Nat's Ladle

Spinach, Watercress, Cucumber and Mint Salad

Published on January 16, 2014 by nathaliejasmin2019Leave a comment

It’s been hot in Melbourne the last days – extremely hot. The mercury has climbed to up to 44 °C, and it doesn’t want to budge! Now, when I said I was ready for summer, I certainly wasn’t expecting this! Come back, rain, I didn’t mean the things I said to you! Luckily, days like these are still the exception for finicky Melbourne weather, at least for several days in a row. But how to stay nice and cool when outside is a furnace and inside doesn’t have air con?

While hot weather like this makes your New Year’s resolutions to eat lighter easy, it is not always easy to decide what to eat on such a day. You usually don’t feel like much, but still, you need to live and provide your body the nutrients it loses while sweating!

The solution to this dilemma? My perfect cool summer salad – just right on days like this (or even just about any time of the year)! It is light and refreshing while filling, nutritious and wholesome! Spinach, watercress and cucumber provide vital micronutrients and fluids, while there’s protein for satiety from goat yoghurt and sheep’s cheese, complex carbs from chickpeas to get you through the day, and healthy fats from olives and avocado – now, if that doesn’t sound like it’s great for you! Moreover, this is also one of the most delicious salads I have ever experimented with! While the combination of cucumber, yoghurt and lemon is great by itself, fresh herbs from the garden like mint, basil, and parsley just take the flavour to the top!

Serves 2

1 large cucumber, washed and cubed
100 g spinach, silverbeet or kale, washed and roughly chopped
2 handfulls of watercress, washed and roughly chopped
1/2 Hass avocado, cubed
10 olives
2 tbsp chickpeas
60 g fetta or chèvre
250 g goat or sheep yoghurt, strained
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
parsley, basil and mint to taste

Prepare the dressing in a large bowl out of yoghurt, oil, lemon juice, herbs and spices. Add cucumber, spinach, cress, olives, chickpeas and mix well. Finally, add the avocado and crumble the cheese on top.

Enjoy!

Ultimate Detox Soup

Published on January 6, 2014 by nathaliejasmin2019Leave a comment

Do you have new year’s resolutions? Well, my hubby’s is to learn German (which is a very good resolution), I want to become a better baker in 2014, and chances are, you plan to eat healthier or make more home-cooked stuff instead of takeaways – in which case you have come to the right place!

Actually, the title is a little bit confusing – the soup we’re dealing with here is far from a tasteless broth fasting. In fact, it is a warming, hearty, thick, stew-like soup, which is very comforting on cold winter days (as they are now in the Northern Hemisphere), and at the same time, it is the perfect light soup to give your digestive system a break, reset your taste buds and gain back the energy you lost in a holiday-carbohydrate-induced stupor (and maybe lose a couple of pounds, too!).

The good thing is, my magical soup doesn’t taste like anything that resembles the words “diet” or “detox”, but it is pure goodness in a bowl, consisting of nothing but fresh vegetables, water, a dash of olive oil, lemon juice, and a few spices. There is no stock powder, no MSG, no unhealthy fats, no sugar whatsoever, and only minimal amounts of coarse sea salt.

It really is the easiest thing to do – just shovel all ingredients in a stock pot and simmer for 45 minutes. It is the ideal way to make use of any leftover veggies that are withering in your fridge. No excuse to throw away any food anymore! (I hate wasting food.) It is a very inexpensive pleasure, too (if you buy your veggies from the market). And you can adjust the flavour to your liking – use any veggies you like (or which need to go), use herbs and spices (I love spicy food, so I use liberal amounts of chili powder – very good for your metabolism -, paprika, black and red pepper, ginger, cardamom, coriander, nutmeg, you name it). You can use curry powder and a dash of coconut milk for an exotic flavour. Or you can just keep it basic with s+p, garlic, chives, and parsley. Or make it Mediterranean style with crushed tomatoes, basil, and oregano (and a bit of shredded Parmesan). The options are endless.

In taste and texture, this soup resembles a classic pea and ham soup – only far, far healthier! So, chances are, your family will love it too! I sometimes add a bit of protein such as marinated tofu or tempeh. It’s all yours to make this your personal detox soup.

