Fruity breakfast quinoa

I know not all of you are into quinoa, never mind quinoa for breakfast. However, if you do like the grain then this is a pretty wonderful way to enjoy it. And if you don't like it? It could be an entry into starting to! This dish pairs quinoa with almond milk, pear (or apple), blueberries, vanilla, spices, sultanas and almond butter. There is a lot to love.

I used pre-cooked quinoa for this, because I tend to cook quinoa in big batches. Thus, the quinoa was cooked in water ahead of time and then cooked through again with almond milk for this dish. If you were making this from scratch you could just cook the quinoa in milk.

I intended for this to be a hot bowl, and I ate the first serve that way. However, I later tried some cold and almost liked it better in that form. Experiment with what works best for you. It is a great option for making up in advance and taking for breakfasts at work, as it keeps well in the fridge for a few days after cooking.

Tweet

Raw apple-vanilla or banana-cinnamon buckwheat porridge

As I've mentioned, I never really got into the overnight oats craze. Raw buckwheat porridge, though? That trend has won me over.

Apple-vanilla buckwheat porridge, with raspberries

You have probably seen or heard about buckwheat porridge already. It seems to be popping up everywhere at the moment. Given that I am often slow with food trends, you may already be enjoying it yourself. If you haven't yet tried it, I hope that this post can inspire you to give it a go. It is really, really lovely!

Tweet

Apple and zucchini muffins - the buckwheat version (vegan, GF, refined sugar free)

I imagine I'm not the only blogger with a recipe or post that, well, niggles. It may be that you have never mastered a particular recipe, or that you mastered one version but want to make an adaptation that goes a step further. It may be that you made a great meal but dislike the photos you took, and haven't found the time to re-make and photograph the dish. Perhaps you haven't found the time to write things up at all, or you lost your scribbled piece of paper with the ingredients you used, or you can't remember if you baked things for 20 minutes or 40. Please tell me I'm not the only one who can relate to these scenarios?

Today, I hope to lay one of my niggles to rest: whole grain apple and zucchini muffins.

Tweet

No-bake chocolate-topped black bean and goji berry snack bars (vegan, gluten free and refined sugar free)

For someone who likes vegetable-containing desserts, it may seem strange that I have never tried black bean brownies. Beetroot brownies, yes; chickpea truffle balls, yes; black bean brownies, no.

There's no particular reason for this, although I will readily admit that brownies aren't my favourite treat. That might be why my entry into black bean desserts comes not with brownies, but with these no-bake snack bars. With a short ingredient list that features goji berries and coconut flour, the bars are a delightful mix of decadent and healthy. The best part? You can't taste the healthy.

Tweet

Hazelnut and cherry carob cookies - vegan and wheat free {Christmas ideas 2013}

At the risk of sounding patronising, I always feel a little sorry for people who don't like carob. It's one of those flavours that I find so wonderful, and so satisfying, that it's hard to believe other people don't feel the same way.

(Oh, I know. You probably think the same about me and cheese, or plain avocado, or any number of foods I inexplicably Just Don't Like.)

I attribute my carob love to my mother. When my brother and I were young, she favoured it over chocolate as a lower sugar and - crucially - caffeine-free treat that was less likely to spark over-excitement in our young selves. Having acquired the taste as a child, I've retained it through to adulthood.

Tweet

No bake peanut butter energy bites (4 ingredients, vegan, and no food processor required!)

It's all very well me raving about my new (second hand) large freezer, and baking muffins in bulk, but I know that many of you are in the position I was in a few months back: freezer space is at a premium. Plus, sometimes you (I) want a snack or treat without having to do much. If you're in Australia, you (I) may also want a snack or treat without having to turn on your oven.

These no bake peanut butter energy bites are the perfect solution.

I clearly wasn't in the mood for even cutting.

Tweet

Crumbly strawberry coconut flour muffins

Yesterday, whilst at workplace number one, I started the day by dropping a glass container of coffee on the floor. It shattered.

It turns out that cleaning up glass and coffee granules without a brush or broom is a tricky task indeed.

Overnight, I remembered that yesterday was the birthday of one of my university friends. I'm still feeling terrible about forgetting.

This morning, at workplace number two, I spent some minutes wondering where I'd put my coffee cup. Then I remembered that I dropped it on the floor last week. You guess it - it shattered too.

To this string of events, I could add these coconut flour muffins. They weren't dropped, and I didn't forget anything in their preparation, but they didn't quite turn out as expected. As their name suggests - they were crumbly. If optimal muffin crumbliness is a 3 out of 10, these are probably a 7.

However, whilst these muffins are above average in crumbliness, they are also above average in taste. They taste of strawberries and slightly of coconut, and are sweet enough to taste like a treat without being so sweet that they deserve to be called dessert. They are also light and dense at the same time, in the way that coconut flour manages to be.

In light of this, I'm going to interpret these muffins as a lesson in my coconut flour learning process. I'm sharing them along with my thoughts for future adaptations.

Messiness in the form of muffin crumbs is, after all, a lot better than messiness in the form of coffee or glass all over the floor.

Crumbly strawberry coconut flour muffins

Not quite right in texture, but highly enjoyable in taste

Adapted from banana coconut flour muffins at Detoxinista

Yields 12 muffins

Vegan and gluten free

Print recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 punnets strawberries (150g unhulled / 15 medium strawberries)

1 medium banana

1 cup (125g) coconut flour

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup apple sauce

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water

1 tbsp coconut oil, in liquid form

1 tbsp vanilla

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp baking soda

In future I would also add: 1 tbsp chia seeds soaked in 1 cup water

Method

Preheat your oven to 180'C and prepare a 12-pan muffin tray.

Hull and roughly chop the strawberries. In a large bowl, roughly mash the berries and the banana. Leave some strawberries relatively whole.

Add the coconut flour, maple syrup, apple sauce, water, coconut oil and vanilla to the strawberry mixture. Mix well to combine.

Add the apple cider vinegar and baking soda to the other ingredients, and mix through.

Divide the batter between 12 muffin trays.

Next time I would press the mixture firmly down into the muffin trays.

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and firm to the touch. Allow to cool completely before removing from the pan.

I really enjoyed these, but do concede to needing more coconut flour practice. It is quite odd not being able to predict how baked goods will turn out! Most non-vegan coconut flour recipes use rather a lot of eggs, so I am working on the assumption that these needed more binder (thus my thoughts on adding chia). However, if you have any other thoughts or ideas for me - please let me know.

Do you enjoy baking with coconut flour? How about other gluten-free flours? I don't have problems with gluten and am thus quite a novice in this area!

Tweet