triple chocoate flapjack - pure indulgence for the WI party!

Although I love Christmas cake, Christmas pudding, mince pies, Stollen and all the other delicious goodies packed with dried fruits of all descriptions (well, except bananas, of course, I wouldn't want to be ill, now, would I?) I know that there are others who dislike dried fruit products for whatever reason.  In fact, the top tier of our wedding cake was Victoria sponge as my ex-husband was just such a person!

So ... this is an indulgent treat for those who choose not to participate in the fruity side of Christmas fare - it's only fair that they should get a treat too, and there's nothing to say that you can't share it, now is there?

You've all heard of flapjack, and probably made it.  Usually it's a golden brown, sweet chewy bar, but not very exciting.  I hear you saying, but it's not indulgent.  However, this is triple chocolate flapjack.  Yes, that's right, three forms of chocolate going on in here, if that's not indulgent, I don't know what is!  No, it's not healthy - it's not supposed to be, it's a treat, and treats are allowed to be unhealthy - in fact they probably should be.

It was my local WI Christmas party this afternoon, and I wanted to take along something that was vegan, gluten free, but wouldn't make everyone run away in horror at the thought of it - you know how some people can be "Oh, it's vegan, I don't eat vegan food!", or  "Oh, well, I won't have any because I can eat normal foods."  I decided to make these to take along as most people eat chocolate, and they look "normal"!  

Alas, my cupboard had run out of golden syrup, so I had to make an emergency dash down the road to buy some before I could continue with the baking.  Still, the excercise must have burned off at least half a slice worth of calories, mustn't it? :-)

Triple Chocolate Flapjack

100g margarine
75 g golden syrup
75g soft brown sugar
75g plain chocolate
290g rolled oats
40g cocoa
plus
50g plain chocolate for topping - you could go mad here, and use one of the lovely spiced bars - well, it is Christmas!

Put the oven on to heat at 180C, gas 4, 350F.  Grease a shallow baking tin approx 11" by 7", or line with silicone, or non-stick sheet if you prefer.

Melt the syrup, margarine, sugar and 75g chocolate in a large glass bowl in the microwave, or in a saucepan if you prefer.
Sieve the cocoa and mix with the oats.  Stir into the melted ingredients.

Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for about half an hour until firming nicely.  Allow to cool in the tin for about five minutes, then mark into fingers or squares and allow to go cold.  I was told that only 'finger food' should be taken for the party, so I cut mine into small squares so that they looked dainty, rather than the more usual finger shapes.

When cold, remove from the tin and break into the shapes you marked.

Melt the 50g of plain chocolate and spread over the fingers or squares.

I placed each square in a paper case as they were going to be on the buffet table.

Enjoy.  Or, give to someone else to enjoy!



Wheat-free apple cake with no added sugar- use those windfall apples!

So, back to the apples!  Occasionally I enjoy a slice of cake;  I don't mean an airy-fairy gateau, which is fine to end a meal, but a slice of good, wholesome cake to enjoy with a cup of tea or coffee.  It has to be a slice of something which will be simple to eat, no cake forks necessary, and satisfying - there must be some substance to it - something to get my teeth into and enjoy.

This apple cake ticks all the boxes, and, importantly at the moment, it utilises some of those apples.  Windfalls, or those mis-shapen ones are ideal as they're going to be grated.

You'll need:
200g flour, I used barley, but to make it gluten free choose your own favourite flour(s) - maybe rice and potato, or gram and soya 
half a teaspoon each of cinnamon and mixed spice - to taste
half a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
100g margarine
275g mixed dried fruit, I used raisins, sultanas and chopped dates
230g coarsely grated cooking apples (eating apples will give a sweeter cake, and the texture will be slightly different)
2 tsps of egg replacer made up with 4 tblsps of water or fruit juice

Rub the fat into the sifted flour, spices and bicarb until it's like breadcrumbs.

Coarsely grate the apple; I leave the skins on mine as they're organic, but you can peel yours if you like.  The weight given is of the grated apple, which, in my case, equated to two large and two medium windfall apples once I'd cut off the bruised and battered sections!

Mix the fruits into the dry mixture, then bind with the egg replacer liquid.  Turn into an 8" lined cake tin and bake in a moderate oven, 175C in my fan oven, 180C, 350F or gas mark 4 otherwise.

 Bake for about an hour and a quarter, more or less depending on your oven, the flour used etc.  Test with a warmed skewer inserted in the centre - it it comes out clean, it's done:-)  If not, give it a further quarter of an hour and test again.  It should be a lovely golden brown - rather like the splendid one below, which has been allowed to cool completely before slicing.

Many fruit cake recipes tell you to shake your dried fruit with flour to avoid the problem of all the fruit sinking to the bottom of the cake, but, as you can see, it's certainly not necessary in this recipe.

