Beetroot and Strawberry Brownies

June 19, 2013 · 41 Comments

You may have noticed on Facebook the other day I shared my tip of throwing some vegetables in to roast when you have the oven on.

It saves energy and you have yummy roast vegetables at the end to eat!

Anyway, I ended up with two and a half roasted beetroots and was pondering what I should make with them.

This fabulous recipe by Lori at What Runs Lori was just the ticket!

Of course, I had to do a little tweaking, Australiafying and thermifying (technical term for converting a recipe to be thermomix friendly).

I am so excited about all the health benefits of this brownie and the fact that it has 1 cup of vegetables and 1 cup of fruit!

Here is my version of Lori’s fabulous recipe.

Beetroot and Strawberry Brownies

Vital Stats: grain free, gluten free, dairy free, nut free, naturally sweetened, vegetarian, antioxidant rich

Okay so this is what you need:

1 cup cooked organic beetroot, chopped roughly (you can roast, steam or boil)

1/2 cup virgin organic coconut oil

3 tablespoons organic coconut milk

4 organic eggs

6 medjool dates (without the pit!)

1 tablespoon Heilala vanilla bean paste

1/2 teaspoon pink himalayan salt

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1/2 cup organic coconut flour

1/2 cup organic raw cacao powder

1 cup chopped strawberries (or any berries)

Okay, so this is how you do it:

Preheat your oven to 180°C. Line a slice tray with a piece of baking paper.

Whack your beetroot, coconut oil, coconut milk, eggs, dates and vanilla into the thermomix.

I don’t worry about melting the coconut oil because it melts into the mix on it’s own (unless it is super cold where you live!)

Blitz on speed 9 for 30 seconds or until all is well combined and no lumps are left.

How beautiful is this colour!!

Now add in the rest of the ingredients and mix on reverse, speed 4 for 10 seconds.

If you want the strawberries to be chunky in the mix, fold them in by hand with a spatula.

Mine ended up smoodged in the mix a bit too much.

Don’t let the mix sit too long. Coconut flour can be temperamental!

Whack the mix into your slice tin and smooth out the top really well.

Chuck it in the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes or until firm.

Cool down well on a wire rack.

For non-thermomix instructions, please refer to Lori’s recipe.

Notes:

You can freeze the brownies in portions if you like.

This recipe is really moist and delicious but not overly sweet. Add a little honey or maple syrup if you need.

Serve it with some double cream or cashew cream and some berry coulis if you want to make delicious dessert.

It is perfect with a cup of Crio Bru for a double choc treat that is all good for you (oh yes I did!).

Do you like brownies?

Get the Heilala Vanilla at my Crio Bru Affiliate Shop.

Double Choc Berry Biccies

February 27, 2013 · 45 Comments

It is a very rainy and miserable day here, so I decided to make the kids some biscuits and a hot home-made milo for afternoon tea.

Yes, I know, I am a truly awesome Mum!! 😉

Thinking about this recipe, I played around with some other flavours and came up with these Double Choc Berry Biccies!

I was pretty impressed. What a powerhouse little biscuit, chock-full of superfoods! You won’t get that in a Tim Tam!

Please check for sweetness. I like the bitey dark chocolate taste, but you might like them sweeter. I know the kids did!

Double Choc Berry Biccies

Vital stats: gluten-free, grain-free, refined sugar-free, dairy-free, vegetarian.

Okay, this is what you need:

1 cup almond meal

2 tablespoons organic cacao

2 tablespoons Crio Bru (unbrewed straight from the pack)

2 tablespoons Changing Habits coconut oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey (adjust to taste)

1 tablespoon coconut flour

2 tablespoons Superfoods for Kidz C-Berry Blast

1 organic egg

Okay, so this is how you do it:

Chuck everything together and mix. (I can’t make it any easier than that, can I??)

If you have a thermomix, make your almond meal first and then chuck everything else in and whizz.

Wet your hands and roll into balls – I made 15. Press down slightly on them. Fling on a baking tray with some baking paper.

Bake for 10 minutes or until brown in a 180 degree celsius oven.

I think they would also be fab, sandwiched with some paleo salted caramel.

I used three of my favourite superfoods in these biccies and you can get them from my affiliate shops. Click on the picture for more info and prices.

C-Berry Blast from Superfoods For Kidz

Crio Bru, 100% organic brewed cocoa

Changing Habits Coconut Oil

Are you a fan of choccie biccies?

Want more healthy biccy recipes? Try these.

Coconut Hummingbird Cake – Thermomix

February 6, 2013 · 24 Comments

This gorgeous recipe popped up on my Facebook newsfeed before Christmas and I just had to make it. Hummingbird cake is one of my all time favourites and until now, I had never seen a grain-free, gluten-free recipe for it.

This Coconut Hummingbird Cake recipe is the brainchild of the amazing Allison at Frisky Lemon Nutrition. Check out her webpage and facebook. I tweaked it a little and Australiafied and thermomixified it. (They are so real words!)

Allison decorated hers with a lovely cream cheese frosting and pecans, but this was all eaten before I even got the chance to get that far! I think it would be lovely with some coconut cream frosting. It is truly delicious and one of our family’s firm favourites. I hope you like it as much as we do.

Coconut Hummingbird Cake

Vital Stats: Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free

Okay, this is what you need:

3/4 cup coconut flour

1 tablespoon organic cinnamon (I use Planet Organic brand)

1 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt

1 teaspoon of bicarb soda

10 sulphur-free dates

1 tablespoon organic apple juice concentrate (AJC)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup organic,virgin coconut oil

6 organic eggs

2 ripe organic bananas

1 can of Ceres organic pineapple *

1 cup organic walnuts (or pecans)

3 tablespoons filtered water

Okay, so this is how you do it:

* Set your oven to 180 degrees celsius and line a deep, round cake tin with baking paper.

* Chop the nuts in the thermomix, speed 5 for 2-3 seconds. Set aside.

* Chuck the dates in the thermomix with 3 tablespoons of filtered water. Cook for 2 mins on 100 degrees, speed 1. Whizz on speed 8-9 to make a paste. Cool in the thermy.

* Fling in the AJC, chopped bananas, eggs, vanilla, coconut oil, drained and chopped pineapple and whizz on speed 4 until well combined and pineapple is crushed- about 10 to 20 seconds.

* Whack into the thermomix the flour, bicarb soda, nuts and salt. On REVERSE, mix on speed 3 for 20 seconds until thoroughly combined.

* Pour into cake tin. Bung it into the oven and cook for 45 mins to one hour or until set. Cool on a wire cake rack.

For non-thermomix instructions, please refer to Allison’s recipe here. I hope you love this Coconut Hummingbird Cake!!

Are you a fan of hummingbird cake?

*I found these canned Organic Pineapple Chunks in a BPA free can. I keep a couple in the pantry for recipes.