For more health and fitness inspiration, visit zest.co.uk
Delicious recipes for the vanilla slimmer!
Showing posts with label vanilla extract. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vanilla extract. Show all posts
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
For more health and fitness inspiration, visit zest.co.uk
Optimistic Spring Salad!
The sun was out ALL DAY! That warrants a lovely swim and a energy boosting salad I think. I have recently bought Yotam Ottolenghi cookbook called Tender, which has been a real inspiration. I've always loved veg, but Ottolenghi takes them to the next level. And yes! He is a fan of LittlePod! I can't wait to visit his restaurant, I'll keep an eye out for vanilla-based meals - apparently he uses LittlePod in the kitchen.
My spring salad has all the sweetness and freshness that Spring has to offer, with a little chilli kick to help shrug off the last fingers of Winter. Enjoy as a light dinner or perfect packed lunch. I'm doing both!
Optimistic Spring Salad
serves 2
Ingredients:
1 x courgette
1 x carrot
1 x sweet red pepper
1 x smoked mackerel fillet
10 cherry tomatoes
4 freshly picked basil leaves
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp organic olive oil
1/2 tbsp agave syrup
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 x garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp LittlePod vanilla extract
Instructions:
Top, tail and peel the carrot, and don't put your peeler away! Peel the rest of the carrot into wide ribbons, and do the same to your washed courgette. Quarter the cheery tomatoes, and use scissors to chop the basil leaves into thin strips. Add these all to a large mixing bowl, and crumble in the mackerel fillet. Add the sesame seeds and mix with salad servers.
To make the dressing, combine all the remaining ingredients in a small jug, using a spoon to mix well. Pour this all over your salad, and toss, coating everything in the dressing.
Serve with a fresh white wine, it's that easy! Believe me, this is going to become a favourite.
My spring salad has all the sweetness and freshness that Spring has to offer, with a little chilli kick to help shrug off the last fingers of Winter. Enjoy as a light dinner or perfect packed lunch. I'm doing both!
Optimistic Spring Salad
serves 2
Ingredients:
1 x courgette
1 x carrot
1 x sweet red pepper
1 x smoked mackerel fillet
10 cherry tomatoes
4 freshly picked basil leaves
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp organic olive oil
1/2 tbsp agave syrup
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 x garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp LittlePod vanilla extract
Instructions:
Top, tail and peel the carrot, and don't put your peeler away! Peel the rest of the carrot into wide ribbons, and do the same to your washed courgette. Quarter the cheery tomatoes, and use scissors to chop the basil leaves into thin strips. Add these all to a large mixing bowl, and crumble in the mackerel fillet. Add the sesame seeds and mix with salad servers.
To make the dressing, combine all the remaining ingredients in a small jug, using a spoon to mix well. Pour this all over your salad, and toss, coating everything in the dressing.
Serve with a fresh white wine, it's that easy! Believe me, this is going to become a favourite.
It's easy on a Sunday morning!
There's nothing like a lazy Sunday, and what better way to start it than with something hot and satisfying. I recommend French toast with a twist!
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 tsp olive oil
4 pieces fresh thick white bread
2 large free range eggs
splash of milk
1 tsp LittlePod vanilla extract
1 lemon, freshly squeezed
sugar to serve
Instructions:
In a wide bowl, crack the eggs and add the milk and LittlePod vanilla extract (or any other LittlePod vanilla ingredients, the paste works wonderfully) and whisk it all together. Drizzle some olive oil in a frying pan and put over a mid to high heat. Dip the bread in the egg mix and lay them in the frying pan. Turn over so they're golden brown on both sides, then serve with lemon and sugar and a lovely glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and relax!
Double vanilla biscuits
Yumtastic! It's the weekend and so I'm treating my sweet tooth to some delicious biscuits. My friend gave me a gorgeous bird biscuit cutter so these are extra cute. The recipe is based on one I found on the WeightWatchers website (I've recently signed up - it's a great resource and I've lost 3lb in my first week, wow!), but I've added some littlePod sparkle to it.
Double Vanilla Biscuits (based on WeightWatchers Christmas Cookies)
makes about 30 biscuits
Ingredients:
115g caster sugar
65g polyunsaturated margarine
1 small egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp lemon juice
1.5 tsp LittlePod vanilla paste
175g plain flour
0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
0.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp mixed spice
50g icing sugar
1 tsp littlePod vanilla extract
1 tsp (ish) hot water
Instructions:
Mix the sugar and marg in a large bowl with an electric whisk until it is smooth. Add the egg, golden syrup, lemon juice and LittlePod paste and whisk some more.
In another bowl, sift the flour, bicarb, baking powder and mixed spice and mix. Add the dry mixture to the first bowl a little at a time, beating thoroughly. You're aiming for a stiff dough, so if you're mixing isn't making any difference, sift some more flour in a little at a time.
Divide this mix into two balls and wrap each ball in cling film and leave in the fridge for 30min. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4.
Lightly spray 2 baking trays with cooking spray. Lightly flour your worktop and knead the two balls of dough together again. Now roll it evenly so it's about 0.5cm thick all over. Use your cute cutter and transfer them over to the trays, leaving a gap of at least 2cm between each shape. Re-roll and repeat to use as much of the dough as possible. (I added eyes to my birds at this point with a skewer.) Put in the oven for about 8min, check and turn after 5min. You want them to be an even golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack.
