A sweet treat on a Sunday

Who says been healthy has to be bland and boring. I know there are quite a few pancake recipes on this blog but what can I say I have a soft spot for them.

These pancakes are super quick but do not contain flour. Nothing quite hits the spot like my buttermilk pancakes made with flour but in between my moments of super indulgence these new pancakes do the job nicely.

For this recipe you will need:

1 banana

2 eggs

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 

1/3 cup of ground almond

4 strawberrys sliced

1 tablespoon of Greek yogurt

Chopped almonds + hazelnuts

1 teaspoon of organic honey 

Coconut oil 

While you're pan is heating with a small dollop of coconut oil mash your banana well then add in the eggs keep whisking them up until you get a smooth consistency. 

Add in the ground almond and vanilla extract. Then pour it all into the pan and swirl it all about until it has covered the pan.

Have patience with your pancake don't even think about flipping it like a flour based pancake. Banana pancakes have a spongey texture and crumble with ease . 

When you shake your pan and the giant pancake moves your patience has paid off. Slide this bad boy onto your plate and begin to add your filling.

Start by spreading the Greek yogurt all over the pancake then do the same with the honey. Next place the strawberries evenly all over the yogurt followed by the nuts.

Roll up the pancake like a wrap then cut into three et voila. I scoffed my with a decent cup of coffee Sunday morning bliss

Enjoy + feel free to let me know how you got on...

Rebecca x

The magical mini mince pie

Ah the mince pie love it or loath it, but there is no denying that the mince pie is Christmas all wrapped up in a tasty shortcust cup.

If my dad had his way he would have me making mince pies all year round so luckily for his cholesterol I limit it to December. Even though it is the 7 th and Iv made 3 dozen today. 

May I add that they are mini mince pies because I just love all things mini when it comes to baking, pastries seems so sweet and delicate when they are miniature.

I have used my tried and trusted short crust pastry in this recipe that shines bright every time so I knew before I even tasted these mini delights that they would be special.

For this recipe you will need:

Pastry:

100g cold Connacht gold butter with added sea salt flakes

175g of plain flour

25g of icing sugar

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 tablespoons of cold water

Filling:

1 jar of quality mince pie filling

The zest + juice of 2 clementines

50g of dried cranberries

50g sultanas 

Tools of the trade

Mini cupcakes trays

55mm round cutter 

Mini star cutter

Mini flower cutter 

Firstly empty your mince pie filling into a bowl and add the additional ingredients then mix well so all the juices and zest infuse with the new and old dried fruit.

Set the filling aside and begin to make your pastry. I like to rub the cold butter into the dry ingredients until the butter has crumbled into teeny tiny pieces. The Connacht gold butter Iv used today has added sea salt flakes which adds another dimension to my shortcrust pastry, salt is an important part in baking especially when real butter is involved.

Next add in the egg yolk and water and combine with your hand until it all comes together into one big ball.

Flour your work surface and your rolling pin and roll out the pastry thin enough that it will hold it's shape without tearing.

With your round cutter cut out  30 discs but before you place them in the tins lightly spray them with cake release. Sit them into the tins but be sure not to squash them into place this might give you bother when you're trying to release them after baking.

With two teaspoons spoon a small amount of the mixture into each case, to much and it will just ooze all over the pastry and literally glue the pies to the tins.

With your remaining pastry cut out your shapes and sit them on top of every pie. 

Lastly paint on the egg white that was left all alone by the egg yolk then pop the tins into the oven @ 160'c for 20 mins.

Personally once they come out of the oven I like to carefully take them out of the tray because if any filling has escaped once it cools it will harden and in turn be a bugger to get out in one piece.

I like to simply dust mine with icing sugar and devour with a nice mug of tea.

Let the festivities begin

Enjoy

Rebecca x

Coffee lovers Christmas gifts

My guide to buying to buying the perfect gift for that coffee lover in your life..

A few months ago I was invited to a coffee master class hosted by Bewleys. It was a very chilled and informative evening where we got to taste three coffees from their "special collection".

A number of these coffees are not only fair trade but also organic and each are quite different from the next. Which I think is perfect as there is a coffee that will suit everyone's taste.

The first coffee is the Ethiopia, this is a sweet and aromatic coffee with delicate floral notes. What I got from this coffee was a gorgeous dark chocolate taste. I was told that this is a coffee for the adventurous!!!

The Ethiopia is an organic coffee and fair trade. It is gently dried in the sun and then hand roasts by Bewleys in small batches.

The brewing technique of choice for this coffee is the Chemex. It looks like something from my school science lab and very appealing to the eye. You can buy these in different size for cup capacity and retails from €32.00

This brewing system is very simple to use. Begin by boiling 500ml in your kettle.

Place you filter paper In the Chemex and triple fold.

Pre wet the filter paper then pour out the water.

Add 35g of coarsely ground Ethiopia coffee and then pour 50ml of boiling water onto it and let it bloom.

