15 LichField Road556835 Singapore
Hi there ! so if you follow me on Insta, you know we all love Granola at home and I bake it all the time for ourselves or on order. I also keep on trying new flavours and combos to improve texture and taste. I have a few really decadent ones (ok still much healthier then most of the commercial ones you can find, even in health food stores 🙂 but sometimes I also want to have the really crunchy nutritious healthy bite to eat on its own or with some plant yogurt and fruits. Something that will be different from a simple nuts handful and yet not as sweet as a regular granola.
Most granolas will require quite a fair amount of oil and sweetener to bind the grains and nuts together. If you want to decrease some of it, you can try banana/apple or even pumpkin sauce as a binder. But it can affect texture and taste (for those who don’t like banana like my mum :). For these crunchy bites, I used flax meal as a binder and it helped me decrease to a minimum the oil amount. Also those bring a nice nutty flavor and are loaded in healthy Omega 3 !! As for the sweet tooth, I give you some flexibility in the recipe below (I personally like it not so sweet, my kids prefer much sweeter 🙂 Cacao is optional but really recommended for it’s flavour and also nutritional goodness. Ensure though you buy unsweetened cacao and not highly processed dutch coco powder. Give it a go and let me know your thoughts. And if you are not looking for such a healthy granola, look for my other recipes on the blog. In any case, enjoy and bake food that do you good but also makes you feel good and that you look forward to eat !!
Ingredients
- 260 g oats (rolled or steel cut)
- 50 g buckwheat
- 45 g hazelnuts +20 g almonds chopped
- 55 g pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped + 20 g sunflower seeds
- 40 g flax seeds
- 25 g liquid coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 185 g water
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2,5 tbsp cacao powder
- 65 g coconut sugar (50 if you have less of a sweet tooth / 80 to 90 g if you feel like a little sweeter granola)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt (adjust to your taste but a pinch is good)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 120°C fan forced
- Put in your food processor your flax seeds + 35g oats + sugar + cacao + water, oil and spices. Give a good stir and leave aside for 10 min to get your flax seeds to absorb some water
- Put all your remaining ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine them.
- Mixer at high speed your ingredients in the food processor until you get a creamy texture (that’s what you are going to use to bind your oats, buckwheat and nuts)
- Transfer it to your bowl and combine well unit evenly mixed.
- Spread it on baking tray layered with baking paper and put in your oven for 30 min. At this stage you can already break down your clusters (I make really big ones to eat these bites a bit like a granola bar 🙂 but you can make small clusters too !
- Ensure your layer is even and thin to ensure you’ll get crunchy clusters (otherwise if too thin it will still be moist in the center of the clusters)
- Flip your granola layer after 30 min and put it for another round of 30 /45 min.
- Check it is well baked and crunchy and leave it to cool down totally before transferring to an airtight container to keep for a few weeks or in your freezer for a few months.
Hi there ! If you are not vegan and/ or GF, you will already be probably super scared by these cookies description 🙂 I can see the disapproval look on your face as you imagine something weird, complicated to bake and not satisfying 🙂 well I ‘ll disappoint you with this recipe ! They are not like the crusty chewy cookies you get from cookie shops though. They are super soft and moist. I don’t claim to be a cookie expert, but for that category of cookies, I feel they do a good job, and my Leopold actually likes them a lot ! And then when you look at the ingredients list, apart from the white sugar (I have reduced vs std cookies recipes) there is noting bad in there actually !
I let you decide as you have the recipe below with a few twists to change flavours. Happy Healthy Baking and keep me posted.
Ingredients
– 150 g brown rice flour (can substitue with white rice, but I prefer brow rice flour / nuttier taste and also more interesting from a nutrition standpoint 🙂
– 150 g buckwheat flour
– 100 g unsweetened almond butter (or use peanut or tahini. Peanut will give a strong flavour though)
– 100 g coconut oil (use unrefined, you won’t taste it)
– 5 tbsp almond milk unsweetened (or oat or coconut milk)
– 2 tbsp almond flour
– 100 g sugar (I don’t like using refined sugar, but for cookies it does work better usually, you can substitute with brown sugar, but will affect the texture)
– 40 g brown sugar
– 150 chocolate chips (I use min 60% dark chocolate chips, but choose according to your kids sweet tooth)
– 0,5 tbsp psyllium powder (can not replace by anything else, sorry 🙂
– 50 g water
– 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
– 1/2 tsp cinnamon
– Pinch of salt
Directions
Mix your psyllium and watter, stir well and set aside.
