Ingredients for 2:
For the beetroot “hummus”
2 large beetroots
2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon of tahini
Juice of half a lemon
For the grain layer
60g quinoa, cooked according to packet instructions
1 tin of chickpeas, drained but reserve the liquid
zest of 1/2 lemon
For the toasted seeds
2 tablespoons of pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons of sunflower seeds
1/4 of a teaspoon of cumin
1/2 a teaspoon of black onion seed
Tamari or soy sauce
A handful of blueberries
8 cos lettuce leaves
2 handfuls of watercress
1/2 small fennel, finely sliced
2 large Clarence Court eggs, boiled for 7 minutes
A handful of walnuts
A tablespoon of alfalfa
For the dressing
1/3 of a bunch of parsley
Leaves from 3 sprigs of mint
Leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 teaspoon of wholegrain mustard
1 teaspoon of honey, agave or maple syrup
50ml of good quality olive oil or rapeseed oil
Method:
To make the beetroot “hummus”, pop the beetroots on a small roasting tray, cover with tin foil and bake at 180 degrees C until soft (approximately 1 hour).
For the last 20 minutes, add the garlic.
Allow both to cool then peel them.
Pop the garlic, beetroot, lemon juice, tahini and a good pinch of sea salt in a blender.
Pour in 1/3 of the tin of chickpea water and blend until completely smooth. Add more chickpea water if needed (i.e. if it isn’t blending).
To make the grain layer, combine the quinoa and chickpeas in a bowl. Add the zest of 1/2 lemon and season well with sea salt and black pepper.
To make the toasted seeds, pop all of the ingredients apart from the soy sauce in a pan. Heat on medium until the pumpkin seeds start to pop. Remove from the heat, add a splash of soy sauce and stir.
The soy sauce will evaporate, leaving the seeds crunchy but with a hint of umami.
If you’ve added too much soy, just pop everything back on a high heat until it evaporates.
To make the dressing, put all of the ingredients in a blender cup and blend until completely smooth and well combined.
To assemble:
-Grab two plates, pop a heaped tablespoon of the beetroot hummus on the bottom.
- Divide the grain mix between the plates.
- Sprinkle on a tablespoon or so of the seed mix.
- Now add the blueberries.
- Pop the lettuce, fennel and watercress in a separate large bowl. Dress with the salad dressing, stir well then divide between the two plates.
- Top with 1 egg, walnuts and alfalfa
- Season each salad with sea salt and black pepper.
- Eat immediately.
Raw walnut and chocolate ganache tarts
If you are a fan of dark chocolate, you’ll enjoy these decadent raw walnut and chocolate ganache tarts. They are the perfect partner for a freshly brewed cup of coffee.
The tarts are “raw”, meaning they naturally preserve the stellar nutritional profile of the whole food ingredients used. Walnuts and raw cacao both contain a phenomenal array of nutrients, including Omega 3 fatty acids (walnuts), iron and polyphenols (cacao).
What I love about this recipe the most is its fuss-free nature. It’s a simple assembly job of a few select ingredients yet they look and taste impressive.
If you happen to double up on the recipe, the tarts can be stored in the freezer until you need them. Just take them out 10 minutes before serving.
I will be showing you how to make this super tasty treat during cookery demonstrations at food & drink festivals.
Here is where I’ll be stepping on stage: food festivals
Equipment needed:
4” tart cases with removable bottoms
A blender (any but a high speed one like a Vitamix makes things a lot easier)
Ingredients to make 3 tarts
For the base:
50g of oats
50g of California Walnuts
5 medjool dates
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
For the ganache
40g of good quality raw cacao or cocoa
80g of agave or maple syrup
1 pinch of sea salt
1 heaped tablespoon of coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
Method:
To make the base, pit the dates and pop them in a small bowl.
Pour in just enough boiling water to cover them and let them steep for 10 minutes.
Drain the water and transfer the dates to a small blender. Pulse until it turns into a rough paste.
Add the oats to the same blender jug/ cup and blend again to turn the oats into a rough oat flour.
Add the walnuts and pulse lightly to break up the walnuts, leaving some smaller chunks for added crunch.
Melt the coconut oil and mix this into the walnut, oat and date mixture.
Add 1.5 tablespoons of the mixture to each tart case.
Press the mixture into the tart cases, working them up the edges.
Pop the tart cases in the freezer whilst you make the ganache.
To make the ganache, mix the agave, cacao, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl until well combined.
Melt the coconut oil and combine this with the cacao/ agave mixture.
