Tag Archives: walnuts

Brainfood!!! Mango-Energie Bar

26 Friday Jul 2013

Posted by in Playful food and photos

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So… I’m writing my exams right now. And learning really, really makes me hungry. It’s almost like I feel how my brain burns all that calories! But as storebought raw fruit bars are quite expansive, I usually make my own. The possibilities are endless, almost any combination of dried fruit and nuts will work.

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And this one was really delicious, so even though this recipe was not meant for the blog in first place, after tasting the first bar I decided to share them with you!

RAW Mango Energie Bars

  • 1 cup dates
  • 1 /2 cup dried (soft) apples
  • 1/4 cup dried mango, chopped
  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 2 Tbsp golden flaxseed
  • 1/2 cup (raw) oats

Coarsely grind the walnuts and oats in your blender or food processor. Set aside. Mix dates, apples and mango in your blender or food processor until they stick together. (I use my blender. If you pulse, it works pretty well!) Add ground oat-nut mixture and flaxseed and mix until you have a formable dough. Form bars (or balls or whatever you want! ;) ) with your hands. Enjoy!

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My little friends agreed that they’d make a great for a bike tour, too. =D
And as this was meant to be brainfood for me, I just had to add walnuts. First of all, they look like little brains. And secondly, I have a persian friend who always tells me to eat a lot of walnuts when I’m writing my exams. And with all the omega 3 fatty acids, which are good for your brain, you can’t go wrong with walnuts.

But the most important fact about this bar: It’s unbelievable fruity thanks to the mangos! Yummy!

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“Snowflake” Cookies

26 Sunday May 2013

Posted by in Playful food and photos

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Yes, I made snowflake cookies. Or at least, that’s what I chose to call them. I do know it’s May. Or, it’s supposed to be May. I’m not sure if the weather right here in Germany knows that it’s May. There was night frost in some areas this week! Kind of crazy…

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Okay, I will stop complaining. We’ll be on vacation the next two weeks. I decided to make some cookies as a little supply and as a present for the person with whom we’re staying. As they are snowflake cookies, they’ll remind us of the cold that we espace…

And just to give you some facts: They’re whole wheat, or at least, they can be. They can be made using either xylit, regular white sugar or whole cane sugar. Whole cane sugar yields a malty, caramel like flavor which I really like.
And of course, you don’t have to use the same kind of nuts I used. Actually, you could also use just hazelnuts or just walnuts or you use almonds… it’s up to you!

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That’s a big cookie for a tiny Lego girl, if you ask me…

Snowflake Cookies
yields about 60 cookies, whole wheat and can be sugar-free

  • 200g / 1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry)
  • 120g / 3/4 cup ground nuts (I used half hazelnuts and half walnuts)
  • 100g / 1/2 cup cold margarine (earth balance / alsan)
  • 100g / 1/2 cup sugar (whole cane, white or xylit)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract or 2 packages bourbon vanilla sugar
  • 1 tbsp cold water
  • pinch of salt
  • optional: confectioners’ sugar for decoration OR powdered xylit

Mix all the ingredients, using either your hands or a food processor. I think using your hands is much more fun and better for taste testing the dough… ;)
The dough is supposed to be smooth and it shouldn’t stick to your hands. Add some more flour if it’s too sticky, add a little more cold water if it’s too crumbly.
Form a roll and cut of slices, about 0,5 cm thick. Put on a baking tray, lined with baking paper. Bake for about 12-15 minutes at 350 F / 180 C. Decorate with confectioners’ sugar while still warm! Enjoy and hope for better weather!
Note: you can easily make powdered sugar from xylit in your food processor or blender. Just put 2 cups in your blender and mix, that’s it. It’s a great sugar-free alternative for decorating cookies and other desserts.

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No problem… since she has a fancy Lego phone, she’s just calling a friend…

2013-05-26 Schneekekse_4So they can enjoy that cookie together!

I’ll see you in two weeks. Hope all the “snowflakes” are gone when we’ll get back!

Gingerbread Pancakes – Breakfast before christmas

13 Thursday Dec 2012

Posted by in Playful food and photos

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Time to get festive!

