Today I’m sharing some delicious home-made vegan truffles that are really easy and quick to prepare. With a fudgy centre speckled with shiny red cranberries and a dark chocolate coating, these truffles are the perfect treat for the festive season. They also happen to be packed full of nutrient-rich ‘feel-good’ ingredients, making them one festive treat that you definitely won’t regret indulging in!
Today I’m delighted to be sharing the recipe for one of my favourite childhood treats – Old Fashioned English Bread Pudding. Its name certainly doesn’t do it justice though, as it tastes nothing like bread nor would I describe it as a pudding! Instead, it is more like a sweet, dense fruit cake. It is delicious served with a hot cuppa, and also makes a fantastic energy-boosting snack to stash in your backpacks for hikes and bike rides. I think this year, all of us have been spending a lot more time outdoors and we definitely need some tasty snacks to keep us fuelled and put a spring in our step. This bread pudding definitely fits that bill!
Happy Easter everyone! Today, I’m excited to be sharing with you the recipe for Pret’s world famous Dark Chocolate and Almond Butter Cookie! 🍪 This has to be one of the best cafe cookies available, and one of my personal favourites! Fresh from the oven, this decadent chocolate cookie is crunchy on the outer edge, gooey in the middle with melting chunks of dark chocolate and crunchy almond pieces throughout. It’s so good!
If you’re looking for a special occasion dessert that is super easy to make but has the ‘wow’ factor, then today’s recipe is for you! It’s a rich chocolate torte, consisting of a silky smooth ganache set on top of a biscuit base. There is no baking involved and it only takes around 20 minutes to prepare. The hardest part is waiting for it to set before you can dive in!
Inspired by the yummy orange and almond cake that I had at the Holburne Museum Garden Cafe in Bath last week, I thought I’d attempt to bake an orange and almond cake myself.
And guess what? …
It wasn’t a flop!
Look, it’s even cake shape (unlike last week’s brownie gloop which I had to turn into a chocolate ‘pudding’).
This cake is beautifully moist and has the most delicious almond flavour with a hint of orange.
AND, it’s got lots of lovely goodness in it, including B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E and a few minerals to boot. The cake’s also low GI, so it gifts us slow release energy rather than refined sugar energy spikes.
AND it’s easy to make. Even for me! (And if I can bake it, you definitely will be able to).
One of my study group friends said it’s the best cake I’ve ever made. (To be fair, I haven’t set the bar very high with my attempts at baking, but it’s wonderful to hear that I’ve actually made something that’s more than edible).
M and Lil’ L absolutely loved it. In fact, Lil’ L said it was one of the best cakes in the world! For this reason alone, I think this cake deserves its own blog post. So here it is.
Recipe Cards
Orange & Almond Cake (Dairy-free | Vegan)
Unlike regular cakes which are full of ’empty’ calories, this cake is packed full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, protein and fibre. It also provides slow release energy thanks to the wholegrain flour and almonds. I would class this cake as a healthier ‘eat any time’ kind of cake, though some of my readers have served it at parties and told me that it went down a treat. It can easily be prepared in advance. In fact, we find it tastes even better a day or two after baking.
140g/ 1 cup fine wholemeal (whole wheat pastry) flour or chapatti flour
140g/ 1 cup plain (all purpose) flour
1½tspbaking powder
½tspbicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
½tspsalt
100g/ 1 cup ground almonds (almond meal)
100ml/ ½ cup organic rapeseed, canola oil or other neutral-flavoured oil
150ml/ ½ cup + 2 TBSP soya or almond milk
200ml/ ⅔ cup maple syrup
½TBSPzest from an unwaxed / organic orange
60ml/ ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1tsporange extract
½tspalmond extract
Decorating suggestions:
Orange Cashew Cream Frosting (see recipe below) or apricot jam
3TBSPtoasted flaked almondscrushed
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180C (160 fan) / 350F. Grease the sides of a 20cm / 8 inch loose-bottomed cake tin with oil and line the bottom with non-stick baking paper.
Sift the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl. Tip any remaining wheat germ into the bowl. Add the ground almonds and stir through to combine.
In a separate bowl, use a fork to whisk together the oil, milk, syrup, orange zest, orange juice, orange extract and almond extract until fully combined.
Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients and stir to combine (but do not over mix). Pour the batter into the prepared tin.
Bake for 45 minutes, or until the cake is browned and feels springy when lightly pressed. Leave the cake in its tin until completely cooled (it will firm up as it cools).
Decorate with frosting or apricot jam and sprinkle toasted flaked almonds on top. Lightly press down on the almonds so that they stick. Chill in the refrigerator before serving.
Stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, this cake will keep for up to 5 days. It also freezes well.
In contrast to traditional frosting, this one is filled with nutrients including antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. It tastes delicious too! The cashews and coconut oil make it smooth and creamy, while the orange adds a zesty, fresh flavour. The quantities in the recipe below yield about ¾ cup frosting, which is sufficient to frost the top of a 20cm / 8 inch cake.
To soften the cashews, boil them in a pan of water for 15 minutes or soak in freshly boiled water for 30 minutes. Rinse in cold water and thoroughly drain.
Place the cashews in a food processor along with the syrup, zest, juice, orange extract and vanilla extract. Process until the cashews are ground into a creamy mixture. Stop now and then to scrape down the bowl. Add the melted coconut oil and continue blending for a few minutes until the mixture is completely smooth. Taste test for smoothness.
Scoop the frosting into a bowl and chill for one hour, or until firm enough to spread. The frosting will keep for five days in the refrigerator. It is also freezable.
If you make this Orange & Almond Cake, I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I’d love to see them! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.