Lactofree spreadable butter

22. December

Wooohoo, Lactofree have just launched a new product, Lactofree spreadable butter, and I was so happy when I got my first packs that I almost cried of happiness and had a little dance at home. This might be very weird for some people, but when you are as big a foodie as me and have been missing butter so much, this is like winning the lottery.
And I am so amazed by this products, because at first I was a little disappointed in it not being real butter and spreadable, because it isn't normally as good in baking, but I found that this firm up more than normal spreadable, which makes it perfect for things like cookies where it needs to hold the shape.
Of course you still have the option of making your own butter, but it is nice to just be able to buy and spread you bread without having to put a lot of physical work into it.

I already have some recipes where I have used Spreadable, and I have some more to come, but for now, have a look at these.

Chocolate Peanut Crunch Squares

Spiced Christmas cookies

Minced puff swirl

Oat truffles

Nut-Mushroom roast

Get more information on www.lactofree.co.uk

 

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Coconut Fudge

21. December

This recipe is very difficult to make, and shouldn't be made unless you are very confident in the kitchen and you have a pre knowledge of candy making.

This is an adaptation of a Martha Stewart recipe, and you can see a video of how the original is made here.

 
60g Coconut oil, room temperature, plus more for baking sheet
400g Sugar
1 can of coconut milk
300g dairy free dark chocolate

Oil a rimmed baking sheet; set aside.
Mix sugar and coconut milk together in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Place over medium-low heat and bring to a boil, until mixture reaches 115°C on a candy thermometer, 40 to 50 minutes. Add the coconut oil and let the temperature reach 115°C again.
Pour mixture onto prepared baking sheet in an even layer. Let cool ½-1 hours, until it is not too hot for the hands to handle. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Using your hands, begin to pull and press the mixture. Keep pulling and kneading mixture until it lightens in colour, loses its shine, and no longer sticks to your fingers, 15 to 45 minutes. Roll mixture into small balls, about 1 inch in diameter. Place on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until firm and cold, about 10 minutes. Or spread out on a small baking tray lined with baking paper, cool and cut into 1.5x1.5 inches squares.
In a heatproof bowl set over (but not touching) simmering water, melt chocolate. Using a toothpick or a fork, dip each ball or squares into chocolate mixture, and return to baking sheet. Refrigerate until fudge is chilled and chocolate has set, about 30 minutes.

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Chocolate Peanut Crunch Squares

Normaly a bit nicer looking, but left them out a bit to long before cutting.

19.December

This is a bit of a re-post (se here), but know a few have been put off by the use of coconut milk and oil in the other recipe, so thought I would make one using lactofree cream insted.

This recipe is a big hit every time I make them, and I even have people requesting them when they come around. They make the best christmas treats or home made presant.

Chocolate peanut crunch:

200g honey combe chopped into small pieces not bigger than a peanut size (recipe below)
300g Salted peanuts
400g dark chocolate dairy free
100g golden syrup
50ml Lactofree cream or 75g Lactofree spredable butter

1.       In a bowl mix the peanuts and chopped up honey combe.

2.       Put the Chocolate, golden syrup and cream in a small saucepan and let is slowly combine while stiring over a low heat.

3.       Pour the chocolate mixture into the bowl with the peanuts and honey combe and combine gently using a wooden spoon.

4.       When all the peanuts and honey combe is covered in the chocolate mixture, spread it into a 20 x 20 cm baking tray lined with baking paper and pad it down with the back of the spoon. Put in the fridge to set for a few hours and cut into small squares.

Honey Combe:

200g sugar
200g golden syrup
1 teaspoon carbonate of soda

Normally when making honey combe just for eating and not as an ingredient in a recipe, you would add more carbonate of soda, but because this is going in the recipe, I am only using a 1/3 of what I normally use so they don’t break as easily.
It is a good idea to read the recipe through before starting and have all the ingredients and tools ready for this recipe.

1.       Put the sugar and syrup into a medium saucepan and stir together to mix. You mustn't stir once the pan's on the heat, though.

2.       Place the pan, on the heat and let it slowly come to a boil, let it boil for about 3-4 min on medium heat, it is done when the some of bubbles starts turning a bit darker almost a bit of a burnt colour.

3.       Take the pan of the hear, then whisk in the bicarbonate of soda, the mixture will bubble up and you need to work a bit fast here as you don’t want to ruin the bubbles but you also want to make sure the soda has been mixed with all the syrup.

