Raspberry Muffins

These muffins are a great way to take advantage of seasonal raspberries. We have had a busy few months and I am somewhat chuffed that my first baking invention for a while has turned out OK. (To our overnight

visitors who tried them while they were still warm - they taste much better when cool). The texture of this batch was slightly dense but the raspberries kept they colour and flavour.

I made this batch with normal self-raising flour as I wanted to experiment with the sugar. However, they would probably be OK with Spelt.

Family verdict:  I made 12 this morning. 2 went to visitors, the other 10 disappeared within a couple of hours. Need I say more? 'Very good' - Nora.

Time needed: 10 minutes to make + 20-25 minutes to bake.

Makes: 12

Ingredients:

4 tbs olive oil
75 ml lactose free milk
2 medium eggs
200g flour (I used self-raising)
3 small, ripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla bean extract
40g Truvia (approx - see below)
75g raspberries - fresh or frozen

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170C/gas mark 4. Line a 12 cup bun tray with paper cases.
2. Mix the oil, milk, eggs and vanilla bean extract in a bowl until blended.
3. Sift in the flour and combine well.
4. Add the mashed banana and combine. then stir in the raspberries. If you are using fresh they will slightly disintegrate, which is fine.
5. Taste a tiny amount of the mixture to test sweetness and add a Truvia until it tastes sufficiently sweet. This will depend on the ripeness of the fruit you have added. I added 40g.
6. When the mixture looks and tastes right, divide it between the paper cases.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes, depending on your oven. The muffins will rise slightly and will brown.
8. Leave to cool on a rack before watching them disappear!
9. 
   

30 Minute Wholemeal Pizza and Spelt Pizza

This make from scratch pizza recipe can be ready to eat in as little as 30 minutes, depending on how you

Wholemeal Pizza

like your crusts. The dough doesn't have to rest for more than 5/10 minutes, unless you want to produce something more akin to a deep crust.

Although most recipes suggest using a strong flour of the bread making type, I have discovered that you can use any flour within reason. As an experiment yesterday I made one batch with strong brown flour and another with spelt flour as I wanted to see how easy it would be to make a low FODMAPs pizza (although Robbie, luckily, is OK with wheat these days). As can be seen from the pictures, both crusts looked the same and tasted pretty similar. The spelt crust was slightly drier and more dense in texture. However, it was absolutely delicious with a topping of tomato sauce, sliced mushroom, tuna and cheese.

Little known fact: teenage boys really like kneading dough. I say kneading - there is quite a lot of punching involved.

Family verdict:

Everyone: A universal hit. The spelt dough was different but no less popular. 'Slightly drier, still great dipped

Spelt Pizza

in mayonnaise'. Overall - 'Really, really good.'

Makes: 2 x 12 inch pizzas. (I made 2 quantities - one with each type of flour - therefore 4 x 12 inch pizzas).

Time needed: 7 minutes measuring and kneading; 5-10 minutes+ to rest; 10-15 minutes cooking.

INGREDIENTS:

300g flour (wholemeal/spelt/strong white or strong brown)

1 tsp fast acting dried yeast

1 tsp sea salt

1 tbs oiive oil + more for drizzling

200 ml warm tap water.

200g passata

1 tbs FODMAPs friendly pesto

Toppings of choice (those pictured are sweetcorn and Quorn bacon)

                                                              Grated cheese to top

METHOD

1. Heat the oven to 200 C/gas mark 6. Oil 2 x 12 inch pizza trays or baking trays.
2. Put the flour, yeast, salt and olive oil in a bowl.
3. Add the water and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. The mixture should form a sticky dough.
4. Put the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, The dough will gradually become smooth, silky and stretchy. Add more flour to the surface if the dough starts to stick.
5. Put the dough into a clean bowl. Cover with a tea towel or clingfilm and leave to rest in a warm place for 5-10 minutes. 
6. (If you would like a deeper crust, leave the dough to rise for longer. You can then give it a light knock, roll it out and then, if you like the crust very thick, leave it to rise slightly for a second time on the tray).
7. After the dough has rested/risen, divide it in two. Roll one half out to your required thickness/shape, according to whichever baking tray you are using. Repeat with the second half of the dough.
8. Mix the pesto into the passata and spread it onto the pizza bases using the back of a metal spoon.
9. Add the toppings of your choice. Season and then top each pizza with cheese.
10. Bake for 10-15 minutes, fairly high in the oven. I usually switch the pizzas over halfway through so that both pizzas have some of the time.
11. Remove from the oven. Drizzle with olive oil (basil infused olive oil is fantastic for this). 
12. Serve with a fresh mixed salad and whatever you like to dip your crusts into.

