queen of hearts

In a recent post, I mentioned I had adopted a vegetarian diet this week, which has prompted me to write a little more about what I am eating lately, especially since I launched my Paleo Lifestyle last year.

Here's the scoop - 

There are many reasons why a paleo diet is beneficial to some individuals. Infact, I fully support limiting grains, refined sugar and dairy as I believe my digestive health is more effective when I am eating a cleaner diet.

On the other hand - I like cupcakes.

Or, more accurately - I like to bake.

And, whilst you can make some frickin amazing things to satisfy your sweet tooth without breaking the paleo rules (see below), I did infact fall off the strict paleo bandwagon.

So rather than define my eating habits, I am now learning to eat what I want, when I want, without putting a label on it.

Example A - this week, I am eating gorgeous fresh fruits and vegetables.

Does this make me a vegetarian? Well, that's up to you to decide.

But consider this - next week I might feel like steak everyday.. who knows?!

What I do know, is that my food is not sourced from a box or a jar. Or through the car window!

More and more, I am trying to tune into what my body needs and feed it accordingly.

And while it would be both amazing and disastrous for my body to tell me I need chocolate, I know that sweets and treats are usually requested from a place of want (and/or boredom!).

So back to paleo - Last year, I made my favourite grain-free waffles and didn't share them with the world.

Here they are - Give them a try.

Grain Free Waffles

2 cups almond meal

4 eggs

1/2 cup sparkling water 

4 TBSP melted coconut oil

1-2 TBSP  maple syrup

2 tsp vanilla

2 tsp cinnamon 

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp baking soda

Preheat your waffle iron. 

In a medium mixing bowl combine all of the dry ingredients and mix well.  

Then add the all the remaining wet ingredients and mix to combine.   

Next using a hand mixer beat the batter ingredients for 1 minute, this will help make a fluffier batter and better waffles.   

Lightly grease your waffle iron and place about 3/4 cup of batter (or the amount per the directions for your particular model of waffle iron).  

I cook my waffles for 3 minutes and they turn out perfect every time, but you will need to experiment with your waffle iron to find the amount of time that works best for yours.  

Remove from waffle iron and serve with your desired garnishes.

xx

sad banana turns happy dessert

Banana bread, or similar variation, is my go-to recipe when I want something quick and delicious. 

Oh, and when I have sad bananas slowly and quietly dying on my kitchen bench.

This is just another lesson in never judging a book (banana) by it's cover (black, spotty peel).

Banana bread is often a great snack, but this time I decided to make these little individual cakes, dessert-style.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup almond flour 

1/4 cup coconut flour

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp sea salt

3 large ripe bananas

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 Tbsp raw honey

6 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 180

2. Combine the flours, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt in a medium sized mixing bowl. Stir with a fork to combine and to break apart any chunks. Set aside.

3. Place the bananas, eggs and vanilla extract in a blender and blend until combined. Add in the coconut oil and honey and blend well until smooth. Add the flour mixture and blend to combine.

4. Pour the mixture into the lined muffin tins. You should have enough for 12 muffins. 

5. Place the muffins in the oven and bake for 23-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm with drizzle of organic maple syrup.

YUM

xx

when life gives you lemons...

...you know the saying...

Well, a lovely colleague gave me some lemons fresh from her lemon tree.

And rather than break out the tequila, I promised to turn some of them into a morning tea treat.

I didn't tell her it would likely be of the paleo variety....

Maybe she won't notice?!

Collect your ingredients :

⅔ cup coconut flour, sifted

5 eggs

⅓ cup carton almond milk

¼ cup agave

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

juice of 2 lemons

1 teaspoon lemon zest

½ teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

Ready, set, BAKE!

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Sift your coconut flour into a bowl.

Add eggs and almond milk. Mix until smooth.

Then add the agave, vanilla extract, lemon juice, lemon zest, baking soda, and a pinch of salt. Mix well to combine.

Pour the mixture into cupcake liners.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until slightly brown on the top and cooked through in the middle. Do the toothpick test to check.

Let them cool.

Eat!

xx

Paleo Banana Bread

If you follow me on Instagram; You will notice that my entire life is about food and Miss Emmy.

Seriously.

That's a pretty fair summary.

But honestly? Once you've tried this Banana Bread, you'll want your whole world to be about eating too.

Paleo Choc Chip Banana Bread

Give it a try.

You can thank me later.

Ingredients

3 eggs, separated (keep the yolks and whites separate!)