Mix together your wet ingredients, then add your psullyium & water mix. Whisk well.
Mix together your dry ingredients, except the chocolate chips.
Combine your wet and dry ingredients, and add the chocolate chips to finish.
Put your dough in the fridge to rest and be easier to scoop.
In the meantime, preheat your oven at 175°C fan forced;
Scoop your cookie balls using a heaped tbps or ice cream scoop (usualy mine are around 50/55 g for large cookies).
Transfer your cookie balls to your baking tray lined with baking paper, and press a little. Leave some space in between each cookie, and put your tray in the oven for 14 min (cookies should be cracked, with slightly browned colored top)
Let it cool and eat 🙂 or store in airtight container to keep for a few days.
Note: those cookies are supposed to be soft ! not like usual crispy chewy cookies !
I don’t know for you, but when I am tired and don’t feel like cooking but still want something healthy, stews and curries are my go to food. Coconut milk based stews are so indulgent and flavourful ! And then they are sooo easy to make and twist. Once you have the base (onions, garlic, ginger, a few spices and lots of coconut milk :)) you just have to throw in there different veggies, a protein source like tofu or beans, some herbs and let it simmer, right ? And the magic of these is that they taste even better the next day, so make more and keep in the fridge of freeze for those lazy days ! My kids love them with naan of buckwheat pancakes to dip the sauce. Quinoa, millet or red rice are also super great to eat with them with and make a complete and nutritious meal. My super basic recipe below in case you don’t have already yours or want to revamp it a little. Happy cooking !
Ingredients
1,2 kg veggies: I would usually used pumpkin or sweet potato cut in dices, brocoli and or cauliflower florets, Brussels sprouts, carrots, or even some potatoes
250 g protein: either chickpeas, or pat dried firm tofu cut in cubes
3 handfuls fresh green leaves preferably organic
2,5 tbsp coconut oil
2 medium red onions minced
4 fat garlic cloves crushed
5 cm grated fresh ginger (don’t hesitate to put more if your love ginger like me 🙂
800 ml canned coconut milk
3 tbsp lemon juice + 0,5 tbsp lemon zest
1,5 tsp ground turmeric , 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp salt (adjust to taste), cracked pepper, pinch of chili flakes (optional).
To serve: thai basil or fresh coriander, roasted cashews or pepitas, toasted coconut flakes
Directions
Add your coconut oil to a large sauce pan on medium heat.
Once hot, add your onions and leave to saute for 6/9 min until translucents
Add your garlic and ginger and saute for 1 min
Add your spices, stir and cook for a few minutes
Add the starchy vegetables to your pan if using any (potatoes, pumpkin, …) and sauté for 10 min
Add your other veggies, and protein source, sauté for 2 min, then add the coconut milk and cook for 10/15 min (starchy veggies should be cooked but not mushy:)
Finish, by adding your green leave and, lemon juice. Taste and add more salt, pepper, lemon or even spices if needed. Add your fresh herbs, some roasted nuts or seeds and serve !
I have never been fond of Starbuck drinks or never even put any milk in my coffee or tea. Don’t know why, but I have always found weird and “heavy” to associate milk and sugar / flavours to already super flavourful drinks. But one day, I was attending an Ayurveda cooking class and I tried a golden milk. I had been explained the health benefits of drinking it regularly and found the colour so beautiful… It was not bad at all actually. Tried to make it at home again a few times, and after a few trials, came up with the combination below that satisfies my tastebuds and makes me feel good. Turmeric is anti-inflammatory and anti oxydant, so are ginger and cinnamon. For cinnamon, please try to only purchase the real stuff from Sri Lanka (Cassia one is not so good actually – from both a flavour and health perspective…).
One last think you could add to make this drink even one step healthier is adding a little black pepper as its piperine boosts absorption of the turmeric nutrients 🙂
I use hazelnut milk but of course almond, cashew or even oat can work also. Try it and adjust sweetness to your tastebuds. Any left overs can be kept for 2/3 days and used to soak your chia seeds or make your overnight oat porridge (YUMMMM). Recipe just below. Enjoy and do you Good !