Sweetcorn and Carrot Chowder - low FODMAP

I try to adapt recipes so that I can give Robbie something similar to the rest of the family - that way he doesn't feel too 'different'. This is a low FODMAPs version of my Sweetcorn Chowder. Robbie really likes

it- he ate 3 helpings when I made the batch in the picture! It tastes quite different but goes just as well with a sliced baguette and cheddar. Because this soup is naturally sweet from the carrots and sweetcorn it is also goes down well with fussy eaters

Family verdict:
Robbie: 'Delicious. Tastes really good and it is easy to eat.'

Time needed: 5 mins preparation + 20 minutes to cook.

FEEDS: 2 people

INGREDIENTS:

35g lactose free margarine

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped into small chunks

1 large potato, peeled and chopped into small chunks

1/4 tsp dried dill

250g frozen sweetcorn

400ml boiling water

100ml lactose free milk

METHOD

1. Put the margarine, potato, carrot and dill in a saucepan. Cook over a low heat with the lid on for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove the lid, season well and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking.
3. Add the sweetcorn, reserving a few tablespoons. Mix the added sweetcron in with the potatoes and carrots then add the boiling water and the lactose free milk.
4. Bring the soup to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for around 15-20 minutes, until the carrot and potato are well cooked. While the soup is simmering, cook the reserved sweetcorn according to instructions and put this to one side.
5. When the vegetables are cooked, remove the soup from the heat and blend it using a hand blender until you reach your preferred consistency. Taste, season as required and then stir in the reserved sweetcorn.
6. Serve with accompaniments of your choice - bread and cheese; toasted seeds; oil of choice to drizzle, etc.

Spelt and Apple Scones

I came up with this recipe very recently after Nora asked me to make something healthy she could snack on

while revising for exams. The resulting scones are only slightly sweet and are best spread with butter or margarine and topped with either jam or slices of cheese. The ones I tried with cheese tasted really good.

Family verdict: 
Me: 'Really lovely with cheese or peanut butter.'
Harry: 'Good. Better with jam.'

Makes: Around 18 scones.

Time needed: About 15 minutes preparation (grating apples takes time) + 20 minutes to cook.

INGREDIENTS:
300g spelt flour
1 tbs baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
100g ground almonds
100g coconut oil, melted
2 eggs
3 eating apples

METHOD

1. Heat the oven to 175 C/gas mark 4. Lightly oil a bun tin (or do what I did and use paper cake cases in a bun tray).
2. Grate the apples down to the core, retaining any juice/liquid which you produce.
3. Whisk the eggs for a few minutes until slightly thickened.
4. Sift the spelt flour into a bowl. Add the baking powder, cinnamon and almonds. Mix well then add the egg, grated apple with juice and the melted coconut oil.
5. Combine all of the ingredients very thoroughly. The mix you should end up with should be of soft dropping consistency. (It tastes similar to bircher muesli!).
6. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until cooked. The scones should rise slightly and brown.
7. When cooked, leave to cool on a wire rack. When they are completely cool, cut in two, spread with butter and your topping of choice and enjoy!

Tea & Fruit Cake

I have been using this fruit cake recipe for so many years that I long ago stopped weighing the ingredients. Instead I have a particular mug (which my sister gave me 30+ years ago) and a bowl into which I measure the ingredients.

I know that may sound strange but it works beautifully and it also means you just need to pack the mug, the bowl and a cake tin to be able to make the cake away from home. The mug I use holds 250ml of water and the bowl holds 1 pint.

It is a very, very easy recipe. The texture of the cake varies depending on the flour used and how long the fruit has soaked. I made the cake pictured using spelt flour so only left the fruit soaking for about 6 hours.  The remaining tea which hadn't been absorbed helped to keep the cake moist.

MAKES: A 2 lb fruit cake - around 10-12 slices.

Time needed: 6-18 hours to soak the fruit + 1 hour (approximately) to bake.

Family verdict:
Drew: 'Love it. Perfect with a cup of tea. You can make it as many times as you want!'
Harry: 'Delicious.'
Robbie: 'Phenomenal.'

