Small Steps Living

#4 Snacks and Dessert Blog Recipes

Simple Wholefoods Chocolate Coconut Slice

Some weeks I’m super prepared for school lunches and other weeks, well, I’m putting the oven on and scrambling around throwing ingredients together at 7:30 am to create something delicious to add in.

Tuesday morning was one of *those* mornings – which is lucky for you.

Because I created the most delicious, quick and easy slice that I couldn’t get enough of. Honestly … this is when working from home is a problem… #HandsOffNowLisa!

It’s a little crumbly but outrageously delicious! And just 6 ingredients!

Print Recipe
 Simple Wholefoods Chocolate Coconut Slice
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 250 g melted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups spelt flour
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
  • 1 cup rapadura sugar
  • 3/4 cup cocoa
  • 1 egg
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 250 g melted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups spelt flour
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
  • 1 cup rapadura sugar
  • 3/4 cup cocoa
  • 1 egg
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees.
  2. Put all ingredients in food processor until really well combined.
  3. Line a large loaf tin or small baking tray with baking paper and spoon mixture in.
  4. Flatten mixture into the bottom of the pan and smooth with the back of a spoon.
  5. Place in oven and cook for 35-40 minutes.
  6. Remove from oven and let it cool before slicing.
Recipe Notes

Spelt flour can be replaced with wheat flour and rapadura sugar for brown sugar.

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#4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

The BEST Banana Bread

It’s hard to find a staple banana bread recipe that delivers time after time and isn’t loaded with sugar.

When I first tried this recipe by Kristin Cosgrove (who used to be Mamacino.com) it hit every spot. And I never created my own banana bread recipe because I couldn’t top this.

So I’d send all my Small Steppers to this recipe on her website.

Unfortunately for those of us who were dedicated Mamacino disciples – Kristin has closed down her website to pursue other interests (please, let there be a cookbook I can buy one day!). But she has kindly allowed me to share this delicious recipe with you all, so the banana cake goodness lives on.

Enjoy using her method (the proper way) or my method (the super lazy, when you just need to get it in the oven ASAP way).

You’ll get a great result either way.

Enjoy x

Print Recipe
 The BEST Banana Bread
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 2/3 cup spelt flour sifted
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ cup rapadura sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup macadamia oil (use coconut oil for nut free)
  • 3 mashed bananas
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 2/3 cup spelt flour sifted
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ cup rapadura sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup macadamia oil (use coconut oil for nut free)
  • 3 mashed bananas
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Preheat your oven to 160 degrees celcius. Grease and line your loaf pan.
  2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl and make a well in the center.
  3. Add the eggs, followed by the oil, bananas and vanilla extract and mix well until it is all combined.
  4. Pour into your loaf pan. You can sprinkle the top with sugar, cinnamon or nuts like pecans or walnuts if you like.
  5. Bake for about 60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when you test it (maybe check after 50 minutes if you oven is fan forced).
  6. Leave in the pan for five minutes and then cool on a rack or…if you are like me…eat it while it’s still warm!
Recipe Notes

• You can make a double batch – eat one now and slice and freeze the other for toast.
• Top with luxurious things like natural yogurt, sliced banana and maple syrup or sweetened ricotta, strawberries and honey for a lovely brunch (or dinner, you know, I’m not going to judge!)
• Great energy hit for hungry kids – dairy, nut and soy free and spelt flour makes it a little easier on tummies than normal wheat flour. Enjoy!

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#4 Snacks and Dessert Blog Recipes

Honey and Oat Biscuits

I love a hearty biscuit. And the first words that came out of my husbands mouth when I delivered him this new creation was, “Yum, these would be great with a coffee”.

BANG!

There’s my criteria met – hearty, good with coffee, nut free and wholesome for kids lunch boxes – oh and let’s not forget – KID-APPROVED!

