CHARTS FOR HEALTHY EATING

Here's a link to some great charts for healthy eating on Buzzfeed. I particularly love this one:

BANANA & SEED BISCUITS - Great Irish Bake 1

Juno sieving

The Great Irish Bake for Temple Street is already underway here in Ballinasloe. Our jar is out, ready for collecting the money. We made Apple Crumble on Sunday (eaten too quick for pics!) and today it was Banana and Seed Biscuits. This recipe makes makes about 12 biscuits. 77 Kcals per biccie.

Banana and seed biscuits

INGREDIENTS
60g marg/butter
60g brown sugar
90g self-raising flour
50g mixed seeds (pumpkin and sesame)
1 small egg, beaten
1 small banana, mashed
half teaspoon mixed spice
1 tablespoon milk

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 190C.

Line two baking trays.

In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth.

Add the beaten egg and mix

Add the mashed banana and mix

Sieve in the the flour and spice; stir into the creamed mixture.

Mix in milk and, finally, the seeds

Blob dessert-spoonfuls onto the prepared baking trays.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Allow to cool on baking tray for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack.

FIG & COCONUT CEREAL BARS

Fig and Coconut Ceral Bars before cutting

The quest for healthy homemade cereal bars continues! I have heavily adapted this recipe from this one at Smitten Kitchen. I have experimented with it, using different ingredients and I am happy now with this combination. The wonderful books The Guilt Free Gourmet and My Goodness have me experimenting with agave syrup and Xylitol (a healthier alternative to sugar).

This recipe makes 16 small square bars. Each one has 131 calories and 5g of fat. Not bad at all!

INGREDIENTS

150g porridge oats

125g Xylitol

50g rice flour

half teaspoon salt

125g dried figs (topped, tailed and chopped small)

25g pumpkin seeds

40g dessicated coconut

1 tsp vanilla extract

6 tablespoons melted butter or marg (I used Vitalite dairy free)

60ml agave syrup

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon water

METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 180°C
• Line an 8″ x 8″ x 2″ tin in one direction with baking paper, allowing it to go up the opposing sides. Lightly grease the paper and the exposed pan
• Stir together all the dry ingredients, including the fruit and seeds
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the vanilla, melted marg, liquid sweeteners and water
• Toss the wet ingredients with the dry until evenly crumbly
• Spread in the prepared pan, pressing firmly with a spoon
• Bake for 35 minutes, until golden brown
• They’ll still seem soft when you press
• Cool the bars in their tin completely on a cooling rack
• Once cool, use a serrated knife to cut the bars into squares. If bars seem crumbly, chill further in the fridge for 30 minutes to set them, then cut cold

VEGAN OAT APPLE CAKE

This cake screams good health and a slice makes a great snack. It's sugar free too! Mine turned out a tad crumbly (again!) but is still delish.

Preheat the oven to 190 C

3 apples, peeled & chopped finely
1 carrot, peeled & grated
60g chopped walnuts
120ml veg oil (rape or sunflower)
100g raisins
150g plain flour
80g porridge oats
1 tsp vanilla essence
30ml soya milk

Lightly grease a 2lb loaf tin
Sieve the flour into a large bowl
Mix in the porridge oats
Mix in the apples, walnuts, carrot & raisins
Add the soya milk and vanilla essence and stir
Mix in the veg oil
Spoon into the tin and bake for one hour
Cool in the tin before turning out

This is lovely plain or with a blob of soya dessert.