Crumpets

Pre-school have now banned nuts, so the only bread Mini Monster will eat as a sandwich (from Iced Gem Bakes) is no longer an option. I wouldn't mind, I'm pretty tolerant of allergies, but 1. the child with nut allergies doesn't stay for lunch, and 2. they didn't ban milk and eggs last year when they had a child with anaphylaxis to those… 

Being a working mum, I need things I can prep in advance, shove in the freezer, and get out in the morning. Waffles always go down well with some sliced meat and salad/veg so needed another stand alone 'bread' option. Big brother loves crumpets and it's always nice to do a similar free from option.

I think this made about 8 or 9, but it was a while ago so I can't remember.

250g wheat free bread flour

2tsp dried yeast

475mls milk substitute/water (350mls cold milk substitute plus 125mls boiling water gives 'hand hot' temperature needed for yeast - make sure you stir it so there are no hot spots though)

2tsp sugar

(pinch of salt - optional)

1tsp baking powder

1tbsp oil

Put milk substitute and water in a bowl and mix well (any hot spots will kill the yeast).

Add the yeast and stir.

Leave to rest until the yeast begins to foam (will take 5-20mins depending on temperature of mix/room) - don't be tempted to keep stirring while you are waiting.

Put flour and sugar (and salt if using) in a bowl.

Beat in the yeast mixture, using a balloon whisk, until all lumps are gone.

Set aside until bubbles begin to appear on the surface.

Add the oil and baking powder and mix again.

Grease the inside of 3 rings (or however many fit in your pan) and place on a medium hot griddle (or frying pan).

Half fill the rings with the batter and cook gently until bubbles have risen to the surface and the tops are beginning to set.

Turn over and push through to brown the tops.

Repeat until all the mixture is used up.

Herby Oatcakes

For Wendy.

I made these for the family Christmas hampers I did this year (along with ginger fudge, marshmallows, gingerbread, caramelised clementines and sloe gin...). The recipe was adapted from one in Tesco Food Magazine and, as well as being delicious, they were very easy to make. They'd also be great popped in to a packed lunch with some leftover cooked meat, humus, fish, ham, etc and some chopped veg (am I allowed to admit having them with cheese…?).

225g Oats

60g Oat Flour (or other wheat free or plain flour)

60mls Olive Oil

180mls Hot water

1tsp Caster Sugar

1/2tsp Salt (optional)

1-2tsp finely chopped dried herbs* 

*I used a mixture of sage and rosemary from the garden, and a little crushed black pepper and mustard seeds, but you can use whatever you like, or omit it altogether to make plain ones.

Put dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Add olive oil and hot water and mix together with a knife.

It will be sticky at this stage, but leave it to rest for a couple of minutes and the excess water will be absorbed.

Knead well and roll out to about 5mm thick (roll over cling film to stop it sticking).

Cut into 7cm rounds.

Bake at 190ºC for 25 minutes, turn over and bake for another 10minutes to dry out underneath.

Banana Flapjack

Yet again I have over ripe bananas left in the fruit bowl. Thought I'd google a recipe for banana flapjacks, then at least they can be used in packed lunch treat this week. I found a lovely recipe using peanut butter and apple too, but alas, the kids go to nut free school, so that was a no go (I do have a jar of FreeNut Butter from Eskal, but I can't guarantee I didn't contaminate it with peanut or almond nut butter when I was finishing the dregs of some jars for cookies a few weeks ago!). Pinched this from Nigella though.

The problem I have making flapjacks is that the mix always looks too wet, so I add extra oats and then it's more like granola when it comes out of the oven. I tried really hard not to this time, I did add an extra 20g, but it was still much wetter than I would normally do. I even got round to weighing out the 'cups' as I was doing it!

First go came out quite porridgy, put it back in the oven a couple of times to dry out, boys kept testing them, suddenly not much left…

Second go, reduced the sugar, increased the oats, cooked for longer, et voila, banana flapjack fingers ready for packed lunch:

100g Dairy and Soya Free Spread (works with 80g)

20g Soft Brown Sugar (or any other kind - or don't bother with it, I've stopped adding it)

100g Golden Syrup (works with 80g)

240g Rolled Oats 

1 Large (or 2 small) Mashed Ripe Banana (we quite like 1 banana and a grated apple)

Melt sugar, syrup and spread in a pan or microwave.

Add oats and banana and mix well.

Pour into a tin.

Smooth out with the back of a spoon.

Bake at 180ºC for 20 minutes.

Use a sharp knife to cut into 12 fingers or 18 squares.

Put back in oven at 160ºC for 15 minutes.

Leave to cool in tin. If you prefer them crispier, put them on a cooling rack and leave in the oven to dry out a bit longer.

Oaty Plum Gingerbread Slice

The post New Year tidy hit our house this week, which meant I rediscovered the 2014 Calendar from a BBC Good Food Magazine. What better than a nice warm spiced treat as a reward after taking down the Christmas tree? This was very popular and even warranted a thank you cuddle from Mini Monster. Didn't last very long though...

For Cake 

140g Dairy and Soya Free Spread

80g Dark Soft Brown Sugar

80g Golden Syrup

140g Wheat Free Plain Flour (or plain flour if don't need wheat free)

85g Rolled Oats (not Jumbo)

1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

1tsp Ground Ginger

2tsp Egg Replacer

100mls Milk Substitute

1 heaped tsp Grated Stem Ginger

250g Plums (6 small 2-3 big)

For Topping

25g Wheat Free Plain Flour

25g Rolled Oats (not Jumbo)

2 Heaped tsp Grated or Chopped Stem Ginger

Grease and line a 17x23cm cake tin (Small tray bake size).

Cut plums into 2cm cubes and set aside.

Melt sugar, syrup and dairy/soya free spread in a pan or microwave.

Add the milk substitute.

Put flour, baking powder, egg replacer, ginger and oats in a bowl and stir to combine.

Add the liquid and beat until smooth.

In another bowl, add the topping ingredients and 2 tbsp of the cake batter and mix so it looks like crumbled flapjack.

Pour cake batter into prepared tin.

Top with plums and sprinkle over topping.

Bake at 180ºC for 30 mins.

Cool in tin and cut into 12 squares.

Lovely warm (try topped with suitable custard, cream, ice cream or yogurt), or cold (great packed lunch treat).