Treats – Breakfast by the sea

Orange & Hazelnut Biscotti

Heather — Wed, 09 Dec 2020 11:37:49 +0000

Orange & Hazelnut Biscotti

We love biscotti at our house and tend to buy a big bag of them every so often to go with a coffee. I never actually realised how easy they are to make until I had go myself this week. They have very few ingredients to make the basic dough (just flour, eggs, sugar & baking powder) and from here you can add your own extras to your own taste, such as nuts, spices, or even chocolate.

I followed Paul Hollywood’s recipe for Orange & Hazelnut biscotti, but to be honest most of the recipes I’ve seen are pretty similar with just variations of flavourings. Chocolate dipping sauce is next on my list…

You can find a link to the recipe I used here.

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Tortilla Wrap Pizzas

Heather — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 08:39:37 +0000

Tortilla wrap pizzas

These pizzas make a great quick lunch and you can customise the toppings to your liking. Using wraps not only makes a much lighter meal but also means they cook in just 20mins. They are surprisingly filling too!

Ingredients
1 wrap (wholemeal or plain depending on your preference)
2 tbsp of passata (use one with added basil if you can find it) or two tablespoons of tinned tomatoes
Handful of pre-grated mozzarella cheese
Sprinkle of dried oregano

Topping ideas
A few slices of pepperoni
Drained tuna
Mushrooms
Chopped pepper
Sweetcorn
Ham
Olives

Method
Preheat oven to 200c
Spread 2 tbsps of tomato passata on each wrap and spread evenly to the edges using the back of a spoon.
Add your chosen toppings evenly around the pizza
Top with a generous handful of cheese
Cook in the middle of your oven for about 15mins (or until the toppings are browned to your liking)

Cooking Tip
Because wraps are a light base you need to make sure you don’t over-top them or the middle won’t cook properly and will be soggy.

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Raspberry Chia jam with yogurt & honey nut oats

Heather — Sat, 25 Apr 2015 11:00:02 +0000

Raspberry Chia jam with yogurt & honey nut oats

Everyone seems to be talking about Chia seeds at the moment so I thought it was time to see what all the fuss was about. As a rule I try to restrict puds to weekends and then treat myself to whatever I fancy but it’s no bad thing to look for heathier alternatives to processed sugars. Although this recipe is made with natural ingredients it’s still incredibly sweet and perfect for an occasional treat.

Ingredients
Raspberry chia jam (see bottom of page for recipe)
100g oats
50g mixed seeds
50g almonds ruffly chopped
50g hazelnuts ruffly chopped
3 tablespoons of coconut oil
4 tablespoons of honey (runny or set)
Pinch of sea salt
Natural yogurt

Method
Warm the honey and cocount oil in a saucepan and when melted add the oats, seeds, nuts, salt and mix until throughly combined.
Place in a baking dish, press down til flat and bake for around 20 minutes at 200oc/Gas 6 or until golden brown all over. Leave to cool then break up with a wooden spoon

Raspberry Chia Jam Recipe

Having never used Chia seeds before I adapted a Chia jam recipe from the amazing My New Roots cookbook.

Ingredients
250g raspberries
1-2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out and reserved
Pinch of fine sea salt
3 tablespoons chia seeds

Method
Put the berries in a blender, add the maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla bean and sea salt. Process until smooth. Slowly add the chia seeds and process until combine.
Transfer jam to a container. Seal and refrigerate for at 15-20 minutes, or until chia seeds have thickened puree to the consistency of jam. Jam will last for up to one week if kept sealed the fridge.

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Date and walnut bites

Heather — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 11:59:38 +0000

I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather recently so I’ve turned my attention to getting my health in order, filling up on lots of wholesome, natural food and taking lots of nice long walks on the Downs.

I do have quite a sweet tooth and I’ve been reading up on healthier alternatives to the usual tempting array of delicious treats I usually find hard to resist.

This recipe is incredibly easy. Dates pack a huge sugary punch and are fantastic to cook with. The addition of walnuts balances the sweetness of the dates and adds a lovely texture to the bites and their natural oil helps bind the recipe together without the addition of any other liquid.

You will need

250g pitted Medjool dates

250g raw, unsalted walnuts

2 tablespoons of raw cacao powder

Unsweetened desiccated coconut, to coat

Makes around 20 bites

1.) Put the dates, walnuts and cacao powder into a food processor and blitz on a high speed until the mixture sticks together.

2.) Sprinkle the coconut evenly on a large plate

2.) Shape small amounts of the mixture into small balls and then roll in the coconut until evenly covered

3.) Pop the bites in a tupperware container in the freezer until you’re ready to eat them.

All photography © Heather Elizabeth Wilkinson 2014

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A passionate pudding

Heather — Mon, 10 Feb 2014 12:24:43 +0000

Sometimes the simplest desserts are the tastiest, and if you’re not very confident in the kitchen but want to make a quick sweet treat to serve to your Valentine, you can’t go far wrong with this cheats recipe using coconut yogurt.