Ingredients
400 ml plant based unsweetened milk (I usually do 250 ml hazelnut + 150 ml almond or / 200 ml cashew and 200 ml almond or all almond)
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1 whole cinnamon stick (real Sri Lankan one)
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 to 2 tsp maple syrup (according to your sweet tooth, I don’t use if I use cashew milk which is already naturally sweet 🙂
Put all your ingredients in a pan and whisk. Leave at medium heat for about 5 min, whisking regularly. Be careful not to boil it
Remove the cinnamon stick, taste and adjust sweetness and spices if needed (if you’d like add a pink of black pepper to boost antioxydants intake 🙂 and serve or transfer to a container and keep in the fridge, once cooled down. Can keep for a few days, and reheat to drink or use as a base for golden chia puddings or porridges 🙂
If you follow me you know that I am mostly vegan but do enjoy the occasional really good dairy product. I guess I was raised in a dairy culture country, and it was already hard to fight meat and be a vegetarian ! but cheese and yogurts have been all around my entire life. And I did enjoy them for a long time of my life. Especially cheese….Being more educated on their nutritional value, + and – health benefits, I have become quite savvy about when and how to eat those. And I also rely a lot on what’s my gut feeling ! If you can digest dairy and eat in moderation some organic, real yogurt or cheese, I believe you can actually benefit from their nutrients (calcium, protein) But this is so personal, right ? And having said that I know that I ‘ll always feel better when I skip those for sometime in my diet. So finding something that can replace the texture and flavor cheese bring to dishes is really important for me. On the other hand I don’t want to claim my “vegan feta” is anything to compare with traditional feta. I have said it before, but it scares me that some people eat now lots of processed vegan food and truly believe it is healthy ! We should not try to eat the same, but learn how to make new ingredients combinations that bring us the same level of yum 🙂 and are at the same time good for our health. Anyway, that’s my personal view on the current vegan trend, and even if you disagree with me, you can still give a try to recipe below. It’s sour, tangy, crumbly, and can definitely play a similar part in the flavors building of a salad / soup/ … as feta would do. Give it a go and let me know.
Ingredients
- 135 g blanched almonds
- 4,5 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 3,5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 fat crushed garlic cloves (don’t omit)
- 115 ml d’eau
- 1,5 tbsp of fresh shredded thyme, oregano or rosemary (my favorite is rosemary)
- 1,5 tsp sea salt (adjust to taste)
Directions
- Soak your almonds in 500 ml of water the night before
- In the morning, drain them and rinse them well
- Transfer them to your high speed blender, adding all the other ingredients and blend until you get a creamy texture.
- Transfer your batter in your milk bag and make a tight knot to get a ball you’ll strain for min 8 hours in your fridge
- Once it has strained, transfer your batter in your greased mold (I use olive oil, or baking paper if you don’t want to add any oil).
- Put in your preheated oven at 175°C fan forced for 35/40 min (check, it should have get some golden color on the top and have some cracks, but should still be soft under the firm top)
- Leave it to cool down in your mold and once cool, transfer in a container in your fridge
- When ready to eat, add a drizzle of olive oil, some cracked pepper and fresh herbs, even honey if you’d like (but not vegan). Can keep for up to 5 days in your fridge.
- Enjoy on sourdough toasts, crumbled in salads or to top soups, in wraps, or on pizzas.
Was craving for Thai food today and looking for a bright salad to enlighten a dull rainy day in Singapore 🙂 Remembered how much I love the Mango Papaya salad but had no papaya …. Never mind, zucchinis were going to replace it, and I also wanted to make it vegan and GF so skipped the fish and soy sauce. Added some avocado for indulgence and health fats, and edamame to make it more nutritious and get some texture as zucchinis are not as crunchy as the papaya. Result turned out super yummy, and it was done in 10 min max ! So here it is below, for you to try. Let me know your thoughts !
Ingredients (Serves 4)
- 2 large spiralized zucchinis (chose them organic to keep the skin ideally) If you don’t have a spiralizer, use a vegetable peeler to peel the zucchini into long strips. Once done, place your spiralized zucchini on a paper towel to absorb part of their water before you add them to your salad.
