Cheesecake with Berry Agar Noodles

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A fun Christmas dessert! I originally wanted to make the cakes into little parcels but ran into difficulty when trying to tie the fruit strings/noodles around the parcel. The string kept breaking:161214-cheesecake-with-berry-noodles-3572

I have since succeeded somewhat better (will post in a later recipe) but it’s quite tricky to get the balance right between holding together in one long string and being firm to being bendable enough… Good luck if you attempt the parcels, if not, then there are so many other options (like the one I’m presenting here). For more help in how to create the noodles, please click here.

For this dessert you will create:
Ginger crumbs
Cheesecake
Lingonberry (or cranberry) noodles

Base – Ginger Crumbs:
75 g butter, melted
1,5 tsp ground ginger
1,5 tsp ground cinnamon
0,5 tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground cardamom
75 ml sugar
75 ml maple syrup
400 ml gluten free flour (rice flour)
Dash of salt
¼ tsp baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)

1. Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl then add the liquids.
2. Press into the bottom of a springform pan
3. Bake 12-15 min in a 160 C oven
4. Let cool a bit

Cheesecake:
Filling:
350 g Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 tsp vanilla (½ scraped out vanilla bean)
2 eggs
Dash of salt

1. Mix well
2. Pour into the cooled crust
3. Bake 35 min, 160 C oven – you only want it to set, not brown
4. Cool

Topping:
400 ml sour crème
1 tbsp sugar
¼ vanilla bean, scraped out seeds

1. Mix sour crème, sugar, and vanilla bean (or vanilla extract, if you prefer)
2. Pour on top of the cooled filling
3. Bake 10 minutes

Lingonberry (or cranberry) noodles:
300 ml lingonberry/cranberry juice
(plus some berries for decoration)
5 g agar powder (2,5 tsp)
Ice and water 161214-fruit-spaghetti-tools-3652

1. Prepare a large bowl of ice cold water where you will chill the noodles.
2. Mix the juice and agar and bring to boil for 3 minutes while stirring.
3. Cool one minute, then fill syringe and then the tube.
4. When the tube is full, remove from syringe and chill in ice water for a few minutes.
5. Empty the tube by inserting empty syringe and slowly and carefully pushing the air through.

For more info on how to create the noodles please click here.

 

Tips for making agar spaghetti noodles

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Tips for making the noodles:

161214-making-fruit-spaghetti-3654Make the syrup according to the recipe. Add some syrup into the syringe, fit the tube (long tubes are the best) on the syringe and push to fill the tube.

 

 

Place the filled tube in ice cold water a few minutes to chill and set.161214-making-fruit-spaghetti-3663

Take an empty syringe, fill with air, attach the chilled tube and slowly push the noodle out of the tube.

This step takes a bit of practice… If the gel is too soft it won’t hold its shape and you need to reheat the liquid with a bit more agar. If it is too hard when it comes out, then you must dilute the solution with some more juice. Thanks to the agar, the solution may be reheated many times over.161214-making-fruit-spaghetti-3667

To empty the tube is the difficult part. It will be quite hard to get the gel to exit the tube at first, but then, with all the pressure, it may come out too quickly and thus break. If you have a lot of problems exiting the noodle from the tube, you can prepare your tube (before inserting any fruit/berry mix) by putting a few drops of oil in your syringe, insert syringe into the tube and let the oil flow through. Fill the syringe with air and push through the tube in order to remove excess oil.

Another possibility to improve texture is to refrigerate the spaghetti overnight, then reheat by immersing them in warm water. This will add some stability and elasticity to the noodles.

There are many fun dessert ideas with these noodles, why not decorate a yummy cake? Or just make a berry salad with a nice marinade and noodles?

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Coco Fruit Salad

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A festive dessert! Maybe not a fruit salad in a traditional sense but a mix of persimmon, mango, coconut and kiwi. Best served cold in a small glass. If you can’t get persimmon, why not try another fruit, nectarine maybe? Great for breakfast, snack and desserts! Delicious and healthy! Slightly less healthy, but probably really, really good, would be to add one tablespoon of Malibu liqueur in the coconut/yoghurt mix…

Makes 4-6 small servings.

