Apple Cinnamon Quinoa Breakfast Bake

Hi guys!

I'm a little late for meat free monday, but I still want to share a vegetarian breakfast recipe with you. I am a little obsessed with anything that includes quinoa at the moment, so when I discovered the following recipe, I was hooked. It combines my favorite grain with all of fall's goodness. Sweet or tart apples and those spices like cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg you love from your Pumpkin lattes.

I discovered the recipe on the website "www.fitsugar.com". The website focuses on everything surrounding fitness and offers a ton of healthy, easy to follow recipes. Here's the link to the recipe:
http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/Apple-Cinnamon-Quinoa-Breakfast-Bake-32210316

Here's the recipe:
1 cup (200g) uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 apples
1/4 cup (50g) raisins
2 eggs
2 cups (500ml) vanilla soy milk
1/4 cup (60ml) maple syrup
1/3 cup (about 60g) whole almonds
Sunflower oil or butter, for greasing

1) Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Rinse the quinoa thoroughly. 

2) Grease a 18 x 28cm (7 x 11 inch) baking dish. Fill with the quinoa and spices and mix.

3) Peel the apples and cut them into 1cm (1/2 inch) cubes. Add the apples along with the raising to the quinoa.

4) Put the eggs, soy milk and maple syrup in a bowl and whisk to combine. 

5) Pour the liquids over the quinoa and apples and carefully stir everything. 

6) Roughly chop the almonds and sprinkle over the top. Bake for 1 hour or until set. 

Yield: 6 slices
Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Here is how my bake looks:

This is perfect to make ahead on the weekend and reheat in the oven (about 10 minutes at 150°C (300°F) or microwave. 

I love the combination of soft quinoa and the fall spices. I made this bake once using regular soy milk and the second time using hazelnut milk. Almond milk should work perfectly, too. I personally like the addition the hazelnut milk gives this dish. It really complements the apple. I guess you could use your favorite variety of apples. I personally prefer crisp, tart apples that taste rather sour than sweet, but feel free to choose any sort you like.

Most of all though, I like the fact that this is warm. In autumn, the nights get chillier and I am feeling better starting my day with something warm.

Have fun trying and start the chilly fall days right!

Apple Pie

Hi guys!

It's Monday and time for a meat-free recipe. Today's recipe is for all of you with a sweet tooth. As autumn is in full swing right now, I love to bake more than ever, because it means my favorite fruit is in season. It's not something extraordinary or hugely decadent - I love apples. In crumbles, in a tray cake, baked, but especially, as apple pie. The list goes on and on... 
This recipe for apple pie comes from Cynthia Barcomi and is the first apple pie recipe I have ever tried. I just love the buttery pie crust as it isn't sweet and nicely contrasts the tart and sweet baked apples. 

Here's the recipe:

For the pie crust:
420g ( 2+3/4 cups; 14.8 oz) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
240g (2 sticks; 8 oz) unsalted butter
90g (3.17 oz) palm oil 
160ml (2/3 cup; 5 fl.oz) cold water

For the apple filling:
4-5 apples (The recipes recommends Granny Smith, I like Boskoop as well or Elstar)
35g (2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
70-100g (1/3-1/2 cup) granulated sugar
pinch of cinnamon powder (feel free to use 1 teaspoon or more)

1 egg

1) Cut the butter and oil in small pieces. Put them in a bowl and let them cool in the freezer for about 15 minutes. I personally have never used the palm oil, but replaced it with equal amounts of butter. You could also use coconut oil, as it is hard at room temperature as well.

2) Place the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl and mix.

3) Add the butter and beat the dough with a hand-held mixer or kitchen machine until small crumbs form. It should look a little a crumb topping.

4) Add the water, reserving one tablespoon at first. The dough should just be coming together. Add the remaining water if necessary. 

5) Wrap the dough in cling film and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. The recipe calls for 2 hours, but I have never found it necessary to refrigerate it this long.

6) Preheat the oven to 225°C (437°F). Peel and core the apples and cut them in pieces, about 1/2 inch quarters. 

7) In a bowl, mix the apples with the sugar, flour and cinnamon and set aside.

8) Grease a 26cm spring tin with butter. Take the dough out of the fridge and cut in tin half. Place one half on a flour-dusted surface and roll it into a round disk of about 36cm caliber. You should be able to place the dough into the spring tin while it forms the bottom and sides in one piece. Fill the apples into the tin.

9) Take the other half and roll until about 2-3mm thick. Either you can roll it into a round disk and cover the pie with it completely, cutting the cover a few times so the steam can escape when baking. Or you cut the dough into 2cm-wide strips and braid them. I know, the braiding takes a little bit more time, but I think it looks much much nicer. For some extra glow, brush with one whisked egg. 

10) Bake the pie at 210°C (410°F) for 15 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to 190°C (374°F), cover the pie loosely with aluminum foil and bake for another 50 minutes. The pie is done when it is golden brown. 
© Copyright: Cynthia Barcomi's "Backbuch", p. 145f.

