Carrot applesauce muffins

I'm pleased to say that Mini Bite and Mr Bite are back to full health. Mini Bite, in particular, is eating to make up for lost time and it is sometimes difficult to fill her up. I made these muffins to help get us through days of meals, snacks and more snacks!

We have also managed our long awaited first bike ride of 2018, and I hope to get out again this weekend. The weather is perfect for cycling and it is joyful to be on a bike again after so many months. 

 

Tweet

Orange and date pikelets (mini pancakes)

It is a long weekend in the UK, and contrary to stereotypes of rainy bank holiday Mondays, the weather is set to be glorious. I hope to do our first bike ride of 2018 and fit in a picnic.

These pikelets would work well for a sunny spring outing, but equally, they could cheer you up if the weather is cool and rainy. They are easy to make and easy to eat. Whilst sweet from the dates, they are also free of added / refined sugars.

Tweet

Best ever fluffy vegan pancakes

A few weeks ago, I took a day of annual leave over a 'normal' weekday. By this I mean a day when Mr Bite was at work and Mini Bite was at nursery. It gave me the opportunity to catch up on various things and have some very rare time in the house alone. As part of the day, I enjoyed a leisurely late breakfast after a morning run. These pancakes were the breakfast in question and they were delicious.

'Best ever' is a serious claim but these are the best vegan pancakes I've tried. I credit this to the magic of aquafaba (tinned chickpea liquid). Aquafaba has a huge following these days and there is a reason for this! It provided a beautiful fluffy texture here.

Tweet

Spiced courgette fritters

Life is returning to normal in the Bite-Sized household. My parents are now back in Australia, we are all back at work and nursery, and Christmas feels a long time ago (and Spring a long time ahead).

In the middle of winter, it can be nice to eat summery foods as well as relishing warm stews, soups and porridge. These fritters offer a summer feel whilst still being hot and comforting. The only downside is that they are best eaten straight after cooking, as they go a bit soggy if stored over multiple days.

Tweet

Pumpkin oatmeal cookies {vegan + wheat free}

It is pumpkin season. I don't usually make many pumpkin recipes, because I am terribly lazy when it comes to buying (and carrying home), cutting up and cooking pumpkin. Tinned pumpkin is available in the UK, but it is generally imported from the US and thus quite expensive. All in all, pumpkin and I do not spend much time together in the kitchen.

This week, though, Tesco had tinned pumpkin on special. I picked up a tin and was pleased to use some of it for these biscuits - or cookies as I have termed them, building on the American tinned pumpkin theme.

Tweet

Apple and mango flapjacks

Every now and then I buy dried mango, and then don't quite know what to do with it. I could (and sometimes do) just eat it plain, but these flapjacks proved a delicious way to use it in a slightly different form. Blending oats, apple, dried mango, cashew butter, soya milk and vanilla, this is a simple recipe that creates a delicious whole food snack or breakfast.

Tweet

Carrot coconut and strawberry breakfast biscuits

These biscuits were not what I intended to make on Sunday afternoon. I had planned to make carrot and strawberry pikelets (pancakes), but in the end, I didn't feel motivated to stand at the stovetop flipping pikelet batter. When thinking about something easy and quick to make instead, I pulled out my food processor to make no bake carrot and strawberry oat balls. However, the mixture didn't seem right unbaked and so I turned the oven on and created these instead.

Given their origins, it is perhaps unsurprising that these biscuits are average rather than excellent. They are not very sweet and I can't clearly detect the strawberry. However, as a breakfast or low sugar snack (especially with a cup of tea) they are enjoyable, and the ingredient list is pleasingly free of refined ingredients. They seem worth documenting and sharing for these reasons

To make these more like a traditional biscuit / cookie, do feel free to add some sugar or even to use these as the exterior to a (vegan) buttercream cookie sandwich.