Ingredients

1 mango
Zest of a lime
(chili flakes – optional)

2 kiwis

4 tbsp coconut cream
8 tbsp pureed persimmon (about 1 fruit)
Dash of salt

75 ml coconut cream
75 ml Greek yoghurt
dash of salt
1 tsp agave syrup

Chopped pistachios

1. Cut the mango into pieces and puree in a blender (or handheld mixer). Add the lime zest and, if you want to experiment with a spicier version, add some chili flakes. From a small spoon, drop piles on a sheet of baking parchment and, using the back of the spoon, flatten into thin rounds. Dry in a food dehydrator on 45-50C or in an oven for 10-12 hours.
2. Puree the kiwis and pipe them onto a sheet of baking parchment and dry them as well.
3. Cut the persimmon into chunks, run in a small blender (or a hand held mixer), combine with the coconut cream and salt and pour into serving glasses.
4. Combine the coconut cream, Greek yoghurt, salt and agave. Place in a plastic bag and pipe the mixture on top of the persimmon cream.
5. Place in the fridge to chill.
6. Serve with chopped pistachios and some of the dried fruit pieces on top.

Tricolore Ice Cream with Frozen Choco Air

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This dessert is more on presentation than actually cooking. On the web, I found some beautiful photos of this ice cream which formed the inspiration to this dish.
The ice cream is wonderful on its own but the addition of the frozen chocolate air adds a lot to the presentation.
Normally, foams/airs should be strong in flavour as it has a lot of air in them (with no flavour). But for the frozen air, don’t use any stronger chocolate than 70%.

Ingredients:
2 kinds of ice-cream (or sorbets), slightly thawed. As per the original recipe, I used mango and vanilla flavours.

The berry sauce:
250 g blackberries (frozen berries work well too).
75 ml concentrated black current juice
3 tbsp gin

Frozen Choco Air:
100 g dark chocolate, chopped
250 ml water
½ tsp soy lecithin

1. Process the ingredients for the berry sauce in a blender until smooth. For a completely smooth sauce, pour the sauce through a strainer/cheese cloth. Reserve some of the sauce for decoration.
2. Line a shallow casserole dish with baking parchment. Alternate spoonfuls of the two ice creams at the bottom of the dish, add the berry sauce in the gaps between the spoonfuls. Make two layers. You want to avoid any air bubbles. Place in freezer for 2-3 hours.
3. Bring the water for the Frozen Choco Air to a boil. Add the chopped chocolate. Remove from heat and stir until melted. Cool.
4. In a shallow dish, add the soy lecithin to the chocolate mixture and using an immersion blender, incorporate as much air as possible into the foam. The best way of doing this is to tilt the dish slightly and keep half of the blender outside the mixture while blending. There will be splatter so keep the bowl partially covered with cling film.
5. After 4-5 minutes you should have some foam. Spoon the foam (no liquid, just foam) onto a tray covered with baking parchment. Form little piles. Continue blending to make some more foam and then spoon that foam as well onto the tray.
6. When done, place in freezer for 1-2 hours.
7. Serving: Cut the ice cream into squares. Using a spatula, take some spoon and place on top of ice cream. Do not touch the foam with your hands as it will instantly melt. Placing it on top of the frozen ice cream allows the foam to stay in shape for a longer time. Decorate with the reserved sauce.
8. Serve immediately. If you decide to omit the foam, please find below some alternative plating ideas.

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Spiced Dried Fruit

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Chili and lime, can’t do without them. Dried fruit is a wonderful, healthy snack. The intense flavor that develops while drying is delicious. Sometimes, though, I find that the sweetness of the fruit gets a bit overpowering but some added spices balances this out nicely.

If you have a food dehydrator, use it! If not, use your oven at its lowest setting, about 45 C.

Chili flakes
Salt
Lime zest

Banana
Apple
Kiwis

1. Slice the banana thinly and sprinkle the slices with lime zest and salt. Place them on the drying rack. Do not let any two pieces touch.
2. Rub the kiwis with a towel to remove some of the hair. Then slice the kiwis thinly and place on the drying rack.
3. Slice the apple. Sprinkle with chili flakes and place on rack.
4. Dry for 10-12 hours at 45 C.