Now, time to put the kettle on, I think:-)

Apples, again! Make your own mincemeat for Christmas mince pies :-)

We love Christmas cake, mince pies, Christmas pudings and anything full of fruits, so tasty:-)

Another good use for the windfall apples, and less than pretty ones, is to make your own mincemeat - ready for baking those mince pies that will permeate the whole house with heady scents of fruit and spices.

This is another really simple recipe, so you have no excuse not to try it.

I took:

400g grated cooking apples
100g margarine
300g raisins

300g sultanas

300g chopped dates

200g unrefined sugar
half a teaspoon each of cinnamon, mixed spice, nutmeg and cumin
2 lemons, zest and juice
4 tblsps fresh orange juice

60ml brandy

 

Toss everything, except the brandy, into a large ovenproof dish and stir thoroughly. I use a dessert spoon to measure out the margarine, and you don't need try to break it down into tiny pieces, it's going to melt to make your life easier!

grated zest

dried fruit

I grated the apple straight onto the lemon zest and juice



I used a spoon to measure out the margarine



roughly stir everything together

Place in the centre of an oven pre-heated to 115C for a fan oven, 120C, 250F or gas mark 1/2 for half an hour. Remove from the oven and give it a really good stir to mix everything. The margarine should be very soft and creamy now, and stirring well helps to coat everything with a fine coating of fat which helps it to keep.

place back in the oven

Replace in the oven for a further half an hour, then remove, stir again and allow to cool before adding in the brandy. Stir again then decant into containers and store in the fridge.



after an hour it will look like this



when it's cool, stir in the brandy

I admit to enjoying a spoonful in with my fruit smoothies at breakfast sometimes, on those grey, rainy days when I feel the need for more "comfort" food :-)

Apples everywere!!

Well, ok, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but for my small garden, I have harvested many pounds of organic apples.

It's a perennial problem, isn't it, what to do with them all?  I was impressed that a couple of schools have joined together in an attempt to avoid the inevitable waste of fruit, by encouraging parents, neighbours etc to donate their unwanted apples to the schools, who will press the fruit to produce fresh juice for the children.  A great idea - I hope lots of people take them up on it.

One of my favourite ways of using my apples is stuffing them and baking them.  You'll need an apple per person and a jar of mincemeat for the simple version.

Wash the apples well, I use a soft vegetable brush to ensure they're really clean.  Take out the cores; I use an apple corer - you can see how neatly it does it above.  Take a sharp knife and score around the centre of each apple - this enables the apples to rise and avoids the mess of exploding apples!

Arrange the apples in an ovenproof baking dish, and fill each cavity with mincemeat.

Bake the apples in a moderate oven until they have softened, this will take about half an hour or so, depending on your oven and the size of the apples.  Can you see how the skins have parted where I scored them, allowing the apples to sort of souffle up?  The apples will produce a little sauce as they give up some juice which mixes with the mincemeat.  Delicious:-)

If you don't have mincemeat in the cupboard, you can stuff them with any dried fruit to hand.  If you have a really sweet tooth, you might feel the need to drizzle a little maple syrup into the cavity, or some unrefined sugar.  You could also add some chopped nuts for a little "bite". 

I serve mine naked, or simply with a dollop of yoghurt, David enjoys his with custard.  You might like your with ice cream - but whatever topping you choose, I hope you enjoy them.

Time to bake the Christmas cake!

I don't know about you, but I like to bake my Christmas cake at this time of year so that it has time to mature; I find the flavours mellow and blend together.  I also "feed" it by pricking the surface and pouring over a tablespoon or so of brandy every few weeks.

So, line a 9" cake tin ( I use pre-shaped paper cases that I bought in a catering shop that was closing down!), and bake my wheat free, vegan Christmas cake:

500g mixed dried fruit, I used sultanas, raisins, candied peel

125g chopped dates
25g glace cherries, chopped
4 fruit tea bags, I used mandarin and ginger
500ml boiling water
125g margarine
80g unrefined sugar
1½ tblsp molasses (45ml)
250g barley flour (or any other you choose)
125ml fruit soaking liquid
3 tblsp mixed spice

Put the dried fruit, except the cherries, into a container with the tea bags, pour over the boiling water.  Stir and leave overnight to soak.  This will ensure your cake is moist as the fruit won't be leaching up the liquid in the cake mix.

Drain off the liquid and put to one side, above you can see the plumped up fruit - compare that to what your looks like in the packet, and you'll see why it's worthwhile soaking the fruit!
Beat the margarine and sugar together, then add the molasses, soaking liquid and spice.  Sieve the flour on top.

 Stir the flour in carefully until it's well blended.

 Add the soaked fruit and the chopped glace cherries, they are usually so moist that they don't need soaking.

 Mix the fruit in so that it's evenly distributed.

