blueberry muffin top cookies

Makes approximately 30 cookies

My husband was very accurate in describing these cookies as tasting like muffin tops! They aren't your usual crunchy cookie but soft just like the best part of any blueberry muffin. The brand of coconut yoghurt and gluten free flour you use will impact on the texture of the cookies, but regardless, they are yum.

Poppy bakes...

1. Preheat oven to 190°C and line baking tray with baking paper
   
   
2. Using a spatula, mix together
   1 cup coconut sugar and 
   1.5 cups coconut yoghurt.
   
   
3. Add
   1 egg and
   1 teaspoon vanilla essence and mix together, then set aside.
   
   
4. Stir together
   2 cups gluten free plain flour,
   2 teaspoons baking powder and
   1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt.
   
   
5. Add wet ingredients to dry and fold together.
   
   
6. Gently fold in
   1 punnet / 1 cup blueberries.
   
   
7. Spoon desired sized mounds on to baking paper with adequate space in between and bake for 10-20 minutes or until golden.
   
   
8. Cool cookies on a wire rack before eating.

For an energy boosting snack, team these cookies with a glass of coconut water

Notes
These cookies are beautifully soft with a slightly chewy texture, so be sure to carefully lift them off the baking tray using a flat spatula when placing them on a wire rack to cool.

broccoli + zucchini bake

Serves 4

Ingredients

red onion, diced

broccoli, cut into small florets

2 zucchini, sliced

celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper

crushed chilli flakes

hot filtered water

1/2 cup rice milk

4 free-range organic eggs

ground nutmeg

handful basil, chopped

Method

1. Saute onions in a frying pan with olive oil until softened
2. Add broccoli and zucchini, season lightly and add a pinch of crushed chilli flakes to taste. Add a dash of hot filtered water to the pan to soften the vegetables, and add more as necessary
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, pinch of celtic sea salt and a pinch of ground nutmeg until fluffy
4. Stir basil through egg mixture
5. When vegetables are softened and slightly browned, place in a baking dish and pour egg mixture over the top
6. Bake in a 180°C oven for about 30 minutes

Notes
If you are not following a dairy or lactose free diet, then sprinkle with cheese before placing in the oven.

roast pumpkin + cranberries with red quinoa

Serves 4

Poppy cooks...

1. Cook
   1 cup red quinoa with
   3 cups of filtered water in a rice cooker or on the cooktop.
   
   
2. Preheat oven to 180°C.
   
   
3. On a baking tray, combine
   2.5 cups pumpkin, diced,
   1/2 red onion, finely diced and
   2 cloves garlic, minced,
   olive oil (enough to coat vegetables),
   2 teaspoons manuka honey,
   generous pinch of celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper,1/8 teaspoon ground ginger and
   1/8 teaspoon curry powder.
   
   

   

   
   Preparing ingredients in the roasting tray
   

   
   

4. Place in the oven and roast for 30 minutes or until the pumpkin and garlic are golden.
   
   
5. To serve, combine roasted ingredients with the cooked quinoa,
   1/2 cup dried cranberries and
   2 tablespoons parsley, chopped.

chicken risotto

Serves 4

Ingredients

500g chicken tenderloins, chopped into bite-size pieces

olive oil

celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper

onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 cups arborio rice

500ml chicken stock

1 cup hot water

tin of diced tomato

1 cup sliced green beans

2 tablespoons basil leaves, sliced

Method

1. Cook chicken in rice cooker with oil and seasoning. Remove and place in a separate bowl
2. Cook onion and garlic in rice cooker. Add additional oil if necessary
3. Add rice and toss to coat with oil
4. Add stock, water and tomato. Stir and cover with lid
5. When most of the liquid is absorbed (but before the rice cooker turns itself off) add beans and stir through
6. When the rice cooker turns itself off stir through chicken and basil leaves

Notes
If you don't have a rice cooker, the same method can be used on a cooktop or in the oven. If you don't have fresh green beans, frozen green beans work just as well, or even peas. Feel free to grate fresh parmesan cheese if you aren't avoiding dairy.

