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Nutella Magnum Ice Creams

These are an absolute dream and I’m kicking myself that I previously never made my own ice cream - its so easy to do and so worth it. We all love a magnum, and even more so a Nutella one. These are perfect to tuck into and treat your friends on a hot summer afternoon. Completely refined sugar free, you won’t get the crazy sugar high or sick feeling you usually get from processed ice creams. Win - Win!

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Spiced Carrot Cake

Carrot cake has to be one of my favs and this one is ridiculously moreish. Spiced with cinnamon and ginger, with crunchy chunks of walnuts throughout the sponge, it has everything going for it. It’s always a winner with the family and friends, sweet, but not overdoing the sweetness - perfect for any afternoon cake times.

Prep time 15 mins - baking time 20 mins

Ingredients

300g coconut sugar

3 eggs

300g coconut oil

300g gluten-free rice flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp vanilla extract

300g carrots, grated, plus extra to decorate

100g walnut halves, roughly chopped, plus 8-10 to decorate for the top

A handful of pumpkin seeds (optional)

For the cashew cream icing:

400g cashews

4 tbsp honey

4 tbsp pure maple syrup

To start, soak the cashews in water, just covering them. The longer you leave them to soak the better,  so they become lovely and soft ready to blitz in the food processor. Ideally soak for 24hrs.

Preheat the oven to 170°C

Prepare three 20 cm cake tins, with the based lined with baking paper and the sides greased with coconut oil

Pop the coconut sugar, eggs and coconut oil in a bowl and mix well with an electric whisk until all the ingredients are fully incorporated.

Slowly add the rice flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla extract to the bowl and continue to beat until well mixed.

Stir in the grated carrots and walnuts using a spoon until they are evenly dispersed.

Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tins and smooth over for an even layer. 

Pop the cakes into the preheated oven for 20-25 mins, until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean from the middle. Leave the cakes to cool slightly in the tins before turing them out on a cooling rack.

Meanwhile to make the cashew cream icing, drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a blender along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy. 

Spread a third of the icing over one of the cakes, using a palette knife. Place the second cake on top and spread another third of the icing over it. Top with the last cake and spread the remaining icing on top using the palette knife. Finish with the walnuts, grated carrot and pumpkin seeds to decorate the top.

Enjoy! x

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Gingerbread Cake

These mini Gingerbread cakes are the best, so incredibly gooey and moist, with the most amazing kick on ginger! They are the perfect festive treat, drizzled in ginger cashew cream and topped with bee pollen, for that little extra sparkle.

Ingredients

30g coconut oil, melted (plus extra for greasing)

2 ripe bananas

2 tbsp pure maple syrup

3 tbsp blackstrap molases

200g ground almonds

50g rice flour

3 eggs

1 tsp baking powder

20g fresh ginger

½ tsp mixed spice

½  tsp nutmeg

2 tbsp ginger

2 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Will make approx 8 mini Christmas trees

Preheat the oven to 170°C

In a bowl, mix the coconut oil, maple syrup, blackstrap molases, vanilla extract and grated ginger together.

Mash the bananas vigorously, I like to use a hand held blender for this.

Then add the eggs and mashed banana to the bowl and mix gently, until combined.

Add in the ground almonds, rice flour, mixed spice, ground ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and baking powder. Mix until everything is well combined.

Grease your mould or cake tin generously with melted coconut oil.

Pour in the mixture into the tin and bake for approx 30 mins (for the mini cakes, if baking one large cake 1hr 30mins cooking time) until a skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean. You may need to cover the top of the cake for the last 10 mins, to avoid the top from burning.

Remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.

Carefully remove from the tin and finish the gingerbread off with a drizzle of ginger cashew cream and bee pollen.

Enjoy! x

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Spooky Spider Cake

Happy Halloween!! It’s that spooky time of year again and it’s all about the treats (rather than the tricks). We created this Spooky Spider Cheesecake especially for Be:Fit London. It is the perfect centre to piece to any Halloween party!

Ingredients

For the base:

150g almonds

150g pecans

4 tbsp coconut oil

3 tbsp pure maple syrup

For the filling:

400g cashews

8 tbsp pure maple syrup

1 vanilla bean, scraping the seeds out

For the chocolates:

100g cacao butter

3 tbsp cacao powder

3 tbsp pure maple syrup

1 tsp natural vanilla extract

To start, soak the cashews in water, just covering them. The longer you leave them to soak the better, so they become lovely and soft, ready to blitz in the food processor. Ideally soak for 24hrs.

