HOMEMADE ICED COFFEE

During those long, hot Irish summer days there's nothing you want more than an ice cold drink... I kid, but I like to pretend we get a summer.  Come June I'm switching to this cooler, more refreshing version of my morning cup of joe, even if it is more than likely raining outside. If you're really dedicated, make some coffee ice cubes with your left over coffee to keep the strength. But if you're anything like me, the glass will be empty before the ice even has a chance to melt. Fill three quarters of the glass up with ice and your favourite milk and pour in your shot of coffee. Pop in a straw and shlurp away.

BUTTER-FREE SPONGE CAKE

 Although I'm tempted to just allow the pictures speak for themselves, I had to just take a moment to try and describe the amazing-ness of this cake, if that's even a word. Loaded up with whipped cream and piles of fruit, this baby is melt-in-your-mouth good. The Rachel Allen recipe skipped butter but instead incorporated whipped egg whites and water, making this the most fluffy, light and moist sponge you'll ever try. Have I convinced you yet?  

INGREDIENTS
CAKE
3 eggs, separated
225g caster sugar
90ml room temp water
150g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder

FILLING & TOPPING
250ml cream, whipped
1 punnet of strawberries
1/2 punnet raspberries
1/4 punnet of blueberries
1 passionfruit

METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 180C (350F). Butter the sides of the sandwich tins (I used two 7.5 inch diameter sandwich tins) and line the bases with greaseproof paper.

2. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Pour in the water and whisk for about 10 minutes or until the mixture is firm and creamy. Sift in the flour and baking powder and fold in gently with a spatula.

3. In a separate, spotlessly clean bowl, beat the egg whites until they just hold stiff peaks, then fold them into the flour mixture very gently, again using a spatula. Divide the mixture evenly between the two prepared tins, smooth the surface and bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes or until just set in the centre.

4. Remove the cakes from the tins by loosening the edges and allow to cool on a wire rack. When completely cooled, smooth about half of the whipped cream across the top of one of the cakes. Cover in fruit and then sandwich the second cake on top, upside down (so that the smoother edge is facing up). Dollop the rest of the cream on top and go to town with the fruit. The more the better!

ALMOND AND CINNAMON FRENCH TOAST

I'm a toast lover. Avocado toast, eggs on toast, hummus, you name it. But french toast? That stuff is in a league of it's own. Typically it's made with day old brioche, but when the craving comes, well you gotta work with what you have. Day old fluffy white batch bread from the farmers market does the job pretty darn well. I decided to up the stakes a little and add some extras to the usual recipe, almonds and cinnamon. And damn, it was good.

INGREDIENTS

4 slices of day old bread

2 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

rind of 1 orange

1/4 cup flaked almonds

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tbsp brown sugar

4 knobs of butter

METHOD

1. Heat your oven to 180C and melt a knob of butter on a non-stick pan on a medium heat.

2. Mix the eggs, vanilla, orange rind, cinnamon and sugar together in a wide, shallow dish. Soak a slice of bread in the mixture for about 7 seconds on either side so it is thoroughly soaked, but not so soggy it will fall apart. Sprinkle a good handful of flaked almonds and some cinnamon over one side of the slice of bread and put in the pan, almond side down. While it's cooking, add almonds and cinnamon to the side facing up. 

3. Adjust the heat so that the bread is heating through and not burning and when the bottom side has dried, flip it. Once cooked through pop it into the oven on a greaseproof baking try to keep warm. 

4. Repeat with the rest of your bread, melting a knob of butter on the pan before each slice. Serve hot with maple syrup, fresh fruit and a big ole' cup of joe.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE GRANOLA

Hi, my name is Ari and I'm a granola addict. There, I said it. I could eat granola for breakfast, lunch and dinner so there are more than a few different variations in my kitchen cupboard. Only problem is granola can often be extremely high in sugar, and it keeps us comin' back for more. I wanted to make a healthier version and found the perfect recipe over on Madeleine Shaw's blog, but adapted it slightly to what I had on hand (and added oats, this girl's gotta have her oats). This ticks all the boxes - satisfies those cravings for a good granola, yoghurt, fruit combo in the morning and does the job when I need my chocolate fix in the evenings too. 

Now, someone hide the granola, the cravings are back. 

INGREDIENTS

150g hazelnuts

150g walnuts

150g almonds

50g sunflower seeds

100g oats

1 banana

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tbsp raw cocoa

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp melted coconut oil

The rind of 1 orange

METHOD

1. Preheat your oven to 180C. Pop all of the nuts and seeds into a food processor and blitz for 2-3 second bursts. Be careful, you still want them crunchy. Pour onto a lined baking tray and add the oats.

2. Put the banana, ginger, cinnamon, cocoa, coconut oil and honey into the food processor and blitz into a paste. Pour over the nuts and seeds and mix up with a spoon, or get in there with your hands and toss around.