- 1 mango cut in small dices or also spiralized (don’t chose it too ripe in that case)
- 3 tbsp edamame pods
- 1 medium avocado cut in cubes
- 1 handfull chopped thai basil leaves and same with chopped cilantro
- Dressing: 3 tbsp lime juice + 2 tbsp sesame oil + 2 tbsp coconut aminos (if using tamari, add 1/2 tbsp coconut sugar) + 2 cm fresh ginger bit grated + 1 crushed fat garlic clove + fresh chili or 3/4 tsp chili flakes (adjust to your tastebuds)
- Toppings: Large handful or roasted unsalted crushed peanuts (or cashews if you don’t like peanuts) + 1 tbsp black sesame seeds + more thai basil, salt and cracked pepper to taste
Directions
In a large bowl, combine all your salad ingredients. Prepare the dressing combining everything. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well. Add your toppings and serve ! If you are not going to eat it straight away, keep everything in containers in your fridge and assemble at the last min, as zucchinis will release water and avocado will quickly turn brownish.
I was raised in the East part on France and we loved eating Myrtilles, aka Blueberries, whenever we were going to the Vosges region. I don’t really recall eating blueberries anywhere else at that time …. I loved their slightly acidic taste, which combined with the sugar and almond cream pie they came with was so flavorful and colorful ! But above all, what I preferred was to look at my darkened tong and teeth and smile at the entire family table 🙂
Well today you find them all year long, in almost any food store in the world ! And I still love them for their taste, but even more since I have learnt about their great nutrition properties ! Low in calories (about 85% is water, and an entire cup contains only 84 calories, with 15 grams of carbs, one of the lowest rate for fruits). Then they are high in fiber, vitamin C and vitamin K. And they are said to have the highest antioxidant capacity of all common fruits and vegetables !!!
So today I propose you to bake a vegan pie using these nature treasures ! Just follow the instructions below and let me know how you liked it.
Ingredients
Crust
- 1,5 cups GF oat flour
- 1,5 cups almond meal
- 1/4 cup coconut butter
- A few tbsp of water
- 1 tbsp coconut sugar (up to 3 if you like a sweet crust)
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon ( for the blueberry pie)
Filling
- 400g blueberries
- 60ml maple syrup
- 1,5 tsp agar agar
- 25 g cornstarch
- 1 tsp real vanilla extract
Instructions
First prepare the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 175 C fan forced
- Put all the dry ingredients in your high speed blender and combine. Then add the coconut butter gradually and combine to get a dough consistency.
- If you don’t have a proper dough add a few tbsp of ice water, one by one, until you get the proper texture and can form a ball.
- Lightly grease your tin and put it in the oven for 15 to 20 min after you have made holes with a fork to prevent it from swelling.
- Get it out and let it cool down while you prepare the curd.
To make the filling:
- Place the blueberries, maple syrup, and agar in a medium-size saucepan. Heat over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the blueberries start to pop. Use a spatula to slightly mash them.
- Dilute the cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water and add it to the saucepan. Heat for another 1-2 minutes or until the blueberry filling slightly thickens. Stir in the vanilla extract and remove from heat.
- Pour into the empty crust, and spread evenly. Let cool at room temperature for about one hour before transferring to the refrigerator.
- Refrigerate at least 3 hours before eating. The filling will thicken as it cools. Serve fresh with vanilla icecream, or as is!
Curries are one of the most comforting food for me. Don’t you think ? And being vegan most of the time, they are one of the easiest one pot dishes I love to make and share with friends or family to show them how delicious vegan healthy food can be 🙂 This one is a regular at our place, I sometimes change the sweet potatoes for carrots and / or pumpkins. Same for the greens, replace spinach with collard greens or even kale, and if you don’t have thai asparagus, omit them and just replace with snap peas or super fine green beans. From a nutrition stand point it is a very well balanced meal, rich in fibers, leafy greens, good fats. To increase proteins and limit carbs, ensure you use brown rice or quinoa as a side and add some beans if you want to load it with more proteins.
Hope you’ll like it.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 500 ml coconut milk
- 850 g sweet potatoes (washed and cut in dices)
- 80 g organic baby spinach leaves
- 100 g thai asparagus (washed, trimmed and cut in 3 parts lengthways)
- 2,5 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp white miso
- 1 tbsp organic green curry paste
- 300 ml water
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos or tamari if not soy free
- 10 kaffir lime leaves finely minced
- 2 to 3 lemongrass stalks (I love lemongrass so would use 3 but start with 2 🙂
- 1 tbsp finely minced fresh ginger
- 15 gr coriander (leaves and part of the stem)
- A few thai basil leaves
- Chili flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Put your miso, water, lime leaves and ginger in your pan an bring to a boil. Add your coconut milk, lemongrass stalks white parts you will have bruised and halved.