Carrot coconut and strawberry breakfast biscuits

Minimally sweet biscuits suited to breakfast or a low-sugar snack

Makes 30 or so small biscuits

Vegan and refined sugar free

Food processor required

Author: Bite-sized thoughts

Print recipe

Ingredients

1 cup grated carrot

1-1/2 cups hulled strawberries

1-1/3 cup whole rolled oats

1/3 cup desiccated coconut

1/3 cup coconut flour

1/3 cup plain flour

2 tbsp cashew butter

Method

Preheat your oven to 160'C (320'F) and line two baking trays with non-stick paper.

Combine the grated carrot, strawberries and oats in your food processor and process until fully combined. Add the remaining ingredients and process until incorporated and the mixture clumps together.

Roll dessertspoons of mixture into balls and place on your prepared baking trays. Press the tops down slightly with the back of a fork.

Bake for 8 or so minutes, until golden and firm to the touch but still soft within.

Have you made anything unexpected recently?!

Tweet

Sweet potato, raspberry and avocado flapjacks

These are not your typical flapjacks. Most, after all, do not involve avocado. These are also less sweet than a standard flapjack mix and more colourful.

Whilst these are unconventional, they are tasty. The avocado stands in for butter / margarine but doesn't overwhelm in flavour (I couldn't detect it at all) while the sweet potato and raspberries work in harmony to provide subtle sweetness. The only other ingredients are oats, vanilla and (non-dairy) milk. It is a simple and effective mix.

Tweet

Chocolate beetroot brownie smoothie bowl

A little while back, I bought a bag of frozen beetroot with the view to adding it to smoothies. Several months later, just as the weather is turning cold, I finally gave it a go. The result was this chocolate beetroot brownie smoothie bowl - a thick, creamy, chocolatey mix that you can feel good about eating at any time of day.

Tweet

Apple and banana cinnamon pikelets

I have made apple-containing pikelets many a time, and banana-containing pikelets on occasion, but never blended the two before this week. Mixing the two worked well in allowing for sweetness from both fruits plus the contrasting textures of mashed banana and chopped apple. I recommend these as a simple snack or breakfast free of refined sugar, and as easy to make from basic ingredients.

Yet again I find myself needing to make a note on terminology, with pikelets being the Australian term for small pancakes or 'Scotch pancakes'. It is amazing how much variation exists in food terminology across English speaking countries!

I added rolled oats to the batter of these, as well as flour, but the proportions are such that you can't really detect the oats. You could use all flour it you preferred. I also used hemp seeds in my mix, but chia seeds would work instead, or even flax or pumpkin seeds.

Tweet

Carob coconut avocado breakfast pudding

It is a bank holiday weekend here in England, and it comes at a perfect time for the Bite-Sized household. After the excitement of my sister's visit and Mini Bite's first birthday, we were fortunate to see family from Canada last weekend. Around that, we had our first two weeks of "real" work routines. In other words, Mr Bite and I are both back working and Mini Bite is in nursery three days per week. (Mr Bite had July off under shared parental leave, to ease the transition of my return to work.) Those routines are going better than I could have hoped, but it has still felt like a busy time. All in all, an extra day at home is welcome!

The weather for this weekend is also beautifully summery, to the extent that we may visit the coast on Monday. Today we took advantage of the sunshine to fit in a scenic bike ride, something that is still relatively novel since we bought a child bike seat three months ago.

Today's recipe is perfect for long weekends and summer days, but it would suit weekdays and clouds equally well. It's easy to make and jam-packed full of nutrition whilst also tasting delicious. I know many of you dislike carob - just swap cocoa powder in if that applies to you.

Tweet

Overnight apple oats and a peanut butter green smoothie, for summer

It might not be the official start of summer here yet (although we are only a week off) but summer is very much in the air. The days are super long (it is light at 10pm!), the sun is shining, and the temperatures are tipping 25'C (hot for England!).

With this summery vibe, I have moved into hot weather territory for breakfast and snacking. In other words, I have re-introduced overnight oats and smoothies to my kitchen. Today's post shares the first of each for this summer season, and I hope you can draw some summer inspiration from them whatever your own weather is doing.