3. Pop into the oven for about 20 minutes, or until crispy.

4. Add the orange zest once cooled. 

SOFT HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE COOKIES

If you're the type of person to favour crunchy cookies over soft, gooey, melt-in-the-mouth goodness, you better walk away slowly. We're not going to get along very well. This Nigel Slater recipe is just that, and a little bit more too. I've been making these for years, ever since I first discovered the recipe, and I've yet to come across a person who doesn't like them. Easy to whip up a batch, not easy to keep around for long. Just how it should be. 

• INGREDIENTS
  Makes 12 large cookies
  
  
  200g/7oz dark chocolate at least 70% cocoa solids
  75g/3oz butter
  225g/8oz light muscovado sugar
  2 free-range eggs
  1tsp vanilla extract
  25g/1oz skinned hazelnuts
  25g/1oz ground almonds
  150g/5¼oz self-raising flour
• 
  
  METHOD
• 1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. 
  
  
  2. Snap the chocolate into pieces in a small heatproof glass bowl. Place the bowl over a small pan
  of simmering water, with the base of the bowl not quite touching the water. Allow the chocolate to melt. Don't be tempted to stir it, other than to occasionally push any unmelted chocolate down into the liquid chocolate to encourage it to melt. Turn off the heat as soon as the chocolate has melted.
• 3. Cream the butter and sugar together in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Break the eggs and vanilla extract in a small bowl or jug, whisk just enough to break up the eggs, then add the mixture gradually to the butter and sugar, beating constantly. It is worth scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula from time to time to ensure a thorough mixing. Add the melted chocolate and continue to mix.
• 4. Toast the hazelnuts in a shallow pan until golden, shaking regularly so they colour evenly. Pour the hazelnuts onto a clean tea towel or kitchen roll and rub to remove the skins. Chop up roughly and add to the mixture, along with the flour and ground almonds.
• 5. Place large, heaped tablespoons of the mixture on to a baking tray lined with baking parchment. You should get twelve large biscuits. The mixture is fine to sit for a few minutes if you are cooking them in two batches. Don't be tempted to flatten the cookies, they will do so in the oven anyway.
• 6. Bake the cookies for 9-10 minutes. The cookies will have spread and be very soft to the touch. Remove them from the oven and set aside to cool a little. As soon as they are cool enough to move without breaking, slide a palette knife underneath and carefully lift them onto a cooling rack.
• 
• 
  

PANCAKE PREP: HOMEMADE NUTELLA

Growing up in an uber healthy household, Pancake Tuesday was always a day to get seriously excited about. One thing I always wished could accompany my pancakes, or crumpets (always Darina Allen's recipe, I couldn't find it online so I copied it out below), was Nutella. Fast forward ten years and I decided to make my own. I found the recipe over on Food 52, altered the chocolate ratio slightly, and it didn't disappoint. I was in two minds whether to go for a healthier, two ingredient Nutella (hazelnuts and dark chocolate), or this recipe which is far from healthy. My inner fat kid clearly made the decision on this one..

NUTELLA INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cup hazelnuts, roasted and peeled
40g milk chocolate, chopped
180g dark chocolate, chopped
5 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons confectionery sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon almond extract

NUTELLA METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180° C. Spread the hazelnuts out on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes, stirring every 5. When hazelnuts have finished roasting, pour onto a clean tea towel and rub, peeling off the skins. 

2. Blend the skinned hazelnuts in a food processor or blender until they form a thick, smooth paste. This should take approximately 5 minutes. It will be crumbly at first but the crumbs will begin to come together to form a butter. 

3. Add the butter, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and extract. Continue to blend until smooth (approximately 1 to 2 minutes).

4. Melt together chocolates and heavy cream in a double boiler, until a smooth ganache forms. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Once ganache has cooled slightly, add it to the food processor or blender and blend until just combined (around 15 seconds). 

5. Transfer to jars and store in the fridge for up to 1 week. (The nutella will firm up slightly in the fridge, so let it sit out at room temp for approximately 30 minutes to soften the consistency.)

CRUMPETS INGREDIENTS

8 ozs plain white flour

1 oz castor sugar

1/4 teasp salt

1/2 teasp bread soda

1 teasp cream of tartar 

1 oz butter

2 eggs

250 ml milk

METHOD

1. Sieve dry ingredients into a bowl and rub in the butter. 

2. Drop eggs into the centre, add a little of the milk and stir rapidly with a whisk. When half the milk is added, beat until air bubbles rise. Add the remainder of the milk.

3. Drop a good dessertspoonful into a hot pan, and cook until bubbles appear on the top. Flip over and cook until golden on both sides. 

