VANILLA CAKE GLUTEN FREE

Here is the typed out version from the recipe: Vanilla cake in my you tube video. A big thank you to all who have viewed it. I hope it keeps spreading and being viewed - YAY!

It really is a VERY easy and Yummy cake :) Its one of those cakes that you can make in 1 bowl and whip up and place in the oven while supper is being prepared. It is THAT easy!

Scroll to the end of the post to see how yummy is is all finished and filled with cream.

 INGREDIENTS
100 grams Brown sugar
2 eggs
120 grams Gluten Free flour (you can use regular flour - just use a bit less)
1 and a half teaspoons baking powder
1 vanilla pod or a generous teaspoon of vanilla essence
1/4 - half a cup of milk

VANILLA SPONGE CAKE - GLUTEN FREE & ON YOUTUBE

 After Many hours I finally have a recipe video on You Tube - hooray!

Enjoy the EASY and Gluten Free Vanilla Sponge cake. Feel Free to share this video - go nuts and tell everyone - even your grandma. She'll love it to!...

To go directly to the link and to see it in a much bigger screen go here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbt0pfH1_ZM

Thank you to my 2 egg actors who were super cute and very willing to try anything ;)

A BIG THANK YOU to Matthew Mole for allowing me to use his cute and fun snappy song. You can down load his music for free here

And for my husbands patience I owe him another cake ;)

GNOCCHI GLUTEN FREE

 

I have been eating very little meat for the last 2- 3 months. Reserving to eat meat for special occasions or a treat. Doing this I find that I have so much more energy and feel more awake. Weird cause I didnt feel asleep before.
Anyway when eating out I find it hard to find something on the menu that I like that is meat-free and wheat free. *I don't eat sea food either.
Even though Gnocchi isn't wheat free I decided that because it has quite a lot of potato in it I'd give it a try as I was tired of eating lettuce filled salads at restaurants.
After enjoying a few I decided I needed to give it a try myself

I read through some recipes and I found this one to be the most comprehensive and helpful here on www.finecooking.com

I converted my recipe to gluten free and just used a rough read through of the recipe to make my own version.

INGREDIENTS
6 medium potatoes
Gluten Free Flour +/- 1 and a half - 2 cups (i just added until i had the right consistency)
1 egg
a generous pinch of Salt

METHOD
wash your potatoes and place in a pot of boiling water so that potatoes are covered by the water and turn down to a simmer.
Simmer until soft. I tested by inserting a knife and it went in easily.
Turn off and throw off the water and allow the potatoes to cool down until warm.
Peel the potatoes by hand and roughly cube.
Mash the potatoes WELL! you want it to be lump free and smooth.
Let the mash potato cool then add 1 egg and a generous pinch or 2 of salt and stir in thoroughly.
Now add flour a bit at a time until you feel you have reached a soft dough consistency - not super sticky but not to stiff either. Mix with your hands. DO NOT work with it to much - just enough to mix all the flour in. I felt the success is not over working your dough.
Wash and dry your hands.
Flour your work surface.
Break off fist sized balls of dough 1 at a time and roll into a sausage.
Use a sharp knife and cut into pieces about as wide as your thumb.
Lay the pieces on a baking tray covered with wax paper.
Keep working until you have rolled and cut up all your dough.
Using a large pot bring water to the boil and sprinkle in a little salt. Turn down to a simmer.
Place roughly 10 gnocchi pieces in at a time and when they float remove with a slotted spoon.
If you put to many gnocchi in at once you will end up with a goopy mess.
Place a sauce of your choice on your plate or bowl and place gnocchi on top.
Sprinkle with freshly grated cheese
Serve immediately

 

PS this was a huge hit with my family :) 

UPDATED AGAIN: Coffee Espresso Machine - BREVILLE

flat white made by a professional Barista - not me!

PLEASE READ TO THE END OF THE POST TO SEE THE OUTCOME!!!

So recently my husband and I went coffee machine shopping. Before we set out I never realised how daunting this would be. We had been browsing for almost a year now and we had a rough idea of what we wanted. We knew we wanted an espresso machine. We had a stove top peculator already and we were now wanting to progress to the next step :) yay! well so I thought...

DOUBLE HONEY ALMOND TRUFFLES

INGREDIENTS
100grams Raw Almonds
6 Tablespoons Honey
2 Tablespoons water
pinch of salt
125ml cream
100grams 85% Dark Chocolate (eg Lindt or other good quality chocolate)
2 tablespoons cocoa for dusting

METHOD
Grill/ roast the almonds in the oven until light golden brown (watch it or they will burn). You can store them in an airtight container for a day or 2 or carry on with the recipe.
Transfer the almonds to a frying pan with 3 - 4 tablespoons of honey, water and a tiny pinch of salt. Simmer and stir and leave on low till nice and thick and darker golden brown. Make sure that you don't burn the honey!
Have a tray ready with buttered foil or  buttered wax paper!
Spoon the honey almond mix onto the buttered foil/paper and allow to cool and go brittle.
In a Bain Marie (eg glass bowl over a pot of simmering water) place cream and chocolate.
Stir until melted and smooth.
Stir in 2 Tablespoons honey
Cut/crush the brittle honeyed almonds with a sharp knife until you have course crumbs and stir into the melted chocolate mixture.

Place in the fridge for a few hours to firm up.
Once firm (I left mine over night but think 2 hours should be fine) scoop out a rounded teaspoon at a time and roll very lightly in your hands and the place in sifted cocoa.
Shake off lightly and place on tray or place and place back in the fridge to firm up
I managed to make 20 small truffles

They were moreish!
Enjoy!

STRAWBERRY SORBET - COOL & HEALTHY

It is beach weather in Cape Town at the moment. REALLY HOT! Get-a-tan-and-burnt-in-20-minutes-flat-kinda-weather. You know the kind where the sea glistens and the beach babes play volley ball and your skin smells of coconut sunblock.
Well I'm not falling for it! I may live 2 minutes walk from the beach but I am opting to sit in the shade of my garden and watch my daughter play in the sprinkler (under the shade of a tree).
Im going to kick back my shoes and eat some sorbet. It maybe less fashionable but I'll have just as much fun with out the sand being in my shoes and every piece of clothing I wore to the beach ;)
BONUS: This Sorbet will be even more delicious (and healthy) than ice cream bought from the kiosk at the beach.

This recipe is so much easier than you think and is filled with fresh fruit (vitamins) :) Its a win-win summer treat!

INGREDIENTS
1 cup fresh apple juice
1 generous cups strawberries (trimmed and cut up)
4 tablespoons honey
1 small lemon
2 x eggs whites beaten (soft to medium peaks)


METHOD
Dissolve the honey in the apple juice by heating it slightly in a small saucepan on the stove.
Puree your strawberries in a blender and then pass through a sieve into the apple juice. This is to get rid of the tiny little seeds.
Squeeze the juice of the lemon into the mixture - tasting as you go. Don't make it to sour.
Freeze and mix in your ice cream machine or in a low dish in your freezer.
Add the all ready beaten egg whites.
Stir and freeze or serve immediately
Freezes well in a sealed container (I use CONSOL glass jars - preserving/ Mason jars) for roughly 6 weeks.

*if you don't have an ice cream machine and are freezing it in a dish = then beat the mixture and return to the freezer twice before adding egg whites