Crunchy Cherry Muffins - sugar and butter free!

I had half a packet of frozen cherries in the freezer and I needed the freezer space so I came up with this recipe on the spot. This recipe will also work well with fresh or canned cherries. Just remember to drain off the juice if you're using frozen (thawed) or canned...I did...I drank it XD

As you regular followers know - I am on a whole foods kick at present so I've used wholemeal flour for this recipe. I find butter and sugar aren't necessary because the cherries are sweet enough. If you're not a lover of wholemeal flour, substitute with plain or gluten free.

I've called them crunchy cherry muffins because I added seeds to the dry mix - pepita and sunflower seeds to be precise, but these could be omitted if you're not a lover of seeds.

This makes 12 medium sized muffins...you won't need a cake mixer either!

Ingredients:

Dry mixture:

• 2 cups wholemeal flour
• ¼  tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 2 tblsp desiccated coconut
• 2 tblsp mixed seeds (pepita and sunflower work well as they are nice and small)

Wet mixture:

• ⅓  cup low-fat Greek yoghurt
• 3 tblsp avocado oil (any nut oil will be nice too. I think olive oil will be overpowering though)
• 2 large eggs
• ½ tblsp vanilla extract or cherry extract (I used cherry)
• 1 ½ cups cherries (either fresh cut in half, or frozen or canned)

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius 
2. Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl
3. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork and add in the Greek yoghurt, oil and extract. Mix well.
4. Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture and add the wet mixture to it. Mix gently with a spoon. No need to use a whisk or cake mixer. It will appear a bit wet but it will be fine, I assure you.
5. Fold in the cherries but don't over-mix or it will make the muffins tough
6. Spoon into your muffin tray leaving space at the top so they rise. They do rise, so I only ¾ filled the muffin holes
7. Bake for 25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. When a skewer comes out clean - they are done.  D-E-L-icous  XD

Should we move?

Hi fellow foodies. I've been doing a lot of thinking of late and I am considering moving this blog to it's own domain name. So instead of the domain name being http://nellscookingblog.blogspot.com.au it could be www.knifeforkchew.com.

So I have some questions for you followers:

1. If I do this, will you follow me to the new domain name?
2. Because I am Australian - would you rather the new domain name be a dot com or a dot com dot au? I don't mind either way.
3. Would you prefer me to keep it looking like a blog? Or turn it into a traditional website with a database of my recipes and articles?
4. Would you be interested in subscribing if that were an option? That way you would get all new recipes the moment I've added them.
5. There will be no charge for you followers of course, but I may consider advertising. How would you feel about that?
6. What other content would you like to see on this blog/website?

Please leave your responses in the comments below. Or alternatively, please send me an email at michelle@mojoonlinesolutions.com.au

I value your opinions, so please tell me how you really feel :)

Thank you,

Michelle

Cauliflower Rice

Cauliflower Rice is making the rounds on social networking sites like Pinterest. I first heard about it a few months back but wasn't game enough to try it as I'm not a huge cauliflower fan. However I was persuaded so I gave in and made it tonight. Personally I loved it, but Mr 13 doesn't like onion so wasn't a fan. Maybe next time I'll omit the onion :)

It isn't exactly like traditional rice and it won't suit all rice-accompanied dishes, but it is certainly a low-fat, low-carb alternative side dish. The texture is not as fluffy as white rice - it's more grainy like an undercooked brown rice, but there is none of that yucky starchy liquid which rice sometimes leaves behind. Cauliflower rice won't suit dishes with sauces where you want the rice to soak up curry or satay sauces - but it will add volume to your meal without the calories. It's perfect for bulking up dishes without adding carbs. 

Ingredients:

• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1/2 head cauliflower
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 tsp salt and pepper
• Sprinkle of oregano (you could use any dried herbs of your choice)

Method:

1. Using a cheese grater, grate the cauliflower to a coarse texture (approximately the size of rice grains). Alternatively cut the cauliflower into small to medium sized pieces and use a food processor to blend in small batches. DON'T pulverise it though!
2. Heat the coconut oil in a medium sized saucepan over a medium heat
3. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 3–4 minutes, or until the onion is relatively translucent
4. Add 1 cup of cauliflower rice per person to the pan and stir - this is a generous serve so you may want to try half a cup per person as a teaser if you haven't made it before :)
5. Add the salt, pepper, oregano and stir through
6. Continue to saute for 4–5 minutes 

If you have leftover uncooked cauliflower rice, place it in pres-seal bags and freeze for later. When you're ready to use the frozen cauliflower rice, take the bag out of the freezer a few hours beforehand so it thaws.

