Ottolenghi. A man with taste.

It's lovely that so many people love the LittlePod range, expecially those who really understand good food. Yotam Ottolenghi is one of the fans, and that makes me really happy! I'm a big fan. And not only is he a fan, but he's selling our vanilla paste on his new website!


http://webstore.ottolenghi.co.uk/collections/pantry/products/vanilla-paste

Nuts about cookies

I've been losing weight gradually over the last few months (over 2stone in 7months!) and my palette has developed. I'm less attracted to sugary foods and get a kick out of spices and veggies. I've become a proper rabbit!

But I still need a fix from time to time. Here's my favourite recipe to quench my salt/sweet tooth cravings. 

Peanut Butter Cookies

(inspired by http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/peanut-butter-cookies-recipe.html image from there)

125g spelt flour (or other wholewheat flour)

1 tsp baking power

225g peanut butter (go for a NAS one, I used smooth but you can use crunchy)

40g cacao nibs (sold in wholefood shops, if you can't find them, use roughly grated very dark chocolate)

170g agave syrup (again, available in wholefood shops and some super markets, replace with maple syrup if you can't find it)

1 tsp littlepod vanilla essence

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Place racks in the top third.

In a medium mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. in a separate larger bowl combine the peanut butter, maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla. Stir until combined. Pour the flour mixture over the peanut butter mixture and stir until barely combined - still a bit dusty looking. Let sit for five minutes, give one more quick stir, just a stroke or two. Now drop by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Press down on each one gently with the back of a fork. It's a loose batter, so if you're set on doing criss-crosses, go ahead and chill the batter for an hour or so before this step. Bake for 10, maybe 11 minutes - but don't over bake or they will be dry. Let cool five minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.

Give it some lolly

Frankly, I think ice cream is appropriate whatever the weather. Admit it: ice cream always makes you happy! While watching my waistline, I haven't really had the opportunity to eat any ice cream, seeing as it's frozen cream with some added sugar, not exactly diet friendly.

But... what if you could get all the yummy sweetness and creamy consistency without all the added calories? Sound good? Oh, did I mention it was really easy, cheap and one of your five a day? You're welcome!

Chocolate banana lollies
(makes 4)

4 x ripe bananas
1 tsp LittlePod chocolate extract
2tsp dark chocolate cocoa (like Bournville - make sure it has no added sugar!)
1tsp agave syrup

Now just blend it all together! I used a handheld blender, but you could put it in a food processor, or even use a potato masher. Then pour mixture into lolly moulds (these are easy to find and very cheap, I got mine from Sainsbury's for a whole £1!) and freeze overnight. Pour hot water over moulds to loosen the lolly when you're ready to tuck in, and enjoy.

Adding some Zest...

Sometimes you find a recipe and you just need to share it. This is one of them! Thanks to Zest Magazine for this brilliant carrot cake. It's both sugar and gluten free, so very kind on your insides, and goes down a treat. See my attempt below...

For more health and fitness inspiration, visit zest.co.uk