Pour the ganache into the tart cases.
Freeze for 30 minutes before serving.
Roasted red pepper & chicken pasta
Ingredients for 4:
2 free-range or organic chicken breasts
, diced
1 onion
, peeled and sliced
1 stick of celery
, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 jar of sun-dried tomatoes (in oil), drained
2 large peppers (or 3 smaller ones), 1 red and 1 orange/ yellow
rapeseed oil for cooking
sea salt & black pepper to season
one small bunch of fresh parsley
100g of pasta per person - suggested fusilli or conchiglie
Method:
Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, reserving 2-3 tablespoons of the water.
Put the grill on.
Cut down the side of each pepper so you end up with 4 flat pieces.
Lay the pepper pieces on a large roasting tray.
Put the roasting tray under the grill and grill the pepper pieces until the skin starts to blacken and blister.
Set aside to cool.
Once cool enough to handle, peel off the charred skin and discard.
Put the pepper pieces in a blender with the tomato and sundried tomato.
Season with black pepper and a generous pinch of sea salt and blend until completely smooth.
Add a splash of oil to a large frying pan and put it on a medium heat.
Add the onion and celery to the pan and sweat for 3-5 minutes, until they start to soften, adding a splash of water if it looks like it may be browning.
Add the chicken and garlic to the pan and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Season with sea salt and black pepper.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and cook for 2-3 more minutes, ensuring that the chicken is completely cooked through.
Stir in the pasta and the pasta water if needed.
Check the seasoning.
Ladle into bowls and serve with a generous sprinkling of parsley on top.
No bake carrot cake flapjacks
Ingredients for 5 flapjacks:
1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup, agave or honey
2 tablespoons of coconut oil
1 carrot, grated
80g of oats
1 tablespoon each of pumpkin, sunflower, chia and sesame seeds (if you don’t have one, use double of another)
3 tablespoons of desiccated coconut
A handful of Brazil nuts, roughly chopped (optional)
2 tablespoons each of goji berries & raisins
1 scoop of whey protein (optional)
3 tablespoons of any milk
1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon & vanilla essence
Method:
Line a lunch box/ Tupperware with greaseproof paper.
Melt the coconut oil in a small pan.
Add all of the ingredients to a bowl.
Pour in the coconut oil. Stir really well. I mean really well.
Taste to see if you like the flavour & adjust if necessary (i.e. add more honey if it isn’t sweet enough or perhaps a bit more cinnamon).
Press the mixture into the Tupperware and smooth out the top.
Freeze for 30 minutes to firm it up.
Cut into bars and store in the fridge.
Cucumber, sesame and smoked tofu salad
Crunchy cucumber with ginger, creamy avocado, hints of chilli/ coriander, edamame, smoked tofu and a lime, soy and sesame oil dressing.
It’s a tasty one.
Give it a go.
Shopping notes:
Edamame is available frozen and may be sold as soya beans. If you can’t find it, frozen broad beans or tinned chickpeas will do the trick too.
Ingredients to feed 2:
1 cucumber, cut into half moons
thumb size piece of ginger (25g), grated
a large handful of coriander leaves
2 spring onions, sliced
150g edamame beans
8 radishes, finely sliced
2 avocados, peeled and sliced
1 red chilli, finely sliced
1-2 teaspoons of sesame seeds
300g smoked tofu, cubed
sea salt and black pepper to season
rapeseed oil for cooking
For the dressing:
Juice of 1 lime
2 teaspoon of tamari or good quality soy sauce
2 teaspoons of agave or maple syrup
6 teaspoons of sesame oil
Method:
Put the cucumbers into a bowl, season with sea salt and black pepper and squeeze over the juice of the grated ginger. If some of the grated ginger falls in then this isn’t a big deal.
Set this aside whilst you make the rest of the salad.
Put a frying pan on a medium-high heat with a splash of rapeseed oil in it.
Throw in the cubed tofu and cook until crispy on most sides.
Put the frozen edamame beans in a small saucepan and add enough water to cover. Bring to the boil then take it off the heat and drain. Either run it under some cold water or allow it to cool naturally.
In a large bowl, combine the edamame, spring onion, avocado, radish, chilli and coriander leaves. Season with a small amount of black pepper and stir to combine.
Add the cucumber and stir again.
Whisk together the dressing ingredients and tip this over the salad.
Stir to combine then divide between two plates/ bowls.
Top with the smoked tofu cubes and sprinkle the sesame seeds over it all.