I opened up my kitchen baking cupboard the other day and was met with a pile of packets falling on my head. That seemed like a pretty clear sign that it was high time I had a bit of a clearout and used up a few half empty packets of ingredients that had been in there too long. These chewy, no-bake peanut butter granola bars were my attempt to finish off a random selection of odds and ends of nuts, seeds, cereal and dried fruit….
almonds
Healthy Superfood Pancakes
Healthy superfood pancakes – a delicious, indulgent breakfast that is packed full of healthy, nutritious ingredients and will keep you full for longer.
I have porridge for breakfast most weekdays (I am half Scottish after all, though I don’t go as far as making it the way my dad insists is traditional, with just oats, water and salt). But at the weekends I like to have a bit more of an indulgent breakfast. I love pancakes and waffles with all the toppings, but they don’t lend themselves particularly well to a healthy eating plan.
I am a big believer in balance, so I think that an indulgent breakfast every now and again is perfectly alright, as well as regular slices of cake; but I wanted to come up with something that fit both bills – decadent but good for you….
No-Bake Superfood Granola Bars
No-bake superfood granola bars – chewy granola bars packed full of superfood ingredients such as chia, pumpkin & linseeds, almonds, goji berries, oats, coconut oil & dark chocolate.
I’ve been trying to keep fairly healthy this month, and other than gradually polishing off the remains of the Christmas chocolates I’ve been doing quite well; I’m not dieting per se, just cutting back on the cakes and biscuits for a while. I still find myself in need of a daily mid-morning snack however, something that I can just grab and go and that satisfies any sweet cravings I may have. …
Double Chocolate Almond Cookies
Stollen Plait
Baking stollen is one of the very few Christmas traditions that I have and I make it in some form or another every year. I don’t think I have ever baked the exact same recipe twice, I like to play around with it and try new recipes, I have tried many variations ranging from a very traditional German recipe to cinnamon roll style stollen buns. The one constant is that it must contain marzipan; I LOVE marzipan and will happily eat chunks of it out of the packet as I bake, although I try to control myself so that I have enough left for whatever it is that I am baking……
Toscakaka (Swedish Caramel Almond Vanilla Cake)
When I am bored, I bake. Earlier on in the week I was in one of those moods where I just don’t know what to do with myself when I realised that it had been far too long since I last made a cake; I wasn’t in the mood for something fussy, or iced, or complicated. I wanted a simple, rustic, hearty cake, this fit the bill exactly. Toscakaka is a traditional Swedish cake comprised of a light, buttery, moist vanilla sponge topped with an addictive, gooey, crunchy, caramel almond praline. It is delicious with coffee, but equally good served warm with some vanilla ice cream….