potato + cauliflower hash

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 potatoes, diced

1/2 cauliflower, cut into small florets

40g (small handful) gluten-free spaghetti

onion, chopped

2 teaspoons mixed herbs

4 eggs

Method

1. Roast diced potatoes with olive oil, celtic sea salt and cracked black pepper for 40 minutes, or until crispy and golden
2. Blanch cauliflower until it begins to soften
3. Bring a small pot of water to the boil and cook spaghetti until al dente
4. In a large frying pan, cook onion until golden
5. Add cauliflower, spaghetti, roasted potato and mixed herbs.  Combine
6. Make 4 slight indents and crack an egg into each indent
7. Cover and cook until eggs are cooked to your preference (I like the yolk to still be runny)

Notes

This is a great dish on its own, or accompany with sausages or steak. My favourite sausages are Peppercorn's Extra Lean Chicken Sausages which have a fresh lime flavour, are gluten free and contain no artificial flavours or colours! I buy them from Farmer Jacks in  Claremont or Subiaco. Even the container is guilt-free being 100% biodegradable and compostable!

http://www.peppercornfood.com.au/Products/Sausage_Range/Extra_Lean_Chicken_Sausages.php

pork + pineapple salad

Serves 4

Poppy cooks...

1. Cook
   2 cups brown basmati rice and leave to cool (best to cook rice earlier in day or night before).
   
   
2. In a large frying pan, saute
   shallot, finely sliced, 
   2 cups red or green cabbage, shredded and
   1/4 pineapple, cut into pieces in
   olive oil until onion is slightly browned.
   
   
3. Add cold rice,
   punnet cherry tomatoes, halved and season with
   gluten free soy sauce and
   cracked black pepper to taste. Toss for 3 minutes and set aside.
   
   
4. Season
   pork fillet with
   celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper and cook in frying pan.
   
   
5. Slice pork and serve on bed of fried rice.

beef hotpot

Serves 10

Poppy cooks...

1. Chop
   800g eggplant into 2cm cubes then heat
   olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat, cooking eggplant in batches so not to crowd the pot until light browned and transfer to a plate.
   
   
   
2. Repeat process with
   1kg diced beef in batches to brown and set aside.
   
   
   
3. Add
   2 onions, diced to pan and cook in olive oil until golden.
   
   
   
4. Stir through
   1 tablespoon garlic, minced and cook until soft.
   
   
   
5. Add
   1 tablespoon ground cumin,
   2 teaspoons ground coriander and
   1 teaspoon ground allspice and cook for 1 minute, or until aromatic.
   
   
   
6. Stir through
   1/4 cup tomato paste for 1 minute, or until well combined.
   
   
   
7. Add back in beef,
   400g tin of diced tomato, 
   500ml chicken broth,
   1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt and
   1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper then reduce heat to low, cover and stir occasionally for 1 hour.
   
   
   
8. Stir in
   800g carrots, chopped and cover for an additional 1 hour or until carrots start to soften.
   
   
   
9. Stir in eggplant and cook until beef, carrot and eggplant is tender. If there is a lot of liquid, remove the lid; otherwise, leave the lid on.
   
   
   
10. Cook
    6 cups rice separately.
    
    
    
11. Stir through
    handful of parsley, chopped before serving on steamed rice.

Notes
This Egyptian spiced dish is a great hearty meal for the winter months. I actually cook this and divide into 3, freezing 2 of the quantities to make the whole batch last for 3 dinners for our family of 5.

pumpkin soup

At Poppy Loves Pear, we are not only about tasty and healthy food, but also easy food. We live in an age where everyone is time poor, so we need to work smart as much as working hard.

I love pumpkin soup, and stumbled across this La Zuppa Roasted Pumpkin soup which has no nasties in it and tastes beautiful. I could make pumpkin soup myself, but this product saves me the time and mess. Simply pour into a saucepan and bring to the boil on the stovetop and it is done!

