Paleo Baking with Pals

These are my friends. I didn’t know most of them a year ago, but we were brought together by Crossfit.

We are all Mothers, mostly in our 40’s, and all part of our local Crossfit Box’s off-peak squad, affectionately known as the ‘Strong Mums’. We are in our post-WOD state here, so forgive the lack of grooming.

As I pursue my Paleo eating journey, I am improving my understanding of how to adapt normal baking recipes to suit the Paleo diet, and it’s catching on! My cakes can’t be too shabby, since this baking day was devised as a result of requests to share my knowledge (and my cakes) with my girls.

It was a blast. Much coffee was imbibed and between us we managed to knock up a Snacksatisfyingly respectable few bakes between the seven of us and two ovens.

I’m happy to spread the grain & sugar-free message to my fitness-seeking pals, but ain’t it amazing how a gym can bring people together in the unlikeliest of ways? Crossfit has brought us together – a group of women whose paths would most probably never have crossed without the atmosphere and camaraderie of a Crossfit gym.

In case you are wondering, our repertoire included a magnificent chocolate sandwich, a triumph of a fruit cake, some divine almond butter fridge snacks, and a showstopping star anise and almond cake. Nom.

And the best part? I now have a cupboard full of cake!

Vanilla Seedy Morsels

Snacks that are sugar free are a staple for the Paleo cook.

These were an experiment which serendipitously worked (hurrah for that!)

There are two similar, but separate snacks here:-
1. Sunflower & pumpkin seed clusters (above), which have honey in to help them, well…cluster
2. Sunflower & pumpkin seeds with vanilla (below)… No clustering, just scattering required.

For each, start with about a cup of mixed seeds in a bowl. I used just pumpkin and sunflower, but if I make them again I think sesame seeds would add a lovely flavour.
Add about 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or bean paste. Mix the whole lot in…add a few drops of water to loosen the syrup, but make sure all the seeds are coated.
If you want to make the clusters, this is the point at which you need to add around 4 teaspoons of honey. Mix well again.
Heap the sticky mass onto a baking tray, ensuring you spread them out thinly & evenly.
Finally, bake (in each case) for around 15 minutes in a low oven around 140 degrees C.

When you remove from the oven, they should just be turning golden. Leave them for a couple of minutes so that they are not hotter than the bowels of Vesuvius, as you need to use your fingers next!
For the clusters, working quickly, shape them into little balls (broad bean size) and lay onto grease proof paper. If you’re not quick enough, they WILL turn to concrete, so just pop them back in the oven for a minute to soften again if that happens.
If you’re making the vanilla only seeds, just separate them with your fingers and scatter across your greaseproof paper, like a sprinkling of granola sand. Poetic eh?
Leave to cool.
Scoff.

 

Paleo walnut and sour cherry Brownies

A variation on normal Paleo chocolate Brownies, just to add interest. They are very gooey, not too sweet, very chocolatey and moreish. No honey or syrup, just a tiny bit of Stevia and some dates/prunes for sweetness. The sour cherries and walnuts add lovely texture.

You will need:-

• 1 cup ground almonds
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon bicarb of soda
• 4 ounces baking chocolate (as close to 100% cacao as you can get/like)
• 1/2 cup soft dates, pits removed
• 1/4 cup soft prunes
• 3 large eggs
• ½ cup coconut oil, melted
• ½ teaspoon stevia (optional)
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• a handful of dried sour cherries

Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Combine the almonds, salt and bicarb in your mixer. Blitz in the dates and prunes until they are like coarse sand. Add the 3 eggs and the stevia.

In the meantime, melt your chocolate over a bain-marie, and when almost melted add the coconut oil to melt too.

When finger-cool, pour the chocolate in to the almond mixture and whisk to combine.

Finally, add the walnuts and pulse briefly to chop a little. Stir in the cherries.

Pour the whole mixture (which is quite thick) into a 8×8 inch baking dish, and bake for around 20 minutes. I actually went 21 minutes in a non-fan oven. They were beautifully just-undercooked so that the centres are soft and gooey.

Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool properly. Cut into squares (about 16) and enjoy!

Paleo chocolate sandwich cake

This is quite delicious, very chocolatey and therefore not entirely without sugar content. You can use whatever chocolate you like, but I went for Green & Black’s 72% cooking chocolate.

It’s not the cheapest cake to make, so bring it out for birthdays and special occasions. My non-Paleo friends enjoyed this enormously.

You will need:-

Two 8 or 9 inch cake tins, greased and lined. I used silicone cake moulds for simplicity of exit…

Your oven to be pre-heated to 170 degrees.

For the cake batter:


• 8 ounces dark chocolate
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup maple syrup
• 
6 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• 4 cups ground almonds
• 2 teaspoons coconut flour
• 1/4 cup best quality cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoon baking powder

Melt the chocolate and butter together in a bowl over a saucepan of barely-there simmering water. Set aside to cool (the mixture needs to cool for at least 10 minutes before adding the the egg mixture below).

Whisk together the maple syrup and eggs in a mixer for 5-6 minutes until pale yellow and fluffy-looking. Slowly whisk in cooled chocolate and vanilla bean paste.

Sift almond flour, coconut flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder over egg mixture. Gently fold in to incorporate. Divide the cake batter batter between two cake tins and bake cakes for around 20 minutes in the centre of the oven, until a skewer comes out clean.

Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes, run a knife around the edges and then remove the cakes from the pans. Leave to cool completely.

To keep it simple, I sandwiched the cakes together with some whipped fresh cream. There is a way to make complex Paleo butter-cream, but this way was quite yummy enough if you are a dairy eater.

 

‘Cut & come again’ Paleo spiced fruit cake

I was fighting the urge to bake a moist, crumbly fruit cake yesterday, and eventually decided to take a gamble & experiment with a grain & sugar free Paleo version. It turned out better than okay, and I would defy any Paleo cynic to tell the difference between this cake and a normal fruit cake.

You will need:-

A 20cm deep, loose bottomed cake tin, greased and lined.
350g of ground almonds
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
85g agave nectar or other sweetener
1-2tsp ground mixed spice
4 large eggs, beaten
175g softened butter
375g sultanas, raisins, cherries, mixed peel – combination of your choice

Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Put the whole lot into your bowl/mixer and whisk until everything is properly incorporated. If it looks a bit stodgy, add approx. 3-4 tbsp full fat milk or coconut (drinking) milk to the mixture, to loosen it to a nice batter.

Spoon it all into your cake tin and level off the top.

Bake it for approx. 1 and a quarter hours, or until a skewer comes out clean from the centre of the cake.

Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool properly.

Put the kettle on and salivate! Remember, if you invite friends to share, there will be less for you!

 

Paleo Egg Custard

Thanks to my pal Deborah for the inspiration to make and post this. The original recipe had almond milk and sugar, but I’ve gone fully coconut and sugar free in order to make a Paleo version.
It’s delicious and uber simple.

 

You Will Need:

4 eggs

A good 4 second squirt of agave nectar or honey

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

pinch of sea salt

1 can of coconut milk

1/4 cup carton coconut milk

Nutmeg, to sprinkle

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Whisk together the eggs, sweetener, salt and vanilla.

Add coconut milks and combine well.

Take a large baking dish or meat roasting tin and pour about an inch of water in. Place the custard cooking dish (latter should be around 20 cm long at least) carefully into the water. The water should come about half way up the side of the dish and will act as a Bain Marie to help cook the custard.

Pour the mixture into the inner baking dish. Sprinkle the top with nutmeg.

Place the whole thing carefully into the oven and bake for 45 minutes or until custard is set (and a skewer comes out clean.)

Enjoy hot or serve cold. As you can see I couldn’t wait until the photo was ‘in the bag’…..  Whipped cream sets it off nicely, if you eat dairy (but then if you do you’d probably make a dairy egg custard too….I’m rambling now…)

I’m off for leftovers…

(Paleo) Star Anise, Almond & Orange Cake

The general feedback for this cake was ‘Bloody yum’. Best Paleo recipe conversion effort yet. Get the oven on.

You’ll need:-

For the syrup topping –

80ml orange juice (or clementines)

50g light muscovado sugar

2 tbsps maple syrup

A few star anise (whole)

For the cake –

250g unsalted butter, softened

110g honey or agave nectar ( I used a mix of the two 50/50)

Zest of 1 orange or 4 clementines

4 eggs, lightly beaten

220g ground almonds

80g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

Instructions:-

Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Butter a 20cm diameter springform tin (make it a deepish one), and line with paper.

First, make the syrup by placing everything in a small pan and gently bringing it to the boil. Allow it to reduce for a while to a syrup, but not too much (you will need enough to cover the top of the cake). Leave the star anise in to infuse until the cake is ready.

Cream the butter and sweeteners together with the orange zest until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs gradually and don’t worry if it looks a bit curdly.

Fold in the almonds gently, along with the flour and baking powder.

Get it in the tin, level the top and bake for around 45 minutes until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean.

As soon as it’s cooked, prick holes all over the top of the cake with the skewer and pour the syrup from the middle across the whole surface, letting it sink in to the cake. Leave the star anise to fall wherever.

Leave it to cool in the tin, then scoff your face off.

OK, so it’s not strict Paleo, but it was a birthday cake, so let’s live a little. If you want to miss out the syrup topping, or replace the sugar with maple syrup, knock yourself out. You can also leave out the very small quantity of flour if that’s your bag.

What came first, the Paleo or the Thyroid?

So I went to the Docs because I felt like my hormones were all over the place. Who the hell gets spots and weird menstruation patterns in their 40s, after all? Well, I suppose women approaching ‘The Change’ do, but I’m not old enough for…….shit. Maybe I am.

Bloods were taken and I sat back and relaxed. A lifetime of negative tests and a healthy body and mind can lull one into a reassuring sense of arrogance about these things. I’m as fit as I’ve been at any time in my life to this point, so what could possibly be wrong?

The blood results were in this morning, and a casual conversation with the Doctor’s office forced me to ask the Receptionist to actually repeat herself. An under-active thyroid? Whaaaa?!

My first thought, if I’m completely honest was, “Hell yeah”. I saw this as the vindication I need for the fact that I still carry excess body fat, in spite of the work I have put in with a radical diet and exercise regime. I had assumed up to this point that I find it so much harder to lose fat because I’m old, but maybe my thyroid was the culprit after all.

I have been following a Paleo diet for around 18 months now, and whilst I do imbibe the occasional glass of wine, I rarely eat sugar and always eat a grain-free, low carb diet. Coupled with my healthy diet, I exercise a lot – Crossfit at least 3 or 4 times per week, and intense netball matches twice a week. There’s not much more I could do, and yet body fat lingers in certain places in spite of this hard work.

Whilst I’ve not yet had my Doc’s consultation about this matter, I wanted to post this to see whether the Paleo community can offer any advice. Paleo is good for auto-immune issues, right? Removing gluten from my diet must surely be helpful to my thyroid? I don’t eat polyunsaturated fats – also good, yes? Well, that’s what I thought until I read this. Now I am confused…..

Is it possible that my low carb regime is stifling hormone production? Could it be that I have Euthyroid Sick Syndrome? Is there a chance that my thyroid gland is perfectly healthy but the T3/T4 hormones are not being produced in adequate proportions, giving the impression of Hypothyroidism? In other words, that my Paleo diet has actually caused my Hypothyroidism?!

I am in a dilemma. I have always avoided telling my GP that I follow a Paleo diet. I have no intention of changing, but quite frankly could do without the ‘low fat diets are good for you’ spiel that I would undoubtedly get if I ‘fessed up. Perhaps now I need to come clean, but will a High Street GP be able to help me with such a complex matter?

According to the article above, if I am a victim of ESS, synthetic T4 medication is not going to be able to help me. Without the missing hormones required to convert it into the required T3 which can be absorbed into my body’s organs effectively, I might as well not bother.

Feeling a little lost and rather confused, I’ll keep you posted.

Paleo Ginger Cake

I am a massive fan of the Paleo breakfast bread recipes which abound, simply made from almond butter and a few extras and baked within about 12 minutes; I wanted to try and adapt it by spicing things up a bit, and this is the result.  I love it and hope you will too.

This is the kind of thing I like to keep hanging around the house for those moments when you need a tiny, sweet, guilt free mouthful.

You’ll need:-

1 jar of almond butter (1/2 cup)

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract/paste

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 tablespoon ground ginger

2 tbsp honey

1/4 tsp stevia (optional)

An 8inch silicone or metal cake tin, greased and lined.

Instructions:-

Pre-heat your oven to 170 degrees centigrade.

Whisk the almond butter in a bowl until light and creamy (ish).

Add the ginger, eggs, vanilla and honey.

Next add the salt, baking soda, stevia and stir in thoroughly.

Pour into the cake tin and spread evenly. Bake for about 12-15 minutes tops. Remove and allow to cool a little before removing it from its prison.

Cut in to squares and grab a slice when the cravings take you.

Paleo Plum & Almond Cake

I spotted a recipe (non Paleo) the other day for a plum and almond cake. I really wanted it. So badly. Dreams and everything.

So, here’s my adapted version. It’s bloody phenomenal cold, and I can imagine it being even better warm with a bit of whipped double cream.

You’ll need:-

225g butter (hell yeah)

About 3/4 tbsps of the sweetener of your choice – I used Agave Nectar & honey

3 large eggs

200g ground almonds

100g coconut flour

2 tsp baking powder

1tsp vanilla bean paste/extract

150ml natural youghurt

About 5 or 6 plums, stoned and quartered

An 8inch loose bottom cake tin, greased and lined.

Instructions:-

Pre-heat your oven to 170 degrees centigrade.

Cream the butter and sweetener until pale and fluffy.

Add the lightly whisked eggs, a little at a time. it might curdle but don’t worry.

Mix together the dry ingredients separately, then add them to the wet mixture, a bit at a time.

Add the yoghurt and vanilla paste and combine well.

Pour the batter in to your cake tin and lay out the plums on top however you like. They shrink in the oven, so be generous.

If you have them (I didn’t), scatter some flaked almonds across the top.

Bake the whole beautiful thing for about 1 1/4 hours. Check after an hour with a skewer. If it’s wet, keep going but check every few minutes. After an hour of cooking, I placed a foil cover over the cake to stop it browning too much.

This cake has a lot of butter in, so I would place a meat dish in the bottom of the oven if I were you, as some of the melting butter seeped out of my loose cake tin. Just a tip!!!

Eat the unctuous plummy mass as soon as it is cool enough.

Phwoar.