Pumpkin Gnocchi with Kale Pesto

This is deceptively simple and quick. I've wanted to try a vegan gnocchi for a while and I cannot get over how Amazeballs this is.

I used about a cup of organic raw pumpkin, cubed, which I boiled until al dente. Then, I drained and put in a large bowl. Add between a cup and a cup and a half of spelt flour and stir with a wooden spoon until a dough forms, then turn out into a chopping board and knead some more.

I find the best way to make gnocchi is to roll it into long snakes and then chop into 1cm pieces. 

Put the gnocchi pieces into a bowl and refrigerate for twenty minutes until firmed up. Meanwhile, set a pot of water boiling and add some olive oil and salt. 

(My little helpers love to watch the cooking action)

Boil the gnocchi pieces for around 3-5 minutes and then strain.

 Serve with your topping of choice (I made a kale pesto with kale, walnuts, Parmesan, garlic, evoo). 

Home Made Ice Cream Cones (GF, Organic, Vegan)

Look, I'm so very excited by these. I'm not kidding, of all the things I've been wanting to master, these have been in the top ten. It's not like we're ice cream fiends. In fact, my children polished off a box of cones last week that were left over from my son's first birthday party (he's three and a half). That in and of itself beggars belief. What the heck is used to make these things last so long without losing any of their crunch or crisp? Yikes. 

There's nothing uniform about how they look. But I guess that's part of the appeal. Plus, you can make them large for grown ups or tiny for kids, and all you have to do is change the quantity of batter you pour out. 

I used a frying pan first but then switched to a flat sandwich press which I found much better. 

The trick is not to get too much sugar - you can play around with the quantities to taste, but too much sugar will make them burn before they're cooked through, and not enough will make them not sticky enough. 

To get four small cones or two large ones:

Ingredients

1/3 cup spelt flour

1/3 cup raw organic caster sugar

between 1/3 and 1/2 filtered water

Combine the dry ingredients until thoroughly combined, then add the filtered water, stirring constantly. 

Once you have a batter than resembles a thin pancake batter, you are good to go. Heat your frying pan (and add a little oil or butter), or your sandwich press. Add about two tablespoons of batter and  leave to cook. If you're using a frying pan, keep the heat moderate and flip halfway through. If you're using a sandwich press, cook with the lid up for a couple of minutes then press lid down so that it's firmly pressed against the flattened out cone. 

The trickiest part of these is shaping them, and that's just because they're molten lava hot. I found that laying a clean tea towel out in front of the sandwich press or hot plate was essential. 

I used an egg flip to remove the 'pancake', then, pressing either a spoon or small rolling pin into one pinch point, I was able to clip the bottom (using the tea towel as a sort of glove between my skin and the cone).

 Shape it into a cone and depress for about thirty seconds along the seam until it feels firmly held. I then transferred mine to a small 7 oz beer glass to settle for a few more minutes (an egg cup is great, too). It's amazing how quickly these transform from flat pancakes to rock hard ice cream cones. And I think this must be similar to how fortune cookies are made. 

I served this with an ice cream stalwart - our mango and passionfruit. 

In the ice cream and the cone, there were SIX ingredients, and both components were made today in my own kitchen. As far as desserts go, this one feels pretty awesome. 

Croquette, Vegan and GF

Okay. These are insanely easy and fun to make and I can't believe I haven't been making them before now. Croquettes can be made with pretty much any combination of ingredients that you like, or have on hand. Do you like ham and cheese? Fine, that will work. Vegetarian? Great - add whichever vegetables you like. Salmon? Tuna? Sundried tomato and feta? The possibilities are as endless as your pantry and imagination. Here's the basics. 

Make a white sauce, and for the purposes of this recipe, I used olive oil instead of butter, spelt flour* to make a roux, then used a vegetable stock instead of milk. Of course, you can make your white sauce with butter, flour and full fat milk, it just depends on your preferences. 

Once you've got a good, thick white sauce, place it in the fridge to cool and thicken then add whatever flavourings you want. I added a mix of broccoli, carrots, onion, cauliflower and zucchini, all finely cubed and chopped. You can add cheese if you'd like, herbs, garlic etc. 

Add a little extra flour if your mix is too sloppy. You want to be able to form a scoop of the batter into a sausage shape, then crumb (cornflake crumbs, almond meal, rice crumb or wholegrain breadcrumb). Fry over moderate heat until browned on all sides then finish in the oven for around 20 minutes (on 180'c). 

Kipfler Ravioli

Made from scratch, pasta is deceptively simple, even without a pasta maker. You just need patience and grit to roll it super flat- luckily, my three year old brings all the muscle I need. 

I boiled four small kipfler potatoes (skin on) until they were soft, added a third cup of cream and a pinch of salt then mashed until completely combined. Leave to cool. 

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine two cups of spelt flour with one whisked egg and around 2/3 cup of water until a soft dough forms. Turn out onto a flat surface and knead with a little extra flour until it's a little elastic. 

Now comes the tough part. Roll it until it is so flat that you can almost see through it. 

Scoop a teaspoon full of the room temperature mash onto the pasta, spacing evenly, and then fold the other half of pasta over the top. I could only do three ravioli at a time on my chopping board, reserving leftover pasta as I went. 

Press down the seams using fingers or a fork and use a sharp knife to separate the ravioli. A sidebar. I have a ravioli press - a bit like an ice tray but for ravioli - and next time I would always prefer to use that. Only because these were a little too big for the kids (for grown ups, they're a perfect size). 

For the sauce, I sauteed half an onion (diced) in about 50g butter until translucent, then added 2/3 cup cream and 1/2 cup grated parmesan with a few shallots. I simmered until thickened. 

To cook the ravioli, boil a big pot of water with a dash of extra virgin olive oil and, once at boiling, add the ravioli and cook for a few minutes. Fish out gently, strain, then top with sauce and a few sprigs of rosemary. 

Coconut and Berry Polenta Bites (sugar free)

These are sensational, and sensationally simple. 

Gently heat organic coconut cream and half a cup of filtered water until it bubbles, tip in polenta (around a cup) and stir constantly over low heat until liquid is absorbed. Add half a cup of desiccated coconut and stir, then half a cup of berries. Incorporate gently so as not to stain the mix with berry juice. Remove from heat.

Turn out onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and flatten with the back of a wooden spoon to make a square shape around a cm thick. 

Bake at 170' for 20 minutes, remove and cool, then slice. These are just so virtuous, gluten free and tasty. Mmmm! Store in fridge (if you have any leftover). What a great alternative to coconut ice (that's all confectioners sugar and colours.)

Saffron and Apple Risotto

I am so excited by the dinner my kids are having tonight. And, let me tell you, so were they! This is a risotto flavoured with a hint of saffron, and packed with veg, and fruit. There's grated apple, zucchini, carrot, onion, cabbage and cheddar cheese, and the saffron just gives it a delightful depth of flavour. Crispy bacon was a concession to their addiction to all things pork.