Chocolate quinoa rum balls

I have a heap of bits and pieces in my food cupboard that I would normally use to make cakes or biscuits. Alas in my current apartment there is no oven. So I decided to make an adult version of rum balls. If you have a decent blender then you can certainly blend the mix to reduce the need to pre-soak the dates-I won't have a blender until I move to Berlin. The rum is of course optional and can be replaced by water, although it makes a quick snack into a lovely adult dessert for a dinner party.

Ingredients

• 12 dried dates, seeds removed
• 1/2 cup quinoa (if grain free you could use flaxseeds and linseeds)
• 1 cup water (to cook quinoa)
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup coconut flakes (or coconut sugar)
• 2 tablespoons cacao powder
• 1 tablespoon plant oil (I used coconut oil but any would work ok)
• 2 tablespoons rum 

Instructions

1. Soak dates in hot water over night. Drain.
2. Dice dates in small pieces (scissors work really well) and place in a mixing bowl
3. Dry fry quinoa until it changes colour (about 2-3 minutes)
4. Add water and cook quinoa on a low temperature for 5 minutes, will be softer but still have a little bite.
5. Drain and add to the dates. 
6. Add the almond meal, cacao powder, olive and rum and stir well until all ingredients are well combined. 
7. Place mix in the fridge for an hour to make it easier to roll.
8. Take about a tablespoon of the mix and roll into balls.
9. Roll the balls in coconut flakes and store in a sealed container in the fridge or serve.

6 Food trends I am completely over and 6 I am eagerly awaiting

Every so often food trends come and go from sun-dried tomatoes to focaccias to cupcakes and cronuts. Heck I've even been guilty of falling prey to the donut trend, making my own rather tasty vegan baked donuts. As I write recipes and read food blogs, sometimes I see the same recipes again and again. They are usually exclaimed over as though no one else has over made them quite so good, but only the next day you'll see another recipe pop up for raspberry and chia jam or mango and chia seed pudding. 

I know that food trends, especially in vegan cooking, come from a desire to abstain from particular ingredients or an inability to eat certain food due to severe allergies. It's great that people take the time to be inventive and create new food combinations. I don't have to like all of them. Heck, I love quinoa and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I even made a cauliflower pizza base! But it's when I see them so many times that I start thinking that I wish they'd disappear....

Massaged kale

                         

                                    Image from here via Creative Commons

Rubbing a bit of brassica (part of the cabbage family) in coconut oil until it until it resembles salad that's been sitting in the bottom of the salad bowl marinading in italian salad dressing at a family barbecue in the sun for the better part of a day? Yuck. Where I live you can't actually buy kale except for one week a year.

Kale chips
                               
                                             Image from here via Creative Commons


Sorry, they're just not the same as potato chips. Or even as good as beetroot chips. There's something about them that catches in the back of my throat, combined with the smell of nutritional yeast that, as much as I love the stuff, reminds me of vitamin B tablets.

Chia pudding

                            
                                       Image from here via Creative Commons

Yes, it's healthy and an alternative to creamy, high fat desserts. But after they've been soaking a while, chia seeds resemble frogs eggs turning into tadpoles, all slimy. Did you ever study those at school? I did. It was a little bit creepy.

 And don't get me started on chia jam, whilst it has it's place, in my humble opinion it's not as good as my pear and vanilla or strawberry and rosewater jam. Just saying.

Brussel sprouts

                       
                                  Image from here via Creative Commons

Brussel sprouts are very popular in Germany and as cheap as carrots and cabbages. But if I see another recipe for brussel sprouts fried or baked with oil, garlic and salt and pepper (with or without nuts and bacon). Surely everyone has worked these out by now that these go best fried rather than boiled within an inch of their lives like in years gone by?

Green juice smoothies

                          
                                     Image from here via Creative Commons

Yes, I know, you have an amazing blender (the maker of which sponsors your blog posts according to your disclaimer). And I have no longer got a blender since I moved house so I am poorer than you and cannot make smoothies or juices anymore. But do you have to make another post every time you replace spinach with kale or blueberries with raspberries? Here in Germany you can buy cabbage juice at the supermarket by the carton. That's hardcore.