Preheat your oven to 160°C

Line the bottom of a spring form cake tin with baking parchment and grease the sides with coconut oil.

To make the cake base, blitz the almonds and pecans in a food processor. Add in the coconut oil and maple syrup. Blitz the mixture again until fully combined.

Press the base mix into the bottom of the cake tin and pop in the oven for 10 – 15 mins, until golden brown. Then leave to completely cool.

Meanwhile, drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy. Pour the vanilla cashew mix onto the cooled cake base and level the top.

Melt the raw cacao butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted. Once melted, take the bowl off the heat and stir in the raw cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Once the chocolate is cooled, spoon a ¼ of it into a piping bag. Cut a small hole at the end of the bag and pipe circles onto the top of the cake. First, by going around the edge of the cake and working inwards, to create smaller circles. Then take a skewer or toothpick, and from the middle of the cake drag the skewer to the edge to create the ‘spider web’ look. Continue to do this all the way around the cake.

Pop the cake into the freezer to set for a minimum of 3hrs, ideally overnight.

To make the chocolates use a Halloween chocolate mould, we used this one: http://bit.ly/2zfVQdB Spoon some of the chocolate mixture into each of the chocolate moulds, pop into the fridge to set for approx. 30-45mins.

Once the cake has set, take it out of the cake tin and decorate using the Halloween chocolates.

Happy Halloween! x

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Indulgent Nut Butter Cheesecake

So this cake is exactly what it says on the tin - indulgent! We created this dairy-free, refined sugar-free, gluten-free cheesecake using Nut Blend’s Indulgent Nut Butter. It tastes just like ferrero rocher and works a dream marbled throughout the cheesecake. This is an incredibly moorish dessert and so easy to make using the Indulgent Nut Butter for the filling.

Ingredients For the base: • 150g hazelnuts • 150g pecans • 6 tbsp coconut oil, melted • 3 tbsp maple syrup For the filling: • 400g cashews • 4 tbsp honey • 6 tbsp maple syrup • 1 jar Nut Blend Indulgent Nut Butter To start, soak the cashews in water, just covering them. The longer you leave them to soak the better, so they become lovely and soft ready to blitz in the food processor. Ideally soak for 24hrs. Preheat your oven to 160°C Line the bottom of a lose base cake tin with baking parchment and grease with coconut oil. To make the base, blitz the hazelnuts and pecans in a food processor. Add in the coconut oil and maple syrup. Blitz the mixture again until fully combined. Press the base mixture into the cake tin and pop in the oven for 10 - 15 mins, until golden brown. Keep the base in the cake tin and leave to completely cool. Meanwhile, drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a food processor along with the honey and maple syrup. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy. Pour the cashew filling, onto the cooled base, spoon in the Indulgent Nut Butter throughout the cashew cream. Use a skewer to marble the nut butter through the cashew cream and smooth. Pop the cheesecake into the freezer to set for approx 1 hour. Once set, decorate with cookies and Indulgent Nut Butter chocolate bites. The cake will store perfectly in the fridge, or in the freezer if you want it to last a bit longer. Enjoy! X

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Blueberry and Coconut Ice Lollies

When the sun is shining the one thing I crave the most is some yummy ice cream. These Blueberry and Coconut ice lollies are just the ticket, they are so quick and easy to make, perfect to have to hand on a sunny day. Even better they are made from just four ingredients and are completely refined sugar-free, dairy-free and gluten-free. These beauties are so refreshing and are full of goodness too. There’s nothing better than enjoying one of these in the sunshine :)

* You’ll need an ice lolly mould to pour your mix into, I used this one from Lakeland.

Ingredients

400g vanilla coconut yoghurt - I use Coyo 

200g blueberries

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 vanilla pod, seed scraped

In a bowl mix the coconut yoghurt, maple syrup and vanilla seeds together.

Pop half of the blueberries into a blender and blitz until liquidised into a blueberry sauce.