4 tbsp honey

4 tbsp macadamia oil

3 mashed bananas

1 tsp vanilla essense

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cups almond meal

1 cup walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

2. Cream the egg yolks and honey in a large bowl until light and fluffy.

3. Add the oil, vanilla, and mashed banana to the bowl, mixing well.

4. In a smaller separate bowl, mix the cinnamon, baking powder and almond flour and sift well. 

5. Add the spice mix to the bowl and stir well.

6. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Stiff peaks are vital.

7. Fold the egg whites into the banana mixture.

8. Add walnuts and stir well.

9. Pour into greased (or lined) bread loaf pan.

10. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

ENJOY!!!!!!

Oh what?? Dark chocolate chips? You must have snuck in when I wasn't looking.

By the way - the little flowers on my plate? Banana.

Super cute, right?!

xx

Recipe here

Breakfast Cakes

I don't know that pumpkin cakes are necessarily 'Easter' related..

But they are what I felt like making and eating for breakfast on Easter Sunday.

Maybe it's because they contain pumpkin.. Which means they're totally healthy and therefore I could justify my mass Chocolate consumption later in the day?!?

Yup - works for me!

Spiced Pumpkin Cakes

½ cup pureed pumpkin

¾ cup almond flour

¼ cup canned coconut milk

2 tablespoon maple syrup

2 eggs, whisked

⅛ teaspoon baking soda

⅛ teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ginger

¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

1.      In a medium sized bowl, mix together coconut milk, eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla.

3.     Then add the rest of the dry ingredients and pumpkin and mix together. Add a bit more coconut milk, if needed. 

4.    Sppon into individual patty pans. 

5.     Bake in a moderate oven for 15 minutes or until golden. 

xx

Easter Treat

It is fair to say that I have eaten farrrr too much over this Easter Break.

These little bites of heaven were irresistible.

GLUTEN FREE HOT CROSS BUNS

3 cups ground almonds

pinch sea salt

1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda

1/4 cup macadamia nut oil

2 tablespoons honey

zest from 1 orange

1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

2 eggs

pinch cinnamon

80g dried cranberries

50g dark chocolate + extra for crosses.

Preheat oven to 160C.

Combine all the ingredients and mix well, this includes the dried cherries and dark chocolate.

Spoon out small portions onto a baking tray – I shaped mine into little squares.

Bake for 20 – 30 minutes or until golden.

Remove and cool.

Drizzle dark chocolate crosses on top if you like.

Enjoy.

xx

A Comforting Tradition

I like traditions.

I am a creature of habit. I've decided that it's in my DNA.

I especially cling to plans and schedules in times of stress. 
(Sometimes I wonder how I would adjust if I met someone new and had to fit them into my life.. but that's another blogpost for another time)

At the moment I am experiencing heightened stress due to changes at work; So I've started a new tradition at home - The Sunday Morning Breakfast.

It started with waffles with my new waffle machine; Then it was almond meal pancakes; and now - 

Blueberry Pancake Bites

Ingredients

4 eggs, room temperature

1 cup coconut milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 tablespoon agave nectar

1/2 cup coconut flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

coconut oil frying

Directions

1. Preheat griddle over medium-low heat. In a small bowl beat eggs until frothy, about two minutes. Mix in milk, vanilla, agave.
2. In a medium-sized bowl combine coconut flour, baking soda, and sea salt and whisk together. Stir wet mixture into dry until coconut flour is incorporated.
3. Grease pan with coconut oil. Ladle a tablespoons of batter into pan for each pancake (larger pancakes were too difficult to flip and created a mess in the pan..) Spread batter out slightly with the back of a spoon. Cook for a few minutes on each side, until the bottoms start to brown. 
4. Serve hot with agave and/or fruit.

I ate some of these for breakfast on Sunday morning; but these little pancake bites have been the perfect morning or afternoon tea to take to work.

And my co-workers ?  All jealous!

xx

Pancake Time

Following the success of my grain-free; dairy-free; sugar-free waffles two weeks ago, I thought I would give pancakes a go last weekend.

And...

They were a HUUUGE success!

Almond Meal Pancakes

Since I'm new to the whole 'no-flour, or milk, or sugar' thing, I continually expect to experience an epic baking fail.

So far, so good.

Wanna try for yourself?