 Spoon into the lined tin and level off.  This cake has no raising agents, you will have noticed, so it's not going to rise.  Bake for about 3 hours at 145C in a fan oven, about 150C, 300F or gas mark 2 if you don't have a fan oven.  Test with a skewer, and if it comes out clean, it's done, if some mixture is sticking to the skewer, give it another fifteen minutes then try again.  At this temperature it's unlikely to burn, so don't worry!

 It should look something like this when it's baked:-)  I didn't cover my cake, although many people do - I don't find it's necessary.

It's simple to make, tastes great, so what are you waiting for?

Organic Fortnight - Simple Mushroom Paté

It’s Organic Fortnight, apparently. To celebrate, I made this simple, yet delicious, Mushroom Paté to celebrate. Here's the recipe:-

300g mushrooms, wiped and chopped
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
1 tin pinto beans, drained
3 cloves garlic , peeled and crushed
1tblsp olive oil

Nutmeg
Salt and pepper

Sprigs of marjoram and thyme

Simply heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan, and sauté the onion for five minutes.  Add the garlic and chopped mushrooms and cook until just tender.

Stir in the beans and heat through.

Add freshly chopped herbs, ground nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste.

Blitz in a food processor.  Put into ramekin dishes and chill.

Serve with toast or crackers and wedge of lemon.

I love it when food is simple to prepare, tastes great and is good for me, don’t you?

It's Zero (food)waste week, did you know?

Logging onto the Oofo site I discovered that it's Zero Waste Week! This is what they have to say:

"Monday 6th September will see the start of the third national "Zero Waste Week". This year's theme is 'Cooking for Victory' in response to WRAPS "household Food and Drink Waste in the UK" report. The report shows we throw away 8.3 million tonnes of food and drink every year. Most of this is avoidable and could have been eaten if we had planned, stored and managed it better. In support of the campaign VegBox Recipes have created a handy guide to eating left-overs."

I try not to waste food, but I have to admit that occasionally, some food does get binned; not a lot, and not often, honestly, hand on heart etc. I'm a dab hand at turning left over veggie into curries or soups, and found it interesting that Oofo has compiled a helpful guide to using left-overs

Paste this very long code into your browser to access the page - I'm hoping they'll tell me how to paste a simple link here to replace it, but at the moment, this is all I've managed to copy, sorry!!!
 
http://go2.wordpress.com/?id=725X1342&site=adurgreens.wordpress.com&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsut3.co.uk%2Fclickthrough.php%3FiD%3D4%26iItem%3D107301%26iLink%3D29281611%26strUnique_ID%3D11883656754ea3fa6f40738570b47f%26strUrl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fblog.ooffoo.com%2Fblogs%2F2010%2F08%2F29%2Fhandy-guide-to-eating-left-overs%2F&sref=http%3A%2F%2Fadurgreens.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F02%2Fzero-waste-week%2F
 
If you do find you throw food away, you might just discover some useful ideas to recycle your left-overs into something tasty - and imagine how virtuous you'll feel:-)

Vegan tofu "cheesecake". low cholesterol but just as tasty:-)

When I became vegan I was determined not to give up the foods I enjoyed - I love my food, including desserts, and cheescakes were always amongst my favourites.

This very easy mock cheesecake, based on one served at On The Eighth Day in Manchester, hits the spot each time, and is the one I make most often.  The top can be decorated in any way you choose, I like to use poached frruit, particularly blackcurrants, as the contrast in colours is so dramatic, but you go for whatever you like - chocolate curls?  strawberries?  raspberries?  mandarin segments?  Indulge yourself safe in the knowledge that your cholesterol intake is fine, despite the indulgent taste - yay:-)

Base:
300g of either sweet biscuit (cookie) crumbs, or, as I prefer, plain rye crackers
175g melted margarine, I use soya

Crush the biscuits and mix with the melted margarine.  Told you it was easy!

Filling:
1 x 297g pack of soft, firm tofu - drain off the excess liquid
2 x lemons - you need to zest them, then juice them
50g cornflour
3tblsps golden syrup, or other sweetener
450ml water
You may want to add a little sugar to taste, depending on your tastebuds, this is not a super-sweet dessert.

Pack the crumb base into a well-greased 8" diameter flan dish.  I use one with a loose base so that it's easy to de-mould, but then, I'm lazy:-)

In a pan, heat the water, golden syrup and cornflour until boiling, make sure you stir constantly to avoid lumps forming - you do want a smooth cheesecake, don't you?  Reduce the heat and simmer until thickened.

Remove from the heat and add the strained tofu and lemon zest and juice.  Blend well, I use a stick blender in the pan, then pour onto the base and place in the fridge to chill and set.

It's as simple as that.  It tastes lovely and fresh as it is, but, as I say, you can tart it up with fresh or poached fruit, in which case, serve a little of the fruit's liquor with it as a sauce.

Why do I feel hungry now????????  Enjoy:-)