To fill the ice lolly mould, pop a blueberry in first, spoon in some blueberry sauce and then spoon in some coconut yoghurt. Use a lolly stick to marble and continue to layer with fresh blueberries, coconut yoghurt and blueberry sauce until the mould is full.  

Pop the lolly stick into the middle and place the ice lolly mould into the freezer to set overnight.

Enjoy in the sunshine x

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Peanut Caramel & Raspberry Chocolate Mousse Easter Eggs

Happy Easter! Always worth celebrating an extra long weekend making these egg-stra indulgent easter eggs ;) Easter wouldn’t be the same without delving into an epic amount of chocolate eggs, and these jam-packed filled eggs will not disappoint. Building the chocolate layers up in the egg mould can be a little timing consuming, but it is oh so worth it! Have fun filling these with your favourite flavour combos and they make a cracking Easter pressie too!

Makes 9 Easter Eggs

For the Chocolate

200g Cacao Butter

6 tbsp Caccao Powder

6 tbsp Maple Syrup

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

For the Peanut Caramel Filling

200g Medjool Dates, pitted

150g Peanut Butter

60g Peanuts, roughly chopped

A pinch of himalayan salt

For the Raspberry Chocolate Mousse Filling

1 Avocado

2 tbsp Cacao Powder

100g Medjool Dates, pitted

2 tbsp Maple Syrup

8 Fresh Raspberries

 1.    Start by making the chocolate for the eggs by melting the raw cacao butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted. Once melted, take the bowl off the heat, allow to cool slightly and whisk in the raw cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

2.    Take your easter egg mould (I use this one from Lakeland: http://www.lakeland.co.uk/18577/Easter-Egg-Mould) place on a chopping board for support. Using a pastry brush (I find the silicone brushes easiest to use), paint the inside of your egg moulds with the melted chocolate. Place the mould in the fridge for a few minutes for the chocolate to set, then repeat, painting  another layer of chocolate and placing the mould in the fridge. Repeat this for 5-6 layers of the chocolate to build up the thickness of the eggs.

3.    To make the peanut caramel filling, blend the dates in the food processor until it forms a smooth caramel paste. Mix in the peanut butter and peanuts.

4.    To make the raspberry chocolate mousse filling, simply pop all of the ingredients (apart from the raspberries) into the food processor and blend for 3-5 minutes until fully combined.

5.    Once the eggshells are set its time to assemble! For the peanut caramel eggs, fill the half eggshells with the peanut caramel filling. For the raspberry chocolate mousse, fill the half eggshells with the chocolate mousse and place 2-3 raspberries in each half.

6.    To pop the two halves together, heat a knife with boiling water and then run the knife around the edge of one half of the egg, melting the chocolate edge. Then hold the two eggshells together, with light pressure until the chocolate starts to set and the eggs hold together. Do this to all the eggs and then put them back in the fridge for 10 minutes or more, to set fully. Enjoy!

Happy Easter xx

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Espresso Fruit & Nut Brownies

These brownies are ticking all the boxes! They are incredibly gooey, so chocolatey and have a coffee kick too! Its jam packed with fruit and nut giving an awesome texture, making these so moorish. They are so easy to make and are gluten-free, dairy-free, refined sugar-free, vegan and paleo - a great sweet treat win!

Prep time 10mins - baking time 30mins

Ingredients

35g raw cacao powder

80g coconut oil, melted

130g medjool dates, pitted

150ml pure maple syrup

75g ground almonds

80g almond butter

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tbsp ground coffee

2 tbsp water

100g pecans, roughly chopped 

100g almonds, roughly chopped

75g dried cranberries

75g sultanas

Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Line a baking tray with baking paper. I use a 10″ square baking tray.

Pop all the ingredients, (except for the pecans, almonds, cranberries and sultanas) into a food processor and blitz until the mixture is fully combined and forms a sticky batter.

Then add the pecans, almonds, cranberries and sultanas to the brownie batter. Pulse in the food processor for a couple of seconds.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking tray, making the top even and sprinkle some chopped pecans over the top.

Pop into the oven and bake for 30 mins, then leave to cool for another 30mins - for the brownies to set. Slice into 9 squares.

Enjoy! x

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Mince Pies

For me mince pies are the ultimate Christmas treat. These refined sugar free beauties are truly delicious and are better for you in every single way than the usual mince pies you find in the supermarket. The spiced fruit filling is so unbelievably delicious, encased in the easiest pastry to make ever! Baking these will fill your house with the most amazing Christmassy aroma. They are a sure fire win every Christmas. 