4.        Turn this immediately onto a piece of baking paper, don’t spread it with a spoon or touch it in any way just let it do its own thing.

5.       Leave until set and cool, doesn’t take long but make sure it is completely set before using for the chocolate peanut crunch.

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Spiced Christmas cookies

17. December

These are a very traditional kind of Danish Christmas cookie, and they are actually quite easy to make, as it doesn't involve rolling out dough.

250g Lactofree spredable butter or homemade butter
250g dark brown sugar
125g golden syrup
500g plain white flour
1 teaspoon carbonated soda
100g blanched almonds
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground all spice
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cloves

Melt in a pan butter, sugar and syrup and stir together until completely melted and incorporated. Set aside to cool a bit.
Sift together all the dry ingredients.
Stir in the dry ingredients in the butter sugar mass, a little at a time until it is all incorporated.
Add the almonds whole to the dough and mix together.
Divide the dough in 2 or 4 pieces and in a piece of cling film wrap each piece of dough like a small sausage.
put in fridge to set, and in the first 10-15 minutes turn the dough every few minutes for it to keep it's shape.
Let it set in the fridge for at least 24 hours, but it could easily keep a few week, and then just take out a piece whenever you want some freshly baked cookies.
Cut the dough in slices of 0,2 inches/0,4 cm, and place on a baking sheet covered with baking paper.
Bake for 6-8 minutes at 175°C

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Mini Pies

16. December

Again this is a bit of a cheat recipe, but let's you got to love a bit of a cheat when arranging a party some times.
See my other recipe with readymade pastry

1 readymade rolled short crust pastry (I used Sainsbury own)
finely grated Lactofree cheese
Store bought or homemade tomato sauce.
Egg for brushing.

Roll out the pastry and using a glass, cut out as many circles as possible.
Fill the small circles with ½ teaspoon sauce and a bit of cheese (don't over fill, otherwise they will be difficult to close). fold the circle in half and close up using a forks to press the edges together, use a bit of water as glue if they are not sticking.
brush with a bit of egg wash (as I forgot) and bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown.

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Pigs in a cheesy blanket

15. December

These are just the perfect party food for any age.
You can youse any kind of coctail sausage, but if you are using uncooked sausage you need to be aware that they are cooked all the way through.

80 cocktail sausages
400g plain white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
200g finely grated lactofree semi hard cheese
200ml lactofree milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar
1 eggs
3 tablespoons light olive oil or vegetable oil
eggs for brushing

Preheat the oven to 200°C
In a bowl pore in the milk and lemon juice/vinegar, and set aside (it will start clumping a bit, but that is what you want, it is what makes milk into a butter milk substitution) .
In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, salt en cheese in a bowl using a fork  not to overwork it.
Add the oil and egg to the milk and whisk all together.
Still using a fork, slowly add the milk mixture to the flour slowly working it together, being care full not to overwork it, you just want it to come together but still be a light dough.
It is okay if the dough is still a bit sticky to the touch, but if it is to sticky add a bit more flour, or if to dry add a bit more milk.
Divide the dough in 2 and on a well floured surface roll out the dough sections one at a time, as thin as possible.
Cut out the dough in 2x3 inch (4x6 cm) sections, and roll up each sausage in a piece of dough and place on a baking tray covered with baking paper.
Whisk up an egg with a bit of milk, and brush the dough and sausages.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes until golden brown. 

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Minced puff swirl

14. December 

Did you know that a lot of the readymade puff pastry and short crust pastry is dairy free?
This obviously makes being lactose intolerant a lot easier, because who has time to make everything from scratch.
These little minced puff swirls (lack of a better name), is so easy to make and will satisfy your mince pie craving. 

1 roll of readymade puff pastry (I used Sainsbury own)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1-½ jar of fruit mincemeat
Lactofree spredable or homemade butter

Preheat the oven to 200°C
Roll out the puff pastry, and spread a thin layer of margarine/butter all over.
Sprinkle the cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of the sugar on top of the margarine/butter.
Spread out the mincemeat and roll the puff pastry back up.
cut up into 15 equal size pieces and transfer back to the baking paper.
Sprinkle the last tablespoon of sugar on top and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

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Oat truffles

12. December

These truffles are the perfect recipe to make with kids, and they will absolutely love to eat them to.