INGREDIENTS 

1 pint bowl filled to the top with dried fruit
1 teabag + boiling water
2 mugs of spelt or any other flour
1 tbs baking powder
1 mug of unrefined brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 egg

METHOD

1. Boil the kettle. Put the tea bag in the bottom of the 1 pint bowl. Fill the bowl up to the top with dried fruit and pour the boiling water on top, covering the all of the fruit if you can.
2. Leave the fruit to soak for at least 6 hours. Overnight works well, but probably best not to leave it for more than around 18 hours.
3. Heat the oven to 150 C/Gas Mark 3. Grease a 2 lb cake tin, either a loaf tin or a round cake tin.
4. Measure 2 mugs of flour into a mixing bowl. Add 1 mug of sugar, 1 tbs baking powder, 1/2 tsp ginger and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Tip the fruit and any remaining tea (but not the tea bag!) on top. Mix well with a wooden spoon.
5. Break the egg into a cup. Beat lightly with a fork then add to the other ingredients. Mix thoroughly.
6. Tip the cake mix into the baking tin. Bake in the bottom half of the oven for at least an hour. The exact cooking time will depend on a number of factors, including the ingredients you have chosen and your oven's temperament. Be warned: the aroma of this baking will make everyone in the house feel hungry!
7. To test whether the cake is cooked, insert a thin skewer into the middle. If it comes out clean, the cake is cooked. If it has a lot of sticky cake mix on it, the cake needs longer.
8. Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin and then run a knife around the edges before turning the cake out. It should keep for quite a few days wrapped in foil and/or in an airtight tin. However, it generally doesn't hang around for too long.

Quorn Fillets with Fennel Seed Veg and Noodles

This was tonight's 'Please can we eat really quickly' invention. It took 20 minutes start to finish and was

pretty tasty, though I say so myself.



I used noodles containing wheat as Robbie is now OK with wheat but other low FODMAPs people may need to use rice noodles instead. Also I simmered the Quorn fillets in half a stock cube, which listed onion as one of its last ingredients. This is a calculated gamble as this small amount of stock was used to flavour the fillets only and was then discarded. I am hoping that the amount of onion that actually made it on to Robbie's plate was so minuscule as to have no impact. I will let you know if not! To play it really safe I could have used a 'stock' made from an onion and garlic free yeast extract but this would have tasted quite different.


MAKES: 4 generous portions

Time taken: 5+ minutes preparation and 10-15 to cook

Family verdict: 
Nora: 'Nice. It's got that thing in it, corriander...?'
Everyone preferred this with soy sauce, but sadly that is how my lot like their noodles.

INGREDIENTS

6 Quorn fillets
1/2 stock cube
1 tbs sesame or olive oil
5  carrots
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
150g green beans (approximately)
2 baby corn. (They were left in the fridge, You could add more!)
2 spring onions (scallions) - green tops only, chopped
A handful of whole almonds
5 noodle nests (or the equivalent in rice noodles)

METHOD

1. Peel, wash and slice the carrot. Wash the green beans, chop off the ends, then cut each bean into 2 or 3 pieces. Slice the baby corn.
2. Make enough stock with the 1/2 stock cube to cover the Quorn fillets in a saucepan. Bring to this to the boil and then allow the fillets to simmer a few minutes. They should cook quickly. Turn off the heat but leave the fillets sitting in the stock to keep warm and to absorb more flavour.
3. Heat the oil in a deep frying pan. Add the sliced carrot and fennel seeds and cook over a medium heat, stirring frequently. When the carrots begin to soften, add the green beans and baby corn. Continue to stir frequently.
4. Meanwhile begin to prepare the noodles according to the instructions. Try to time it so that the noodles will finish cooking at the same time as the vegetables.
5. Add the almonds to the vegetable pan and continue to stir fry. Take the fillets out of the stock and cut them into strips.
6. Add the spring onion/scallion tips to the stir fry mix for the last minute (once the other vegetables have browned). Stir these every few seconds as they burn quite easily. Taste, season and then turn off the heat.
7. Drain the noodles and place in a serving dish, lightly tossed in a little oil. Add the stir fried nuts and vegetables, put the sliced Quorn fillets on top and lightly combine all three. Serve immediately.

Sweetcorn and Veggie Hot Dog Risotto

This is an alternative to my Creamy Mushroom Risotto recipe and is designed to fit in with Robbie's low FODMAPS and Harry's general fussiness about vegetables.

Quorn Hot Dogs are the only veggie sausages I have found to date which appear to be FODMAPs friendly - i.e. no onion or garlic in the ingredients list. If they do contain either of these, the amount is so low as to avoid a reaction for Robbie.

The end result is creamy and there is rarely any left at the end of the meal. As with the Mushroom recipe, we will often make a variation on this based upon whatever vegetables are left in the fridge. It can be a challenge to make robust flavours without using onion and garlic. One alternative is to make 'stock' out of Marmite and hot water, depending of course on the other ingredients.

Family Verdict:

Robbie: 'Good. It was thick and the sausages were perfectly cooked.'(!)
Harry: 'Really delicious. I really, really liked it.'

FEEDS: 2 people, allowing for seconds!