Amazing Cake Base

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This cake base is made in a few minutes only. I like to chill the base in the fridge for an hour or so before using, but this is not necessary. Any topping goes, here I have made one with cream cheese and vanilla. Don’t forget to strain the sauce as it comes out much nicer without the seeds.
I have created the base to be able to serve it dairy free, low fodmap, vegan and raw as well as gluten free of course. The rest depends on what sauce and topping you choose. For a more interesting look, I would sprinkle some freeze dried strawberry powder on top, but, at the time of the photo shoot, I didn’t have access to any.

Serves 4

The base:
100 ml desiccated (dried and grated) coconut
2 tbsp cacao nibs
1 tbsp almond butter
1,5 tbsp melted cacao butter
1 tbsp rice syrup
50 ml fresh raspberries
Dash of salt

Topping:
2 tbsp crème fraiche,
100 g Philadelphia cream cheese
½ tsp vanilla extract

Sauce:
250 g frozen raspberries cooked with
25 ml water
1 tbsp icing/powdered sugar
Some extra raspberries for decoration

1. Mix the base ingredients with a fork. Press into 4 ring moulds. Add some topping and refrigerate.
2. Combine the ingredients for the topping. Pipe onto the cake base. Refrigerate.
3. Simmer the raspberries with the sugar and water over low heat. Add more water if needed. When slightly thickened, strain and cool.

Strawberry Ice Cream – Dairy Free

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If you can find fresh coconuts (can be bought on-line), this is a very easy ice cream to make. Only takes a bit of planning (the soaking takes a lot of time). To make it even creamier, or if you don’t like almonds, you may substitute the almonds for cashews. With almonds though, it is not just dairy and gluten free but also low fodmap (with a limit of a 12 almonds serving, you can safely eat 1/5th of this ice cream).

100 ml soaked almonds (about 55 almonds)
100 ml young coconut meat (should be enough in one small coconut)
Pinch of salt
25 ml maple syrup
25 ml rice syrup
50 ml almond milk
¼ tsp vanilla extract
400 ml fresh strawberries, cut up
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted

1. Soak the almonds 24 hours, after half the time, change the water.
2. Crack the young coconut open with a meat cleaver and scrape the meat out with a spoon.
3. Combine all ingredients (except for the oil) in a blender. Process until smooth.
4. Slowly incorporate the oil while processing. Do not overblend.
5. Pour into ice cream machine and make according to the manufacturer’s instruction – OR – pour into plastic container and place in freezer. Remove and stir every hour until frozen.
With this dish I like to serve some dehydrated strawberry slices. They are wonderful, intensified in flavour and naturally sweet. If you own a dehydrator, I can definitely recommend dehydrating thinly sliced strawberries.
Remove from freezer 15 minutes before serving.

Cinnamon Ice Cream with Coffee Reduction

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Dairy and gluten free – how about this as a substitute for your cup of coffee and cinnamon roll? The ice cream will take a bit of time to make but the sauce is quick and easy and divine! A large scoop of this ice cream is a low fodmap dish (the full recipe needs about 55 almonds and as 12 is the limit you may eat 1/5th of this batch). The almonds needs soaking 24 hours so you need the start this ice cream a day ahead. The coconut needs to be young with soft meat inside.

Ice Cream:
100 ml almonds (about 55 whole almonds), blanched
100 ml young coconut meat (about one small coconut)
Pinch of salt
1,5 tbsp ground cinnamon
50 ml almond milk
50 ml rice syrup
2 tbsp melted coconut oil

Coffee Reduction:
1 dl espresso coffee
2 tbsp maple syrup
A few drops of vanilla extract
A pinch of salt

1. Soak the almonds in some water for 12 hours, change the water and soak for another 12 hours.
2. Using a meat cleaver, crack open the coconut and scoop out the meat.
3. Place all ingredients (except for the oil) in a blender and process until smooth.
4. While still processing, slowly add the oil. Do not over process as then the mix may separate.
5. Pour into your ice cream maker and freeze. If you don’t have an ice cream maker you can pour the mix into a plastic container and place in freezer. Take the container out of the freezer every hour and stir.
6. Combine the ingredients for the coffee reduction.
7. Over low to medium heat, let simmer in small sauce pan until reduced to desired thickness. Cool. Do not reduce it too much as it will thicken some more while cooling.