Tweet

Microwave banana-raisin oatmeal cookies {vegan, wheat free + refined sugar free}

These cookies are adapted from the 2 minute chocolate chip and pecan cookie featured in the April edition of Vegan Life magazine, with inspiration also drawn from the breakfast cookies in Heather Crosby's YumUniverse Pantry to Plate. The result is a 2 minute, microwave-cooked cookie (biscuit) that is suitable for breakfast or snack time. With a dollop of coconut yoghurt it could even be dessert.

My recipe makes two medium-large cookies and is free of wheat and refined sugars. The cookies are still perfectly sweet thanks to coconut sugar and the banana and raisins - so much so that you could probably leave out the coconut sugar if you are so inclined. 

These cookies do not have the texture of traditional oven-baked cookies. I would describe the texture as between a cookie and a muffin - soft, but sturdy enough to hold together. I am certainly a convert now to this method of cookie production and expect you'll see more recipes in this theme before too long!

Tweet

Cookbook review + recipe: Earl Grey and Strawberry Granola from Heather Crosby's YumUniverse Pantry to Plate

I was provided with a copy of YumUniverse Pantry To Plate: Improvise Meals You Love – from What You Have in order to write this review. My opinions are my own.

I think we can all agree that there are a lot of cookbooks out there. What's more, many of us don't use the ones we have - especially if you are like me and struggle to follow recipes exactly. I will bookmark recipes in my cookbooks with the best of intentions, but even if I do make them (and often I don't!), I tend to adapt the recipe and use it for inspiration rather than as a step-by-step guide. In this context, I am truly delighted to share today's cookbook review. Heather Crosby has developed a novel "recipe playbook" that is perfectly suited to those of us who like to mix and match recipe ideas.

© Heather Crosby, 2017

YumUniverse Pantry To Plate: Improvise Meals You Love – from What You Have is a plant-based, gluten-free guide that provides 30 recipe templates as well as specific recipe examples. For example, Heather outlines the wet, dry and add-in ingredients you can combine to make breakfast cookies and then offers two specific cookie recipes for inspiration (Banana Chocolate Chip and Pumpkin-Pecan). In total, there are nearly 100 recipes to go with the 30 templates, across the following categories:

• Breakfast scrambles
• Granola
• Pancakes and waffles
• Muffins
• Warm cereals
• Breakfast cookies
• Compotes and fruit butters
• Coconut yogurt
• Dairy free milks
• Crackers
• Amazeballs
• Probiotic cream cheese
• Dips and spreads
• Crunchies (like roasted chickpeas)
• Fermented veggies
• Bites and tots
• Veggie fries
• Soups
• Cheesy comfort food
• Epic salads
• Mmmaki (sushi rolls)
• Tacos and wraps
• 'Banzo bakes
• Veggie burgers
• Hand pies
• Cookies
• Nice crispy bars
• Sneaky brownies
• Nice cream
• Crisps and crumbles

Tweet

Make ahead blueberry chia and coconut oats

It has been a busy week in the Bite-Sized Thoughts household. My mother-in-law is visiting from Australia and we have enjoyed introducing her to Mini Bite. Mr Bite has taken the week off work to enjoy her company, and I took advantage of that to have a 'keeping in touch' day at work on Wednesday. It was the second time I'd left Mini Bite for more than an hour or so and I'm pleased to report that all went well - for her and for me. It was also rather lovely to have a day of adult company, complete with baby-free train rides into and out of my workplace. Reading a book with a cup of coffee never felt so good.

If you have a similarly busy schedule, this blueberry oat mix is a useful way to make a breakfast (or snack) option ahead of time. It is also adaptable and with a few small tweaks you could turn the recipe into one for blueberry oat balls instead - just omit the milk and use a little more oats to give a sturdier texture.

