Coconut Creams...

Remember these biscuits from your childhood? Crispy biscuit base with spongy coconut marshmallow on top? Those Coconut Cream biscuits were always one of my favourites.... Logical step? To make them healthier and share the recipe!

If you remember, the marshmallow came in either pink or white... I always chose the pink one! Instead of using a chemical food dye to create a pink shade, I used raspberries to create a natural colour.

I know a lot of you will look at the ingredients for these biscuits and almost be scared away by the inclusion of gelatin. If you have never worked with it, there's a few things to keep in mind or it won't set or will set in a hard lump instead.... It's honestly really straight forward so just do as you're told and it'll work perfectly!

For the biscuit base I reused the recipe from my Chocolate Heart Cookies... Once you have made & chilled the dough, cut out round biscuits and bake as directed. Set aside to cool while you make the topping.

For the raspberry marshmallow topping: 

• 3 egg whites
• 2 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 sachet Gelatin powder
• 50g frozen raspberries
• 3 tbsp water

To coat:

• 100g unsweetened dessicated coconut

Place raspberries & water into the microwave for 20 seconds at a time. Stir and mash in between each 20 second burst until the raspberries are softened, broken up and the mixture is steaming.

Pour the gelatin powder over the top of the hot raspberry mixture and set aside to dissolve. It's really important to pour the gelatin onto the liquid and not the other way around or you'll end up with a hard lump. Also make sure the liquid is steaming hot (not boiling) before adding the gelatin or it won't dissolve fully.

Next add the egg whites, honey & vanilla to a heatproof bowl over gently simmering water.

Whisk the mixture constantly until it forms stiff glossy peaks. (If you don't whisk constantly, you'll end up with scrambled egg whites). This should take about 5 minutes.

At this stage, your gelatin should have dissolved, cooled and will be ready to use. It's important that both the gelatin mix & the egg white mixture are approx the same temperature, otherwise the gelatin will set too quickly and form strings... The egg white mixture will be warm, just make sure the gelatin has cooled sufficiently.. 

Add the gelatin mixture to the egg white gradually, whisking constantly. I recommend pouring the gelatin in a slow, steady stream. Once fully combined, you can stop whisking.

Using a piping bag or a dessert spoon add a generous amount of marshmallow topping to your prepared cookies.

Once you have used all the mixture, coat the topping evenly with dessicated coconut.

Set aside to firm up, this should take less than an hour.

I've gotta say, I was pretty delighted with how these biscuits turned out. They looked & most importantly tasted like (better than) the originals, and when I see people who usually go for sugary snacks reaching out for a 2nd and 3rd biscuit with their coffee, I know I've done something right!

I really hope you try these & that you enjoy them. There's only a few things to remember when it comes to gelatin so follow my instructions and they'll be perfect! 

Spicy Meatloaf

I'm always on the go with appointments all over the place so it would be incredibly easy for me to blame a lack of routine in my week for eating badly. Instead, I choose to prepare extra dinner, or plan food in advance and take it with me. Packed lunches don't have to mean dreary salads..

Meatloaf has a bad rep for being dry and bland... Let's face it, it's not the prettiest dish on GLBTK... so ugly in fact, I had someone almost refuse to even taste it recently.. once he did, he pretty much swallowed it whole... Just goes to show that appearances can be deceptive...It's basically a giant really awesome tasting burger!

This meatloaf is really nice hot or cold, and is a great recipe to make in advance for when you need nutritious food in a hurry.. It seems like a really long ingredient list, but they're all items you're likely to have or be readily available in the supermarket & they're not expensive :)

For the meatloaf: 

• 1.5lb minced beef
• 100g chorizo, finely chopped
• 1 egg

Add to a bowl & set aside. 

Vegetable mix:

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 large onion
• 1 red chilli, deseeded
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper

Add all the above to food processor & pulse until finely chopped. Do not over mix or you'll end up with purée...

Add to meat mixture.

Seasoning mix:

• 1 tsp tumeric
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tbsp ground almonds
• 3 tbsp tomato purée
• 3 tbsp  Frank's Hot Sauce
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Toss in bowl with meat & vegetable mix. 

Using your hands mix well to combine. 

Press into a 2lb loaf tin lined with cling film, or just shape with your hands. 

Place in oven at 170d (fan) for 45 minutes until cooked through. (Cover with tin foil for the first 35 minutes... this traps the steam keeping the meatloaf moist & prevents burning)... 

For the Hot Sauce Topping... 

• 3 tbsp Greek yoghurt
• 3 tbsp Frank's Hot Sauce

Simply mix the greek yoghurt & hot sauce together and spread over the top of the meatloaf. 

Serve with sliced avocado & salad. 

Walnut Chunk Cookies...

Everyone loves cookies! These cookies are everything you could ask for... they're chewy in the centre, crunchy on the outside & have chunks of rich dark chocolate & walnuts. You would never guess there was no bad stuff in them.... 

I love sharing recipes like this, I hope it goes some way towards showing you that you really don't need to buy processed foods if you're having a snack.. Trust me, once you get into the kitchen you'll wonder why you never took more of an interest in cooking...