There’s no point getting your bake on if the kids end up screwing their noses at your delicious creations and you spend the next three days downing all the cookies….. #beentheredonethat

So I was really excited at how well these delicious morsels were received by the clan. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Print Recipe
 Honey and Oat Biscuits
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 150 g butter
  • 2 tbls honey
  • 1/3 cup rapadura sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or essence
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 cups oats
  • 2 cups spelt flour
  • 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • Dark choc drops or sultanas optional
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 150 g butter
  • 2 tbls honey
  • 1/3 cup rapadura sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or essence
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 cups oats
  • 2 cups spelt flour
  • 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • Dark choc drops or sultanas optional
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees.
  2. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
  3. Melt butter, sugar, honey and vanilla in a pan over low heat until melted and combined.
  4. Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl.
  5. Pour liquid mixture into bowl and stir it all together.
  6. Take heaped teaspoon full amounts of cookie mixture and roll into a ball, place on baking tray and press gently to flatten. (Add a choc drop to the middle if desired).
  7. Repeat until all mixture is used. Makes around 30 Cookies.
  8. Place in oven for 10-12 minutes.
  9. Remove from oven and leave to cool on tray.
  10. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for five days or frozen.
Recipe Notes

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#1 Breakfast #2 Lunch #3 Dinner #4 Snacks and Dessert Blog Recipes

The Ultimate Wholefoods Summer Entertaining Guide!

If there’s one thing I love it’s entertaining.

If there’s one thing I don’t do enough – it’s entertaining!

The weeks seem to disappear throughout the year but after our recent move to Melbourne and to make the most of the gorgeous summer weather – I’m putting a few invitations out there.

I thought I’d share with you how simple and easy wholefoods entertaining can be. I don’t want to spend the whole time in the kitchen when we have guests but I do want the food to be fresh and homemade and impressive!

Keeping wholefoods simple week in and week out is what makes it an achievable lifestyle choice for me. If you need ‘every day’ inspiration find it in my Easy Kitchen Reset. But for now – let’s get the fancy plates napkins out and the playlist cranking and entertain our friends and family!

Here’s a collection of my favourite recipes to help you entertain with ease this summer.

Breakfast Entertaining

How about pre-making my delicious Granola and serving with yoghurt and fresh berries?

As an alternative – pre-soak my Basic Bircher and serve topped with nuts, seeds, cinnamon and fruit.

Or Crepes with a selection of fillings – like berries and cream with maple syrup for a sweet option or smoked trout, spring onion and creme fraiche for a savoury option.

If it’s eggs you’re after then pre-make the base of my Baked Eggs and then pop it, along with the eggs into the oven on the morning of your brunch and make sure to have some crusty authentic sourdough on hand for your guests to mop up the deliciousness!

 

Morning or Afternoon Tea Ideas

If it’s cookies you are after you cannot go past my famous Choc Chip Cookies.

But equally as delicious and a total crowd pleaser are my Ginger Snaps. Have a batch of these on hand in your cookie jar for whenever friends pop by.

Whipping up my simple White Bean Dip and serving that with chopped veggies or rice crackers always goes down a treat. As does this fresh and tasty Basil Pesto.

 

Starters

My Zesty Chicken Balls are a total winner and rolling the Chicken, Carrot and Feta patties into meatball shapes makes them the perfect starter.

The time I cooked a huge batch of Eggplant Chips as an appetiser when entertaining they were a huge hit. Everyone who attended went home to make them.

 

Mains

If it’s a super tasty and super easy one dish wonder you’re after – look no further than this Hummus Chicken Bake. You will not believe how simple and delicious it is!

If you’re after something for the BBQ then Nick’s Lamb Kofta’s are a total winner.

This Stir-fry is the perfect pre-prepare meal for entertaining. Make a big batch and add whichever protein suits your guests. This is a dairy-free, gluten-free and potentially vegan recipe (replace honey with maple syrup in the sauce and enjoy with tofu or just veggies), so really versatile and crazy tasty.

If there’s kids coming over then crumbing a batch of chicken drumsticks will have them licking their fingers!

 

Sides

This Broccoli Mango Salad has become almost legendary. The reason I like it is because it involves no cooking! Yep – raw broccoli for the win. Try and and see.