As the label says, it has no artificial additives, is gluten free and dairy free. The ingredients list is simply: water, 38% pumpkin, potato, onion and salt. It is fast food, but it is healthy and tasty fast food. It is a great pantry staple to draw upon for those stressful days when cooking is the last thing you have the head-space to do.

I find this to be a great lunch time meal when I have no time to cook. It serves 2, and I usually accompany it with 2 slices of toasted gluten-free bread (I will give you my top tips for gluten-free bread in another blog post) and with cracked black pepper and pepitas sprinkled on top.

I buy La Zuppa from Farmer Jacks in Claremont or Subiaco. Here is the La Zuppa website for more information: http://lazuppa.com.au

cumin spiced chicken on a beetroot rice salad

Serves 4

Poppy cooks...

1. Cook
   2.5 cups of jasmine rice.
   
   
   
2. Boil
   300g beetroot.
   
   
   
3. Preheat oven to 180C.
   
   
   
4. Mix together
   4 tablespoons olive oil,
   2 tablespoon ground cumin,
   4 garlic cloves, minced,
   1/2 teaspoon of celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper and
   1kg chicken thigh, diced in a large baking dish and bake for 30 minutes. This can be done up to 24 hours ahead of time to marinade.
   
   
   
5. Once the rice is cooked, stir through
   2 spring onions, diagonally sliced,
   handful coriander, roughly chopped,
   2 mint leaves, roughly chopped and the beetroot, peeled and diced.
   
   
   
6. Make dressing by mixing together
   orange, juice + zest,
   1 tablespoon white wine vinegar,
   2.5 tablespoons olive oil,
   celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper, to taste. Stir through rice salad.
   
   
   
7. Serve salad with chicken on top.

vegetable + bean soup

Serves 4

Poppy cooks...

1. In a large soup pot, heat
   1 tablespoon coconut oil.
   
   
2. Add
   1 bunch kale, stems removed and torn,
   onion, diced,
   3 garlic cloves, crushed,
   carrot, diced,
   zucchini, diced,
   red capsicum, diced,
   1/4 cup coriander, chopped,
   1/4 cup parsley, chopped,
   1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds,
   1/2 teaspoon ground cumin and
   1/4 teaspoon ground paprika. Saute uncovered over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables start to soften.
   
   
3. Add
   2.5 cups filtered water and
   2 teaspoons celtic sea salt, cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes.
   
   
4. Stir in
   2 400g tins of red kidney beans, drained and mashed and
   2 400g tins of black beans, rinsed. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occassionally for 10-15 minutes.
   
   
5. Serve with desired garnish such as cracked black pepper, pepitas, coriander and flax seed oil.

Notes

You can also serve with gluten-free bread or coconut yoghurt. The use of cumin is a great source of iron and was used traditionally to help relieve allergy symptoms, reduce heartburn and improve digestion.

lamb quinoa

Serves 3

Method

1. Cook
   2 onions, halved and thinly sliced with
   olive oil in a large frying pan until soft and golden.
   
   
2. Add
   500g lamb mince and cook until well browned.
   
   
3. Stir in
   4 garlic cloves, minced and
   1 tablespoon ground cumin for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
   
   
4. Stir in
   1 cup quinoa,
   red capsicum, finely diced,
   1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce,
   chilli powder, to taste (optional),
   pinch of celtic sea salt and
   2 cups filtered water.
   
   
5. Cover and simmer on low heat for 10-15 minutes, until quinoa is almost cooked (add extra water if necessary).
   
   
6. Stir in
   1 cup frozen peas,
   2 tablespoons currants and
   sprig parsley, chopped.
   
   
7. Serve once peas are cooked and all the liquid is absorbed with a
   lemon wedge.

Notes
The fresh lemon juice really makes this dish pop. If you like chilli, feel free to slice extra red chillies and put on top as a garnish, or you can even try it with coconut yoghurt to counter-balance the hot chilli!