- Leave to boil for 2 min, then add your sweet potatoes, bring to a gentle simmer and leave until the potatoes are tender (around 15 min, check with toothpick)
- Add your spinach and cook for 2 min
- Add your coconut aminos and lime juice, half your coriander and the asparagus, and transfer in your serving pot.
- Taste and adjust if needed adding more salt, cracked pepper, lime juice and optional chili flakes.
- Top with remaining chopped coriander and some more shredded kaffir lime leaves and thai basil leaves.
- Serve immediately with quinoa, red or brown rice, millet, …
Have you ever eaten real Lebanese Tabouleh ? If so, this recipe is probably very similar to the one you ate / made. If not, then please try it, as it is soooooooo delicious, fresh, flavorful, and healthy ! Yes healthy as it blends parsley and mint with tomatoes, lemon, EVOO and very little wheat. You can even make it GF using quinoa, cauliflower or brocoli rice instead of bulgur. It’s been super hot lately in SG and this very simple salad has been on rotation in our menu over the last few weeks I must confess 🙂 Of course it is an entree and not enough for a meal, but from a nutrition point of view, it brings you so much antioxidants, vitamin A, K and C (parsley contains 3 times more Vitamin C then oranges). Recipe is super basic, it just requires a bit of time to finely shred / mince the herbs (use a herb grinder if you have one to save time :). Make it shortly before eating to ensure you maximize vitamin intakes !
Ingredients
Serves 4-6
– 4 bunches Parsley super super finely shredded
– 1 bunch mint super super finely shredded
– 3 super finely sliced green onions
– Optional 1/2 red onion diced super thin
– 2 large ripe tomatoes finely chopped and deseeded
– 1/4 cup super fine Bulgur
– Juice of 2 lemons
– 1/4 cup EVOO
– Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Soak the bulgur in water and set aside.
- Mix together all the herbs, tomatoes and onions
- Drain the bugur and add it to the bowl.
- Add the lemon juice, EVOO, salt & pepper then mix all the ingredients thoroughly.
- Taste check and adjust the lemon, salt and pepper if needed.
Wanted to see life in pink today… and also eat rhubarb, I love so much and get to eat really rarely here in Singapore. Usually I will compensate, when I am back in France and harvest all my mum’s garden stalks 🙂 but not this year unfortunately…… and my mum has been sending me pictures of her beautiful blooming garden every single day since the beginning of lockdown… which made me even more craving for rhubarb 🙂 So today I assembled a simple strawberry and rhubarb crisp. I didn’t have fresh fruits so I used frozen thawed ones, but it would be even nicer with fresh ones obviously. The crumble top blends almonds, oats, brown rice flour, coconut, sesame and maple syrup. Lot’s of great nutrients, healthy fats, zero gluten, and a healthy natural sweetener. If you are new to vegan bakes, don’t expect a regular butter and flour crumble texture and flavor, but trust me on this one, it is very yummy and next time you eat a regular crumble you might find it a bit too rich / sweet… Recipe below. As always would love to hear your thoughts and comments if you bake it. Enjoy !
Ingredients (Serves 6/8)
Fruit Base
- 500 g strawberries halved
- 450 g rhubarb, chopped
- 1/4 cup maple syrup or gula Melaka ( put more if you have a sweet tooth or your fruits are not super sweet 🙂 no more than 1/2 cup in total 🙂
- 4 tablespoons chia seeds
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch salt
Crumble
- 1 cup GF rolled oats
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup shredded coconut
- 1/3 cup brown rice flour
- 3 tbsp sesame seeds
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- ⅓ cup melted coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Directions
- Preheat oven at 180 deg C fan forced
- Mix all your fruit base ingredients together, ensuring you mix well the chia seeds so they don’t clung together
- Do the same for the crumble part to get a sandy crumbly texture
- Transfer your fruits in your tray and top with the crumble
- Put in the oven for 45 min ( until bubbly and golden:). If not golden enough, leave for 5/10 more min or increase slightly your oven.
- Take out
- Enjoy with vegan yogurt or ice cream, …