisk with an electric whisk until frothy and foamy, for about 3 minutes. Add in the oil slowly whilst whisking, followed by the sugar. Whisk through almond mylk and vanilla and everything into the dry mix. Use a wooden spoon to combine and mix until just combined, it's okay if there are some lumps.
- In a small bowl, mash ¼ cup of blackberries to a pulp. Add to the batter and fold through the remaining blackberries, holding some back for topping.
- Fill lined muffin in with the batter and top with blackberries and a few tbsp of coconut sugar.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before removing. Enjoy right away or cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Will keep for two days, but best eaten when fresh.
Rainbow waffles
It’s been a hot minute since I updated the blog and I figured my go to aquafaba waffle recipe was definitely worthy of posting! I use this recipe pretty much every weekend and it’s really very flexible, so don’t worry if you don’t have all the ingredients. Apart from the aquafaba of course, that is essential! …
Cherry cheesecake ice cream
The cherry obsession continues. This time in the form of a creamy cherry cheesecake ice cream. This has to be one of my favourites yet, rich and sweet with a beautiful cherry compote ripple. …