Carob Chocolate Creation

I always had my Cadbury almond chocolate in my bag during my poly time. I would pop some in my mouth and pass around when we were sleepy in class. Or when we studied for exam, we would buy a few packs of chocolate and tibits to eat while we study. Those were the days..... People will brag about the goodness of chocolate, saying that it will help to de stress. Until one day, I know that it contain caffeine and lots of fats and sugar, I reduce my intake to occasional treats. I only started to learn to read the product ingredient when I am in my 20's. I hardly care when I am in my teens.

Until now I still cannot get over the chocolate thingy... I screw my head into using Carob powder to replace. The taste is not so appealing for my husband, it is quite powdery and dry with carob alone and the taste is REALLY Carob only loh... One night, after feeding my son night feed, something came in my mind. Why not use up the almond powder I had? Anyway my son does not like it and I am trying to finish it up. I wake up in the middle of the night, making the carob chocolate at 3am!!! And it works. I am so excited and start making other creation for the next few days and weeks. Here they are as presented below:

1) Carob Nut Egg

2 tbp carob powder

2 tbp almond powder

(may not be healthy for your version, you may process your own nut powder instead)

agave nectar (estimate to your own sweetness)

a few drops of rice milk/any liquid

coconut oil

macadamia nuts

Mix the dry ingredient up first then stir in agave nectar, you will left with a bit of powder stick to the side, add liquid to mix well. Not too much liquid, add enough to have all the powder stirred into the mixture. It will be very thick and hard to stir. Wet your hand with coconut oil, grab some mixture and add one nut in and roll it into a ball and that's it. Do the same with the rest until all done. Place in frezzer / fridge to set.

2) Chocolate Fonte

Same ingredient as above without the nuts. But you need to add more rice milk to make a more watery consistency. My son took the kiwi which he usually don't take them. Thanks to the dip that cover the sour taste of the kiwi.

3) Use the leftover from nut milk

I make nut milk for my son everyday. After blending almonds with dates and water, I will filter and feed my son with the milk. The leftover will be throw away to the drain, I find it wasteful sometimes. Now I try to collect it in a bowl and at the end of the day, I will make my nutty carob snacks.

3a) Golden Pillow

Dry your leftover as much as possible. Add in 1:1 carob powder and almond powder until it has thick consistency then add in the coarsely chopped brazil nuts/macadamia nuts. Roll them into pillow shape and coat it with sesame seeds. Place in frezzer / fridge to set.

3b) Carob version of Nutella

Just mix 1:1 carob powder and almond powder into the leftover until it has creamy consistency. Place in fridge to set.

3c) Carob chocolaty melt

Just mix 1:1 carob powder and almond powder into the leftover until the mixture cannot take in any more powder. Mold them up and drizzle Agave Nectar+Almond powder sauce on it. Place in frezzer / fridge to set.

Accident Discovery - Vegetarian Otak Burger

I have been a 99% vegetarian for 2 years and now still is with no regrets. My 1% non vegetarian is when I eat vegetables that are cooked with meat. Sometimes we don't have a choice when someone cook for us. I still have craving for the junk food and this gets my head thinking on how to make some vegan ones.

This recipe is an ACCIDENT. I would not have do this dish if my sister Kat had not suggested a walk at Upper Pierre Reservoir. We planned to have a morning walk with our sons and guessing that they may not have any food stall there; I have to prepare some in case they are hungry.

Having Bread or Biscuit alone are not that healthy for me and my dehydrated snacks are out of stock. At least I need something good to go with the bread. Flipping through the pages of Raw Living from Kat Wood, why not try the burgers to goes with the bread??!! The ingredients that I have on hand and easiest to make is Love Burger so I give it a try. I blend all the ingredients and dehydrate for 8 hours, only to dry the outer layer of the burger with internal still soft and nice. For Bread, I used FIVE LOAVES bread, it is a healthier version as compared to others as suggested by Siok Khoon.

The smell of familiar food linger around my nose in the morning. It just taste something like OTAK when I took a bite. It is even better with bread. I just love it alone with BREAD and nothing else! What a discovery! My sister and mother in law tried it and they are convinced too. You can try them too! No dehydrator? No problem. You can place the burger under a low grill for a few minutes on each side, make sure that the food is lightly toasted on both sides without being cooked through. Or you can lightly fry them in coconut oil, just a few minutes on each sides to warm them up and help them stick together. (suggestions by Kat Wood)

Ingredients:

250g soaked Cashews

2 big Red Pepper Bells / 4 small Red Pepper Bells

1 small Cauliflower

1 small Onion (do not store up cutted onion)

2 tsp white miso

Thin Seaweed Cracker

I find this recipe much better than the conventional seaweed snacks that we see on the store shelf, it does not have any oil or salt included. The only ingredient are TOMATO, CUCUMBER and KELP FLAKES. It does not need salt as kelp itself is a bit salty. The tomato gives a Tangy taste. The proportion I usually used is 1 medium tomato and 1 large jap cucumber, blend them up. There after, add in Kelp Flakes, it help to absorb the water a little as it expand.