Prep time 30 mins - cooking time 10 mins - makes 12

Ingredients

For the pastry:

150g ground almonds

150g pecans

100g rice flour  (or other gluten free flour)

20 pitted medjool dates

6 tbsp coconut oil melted

3 tbsp pure maple syrup

For the filling:

2 apples (I use Braeburn apples) - peeled and choped finely to approx 1 cm cubes

100g sultanas

100g cranberries

100g dried apricots - chopped finely

2 oranges

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp ginger

1 vanilla pod

1 tbsp coconut oil, extra for greasing

Preheat oven to 180°C

Grease a muffin tin with the coconut oil

Start by prepping the filling. In a large saucepan add all of your filling ingredients. Slice and scrape out the vanilla seeds into the pan. Zest and juice the two oranges into the saucepan.

Cook on a low heat for 30 mins, occasionally stirring.

Whilst the filling is cooking, make the pastry. Blitz the pecans in a food processor, until they start to form ground nuts. Then add the rest of the pastry ingredients into the food processor and blitz for a couple of minutes.

Then lightly dust a clean kitchen surface with rice flour (or other gluten free flour). I also like to sprinkle a bit of ground ginger onto the surface, to add to the ginger spice.

Place your dough onto the surface, and push down gently with your hands. I find this helps getting it started for rolling and quickens the process.

Roll out the dough until smooth, even and 3mm thick. With a round cutter, cut out the base of the mince pies and ease each one into the muffin tin. I find it works better easing the pastry in by pushing the edges of the disc, rather than pushing  the middle in, as you might find that the pastry will break.

Pop the muffin tin with the mince pie bases into the oven first for 6 mins. Whilst they are in the oven cut out the mince pie pastry tops - i tend to do star tops.

Take the bases out, and fill each mince pie with the filling, pop on the star tops and put them back into the oven for 10 mins - until slightly golden.

Once cooked, leave to cool to set and brush some maple syrup over the top.

These are perfect served warm with a dollop of orange spiced cashew cream on top.

Enjoy! x

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Caramel Brownie Slices

A video posted by Nicola Giles-Rowling (@escape_bake) on Dec 9, 2016 at 12:56am PST

You can’t go wrong with a choctastic gooey Caramel Brownie, its super indulgent - but so easy to make. Great to make a batch for the week to enjoy or even better the perfect treat to serve for any party. It’s also full of super ingredients that will give you a burst of energy when you need an afternoon pick me up.

Prep time 15 mins - Cooking time 15 mins - Makes 12

Ingredients

Brownie:

2 avocados

5 tbsp almond butter

5 tbsp cacao powder

8 tbsp pure maple syrup

100g ground almonds

Caramel:

250g pitted medjool dates

Half a cup of water

For the chocolate topping:

100g cacao butter

3 tbsp cacao powder

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Line a baking tray with baking paper. I use a 10″ square baking tray.

Scoop out the avocado flesh (remove the stone). Add the avocado flesh along with the rest of the Brownie ingredients into a food processor. Blitz for 5mins until smooth. During blending, scrape the sides of the food processor to make sure you get a smooth batter.

Pour the brownie mixture into the prepared baking tin and smooth the top.

Pop in the oven to bake for 20 mins, until a skewer comes away clean from the middle. Take the brownie out and leave to cool.

To make the caramel layer, pop the pitted dates into a food processor with half a cup of water, blitz for 8 mins - taking stages to scrap the caramel from the sides of the food processor and continue to blitz.

Layer the caramel onto the cooled brownie mixture and pop into the freezer to set.

To make the chocolate topping layer, melt the raw cacao butter in a heat proof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted.

Once melted, take the bowl off the heat and whisk in the raw cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Pour the chocolate over the set caramel brownie, to form an even layer.

Place into the freezer for 1 hour to set.

Enjoy! x

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Christmas Cookies

One of my favourite Christmas treats is a good ol’gingerbread biscuit, you just can’t beat it (particularly as I am a lover of anything ginger flavoured). What makes these utterly awesome is the fresh grated ginger, it will definitely warm up any chilly day.  These are a great way to start your Christmas baking this season, super quick and easy to make but really effective - they make a perfect present!

