Sesame & Green Tea Pudding Spheres

I thought I'd squeeze in a small end of the week blog post about these gorgeous little Sesame Pudding Spheres that I've been playing with this weekend.  I found them a while ago on Dine X Design which is a beautiful website focusing on gorgeous recipes and design features, all photographed beautifully. Dine X Design feature a couple of variations on these with Green Matcha Tea Puddings and Frozen Pudding Treats too.

So of the three variations, I decided to make the Sesame Pudding Spheres which I then sprinkled with Matcha Tea and additional sesame seeds. The original recipe calls for black sesame paste and I couldn't get this locally, so used the greenish tahini paste from the local supermarket. I think the spheres look more striking in black against the green of the Matcha tea so it would be worth searching out the black sesame paste, especially if you're planning to make this for a dinner party. I really love the flavour of these spheres, mainly because they remind me of a lovely Coconut Sago pud we enjoyed last New Year's Eve at Mekong Baby in Auckland! This was a Thai fusion restaurant and I think these pudding spheres would work best at the end of this kind of meal. The coconut flavour really shines through and from the fridge, they're very light and refreshing, with the additional sesame seeds adding a touch more texture. And better still, they're completely dairy and gluten free so perfect if you're looking for a Free From dessert!

I'm inspired to take these flavours and work on recreating the Coconut Sago pudding we enjoyed and also have a go at the Dine X Design frozen spheres too. Super simple to make, these are definitely a fun little bite-sized pudding :)

Dairy-Free Green Tea Matcha Pudding (from Dine X Design)

Ingredients

• 3 TBSP BLACK SESAME PASTE (I couldn't find this locally so used regular tahini paste)
• 5 TSP CRUSHED BLACK SESAME SEEDS
• ½ CUP CASTER SUGAR
• 4 TSP AGAR AGAR
• 2½ CUPS ALMOND MILK
• 1 CUP COCONUT MILK

Method

1. Put the sugar, sesame paste, seeds and almond milk in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until all the contents dissolve
2. Once boiling, add the agar agar and stir again until it's dissolved
3. Add the coconut milk, stir and remove from heat
4. Let the mixture sit for 10-15 minutes until cool
5. Pour into a mould (the recipe recommends spherical ice cube trays but I used my metal cake ball pan and set them as half spheres, putting them together when they're fully set)
6. Serve with a dusting of matcha green tea powder and sesame seeds
7. They do tend to melt once out of the fridge so it's worth keeping them refrigerated until you plan to eat them!

Vegan Chocolate Puds

Hello, everyone! Huge apologies for my radio silence over the last week, but we went away for Easter and ended up staying away a little longer than planned. The week was spent out and about enjoying the sunshine and sea air with the boys and not so much time couched at home in the kitchen. But it didn't stop me planning and having arrived back late this afternoon, I planted two feet firmly in the kitchen to whip up my latest creation. If you're not a fan of Instagram or Facebook, here are a few of my Easter creations from the last week or so. We have indulged in way too much chocolate and cake!!

So whilst we were away, I succumbed to buying Deliciously Ella in the local supermarket. It sat there looking all shiny on the shelf and having been inundated with Ella's Instagram photos of her book launch and recipes, I fell hook, line and sinker! I think it's always interesting to understand the path that people take and I found Ella's story very uplifting and inspiring - and although left with little choice, I admire her determination to rise from the brink of hospitalisation and overnight transform her eating into a plant-based diet. The first recipe I resolved to try was the Avocado Chocolate Mousse.

The same day as I bought Ella's book, an e-mail pinged into my inbox from Jamie Oliver with an Eat Well This Easter message - and amongst his suggested eats were Vegan Chocolate Pots. Hmmm...which chocolate delight to try first. Or maybe both at the same time?

So I decided to have a little chocolate mousse-off with these two recipes. For sure, the easier of the two options was Jamie Oliver's Vegan Chocolate Pots. The main ingredients were dairy-free dark chocolate and tofu mixed with maple syrup and vanilla paste (the original recipe included zest of a lime - the supermarket had run out! - and dark rum - but I'm not fond of alcohol in puds). Ella's recipe was a little more complicated and required a few more ingredients and a bit more effort. First of all, I had to make Almond Butter which involved roasting almonds for 10 mins and then blitzing them in the food processor for fifteen minutes to create a creamy butter. Once I'd made this ingredient, I was then able to move on to the mousse itself which involved blitzing an avocado, bananas, Medjool dates, almond butter, cacao powder and maple syrup in the food processor. Easy as. And so, the verdict?

Well, I first taste tested them on the boys. Honestly, they weren't keen. I'd hoped blitzing lots of good food with chocolate flavour might persuade them that these were yummy chocolate puds. Then I tried it on hubby. I think we both agreed that the Jamie Oliver Chocolate Pots were the clear winner and also could pass as a "regular" chocolate mousse at a dinner party. Although for me there was still a clear taste of tofu which kind of detracted from it a little. Perhaps the rum would have softened this flavour and if you are a fan of alcohol fueled puds, I would definitely recommend giving this a go.

What I like about Ella's pud is that I feel seriously healthy eating it. I mean, avocadoes, bananas and dates plus its other goodies. Sadly the taste wasn't quite as enjoyable and I think this might have been down to one of two things: my avocado and bananas weren't overly ripe (and she does call for very ripe bananas) and I think the ripeness will definitely enhance this next time (note, I said next time so it can't have been that bad!); and then Jamie's recipe called for melted dark chocolate and I think this really added to the richness over the cacao.

