Shenanigans of a dietitian

As usual, I asked my dad what kind of cake he’d like. He initially said “plain cake.” After further pressing, he gave me three ingredients he would like on the cake sultan as (they are his favourite), almonds and crystalli s ed ginger.  Recipe adapted from: https://www.sanitarium.com.au/recipes/a-z/almond-and-sultana-spice-cake   Ingredients 125 g butter 100 g sultanas 125 g self-raising wholemeal flour 125 g self-raising plain flour ½ tsp ground cardamom ½ tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp nutmeg ½ tsp vanilla esssence 125 g brown sugar 2 eggs 1 cup skim milk ¼ cup flaked almonds 40 g crystallised ginger 1 TB flour   Method 1)       Preheat oven to 180 C 2)       Grease springform pan with baking paper 3)       Melt butter in a saucepan, add sultanas and cook for 10 mins or until sultanas have softened 4)       In a bowl, ...

Mum left some moong dal in the fridge, I've never cooked with it before so I wanted a recipe to use it. This was probably one of the easiest curry I have ever cooked! So simple yet so delicious :) Recipe adapted from: http://www.steamingpot.com/pumpkin-moong-dal/ I modified the recipe as I did not have some of the mentioned ingredients. Ingredients 1 TB EVOO 1 cup of boiled moong dal (1/2 cup raw) 1 onion, finely chopped 1 tsp of garlic and ginger paste Turmeric powder (sprinkled) Curry powder (sprinkled) 250g pumpkin, finely chopped, skin on  1 red capsicum, small cubes 1 tomato, small cubes  Cumin powder (sprinkled)  Few green or red chillies  Fresh coriander Method 1) Boil moong dal (refer to instructions above- easier if done beforehand) I already had my boiled moong dal so I started from step 2 2) Add EVOO oil 3) Add onions, garlic/ ginger paste and turmeric powder once oil is hot 4) Stir for a few seconds 5) Add pumpkin, boiled lentils a...

This recipe is directly taken from http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/brazilian-passionfruit-cake-bolo-de-maracuja  (I have not made any changes except for recipe modifications listed below) Ingredients Cake 4 eggs, separated 330 g (1½ cups) caster sugar 100 g unsalted butter, softened 300 g (2 cups) plain flour 2 tsp baking powder 250 ml passionfruit pulp (about 12 passionfruit) Passionfruit syrup 60 ml passionfruit pulp (about 3 passionfruit) 220 g (1 cup) caster sugar Method 1)       Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 20 cm round ring cake pan. 2)       Using an electric mixer, beat egg yolks, sugar and butter for 6 minutes or until mixture is pale and fluffy. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and clean the bowl of the electric mixer. 3)       Sift flour and baking powder in a large bowl, then working in batches, fold through yolk mixture, alternating with passionf...

Easiest brekkie ever! I learnt this while I was on holidays :)  Ingredients * 2 eggs  * 2 tablespoon oatmeal * 3 tablespoon powder milk * 1.5 tablespoon water * Spices (black pepper, cumin)  * Any herbs you like (coriander/ parsley) * Tiny amount of butter (1/2 teaspoon) Method 1. First combine oatmeal and powder milk together 2.  Add water so the mixture binds  3.  Add in the eggs, plus all herbs and spices you wish to add 4. Combine well 5. Heat a frypan, spread the butter and cook in pan for 10-15mins

I've been thinking about making kale chips for a while now; it was one of those things I thought would be too complex. Normally, I use kale in a smoothie or a salad but I can never get through a whole bunch without it going yellow. Recently, I've had a go at making kale chips. It's actually not that difficult, but it's just very delicate. You need to have the right temperature and time setting. Otherwise, you end up with burnt or soggy chips (like I did for the first few times!) I've adapted this recipe from some recipe sites and personal experience :) Recipe is as follows- Ingredients 1 kale bunch Paprika Cayenne pepper Lemon pepper Sea salt 4 Tb Extra Virgin olive oil Method  Preheat oven to 150 (fan-forced) Remove stems from kale and tear leaves into bite sized pieces) Wash kale thoroughly Dry kale with a salad spinner (this step is important!)  In a bowl, mix olive oil and herbs/ spices (amount to your liking) Line tray with baking paper U...

Happy Monday everyone! It has been a while since I baked a loaf so thought I'd make one :) Recipe adapted from http://daa.asn.au/recipes/wholemeal-date-and-walnut-loaf/ Ingredients 2 eggs, lightly beaten 100 g pitted dates, chopped 45 g margarine 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 cup water 40 g walnuts, chopped 1 cup self-raising flour 1 cup wholemeal flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 2 tablespoon LSA oil to spray Method 1) Preheat oven to 180 °C. 2) Combine dates, margarine, sugar and water in a saucepan. Stir and boil gently. Set aside to cool. 3) Sift flour, baking powder, LSA. 4) Add in walnuts and eggs  5) Add in date mixture and mix well. 6) Lightly spray a loaf tin pan. Line with baking paper. 7) Pour mixture into pan 8) Bake for 45-50 mins. Skewer should come out clean.  9) Remove from oven and cool for 10 mins 10) Turn out on a cooling rack. Slice and serve with yoghurt, if desired.

Happy birthday daddy! This perfectly describes how he continues to inspire me! And he always is!  In the past, I always used to purchase cakes because I did not trust my baking skills enough to be able to pull off a fancy cake for a special occasion. But this year, I've been a bit of an experimental baker so I thought I'd give it a go.  I asked him what he wanted for his birthday. Initially, he said plain cake again (probably because he did not want to trouble me during my final days of thesis writing). After I pressed further, he gave me buttery fruit cake as an answer.  I was happy with this because I had never baked one so it'd be fun to do one. I started my recipe hunt. Most traditional recipes use alcohol but because I don't drink, I had to look harder to find one that didn't so I could eat it too :D Eventually I found this. I've followed this recipe pretty closely with some little changes.  Normally I would not use ...