Prep time 10 mins - Cooking time 12 mins

Ingredients

For the biscuit:

100g ground almonds

100g rice flour

60g coconut sugar

70g coconut oil, melted

2 tbsp honey

15g grated fresh ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp ginger

For the chocolate:

100g cacao butter

3 tbsp cacao powder

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Line a baking tray with baking paper. To make the biscuit, pop all the ingredients into a food processor and blitz for 3 mins, until fully combined. Roll the biscuit dough out, until approx 3mm thick. Cut out the biscuits, using your Christmas cookie cutters and place carefully onto the prepared baking tray.

Pop into the oven and bake for 12 mins, until golden brown. Take the biscuits out of the oven, leave to cool and set.

Meanwhile, melt the raw cacao butter in a heat proof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted.

Once melted, take the bowl off the heat and whisk in the raw cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Pour the melted chocolate into a piping bag (or you can use a plastic sandwich bag and snip the end off). Get creative - ice the chocolate designs onto your cooled cookies.

Enjoy! x

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Banana Bread

Oh I do love a good banana bread, it can be a great afternoon snack or a delicious breakfast treat. I particularly love a slice of banana bread toasted, topped with coconut yogurt, berries and maple syrup - I usually have this for my Friday brekkie as a great start to the weekend. I love playing with textures when baking and this loaf if no different, with plenty of crunchy caramel pecans throughout complimenting the gooey bananas. This is the ultimate winter comfort food with the cinnamon and nutmeg spices coming through to warm you up on a chilly day.

Prep time 10 mins - cooking time 1 hour

Ingredients

250g rice flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground nutmeg

175g coconut sugar

175g coconut oil, melted

8 tbsp almond milk

2 tbsp coconut yogurt

3 eggs

130g pecans, roughly chopped plus extra for topping

2 bananas, mashed thoroughly

1 banana sliced

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C. Line a loaf tin with baking paper.

1. Sift together the rice flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and nutmeg into a large bowl. Stir in the coconut sugar.

2. In a separate bowl combine the almond milk, coconut yogurt, eggs and coconut oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients. Add in the mashed bananas, pecans and half of the sliced banana. Stir gently until just combined, do not over mix.

3. Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. Decorate the top with the rest of the sliced banana and pecans.

4. Bake in the preheated oven for approx 1 hour until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch. If a skewer comes out clean from the middle of the cake it is ready to come out of the oven.   

Enjoy! X

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Chai Tea Cupcakes

Its definitely time for Chai Tea Cupcakes, to enjoy during this chilly weather. This popular Indian tea is known not only for its trendy name, but it’s health benefits too, making it the perfect healthy indulgent treat for any afternoon tea. These are made from the same base recipe as the Nutella Cupcakes, so they are super easy to make. With the subtle warming Chai Tea flavour coming through dreamily, what more could you want this Autumn?

Makes 12 cupcakes – baking time 20 mins

Ingredients

150g rice flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

150g coconut sugar

150g coconut oil, melted

6 tbsp almond milk

2 eggs

2 bananas, mashed thoroughly

Chai Tea:

2 chai tea teabags

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 cardamom pod

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

With the above blended in a food processor or pestle and mortar.

Icing:

200g cashews

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp coconut oil         

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C. Line the muffin tin with 12 paper cases.

1. Sift together the rice flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and half of the Chai Tea spice mix into a large bowl. Stir in the coconut sugar.

2. In a separate bowl combine the almond milk, eggs and coconut oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients. Add in the mashed bananas. Stir gently until just combined, do not over mix.

3. Spoon the Chai Tea cupcake mixture into the prepared paper cases until ¾ full.

4. Bake in the preheated oven until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch. Leave the cupcakes in the tin to cool and then transfer to a wire rack, ready for icing.

To make the icing:

1. Drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy.

2. Add the rest of the Chai Tea blend to one and combine well. Pipe or spoon the icing onto the cupcakes.

Enjoy! X

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You Can Have Your Cake and Eat It Too - Nutella, Peanut Butter and Chai Tea Cupcakes

That’s right! You can tuck into delicious cakes with no remorse, as being healthy doesn’t mean you have to miss out on delicious treats. With these trio of cupcakes made from one main recipe and adapted to each flavour – you really can have your cake and eat it too.