But I'm comparing this to what I call a regular chocolate mousse (dairy-laiden and eggy) and what I have learned of late, is that you can't substitute and expect things to taste the same (we have a psoriasis sufferer in the family and I tried to make a beetroot spag bol - beetroot remains the work of the devil to me to this day - I couldn't make it through more than more mouthful!) There are many reasons for choosing different kinds of diets, but in my humble opinion it means learning to love different flavours and foods and not just trying to recreate past loves. I would definitely recommend giving these two a go!

Avocado Chocolate Mousse (adapted from Deliciously Ella) Makes 2 ramekins

Ingredients

• 1 RIPE AVOCADO
• 2 RIPE BANANAS
• 6 MEDJOOL DATES, PITTED
• 2 TBSP ALMOND BUTTER (see below)
• 2½ TBSP RAW CACAO POWDER
• DRIZZLE OF AGAVE NECTAR

Method

1. To make the almond butter, turn on the oven to 180 degrees (fan) and roast 150g almonds (with skin) for 10 minutes
2. Then pop them into the food processor with a sprinkling of salt and blitz for around 15-20 minutes
3. Remove and set aside
4. Peel the avocado, remove the stone and put it in the food processor with the other ingredients
5. Add a splash of water and  drizzle of agave nectar and blitz until smooth (mine took around 10-15 minutes)
6. Spoon into bowls and chill until ready to eat

Vegan Chocolate Pots (from Jamie Oliver) Makes 2 ramekins

Ingredients

• 100G DAIRY-FREE DARK CHOCOLATE
• 350G SILKEN TOFU
• 80G MAPLE SYRUP (I RAN OUT AFTER 60G SO MADE THIS UP WITH AGAVE NECTAR)
• ½TBSP VANILLA BEAN PASTE
• OPTIONAL: ½ TBSP DARK RUM, SMALL PINCH OF DRIED CHILLI FLAKES, SMALL PINCH SEA SALT

Method

1. Melt the chocolate in the microwave for around 1½ minutes (check after every 30 seconds) until melted and set aside
2. Put the tofu in a tea towel and ring out the excess water, then add to the food processor with the remaining ingredients (minus the chocolate)
3. Blitz for 2 minutes and then add the chocolate
4. Blitz again until smooth
5. Divide the mixture between two bowls and chill for at least 15 minutes in the fridge

Churros With Hot Chocolate Sauce

Well, we've come to the end of our half term week. It's been a good week catching up with family and friends, despite the bouts of coughs and sniffles that have arrived just in time for the return to school. Frozen to the core this morning in the playground and now sat listening to the rain outside, we've been craving a little winter warmer to keep us feeling snug and cozy this afternoon. This has arrived in the form of Churros.

I love these little doughnuts. Very simple to make, they are delicious just covered with sugar and cinnamon or for a more luxurious treat, dipped in lovely warm chocolate sauce. The batter itself is very simple if you follow the below recipe from Lorraine Pascale, although I had to experiment with the heat of the oil when deep frying them as too hot and the skin of the doughnut blisters and they go brown before the inside is cooked. I made each one quite small as I wanted a one-bite Churros rather than long snakes - but the danger with this is that you think you can eat a lot more than you should!  In fact, a number of them didn't make it from the cinnamon sugar bowl onto the final plate...well, I had to taste them to check they made the final cut :) These are best eaten fresh and they taste like the doughnuts you buy on seaside piers (with the added advantage that you don't have seagulls trying to eat them out of your hand at home!)

Churros With Hot Chocolate Sauce (from Lorraine Pascale's Baking Made Easy)

Ingredients

Churros Batter

• 60G BUTTER
• 150ML BUTTERMILK (I DIDN'T HAVE THIS SO USED MILK WITH A SQUEEZE OF LEMON)
• 70G PLAIN FLOUR
• PINCH OF SALT
• 1TSP GROUND CINNAMON
• 2-3 EGGS (I USED 2 LARGE EGGS)
• VEGETABLE OIL FOR DEEP-FRYING (AROUND 1/3 SMALL SAUCEPAN)

Cinnamon Sugar

• 100G CASTER SUGAR
• 1TBSP GROUND CINNAMON

Hot Chocolate Sauce

• 165ML DOUBLE CREAM
• 100G DARK CHOCOLATE
• 25G BUTTER
• 1TBSP GOLDEN SYRUP

Method

1. To make the batter, put the butter and milk into a saucepan and set it over a medium heat. Once the butter has melted, turn up the heat and bring to the boil.
2. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and add the flour, salt and cinnamon. Stir vigorously until the mixture starts to come away from the sides of the pan. Set it aside for 10-15 minutes.
3. Then add the eggs one at a time, beating hard after each addition. The mixture should be shiny and glossy. The recipe calls for 2-3 eggs - my mixture was very shiny and glossy after 2 large eggs so I didn't add the third.
4. Put the mixture in a piping bag with a star nozzle.
5. To make the cinnamon sugar, simply mix the sugar and tablespoon of cinnamon on a plate ready for the Churros rolling.
6. Heat the oil in the saucepan until a small cube of bread browns in around 50 seconds. 
7. Pipe 3-4 Churros in your saucepan (depending on size as they will swell up a little so they need some room and also if you add too many, it will reduce the heat of the oil and they won't cook). I pipe a small amount into the oil and then use a pair of scissors to cut the end of the Churros so it drops into the pan.
8. Once they turn golden brown and become firm then they are ready which should take around 4 mins. If the skin starts to blister and they become brown very quickly then the oil is too hot and you need to reduce the temperature.
9. Once they are cooked, remove them from the oil with a slatted spoon and drain on some kitchen paper, then roll in the cinnamon sugar.
10. To make the chocolate sauce, heat the cream in a saucepan until it's just starting to boil and then remove from the heat. Add the chocolate and butter and without stirring, set it aside for 5 minutes. Then stir it until it's smooth, add the golden syrup and then stir again until smooth.
11. Eat whilst still fresh and warm for the best tasting Churros!