I always try to use commonly used ingredients to spare the expense of buying something new for just 1 tsp in a recipe... however I do recommend buying the walnut oil for these cookies as it adds an amazing rich nutty flavour to the cookies. Walnut oil is great for salad dressings AND I'll be using it in a carrot cake recipe which will be posted soon! 

For the cookies:

• 50g unsalted butter, melted
• 4 tbsp walnut oil 
• 3 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200g ground almonds
• 3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 50g chopped walnuts
• 50g chopped chocolate (I used 81% cocoa solids) 

Mix the melted butter, oil, orange zest and honey together until combined. 

Whisk in egg and vanilla. 

Finally mix the dry ingredients in gently. Don't over-mix as this will give you a dry cookie. 

Allow to chill for 30 minutes in the fridge. 

To bake:

Preheat oven to 160d (fan oven).

Roll tbsp size balls of dough with your hands, and flatten gently. 

Place on a non stick baking tray. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes until pale golden. Keep an eye on the cookies to make sure they don't over-bake as they'll burn & become very hard quite quickly. 

Cool for a couple of minutes on the baking tray to allow the cookies to firm up a bit. Remove and allow to cool fully on a wire rack. 

Orange Chocolate Pancakes...

It's been a while since we've had some GLBTK pancakes! Pancakes are awesome... if you're smart about it, you can make incredible pancakes using only ingredients which support your goals. You know what that means? You can have dessert for breakfast AND it can be healthy! I really wish I knew this years ago...

Chocolate & orange is one of my favourite flavour combinations, so it took a whole lot of restraint to wait and take photos!

For the pancakes: 

• 3 eggs 
• 1 tbsp ground almonds
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp coconut milk 
• 1 tsp Irish honey
• 1 tbsp orange juice
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Whisk all the ingredients together until well combined and frothy. 

Pour batter into a hot pan with a little melted coconut oil to prevent sticking. 

The pancakes are ready to flip when tiny air bubbles appear on the surface. 

Serve pancakes warm with Greek yoghurt and orange chocolate sauce. 

For the orange chocolate sauce:

• juice of 1/2 a large orange 
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp Irish honey
• 1 tbsp Greek yoghurt

Bring the orange juice, cocoa, coconut oil & honey to a gentle boil and allow to simmer over a low heat for 2 minutes whilst stirring constantly. 

Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. (Reserve 1 tbsp of sauce at this point to drizzle over the top of pancakes if desired)

Mix in Greek yoghurt to remaining sauce stirring until just combined. Pour over the warm pancakes. 

To serve:

Top the pancakes with Greek yoghurt, followed by the orange chocolate sauce. Drizzle the reserved chocolate sauce over the top. 

Serve immediately.

Macaroon Slice...

I'm pretty much unable to resist a challenge, so when a friend asked me to 'health-ify' these Macaroon Slices, I set to work straight away! I'm firmly of the opinion that there are very few commercially produced treats that can't be made healthier at home... Feel free to make some suggestions and I'll get to work! 

This recipe requires a little patience since it is made up of 3 layers.... they're all really simple though so you can't go wrong! 

For the base:

• 120g ground almonds
• 50g dessicated coconut
• 1 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large egg yolk
• 50g butter, melted

Preheat oven to 160d (fan). Line an 8" square baking tin with greaseproof paper. 

Add all the ingredients together and mix well until you have a firm dough. 

Press the dough into base of lined tin. 

Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. 

For the raspberry jam filling:

• 150g frozen raspberries
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Add the raspberries and lemon juice to a saucepan. Bring to a boil, and allow to simmer over a low heat for approx 5 minutes to allow the jam to thicken. 

Spread an even layer of jam over the cooled base.

For the macaroon topping:

• 3 eggs
• 4 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp cinnamon 
• 150g dessicated coconut
• 100g butter, melted

Whisk the eggs & honey together until pale and trebled in volume. 

Fold in the butter, coconut & cinnamon. Stir until just combined. 

Spread over the jam filling. 

Bake for 25-30 minutes until firm and golden. 

Set aside to cool before cutting into squares. 

Banana & Coconut Muffins

Overripe bananas are amazing for baking with. Their natural sweetness is incredible, and saves you adding a load of additional sweeteners to baked goods. They also give cakes a great moist texture, which sometimes is difficult to find in grain free baking... 

You would never guess these muffins weren't full of bad stuff! The muffin itself is moist and light in texture, and the toasted coconut topping gives them a great crunchy bite...

Stop throwing out overripe bananas, bake these muffins instead! 

For the muffins:

• 60g butter, melted
• 2 bananas, mashed
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp coconut milk 
• 3 eggs
• 150g ground almonds
• 65g unsweetened dessicated coconut
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 25g cocoa nibs

Preheat oven to 160d (fan). 

Mix all the liquid ingredients together until just combined. 

Add in the dry ingredients and stir gently. Don't overmix or you'll end up with a dry muffin. 

Divide evenly into muffin cakes. Sprinkle with more coconut to give a crunchy topping to the muffins. 

Bake for 25 minutes (ovens vary so do keep an eye on them to avoid burning... if you feel like yours are getting too brown on top, open the oven after 15 minutes and place a sheet of tin foil loosely over the tin). 

Allow to cool on a wire rack. 

These are wonderfully simple and quick to make. Children would love making these... get them involved & interested in the food they eat, they'll appreciate and enjoy it a lot more if they've helped to make it...