Time needed: 5-10 minutes preparation plus around 15- 20 minutes to cook

INGREDIENTS

100-150g arborio rice
4 frozen Quorn hotdogs

250g frozen sweetcorn (approximately)

1tbs garlic infused olive oil

1/2tsp dried dill (optional)

400ml 'stock' made from low FODMAP friendly pesto (approximately) plus addtional boiling water if required

100ml lactose free milk (approximately). Lactose free cow's milk works best in terms of flavour.

Grated cheddar to taste (I tend to use maybe 75g. The boys both like cheese a lot)

Chopped flat leaf parsley (optional)

Toasted mixed seeds (optional)

Freshly ground salt and pepper

METHOD

1. Defrost the hot dogs in the microwave and slice them. Make the pesto 'stock' by mixing a large tablespoon of a low FODMAP pesto with boiling water. (Scala dairy free pesto works for us as Robbie is fine with cashew nuts).
2. Heat the olive oil in a deep frying pan or a saucepan. Add the sweetcorn and dill and cook over a low heat until the sweetcorn starts to soften. Add the sliced hot dog and continue to cook for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally and keeping an eye on the pan to make sure that nothing burns.
3. Add the arborio rice. Continue to cook, stirring frequently until the rice begins to turn transparent.
4. Add approximately 1/4 of the pesto 'stock'. The first time you add any liquid to the rice there will probably be some impressive hissing and steaming. Stir everything together to ensure that the liquid is evenly distributed.
5. The plan now is to let the rice mixture absorb almost all of the added liquid before you add any more, but without letting everything get too dry or sticking. The rice will gradually soften while it absorbs the flavours from the pesto and the sweetcorn. Stir fairly frequently to ensure even cooking and to check whether you need to add more liquid.
6. Continue to add more pesto 'stock' each time the liquid has nearly disappeared. If you run out of before the rice is nearly ready then you can use boiling water instead. Taste frequently and adjust the seasoning as required but with quite a light hand at this stage. Use the intervals between adding liquid and stirring to prepare the salad or accompanying vegetables.
7. When you think you are probably about to add liquid for the last time (i.e. when the rice is almost cooked) add the lactose free milk rather than more stock/water. Stir this in, allow everything to cook for another minute or two then turn off the heat. The rice will continue to cook for a while in the residual heat. Stir in the cheese until melted. Taste the dish again and adjust the seasoning if required.
8. Serve topped with toasted seeds and/or chopped parsley, accompanied by either mixed salad or vegetables.

Banana and Blueberry Muffins

Banana and Blueberry Muffins

I try to bake for the family a couple of times a week. If nothing else, the aroma is a good way of tempting teenagers out of their bedrooms and into the kitchen.

In my experience, you can mess about in cake recipes with either the sugar or the flour but not both. These muffins are a good compromise. They get their sweetness from the bananas, blueberries and coconut oil but I made half of the batch pictured (purple cases) from spelt flour and the rest (green cases) from half spelt, half normal self raising flour. Both varieties were moist, with blueberries that burst in the mouth.

Family verdict: 
Harry: 'Delicious.'
Nora: 'Maybe not that sweet but still lovely'.
Robbie: 'The purple ones are thicker and the green ones have more holes in them.'

MAKES: 10-12

Time needed: 10 - 15 minutes to make plus 15-20 minutes to bake, depending on which flour is used.

INGREDIENTS

125g spelt flour (or half spelt, half self raising)
1.5tsp baking powder (1tsp if using the half and half flour)
1tsp ground cinnamon
50g melted coconut oil (takes about 30 seconds in a microwave)
2tsp vanilla essence
1 egg
3 ripe bananas
80g fresh blueberries

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 175 C (gas mark 4). Place 10-12 paper muffin cases in a cup bun tray.
2. Sift the flour into a bowl and add the baking powder and cinnamon.
3. Mash the bananas. Add the egg, melted coconut oil and vanilla essence to the bananas and beat until smooth and creamy. This takes a couple of minutes with an electric whisk.
4. Add the banana mixture and the blueberries to the dry ingredients. Mix with a metal spoon until well combined. The resulting mixture should be light and of 'soft dropping consistency' (i.e. if you scoop up a spoonful and tilt the spoon over the bowl, the mixture should fall off with a soft 'plop!).
5. Divide the mixture between the paper cases and bake for 15-20 minutes. Denser flours such as spelt tend to take longer to bake. The cakes are cooked when they are lightly browned and slightly firm to the touch.
6. Remove the muffins from the bun tray and leave them to cool on a wire rack. The muffins may sink slightly while cooling.
7. Enjoy the interaction with your children as they hopefully follow their noses to the kitchen.