Tag Archives: snacks

Muesli

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When my children had corn eliminated from their diet, basically all breakfast cereals went with it. My daughter used to love cereal but it has taken me a long time to find suitable cereals for them to have again. I have managed to find a safe puffed rice and crunchy rice flakes. Since I mixed up this muesli I have even found safe sunflower seeds and pepitas!!! Adding the seeds to the mix is a great way of adding protein to breakfast cereal. Also, since my Easter Hot Cross Bun post I have found some safe sultanas that my daughter doesn’t react to – it’s all progress and exciting. This can be a breakfast or a great afternoon snack to keep the kids, and grown ups, going.

Ingredients:

  • Puffed rice (in Australia the brand I use is Nature First Organic)
  • Crunchy rice flakes (in Australia the brand I use is Nature First Premium)
  • Sultanas and/or other dried fruits (in Australia the brand I use is Woolworths Select  Aussie Sultanas)
  • Sunflower seeds and pepitas [pumpkin kernels] (in Australia the brand I use is Coles own brand from the health section range)
  • Honey, golden syrup, or maple syrup
  • Banana (or other fresh fruits)
  • Suitable milk (we used Rice Milk)

Method:

  1. Decide on the quantity you are mixing up; if it is just a bowl to serve straight away or a week’s worth for the family
  2. In a mixing bowl (or the bowl you are serving in), add equal parts of puffed rice and crunchy rice flakes (this makes up the base of the cereal. So, you could either combine two whole packets, add a cup of each or just add a bit of both to the bowl you are about to serve.
  3. I then add the sultanas to make a nice amount through the dried muesli. Next time, I will try the sunflower seeds and maybe pepitas at this stage as well. You can add anything you think will work for your dietary requirements.
  4. To serve I chop a ripe banana over the muesli, drizzle with honey, and add milk.

If you give this recipe a try please let me know how it turns out. I’m happy to troubleshoot or discuss how you could substitute these ingredients if some of the ones I’ve used aren’t suitable for your family’s sensitivities.

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Shortbread

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My stock of shortbread has run out in the freezer – DISASTER!! I used my last ones as a base for a free-from cheesecake (which I can share the recipe for) and now, we have friends coming over for coffee tomorrow and no quick snacks to whip out for the adults and the kids, too. So, today, the daughter and I had a baking session. We made one batch of regular shortbread, which she calls ‘the yellow ones’ and a chocolate version – which is her favourite…one poor mermaid biscuit barely made it to be fully cooled before being gobbled up!

I’m always collecting new biscuit cutters to make our biscuits stay interesting, despite us making them so often. I got the northern hemisphere animals cutters from Ikea last Christmas and they have been a huge hit. The magical, sea, horse, and fairy ones I have collected locally from cake decorating shops and homeware shops. My son has trains, cars and planes as his preferred shapes…but I think this ‘Room on the Broom’ style magic wand will entice him. Let me know how you get on with the recipe. I’m sure other flours such as buckwheat and millet could be used instead of the rice flours; also, if tapioca is a problem then perhaps try potato flour.

Ingredients:

  • 100g white rice flour
  • 100g brown rice flour
  • 80g tapioca flour/arrowroot flour
  • 1 tsp guar gum
  • 90g caster sugar
  • 185g suitable margarine
  • Some raw sugar to sprinkle over the biscuits before baking

Method:

  1. Line baking tray with baking paper & spray with oil (rice bran oil or olive oil – be sure to check they are allergen free)
  2. Add sifted flour, guar gum and sugar into a large bowl and stir through                                                                                           – Optional extra (put 1-2 Tablespoons of Cacao powder into the flour mix to make chocolate shortbread – my daughter loves this variety)
  3. Add margarine and rub through with your fingers until mixture can be squeezed together to form a ball (adjust with a sprinkle more flour if too sticky)
  4. Flour a chopping board or pastry mat with a sprinkle of white rice flour
  5. I use my fingers and palms to push this mixture out flat onto a floured soft plastic chopping board. Cut out desired shapes and place on tray for baking.                                                                                                                                                                   – Optional extra – sprinkle with raw sugar before baking if you desire sugar coated biscuits
  1. Bake in oven (180 degrees Celsius fan forced) for 12 – 15 minutes (depending on how small you cut your biscuits, smaller shapes will cook quicker)
  2. Leave to cool of the tray for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish the cooling process (if you move them too quickly they can break)
  3. Store in airtight containers. These biscuits freeze well and make a great addition to a spontaneous coffee afternoon or lunchboxes.

If you give this recipe a try please let me know how it turns out, I’m happy to troubleshoot or discuss how you could substitute these ingredients if some of the ones I’ve used aren’t suitable to your family’s sensitivities.

Chocolate Cake

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I like to think of this cake as a Super Cake, not a ‘naughty chocolate cake’. With brown rice flour and cacao powder, it has good protein levels and a rich array anti-oxidants and essential nutrients such as potassium and magnesium. Not to mention smuggling apple into the cake!  This is a very versatile cake, which can be made into a cake size or into cup cakes. I have made lots of birthday cakes for the children with this mixture. I also bake a double batch of this each week, making about 40 small cupcakes and freezing them for snacks and lunchboxes.

