apple, lemon, cinnamon and ginger quinoa porridge

This is my new favorite breakfast, so delicious. I couldn't wait to share it with you. The recipe came about because I am steering clear of oats for a while (I feel sooo sleepy right after I eat oats) but with the weather so crisp and cool here I wanted to eat porridge.

Quinoa was the answer. I looked around the kitchen for flavours to add and gathered lemon, ginger and cinnamon - all perfect winter medicine foods. Ginger and cinnamon for their warming properties, and I find anything with a lemony flavour to be so uplifting it is a great detoxifier.

Now, even though I said quinoa was the answer I have recently learned that for some quinoa is not that easy to digest. This was news to me! I was lucky enough to be invited to a cooking class at Feast Australia and it was there that Rachel van de Bosch chef and former naturopath shared with the class the dark side of quinoa. Quinoa is actually a seed not a grain that has a naturally occurring coating called saponin. Rachel explains, "It a bit of contentious issue, some saponins are good for you (help control cholesterol) and others can be mildly toxic, like thanes in quinoa.  Most suppliers would thoroughly wash them during processing, but just to be sure I always boil and strain my quinoa now rather than cooking by absorption. You will loose water soluble vitamins cooking this way but I make up for it with fresh veggies. The other option is to give it a good wash it under running water before cooking."

So while there is much to love about quinoa because of its versatility and its nutritional value containing essential amino acids, phosphorous, calcium, magnesium and iron perhaps if you have weak digestion it might be a good food to go easy on.

I enjoyed this breakfast on a rainy saturday morning while River and Sol played in their pyjamas til lunchtime and I drank a pot of good chai. All. To. Myself!

Apple, Lemon, Cinnamon and Ginger quinoa porridge

Ingredients

1/2 cup quinoa (I used tri-colour quinoa that I buy in the health section at my local supermarket)
1.5 cups of water
1 cinnamon quill
1/2 an apple
the zest of one small lemon
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger

Wash the quinoa thoroughly.
Place all ingredients in a pot and bring to the boil.
Simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked (you can tell because you will see an outer ring and the centre will look translucent.)

Serve with your choice of milk and if you like it sweeter add some honey. Try it first before adding sweetener because the cinnamon gives it a lovely natural sweetness. I also added a few chopped walnuts once it was cooked. There are endless other flavours you could try. Write your favorites in the comments.

Happy monday xx

gluten free in sorrento

As promised here is a gluten free sweetie. Thanks to Helen and Nina at Stringer's cafe in Sorrento for sharing their recipe for Zarbo slice, a super sweet gluten free treat comprising a biscuit base topped with a mix of walnuts, shredded coconut, chocolate, chips and sultanas. If you don't want to bake it yourself, drive to Sorrento and visit Stringer's for a slice and a well made coffee and enjoy the view looking down the hill to the pine trees lining the bay. Every day has that holiday feel with views like this.

Stringer's Stores are located in a 100 year old limestone building at:

2 Ocean Beach Road, Sorrento. Ph: 03. 5984 2010

In their grocery store you will find plenty of Mornington Peninsula produce including beautiful artisan cheeses from Red Hill Cheese and goat's milk cheeses from Main Ridge Dairy. The cafe offers a delicious range of packaged sandwiches and salads ready to go, great for a picnic on the beach or at the nearby Sorrento Historic Park, plus hot food such as homemade soups in winter, sausage rolls, lentil and vegie pasties and ever popular mini savoury tarts with spinach and cheese or egg and bacon tart for breakfast. All food items including the wide selection of cakes, biscuits and slices are handmade in the kitchen upstairs.

It's been a while since I've posted some beachy pics of my Sorrento/Blairgowrie neighborhood, so here's the recipe followed by some shots of Stringer's and then sand and sea.

This is Stringer's adaptation to make it gluten free of a recipe from the Zarbo Café in Auckland that published it in their cookbook.

The original recipe ‘Hello Rosie Slice’ in their cookbook used 250g crushed malt biscuits and 100g of butter melted to make the base. Stringer's adapted that to use gluten free rice cookies but then they stopped making those cookies completely gluten free so they started making their own pastry base with gluten free flour.

SIZE

20x30 cm slice tin (cuts to 18 slices)

Sweet short crust pastry – can be done in mixer or by hand

200g unsalted butter

100g pure icing sugar, sifted

2 free range egg yolks

250g gluten free flour

1 free range egg beaten

Chill in fridge until firm, press out into lined baking tray and then blind bake at 160 degrees until brown (circa 20 mins)

Topping - Mix in bowl

2 cups walnut pieces

1.5 cups dark chocolate buttons chopped

1 cup sultanas

3 cups long thread coconut

500g sweetened condensed milk

Top pastry with mix and bake again until top is brown, approx. 10 minutes, the finished product should be slightly moist and sticky. Cut when cold.

gluten-free breakfast

I've performed a magic trick. No I can't make a dove fly out from under a handkerchief, I can though present to you a gluten free breakfast cereal that you'll want to eat whether you have a gluten intolerance or not.

Ta da.....Flip Shelton's 'the one that's gluten free' muesli. 

I spent my uni days listening to RRR radio station and that is where I first heard Flip share her recipes and passion for good food on her segment on The Breakfasters.

Then during my time writing for Epicure I was commissioned to review her muesli range released in 2006. So, that's how Flip's muesli range came to my attention.