This is what the cauliflower rice looks like

blended and uncooked

D-E-L-icious  XD

Zucchini Pesto

OMG! My mouth is having a party right now. I seriously just made this in 8 minutes - from fridge to plate. If you haven't bought a vegetable spiral slicer yet - you need to get online immediately and order one. It's the bees-knees of kitchen gadgets and mine only cost $17.50AUD with free postage! When I shop tomorrow, I'm buying more basil and 2 kilos of zucchini!  I can't wait to make this for my vegetarian daughter. This serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 4 zucchinis spiralled through the spiral slicer (ends removed but skin left on)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 bunch of basil (stalks removed)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil for basil
• 1 tablespoon olive oil for the saucepan (or water - it's just to stop the zucchini sticking)
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts
• A good pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon of a parmesan-like cheese, grated (I used Grana Padana)
• Small piece of basil for garnishing
• Extra cheese for garnishing if you please

Method:

1. After spiralling your zucchini, place in a saucepan in one tablespoon of olive oil (or water) and let it warm up slowly on a low heat.  You don't need to cook it - it's simply to warm through. The oil (or water) is only to stop the zucchini sticking to the bottom of the pan
2. In a food processor blend the garlic, basil, olive oil, pine nuts, salt and cheese. If it looks  crumbly, add a bit of water but not too much. I added about 1 teaspoon of water after pushing the pesto down the sides of the food processor and gave it one more pulse
3. Once the pesto is made, spoon it on top of the zucchini in the saucepan and gently fold through. If it looks like there is too much pesto, don't add it all.  I had pesto left over so put the rest of it in the fridge
4. Stir the zucchini gently to warm through. It doesn't require cooking - only warming. Once it's warm enough, serve and garnish with basil and cheese if you like.

 Here is the spiral slicer I bought.

This is it with the zucchini - it took 20 seconds to do one.

D-E-L-icious  XD

Infused Water

So the big thing at the moment is infused water, and in Australia it is summer. Summer means bloody hot days where lots of water is required for hydration. We Aussies love beer...and wine...but water is essential in the day to day life of an Aussie.

Plain water can get boring. We can buy mineral water, soda water, tonic water, flavoured water or energy water. But who wants to waste money on those when you can make your own flavoured water?

There are numerous fruits and vegetables you can add to your water, this is my first one and I love it. It tastes so good that I'm drinking more water...and this is good, yeah?!

Ingredients:

• tap water
• ice
• 2 stalks of celery
• 1 apple, quartered and core removed
• ½ lemon, peeled and quartered

Method:

Place all ingredients into a jug and keep in the fridge. I covered my jug with plastic wrap in case the leftover meat smell infuses it - which I don't want. Drink from it during the day. Once the jug is empty, fill it again - these fruits and vegetables will last a second time. Some won't though, i.e. berries. I will eat the fruit and veg at the end of the day after dinner for dessert.

D-E-L-icious  XD

CASH Juice

I made a green juice for breakfast this morning and was surprised how well it tasted. I will make it regularly and I've called it CASH juice because of it's ingredients...

Ingredients:
C is for celery - 4 stalks
A is for apple - 3 green, cores removed, but skin left on
S is for spinach - I used about 2 cups of leaves
H is for herbs - mint in this case, about a bunch

Method:
I added all ingredients to my juicer and  ½ cup of water near the end to swish around and grab some of those important fibres off the inside of the juicer. If the juice is too strong, you could add more cold water once you've poured the concentrated juice into your glass. Add ice and a straw and you're set to go.

D-E-L-icious  XD

Granola

This is the first time I've made Granola and I was very pleased with the result. This Granola is so nice that it can be eaten raw like cereal muesli, or toasted. I decided to toast it so we could eat it both for cereal and for snacking.

