Tuscan Herb Bread

There is nothing better than freshly baked bread! And this one smells like Tuscany!

2 cups warm water
2 packs active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups strong white flour
1/2 cup spelt flour
5tbs tuscan herbs
pinch of salt

Pour 1/2 cup of the warm water (not boiling) into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast and let stand for about 5min until dissolved. Stir in the remaining 1 1/2 cups of water. Blend white and spelt flour in a separate bowl until well mixed. Add salt and Tuscan herbs. Add and stir 1 cup of the flour mixture at a time into the yeast mixture until a dough forms and the mixture cleans the sides of the bowl. Knead dough for about 10min on lightly floured surface smooth and shiny. Shape a ball, cover with a towel and place in a warm spot for about 1hour (it double in size).

Punch dough down, let rest about 5 minutes. Flatten dough into an oval shape, fold loosely into bread. Put on a baking sheet, cover again with towel and place in a warm place for another half an hour.

Preheat oven to 190° C/375°F and bake for 50min-1hour until crust is brownish and bread sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from oven and cool before cutting.

Chocolate soiree with Cote d’Or

Casanova referred to it as elixir of love. In the past, French doctors prescribed it to women with broken hearts. Science says it stimulates the endorphins, also known as the hormones of happiness.  YES! I’m talking about chocolate! And what is the best chocolate in the WHOLE WORLD (trust me, I’ve been to many places!) – it’s BELGIAN chocolate!

Last Wednesday, I was one of the lucky 30 girls who participated in an exclusive chocolate soirée at the Côte d’Or boutique in Brussels. It was organized by Clo Willaerts as a part of the Brussels Girl Geek Dinners (BGGD), events for females who class themselves as girly and geeky and it was so far the best BGGD I attended … but you can’t blame me, it was about chocolate! After having a few drinks, we were invited to a presentation on the history of chocolate (did you know that Christopher Columbus was the first European to come in contact with chocolate? And he didn’t like it! Pfff The only thing that saves him here is that it was pure chocolate drink with no sugar nor milk…but still!) where we were also able to try the latest addition to the Côte d’Or family – the Speculoos chocolate! YUMYUM! The best part of the evening was, of course, the chocolate workshop during which we made our own Côte d’Or chocolates! And were able to take them home (or what was left from them ) Plus we also received a very CHOCOLATEY goodie bag! What else can you want!?

Thanks to Clo and lovely people at the Côte d’Or boutique for this chocaholic heaven!

Apple Crumble Pie

1 pack ready roll puff pastry
3 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
50g raisins
50g tagatose sweetener (or brown sugar)
5 tsp ground cinnamon
125g flour
50g cold butter

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas4. Spray a 26cm/9in spring tin with baking spray and roll out the pastry. In a bowl, mix apples, 3 tsp cinnamon, 25g tagatose and raisins and spread evenly in the pie-dish.

Place the flour, remaining tagatose and cinnamon in a large bowl and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the apples. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the crumble is browned.

Nutella Raspberry Cheesecake!

YAAAY! Nutella challenge time again! This time I made raspberry cheesecake with nutella and raspberry sauce … mmmmmmmm

100g digestive cookies
5 tbsp melted butter
400g cream cheese
100 ml soured cream
100g tagatose (or 80g sugar)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
150g raspberries
Nutella

 

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Crush the biscuits to fine crumbs in a food processor.  In a bowl mix the cookies with the melted butter. Press into the spring form tin (I used a flour shaped spring:D).

In a bowl, combine cream cheese, soured cream, vanilla extract and tagatose. Add the egg and mix until smooth. Pour into the tin. Put half of the raspberries on the top of the cheesecake. Bake for about 45-50min. In the meantime, use the other half of raspberries to make the sauce. In a small pan, mix raspberries with 1 tbsp water and 1 tbsp tagatose.  Cook for about 5 min. Put 5tbs of Nutella in a small bowl and melt in a microwave. Once cheesecake is ready, pour hot raspberry sauce and melted Nutella over it! YUMYUM!

 

Chocolate Carrot Squares!