4. Serve immediately with a dollop of homemade nutella, a drizzle of maple syrup and a sprinkling of berries.

PEAR AND HONEY MUFFINS

I'm all for eating healthy, but there's no way I'm kicking my cupcake to the curb in favour of some carrot sticks. Hell no. I don't care what the health benefits are, if it's not tasty, I'm not eating it. On the other hand, if you give me something that tastes as good as the real thing, but is a hell of a lot better for me, then I'm a happy girl. That's where these babies come in. I originally saw the recipe on Madeleine Shaw's website, the queen of all things healthy (#gettheglow). Grain free and dairy free, these are just full of good stuff. And damn, they are good.

INGREDIENTS

300g ground almonds

1 tsp baking soda

A pinch of salt

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp cinnamon

50g coconut oil

3 eggs

50g honey

1 vanilla bean or 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste

3 pears

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC and prepare a cupcake tin with 9-12 cases.

2. Mix the almonds, spices, salt and baking powder in a bowl. 

3. Combine the rest of the ingredients, except the pears, and then slowly add in the dry ingredients.

4. Slice the pears into 1/2 cm strips (remove the seeds and core).

5. Place some of the pear slices into the cases, add some cake batter then add another layer of pear and fill the container with the cake batter.

6. Complete this with the rest of the mix.

7. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown, then remove and allow to cool. Once cooled remove them from the tins and flip them over.

HOMEMADE NAKD BARS

I have a serious sweet tooth so dessert has always been a daily thing for me, none of this saving for the weekend business. Breakouts and bloating galore due to my lack of portion control, (why have one when you can have five), I finally decided to cut out all chocolate during the week and crowd in healthier options. I had heard of Nakd bars before, but they never really appealed to me. When I saw the list of ingredients though, the first thing that popped into my head was how easy they would be to make at home. Raw, vegan, gluten free but a seriously chocolate-y flavour, you can't go wrong. Take it from me, these are damn good.

INGREDIENTS

makes 8 large bars/16 squares

1 cup of medjool dates

1/2 cup of whole almonds

1/2 cup of ground almonds

1/4 cup of raw cacao (or substitute with cocoa powder)

1/4 cup of sultanas

rind of 2 oranges

tablespoon of water/freshly squeezed orange juice (optional)

METHOD

1. Throw everything into a food processor and whiz to your heart's content.

2. Compress into a lined baking tin and put in fridge to cool.

3. Pop out of tin and cut into desired size chunks. 

Simples.

BACON & MATURE CHEDDAR TWISTIES

Although these wouldn't be my ideal, as soon as I saw these 'twisties' on Lorraine Pascale's show 'Home Cooking Made Easy', I instantly knew how much the rest of the family would enjoy them. So, I whipped up a few and despite what I originally thought, they really were quite tasty! Super quick and easy too!  

Bacon and Mature Cheddar Cheese Twisties

Makes approx. 14

1 x 375g puff pastry

plain flour, for dusting

1 tbsp english mustard

100g mature cheddar cheese, grated

freshly ground black pepper

14 or so slices of good-quality thin bacon, prosciutto or pancetta

1 egg, lightly beaten

Line 1 large or 2 smaller baking trays with baking parchment

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle, about 5 mm thick. It should be as long as one slice of bacon and as wide as you can roll it

Spread the mustard over the pastry then sprinkle with the grated cheese and black pepper.

Line the strips of bacon on side by side, about 2 mm apart and use a sharp knife to cut between each piece

Pick up one strip and twist it 4 or 5 times so it looks like a curly straw then put it on the prepared baking tray. Repeat with the rest of the strips and arrange them slightly apart on the tray

Put the trays in the fridge for 15-20 mins or the freezer for 10 mins to firm up. Preheat the oven to 220°C. Remove the twists from the fridge and brush with the egg wash.

Put the baking trays in the oven and turn down to 200°C. Cook for about 20 minutes or until the pastry is well risen and golden brown.

Preheating the oven at a higher temperature compensates for any lost hot air when the oven is opened to put the twisties in. Otherwise, the oven temperature may drop to 180°C and it would not be hot enough to give the twisties that big blast of heat they need.

APPLE & CINNAMON CRUMBLE MUFFINS

I've been dying to bake something that really encapsulated the autumnal feeling, and when I found this recipe over on Donal Skehan's website, I had to make them right away! Because of this, I had to make a few changes to the recipe as I didn't have some of the ingredients on hand. Despite this, these are quite possibly the best muffins I've ever tasted! 

Apple and Cinnamon Crumble Muffins
Makes approx. 12

For the muffin mixture:
75 ml olive oil
200ml buttermilk
zest of 1 lemon
2 large eggs
150g caster sugar (I used 50g caster sugar, 100g light muscovado sugar for flavour)
250g self raising flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
250g peeled and diced apple*

For the crumble topping:
50g vanilla sugar (I used caster sugar)
50g plain flour
50g butter

Preheat the oven to 190˚C. Line a muffin/cupcake tray with paper cases. I used squares of baking parchment measured 15cm by 15cm for a more rustic feel.