This Sneaky Veggie Side is the ultimate in versatile sides too – the addition of lemon rind and parmesan – YES PLEASE!

Fancy up any salad with one of my Three Favourite Dressings. The Tangy Dressing is my ultimate go-to.

 

Desserts

My Chocolate Raspberry Cake with a dollop of fresh cream is absolutely divine.

But sometimes it’s just as easy to pop out a cheese and fruit platter for your guests to nibble on as you chat the night away. Add a few Almond Bliss Balls to the platter and they’ll be thanking you for keeping things light.

And if you’re after a tipple, then a big shout out to Small Stepper Amie Kalleske whose family runs a organic and biodynamic winery in the Barossa Valley. Look for Kalleske wines and enjoy a quality product (in moderation, of course!)

#4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Choc-Banana Cake

This cake happened by accident.

I didn’t have any butter in the fridge (I know – a kitchen without butter!?) and so I googled for a butter-free cake. Thought I’d try something new….

And it did not work out.

I know a good batter when I see one, and this wasn’t coming together, so I kept throwing things in until I got the consistency I was after.

Into the oven it went and out it came.

You can imagine my anticipation!

Aaaaaaaaaand – it was delicious. No butter and all.

So I tried again – results exceptional. So exciting! The best thing is that I put it all in the food processor, whizzed it and we were away. Love a simple recipe.

Enjoy x

Print Recipe
 Choc-Banana Cake
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 2 cups white spelt flour (or wheat or gluten-free flour)
  • 1 cup dessicated coconut
  • 1/2 cup rapadura sugar (or raw sugar if you don't have it)
  • 1 not-too-ripe banana
  • 3/4 cup dairy or non dairy milk
  • 1/2 cup olive oil or macadamia oil
  • 1 tbls cacao or dutched cocoa
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tsp baking powder
Course Snacks and Desserts
Servings
Ingredients
  • 2 cups white spelt flour (or wheat or gluten-free flour)
  • 1 cup dessicated coconut
  • 1/2 cup rapadura sugar (or raw sugar if you don't have it)
  • 1 not-too-ripe banana
  • 3/4 cup dairy or non dairy milk
  • 1/2 cup olive oil or macadamia oil
  • 1 tbls cacao or dutched cocoa
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tsp baking powder
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
  2. Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend to combine - 20-30 seconds on medium.
  3. Scrape down sides and repeat.
  4. Pour mixture into a lined cake pan of choice - I love a loaf tin for this cake.
  5. Cook in oven for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a skewer.
  6. Slice once cooled (if you can wait!) and eat with a dollop of whipped cream or on it's own.
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#4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Ginger Snap Biscuit

Ginger Snaps were something I always loved and have never found a recipe I truly wanted to make time and again.

UNTIL NOW!!

Woop woop! Now, there’s one crazy ingredient – Backstrap Molasses. I bought it a while ago and it’s been in the pantry and I didn’t use it much – but I experimented with this recipe and it added something perfect! You could try without – but my advice is to head to the supermarket and see if they have it – or try a health food shop. Trust me – you won’t regret having it on hand!

Print Recipe
 Ginger Snap Biscuit
GINGER SNAP BISCUIT
Servings
Ingredients
  • 2/3 cup rapadura or coconut sugar
  • 150 g room temperature butter
  • 2 cups white spelt flour (use normal white flour if you don’t have spelt)
  • 2 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • 1 tbls backstrap molasses
Servings
Ingredients
  • 2/3 cup rapadura or coconut sugar
  • 150 g room temperature butter
  • 2 cups white spelt flour (use normal white flour if you don’t have spelt)
  • 2 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • 1 tbls backstrap molasses
GINGER SNAP BISCUIT
Instructions
  1. Cream butter and sugar for two minutes in a food processor or blender (tmx speed 4, 1 minute).
  2. Add all the other ingredients and mix until well combined. Scrape sides and continue if necessary (tmx speed 4, 20 seconds). Scrape sides. (Speed 4, 10 seconds).
  3. Roll teaspoon full balls and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and squash gently. Put in oven at 160 degrees for 12 minutes.
  4. They will harden upon cooling. Good keeping your hands off them until they are all cooled though! Enjoy x
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#2 Lunch #4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Easy White Bean Dip

My son is awesome at eating veggies. My daughter, not so much. It takes a lot of encouragement. So I’m always looking for ways to make them a little more enticing.