Heavenly Hazelnut Pralines

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An amazing treat that I have adapted to become low fodmap as well as gluten and dairy free. Takes a bit of time to make but is absolutely worth the effort!!! Make a larger batch and store them in the refrigerator (although unsure how long they last…they tend to get quickly eaten no matter how many you make).
For this recipe, you need to temper chocolate (please see further down this page). If you’ve done this before, just follow the recipe. If you have never tempered chocolate before, you may want to read up on all the “dos and don’ts” in this exact procedure – there are lots of great websites discussing this.

Hazelnut filling

250 ml hazelnuts (which comes to about 150 nuts, so if you follow a strict low fodmap diet you will need to calculate how many balls you can eat as you should eat a maximum of 15 hazelnuts). (My melon baller makes 40 small balls, which means 3.75 hazelnuts in each).
75 ml pure maple syrup
2 tbsp rice syrup
150 ml hazelnut milk (almond milk will also work but give a different flavour)
75 ml cacao butter, (as measured when melted)
1 tsp vanilla extract
A pinch of salt (brings the flavour out)

1. Process hazelnuts in a blender until a smooth butter is formed (if you use ready made hazelnut butter you only need about 170 ml).
2. Add all other remaining ingredients except the butter. Blend.
3. Add the melted butter and mix until well combined. Do not overbeat! You can also use a spatula towards the end if it is not thoroughly mixed.
4. Pour the mix into a container and place in the freezer until firm.
5. Scoop out with melon baller and make small balls. Again, place in freezer until ready to be coated with the chocolate.

The chocolate

The chocolate needs to be tempered; heated and cooled to exact temperatures. The tempering allows for a smooth and shiny dipping chocolate that “snaps” when you bite into it. Don’t forget to use completely dry utensils.

250 ml cacao powder
375 ml cacao butter, finely chopped + 1 chunk to be used later (size of a thumb)
125 ml maple syrup
1,5 tsp vanilla extract
A pinch of salt
You also need a candy thermometer.

1. Melt the powder and butter (but save the chunk for the next step) in a bain marie (a bowl over water, simmering at a low temperature). Whisk the melting chocolate until it has reached 46C. Remove immediately!!
2. Add the syrup, vanilla extract and salt plus the large chunk of cacao butter, continue to whisk until the temperature has cooled to 29C. The chunk of cocoa butter is to assist you in the cooling process. When at 29C just remove what may remain of the chunk.
3. Put the bowl back on top of the saucepan and heat again. When at 31C remove immediately. The chocolate is now in temper and will produce a wonderful coating for your hazelnut balls.

Dipping

Shredded coconut
Chopped nuts
Cacao nibs

1. Using a toothpick, dip your hazelnut balls into the chocolate mixture, carefully coating all sides. Then dip into a bowl with the topping of you choice. Work quickly so the chocolate doesn’t cool down too much.
2. Store in the refrigerator.

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Lollipop Crunch Apples

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A small ball of apple on a stick, dipped in creamy caramel and rolled in a seed or a nut crunch. Heavenly! The apple may also be substituted for a piece of banana – maybe even frozen?

1-2 apples, make little balls using a “melon baller”

Caramel:
10 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in water for 30 minutes
50 ml maple syrup
75 ml coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp water (and possibly some more later on)
(+1 tbsp mesquite powder, optional – Provides a slight molasses-like flavour.)

1. Process all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Add some more water to make the right consistency for dipping to apples.
2. Set aside.

Crunch:
75 ml pumpkin seeds (or any other seed or nut you like)
2 tbsp coconut sugar (or the equivalent of raw sugar)
Seeds from ½ vanilla pod
Salt

1. Scrape out the vanilla seeds from the pod.
2. Briefly blitz all the ingredients in a blender until forming a coarse (not fine) mix.
3. Put into small bowl.

Assembly:
1. Using a small skewer, dip the apples (or banana pieces) into the caramel batter followed by rolling them into the seed crunch.
2. Place in the refrigerator until serving. (or, if using bananas, maybe in the freezer until serving).