Two ingredient ice cream

                                      
                                                   Image from here via Creative Commons

You've discovered this amazing way to make ice cream, so much so that you went and bought an ice cream maker. And you're going to share it with all of us. If I read a little further I will invariably discover that your magic ingredient is either bananas or coconut milk. Sometimes you even go crazy and use both! I have made ice cream both ways and it invariably taste like either bananas soft serve or coconut soft serve. Not surprising really.

6 Food trends I am eagerly awaiting

Poutine

                                                   Image from here via Creative Commons

Hot chips with cheese curds and gravy. How could it be wrong? I tried it first in Montreal at the Jazz Festival, then was a regular at Melbourne's Lord of the Fries. So good.

Linner
Like brunch but later and far boozier.

Sunday roasts in restaurants for lunch
Roast meat/nuts/tofu, roast veg, greens and gravy. A staple at British pubs and occasionally in Australia. Not so much in Germany unless you want the ubiquitous pork and potatoes that you can also get any other day, any time.

More smaller serve recipes
Single unit dwellings are a thing. Many of us are couple or not but happily child free. We can end up eating that same dish three days in a row. Not everyone has much freezer space. That said, I've seen recipes for a single chocolate chip cookie, these make me sad.

More local fruits and vegetables
Since moved to Germany I've fallen in love with kohlrabi and Schwarzwurzel (salsify). Back in Australia I loved bok choy, choy sum and chinese broccoli, (not so accessible except in asian grocers here) not to mention Lychees and Dragonfruit from Queensland. It's fun to try things you haven't had the opportunity to eat much of, or in turn cook your favourites in a new ways using local ingredients.

More supperclubs and potlucks. 
I've loved running a supper club for the last 6 months. I love the way that food can bring people together, especially those who might otherwise be socially isolated or lacking the opportunity to meet new people. People have been creating websites and apps to bring people together all around the world, but what is needed most is for people to open their homes and give it a go. It's fun and a great way to move out of our comfort zone and challenge yourself.

Jumbo vegan crumpets

                                   

It's always interesting the foods and equipment that you can find in foreign countries and those you cannot. English muffins are readily available here (well a German version to be precise) whilst crumpets are no where to be seen. You can buy them at expat shops, but it's Sunday when the shops are closed and being me, I decided to have a try at making my own.  The ideal is to make the crumpets using 'egg rings' which enable the crumpets to hold their shape and I daresay easier to flip also but I've not been able to find any, so I decided to just make two pan sized ones!

I needed to buy quite a bit of cooking equipment here in Leipzig when I first moved here and my choices have been limited to large department stores that are quite pricey (a bit like Australia's Myers or David Jones) or Euro shops that have limited stock. I like Ikea but it necessitates a bus trip to Halle about 30 minutes away. I miss having loads of Asian discount stores and Kmart for cheap but functional kitchen equipment!

Anyway, give these crumpets a try (rings or not) and see how you go. You'll need at least an hour free with rising and cooking times. You could even make the batter the night before for breakfast although it would taste far more yeasty (in this situation I'd probably halve the yeast due to the longer fermenting/proofing of the dough).

Ingredients

• 3  and 1/2 cup  flour
• 2 tbsp dairy free butter
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp dry yeast (or 2 sachets)
• 1 and 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 cup dairy free milk (I used oat milk)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water (or you could use self raising flour of course and omit the baking powder)

Instructions

1. In a bowl or cup stir together yeast and 1 cup of water. Let stand for 5-10 minutes. 
2. Warm milk and butter in a saucepan or the microwave but do not boil or make too hot or you will kill the yeast. You're aiming for lukewarm.
3. Add flour, salt and sugar to a bowl and stir well.
4.  Add warm milk and  butter and mix until the batter become smooth. I added an extra half cup of water to assist this. 
5. Let stand for 30 minutes in a warm place.
6. Stir in baking powder dissolved in water and leave to rise 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Grease non-stick fry pan and heat over medium-low heat. 
8. Reduce heat to low, pour in batter and cook crumpets until tops look dry, about 15 minutes. A low heat enables them to bubble nicely and cook through without burning the bottom in the pan
9. Flip them over and cook for about 5 minutes. 
10. Serve toasted with more dairy free spread, jam, Vegemite or golden syrup. Delish!