This is our lunch plate today.

I pulled out all the ingredients to make hummus to dip some veggies in but…. no chickpeas!

Well done Lisa.

But, I used white beans (cannellini beans) instead and the result is a creamy and delicious dip. All of them devoured it – using veggies to dip mind you – WINNING!

This is pretty much exactly what I would use to make hummus, but with chickpeas obviously. And too much garlic makes it ‘too spicy’ for the kids – so just go carefully there.

Print Recipe
 Easy White Bean Dip
Easy White Bean Dip
Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 tin cannellini beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 finely chopped garlic clove
  • Juice of one lemon
  • 1 tbls hulled tahini
  • A good pinchof salt
  • Approx 1-2 tbls olive oil
Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 tin cannellini beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 finely chopped garlic clove
  • Juice of one lemon
  • 1 tbls hulled tahini
  • A good pinchof salt
  • Approx 1-2 tbls olive oil
Easy White Bean Dip
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients except olive oil to a blender and mix for thirty seconds (Thermomix speed 4)
  2. Add olive oil (you want to add enough to get a lovely smooth consistency) and mix for another minute in your blender (speed 4-5 Thermomix)
  3. Done! Get dipping.
Recipe Notes

You could get fancy and add herbs and slices but …. #kids!

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#2 Lunch #3 Dinner #4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Zucchini Slice

Honestly – it’s a family staple. It comes in handy ALL THE TIME – I always need a batch frozen in portions in the freezer for those days when I know making dinner at 5:30pm just isn’t going to happen. Pop some in a lunchbox when you’re on the go – oh how versatile is the zucchini slice!!

This is my basic recipe – but you can add other grated vegetables, you can top it with thinly sliced tomato, you can add sliced olives, you can add tuna, or feta. Pimp this any way you like.

Print Recipe
 Zucchini Slice
Zucchini Slice
Servings
Ingredients
  • 4 large zucchinis grated
  • 3 pieces of bacon sliced (organic, free-range/best quality you can find)
  • 1 brown onion chopped
  • 1 cup wholemeal spelt flour (or gluten-free flour)
  • 5 eggs
  • 2 tbls savoury yeast flakes (for dairy free) or two handfuls cheese, grated
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 tsp dulse flakes (optional)
  • salt and pepper
Servings
Ingredients
  • 4 large zucchinis grated
  • 3 pieces of bacon sliced (organic, free-range/best quality you can find)
  • 1 brown onion chopped
  • 1 cup wholemeal spelt flour (or gluten-free flour)
  • 5 eggs
  • 2 tbls savoury yeast flakes (for dairy free) or two handfuls cheese, grated
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 tsp dulse flakes (optional)
  • salt and pepper
Zucchini Slice
Instructions
  1. Grate your zucchini. If the zucchini is very 'wet' (often large zucchinis contain more moisture) then grab a clean tea towel, pop your grated zucchini inside and give it a good old squeeze over your sink to get rid of excess moisture.
  2. Add everything to a large bowl and stir until fully combined.
  3. Pour into a baking tray and cook at 180 degrees for 25 minutes or until browned on top and cooked through.
  4. Slice into pieces and freeze in portions perfect for lunch boxes!
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#4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Miss M’s Jam Drops

My friend Amy made strawberry jam. Jam is not something that we usually have in our pantry. Maybe because I’ve never been a fan, but also because I just can’t get over the amount of sugar in it! But this was homemade, with love, and of course everyone DEVOURED it!

When my gorgeous Miss M wanted to make cookies I thought we’d have a play with the jam and of course Jam Drops came to mind. There’s a fair bit of sugar in these – I’ll experiment with cutting it down more next time.