Serves 6

1 kg fresh vegetables (e.g. leeks, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce, parsnips, turnips, peas, green beans, tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, celeriac, pumpkin, capsicum, squash…)
water to cover
herbs and spices (salt, pepper, paprika, chili, ginger, cardamom, coriander, nutmeg, oregano, parsley, basil, chives…)
extra virgin olive oil to taste
lemon juice to taste
any add-ons to serve (e.g. tofu, tempeh…)

Rinse, drain, and chop the veggies into 1-inch pieces. Place on the bottom of a heavy stock pot and cover with enough water. Bring to the boil, add herbs, spices, EVOO, and lemon juice, and simmer uncovered for 45-55 minutes. Take off the heat and purée with a stick blender. Serve by itself or with a protein add-on and fresh parsley.

Enjoy!

Gluten Free Vegan Banana Muffins with Maple Frosting

Published on January 4, 2014 by nathaliejasmin2019Leave a comment

Gluten Free Egg Free Banana Maple Muffins

Next time you see a bundle of overripe bananas in the supermarket marked down to next to nothing, don’t walk on by! There is sooo much you can do with ripe bananas! I just cut them up and chuck them in the freezer where they keep nicely until I want to create a recipe with them – or I just have them as they are! There is truly nothing more divine than frozen bananas, and they are great in smoothies and milkshakes, too!

My hubs asked me for some cakes he could take to work, so I made some banana muffins – some without frosting for on the road, and some with frosting for a little indulgence at home! These are wonderfully moist, packed with fiber from flax, and they are delicious in many ways. Due to the mashed banana inside, there is no need to add heaps of fat, so they are are a healthy ~~cheat~~ treat for those wathing their waste lines! The vegan maple frosting works beautifully with the banana flavour, too. Oh, and they are pretty foolproof, so you better start making them now – your kids will love you for these! (My hubby is a bit like a child in that he loves unhealthy things – he gobbled these up though, so I am secretly snickering behind his back that these are healthier than he thinks. I didn’t tell him about the flax!)

Makes 12 muffins

3 over-ripe bananas, mashed
100 g arrowroot starch
50 g white rice flour
50 g brown rice flour
100 g sugar or other sweetener (you should use at least some “real” sugar to achieve a nice texture and colour)
90 g low-fat vegan spread
50 g honey
30 g flax
3 tbsp almond milk
1 tbsp molasses
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp vanilla

Frosting
75 g powdered sugar
60 g low-fat vegan spread
5 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp almond milk
1 tsp vanilla

For the muffins, preheat oven to 180 ° C. Melt spread, sugar, honey, molasses and vanilla over low heat until spread is melted. Turn off the heat and whisk in the mashed bananas and almond milk (I know it’s tempting, but don’t eat this mix – at least not all of it!). Mix flours, flax, and soda in a different bowl, and slowly add banana-butter-mixture to the flour mixture. Mix until well combined, then scoop into muffin pan and bake for approx. 20 minutes or until muffins pass the skewer test. Turn off heat, let muffins rest in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn to wire rack and let cool completely.

Only scoop the frosting on top of the muffins once they have cooled down completely, as otherwise it will melt. Whip all ingredients for the frosting until light and fluffy, then store in the fridge until stiffened up and decorate the muffins.

Tip: Mix some walnuts or other nuts or chocolate chips mixed in the muffin batter.

Enjoy!

Almost Calorie Free Vanilla Almond Sorbetto

Published on January 1, 2014 by nathaliejasmin20191 Comment

As I have made icecream in pre-dairy free days, I knew that you needed to add some sort of sugar to achieve a consistency anyone would actually like to delve into – I was wrong.

In fact, you can make sugar-free icecream. This is obviously not your usual Sara Lee dessert – but the lack of sugar, fat and calories is worth the slightly more solid texture of this creation. You shouldn’t compare this to the industrialised icecream which has bucket loads of creepies, but as a dessert in its own right, which is easy, quick, inexpensive and very refreshing – perfect for those Aussie summer days when the mercury climbs over 35 ° C. Just to think that you can have ICECREAM without sending your blood sugar through the roof and making your pancreas work overtime?

It is possible, after all.

500 ml almond milk
2 tbsp stevia or erythritol
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients in a tupperware dish, then freeze until hard, break up and whip in your food processor until smooth.

Enjoy!

Sugar Free Homemade Jam aka World’s Healthiest, Easiest, Yummiest Jam

Published on December 28, 2013 by nathaliejasmin20194 Comments

Now that the gluten free bread dilemma is solved, it’s time to think about what to build on that foundation. There is obviously EVOO and coarse sea salt, there is goat’s cheese, nut butters – and then there is jam. The only problem is that in the course of the whole low-carb and paleo movement there is a certain scepticism towards jam. But is there anything nicer than homemade jam? For me, Sunday breakies with my fam evokes memories of warm bread rolls, real butter and loads of fruit jam. And before you send me a blood sugar check device, you might have a look at my low-carb breakfast bread – and my low-carb, completely sugar-free homemade jam!

