Orange, honey and almond cake

I came across a recipe for an almond and lemon cake once. The recipe was very simple and I wanted to see if it could be altered. For example, I thought a sugar free version with honey would go well with orange. I then proceeded to experiment…

You will need:

2 bowls

Sandwich tin with removable sides

3 eggs

1 orange

8 tbsp honey

1 ½ cup ground almonds

1 tbsp oil

Oil the sandwich tin and dust lightly with some ground almonds

Separate the egg whites and yolks and put them in one bowl each.

Grate the zest and squeeze the juice from the orange.

Whisk the egg whites until forming white peaks.

In the second bowl combine egg yolks, orange peel, 4 tbsp of orange juice, the honey and the almond flour. Whisk until combined. (Yes, you will end up with leftover orange juice. Just drink it!)

Using a spatula fold the egg whites into the almond mixture until just combined. Pour into sandwich tin and bake in 180 degrees for 40 minutes.

OK, verdict. I was right in that orange and honey is a fantastic combination. I think the honey is a touch overpowering though and may use less next time and maybe a bit of agave nectar instead. Still, it’s very tasty and I don’t expect it to last very long. Especially as it’s been hours since the tolerant one was fed and dinner is at least an hour away. Yep, he’s already downstairs cutting himself a second piece. (Curses! I thought my ninja-like skills would mean she didn't notice me doing that. It really works and the level of honey is just fine, leave it alone woman! - Tolerant)

And if you want to try the original recipe, I posted it a while ago here

Clafoutis?

My mother has been waxing lyrical about this French dessert she's found, called clafoutis. According to Wikipedia clafoutis is a dessert made of black cherries covered in a flan-like batter. According to my mother it's any kind of fruit, ideally fried with a bit of cinnamon and covered in something approaching sponge batter and then baked. I had a few slightly overripe nectarines kicking about at home, s I decided to take my mum's idea and adapt it for my poor stomach.

3 nectarines, de-stoned and cut in pieces
2 pears, de-seeded and cut into pieces.
Fry in coconut oil, with a bit of cinnamon and maple syrup until going soft. Put the fried fruit in the bottom of a sandwich dish with removable sides.

3 eggs
1/2 dl glutenfree flour mix
1 dl almond flour
1/2 dl agave nectar
1/2 dl maple syrup
1/2 dl cocnut oil, melted, preferably in the pan in which you fried the fruit.
Whisk everything together, cover the fruit and bake in 190 degrees for c. 30 minutes

Not sure what I was expecting but it's a very nice dessert. The tolerant one has summed it up pretty well. Squidgy and cakey. Moist! I think he likes it.

Sorbet

It's been almost 20 days since my last post and there's a reason. My thyroid was not slightly out of sync, it was really out of sync. So now I'm on medication, have a thyroid shaped swelling on my throat, keep shaking and generally feel like something the cat's dragged in. I am still certain soya has had something to do with this happening but not so sure it was the whole reason, Thyrotoxicosis can be stress related and I have certainly been stressed enough.

On the other hand I have had a few days off and now work from home for a further few days to give my body a chance to catch up. So I have had the opportunity to be a bit creative. With my throat swollen and a bit sore I have had a massive craving for something cold. Ideally icecream, which is the one milkderived food I really struggle to stay off. But, if the plan was to be good, and I always have to be so bloody good, I thought maybe sorbet is easy enough to make.

2 egg whites
300 ml frozen berries (I used strawnberries and blueberries)
100 ml agave nectar
Juice from 1 lemon

In a bowl, whisk the eggwhites to a hard foam.
I a foodprocessor, mix berries, agave nectar and lemon juice to a pure.
Try not to just scoff this mix with a spoon...
Fold the berry mix into the eggwhites, transfer to a suitable container and freeze for at least 4 hours, occassionally stirring the sorbet whilst it's freezing.
I was right, sorbet really is easy enough to make and it tastes divine!