Tag Archives: #almond

Almond Bread

Lunch and Light Meals, , , , , ,

This bread takes just minutes to prepare, and is delicious either as it is with a poached egg, or toasted with hummus or avocado. It keeps for up to a week in an air tight container, or slice it and then freeze it for later (if you manage not to eat it all)

Ingredients

  • 200g almond meal or ground almonds
  • 60g tapioca flour or tapioca starch
  • 3 large free range eggs
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup or honey
  • 80ml olive oil
  • 2 Tbsp coconut cream or coconut yoghurt
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
  • 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • pinch of salt
  • 30g sunflower seeds, toasted

For the topping

  • 2 tsp sesame seeds
  • 2 tsp sunflower seed

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celsius (315 degrees fahrenheit)
  2. Line a 22cm x 12cm bread (loaf) tin with baking paper on the bottom, and grease the sides with olive oil
  3. Combine all the ingredients except the sunflower seeds in a bowl or mixer and stir to combine
  4. Toast the sunflower seeds in a dry pan until golden and then fold into the batter
  5. Spoon the batter into the bread tin.
  6. Top with 2 tsp of sesame seeds and 2 tsp of sunflower seeds (not toasted)
  7. Bake on the middle rack of your oven for 45 minutes or until a skewer or fork inserted into the middle of your loaf comes out clean
  8. Remove from the oven and tip out of the bread tin onto a rack to cool.
  9. Slice and serve as is or toasted.

Apricot, Almond, Date Snack Bars

Snacks, , , , , , , , ,

Apricot, Almond and Date snack bars

Snack bars are great for filling a little gap between meals, or when you know that lunch is going to end up being a little late. However, Healthy Snack Bars are generally quite expensive, so we have been experimenting with different recipes to make our own. This is a classic combination inspired by the fruits of Kashmir – Almonds and Apricots. The dates give a natural sweetness, so no honey or sugar needs to be added to the mix.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup almonds
  • 1 cup dried apricots
  • 1 cup dried dates
  • Little coconut or olive oil

Directions

  1. Place the almonds into a food processor using the metal knife blade. Chop the almonds until they are in small pieces
  2. Add the dates and apricots to the food processor. Mix until the mixture starts to form into a ball
  3. Grease a metal tray with a little coconut or olive oil
  4. Spread the mixture out onto the tray and press down with your hands to form a square or rectangle of an even thickness
  5. Place into the fridge for about an hour
  6. Cut into bars, and store in an air tight container in the fridge. We wrap the bars in baking paper to avoid using plastic wrap.

Music to go with it…
Listen on Spotify: The Kite Strings Tangle – Vessel

Almond Milk and Flour

Condiments and Dips, , , ,

Almond Milk and Flour

Almond Milk is a great substitute for milk in cooking and baking. This is an easy way to make it at home, and also gives you almond flour as a very welcome by-product of the cooking process.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups almonds
  • 1 litre water, plus extra for soaking
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

Directions for Almond Milk

  1. Place the almonds in a large bowl and cover with enough water to sit 2cm above the almonds. Allow to stand at room temperature for 12 hours.
  2. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid and rinse well under cold running water.
  3. Put the almonds, water and sea salt into a blender and blend at a high speed for 3-4 minutes until fully mixed. (Depending on the size of your blender you might need to blend it in two batches of 500ml and 1 cup of almonds)
  4. Pour the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the almond pulp. You may need to work in batches to strain the almonds.
  5. Press the almond pulp with the back of a spoon to extract as much milk as possible. It should end up quite dry. The more moisture you leave in, the more you will have to dry out to get the Almond Flour.
  6. Retain the Almond pulp in the strainer to use in the Almond Flour (below). 
  7. Pour the milk into glass jars or bottles and seal well. Refrigerates for up to 3-4 days. Can also be frozen for up to 2 months. Makes approximately 1 litre of almond milk.

Directions for Almond Flour

  1. Preheat the oven to 100 degrees Celcius.
  2. Spread the almond pulp thinly and evenly over a lightly greased baking tray lined with baking paper.
  3. Bake for 1 hour.
  4. Toss the almond pulp, re-spread it out over the baking paper and cook for another 1 hour.
  5. Allow to cool completely.
  6. Place the almond mixture into a food processor and process using the knife blade until finely ground.
  7. Store the almond flour in a air tight container in the refridgerator for up to 1 week, or use immediately to make Dried fig and Cranberry Almond Loaf.

Music to go with it…
Listen on Spotify: Eternal Summers – The Drop Beneath