I’ve used Rachel’s coconut yogurt as it’s really rich and creamy (although vanilla also works really well). Simply churn the yogurt in an icecream machine for 40 mins, then pop it the freezer for a couple of hours, or until ready to serve. Top with fresh passion fruit and let your lucky love marvel at your creation.

If you don’t have an icecream machine then it’s a bit more work but don’t be put off. Simply put your yogurt in a tupperware container and pop in the freezer. Check it after 45 mins and give it a good whisk and return to the freezer. You’ll need to check and whisk it every 30 mins until it becomes resistant to whisking. Leave for 2-3 hours until set in the middle.

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Rocky Road Slices

Heather — Thu, 04 Jul 2013 20:26:00 +0000

Ahh, rocky road slices: minimal cooking, maximum chocolate.

If full-on baking isn’t your thing but you fancy getting creative in the kitchen, you can’t go too wrong with rocky road

Melting chocolate, butter and golden syrup on the hob is as complicated as this recipe gets, and yet the finished product implies that you’ve gone to a lot more effort (I won’t tell if you won’t!).

However, I didn’t think there was such a thing as too much chocolate until I tried this recipe from the BBC Food website.

The ingredient list calls for good quality dark chocolate, but in my opinion – and I’m quite the chocoholic – it makes the slices far too rich and I was reaching for a glass of water after a couple of bites. I’d advise opting for a good quality milk chocolate instead.

You can easily pimp up the recipe a bit if you’re feeling creative – I added dried cherries to mine, but nuts or raisons also work a treat.

All photography © Heather Elizabeth Wilkinson 2013

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Easy berry frozen yogurt

Heather — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 21:45:58 +0000

Simple frozen yogurt, using some lovely seasonal berries. Click ‘more’ for the recipe.

I used an ice cream machine for this one, 1 punnet of seasonal berries (around 350g), washed and whizzed to a pulp in a blender (put a small amount aside to use as a topping). Add 200ml of natural yogurt, 100ml of skimmed milk and 50g of caster sugar. Add to an icecream machine and churn for around 30/40 mins. Serve with whole seasonal berries of your choice or some of the blitzed fruit puree.

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Cinnamon rock cakes

Heather — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 10:30:00 +0000

This post was inspired by a recent trip to Rye in East Sussex. The weather that day was absolutely bitter – they type of cold that really gets into your bones, so a hot mug of tea and a decent piece of cake are pretty much essential. I stopped in a lovely little cafe but I was in such a rush to get the train back that I didn’t pay much attention to the name – whoops!

Anyway, when I got home I had a urge to bake an enormous batch of rock cakes, loaded with cinnamon and stuffed full of juicy sultanas. Just the thing to accompany a bit of weekend crafting.

I followed this recipe by the fabulous Dan Lepard, with my own addition of three teaspoons of cinnamon and 175g of sultanas. I didn’t go for the chocolate drizzle – just didn’t seem right on a rock cake!

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Chocolate, rum and hazelnut brownies

Heather — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 19:14:00 +0000

For me, the perfect chocolate brownie should be rich (but not sickly), dense (but not too heavy) and, without doubt, moist in the middle.

I’ve tried a fair few recipes over the years (all in the name of research!) and my favourite by far is this one by Nigel Slater – with my own little seasonal twist.

The flavours of chocolate and hazelnut compliment each other perfectly. However, adding a dash of rum to the mix brings a certain element of sophistication – something to warm your cockles on a cold winter’s day.

In addition to Nigel’s recipe, I added 4 tablespoons of good quality dark rum and approx. 100g of roughly chopped hazelnuts, added at the same time as the flour and cocoa.

And if you don’t manage to eat all your brownies and they should start to go dry (never a problem in my house), simply wrap them in tinfoil and pop them in a moderately pre-heated hot oven for about 15mins – they will magically come back to life!

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Blackberry ice-cream

Heather — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 09:10:00 +0000

Are we allowed to admit that summer is officially over now? Yes? Ok, phew, so I hope you won’t mind if a share a suitably autumnal post with you.

I haven’t been that lucky with blackberries this year. Normally I manage to collect enough for stock up the freezer for months. However, I think foraging seems to be much more popular of late and all my usual hedgerow spots had been relieved of most of their fruit by the time I arrived with my Tupperware pot.

The great thing about blackberries is that they freeze really well and don’t turn into mush like most other berries do. So you can pot up a load to save up for when the weather gets colder. Alternatively you could take your freezing antics to a new level by turning your blackberries into ice-cream!

This recipe is pretty simple but it works a treat as an accompaniment to apple pie and crumble – such a pretty colour too.

You will need

350g blackberries (washed)
200ml double cream
100ml semi skimmed milk
50g caster sugar

1.)Put your blackberries into a blender, blitz until smooth, and then pass the mixture through a sieve to extract all the pips.
2.)Mix your milk, cream and sugar together and then add the blackberry mixture.
3.)Add the mixture into an ice-cream machine and churn for around 30/40 mins.
4.)You can add your finished ice-cream mixture a plastic container and freeze until you’re ready to eat it.

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