Avocado Choco Cake

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Dates, avocado, banana, coconut and chocolate – this is a wonderful, moist cake! The sweetness comes from the dates and the banana (and the optional honey, of course), almond flour and grated coconut replaces flour and the fat comes from the avocado and the banana. Can’t say it is a totally healthy cake but it is no sugar and no butter/oil anyway (and dairy and gluten free).

Most importantly though, I love this cake because of its wonderful taste!

200 ml almond flour
100 ml desiccated coconut plus 2 tablespoons extra (for the base of the tin)
200 ml cocoa powder
1,5 tsp baking powder
A pinch of salt
(1 tbsp honey – optional)
1 medium sized avocado
3 eggs
10 dried dates
1 ripe banana, medium sized

Oven at 200 C

1. Mix all dry ingredients
2. Whisk the eggs fluffy
3. Add the avocado to the eggs. Mix together.
4. While still in its peel, squeeze banana soft and then add to the avocado mixture.
5. Add the honey (if using)
6. Mix the dates with a blender. Add a bit of avocado mix to the dates in order to get them to blend better. Combine with the remaining avocado mix and then add the cocoa mix.
7. Lightly grease a cake tin with oil. Sprinkle some shredded coconut on the bottom. Spread the mix evenly. Bake in oven 12-14 min, cool and then chill in fridge.
Serve with cream* and mashed raspberries

* either soy based yoghurt or ½ whipped cream and ½ Greek yoghurt.

Coco Choco Panna Cotta

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This is the dairy free, low fodmap, version of the Espresso Panna Cotta I recently posted.

Serves 6-8 (depending on cup size)

300 ml cream of coconut
2 gelatin leaf
120 g chocolate, gluten and dairy free (I like the Kinnerton brand)

  1. Soften the gelatin in a bit of water
  2. Bring the cream of coconut to a boil, remove from heat
  3. Take out the gelatin and add to the coconut, stir until dissolved
  4. Pour the mixture over the chopped chocolate.
  5. Pour into small coffee cups.
  6. Chill 3-4 hours

It is also possible to make this with almond milk:

300 ml almond milk
3 gelatin leaves
160 g dark chocolate, dairy and gluten free

To be made the same way as the Coco Choco Panna Cotta.

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Berries with Black and White Sauce

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  1. I like to add a liquorice flavour to the dark chocolate sauce. For the white sauce, I use some ginger. Any fruits/berries that you like can be added to this dessert.

    Serves 4-6 (depending on how much sauce you pour on the plates.)

    100 ml single cream
    90 g dark chocolate
    Salt from a salt mill
    4-5 cm piece of liquorice root (found in health food stores)

    90 g white chocolate
    50 ml single cream
    ½ tsp ground ginger

    Berries

  1. Melt the chocolate in a “bain marie” (a bowl sitting over a saupan with boiling water. Don’t let any water into the bowl as this will ruin the texture of the chocolate.
  2. In a small saucepan, heat the cream with the liquorice root. Simmer over very low heat 4-5 minutes.
  3. Discard the liquorice root. While stirring, pour enough of the cream into the melted chocolate to create a good texture for piping and stir well. Add some salt.
  4. Spoon into something you will use for piping the chocolate on a plate. I usually use a small plastic bottle with a screw on pipe on top. A plastic bag with a small nozzle will also work.
  5. Melt the white chocolate with the cream in a bain marie.
  6. Add the ginger. Stir well.
  7. Spoon into small cup.
  8. Let the 2 chocolate mixtures cool.
  9. When cool, pipe the dark chocolate onto a plate creating at least 1 circle. Fill the circle by spooning the white mix into the empty circle.
  10. Place some berries on the plate and serve.

Espresso Panna Cotta

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Quick and easy to make. Just needs a bit of time (3-4 hours) in the fridge.
To be served as an after dinner coffee.

Serves 6

250 ml double cream
2-3 tbsp dried espresso coffee
150 g chocolate (dark or milk), chopped
1 gelatin leaf or ½ tsp granulated gelatin
To decorate: Chocolate covered coffee beans

  1. Place the gelatin leaves in a bit of water to soften.
  2. Bring the cream to a boil, remove from heat, add the coffee and the gelatin, stir until melted. Pour over the chocolate pieces and mix well.
  3. Pour into serving 6 small espresso cups and refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours.
  4. Decorate with the coffee beans.