Wait for 30 seconds then pour the remaining water slowly into the filter in a circular motion.

This process should be completed within 3 minutes.

The second coffee we tasted was the Bolivia. It had a lovely rich flavour with more dark chocolate notes and also had a creamy caramel taste. 

The Bolivia is an organic and fair trade coffee. It is grown in high altitudes and hand roasted in small batches by Bewleys. 

The brewing technique of choice for this coffee is called the Aeropress. 

This is a super compact piece of equipment perfect for at home or on the go. It is simple to use and dishwasher safe. It retails for approx €28.99

Start by boiling the kettle then grind coffee to a medium/fine consistsancy.

Wet the filter then place it in the Aeropress.

Turn the Aeropress upside down then add in 18g of the coffee.

Pour in 50ml of boiling water and stir.

Leave to infuse for 30 seconds then stir again.

Add 230ml of boiling water, stir once more then close the lid tightly.

Turn the Aeropress right way up and place over your cup and slowly push down the plunger.

Complete this technique in less than 2 minutes.

Last but not least is the Panama coffee. This coffee has lots of acidity but is very fruity and very clean. 

It has toasted nutty notes to it. I was told that this coffee is perfect as a breakfast coffee.

The brewing technique of choice for this coffee is called the Syphon brewer. 

It is definitely the show stopper of the three and you would be on to a winner if you presented this after your dinner party to your guests. It retails approx €90 to €100.

Again the technique for this brewing system is not complicated even though it looks as if you would need a degree to make the coffee.

Begin by boiling the kettle. 

Measure 18g of the coarsely ground coffee.

Rinse out the filter in warm water then place it on the chamber.

Fill the bottom glass chamber with 230ml of hot water.

Turn on the burner and apply high heat.

As this boils away the water will travel up to the top chamber.

Once 3/4 of the water is in the top chamber start your timer and stir in a slow circular motion 3 times.

After approx 45 seconds turn off your burner and stir in a circulate motion once more.

The coffee will disperse into the bottom chamber it is then ready to enjoy.

All three of these specialty coffees can be bought on Bewleys online shop for as little as €7.99 and they come in a very smart display tin.

The perfect coffee lovers Christmas present indeed.

Enjoy

Rebecca

Almond and cinnamon pancakes

Sometimes in life it's nice to be good to your body seeing as it's the only one you've got!!!. These pancakes will tick all the boxes and are quite festive with the addition of cinnamon.

For this recipe you will need:

130g of ground almonds

1/2 cup almond milk

1 teaspoon of vanilla paste

1/3 teaspoon of cinnamon

2 eggs

Coconut oil 

Mix all your ingredients together in a bowl, let that sit for a moment.

Heat your pan on a medium to height heat and add a teaspoon of coconut oil, then dollop in you pancake batter. You will notice the mixture is much thicker then a four batter but that is exactly what you are looking for.

This mixture is perfect for 2 servings I like to add bananas to my dish with a drizzle of honey on top

Enjoy

Rebecca x

Home grown sundried tomatoes

There is a cafe next door to where I work and as the creature of habit that I am I always order the same lunch when I decide to buy out. It's called the Italian, there is pesto mayo a sourdough roll and juicy sundried tomatoes amongst others.

Sundried tomatoes can a success or a complete disaster all chewy and bitter. So this summer when I had a bumper crop of juicy cherry tomatoes in my mini greenhouse I decided to make the most of them and make my own sundried tomatoes.

It can be a slow process but well worth it I promise.

For this recipe you will need:

Cherry tomatoes of any quantity

Salt and pepper to season

Good quality olive oil

Start by pre heating your oven to 90'c.

Wash your tomatoes and slice them all in half, then place them all on large baking tray.

Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper.

Pop the tray into the oven and set your timer for 2 hours and get on with joyous task of cleaning the house.

After 2 hours your tomatoes should look shrivelled but not cremated by roasting them on a low heat it will intensify the flavour while keeping them juicy.

Spoon the warm tomatoes into a sterilised jar and then pour in your olive oil until it covers the tomatoes. 

By doing this while the tomatoes are warm the oil will infuse with the tomatoes to make a gorgeous dressing or drizzle for future sambos YUM.

Enjoy

Rebecca x

Plum jam in a hurry

I love when plums are in season and even better when they are ripe and ready for the picking.

I picked up a punnet the other week while doing the weekly shop and I knew exactly what I was going to make JAM. Plum jam has the softest sweetest taste that you would be forgiven if you eat it straight from the jar.

This recipe will make you two jars of plum jam.

For this recipe you will need

500g of ripe plums

500g of caster sugar

2 tablespoons of water

1 lemon

Begin by putting the plums in a medium sized pot then pour in the water {I didn't remove the stones from the plums as I sieved the jam at the end}

Bring to the boil then reduce to a medium heat and let simmer until you see the skin begin to peel off.

With a wooden spoon stir the plums every now and then.

Next add in your sugar and and continue to stir until all the sugar has dissolved.