But for now – YUM! And such a fun thing for kids to have a go at. Lucky I’m not OCD … she made quite the mess.

Print Recipe
 Miss M’s Jam Drops
jam-drops-600x600
Servings
Ingredients
  • 3/4 cup of coconut sugar (could use rapadura or brown sugar if you didn’t have coconut)
  • 125 g softened butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 1 3/4 cups of white spelt flour
  • 1 tsp bicarb
  • squeeze of lemon juice
  • enough Strawberry Jam for 'dropping'
Servings
Ingredients
  • 3/4 cup of coconut sugar (could use rapadura or brown sugar if you didn’t have coconut)
  • 125 g softened butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 1 3/4 cups of white spelt flour
  • 1 tsp bicarb
  • squeeze of lemon juice
  • enough Strawberry Jam for 'dropping'
jam-drops-600x600
Instructions
  1. Cream coconut sugar with the softened butter for two minutes. Then I added vanilla and egg and keep beating.
  2. Once combined nicely add spelt flour, bicarb and lemon juice.
  3. Once a nice mixture (add a bit more flour if too sticky) put teaspoon full balls on the baking tray, my little girl stuck her finger in the middle and then added a dollop of Amy’s homemade strawberry jam.
  4. Pop in oven for twelve minutes at 160 degrees.
Recipe Notes

Happy days x

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#4 Snacks and Dessert Recipes

Wholefood Choc Chip Cookies

It’s no secret.  I’m a cookie lover.  I am always experimenting with other people’s recipes but thought I needed my own that I could create easily, with ingredients I have on hand and that taste a bit like those massive cookies at cafes that you always promise to eat half of and end up eating the lot.

Yep, those ones.

So here’s my chocolate chip cookie recipe. I offer a few variations.  Try them out and see which you prefer. They have received ticks of approval from my husband (win!) and all the mums and kids at playgroup.  One little might (hello Luca!) was going so crazy for them I had to hide the container!

Oh and PS – today I kicked over 5,000 likers on my FB page.  This is amazing and exciting for someone who is not an expert on much other than creating wholesome and real food for her family.  I love bringing you stories from my life and sharing the wins and losses.  I love that I have created a little program (with thanks to the most amazing group of REAL experts!!) that helps people out on their journey towards ditching those pesky processed and packaged foods, in favour of real and nourishing wholefoods.

I love that this platform allows me to interview people and share the latest information on health and well-being.  Blessed am I.

Lisa’s Choc Chip Cookies

What you’ll need:

1 1/4 cup/170g wholemeal spelt flour

1/2 cup/60g LSA (ground linseeds, sunflower seeds, almonds) *

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup/70g maple syrup **

1/3 cup/70g macadamia oil **

1 tsp vanilla (extract, vanilla bean paste or seeds of half a vanilla bean)

40g of dark chocolate, chopped in large chunks (I like Green and Blacks or Lindt – both 85%)

Here’s what you do:

Preheat oven to 170 degrees.

Add all the ingredients, apart from the chocolate, to a mixer and beat until coming together.

(Tmx – speed 4, 15 seconds)

Then add your chocolate chunks and mix through until distributed

(Tmx – reverse, speed 3, 5 seconds)

Place walnut sized round balls on a baking tray lined with baking paper and flatten gently.

Cook for 10-12 minutes

Remove from oven and leave to cool (if you can) before eating.

Variations:

* Instead of LSA you could use – almond meal OR ‘Magic seed mix’ OR extra flour

** Instead of maple syrup and macadamia oil you could use raw honey and melted coconut oil

I have also tried this using 120g room temperature butter and 50g rapadura sugar.  They were crumblier but totally delicious.

Oh and a friend said “you know what I love most about these is the big chunks of chocolate” so don’t chop it up too fine.

Enjoy x

lisa-optin

Lady Get Your Groove Back

5 Simple Steps to reconnecting with your Cha Cha.

Feel like a failure at healthy? Let me walk you a through simple, and more achievable way of creating a healthier life for the whole family. Minus the pressure for perfect. Change is yours.

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