Minty Falafel Pittas

It's been a very busy few weeks in the Luke Loves household. Luke is busy preparing for his end of term festivities at York Steiner school. In July he will wave goodbye to Cherry Tree Nursery and get set for joining in all the fun of Maple Tree Kindergarten ( not a big move geographically - it is just along the corridor- but a very big step for our little Luke!)

Anyway, a big part of the end of term activities are the festivals and days out to the seaside, which all involve that perfect summer combination of picnic blanket, lots of friends and a lunch box full of delicious treats. The following recipe has become a staple of our picnic boxes and is full of yummy goodness as well as being quick and easy to make and, of course, delicious. Get the little ones involved in making them as they can add all sorts of ingredients to the mix. This is our version which I hope you enjoy.

Luke's verdict: 'Lovely! They look like little burgers.'

Falafel packed Pittas with mint dressing

Serves 4:

Ingredients:

4 wholemeal pitta breads, toasted or grilled
8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 iceberg lettuce, shredded
pack of good quality falafels ( we use Redwood)
handful of organic raisins

For the mint dressing:

1 tub of greek yoghurt
bunch of fresh mint, chopped

Method.

Pre-heat the pven to Gas Mark 4

Place the falafels in an oven proof dish. Brush with a little olive oil and bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes.

Toast the pitta breads

Fill with the falafels, shredded lettuce, tomatoes and raisins.

Chop the mint.

In a bowl, mix the mint into the yoghurt.

Drizzle over the falafel packed pittas

Enjoy xxx

Dairy Free Birthday Cakes

Luke celebrated his 4th birthday this week. He had a fantastic time seeing all his friends and playing with his new wheelbarrow which he adores. The garden is coming on well and there are signs of onions, potatoes and beetroot poking through the soil. Luke loved showing them to all his friends at the party on Saturday. We found out just before the party that one of his friends is dairy intolerant and with such short notice I decided to call on our friends at Goji Cafe in York for their delicious vegan chocolate cake. However, since then I have found some fantastic recipes for dairy free cake, one of which I have included below. The guests at the party were a mixture of vegetarians, meat eaters and pescatarians and they all agreed that the cake was just as delicious, if not more so, than a standard eggy, buttery one. I shall definitely be making my own next year!

Here's the recipe for a similar cake to Luke's birthday cake. Enjoy xxx

Luke's verdict: 'That was the best birthday ever!'


Chocolate Layer Cake (from the Allergy-free Cookbook by Alice Sherwood)

dairy, egg & nut free

For the cake
340g (12oz) plain flour
400g (14oz) caster sugar
1 3/4tsp bicarbonate of soda
55g (2oz) nut-free cocoa powder
1/4tsp salt
450ml (15fl oz) unsweetened soya milk or water
100ml (3 1/2fl oz) corn or other nut-free vegetable oil
1 1/2tbsp white vinegar
1 1/2tsp vanilla extract

for the icing
225g butter (or 175g/6oz dairy-free spread)
450g icing sugar
6 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla extract
(4tsp water if using butter)


1. Preheat oven to 180C (350F, gas 4). Grease & line with baking parchment the bases of 2 deep 20cm (8in) round sandwich tins.

2. Sift together into a large bowl the flour, sugar, bicarb, cocoa and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together the liquid ingredients: milk/water, oil, vinegar, vanilla. Add to the flour mixture. Stir until smooth.

3. Divide the mix between the prepared tins and use a palette knife or spatula to spread evenly. Bake in the oven for about 40min, until risen and firm to the touch.
4. cook in the tins for 10min then turn out onto a wire rack, remove the baking parchment and leave to cool completely. (You can slice each cake in half horizontally, but we skip this step)

5. Make the buttercream icing (see below).

6. Sandwich the cakes together using half the buttercream icing. Spread the remainder on the top and sides and rough up with a knife. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings or decorate with fresh berries.

Buttercream Icing
1. Put butter in a bowl and sift over the icing sugar and cocoa powder. Add vanilla extract. Gradually work into the spread with a wooden spoon then beat well until smooth and fluffy. If using butter, you may need to add 4tsp of water to give the correct soft consistency for spreading.

Digging in the Garden and Tomato Toast

Luke and I have had a great morning in the garden where we planted carrots, parsnips and beetroot in the veg patch and some morning glory and nasturtiums in the borders. We had just finished planting when the rain started so we headed inside and made one of Luke's favourite snacks - tomato toast. This is a simple but delicious snack and is also great with cheese. Try it with goat's cheese, feta or for a lighter flavour, mozzarella.