Here's how mine looks:

As you can see: The braiding is a little bit freestyle. It's easiest starting in the middle and working your way out. 

Here's a peek at the inside

I really love this recipe. The pie crust is the perfect combination between buttery and flaky and soft from the apple juices on the inside. The butter makes sure that no apple juice can escape. I always use more cinnamon than the original recipe calls for, as I love it. It's completely up to you. Feel free to leave it, if you're not into cinnamon, but I think nothing beats this classic, winning combination. 

Have fun trying and curl up on the sofa with a nice piece of warm apple pie!

Caramel maple mud cupcakes with fudge frosting

Hi guys!

I am truly sorry for not writing for sooo long. The past months have been super busy for me, finishing my studies, applying to a lot of jobs and finally starting an apprenticeship. All those things took up tons of time and whenever I had a few days off, I found that I wasn't in the mood to cook. 

Now, being in my job for almost four months and slowly getting the hang of it, I am enjoying cooking and baking again and - most importantly - I want to share recipes I've tried and loved with you. So thanks for the patience and hopefully you'll enjoy new recipes and want to try them immediately. 

Today's recipe comes from Donna Hay. She has hands-down become one of my favorites. I love the way she photographs her food and baked goods. And I have never tried a recipe that didn't work. As autumn had officially started this week, I turned to old editions of the Donna Hay magazine. I especially loved a chapter she did on caramel. Luckily, Donna decided to share the recipe for these cupcakes on her website, so you'll have easy access to it. This is the link: https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/desserts-and-baking/caramel-maple-mud-cupcakes-with-fudge-frosting

And here's my step-by-step-guide:

1) Place the maple syrup, milk, sugar, butter and chocolate in a saucepan over low heat and stir until melted and smooth. This takes about 5-10 minutes. Be patient and don't turn the heat on high or you'll risk burning the chocolate. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

2) Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°C). Add both the flours and whisk until just combined. If you don't have self-raising flour, substitute with 200g of all-purpose flour in total and add a little less than 1 teaspoon baking powder. Add the egg and which until smooth.

3) Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases. Fill the cases, leaving a little room to the top. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

4) To make the caramel fudge frosting, place the sugar, butter and salt in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. 

5) Turn the heat to high, add the milk and vanilla extract and bring to the boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

6) Remove from the heat. Add the icing sugar and whisk until smooth. Working quickly, spread the cupcakes with the frosting. 

This is how they look:

As usual, Donna's yield is not the same as my experience. Even though I used the exact amounts as she tells you to, I had enough dough for 12 cupcakes and more than enough frosting. Everything else worked perfectly. 

These cupcakes are sweet, so if you haven't got a sweet tooth, don't try them. The sweetness has different layers from using different kinds of sweeteners, sugar and maple syrup, and caramelizing the sugar. I love caramel as it symbolizes warmth and cosiness for me. 

I hope, you enjoy the start of fall-time and have fun trying!

Gingernut Cookies

Today has been, once more, really cold and I wanted nothing more as soon as I got home than whipping up some cookie dough and filling the house with that flavour only cookies get when baking. I am a big fan of ginger as a spice in general. I love to use it for cooking, but it is great for baking as well. Apparently, the people at donna hay magazine like it as well, because they did a whole spread on baked goods spiced with ginger in the June/July 2012 issue of their magazine. I want to introduce you to her recipe for gingernut cookies. 

Here's the recipe:

150g (5.3 oz) unsalted butter, softened

225g (1 1/4 cups) brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

185g (1 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon of ground ginger

demerara sugar, for rolling

1) Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Beat the butter, the brown sugar and vanilla extract with a hand-held mixer or kitchen machine for 8-10 minutes until it is light and fluffy. 

2) Add the egg and beat for another 2-3 minutes, so the egg is completely combined with the other ingredients.

3) Add the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger and beat until a smooth dough forms. 

4) Roll tablespoonfuls of the dough into balls, the roll in the Demerara sugar. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper and place the cookies on it, leaving space in between. 

5) Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool on a wire rack. 

Yield: 24 cookies

Active preparation time: about 15 minutes

Total preparation time: about 45 minutes

© Copyright: donna hay magazine, june/july 2012

Here's how my cookies turned out:

I had to google Demerara sugar to find out it is sugar made of crystallized raw sugar cane juice. I know I am able to find it at a delicatessen in the city, but as I didn't have any at home, I substituted coarse brown sugar for it. Using this coarse sugar adds a slight crunch that I like and it crystalizes while baking. But if you don't like biting on sugar crystals, omit the rolling in sugar. The thing I love most is the taste of the ginger in combination with the caramelized sugar. A little sweet and yet spicy. And the perfect excuse to curl up on the sofa with a cup of coffee or tea and a warm gingernut cookie straight from the oven. 

Have fun trying and enjoy!