Unfortunately, as an urbanista, I do not own my own fruit garden, so I use frozen raspberries. You are of course welcome to use any fruit you like, fresh, store-bought, home-grown or frozen. I have only tried this super easy recipe with frozen berries, so cannot vouch for the result of doing it with fresh berries, but I think it would work just as well.

This is the easiest jam you will ever make and it is super duper quick, too! Admittedly, this is not your typical preserve, so you cannot store it in the pantry, but in the fridge, and you should consume it ASAP. But you will never have had soooo much fruit goodness on your bread!

450 g frozen raspberries or berries of choice, thawed and puréed
2 tbsp stevia
1 tbsp arrowroot, dissolved in 1 tbsp water
1 tbsp lemon juice

Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and let simmer while constantly stirring until jam begins to thicken – it shouldn’t take too long. Turn off the heat and transfer jam to a small mason jar and refrigerate – jam will continue to thicken in the fridge. Use within two weeks.

Enjoy!

Gluten Free, Vegan, Low Carb Breakfast Bread

Published on December 28, 2013 by nathaliejasmin20195 Comments

Gluten Free Grain Free Bread full of Goodness

Due to my newly awakened love for homemade jams and nut butters, another gluten free bread was beckoning. I adapted this one from Elana Amsterdam‘s Bread 2.0, but I replaced the eggs with flax to make it truly vegan. I like eggs scrambled or poached on my breakfast plate, but I don’t want them in my bread! This bread is thus very high in fibre and therefore very satisfying – together with the high protein content from the almond and flax, it is ideal to keep you satisfied for a long time. That’s why I call it a breakfast bread – although it’s delicious any time of the day, it just gives you the power you need to perform until lunchtime!

The bread is soft and fluffy in a good way – not the “Aussie sliced sandwich bread style” type of soft. Its nutty aroma and texture which is faintly reminiscent of banana bread (only that there is no banana in it…duh) also makes it a healthy and satisfying afternoon snack, which is sure to keep the 3-4 PM slump at bay. It is very low carb which should be enough to convince even the die-hardest bread haters. This bread is only very lightly sweet; however, I prefer it with sweet spreads or nut butters rather than savoury spreads. Your choice!

Makes 1 small loaf

150 g almond meal
75 g arrowroot starch
25 g ground flaxseed plus 40 g ground flaxseed dissolved in 4 tbsp filtered water (“flax egg”)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
½ teaspoon baking soda
generous pinch of sea salt

As usual, mix the dry ingredients (almond meal, arrowroot, 25 g ground flaxseed, soda, salt) in a large bowl and the wet ingredients (flax egg, honey, ACV) in another bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well (use a hand mixer or your food processor). Scoop into greased or non-stick 10×20 cm loaf pan and bake at 150 °C for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before serving. Store in a ziplock bag in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Enjoy!

Vegan, Sugar Free, Paleo After Eight (Mint Chocolate Chip) Icecream

Published on December 15, 2013 by nathaliejasmin20193 Comments

It’s summer in Australia! And which foodstuff screams “summer” like no other? Icecreeeeeeeaaaaaam!!!! (Although I have it all year round…don’t judge). Well, I have mentioned before that I am a total icecream junkie – an obsession which was slightly compromised by the diagnosis of dairy intolerance. nevertheless, I have showed in the past that it is possible – and, in fact, delicious – to make healthy homemade dairy free (i.e. vegan) icecream.

I have become a little bit tired of coconut-based dairy-free icecreams, however. I have heard of avocado-based icecreams, but forgot about it, since I thought avocado in an icecream was pretty close to spinach in an icecream – it just doesn’t work. The other day, though, when I – after a long, avocado-less time – devoured a creamy, luscious, decadent Hass avocado, I just thought “there must be something to avocado icecream” – it is just soooo creamy and full-bodied, and it doesn’t have a strong flavour on its own, which makes it PERFECT for icecream. Most vegan icecreams are based on coconut and/or banana, but neither of these ingredients has a very neutral flavour. Avocado has. The only problem is – unlike banana and coconut, avocado has a VERY gaudy colour, so unfortunately, you ar epretty much confined to doing “green” icecream with it. This is not a problem though, as I have always been a huge fan of “after eight” or mint chocolate icecreams. I wanted to give it a try.

