Taking back Bavarian

When we were little, the ultimate in dessert luxury for us was a Sara-Lee Chocolate Bavarian (from the frozen dessert section at the supermarket). We (my 3 brothers and I) often wouldn't even allow it to defrost before hacking at it with a carving knife and chiseling away at it with our forks. It was, of course, much better if you let it defrost so it was soft and creamy. But even still, I never liked the top white layer of cream. I found it to be watery & always suffering from freezer burn. So I'd peel off the white top and eat the chocolate & biscuit layers together first (yes, I still ate the top - it resembled ice dream & I was a relatively sugar-free child!).

Anyway - now that I'm a Mum myself, I'm all too aware of the utter shit that goes into such processed delicacies and try my best to avoid them when and if I can (I'm a work in progress myself!). So I've been experimenting with all kinds of 'cheesefakes', bean cakes & gluten free-grain free etcetera. I hadn't planned on the following recipe turning out in this way... But I can't argue with its taste & texture. It it what it is. And its the closest thing to those bottom two layers of that frozen chocolate childhood memory as my taste buds have been in a very long time.  

It's not completely raw because of the maple syrup but otherwise, you're golden. And yes, maple syrup has fructose so its not sugar free - I don't care. Dessert - sweetness, even, is not intended to be an everyday indulgence, that is becoming painfully clear. Maple syrup is still better than agave, table sugar, stevia and has a lower glycemic index than honey. It's also additive, gluten & grain free as well as vegan, so over all, it's winning! 

(Mini) Chocolate Bavarian-style fake, featuring raspberries  

You will need: 

Baking paper

A 10cm round springform cake tin 

1/2 cup frozen raspberries 

1/3 cup cacao powder 

2 ripe Hass avocados

1/2 cup pure maple syrup 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons coconut oil 

A pinch of sea salt

For the base;

1/2 cup pitted dates 

1/2 cup pecans 

How to: 

1. Line your cake tin with baking paper and set aside 

2. Blend your pecans & dates until they resemble a rough, sticky sand. Press this

Mixture into the bottom of your tin. 

3. Next, blend all of your remaining EXCEPT your raspberries, until smooth and creamy. 

4. Fold in your raspberries & pour this mix in the tin, on top of your base. 

5. Refrigerate for 2 hours (or freeze until set). 

Viola!

With love

Angela  

www.facebook.com/theoroginaloccupation 

Orange and Poppyseed muffins (whole, dairy free)

I know, believe me, I know. Gluten, grains and sugar = bad these days. But I am not strictly paleo or gluten free. I don’t actually believe in following any kind of fad to the letter. Yes, there are messages in each that we can take with us as we go. Take the Atkins diet for example, eating good fats to lose fat – brilliant! But Mr Atkins did die of a heart attack.  And in any case, how can we assume that just because we are the same species that we are all exactly the same at a cellular level, because we’re not. We have different genders, lifestyle factors, blood types and DNA, even. Our ancestors grew up in different parts of the world, eating only the food available to them in that time and their bodies grew accustomed to such foods and thrived on them. Then, suddenly, here in today’s society we have access to foods from all over the world, out of season and, perhaps, out of place.
Which brings me back to my mantra, the only thing I know for sure; that we are supposed to eat food, only food, in its whole form and nothing to excess.
And while we’re at it, we can get smart and make food work for us. One such example of how to do this is by completing protein. That is, using a combination of nuts, seeds, legumes and grains to get all of the fatty acids necessary to sustain our bodies for longer, make us feel fuller, and fuel our systems more efficiently. As in the case with the following recipe. I have used wholemeal wheat flour, mixed with poppy seeds and orange in its whole form (I have also used rapadura sugar in place of agave, but that’s a whole other blog). So, yes, these have gluten in them, but they are undeniably closer to nature than those that are made with commercial gluten free (white rice) flours, and will be more sustaining than those made with nut meal (as the nut protein is incomplete on its own). I will experiment with this more over the coming months and no doubt come up with a grain free protein muffin, but for now, this is what I had in my cupboard, I’m eating gluten anyways and I like something sweet with my afternoon tea – so these just make sense to me.


 Orange & poppyseed muffins (complete protein, dairy free)

You will need:
2 cups wholemeal self raising flour
1 Tblsp poppy seeds
1 cup rapadura sugar
¾ cup almond milk
2 eggs
½ cup grapeseed oil
Rind and flesh of 1 orange

How to:
1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Line a muffin tray with 9 paper cases.
2. Combine flour, poppy seeds, orange rind and sugar in a mixing bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and grapeseed oil.
4. Take the flesh of your orange and blend/macerate it using a small food processor or bar mix.
5. Add wet ingredients and orange to your flour mixture and mix well.
6. Divide mixture evenly among your cases. 
7. Bake for 25 minutes.