This week is allergy awareness week and as an allergy  sufferer myself, I am very aware that there's a huge gap between allergy friendly food and food for entertaining. One of my main intentions in creating this page is to bridge this gap so that allergy sufferers can create foods that everyone will want to eat. To learn more about recognizing an allergic reaction or find information about living with an allergy suffer, visit the Food Allergy Aware.

Chocolate banana Mud Muffins
2 x 400g Cans of black beans or kidney beans strained and rinsed
2/3 cup of  mashed banana (approx 2)
4 tablespoons of coconut oil (substitute with other oil for coconut allergy)
3/4 cup of Carob powder
1 vanilla bean 
3/4 cup of Rapadura sugar
1 1/2  teaspoon of allergy free baking powder

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius and line or grease muffin tray. Place beans in the food processor and puree.  Cut the vanilla bean and scrape seeds into the the bean mixture. Add the sifted cocoa/carob, baking powder,banana, coconut oil and rapadura sugar. Blend until well combined. Spoon mixture into muffin trays and bake in the oven for 25. Leave to cool in pan before gently removing. They will be crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle
Note: If you are making this for an allergy sufferer, please ensure that the cake is made using very clean utensils and that you cook and store it in an area away from the allergens.

Sunday nights dinners in the cottage are usually simple and comforting.  After a weekend of renovating, spending time with family and pottering in the garden, there's nothing better than making some homemade ricotta in the thermomix and topping with fresh vegetables to make a gratin. My toddler loves to eat this with some lightly toasted sourdough but it can also be served as a simple snack-style dinner or as a side dish. This recipe has been adapted from the Brussel Sprout and Ricotta Gratin in Fresh and Light by Donna Hay.

Brussel Sprout Gratin
10 Brussel Sprouts
1 1/2 cups Ricotta
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup of cheese + 1/4 cup extra for top
1 teaspoon fresh herbs
1 egg
1/2 lemon

Preheat oven to 180 degree celcius. Slice the brussel sprouts in half and boil or steam until just tender .Whisk together ricotta, milk, 1/4 cup of cheese, egg and fresh herbs. Place the the cheese mixture in an oven proof dish, press the brussel sprouts, cut side up, into the mixture and sprinkle with extra grated cheese. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and squeeze the juice of half a lemon over dish. 

Wishing all of you beautiful Mumma's out there a wonderful day tomorrow. This recipe was inspired by some strawberry short cakes that my husband and I enjoyed on a holiday to Tasmania and a recipe called Strawberry Oat bars in the Whole Living magazine. Although there's not a lot of 'shortcake' happening in this recipe, they are equally delicious and a whole lot healthier. 

Strawberry topped Date Slice
2 cups of dried dates
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 desiccated or shredded coconut
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 Punnet of strawberries

Place dates in some boiling water to soften for 5 minutes. Put the pumpkin seeds on some foil and grill until lightly golden.  Strain the dates and place in the food processor along with toasted pumpkin seeds, coconut and rolled oats. Blend until chopped well and it is sticking together. Press mixture into a lined, small slice tin. Mash or blend 1/4 of the punnet of strawberries to create a puree. Spread the puree on the slice and top with sliced strawberries. Refrigerate for 10 min before cutting and serving.

Note: Leave the seeds  not toasted if you would prefer a raw dessert. Oats can be replaced with an extra 1/4 cup of coconut for a grain free dessert.

With winter around the corner, freshly made crisp bread, homemade hummus and warm cups of tea are much loved in the cottage on a Saturday afternoon. 

Spelt, Rosemary and Sea salt crackers
2 1/2 cups plain spelt flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon of fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt
1/4 cup of olive oil + extra for brushing
1/2 cup of water

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celcius and line two baking trays with paper. Combine flour, baking powder, rosemary, thyme and sea salt in a bowl. Gently stir through water and olive oil until it comes together. Take out of bowl and knead briefly until smooth. Divide into two and roll each piece into a thin, flat, rustic looking disc shape. Brush with extra olive oil. Place on baking tray and put in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden and crispy. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool. Serve with cheese, dips or meats.

Friday nights are a wonderful, relaxing night for us and a time to celebrate surviving another working week. We often create a healthy takeaway style food that is tasty and can be enjoyed as a family. This cauliflower pizza is an ever evolving recipe that has slowly changed and will probably continue to change in years to come but this is how it stands at present.

Cauliflower Pizza Base
500g cauliflower (approx 1/2 a large head)
50g water
1 tablespoon of fresh italian style herbs
1 clove of garlic smashed or chopped
1 cup of cheese grated
1 tablespoon of chia seeds
3 tablespoons of water
Clean Tea towel

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celcius. Place the chia seeds in the 3 tablespoons of water to soak. Place cauliflower in the food processor or thermomix and chop finely. Heat a frypan and add the chopped cauliflower and 50g of water. Stir over heat to gently steam the cauliflower. (If you have a thermomix cook on varoma for 3min) Pour cooked cauliflower into the clean tea towel and squeeze excess moisture out. Place strained cauliflower into a bowl and stir through herbs, garlic, cheese and soaked chia seeds. Spread onto a lined baking tray and cook in the oven for approx 40 minutes of until dry, golden and crispy.

Pizza Toppings
Pumpkin
Combine 1 avocado, 1 tablespoon of natural yoghurt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Spread on base and top with roasted avocado and cheese.

Zucchini
Combine 1 avocado, 1 tablespoon of natural yoghurt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Spread on base and top with thinly shaved zucchini and feta.

Raw Date Truffles
1cup of dates (medjool or packet dates that have been soaked in hot water for 10min and strained)
3/4 cup pumpkin seeds (toasted optional)
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 tablespoons chia seeds (plus 1/4 cup extra for rolling)
1/2 cup coconut
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1/2 vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor and mix until combined. Roll into balls and roll in extra hemp and chia seeds. Place in the fridge for 20 min before serving.

Note: If you have trouble getting the hemp seeds, replace with almonds or extra pumpkin seeds.

Mung Dahl
1 cup mung beans soaked overnight
1 litre vegetable stock
2 tablespoons of fresh coriander (stems and leaves)
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon tumeric

1/2 teaspoon curry powder (preferably Indian style or homemade)
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1 small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic grated or pressed
1 sweet potato, cut into small dice 
1 carrot3 large leaves of silverbeet chopped
1/2 broccoli, chopped 
1 zucchini, chopped1 large carrot, diced or grated

Rinse the soaked mung beans and put aside. Heat a heavy based saucepan or crockpot over low and heat and add the cumin, fennel and tumeric. Stir for 1min. Add the vegetable stock, mung beans, 1 tablespoon of the coriander, onion, garlic,ginger, sweet potato and carrots. Cover and cook on low for 40min, checking  regularly (more water may need to be added if it looks like it's drying out) Stir through the silverbeet, broccoli and zucchini. Turn off heat,cover and leave to sit for 10-15min or until the greens are just soft. Serve on a bed of rice or caulirice and top with the leftover coriander.

Note: If you forget to soak the mung beans overnight, just boil them for a couple of minutes and leave to soak for 30min-1hr and rinse well before use.

Apple and Cinnamon Vegan Cookies
1 grated apple
1 pureed banana
1 pureed pear
2 cups of rolled oats
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 180 Degrees Celsius or prepare dehydrator. Mix ingredients together, spoon onto tray and flatten and pop in the oven until golden brown or in the dehydrator for approx 5hrs.