They are so easy to make with no cooking involved  and because they need time to set in the fridge, it gives kids a bit of a break as well, so they don't need to keep the concentration for too long at a time.

250g porridge oats
200g sugar
100g Lactofree spreadable butter or homemade Butter
3 tablespoons coco powder
5-10 drops of rum essence (or 2 tablespoons Rum if it is only for grownups )
4-6 tablespoons lactofree cream
Desiccated coconut 

Bring together oats, sugar, butter and cocoa powder using your hands.
Ad the rum/rum essence and cream a little at a time until it all comes together.
Transferee to a bowl and cover, place in the fridge for minimum 1 hour or until it is completely firm.
Put some coconut in a plate or bowl, ready for rolling.
Take a teaspoon full of truffle mix and roll it between the hands till it comes together to a round ball, roll it in the coconut and place in a airtight container.
Store the oat truffles in the fridge until serving.

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Sweetcheeks

Sweetcheeks christmas selection 2011

11. December

I have loved Sweetcheeks cakes ever since I bought some cupcakes at the allergy show earlier this year, and now whenever I am in London on a Saturday, I always swing by the Marylebone High Street Market to try a few new flavours.

Sweetcheeks cakes are all Vegan and Gluten free, than means no dairy, eggs or flour. You might think that sound dull, but believe me these cakes are anything but dull, they are the most moist and flavourful cakes you will ever buy. And an extra bonus is that because they use good fats, no eggs and agave nectar when can, they are a bit healthier and lower in calories then normal cakes.

Catherine from Sweetcheeks has been so kind as to let me share one of her cupcake recipes with you on my blog, so if you don't live in the London area, you can make your own amazing cupcakes at home. 

Ingredients 60g rice flour 230g potato flour 120g corn flour 1.5 tbsp gluten free baking powder 1/2 tsp xanthan gum 1/2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp salt 160ml canola oil 320ml agave nectar or fructose syrup 180g plum puree (bake about 4 plums then mash away) 240ml warm water 1 tbsp vanilla essence Handful of vegan white chocolate drops Handful of fresh raspberries

Method 1. Set the oven to 150 C / gas mark 2, and line muffin tins for 24 cupcakes. 2. Sift all the dry ingredients into a bowl together and mix. 3. Add the oil, nectar, puree and water and stir well until the lumps have gone. 4. Then add the raspberries and crumble the white chocolate into the mix and stir well. 5. The mix should be the between the consistency of dough and custard. 6. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases about 2/3 full 7. Put into the oven for 18 minutes (rotating the tins after about 12 minutes) 8. The cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. 9. Leave the cupcakes to cool For the Frosting 115g vegetable shortening 115g soya margarine 500g sifted icing sugar Splash of soya milk Raspberry juice 1. Whisk the margarine and shortening together until smooth 2. Gradually add the icing sugar and blend well until fluffy 3. Add a splash of soya milk and raspberry juice (to make it easier to pipe the frosting and give it good flavour and a dash of colour) 4. Pipe onto the cooled cupcakes and sit back with a cuppa and enjoy.

Note: All the ingredients might seem very foreign to some, but they can all be bought in any good supermarket. And if making your own plum puree seems a bit daunting you could try and replace it with un-sweetened applesauce. 

For more information on how to get a hold of your own Sweetcheeks cakes, visit the Sweetcheeks website or facebook page.

Nut-Mushroom roast

 

 10. December

Are you having a vegetarian over for Christmas or just want something different and extremely yummy during the Christmas days, then this recipe is a sure winner every time.
It does take a bit of preparations, but the good thing about this recipe is that it can be made the day before you need to serve it, and actually taste better the day after.

100g easy cook white, brown or mixed with wild rice.
500g mushrooms
2 medium onions
1 clove of garlic
50g Hazelnuts
50g oil, dairyfree margarine or Lactofree spreadable butter
2 eggs
250ml Lactofree cream
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 175°C

Cook the rice as instructed on the package.

Finely chop the Mushrooms, onions, garlic and hazelnuts. In the fat chosen, fry off the vegetables and nuts separately, transferee to a bowl. Onions and garlic till they are transparent, mushrooms until they start to brown, and Hazelnuts slightly browned.

Add the cooked rice to the bowl with the vegetables.

Whisk together eggs, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper, add it to the bowl of vegetables and rice and stir well until it is all mixed well.