Ingredients:

  • 4 medium apples (green or red)
  • ¾ cup potato flour
  • 1 cup brown rice flour
  • ¼ cup cacao powder
  • 1 cup caster sugar
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • 1 tsp guar gum
  • 4 eggs of ‘no-egg’ egg replacer and rice or coconut milk as the liquid to make up the ‘no-eggs’ (so, for example: for ‘no-egg’ it is 4 heaped tsp of ‘no-egg’ and 8 Tbs of milk of choice)
  • 1 cup sunflower oil (or your oil of choice)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Icing optional (I only ice on special occasions; my children eat these without icing in cupcake size for a lunchbox snack)

  • 1 cup icing sugar mixture or pure icing sugar that is well sifted, or make your own icing sugar in the Thermomix!
  • 1 Tb cacao or cocoa powder (sifted)
  • 2 Tbs apple juice (Nudie – Australia, Innocent – UK, or juice your own apples)

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees (200 degrees if making cupcakes)
  2. Grease and line cake tin of choice. For cupcakes, either grease tin or line with cupcake papers
  3. Sift all dry ingredients together into a large bowl. Add sugar and egg replacer powder into the dry mixture
  4. Peel, core and grate apples, add to the dry mixture
  5. Add oil, vanilla and milk and stir all ingredients together
  6. Leave to settle and absorb for 10 minutes. I find this settling time helps all the flour properly absorb the flour
  7. Pour into cake tin or spoon into cupcake tray/ papers
  8. Bake cake for 45 minutes. Bake cupcakes for 12 minutes
  9. Test cake and turn out onto a wire rack to cool
  10. The cake or cupcakes freeze well

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This is my box of cakes in the freezer.  I like to keep it well stocked so I can pull extras out if other children come over for a snack or a cake needs to be sent to school for special occasions.

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This is a castle cake that I whipped up quickly on the day of my daughter’s birthday (after a full day out doing fun things). I used a silicone castle cake mould and it was decorated with strawberries and sprinkled with pure icing sugar (fairy magical dust)

If you give this recipe a try please let me know how it turns out, I’m happy to troubleshoot or discuss how you could substitute these ingredients if some of the ones I’ve used aren’t suitable to your family’s sensitivities.

ANZAC Biscuits

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Anzac Biscuits

We have always celebrated Anzac Day, even when we lived in the UK. My kids have always loved Anzac Biscuits, even my (staunchly English) husband too. So, we make these often but today we made them to remember the Anzac spirit. My Mother-in-Law and Sister-in-Law arrived off the plane today from the UK, so it was great to have some of these fresh out of the oven to welcome them to Australia on this special national remembrance day.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Rice flakes (or Quinoa flakes)
  • 1 cup plain flour mix (1/3 cup Tapioca/Arrowroot flour, 1/3 cup White Rice flour,1/3 cup Brown rice flour & 1 teaspoon Guar Gum)
  • 170 g margarine
  • 1 Tb boiling water
  • 2 Tb Golden syrup (or honey or maple syrup or rice syrup)
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¾ cup desiccated or shredded coconut
  • ½ tsp bicarb soda

Method:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees
  2. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Spray with rice bran oil or coconut oil spray if desired
  3. Sift flour into a large mixing bowl, add sugar, coconut, guar gum and make a well in the middle and set aside.
  4. In a saucepan, add margarine, water, golden syrup and rice flakes. Cook over a low heat until melted and smooth. Set aside for 10 minutes.
  5. Return to pan and stir for a further 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add bicarb soda and stir. Then, stir these wet ingredients into the dry mix. Mix to combine all ingredients.
  6. Use a teaspoon or tablespoon (depending on desired size of the biscuit) to scoop mixture, then form a ball in your hands. Flatten ball on the tray using your hand or a fork.
  7. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden
  8. Cool on wire rack
  9. Store in airtight containers. Freezes well and can be added to a lunchbox easily

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I pulled some Anzac biscuits out of the freezer at the last minute for my son’s Gruffalo themed birthday party last year and called them ‘Gruffalo Cakes’!

If you give this recipe a try please let me know how it turns out, I’m happy to troubleshoot or discuss how you could substitute these ingredients if some of the ones I’ve used aren’t suitable to your family’s sensitivities.

 

Pancakes!

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Easter Saturday morning surprise for the family – Pancakes! I have finally mastered this recipe so that I can reliably whip them up quickly any day for breakfast, then keep them cold for an afternoon snack (lunch box idea) or a cold breakfast treat the next day. I have to say with my new Thermomix I can make this in a matter of moments. On the downside, my son now knows he can ask for pancakes and get them pronto! I’m just happy they can have such a yummy breakfast that I know is full of goodness. My son eats them straight out of the pan, but my daughter likes them with margarine and jam. Whichever topping you choose, just ensure it is allergen safe, too. My favourite topping so far is chopped banana and honey. I have written the ingredients list using grams so that either the regular method or Thermomix method can be used.

Pancakes

Ingredients:

  • 60 g white rice flour
  • 60 g brown rice flour
  • 40 g tapioca/arrowroot flour
  • 360 g (1.5 cups) of rice milk (or coconut, or prescription formula, etc) [I use calcium rich milk]
  • 1 Tb Golden syrup (or honey or maple syrup or rice syrup)
  • 1 tsp guar gum
  •  1.5 tsp baking powder

Method:

  1. Whisk all ingredients together
  2. Add additional milk if needed to make it up to the consistency you like
  3. I use margarine in a non-stick electric frying pan and cook over a medium heat

Thermomix Method:

  1. Place all ingredients in the bowl.
  2. Mix on speed 2 for 20 seconds, scrape down
  3. Reverse mix on speed 4 for 15 seconds
  4. Add additional milk if needed to make it up to the consistency you like
  5. I use margarine in a non-stick electric frying pan and cook over a medium heat

If you give this recipe a try please let me know how it turns out, I’m happy to troubleshoot or discuss how you could substitute these ingredients if some of the ones I’ve used aren’t suitable to your family’s sensitivities. For example, if your family doesn’t tolerate rice, then other flours could be tried, such as: millet, sorghum or quinoa. If the arrowroot isn’t suitable, another starchy flour is potato.