Kelp are full of mineral and tomato are best to eaten raw as it turns acidic after cooked. And cucumber are very alkaline and cleansing. The ingredients are easily available and they are easy to make.

Recipe from Raw Living, Kate Wood

Curry Fever

Recipe from Raw Living, Kate Wood

Yummy yum, curry curry, I love curry. Just tried out some curry snacks after getting hold of my curry powder from Organic Shop. I soaked the Buckwheat around 3 to 4 hours, drained it then coat it with sesame oil and curry powder, leave them in the dehydrator to dry overnight. It turned out to be light and crispy. I add them to my salad and my salad become more tasty than ever.

Another type of snack is to use sweet potato. Slice the sweet potato as thin as possible, just like potato chip or else it will be woody. Coat it with the same seasoning as mentioned above and dehydrate it. The sweet potato I used is purple in colour but the flesh is orange, if you bake them, it become very soft like pumpkin. It become my favourite chip but not too much, you will have sore throat the next day. :( More juice, please!

For kids, curry is too hot for them. I tried with the Kelp seasoning and olive oil, it turns out great too!

My new Purple MOPPPPP

Hee hee, this will be out of the topic but I would really really love to share with you my new 2 in 1 floor helper, the Purple MOP!!! Maybe some of you have seen people demonstrating in the market or shopping center or have even got one at home. I tell you I hate mopping because the conventional mopper is heavy and I hate to twist and turn the mop head. It will be stuck with hairs and blah blah stuff.

I used to see the seller in the market very often selling these purple mops, I just ignore and did not really bother. Until my husband suggested to buy them (he is doing the vacumming and mopping everyday...) because our old mop head is not good anymore. So I bought 1 for $10. They said that we don't need to sweep the floor. Oh really???!!! I just gave it a try tonight and I just LOVE it after using and felt excited to write it down. I ate biscuit and purposely drop the crump on the floor. My son ate food and dirty the floor, I just let it be. I did no sweeping or vacuum, I just mopped and pushed the dirt to a corner. To wash the mop, I only do some twisting in the bucket of water then pull the column up and twisted. As you twist, the position will be locked by a mechanism. So not much energy is used and I don't have to touch the mop head. The area that had been mopped was clean and nice, the hair or dirt that cannot be carried by the mop was wipped by tissue.

This is a good tool for fast and easy cleaning, it saves time too. But once a week thorough vacuum maybe needed. At least now, I can do the mopping too. :)

My Ferrero Rocher

Ferrero Rocher.... This used to be one of my favourite chocolate for special occasions or for gifts to friends and relatives. I would eat them mindful with every bites but I have cut down totally on chocolate 2 years ago but occasionally still take some to satisfy my taste bud. Oh, so guilty after eating them and my piles will take effect after that.

Now my replacement for Ferrero Rocher is Carob Candy!!! It is guilt free, tasty and they looks similar I guess. I bring them to special occasions or give out as gifts and the kids simply love it. I also learnt this from the cooking class from Our Place International. The ingredients are Almond Butter, Agave Nectar, Walnuts, Sunflower Seed, Sesame Seed, Carob Powder after mixing and rolled up into balls, coat them with coconut flakes. The ingredients are super right? It is nutty with a bit of chocolaty taste. It will usually be wiped out very fast when we attended the cooking class.

Come for the Sept class if you want to learn more good, tasty and healthy food.

*If you want to order, email to tanshellin@hotmail.com

Red Pepper Bell Dip

Salad with dips will never be the same again. It add flavours to your dish and you can eat it with cucumber, celery sticks, ect... if you have no time to make your salad. You can have lettuce wrap too, just add some alfalfa sprouts, asparagus, cucumber strips, ect and drizzle some dips on it, wrap up and MUNCH.

I make Red Pepper Bell Dips as shown in the pictures. I baked the red pepper bell in the oven until the skin is separated from the flesh, turn it over after the top side is done. Let the pepper bell cool down then remove the skin and the seeds and the stems, left the flesh. Add dates, lemon juice, liquid amino and basil spice to blend until smooth. It can be kept in the fridge for a week. I got this recipes 2 years ago but never really use them due to busy schedule in work and in household chores. Until I stay at home full time and takes this opportunities to try on most of the recipes. In case, I have to go back to work force again, Choe Choe!!! Touch wood! Hopefully not lah but in Singapore it is hard to survive with single income.

I learnt this from Siok Khoon's mum (Our Place International), there are also others dips been taught in their classes. They are yummy... They also teach how to make good salad, dips, guilt free candy, shark fine soup, sushi, brown rice, healthy water cooked bee hoon, ect.... My saliva are drooping as I think of them. They use better seasoning like liquid amino, agave nectar to replace salt, sugar. I don't have to worry about anything when I am taking my meal there, I can eat wholeheartedly.

There is a chance for us to learn her cooking again in Sept 10, Siok Khoon's mum intend to have another round of cooking class this month. Aren't we lucky? Besides learning how to cook, we also have some sharing by some of our friends who have go through some fasting and we are also can make new friends. We need to support one another along the way to maintain this lifestyle.