This is a great dish that uses pantry and freezer staples, so is great when you have run out of fresh ingredients and don't have time to go to the markets or shops. AND...it's a one-pot-wonder!!!

passionfruit, coconut + chia cake

Serves 8

Wet ingredients

2 eggs

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1/2 cup rice milk

1/4 cup honey

1.5 tablespoons nuttelex

1/3 cup passionfruit pulp

1 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon celtic sea salt

Dry ingredients

1 cups gluten-free self-raising flour

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 cup fine desiccated coconut

1/4 cup ground chia seeds

Method

1. Prepare 18cm round cake tin by greasing with coconut oil
2. Preheat oven to 180°C
3. In a food processor or hand-blender, mix wet ingredients until well combined and smooth at medium-high speed
4. Mix dry ingredients in a medium bowl
5. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix gently to combine
6. Spoon mixture into a cake tin and bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean
7. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving

Notes
You can sprinkle extra desiccated coconut or passionfruit pulp for decoration. It also tastes great served with vanilla coconut ice cream. 

The cake pictured above was baked using double the quantities of ingredients to serve 12 larger pieces. I found that the centre of the cake didn't cook as well being a very moist mixture. That is why this cake recipe is also great for making muffins...

Does Poppy want a passionfruit, coconut + chia muffin? Sleepy face with ears pulled back in confusion.

carrot cake

Serves 12

Poppy bakes...

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease a 20cm round cake tin lightly with oil, and line with baking paper.
   
   
2. Roughly stir together
   1 cup gluten free self-raising flour,
   1/2 cup gluten free plain flour,
   1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda and
   1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon into a large mixing bowl.
   
   
3. In a separate medium mixing bowl whisk together
   1/2 cup coconut sugar,
   3/4 cup olive oil,
   1/2 cup raw honey,
   3 eggs and
   1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
   
   
4. Peel and grate
   300g (approximately 3) carrots and set aside.
   
   
5. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and combine with a wooden spoon.
   
   
6. Stir in grated carrot.
   
   
7. Pour mixture into the cake tin and bake for 1 hour.
   
   
8. Allow to cool before removing from cake tin

If you want to 'fancy' this cake up, finish with this amazing buttercream frosting...

1. Place
   120g coconut sugar into Thermomix and mill 20 seconds / speed 10.
   
   
2. Insert butterfly whisk; then add
   250g nuttelex,
   1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract and
   60g rice milk and mix 3 minutes / speed 3.
   
   
3. Spread over top of cake (you might find you have more than you need) and decorate with a sprinkling of
   activated buckwheat.

quick spaghetti

Similar to my previous post on gluten-free pizza, gluten-free pasta is a great pantry staple that you can whip up very easily and quickly for lunch, or for dinner when you don't feel like cooking anything too labour intensive.

Pictured is some gluten free spaghetti with asparagus, semi-dried tomatoes and seaweed sprinkled on top.

After boiling your pasta, you can add anything that is in your fridge and pantry: tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, any vegetables in your fridge or freezer, tinned tuna or salmon, fresh or dried herbs etc.

gluten-free pizza

Serves 1

Ingredients

gluten-free pizza base

organic + sugar free tomato paste

Topping suggestions

sliced onion, caramelised

garlic

avocado

roast pumpkin

roast capsicum

grilled eggplant

zucchini

olives

herbs (fresh or dried)

coconut yoghurt

Method

1. Spread tomato paste over pizza base
2. Add desired toppings
3. Bake in oven and drizzle with coconut yoghurt before serving

Notes
There are a variety of gluten free pizza bases available on the market - I quite like Bodhi Bakeries Wheat Free Pizza Bases available online which I find serve 1 person per pizza base.

This is a great option for a quick lunch, of for those nights you don't feel like cooking. It is also a great way of using up any left-over vegetables in your fridge. Be creative with your flavour combinations!

Are there any other brands of pizza bases you have tried that you would recommend?