Enjoy xxx

Recipe:

2 large tomatoes, sliced
extra virgin olive oil
a small handful of fresh basil, torn
black pepper
2 slices sourdough bread
1 small clove of garlic, cut in half

Method:

1.Combine the tomatoes, oil, basil and black pepper in a small bowl.
2. Toast the bread until golden
3. Rub the cut side of the garlic over the toast and top with the tomato mixture.

Peanut Butter Bars

As the weather edges increasingly towards something resembling Spring, Luke and I have been turning lunches into picnics and heading out into the open air. As I have mentioned before, Luke loves peanut butter and like most children he loves biscuits. This simple recipe combines the two in a nutritious and tasty way and is an ideal picnic basket snack.

Enjoy xxx

Luke's Verdict: 'They were crunchy and nutty and yummy!'

Recipe:
(Makes 8 bars)

4 tablespoons organic crunchy peanut butter
4 tablespoons golden syrup
100g whole rolled oats
50g golden raisins
1 tablespoon wholemeal flour

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius ( gas mark 5)
2. Put the peanut butter and golden syrup in a saucepan and heat very gently until melted.
3. Add the oats, raisins and flour and stir well until the mixture has the consistency of breadcrumbs.
4. Pour the mixture into a cake tin and press in with the back of a spoon.
5. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
6. Score into bars with a knife while still warm, then allow to cool before cutting through and removing the bars from the tin.

Once cool, the bars can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Baked Potato with Pesto Chickpeas

Some of the tastiest meals come from raiding the cupboard and applying a little improvisation.
This dish is a firm favourite of Luke's. It's quick to prepare, cheap and nutritious and is the taste is nothing short of a little bit of heaven on a plate. The chickpea mixture would also work well stirred through spaghetti or tagliatelle instead of potato.

Enjoy xxx

Luke's Verdict: 'It's like beans on toast but more zingy!'

Recipe: Serves 4

4 medium sized baking potatoes ( We like Maris Piper)
1 400g tin of chickpeas
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 jar sundried tomato pesto
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Sprinkle of chopped parsley
50 g mature cheddar

Method:

1 Scrub the potatoes. Place them on a baking tray. Prick the skin with a fork, brush with a little olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Bake in the oven at 190 degrees celcius for 50 minutes.
2. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and add the onions. When they are soft add the garlic, then the chickpeas. Season, then reduce the heat and leave to simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside.
3. When the potatoes are ready, place on individual plates. Cut them open and add butter if desired.
4. Spoon over the chickpea mixture and sprinkle with the cheese and chopped parsley.
5. Serve with a mixed green salad.

Three Nut Butter

We all love peanut butter in our household and neither Luke nor I can face the day without our toast and jam and peanut butter fix. The best peanut butters are ones without any added salt, sugar or palm oil. such as Whole Earth and Suma. It is, however, surprisingly easy to make your own peanut butter and you don't have to limit yourself to peanuts. This recipe uses three types of nut, hence the name.

Enjoy xxx

Luke's Verdict: 'Ooh, nutty!!'

Recipe:

25g unsalted almonds
25g unsalted cashew nuts
25g unsalted peanuts
3-4 tablespoons sunflower oil

(Makes 10 portions)

Method:

1. Toast the nuts in a dry frying pan for a couple of minutes. Transfer the nuts to a blender and process until finely ground.

2. Pour the oil into the blender and blend the mixture to a coarse paste. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Roast Carrots with Cumin and Goat's Cheese

Luke went off to nursery yesterday with a spring in his step after I promised him we would have a picnic in the garden at lunch time. His requests were for cherry cakes, lemonade and cheesy salad which I duly rustled before he got back. For some reason, at the first sign of sun, light nights and outdoor eating, I start cooking with cumin again. The earthy, aniseedy taste just doesn't seem appealing in the winter months.

This recipe is easy to prepare and is ideal for a picnic.

Enjoy xxx

Luke's verdict: I love picnics!

Recipe ( Serves 4)

1 bunch of carrots
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp cumin seeds, lightly toasted in a dry frying pan
2 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted as above
75g goat's cheese, crumbled
1 tbsp chopped mint
Extra virgin olive oil

Method:

1.Scrub the carrots and cut in half lengthways. Put them in a roasting tin and toss with olive oil.
2. Roast in an oven at 180 degrees celsius for about 50 minutes until tender and caramelised.
3. Mash the roasted carrots roughly with a fork and mix with the ground cumin.
4. Spread the mashed carrots on a plate and sprinkle with the pine nuts, goat's cheese and herbs.
5. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and serve with toasted pitta bread.