Since writing the review, from time to time I still buy 'the one that's gluten free', not because I follow a strict gluten free diet but because I enjoy the muesli. Dried apricots and cranberries mean it is not cloyingly sweet as some mueslis that are filled with sultanas tend to be and mixed with the smattering of dried fruit I enjoy the varied texture of the rice flakes, rice bran sticks, buckwheat, rice puffs, almonds, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds,  amaranth, coconut and sesame seeds. It is a unique blend that delivers taste, texture and nutrition. You can order the muesli online here.


My next gluten free offering is far from healthy but if you like chocolate and coconut as a combo tune in on Friday for a recipe. And more Byron love soon.

coeliac awareness week march 13-20

The boys and I are back on the coast in Blairgowrie and this week in addition to bringing you posts celebrating all that I love about Byron Bay and surrounds, I've decided to join those bringing awareness to coeliac disease, a debilitating disease that affects 1 in 100 Australians.

What is coeliac disease?

Sufferers of coeliac disease are unable to digest gluten; a protein found in wheat, oats, rye and barley. The disease results in damage to the small intestine which is responsible for nutrient absorption.
Left untreated, coeliac disease can lead to depression, infertility, malnutrition, osteoporosis and a small increased risk of certain cancers.

Symptoms


anaemia
stomach cramps
nausea and vomiting
bloating and flatulence
diarrhoea and constipation
tiredness
irritability
bone and joint pain
easy skin bruising
weight loss or gain
failure to thrive in children

Diagnosis


Symptoms of coeliac disease are sometimes confused with that of irritable bowel syndrome, wheat or other food intolerances. According to the Coeliac Australia website accurate diagnosis of coeliac disease involves blood tests and a small bowel biopsy.

Going gluten free

In recent years the availability of good quality gluten free foods has improved, with more restaurants and cafes being sympathetic to customers eating a gluten free diet.

There is one myth I would like to dispel and that is, just because a food is labelled gluten free it does not necessarily mean it is healthy or good for you. Sure it may not give those sensitive to gluten a stomach ache but often processed gluten free foods are packed with sugar, salt and fat. So, read the fine print and whether you are gluten intolerant or not making your own biscuit, dessert, cake whatever it may be is always preferable to something made in a factory.

Gluten free dry biscuits are one food I understand you wouldn't want to make yourself, a couple of brands I have tried and would recommend are: Mary's Gone Crackers and Yarra Valley Produce Company potato crackerthins.

Mary's Gone Crackers are pricey both on the dollars and carbon footprint as they are organic and made in America. If that doesn't put you off, in taste they are nutty and in crunch they are brittle, they go well with any dip or cheese.

The Yarra Valley Produce Company crackers are made in Victoria, Australia and being made from potato they are not unlike thick, flat potato crisps both in crunch and flavour, minus the saltiness.

I'll bring you more gluten-free products I've tried and enjoyed this week. Until then, happy days to you.

strong bread

In Byron Bay on Australia’s east coast it doesn’t need to be Christmas to enjoy the delightful panforte made by talented artisan bakers Faith and Sally. I spend winter in Byron with my family and I always return to Victoria with Faith and Sally’s panforte, that they make year round, for my nan who then slices it wafer thin to make it last to go with as many cups of tea as possible.

Panforte originates in Italy and literally translates to ‘strong bread’, a specialty in the region of Siena it is also known as Siena Cake. It dates back to the thirteenth century and there are a number of stories to be found about the origins of panforte. One being that farmers for the Convent Montecellesci made panforte as a tribute to the nuns.

This Christmas I’ve experimented and made my own as gifts for friends and family. Nan tells me it is as good as Faith and Sally’s. I’m not convinced about that but I am happy with the spicy, nutty, fruity, chocolatey result!

This recipe is gluten free and was inspired by the recipe in ‘More gorgeous gluten free’ by Carole Hofflin. The recipe is very flexible, you can substitute any number of the ingredients. Carole’s recipe calls for 300g of mixed peel, I’m not a fan of mixed peel so I left it out and added dates and cranberries. Switch the walnuts for pecans. And so on.

Panforte

400g whole almonds, blanched

250g walnuts, roughly chopped

250g raisins

250g currants

250g dried figs, chopped

100g dried cranberries

100g glace ginger, chopped

150g dried dates, chopped

300g dark chocolate, chopped

100g brown rice flour

100g almond meal

3 tspns cocoa powder

2 tspns ground cinnamon

1 tspn white pepper

1 tspn ground nutmeg

1 tspn ground coriander seeds

300g honey

100g raw or brown sugar

30ml water

Pre-heat oven to 160C degrees.

Into a large bowl place walnuts, dried fruits, rice flour, almond meal, spices, cocoa and chocolate.

Mix all ingredients well.

Toast the almonds and while still hot add the to the mixture.

Place the water, honey, and sugar into a saucepan and gently bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves and taking care not to burn.

Pour the sugar syrup over the fruit and nut mix and stir quickly and thoroughly.

Tip mixture into a lined (bottom and sides) lamington tray.

Using the back of a wooden spoon press the mix evenly into the tray.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Remove from oven and cool completely before removing from the tray.

Cut into rectangles or triangles and store in an airtight container. It will keep for several weeks.

Optional: dust with pure icing sugar. Enjoy!