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One thing I love about christmas time are all the spices! Cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, all spice… I love them all. They warm me from the inside when it’s freezing outside…

There are all these foods they only sell around Christmas. One of them is “Lebkuchen”, which is the German equivalent to gingerbread. But it’s more like a soft gingerbread and the spice mix is slightly different. The most famous one is the Nuremberg gingerbread. Try it if you get a chance! (I might be posting a recipe for “Lebkuchen” / soft gingerbread before Christmas, too, stay tuned!)

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To cut a long story short: “Lebkuchen” tastes great and so do pancakes (I guess I don’t have to tell you!) – so let’s combine both things! That’s what we did for breakfast today. It warms you form the inside and fills you up for a while because it’s whole wheat. And it’s a really delicious and easy way to make pancakes just a little bit different than usual!

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Gingerbread Pancakes / Lebkuchen-Pancakes
serves two

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/4 cups water
  • 2 tbsp soy flour
  • about ten chopped walnuts (1/8 cup)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tbsp stevia
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp “Lebkuchen” spice mix OR ginger bread spice mix OR one dash of each: Cinnamon, cardamom, muscat, all spice, coriander, ginger, cloves, mace)
  • dash of salt

Mix all the ingredients, adding just as much water as you need to create a pancake batter (the texture should be like a thick cake batter). Put about one tablespoon of dough in a non-sticking pan and cook at medium heat until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip and cook until browned.

Serve with maple syrup. Or vanilla sauce, chocolate syrup, agave syrup, apple sauce… whatever you want! And remember – those are wholewheat pancakes. They will really fill you up! This a breakfast for two hungry people.

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But if you’ve been building snowmen and pancake skiing all morning, like this little friend of mine, you probably are hungry. However, don’t worry, the delicious smell that comes from the spices should be enough to make everyone crave these pancakes.

One more, just because I like it.

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Make dough, not war!

16 Thursday Aug 2012

Posted by in Playful food and photos

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Once upon a time, there was a war torn kingdom. The greedy king always wanted more land, more treasures. But when his soldiers came to the land of raw dough…

 

The land of raw dough was different though. There were no treasures they could fight for. But there were fearful figures like…

 

… rabbits. Yes. Don’t laugh. Compared to a lego figure, it is big. If you met a rabbit that’s bigger than you, you’d probably be afraid, too!

 

Once our little soldiers noticed that the rabbit wasn’t as dangerous as they thought, there was no reason to fight anymore. The rabbit was made from dough, after all. As everything else in this country. So, what to do?

 

Well, isn’t it obvious? Make dough, not war! Have your dough and eat it, too…

Raw dough
– The basic two ingredients recipe! 

  • 1 cup dates
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • optional: vanilla powder and / or cinnamon OR Indian Chai spice
  • optional: cocoa powder

This is as easy as it could be… first, grind the walnuts in your food processor or heavy duty blender (I use a blender). Once, they are powdered, put in the dates and mix until the mixture turns into a smooth dough! If you are using a blender, you have to push everything down with your tamper. It will only take about 3 minutes (or less, if your kitchen is more tidy than mine…) and you will have delicious raw dough! Form into balls… or use cookie cutters for any other shape!

Don’t ask about the rabbit. I just like rabbits, that’s all. I came up with this recipe while learning for my exams. I have a friend who always tells me to eat walnut when I have to learn. They are supposed to be good for your brain. Sounds reasonable. They look like brains, after all. So I decided to make a delicious raw dough from walnuts and dates. Brain food!

I added cocoa powder to one half of my dough. Both versions turned out great! I rolled some of the balls in sesame, some were dipped into self made chocolate and some were left plain.

Self made chocolate?

  • 1 tablespoon native coconut oil
  • 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • about 10 drops stevia (or 2 packets)

Melt the coconut oil, stir in the cocoa powder and stevia – that’s it. Life can be so easy.

Here’s the three versions I made.

 

And here are some more scenes from the land of raw dough…

 

even the evil knight preferred dough over war…

 

One more. Just because I like it.