200g carrots, rasped
25g pure chocolate
25g cocoa powder
150g butter, soft
3 eggs
80g tagatose sweetener (or 100g sugar)
1 ½ tsp baking powder
180g spelt or all purpose flour
Icing sugar

Preheat the oven to 180°C. In a bowl mix flour, baking powder, tagatose and cocoa powder. Add butter and eggs. Melt chocolate in the microwave and add to the mixtrure. Stir in rasped carrots and mix until smooth. Line a spring tin (20×20cm) with baking paper and pour the mixture into it. Bake 35-40min and let it cool off. Sprinkle with icing sugar and cut into approx. 24 squares.

Very berry breakfast cups

Makes 4 breakfast cups

2 cups (1/2l) organic vanilla yoghurt
2 cups (225 grams) frozen or fresh raspberries
Granola (I used organic blueberry granola)
1 tbsp water
1 tbsp tagatose sweetener

In a small pan heat up raspberries with water and tagatose. Take off the heat once the raspberry mix is hot but do not cook.  In each breakfast cup make a layer of granola, hot raspberry mix and yoghurt. Repeat and top with the raspberry mix. YUMYUM!

Salmon-Ricotta Courgettes

Super easy but also very yummy stuffed courgettes recipe! I made them last friday when my boss’s lovely wife gifted me the BIGGEST courgette EVER! And I mean it, it was ENOURMOUS! I haven’t seen anything like that before haha Btw if you’re ever visiting Belgium and you love countryside, you should definitely stay in her gorgeous Bed&Breakfast!

1 big or 2 small courgettes (or 1/3 of the BIGGEST courgette EVER)
1 can of salmon
225g/1 cup ricotta
1 egg, beaten
Grated cheese
Salt & Pepper

Cut courgette in half lengthways and scoop some flesh out. In a bowl, mix salmon and ricotta with some salt and pepper.  Add beaten egg and mix well. Pile into the courgette halves and top with grated cheese. Bake at 190C/375F/Gas 5 for about 40 minutes until the courgettes are tender. Voila!

Mini Crumbles

These cute and healthy oat apple/blueberry mini crumbles are perfect as breakfast or dessert!

4 apples,
75g blueberries
2 tbsp spelt flour
3 tbsp oats
1 tbsp tagatose sweetener (or 3 tbsp sugar)
3 tbsp cold butter

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F degrees. Peel , core and cut apples into cubes. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp tagatose. Heat a griddle over moderately high heat and bake the apples 5 min together with blueberries (leave 5 blueberries for the topping). Place in two small ovenproof dishes.

In a small bowl, combine vanilla sugar, flour and oats. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Sprinkle half of the topping over each ramekin and press down gently. Decorate with blueberries. Bake 20min until the crumble is browned and the fruit mixture bubbling

*Tip: serve with cold vanilla yogurt!

Ricotta nectarine pancakes

I’m in love with ricotta pancakes! I’ve never made them before but now I think  I’m gonna make them every weekend! They are my new favorite type of pancakes

(Makes about 8 pancakes)
1 large egg
200g (1 1/2 cup) ricotta
150g (1 cup) spelt flour +1tbs of baking powder (or self-raising flour)
3 tablespoons tagatose sweetener (or sugar)
200ml (1 cup) milk
3 ripe nectarines, sliced
A handful of fresh blueberries
Soy margarine to bake

In a bowl, whisk together egg with ricotta and tagatose (or sugar). Add flour and milk and stir the mixture until it is well combined. Add nectarine slices. Heat a griddle over moderately high heat. Working in batches, pour the batter onto the griddle to make about 8-10cm (3-4inch) pancakes and bake them about 2min on each side until golden brown. Serve with some tagatose and fresh blueberries.

Milk + cookies = <3

Really easy and very healthy raisin oat cookies! My fiancé’s new favorites

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup tagatose sweetener (or brown sugar)
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cups spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 3/4 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup raisins

Method

Preheat oven to 190C/375F degrees. In a bowl stir together flour, tagatose, salt and baking soda. Add melted butter and beaten egg and mix. Stir in oats and raisins. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a cookies sheet. Bake 8-10min until golden brown. Cool slightly before you eat