When baking many of us look for quick, easy and super delicious treats – but that can sometimes be tricky to achieve. Not with this cupcake recipe for refined sugar-free, gluten-free and dairy-free Nutella Cupcakes, Peanut Butter Cupcakes and Chai Tea Cupcakes, all from one recipe!

Nutella Cupcakes

Makes 12 – baking time 20 mins

Ingredients

150g rice flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

150g coconut sugar

150g coconut oil, melted

6 tbsp almond milk

2 eggs

2 bananas, mashed thoroughly

1 tsp cinnamon

70g chopped hazlenuts

Nutella:

400g hazelnuts

4 tbsp cacao powder

120ml maple syrup

Icing:

200g cashews

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp coconut oil

Start by making the Nutella

Preheat the oven to 180°C

1. Place the 400g hazelnuts onto a baking tray and pop into the oven to roast for 10 mins. Remove the hazelnuts from the oven and leave to completely cool.

2. Place the roasted hazelnuts into the food processor and blitz for 10-15mins. Until the hazelnuts have completely broken down and formed a hazelnut butter.

3. Then add the cacao powder and maple syrup to the hazelnut butter and blitz for a further 3mins. Pop in the fridge to set.

To make the cupcake mixture:

Increase the oven temperature to 200°C. Line the muffin tin with 12 paper cases.

1. Sift together the rice flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir in the coconut sugar.

2. In a separate bowl combine the almond milk, eggs and coconut oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients. Add in the mashed bananas and the 70g chopped hazelnuts. Stir gently until just combined, do not over mix.

 3. Spoon in the cupcake mixture to fill half the paper case, then spoon 1 tsp of the Nutella into the middle and top with a spoonful of the cupcake mix.

 4. Bake in the preheated oven until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch. Leave the cupcakes in the tin to cool and then transfer to a wire rack, ready for icing.

 To make the icing:

1. Drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy.

2. Add 5 tbsp of Nutella to the bowl and combine well. Pipe or spoon the icing the cupcakes.

Enjoy! X

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Nutella Magnum Ice Creams

These are an absolute dream and I’m kicking myself that I previously never made my own ice cream - its so easy to do and so worth it. We all love a magnum, and even more so a Nutella one. These are perfect to tuck into and treat your friends on a hot summer afternoon. Completely refined sugar free, you won’t get the crazy sugar high or sick feeling you usually get from processed ice creams. Win - Win!

* You’ll need an ice lolly mould to pur your mix into, I used this one from Lakeland.

Ingredients

For the Nutella

200g hazelnuts

3 tbsp cacao powder

150 ml maple syrup

For the vanilla cashew ‘ice cream’

200g cashews

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 vanilla pod, deseeded

3 tbsp coconut oil

150 ml almond milk

For the chocolate coating

100g cacao butter

3 tbsp cacao powder

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

To start, soak the cashews in water, just covering them. The longer you leave them to soak the better,  so they become lovely and soft ready to blitz in the food processor. Ideally soak for 24hrs.

To make the Nutella:

Preheat the oven to 180°C

Place the hazelnuts onto a baking tray and pop into the oven to roast for 10 mins. Remove the hazelnuts from the oven and leave to completely cool.

Place the roasted hazelnuts into the food processor and blitz for 10-15mins. Until the hazelnuts have completely broken down and formed a hazelnut butter.

Then add the cacao powder and maple syrup to the hazelnut butter and blitz for a further 3mins.

To make the vanilla cashew ‘ice cream’:

Drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy.

Then spoon in your vanilla cashew ‘ice cream’ into the ice lolly mould to half way, spoon in some Nutella and repeat layering ice cream with the Nutella to create a marble effect.

Place the ice lolly mould into the freezer to set overnight.

To make the chocolate coating: 

Melt the raw cacao butter in a heat proof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted.

Once melted, take the bowl off the heat and leave to cool for 5 mins. Whisk in the raw cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Remove the ice lolly from the mould and dip into the melted chocolate, then place onto a board lined with baking paper. Repeat this for the rest of the ice lollies and place the board into the freezer to set for 10mins.

Repeat the steps to add another layer of chocolate onto the Nutella Magnums and then drizzle the rest of the chocolate over the Magnums. Leave to set.