Cut your lemon in half and squeeze the juice in the pot then pop the remains of the lemon in also.

As your jam is cooking thoroughly wash your jars and pop them in a pre heated oven at 180 for ten minutes.

Let the jam bubble away on a low to medium heat and every 5-10 minutes check the jam on the back of a spoon, if you can run your finger down the center of it and it leaves a line that shows the jam is ready to be jarred.

I pushed the plum jam through a conical colinder so as to catch the stones and piths from the lemons. I then spooned the plump flesh from the plums into the jars leaving the stringy fibers behind.

Enjoy

Rebecca x

A speedy gluten free berry crumble

Two weeks ago I found myself in a dilly of a pickle {ha} I was popping into see the girls Nanny Jo and grandad but I had nothing sweet to bring with me. I like to bring in baked goodies from time to time, gotta keep them sweet...

Luckily for me I hord sweet ingredients in my freezer like berries, sometimes if I see a great offer on blueberries or blackberries in the shop il buy them and pop them in the freezer for such an occasion.

For this recipe you will need.

Crumble:

100g Ground almond

100g Ground oats

100g Butter

100g Light brown sugar 

Filling:

1 cup Blueberries 

1 cup Blackberries

1 cup Raspberries

1 grated apple

First pre heat your oven to 220'c. Next in a large bowl add your ground almond and oats, sugar then lastly your cold butter. 

With your fingers rub the butter into the dry ingredients, this will take a few minutes.

Once your crumble topping is ready put all your berries and grated apple into your oven proof dish I used an enamel dish but something like a pirex dish is perfect.

The crumble topping will have the consistsancy of a paste so dollop on the crumble with with your fingers or a spoon. 

I topped mine off with some flaked almonds and hazelnuts.

Bake your  berry crumble for 20 minutes at this point the topping should be a golden colour and the juice from the berries should be bubbling through it..

We gobbled this down with a generous dollop of custard...deelish 

Enjoy

Rebecca x

Lemony protein pancakes

I received a giant tub of lemon cheesecake protein powder a couple of weeks back and I knew straight away what I was going to make with it PANCAKES...

The thoughts of drinking it like a shake made my tummy flip so I decided to go down the route I know so well, baking and the likes. Even though I bake for a living I am very aware of what I eat so everything in moderation is the cheesy cliche I live by. Dance like nobody is looking is another but we'll leave my dancing skills for another day.

This is a super quick and convenient recipe and the quantities that I have worked out make the perfect portion for one..

For this recipe you will need:

1/3 cup of ground porridge oats

1/2 cup of protein powder {mine is lemon cheesecake flavour}

1 egg

Almond milk unsweetened

Raw coconut oil

Extra virgin olive oil

Firstly in a food processor blitz 1/3 cup of porridge oats for a few seconds until it turns into a flour like consistsancy.

Next add the porridge oats and 1/2 cup of protein powder in a bowl.

Add in the egg and 2/3 cup of almond milk and whisk together until the batter is lump free. You don't want your batter to be a thick consistsancy as the pancakes will end up quite dense which let's be honest would be gross.

If you feel you need to add another splash of almond milk please do as each brand can differ to the next ...

In a pan add 1 teaspoon of coconut oil and a small splash of olive oil, give it a swirl. I used my grannies big silver spoon do pour in the pancake batter as it gave the perfect pancake size. You definitely want something bigger than a dessert spoon but definitely smaller than a ladle.

This mixture makes 5 perfect pancakes...

A mid week treat but without going off the rails ha..

Enjoy

Rebecca x

My GIY guest blog #3

Over the past few months I have been lucky enough to guest blog on a fab gardening blog called www.beyondthewildgarden.com. Below is my third installment for my grow your own antics...

http://beyondthewildgarden.wordpress.com/2014/07/18/num-num-not-only-bakes-she-gardens-a-bountyful-table/

Home made lemonade

What a summer we are having it is one of the hottest days of the year and I'm lucky enough to be sitting out in the sun writing this blog.

I received a fabulous recipe the other day from Cloughjordan House cookery school and the timing couldn't have been better. 

It was their recipe for home made lemonade, and as my house always seems to have an endless supply of lemons in it for baking I was able to try it out straight away.

For this recipe you will need:

250g of sugar

250ml of water

3 lemons

3 limes

2.5 litres of water

To begin add your sugar and 250mls of water to a pot and heat. Peel the zest of one of the lemon and lime without the pith with a sharp knife and pop that in the pot with the sugar syrup. Bring this to the boil and stir until sugar has dissolved.

Once that is ready take it off the heat and get on with juicing your lemons and limes. Next add this to the sugar syrup then strain it all into a large carafe, lastly add in the icecold 1.5 litres of water with some ice and maybe a few slices of lemon and bobs your uncle you have yourself an amazing summer drink.

Mine lasted not even a days was practically hiding the carafe by the end from my family...{as I did not have any limes in the house while making this recipe I used 4 large lemons instead}