Pour into a loaf mould lined with baking paper.

Bake for about 1 hour to 75 minutes.

Note: Note if you are making this the day before, just give it about an hour, and then bake it up for about 20 minutes the next day to heat it up.

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Sticky Apple Cake

9. December

When it is Christmas, we often eat a lot of sinful food, but this cake has all the taste of Christmas, but will defiantly not make you feel bad by eating it.

Serves 8
500g cored but not peeled
50g almonds
60g raisins
100g honey
1 egg and 1 egg white (or 3 egg whites)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon cardamom
100g plain white flour

Preheat oven to 175°C
Cut the apple into small pieces and chop the almonds roughly.
Whisk egg and honey well, then mix in all the dry ingredients.
With a big spoon or spatula turn in apple pieces, raisins and almonds in the dough
Transfer the dough to a 8×8 inches/20×20 cm cake tin
Bake it for about 40 minutes until the top turns brown

If you are gluten intolerant and try making this recipe with gluten free flour, please let me know how it turns out.

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Mulled Cider

7. December

If you haven't tried mulled cider before, then this is really one of those need to try recipes.

Mullet cider is different from mullet wine as it doesn't have as much alcohol in it and a much rounder taste.

2 Litre of Cider (use on you like the taste of normally. I like using cloudy cider.)
3-6 tablespoons sugar
2 oranges cut in quarters or 4 clementines halved
2 cinnamon sticks
4 whole anis
6 whole cloves
6 whole allspice

Put all the ingredients except sugar in a big pan and let it heat up slowly but not letting it reach the boiling point.
Ad 3 tablespoons of sugar and stir to let it dissolve, have a taste to see if it needs more sugar and add a tablespoon at a time till you get the wanted taste.
Take it off the heat and let it stand for an hour or a few until needed.
Heat back up and using a spoon, press the oranges or clementines against the side of the pan to squeeze the juice out of them.

Enjoy.

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Spice cake

6. December

There is nothing like the smell of Christmas spices filling up you house to really make it feel like Christmas.
This recipe might seem to have a lot of spices in it, and if you don't have all of them in your cupboard, you should just use a bit more of the ones you have, cooking is all about experimenting and having fun with it, and as long as you use cinnamon in the spice blend you should get a good result.
If you wanted a Rum free cake, you can also just replace the rum with water or orange juice.

100g raisins
75ml Rum
200g sugar
2 eggs
150g dairy free margarine (like Pure's sunflower)
250g plain white flour
zest of one Orange
100ml Orange juice
2 teaspoons ground Cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground Ginger
1 teaspoon ground All Spice
½ teaspoon ground Cardamom
½ teaspoon ground Cloves
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Preheat the oven to 175°C

In a small pan, heat up the raisins and rum to boiling point, cover and set aside for about ½-1 hour.
Whisk together eggs, margarine and sugar for a few minutes until you get a fluffy texture, mix in orange zest. Don't worry if it curdle, it is almost impossible for it not to when using margarine, and it will still turn out good.
Mix all the dry ingredients together and sift it to make sure you don't get any lumps in the batter.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the bowl with wet ingredients and stir together, add ½ of the orange juice and mix, the rest of the dry ingredients and mix and at the end the last of the orange juice and mix until it has all come together to a thick creamy batter.
Strain the raisins for the excess rum and fold the raisins into the batter.

Bake for 50-60 minutes.

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Vegetable curry stew

5. December

This dish is one of the dishes I remember mostly from when I was a child, and it was always such a great comfort food in the winter.

It is so easy to make, as it is all made in one pot and with very little ingredients.

1.5 kg of mixed root vegetable, like potato, carrots celeriac and parsnip
1 Onion
1 can of chickpeas
2 tablespoons curry powder (I used mild curry powder).
Olive oil
2 teaspoon stock powder or 1 stock cube.
Water.
Handful of chopped parsley (not essential).

fry off the onion and curry powder in some olive oil.
Add the vegetables and chickpeas and stir it all well together.
Pore in water until it comes halfway up the vegetables and add the stock powder/cube.
Put a lid on the pot and let it simmer for 30 minutes, stirring once in a while.
Remove the lid once the vegetables are done, and let is cook for about 20 minutes without the lid until the water has evaporated and turned into a sauce.
Stir in the parsley and serve.

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