Tag: baking

sunday muffins…gluten free and vegan lemon berry….

we are back in istanbul and thoroughly enjoying a short little break in the city.  luckily for me,  the weather is finally a little cooler and i have even felt a tiny bit chilly sitting in the garden in the evenings! 

this week is a really, really big week for us- asya is getting ready to go to college for the first time! we have spent the weekend packing and planning and on tuesday, just two days from now, we will be on a flight to the u.s. to get her settled into georgetown! 

sending a child off to school is a very funny thing.  

I am simultaneously thrilled for her! i went to Georgetown and i loved it! the school, the city, the people- i am definitely biased but you really just couldn’t ask for more in a university. 

but sending her off, as exciting as it is, is certainly also bittersweet.

asya is my first baby. i can’t believe how quickly she went from baby to young lady! a silver lining of the covid crisis is that we got to spend much more time with her this past year than we ever expected. for this i am truly grateful. asya is a sweet, kind, easy going person and her presence at home has been a real gift. not having her at home is going to take some real getting used to…

in the meantime though, we still have our sunday to enjoy- and these summery fresh breakfast muffins turned out to be a great way to enjoy the calm before the storm! as always, i had mine with a nice cup of hot coffee but i’ve been told they are delicious paired with an iced latte too! 

ingredients:

  • 2 cups organic almond flour
  • 3 tbl chia seeds combined with 6 tbl water
  • 2 tbl lemon juice
  • 2 tbl coconut oil (melted)
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • a pinch of salt
  • The zest of one lemon
  • 1 cup mixed berries
  • 2 tsp ground ginger

instructions:

  • preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius and line a muffin tin with muffin liners
  • combine chia seeds and water and set aside
  • mix lemon juice, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract
  • add in chia seed combination and mix well
  • in a separate bowl mix flour, baking soda, salt and ground ginger
  • combine wet and dry ingredients and mix well
  • fold in lemon zest and berries
  • spoon into muffin tin
  • bake for 22-24 minutes until tops are browned and a toothpick inserted into the middle come out clean
  • cool fully on a cooling rack- store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days 🍋🍋🍋🍋🍋

**recipe adapted from nutritious minimalist**

sunday muffins- gluten free and vegan banana…

funny story about this sunday’s muffins- alara and i were cooking a bunch of food for the lockdown weekend and i decided we would “try out” this recipe i had come up with.

but truth be told, i really was not concentrating on the muffins and so the whole thing turned into a bit of a joke!!!

i added extra ingredients, put in a bit too much baking powder, and completely forgot to preheat the oven 😅

oh well! the results were still delicious, and we tried out the recipe again today for a loaf of banana bread and so now the recipe is tried and true and ready to be shared…

covid and lockdown have been really stressful for us all and a bit of baking and laughing this week did us all a lot of good…

my wish for you is to have the (maybe unexpected) chance to enjoy the baking process with one of your children too; and be sure to get some laughs in too!!!

these muffins are perfect for breakfast- serve with a large dollop of nut butter, a sprinkling of chia seeds and a cup of coffee for a perfect winter treat.

oh! and i forgot, this is a blender recipe, so you only need one mixing bowl- or a blender- and you are set…

ingredients:

  • 2 ripe bananas
  • ¼ cup coconut sugar 
  • 3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • ½ cup nut mylk
  • ¼ cup nut butter 
  • 1 cup gluten free oats
  • 1 cup almond meal
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  •  1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon chia seeds

instructions:

  • preheat oven to 180 degrees 
  • line a muffin tin with muffin liners 
    • use a bread pan lined with parchment paper if you would rather make banana bread
  • blend bananas, sugar, cinnamon, salt, vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar, nut mylk, nut butter in blender or with hand mixer
  • add in oats, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and chia seeds
  • for muffins bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
  • for full loaf of banana bread bake for 25-30 minute

the whole load turned out amazing too… perfect for breakfast in the snowy winter weather we have these days here in istanbul ❄️

sharafat abla’s every day cookies…

we have been baking up a storm over here these days… and with the terrible rainy day we had this week we really needed a bit of a pick me up!

rain or shine, these delicious cookies ALWAYS do the trick. they are perfect in the afternoon for tea, and equally wonderful as a breakfast treat with a lovely cup of coffee.

as far as i know, their origin comes from the turkish seaside town of izmir; a close friend taught us how to make them nearly twenty years ago; and we have been experimenting with them ever since! the original recipe calls for regular flour and white sugar- but we have adapted them in various stages; first swapping brown sugar for white, and then opting to use gluten free flour.  our latest iteration is the most delicious as of yet- and i have to admit they taste pretty good on sunny days too!

ingredients-

  • 1 pound lor cheese (this is a soft uncured goat cheese that is similar to strained cottage cheese)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup butter
  • 3 cups flour
    • we used 1.5 cup buckwheat flour and 1.5 cup gluten free flour
  • 3 tsp baking powder

instructions-

  • preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius
  • mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately
  • combine and knead until mixture is moist and “doughy”
  • adjust flour as necessary; add a small amount of milk if dough is too crumbly
  • (roll cookies in sugar for an extra treat if desired)
  • form into small ball shaped mounds and place on parchment paper lined baking sheet
  • bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean