Honey & Cinnamon Popcorn

Last night I saw this recipe on Instagram, and I couldn't stop thinking about it! I always really struggle to find snack recipes that I think I will like, and also that I can be bothered making! Too much effort = not worth it for me! Last Christmas I gifted myself a popcorn maker and it's always a good option, except the usual flavour is melted butter....not exactly a healthy option. This recipe shared by Sugar Free Kiwi is perfect for me. I'm not a huge fan of replacing everything with coconut oil, but again, I just like the sound of this and thought it's a good option for kindy lunchbox too! My son loved it so it's a winner in our house!

Sugar Free Kiwi is a really great page to follow on Instagram as she posts a lot of yummy recipes which are easy to do. To be fair, this is the first one I've actually made, but I like to follow along for inspiration. I've also been eyeing up a recipe for Raw Peppermint Slice too!

Here's the recipe, full credit to Sugar Free Kiwi- make sure you check out her page!

Honey & Cinnamon Popcorn

Ingredients:

5 Tablespoons Popcorn Kernels, air popped

3 Tablespoons Coconut Oil

2 Tablespoons Honey 

1 Teaspoon ground Cinnamon

Method:

Melt the Coconut Oil, Honey and Cinnamon on a low heat in a pot large enough for all the popcorn. 

Once the oil and honey mixture is melted and combined, add the popcorn and stir gently until all the popcorn is coated and barely any left at the bottom of the pot.

Spread onto a baking tray and bake at 150°C for 15 minutes or until brown/golden. 

Allow to cool completely before storing, and tastes better/crisper once cooled too!

Enjoy x

Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

You may have noticed if you've been reading along for a while, that the recipes I share are not usually super healthy! It's not to say that they are bad for you (some are!) but more that I use regular ingredients and generally lots of sugar and carbs! Sometimes I feel a bit afraid of all the so-called "superfoods". Often it's because I don't know what they are, and sometimes it's because they're really expensive so not something I could justify eating on a regular basis (I know, what price can you put on your health?!). I like to think I eat a fairly balanced and varied diet, with a few treats as well. I try not to think about foods being "good" or "bad", rather just eat lots of different thinks and think about things like portion size instead (great article about this topic here). 

I was also gifted a special bottle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil at Christmas. It's a bottle of a very limited run from a private Olive Grove up north. I feel very honoured to have some! It's best suited for salads and dressings so it's perfect in this recipe.

Anyway, with that rather long preamble, the other day I decided I would try cooking with Quinoa. I had a yummy salad over the holidays, which was the first time I've ever eaten it.  I just added a few things together that I thought would go well together, and voila! My Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad was born!

This recipe serves one as a tasty lunch. Obviously adjust the ingredient quantities to make for a whole family or as a side dish. If you have the chance, cook the Quinoa ahead of time so everything can be thrown together. 

Marie's Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

(Serves 1)

Ingredients

¼ cup (uncooked) Quinoa 

A handful of baby spinach leaves; and/or

A handful of Kale or baby Kale

1 Tbsp fine chopped fresh Parsley

1 Tbsp fine chopped  fresh Mint

3-4 Cherry Tomatoes, chopped, or 1 regular Tomato

3 dried dates, chopped

1 Tbsp Slivered Almonds or Cashews

*Optional: 

30g Plain or Flavoured Feta

Dressing

½ lemon

2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil 

Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

Cook Quinoa. Bring double the quantity of water to boil (For ¼ Quinoa, cook in ½ cup water), simmer for approximately 10 mins, they turn heat off and allow remaining liquid to absorb. Allow to cool to room temperature and fluff with fork.

In a bowl, add dressing ingredients together. Add spinach/kale, parsley,mint and tomatoes to dressing and toss to coat. 

Add cooled Quinoa and mix, add chopped dates and almonds and stir to combine all ingredients. 

Eat and enjoy!

Best eaten fresh. You can prepare the Quinoa ahead of time and chop ingredients. As the Spinach and Kale absorb liquid easily, they will wilt if left in the dressing for a long time. 

What I've Been Baking & Recipe for Mini Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Wow wasn't that a mouthful of a title! The last few months I have been trying a few different new recipes. Nothing I can take credit for but I wanted to share in case you're lacking some inspiration! I also thought I would share what I've been doing along with a recipe for some really cute mini cupcakes with a decadent chocolate ganache frosting. I made these for a baby shower recently and they went down an absolute treat!

Coconut Walnut Truffles

As you may already know (or guessed) by the other recipes on my blog, I stick to mostly old fashioned home baking and treats. We don't have any food allergies or intolerances in my family, so I basically cook whatever takes my fancy. I am however, happy to cater to anyone else's dietary requirements. If I am visiting someone or having a friend over, I'm more than happy to make something that they can eat. 

This recipe I came across while I was cutting up the Wiggles magazine to make this garland. I was quite surprised to find this recipe and see that it was not only easy to make, but yummy sounding too. Maybe it's just me, but I don't generally expect to find many adult friendly (i.e. food adults will eat) recipes in a children's magazine!