Enjoy in the sun with your sunglasses on :) x

[escapeandbake]

Nutella Balls

Nutella is one of my favourite treats and when I created a healthy version of this gorgeous hazelnut/chocolate spread I couldn’t contain my excitement! I actually prefer it to the original. So I had to create an awesome and quick treat to satisfy my Nutella cravings and these little nuggets of joy really hit the spot, with just 4 ingredients!

Prep time 15 mins - Cooking time 10 mins -  Makes 12

Ingredients

400g hazelnuts, plus a few for decorating

7 tbsp cacao powder

100g cacao butter

300ml maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 180°C

Place 200g of the hazelnuts onto a baking tray and pop into the oven to roast for 10 mins. Remove the hazelnuts from the oven and leave to completely cool.

Meanwhile blitz the rest of the hazelnuts in a food processor, so they are roughly chopped, but not completely ground. Set aside in a bowl.

Place the roasted hazelnuts into the food processor and blitz for 10-15mins. Until the hazelnuts have completely broken down and formed a hazelnut butter. 

Then add the 4 tbsp of the cacao powder and 120ml of maple syrup to the hazelnut butter and blitz for a further 3mins.

Add in the roughly chopped hazelnuts to the Nutella mix and give the food processor and few pulses until evenly distributed.

Take a tablespoon of the Nutella mix and roll into a bite size ball, place onto a board lined with baking paper. Repeat until you have 12 Nutella balls. Place the Nutella balls into the freezer to set.

Meanwhile, melt the raw cacao butter in a heat proof bowl over a pan with simmering water. Stirring gently, every so often until melted.

Once melted, take the bowl off the heat and leave to cool for 5 mins. Whisk in the raw cacao powder and maple syrup.

Take the frozen Nutella Balls and dip into the melted chocolate to form a chocolate layer. Once all balls are covered in chocolate, pop back into the freezer to set. 

Repeat the chocolate coating for a second layer and sprinkle on the chopped hazelnuts to decorate.

 Enjoy! x

[escapeandbake]

Coffee and Walnut Cake

Coffee and Walnut cake is a true classic and a favourite with my family. This gluten-free, refined sugar-free and dairy-free version still hits the spot, with the perfect coffee flavours and still feeling a truly indulgent cake - you can’t go wrong. Give it a try this weekend for afternoon tea with your friends and family.

Prep time 15 mins - cooking time 30 mins

Ingredients

200g rice flour (or other gluten free flour)

200g coconut sugar

200g coconut oil, melted

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

3 medium eggs

6 tbsp almond milk

2 bananas, mashed

2 tbsp ground coffee

100g walnuts, chopped. Plus 12 walnuts halves set a side to top

Coffee cashew Icing:

200g cashews

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp coconut oil

2 tbsp ground coffee, mixed with 2 tbsp boiling water

To start, soak the cashews in water, just covering them. The longer you leave them to soak the better,  so they become lovely and soft ready to blitz in the food processor. Ideally soak for 24hrs.

Preheat oven to 160°C

Line a baking tray with parchment paper, covering all sides. This recipe will also make an 8″ round cake if you prefer using a cake tin

Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl.

In a seperate bowl, mix the eggs, coconut oil, bananas, sugar and ground coffee.

Make a well in the flour bowl and pour in the wet coffee mix. Stir the ingredients until well combined, but do not over mix.

Stir in the chopped walnuts.

Pour the cake mix into the baking tray.

Pop the cake into the oven and bake for approx 25-30 mins until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean from the middle of the cake.

Meanwhile, to make the coffee cashew icing,  drain and rinse the cashews. Place them in a blender along with the rest of the ingredients. Purée on high speed until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a bowl and pop in the fridge for a couple of hours to set.

Once the cake has completely cooled, carefully slice horizontally through the middle to make two halves. I use this amazing cake slicer from Lakeland: Wire Cake Slicer - it works a dream and is so easy to use.

Using a palette knife, carefully spread half of the coffee cashew icing onto the bottom layer of the cake. Lay the top cake layer on top, to sandwich the icing. 

Then spread the remaining coffee cashew icing on the top of the cake.

Divide and slice the cake into 12 squares and pop a walnut halve on top.

Enjoy! x