Jumbo vegan crumpets

                                   

It's always interesting the foods and equipment that you can find in foreign countries and those you cannot. English muffins are readily available here (well a German version to be precise) whilst crumpets are no where to be seen. You can buy them at expat shops, but it's Sunday when the shops are closed and being me, I decided to have a try at making my own.  The ideal is to make the crumpets using 'egg rings' which enable the crumpets to hold their shape and I daresay easier to flip also but I've not been able to find any, so I decided to just make two pan sized ones!

I needed to buy quite a bit of cooking equipment here in Leipzig when I first moved here and my choices have been limited to large department stores that are quite pricey (a bit like Australia's Myers or David Jones) or Euro shops that have limited stock. I like Ikea but it necessitates a bus trip to Halle about 30 minutes away. I miss having loads of Asian discount stores and Kmart for cheap but functional kitchen equipment!

Anyway, give these crumpets a try (rings or not) and see how you go. You'll need at least an hour free with rising and cooking times. You could even make the batter the night before for breakfast although it would taste far more yeasty (in this situation I'd probably halve the yeast due to the longer fermenting/proofing of the dough).

Ingredients

• 3  and 1/2 cup  flour
• 2 tbsp dairy free butter
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp dry yeast (or 2 sachets)
• 1 and 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 cup dairy free milk (I used oat milk)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water (or you could use self raising flour of course and omit the baking powder)

Instructions

1. In a bowl or cup stir together yeast and 1 cup of water. Let stand for 5-10 minutes. 
2. Warm milk and butter in a saucepan or the microwave but do not boil or make too hot or you will kill the yeast. You're aiming for lukewarm.
3. Add flour, salt and sugar to a bowl and stir well.
4.  Add warm milk and  butter and mix until the batter become smooth. I added an extra half cup of water to assist this. 
5. Let stand for 30 minutes in a warm place.
6. Stir in baking powder dissolved in water and leave to rise 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Grease non-stick fry pan and heat over medium-low heat. 
8. Reduce heat to low, pour in batter and cook crumpets until tops look dry, about 15 minutes. A low heat enables them to bubble nicely and cook through without burning the bottom in the pan
9. Flip them over and cook for about 5 minutes. 
10. Serve toasted with more dairy free spread, jam, Vegemite or golden syrup. Delish!

Cheesy pull apart bread

                    

I've been meaning to make one of these loaves for a while. It's a really simple recipe which goes great with soup or salad or as part of a party night hors d'oeuvre. It's great for sharing with friends who don'd mind eating with their fingers and is totally moreish!
                                   
Take some time cutting your loaf, I find it best to take it slow and it's pretty easy. The trick is to cut the loaf deep (close to the bottom without cutting the bottom of your loaf of bread) as the deeper the cuts, the more fillings you can put in and the better it will taste. I put vegan chorizo in my loaf as I couldn't find any vegan bacon which I prefer. It was still delicious and eaten over two meals rather quickly!

I'll be adding this as a free recipe for my next ebook. (The first is still available for only $3 with 50c going to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in Melbourne Australia). 

                                   

Ingredients

• 1 rounded loaf of bread
• Vegan butter or olive oil
• Choice of fillings e.g: dairy free cheese, spring onions or onion jam, finely diced garlic, diced animal free chorizo or bacon, diced olives
• Dried herbs
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius (350 degrees fahrenheit).
2. Slice the bread into cubes: Slice the bread horizontally and vertically into 1-inch cubes. Do not slice all the way through the loaf — leave bottom of the loaf intact with the bread pieces still attached.
3. Fry garlic and onions/spring onions and faux bacon/chorizo in a pan for about 5 minutes until mostly cooked. 
4. Combine with any desired toppings in a bowl and mix well
5. Stuff the cheese and toppings into the bread between the slices. It is easiest to stuff one way and then another as less falls out that way! You can also put little slivers of butter in the slices for extra oozy goodness.
6. Pour melted butter  (or brush a little olive oil over top)
7. Wrap loaf in foil and bake for 20 minutes then unwrap the loaf and bake for another 10 minutes until the cheese is totally melted and the top of the loaf is crispy. 
8.  Serve the loaf while still hot from the oven.

Veganised Portuguese custard tarts

Portuguese custard tarts are something I used to quite enjoy even though I've never liked eggs per se. Vegan cooking has not been shy of providing alternatives to eggs in recipes, from tofu scrambles and chickpea flour omelettes to commercial egg replacers. Thus, a vegan variety of Portuguese tarts is not difficult however there is one caveat. Kala Namak is used a lot in vegan 'egg' dishes to impart an egg like flavour.

