chocolate chip cookies with almonds and oats

I have to admit that it was my plan to post more recipes on the blog before the holidays but somehow other things got in the way. Let me make it up with cookies. I was baking with my kids on Thursday when I decided to do a little experiment and this recipe is the result. I baked the cookies again yesterday just to make sure that our taste buds hadn't been fooling us and they were just as good. My kids don't like dark chocolate so I use organic semi sweet chocolate in mine. You can also use organic milk chocolate if you want. And if you want to use more chocolate then that is fine too, just make sure you don't overdo it because the cookies are sugary enough.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES WITH ALMONDS AND OATS

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large egg
• 70 g raw cane sugar, organic
• 2 tablespoons agave nectar
• 2 tablespoons organic peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 30 g spelt flour
• ½ teaspoon gluten free baking powder
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
• 50 g rolled oats
• 70 g almonds, chopped
• 70 g organic chocolate, semi sweet or dark, chopped

METHOD

1. In a large bowl, combine the egg, sugar, agave nectar, peanut butter and coconut oil (if the oil is solid, place the jar in a bowl of hot water before use)
2. In a small bowl, combine the spelt flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder and add it to the wet ingredients
3. Add the rolled oats and chopped almonds and mix gently (I chop the almonds in a food processor)
4. Chop the chocolate, add it into the bowl and mix gently
5. Place baking parchment on a large baking tray
6. Drop a tablespoon of batter onto the baking parchment and make sure to leave some space between each cookie. I get about 24 cookies from the batter and bake 12 at a time
7. Bake at 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 for 12 minutes
8. The cookies are soft when they come out of the oven so allow them to cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool further or serving

carrot muffins

Is it obvious that I like baking muffins? I have plenty of muffins recipes in my notebook and every time I think about what to post there is this voice inside that says no, you cannot post yet another muffins recipe. I find it a bit funny that in early 2009 I had never in my life baked muffins. I have no idea what was stopping me but after my first try there was no going back. My friend (Cafe)Sigrun was of course my inspiration; she was always talking about these amazing muffins she was making and one day I thought to myself that's it, now I'll give it a go and I went muffin pan shopping. I'm not pretending to invent the wheel with this recipe, I think the ingredients are pretty basic, but as you know I never use butter when baking and I don't drown my recipes in oil. Personally, I love using chopped pecans or walnuts in carrot muffins but my younger daughter is going through a phase where she doesn't want nuts in anything (too long phase, if you ask me!). As I like to make these for the children I leave the nuts out.

CARROT MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS

• 250 g spelt flour, a blend of wholegrain and fine (2 cups)
• 2½-3 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1-1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½-1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• optional: ⅛-¼ teaspoon cardamom
• optional: ⅛-¼ teaspoon clove
• 1 large egg, free-range/organic
• 100 g organic raw cane sugar (½ cup)
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup or agave
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil or other fine vegetable oil
• 75-90 ml (5-6 tablespoons) organic vanilla yoghurt (or plain yoghurt + ¼-½ teaspoon organic vanilla sugar)
• 175 g coarsely grated carrots (two carrots)

Update 4 October 2012: I was asked in an email how I make these with nuts. Usually, I use chopped walnuts and I use about 50 grams, which is about ½ cup. And when I use nuts I only use ½ tablespoon of oil because the fat from the nuts is enough. The muffins get too sticky in my opinion if I use 1 tablespoon.

METHOD

1. In a large bowl, combine the spelt flour, baking powder, salt, and spices. Set aside
2. In a medium bowl, combine the egg, sugar, maple syrup and coconut oil (if the oil is solid, place the jar in a bowl of hot water before use). Then add the vanilla yoghurt and combine
3. Coarsely grate the carrots
4. Add the wet ingredients and the grated carrots (and walnuts if using) into the large bowl and mix gently. Make sure not to stir, the texture of the dough should be rather light
5. Lightly grease a silicon muffin pan with some coconut oil and fill each muffin cup about two-thirds to the rim (makes 12-14 muffins)
6. Bake at 180-190°C/350-375°F/gas mark 4-5 for 20-25 minutes (fan oven: 175°C/325°C/gas mark 3)
7. Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool in the tins for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack

couscous salad with lime dressing

This simple and easy to make salad has been quite often on the menu this summer, or since we got back from a short trip to London in June. I bought a couscous salad in the Whole Foods Market on Kensington High Street to eat on the way back home and it tasted so delicious that I decided to use it as an idea for my own summer salad. This is one of my experiments and, in fact, I'm enjoying it while creating this post. The salad I bought was quite different and it had chickpeas in it but my experiments started with kidney beans and pinto beans. Actually, the only time we found it dull was when I used chickpeas. Maybe it needed to sit longer before serving, I don't know. It just didn't taste the same. As I said, it's easy to make so I like having it for lunch and then I use the rest as a side dish with dinner that same day. It goes really well with chicken and all kinds of grilled meat. There are many types of couscous available on the market, I use organic one from Rapunzel.

COUSCOUS SALAD WITH LIME DRESSING

INGREDIENTS

SALAD

• 200 g organic couscous (1 cup)
• 300 ml water (250 ml = 1 cup)
• 1 can kidney beans (400 g)
• 100 g sweetcorn (½ cup)
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 orange, diced
• optional: ½ red onion, finely chopped

DRESSING

• 3-3½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (you will need two limes)
• 1½-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Himalaya or sea salt
• ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric

METHOD

SALAD

1. Start with preparing the couscous which is very simple: Put couscous and water into a small saucepan, bring to boil (happens fast), remove immediately from heat, cover with lid and let it sit for about 10-15 minutes
2. Rinse and drain the beans and sweetcorn and keep them in a colander until ready to use (I use organic sweetcorn that I buy in glass jars)
3. Remove the seeds and dice the red pepper
4. Peel the orange with a sharp knife and try to remove all the pith. Cut the orange in half and dice it (make sure you are using a good and tasty orange)
5. If using the half red onion, peel it and chop finely (I recommend it for the salad as it adds a good taste)
6. Put all the ingredients into a big salad bowl and mix together

DRESSING

1. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt and spices
2. Drizzle some of the dressing over the salad and mix together, repeat two or three times until you have used up all the dressing
3. Leave the salad to stand for about 10 to 20 minutes while the flavours are developing
4. Serve as a main course with bread or as a side dish with, for example, grilled meat

Please note, do not keep the orange or limes in the fridge before preparing the salad. In an airtight container you can keep the salad in the fridge for 2-3 days.