This is by far the best and creamiest icecream I have ever made, and the best thing is, this one really IS sugar free (just a bit of lovely honey). As the avocado is rather fatty, you don’t need any refined sugars to create this oh-so-good creamy icecream taste. It just tastes like your regular icecream from the shop! It also needs only five minutes of churning (you probably don’t even need an icecream maker), and you can serve it instantly or freeze it – it won’t affect the texture.

I was sceptical at first whether I should try creating an avocado-based icecream, as I didn’t want to waste my lovely avocados on a recipe which potentially wouldn’t work. Am I happy I did give it a shot! You cannot go wrong with this. Trust me.

I used regular chocolate chips for this (shhhh—-don’t tell anyone!), but you can buy paleo approved ones or make your own – so you can deffo make this a paleo icecream! Oh, and I call it an “After Eight” icecream, as that’s what “dinner mints” are called in Europe – you ought to have this cutie at any time of the day though! Hm…yum yum! Better get started right away!

Makes 1 small tub (500 ml) (for 2 gluttons like my hubbs and me or 4 normal people)

2 ripe Hass avocados (~200 g)
130 ml almond milk
3 tbsp raw honey
peppermint aroma/edible peppermint oil (to taste)
chocolate chips to taste (approx. 60-70 g)
optional: a few fresh peppermint leaves

Blend everything until well mixed. Refrigerate for at least six hours or overnight. Churn in icecream maker for approx. 5 minutes (not the usual 20 minutes). Enjoy chocolate peppermint bliss.

Enjoy!

No-Bake Homemade Gluten Free Granola aka World’s Yummiest Muesli

Published on December 13, 2013 by nathaliejasmin20191 Comment

Is your breakfast so delicious that you wish breakfast time would never end? No? Then it might be time for my homemade granola! This divine creation combines the right amount of crunchy with the right amount of chewy and a little bit of sin mixed in! The unique, unusual and super delicious taste stems from a dash of tahini (sesame paste) which also balances any excess sweetness. Hands down, you won’t want to stop sinking into this yummy goodness – if only it wasn’t so filling! This chocolate, sunflower, sesame and date granola doesn’t only taste awesome, it’s also awesome for you! Yummy goodness from healthy wholegrain rolled oats, magnesium and fibres from dates, and healthy fats from tahini and sunbutter – and it is easy, too! You don’t even need to rev up your oven!

200 g (certified gluten free) rolled oats (instant ones would probably work, too) (you can toast the oats before to get a crunchier granola, but it isn’t necessary)
100 g sunflower seed butter (sunbutter)
50 g tahini (sesame paste)
50 g dates, pitted, chopped
optional: chocolate chips, dried fruit, sunflower/pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds
100 g melted honey
pinch of salt

Mix all dry ingredients in a big bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in a different bowl until well combined. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix (with your hands) until very well combined and a sticky, crumbly mass – this will be veeery sticky, but that’s the fun part – you are officially allowed to lick your fingers!

Delicious Homemade Date and Sesame Granola

Press the granola mass into a 20×20 cm baking dish and freeze for a couple of hours. Tale the “granola cake” out of the dish and break into lumps. Enjoy with cold milk, yogurt or just as a snack.

Enjoy!

Gluten Free Yeast Free Wholegrain Pizza Base (Vegan)

Published on December 10, 2013 by nathaliejasmin20192 Comments

The good thing about experimenting is – even though it doesn’t always work, or, in fact, more often works NOT, you may stumble upon fantastic things you hadn’t imagined before. Take pita bread, for instance. I love falafel, just like anything else that belongs to Middle Eastern cuisine, and what is falafel without pita? So I tried to make pita – still working on it. My first tries were delicious enough, but they were not exactly pita, not enough pita to post a recipe on the web, anyway. However – my thought was “this would actually make quite a nice pizza”. Pita, pizza – the names are close enough, so I thought why not turn my pita experiment that didn’t work into a pizza experiment that works?

I must admit, pizza is one of the few things I genuinely miss being gluten free (having an Italian husband doesn’t help the cause!). Sometimes I would just like being lazy and grab one of these gluten-free pizza bases from the shop – a look at the ingredients (and nutrition facts) has so far been enough to deter me from wasting seven bucks on a processed gluten-free pizza base. Good on me!

It’s not that there is a lack of recipes for gluten free pizza out there, and I don’t doubt that they taste alright. But I just couldn’t find one that ticked all the boxes. Either they involved almond and/or coconut flour – and, as much as I like these two, almond and coconut just doesn’t belong on pizza! Or the recipes involved yeast and/or gums (a big no-no), or they seemed to be too complicated and involving too much time when you are hungry and impatient! I wanted a pizza recipe that doesn’t need proofing. I am not the biggest fan of a yeasty taste either, and I find it quite hard on the stomach which is not healthy.