Kala Namak is a black salt from the Himalayas. It reality it's appearance is more of a reddish purple than a pure black. It certainly adds an eggy flavour to any dish you make, however in my experience for dishes like custard, it also adds a rather gray colour which is less than appetising. I guess it's deciding between colour and flavour?

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup castor sugar
• 3/4 cup cornflour
• 1/2 cup custard powder
• 1 litre dairy free milk ( I tend to use oat milk or soy milk)
• 60g dairy free butter
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• Optional: 1/4 teaspoon Kala Namak (or more to taste)
• 4 sheets puff pastry 

Instructions:

1. In a saucepan, stir together the sugar, cornflour, custard powder and nutmeg with 1/4 cup of the milk until all lumps are removed.
2. Place on the stove and whisk in the remaining milk, butter , cinnamon stick and vanilla bean
3.  Set the custard over medium heat and bring the mixture to boil until it is thick and slides away from the sides of the saucepan.
4. Remove the custard from the heat and remove the vanilla bean casing and cinnamon stick
5. Put custard in a glass/ceramic bowl to cool and cover with cling film to prevent skin forming.
6. Preheat oven to 220°C.
7.  Lightly grease muffins tins with a touch of olive oil.
8. Cut 24 circles from the puff pastry, at least 1 cm larger in circumference than the tops of each muffin tin hole. Place pastry in each hole.
9. Fill with custard until 3/4 full. Do not overfill of they will explode in the oven! The filling will puff up quite a lot, but it will soon sink back as it cools. 
10. Place pie tins in oven. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden.
11. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the tins then 5 minutes on a cake rack. 

In Deutsch
Ich übersetze meine Rezepte in Deutsch. Meine Deutsch ist nicht sehr gut. Ich gehe an fünf Vormittagen in der Wocke in eine Sprachschule. Es wird  bestimmt einige Fehler geben. Bitte zögert  nicht  mich/den Text zu korrigieren!

Zutaten:

• 3/4 Tasse Puderzucker
• 3/4 Tasse Maismehl
• 1/2 Tasse Puddingpulver
• 1 Liter Milch  (Ich neige dazu, Hafermilch oder Sojamilch verwenden)
• 60g vegane Butter 
• 1 Vanilleschote, halbieren und das Mark rauskratzen
• 1 Zimtstange
• 1/4 Teelöffel Muskatnuss
• Optional: 1/4 Teelöffel Kala Namak (oder mehr je nach Geschmack)
• 4 Platten/Stücke Blätterteig

Anleitung:

1. In einem Topf  Zucker, Maismehl, Puddingpulver und Muskatnuss mit 1/4 Tasse Milch, verrühren bis alley Klumpefrei ist.
2.  Auf dem Herd mit eiPlatzieren Sienem Schneebesen die restlichen Milch mit Butter, Zimtstange erwärmen,
3. Die Vanille Pudding Mischung einrühren und bei mittlerer Hitze zu kochen bringen, bis es dick wird und von den Seiten des Kochtopf gleitet.
4. Topf von der Herplatte nehmen und Vanilleschote und Zimstange entfernen.  
5. Den Vanille Pudding im Glas oder einer Keramik-Schüssel abkühlen lassen und mit Klarsichtfolie abdecken, damit sich keine Haut bildet. 
6. Backofen auf 220 ° C vorheizen.
7. Fetten Sie Muffins Formen mit einem Hauch von Olivenöl ein.
8. 24 Kreise aus dem Blätterteig ausschneiden, mindestens 1 cm  größer im Umfang als der obere Durchmesser des Muffenblech Lochs. Teig in der MUffins Form am Boden platzieren.
9.  Mit Vanillepudding, bis zu 3/4. vol füllen. Auf keinen Fall mehr Puddingmasse hineingeben, da diese ansonsten überläuft und im Ofen explodieren wird!  Werfen Sie sie nicht überfüllen wird im Ofen explodieren! Die Füllung wird sich sehr stark aufblähen, wird aber beim abkühlen bald zurück sinken.  
10. Die Muffins Förmchen in den Ofen geben. Für 20 bis 25 Minuten backen oder aber bis sie golden sind.
11. Rausnehmen und für 5 Minuten in den Förmchen auf einem Kuchengitter abkühlen lassen.