When they're completely cooled, mix the remaining ingredients to make a delicious icing. Use an icing bag to draw something pretty on each of your biscuits, it doesn't need to be the same each time! Let the icing dry, then keep the biscuits in an airtight container for up to 4 days, if they last that long!
Double Vanilla Biscuits (based on WeightWatchers Christmas Cookies)
makes about 30 biscuits
Ingredients:
115g caster sugar
65g polyunsaturated margarine
1 small egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp lemon juice
1.5 tsp LittlePod vanilla paste
175g plain flour
0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
0.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp mixed spice
50g icing sugar
1 tsp littlePod vanilla extract
1 tsp (ish) hot water
Instructions:
Mix the sugar and marg in a large bowl with an electric whisk until it is smooth. Add the egg, golden syrup, lemon juice and LittlePod paste and whisk some more.
In another bowl, sift the flour, bicarb, baking powder and mixed spice and mix. Add the dry mixture to the first bowl a little at a time, beating thoroughly. You're aiming for a stiff dough, so if you're mixing isn't making any difference, sift some more flour in a little at a time.
Divide this mix into two balls and wrap each ball in cling film and leave in the fridge for 30min. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4.
Lightly spray 2 baking trays with cooking spray. Lightly flour your worktop and knead the two balls of dough together again. Now roll it evenly so it's about 0.5cm thick all over. Use your cute cutter and transfer them over to the trays, leaving a gap of at least 2cm between each shape. Re-roll and repeat to use as much of the dough as possible. (I added eyes to my birds at this point with a skewer.) Put in the oven for about 8min, check and turn after 5min. You want them to be an even golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack.
When they're completely cooled, mix the remaining ingredients to make a delicious icing. Use an icing bag to draw something pretty on each of your biscuits, it doesn't need to be the same each time! Let the icing dry, then keep the biscuits in an airtight container for up to 4 days, if they last that long!
For the more indulgent LittlePod moments...
There are some lovely recipes on the main LittlePod website, along with lots of information about the products and our company. Check it out! (Click on image to go to www.littlepod.co.uk)
Orange and Vanilla Granola
I love to start the day with a really satisfying and tasty breakfast, that will keep me full until lunchtime. Granola is a bit like musli really, and this one is delicious! I adapted the recipe from one I found at www.answerfitness.com (link at bottom of post), and have kindly translated it from American cups into grams and spoons for us Brits. Enjoy this cereal with milk (and sweetener), or as a treat add some low fat yoghurt and fruit! A perfect fuel for a busy day.
Orange & Vanilla Granola
Ingredients:
75ml freshly squeezed orange juice
zest of 1 orange
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tsp LittlePod vanilla extract
225g rolled oats
25g wheatgerm
25g flaxseed/linseed
1tbsp flaked almonds
1tbsp sunflower seeds
100g dried blueberries
25g dessicated coconut (optional)
Place the orange juice, zest, honey, cinnamon and LittlePod vanilla extract in a small pan and warm on a moderate heat until it is all combined. Leave to one side. Mix the remaining ingredients (apart from the blueberries and coconut!) in a large bowl, then add the liquid from the pan. Mix with your hands, it should go a bit like a topping for a crumble. Spread this mixture on a large baking tray and bake at 180 degrees (gas mark 4) for about 20min, taking it out to turn and 'shuggle' halfway through. Add the coconut at this point if you're using it. It should be fairly dry by now, but if not, put back in the oven for another 5mins, no longer as it could burn and that won't be nice. Then leave it to cool, adding the blueberries when it is. Put your granola in an airtight container to make it stay nice and crunchy for longer!
This should make enough for about 14 helpings, I find you don't need too much of it to feel full. And it's good for you, so no feeling guilty, just full of energy!
Original recipe can be found here:
http://www.answerfitness.com/49/low-fat-homemade-vanilla-orange-granola-healthy-recipes-from-answer-fitness%C2%AE/
Orange & Vanilla Granola
Ingredients:
75ml freshly squeezed orange juice
zest of 1 orange
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tsp LittlePod vanilla extract
225g rolled oats
25g wheatgerm
25g flaxseed/linseed
1tbsp flaked almonds
1tbsp sunflower seeds
100g dried blueberries
25g dessicated coconut (optional)
Place the orange juice, zest, honey, cinnamon and LittlePod vanilla extract in a small pan and warm on a moderate heat until it is all combined. Leave to one side. Mix the remaining ingredients (apart from the blueberries and coconut!) in a large bowl, then add the liquid from the pan. Mix with your hands, it should go a bit like a topping for a crumble. Spread this mixture on a large baking tray and bake at 180 degrees (gas mark 4) for about 20min, taking it out to turn and 'shuggle' halfway through. Add the coconut at this point if you're using it. It should be fairly dry by now, but if not, put back in the oven for another 5mins, no longer as it could burn and that won't be nice. Then leave it to cool, adding the blueberries when it is. Put your granola in an airtight container to make it stay nice and crunchy for longer!
This should make enough for about 14 helpings, I find you don't need too much of it to feel full. And it's good for you, so no feeling guilty, just full of energy!
Original recipe can be found here:
http://www.answerfitness.com/49/low-fat-homemade-vanilla-orange-granola-healthy-recipes-from-answer-fitness%C2%AE/
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