Ingredients:

• 3½ cups rolled oats 
• 1 cup raw whole, or slivered, or flaked or sliced almonds - I used slivered
• 1 cup raw cashews (or walnuts or pecans) - I used cashews
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut - do not use desiccated as it's too fine
• ½ cup raw sunflower seeds
• ½ cup raw pepita seeds
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1½ teaspoons ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon grated or ground nutmeg
• 6 tablespoons olive spread or nutella
• ½ cup honey
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (not essence)
• ½ teaspoon salt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 120 degrees celsius. Cover a baking tray with baking paper
2. Mix the dry oats, almonds, cashews, coconut, seeds and spices together in a large mixing bowl
3. Heat the butter and honey together in a small saucepan over low heat, or quickly zap it in the microwave. Once melted stir in the vanilla and salt
4. Pour the hot liquids over the dry ingredients and mix together with a rubber spatula until evenly coated
5. Spread mixture onto prepared pan in one even layer. Bake for about 70 minutes or until it has browned
6. Store in air tight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks

This is what the Granola looks like uncooked...

D-E-L-icious XD

Banana Muffins with Pecans and Dates

I love these. They are made from wholemeal flour (also known as whole wheat flour) and are packed full of goodness. This makes 10-12 muffins depending on your muffin tray.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups wholemeal flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup olive spread, melted
• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
• 2 very ripe bananas, peeled 
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• ½ cup chopped, pitted dates

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees celsius
2. Spray your muffin tray with spray oil
3. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and drop in the eggs, butter, and syrup. Mix with a fork until it just comes together and set aside. The mixture will look quite moist but don't panic.
4. In a small bowl mash the banana with the back of a fork
5. Carefully fold the banana, pecans and dates into the muffin batter and distribute evenly into a 12 cup muffin tray leaving room at the top for expansion
6. Place leftover pecans on top of each muffin
7. Bake until they begin to brown on top and a toothpick comes clean when inserted in the centre, about 12-15

Note: Freeze some in pres-seal bags for the week :)

D-E-L-icious  XD

Kale Chips

For a low-fat and unprocessed snack you can't go past Kale chips. Kale is so cheap and all you need is some olive oil and seasoning of your choice! These chips are seasoned with paprika, chilli flakes and salt. I make 2 oven trays at a time. You need space because the pieces shouldn't be touching one another. They do shrink though so you may think it looks like a lot, but it won't be in the end.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius and grab a bunch of kale (about 250g)
2. Line oven trays with baking paper
3. Place the kale leaves (stems discarded) torn into bite size pieces into a large bowl
4. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil
5. Sprinkle with paprika
6. Sprinkle with chilli flakes (add more if you like your snacks hot)
7. Sprinkle with salt and toss the lot
8. Lay the leaves out onto oven trays so they don't overlap...the oil needs to dry the leaves so they go crispy
9. Cook for 15mins swapping trays around half way, or cook until they go crispy.

Salad in a jar

Months ago I discovered salad in a jar and thought the idea was great but never acted on it. Well last week I bought some mason jars from my local Kmart for $2.00 each, washed them in hot soapy water and then sterilised the jars and lids with boiled water.

The salad in a jar is pretty versatile, but it is all about la yering. If you're like me and want to prepare some lunches for the week BEFORE the week begins, there is a certain way of layering the salad so the dressing doesn't wilt the vegetables.

There are lot of combinations - just check out Pinterest for some ideas, but these are what I made this week and they were lovely.

Apart from the dressing, I haven't included quantities as mason jar sizes differ. The quantities are trial and error and over time, you'll know how much food to prepare for the number of jars you are filling.

Layers from bottom to top. 1 being bottom layer and 11 being top layer:

1. 1 teaspoon lemon juice mixed with 1 teaspoon olive oil with salt & pepper (this is the dressing)
2. Kidney beans
3. Corn kernels
4. Thickly chopped carrot
5. Roughly chopped snow peas
6. Beetroot
7. Sliced gherkins
8. Diced shallots
9. Chopped cucumber
10. Fetta cheese
11. Torn lettuce leaves - I used Cos lettuce

Store in the fridge for up to 5 days, being careful not to shake the jars or the dressing may wilt the upper layered veggies.

When you're ready to eat one, give it a shake and pour it into a bowl. That's it!

You can add other ingredients to the jar including meats, however so far I've placed chopped chicken or tinned tuna in the bowl before tipping the salad out onto it...it's just easier for me that way.

Delicious  XD