This does use a food processor and you may be wondering why you would bother with that when freshly made oats and blueberries provide a delicious combination without any meddling. Simply put, this is delicious in a different way. The blended mix is pudding-like and reminiscent of bircher muesli. It is also thick, easily portable, and (or course) can be made well in advance.

Tweet

Banana chia coconut bread

I will say upfront that I didn't expect to share this recipe. I made it on a whim, to use up bananas and some of my recent fig paste. Even by my standards it is very minimally sweetened. I hoped it would be suitable for Mini Bite and edible, but not necessarily exciting, for me. In the end, I loved the bread so much that I hastily scribbled down the recipe so I could post it here.

The star of this bread is not the banana or coconut, and in fact neither are a strong presence in the loaf. Instead, it is the chia seeds that make this wonderful, giving the loaf a fantastic texture and reminding me of poppy seed cakes. I will definitely be baking more chia loaded breads now!

Tweet

Sweet potato overnight oats

Some of you may have seen recent findings that link 10 serves of fruit and vegetables a day to reduced rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease and stroke, as well as overall mortality. The current UK guidelines advocate 5 serves a day and that level offers protection too - but 10 gives significantly greater benefits.

There have been predictable responses to these results, including comments about it being too hard to achieve a 10 per day intake, and I enjoyed this lighthearted Guardian commentary on the topic. I grew up with the Australian recommendation of 5 vegetable and 2 fruit serves a day, so 10 of both food groups isn't such a shift for me, especially as plant-based eating naturally gives a higher intake than meat-based diets. However, it can be tough to get enough serves in when you're busy and/or if buying food on the go. Thus, getting off to a good start at breakfast can make a big difference.

Tweet

Blueberry and sweet potato mug cake {vegan + fat free}

Mug cakes are excellent for when time is short and/or you want cake in a hurry. They are also handy for making single serve treats and, in this case, using up small amounts of leftover ingredients. I don't really need help with using sweet potato or blueberries - both are foods I'll happily snack on plain - but they are given a boost in this easy recipe.

In truth, this should probably be called a mug pudding as the texture is softer than a traditional cake. With a third of a cup of sweet potato in the mix that is perhaps not surprising. Happily, as you will eat this from the mug with a spoon, a pudding-like texture presents no problems.

This is not overly sweet, which allows the natural sweetness of the sweet potato and blueberries to shine through. However, it would be easy to increase the added sugar if you so desire. As I made it, this could almost be served for breakfast, which I think is a winning outcome.

Tweet

Chocolate and tahini baked oat bars

When I shared some favourite porridge / oat combinations last year, it was my chocolate tahini porridge that got the most enthusiasm. With good reason, too, as it makes for a wonderful way to start the day.

Whilst I always enjoy traditional porridge (oatmeal to Americans), I also enjoy oats in other formats. English flapjack is one example. These chocolate and tahini bars are another. Inspired by my chocolate tahini porridge, they are semi-sweet, gorgeously chocolatey, studded with tahini tones, and utterly delicious. They would provide a perfect make ahead breakfast or an easy snack on the go. I've been enjoying them at pretty much any time of day.


If you have tried baked oat dishes then you will be familiar with the texture of these. They are chewy rather than firm, with a soft but dense texture that holds together well without being crispy. You could easily use a nut butter instead of tahini but I recommend tahini if you have it, because the flavour pairs so well with the other ingredients and really contributes to the overall finished product.

Tweet

Chocolate orange sweet potato pudding (optionally for Halloween)

All over the blogosphere, Halloween recipes are being shared showing cute treats and spooky meals. I had notions of joining in with some sweet potato witches, decorated with raisins and chocolate sauce. Alas, my creative talents were clearly not up to the task and I post the image below for your amusement only. I can't recommend the product as something worthy of sharing with anyone other than yourself!

A slight fail...

Given the messiness of my so-called witches, I turned them into a pudding instead. This worked just fine although no longer looks particularly Halloween like. It is, however, enjoyable to eat. I'm going to claim that is the main thing, especially as I associate Halloween with the US and I am not American!

Tweet