You should.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
3 large eggs
1/4 cup almond milk
1 tbsp or coconut oil
1 tbsp agave/maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Instructions

In a small bowl combine the blanched almond flour, baking soda and salt.
Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Place the egg whites in a medium bowl; set aside.
Place the egg yolks in a large bowl and whisk in the coconut oil.
Whisk in the milk, agave and vanilla.
Add the dry mixture to the egg yolk mixture, whisking well to thoroughly combine, making sure there are no lumps in the batter.
Using a clean large wire whisk, whisk the egg whites rapidly until very foamy (about two minutes).
Use the whisk to fold the whipped egg whites into the batter; until well combined.
Cook pancakes over low heat.
Serve hot with agave and assorted of fresh fruit.

xx

Original recipe here

Waffles for One

Remember how I told you I've quit sugar?

Remember how you thought "Pfft... Good luck with that" ??

C'mon, I know you did and it's OK.

Allow me to introduce you to my Paleo 'Chocolate' Waffles. 

Paleo 'Chocolate' Waffles

Yes - The did taste as good as they look. 

Let's come back to those in a moment...

I went Op Shopping on the weekend. And despite my own resistance, I think I'm a convert.

Call me a snob, but there's just something about Op Shops that I never understood.

And garage sales?? I don't get garage sales. 

Wait.. No, I like to sell things at garage sales; but I don't go to them and find enjoyment in sifting through other people's unwanted stuff.

I think this is where my recent Gumtree addiction came from. I like that I can sit in the comfort of my own home and scroll through pages of second hand furniture looking for things I could buy and paint and give a new lease on life. Do I need said furniture? No. But I like to look anyway.

And so, I suppose it was only time before I slowly accepted the art of Op Shopping.

(Not for clothes though.. that still creeps  me out a little).

I spent a good portion of my Saturday scouring various Op Shops for a project that will be revealed at a later date. But I hit the jackpot when I found a waffle maker for $7.

Yup - SEVEN bucks.

Can you say bargain?!

And the best part ??  IT WORKS!

And so that's how I came to make myself this delicious breakfast.

Here's how - 

Whisk 2 eggs in a bowl; 

Add 1/3 cup coconut milk; Mix;

Mix in 1 tablespoon of agave nectar; Mix;

Add 1.5 cups almond meal; Mix;

Add 2 tablespoons cacao powder; Mix;

Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract + sprinkle of cinnamon; Mix.

Cook in waffle iron.

[Recipe adapted from PaleOMG]

Served with a squirt of agave nectar and fresh strawberries.

DELICIOUS.

xx

A Whole New World

A whole new world 

A new fantastic point of view 

No one to tell us no 

Or where to go 

Or say we're only dreaming 

A whole new world 

A dazzling place I never knew 

But when I'm way up here 

It's crystal clear 

That now I'm in a whole new world with you 

A Whole New World....

As mentioned super briefly - I have Quit Sugar.

In an Aladdin-esque type way, allow me to introduce you to my new way of life.

The Paleo Way.

A Paleo approach was recommended by my naturopath, and before you get all judgey let me stop you right there!

I am doing this for my health.

As a cupcake baker, this has been a significant shock to my system, but entirely necessary as I realised my high-stress, high-sugar lifestyle was making me sick.

Yes (on occasion) I will still bake cupcakes full of sugar and covered in delicious frosting.

BUT I am also exploring new healthier alternatives, and surprisingly there are many of exciting new recipes for me to try.

I don't want to go too much into the WHY I'm choosing to embark on this particular journey.. because, well it's exactly that - My choice.

But I do want to include this visual. Because I like the idea of getting all my ducks in a row.

Line Up Paleo Ducks!
[here]

It is time for me to take control of my life and I choose to do that by incorporating a Paleo diet and being more mindful of other aspects of my life including stress and sleep. Trust me - I have too much of one; and not enough of the other. It is time to find a balance.

As with all diets/lifestyles - there are varying degrees to which they can be applied. I am doing this my way.
This includes adopting a no wheat/grains/legumes/soy approach and also limits dairy.

oh... and that whole no sugar thing.

[Fruit doesn't count as a sugar. It is natural, therefore totally permitted.]

I have enjoyed researching other blogs on this topic and will reference these going forward.

I have also bought some new cookbooks including Sarah Wilson's 'I Quit Sugar' book (not specifically paleo, but very informative and a good starting point, I think).

Anyway - whether you're on board with me or not, THIS IS IT.

I came to a fork in the road and I'm going RIGHT. It's OK if you don't want to join me. It will be just like quitting sugar - I will miss you at first, but after a while I will feel stronger and the withdrawals will be gone.......


xx