Measure the oil and buttermilk in a pyrex jug and then stir through the lemon zest and set aside.

Using a handblender with a food processor attachment, blitz the ingredients for the crumble topping until you get left with rough crumbs.  You can also do this by hand in a bowl using your fingertips to combine the ingredients together, but be sure to be quick or the butter will get too soft.  Set the crumble topping aside.

In a standalone mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar until light and fluffy.

Add in the oil, buttermilk and lemon zest and whisk until combined.

Gently fold in the flour and cinnamon until just combined. Fold through 3/4 of the diced apple until combined. Be sure not to over mix the batter.

Spoon the mixture into the paper cases, top with the remaining apple and about a teaspoonful of the crumble topping.

Place in the oven on the middle wrack to cook for 20-25 minutes until brown on top.

Remove from the oven and place on a wire wrack to cool.

*You can use either cooking apples or regular apples. I used regular as I didn't have any cooking apples to hand, but I would definitely use cooking apples next time as they would be slightly more tart, adding to the delicious flavours.

LIGHT, SWEET SCONES

So, I have come to the realization that I am a bad blogger.. It's been 2 months since my last post. Oh man. I could reel off my excuses, but really, who cares?! I can say however, that I'm really going to try harder with this blog. It's not that I don't love it, I do. I'm just very lazy, and at the end of a loooong day of classes and studying, I don't want to do anything but curl up with a cup of tea and switch off. Uh oh, that was an excuse wasn't it? Let's change the subject ;)

This is another of Rachel Allen's recipes. Her gorgeous books are an addiction of mine, and by far the most used in my kitchen. Don't you love opening a cook book and having flour fall out, seeing milk splashes, lemon stains and greasy butter? It's the sign of a well loved book in my house! 

These scones are so delicious and it's so quick and easy to whip up a batch, they're constantly being made around here! Serve with some yummy homemade jam and for an extra special treat, add a dollop of whipped cream, oh my. 

Light Sweet Scones

Makes 10-12 scones

500g (1lb 2oz) plain flour

1 rounded tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 rounded tsp cream of tarter

1 tsp sea salt

125g (4 1/2oz) unsalted cold butter, cubed

25g (1oz) caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

275ml (9fl oz) buttermilk or milk

Preheat the oven to 220C/425F

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, cream of tartar and salt into a large bowl. Rub in the butter using your fingertips, until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and mix well. 

Set aside about a third of the beaten egg and combine the rest with the buttermilk, then add to the flour mixture and mix briefly to combine into a moist dough. Place on a lightly floured work surface and knead ever so slightly to bring together, then press or roll out a thickness of 2cm. 

Using a 6cm cutter, cut out approximately 12 scones and place on a floury baking tray. Add about a teaspoon or so of buttermilk to the remainder of the beaten egg to make an egg wash. 

Brush the scones with the egg wash (and dip the tops in sugar if you wish) and bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown on top. Eat as soon as possible! 

* It's really yummy to add raisins or sultanas to the mix, which i forgot to do this time, oops! Just add 100g (3 1/2oz) to the dry ingredients before you add the liquid. 

You could also try the same quantity of dried blueberries, dried cranberries or even chocolate chips!

RASPBERRY & BLUEBERRY OAT CRUMPETS

For as long as I can remember, crumpets have been my deliciously indulgent go-to treat for weekend brunch. So when my Mum changed up her signature recipe to a healthier version with oats instead of white flour, I was more than delighted. I made these over the weekend, and with some blueberries and raspberries added into the mix I didn't feel half as guilty eating more than my fair share!

Raspberry & Blueberry Oat Crumpets

makes approx. 15

8 ozs oats

1 oz castor sugar

1/4 teasp salt

1/2 teasp bread soda

1 teasp cream of tartar 

1 oz butter

2 eggs

250 ml milk

raspberries

blueberries

Grind up oats in a food processor until they resemble flour. Sieve dry ingredients into a bowl and rub in the butter. Drop eggs into the centre, add a little of the milk and stir rapidly with a whisk. When half the milk is added, beat until air bubbles rise. Add the remainder of the milk.

Drop a good dessertspoonful into a hot pan,* and cook until bubbles appear on the top. Flip over and cook until golden on both sides. Serve immediately with a dollop of butter and homemade jam.

*I usually drop my blueberries, raspberries or chopped strawberries into the crumpets as soon as they're in the pan, instead of mixing it into the batter, to allow everyone to choose their own quantity of specific berries. Chopped up dark chocolate is another yummy option for a more decadent filling.