Basic Lentil Soup

Soo, I finally managed to get some cooking in. That is not to say I didn't cook for the past few weeks, but most of it was designed to be quick and easy and was eaten before I could take a picture. So now, hopefully, I will get back to a more frequent routine in writing and cooking. Today's recipe is meat-free (as it is Monday, of course) and vegan. Switzerland has got a first taste of cold weather with chilly wind blowing and me freezing on the way to University, so I figured there's no better way to brave the cold than with a hot bowl of delicious soup. I was searching for new ideas and new soup recipes to try that differ form the basic vegetable-purée soup and I came across this recipe for a lentil soup, featured on goop. Here's the link: http://www.goop.com/journal/make/254/spilling-the-beans 
The recipe is the last one, on the very bottom of the issue.

A few notes to my version: I used beluga lentils as well as green puy lentils. Both are rather small and cook fast. They also won't break down while cooking but hold their shape really well, which I prefer. 

Serves: 4
Active preparation time: about 10 minutes
Total preparation time: 35 minutes 

Here's how my soup looks:

First of all, I love the simple fact that I had every ingredient at home and could start cooking right away. I always keep lentils at hand, as they make a perfect side or a satisfying meal on their own and are incredibly versatile. Secondly, I find this soup to be a great compromise. On the one hand it is a little creamy because you've pureed a little of it and on the other hand you've still got small bits of carrots, tomatoes and lentils in it. I finished my soup with a drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar. The soup itself offers sweetness from the tomatoes and carrots, earthy, almost nutty flavors from the lentils, a little saltiness from the vegetable broth and just the right amount of acidity, if you add the vinegar. I hope you like it!

Have fun trying and enjoy!  

Banana Bran Muffins

Hi guys!

I know, I am a tiny bit late for meat free monday, but I hope you don't mind a meat free, start of the week pick-me-up recipe. Today's muffins are healthy, they're not your average fatty and sweet muffin, but they're light and filled with nutrients so you can even grab one on the go for breakfast. No bad conscience necessary! The recipe is from Donna Hay's "Fresh and Light", her most recent book as of today. It includes tons of new ideas for light breakfasts, lunches, dinners while making sure you are getting great nutrients at the same time. And it tastes great, too. These muffins aren't as sweet as your regular muffin from the coffee shop around the corner, but they offer great taste and will fill you up until lunch.

Here's the recipe:
300g (10.5 oz; 2 cups) whole-wheat flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
100g (3.5 oz; 2/3 cup) raw unrefined dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 egg
300ml (10 fl.oz; 1 + 1/4 cup) buttermilk
80ml (2.5 fl.oz; 1/3 cup) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 bananas
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
65g (2.3 oz) bran (wheat or oat)

1) Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F). In a bowl combine the flour with baking powder, sugar, cinnamon powder and bran. 

2) In a seperate bowl, combine the buttermilk, vegetable oil, egg, honey, vanilla extract. Mash the bananas with a fork and mix as well.

3) Carefully fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. Don't overmix otherwise you'll end up with dry muffins. 

4) Line a muffin tin with paper cases or grease it with a little butter and split the dough evenly among the cases. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. 
© Copyright: Donna Hay, "Fresh and Light", p. 12.

Yield: 12
Active preparation time: about 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 45 minutes

Here's how mine look:

I used wheat bran as I have trouble digesting oat sometimes. If you want gluten free muffins, try substituting buckwheat flour and omit the bran. What I love most about these muffins is their taste. Don't expect them to be nothing but sweet, they'll give you a hint of sweetness and fruit from the banana, not more. At the same time, the whole-wheat flour and bran counterbalance that sweetness and make sure you stay full longer and get important nutrients.

Have fun trying and start your week healthy!

Black Bean, Corn + Avocado Bowl

Hi guys!

So, meat free monday is back with a little vegan treat for you. A few weeks ago, goop.com featured a back-to-school-issue with lots of great lunch bowl ideas, including this bowl with corn, avocado and black beans. The base of all the bowls is a mix of brown rice and quinoa, not your usual go-to grains perhaps, but these are worth a try and I was surprised myself how  tasty and satisfying the result was. Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.goop.com/journal/make/240/back-to-school-mag

Again, few simple steps away from your lunch:

1) Cook the brown rice and quinoa. Directions on how to cook them are included on the site by clicking on the words. 

2) Preheat a pan with olive oil over medium heat. Add the black beans, avocado and corn (if you don't get corn cobs, substitute canned corn kernels). Squeeze the lime juice on top and mix to combine while warming through.

3) Add the quinoa and brown rice and mix through the beans and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper and garnish, if you want to.

Serves: 2
Active preparation time: 5 minutes, if you use canned beans and corn and have pre-cooked the quinoa and brown rice. Otherwise about 10 minutes.
Total preparation time: again, 5 minutes if everything is prepared. About 50 minutes if not. 

Here's how it looks:

I really love the combination of black beans, corn, avocado and rice. It's like a good mexican getaway. The olive oil and lime juice help bring out the other flavours. I also am quite smitten with the textures. A little crunch from the corn kernels, creaminess from the avocado and the perfect mix between both from the black beans. As an added bonus, the grains will help you stay full for hours. I hope you have as much fun eating it as I did. 

Have fun trying and enjoy!