This pizza is also WHOLEGRAIN – so it is really good for you. There is no complicated ingredients (you should have these when you have been baking gluten free), and if you get started right now, you could have a lovely healthy gluten free pizza that is delicious in less than 30 minutes. WTF? Exactly. My wholegrain pizza base ticks all the boxes. You can make this for your gluten-eating friends, and they won’t say “this is good for gluten free”, they will say “this is good”. In fact, I trust they will say “this is great”. Healthy? Tick. Easy? Tick. Yummy? You bet. And quicker than waiting for takeaway.

Makes one baking sheet of pizza (probably makes sense to double or triple using several sheets and freeze leftovers)

50 g buckwheat flour
50 g brown rice flour
30 g millet or oat flour
30 g ground flax seeds
1,5 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking soda
3 tsp vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
a pinch of sugar (or honey)
225 ml warm water
garlic powder (optional)
tomato paste (optional)
oregano
olive oil to top (optional)
toppings to taste

Preheat oven to 220 ° C. As usual, mix the dry ingredients (flours, soda, salt, flax, sugar, garlic powder if using) until one colour. Add water, oil and vinegar and mix until you have a supple, uniform dough – a bit like a muffin batter, rather than the pizza doughs you might have made with gluten flour. Let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes before spreading it on a very well-greased or silicon baking sheet – the thinner you spread it the better. After all, we want a nice Italian-style thin crust pizza, not one of these American grease bombs which are as thick as a quilt! With a wet spatula or spoon (or using your wet/oiled hands), flatten the dough so that it becomes nice and even. We don’t want a pizza that is thin in one corner and thick and doughy in the other!

Bake the dough without toppings for roughly 15 minutes until dry and pizza-like. Now comes the fun part – the toppings. You will probably want to spread some tomato paste and oregano on the pizza as a classic, although this is not even necessary. For the pizza in the picture, I used a mix of different vegetables (kale, peas, fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, capers) and some tempeh as vegan “ham”. Olives, sundried tomatoes and vegan cheese would also be a great additionI Just try whatever you fancy! I recommend sprinkling the top with a dash of olive oil, which works wonders for the flavour!

Now bake the pizza base with the toppings until they have reached the consistency you desire – probably another 10, 15 minutes. Devour.

Enjoy!

Homemade Apple Cinnamon Granola (Sugar Free, Nut Free, Wheat Free)

Published on December 8, 2013 by nathaliejasmin2019Leave a comment

Dear friends, Christmas is coming around veeeery fast – too fast if you ask me – but here in the Southern Hemisphere, the days are getting hotter, so the time for a big, steaming bowl of hot porridge are over – for now. It’s time t move on to a lighter breakfast snack, so I tried to make some homemade apple cinnamon granola – a light alternative to oatmeal without lacking a xmas-y touch.

Making granola is not as difficult as it sounds, and in fact, this granola is as HEY – healthy, easy, and yummy – as all my other recipes. You can make a big batch and store it in an open-mouth jar, where it will keep fresh for a while. My granola contains no sugar – only natural fruit sugars – and only a tiny pinch of healthy coconut oil, no other oils, especially not palm oil or other scary things! Besides, this one is nut-free (for a nutty granola see here), so even the nut allergy sufferers among you can enjoy their granola!

I love this as a healthy snack by itself, a nourishing breakfast with almond milk or natural yogurt, or to add some pizzazz to fruit salads and compôtes.

Makes 4 servings

200 g rolled oats
50 g dried apple (unsweetened), very finely chopped
2 tbsp raw honey , agave or maple syrup
15 g coconut oil, melted
generous pinch of cinnamon
generous pinch of sea salt
drop of vanilla

Preheat oven to 150 °C. Combine oats, fruit, cinnamon, and salt in a big bowl. Whisk honey, oil and vanilla in a separate bowl until well combined. Now pour the “wet” ingredients into the “dry” ingredients and mix well with your clean hands as if you prepare a shortbread dough. Be warned though, this is veeery sticky – but the good thing about making homemade things is, you get to lick your fingers legitimately! (And you will with this one, you will!)

Now spread (what’s left of) the mix (after finger-licking) onto a prepared baking sheet (i.e. silicon sheet or a lined baking sheet) and bake for 10-15 minutes until very lightly toasted. Let cool and refrigerate.

Enjoy!