Rhubarb Bread w/ Coconut Cashew Cream

June 9, 2016

I took a few days off last week and went to my family’s summer house. It’s only a couple hours from here, so it’s the perfect getaway when I need a change of scenery. Working from home is great but also tough at the same time, especially in a small apartment. So every now and then I need to go somewhere to clear my head. The heatwave arrived at the same time and as I noticed, sunshine and my laptop do not work well together. So the choice was easy: I ditched my laptop (and work) and settled into a sunbed instead. And just laid there and relaxed. Did nothing, except talked to myself a bit. Soaked up all the warmth and sunshine and its nourishing energy. And realized that I never do that anymore. Just be, without the need of ‘achieving something’ or doing something ‘productive’. And the feeling of not doing anything is actually so great, and so relaxing. Of course, taking a break in the middle of the week is not possible most of the time, but luckily these moments can happen any day, anywhere. So I decided to have them more often. Surely the warm sunshine makes it all better, as it just makes you wanna lay in the grass :)

On that same trip I also visited my grandmother’s garden, which I’ve loved since I was a kid. She had bought a sparkling strawberry drink for us, most of the flowers were blooming, and the rhubarbs were huge. I mean gigantic. They were more like umbrellas with their huge leaves. I took a bunch of them with me back home so that I could cook something with them. To be honest, I’m always kind of clueless when it comes to cooking rhubarb, never knowing what to make. Besides making ice cream (our book has a yummy strawberry rhubarb ice cream!), I haven’t done much with it. But as the stalks were getting older and older in our fridge, I decided to try the first thing that came to my mind: rhubarb bread!

This one’s actually more like a cake, but in the form of a bread. The idea of rhubarb in a bread was just so tempting, that I had to try it. The end result? A very moist summer bread that can be cut into thick slices and savored as it is, or with a super creamy coconut cashew cream that’s delicious on top of everything. I also added some mashed strawberries on top of my slice, which made it even more summer-y and very tasty. I had my slices almost right after baking but it’s almost even better on the following day.

To make the bread, I used gluten-free oat flour and brown rice flour, which are my favorites in gluten-free baked goods. But you could swap the rice flour to almond flour or any other you like and the applesauce could be replaced with mashed bananas, if you’re feeling like it. And to give you more options, you could make muffins from the batter too! But I strongly recommend not to skip the crumble that comes on top of the bread, as it’s crunchy, very delicious, and makes the whole thing look pretty.

Eat well and take it easy, friends! xo

Gluten-free Rhubarb Bread w/ Coconut Cashew Cream

notes: you can make your own oat flour by grinding rolled oats into fine flour in a blender. I always make a big batch of it so it’s easy to use in all kind of gluten-free baking.

makes a 4 x 8 inch bread loaf pan / serves 8

1 cup gluten-free oat flour
1 cup brown rice flour (or other gluten-free flour of choice)
2 tbsp oat bran (or rolled oats)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
2 tsp cinnamon
a pinch of salt

3 organic eggs
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
3-4 tbsp organic honey (or maple syrup)
1/2 cup oat milk

1 2/3 cup rhubarb, chopped into small pieces

Crumble:
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 tbsp gluten-free oat flour
1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp organic honey (or maple syrup)
1/3 cup rhubarb, chopped into very small pieces

For serving.
Coconut Cashew Cream (recipe below)
fresh strawberries, mashed

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. In a mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients, mix well and set aside.

2. Add eggs, applesauce, coconut oil, honey and oat milk into a blender and blend until smooth. You can naturally mix them by hand too, but I like to just throw them into the blender. Pour the wet mixture from the blender to the the mixing bowl and stir. Add the chopped rhubarb and mix well.

3. Grease the loaf pan with coconut oil or line with baking paper to avoid sticking. Pour the batter to the loaf pan and use a spoon or a spatula to smooth out the surface. Mix together all the crumble ingredients and cover the batter with the mixture evenly.

4. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until the bread has a golden brown color and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool before serving. Serve with the Coconut Cashew Cream and strawberry mash and enjoy!

Coconut Cashew Cream

1 cup raw cashews
1 cup full-fat coconut milk
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1-3 tbsp organic honey (or maple syrup)

METHOD:

1. Add the cashews into a big bowl, cover with water, and soak for at least 4 hours. Drain and rinse and place to a blender. Add coconut milk, vanilla, and honey and blend until very smooth. Taste, and add more sweetener if desired.

2. Transfer to a glass jar or cup and place in the fridge for a few hours to set. The cream can be stored in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

Quick & Easy Nettle Flatbread (gf + vegan)

May 25, 2016

It’s my favorite time of the year now. The last weeks of May have always been my favorite, as usually this magical summer weather somehow appears here in the North and just like that, summer has arrived. It’s so green everywhere and all the flowers are blooming. There are so many pretty flowers and it feels like I’m seeing them for the first time every year. I have a huge love for lilacs and apple blossoms and I might have snatched a few branches on my latest bike ride back from yoga…but the scent! It’s just so gorgeous, isn’t it? And I’m kind of loving the fact that I don’t need to do my weekly flower shopping anymore..unless I get caught in action :)

The other thing that I’m loving about this season is nettle. It’s my favorite superfood of all times, as it’s a true powerhouse of nutrients and I can pick it up myself. Back in 2009, when I started to get really interested in nutrition, superfoods, raw food and all that, nettle was one of the first things I ever bought and tried in order to make myself feel better. I was sick all the time then and kind of tired, so I decided to start nourishing myself with real, wholesome food. I started making green smoothies, raw porridges and all kinds of new exciting recipes that I found online. I picked up some nettle, dried it like a bouquet of flowers above my bed, and then used it in everything: in my morning smoothies, in soups, sauces, omelettes and even in baked goods. Sometimes I took a nettle extract too, that my future mother-in-law makes herself and that I dream of making myself in the future too. Fast-forward to present day, I still love nettle. I use it often, maybe not that intensely than before, but it still is one my absolute favorite add-ons for a true health boost. And it makes my hair strong and shiny, so I’ll probably keep having it till the end haha.

But onto the recipe! We picked up a huge bag of nettle leaves one Sunday and I had so many plans for it. I’ve made some nettle pesto and nettle pancakes before and they are both great, but before I got to those or onto any new adventures, I decided to try nettle on a very simple bread. I’m a fan of all kinds of very easy + very quick flatbreads that can be made in minutes and require no dough-covered hands, like the three ingredient sweet potato flatbread. This nettle flatbread is even more simple than the sweet potato one, as you can just throw all the ingredients together in a big bowl and then spread the whole thing on a baking sheet and shove it in the oven. The only thing that takes some time is finding the nettles, naturally. Luckily, they do seem to pop up quite effectively everywhere so you might find them surprisingly close. Just remember to wear some gloves to avoid all that nasty itching! And if there’s no nettles in sight, you can just skip it or use some other greens, like spinach, kale or even basil to bring some green vibes to this otherwise simple flatbread. Topped with some avocado, cherry tomatoes, sprouts and some sea salt, this makes a great pick-me up savory treat whenever you’re in need of some wholesome energy :) Enjoy firends! xo

Nettle Flatbread (gf + vegan)

notes: if you’re not able to have any nettle, you can just leave it out or replace it with some other greens, like spinach, kale or basil. and some other grains would work well here too, like quinoa or buckwheat flakes.

makes one baking sheet & about 16 flatbreads

1 cup loosely packed nettle, chopped
3 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tbsp organic local honey (or maple syrup)
2 cups water
4 tbsp sesame seeds (or other seeds like sunflower or pumpkin seeds)

Toppings:

avocado
cherry tomatoes
sprouts
sea salt

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 430 °F / 220 °C. Rinse and drain the nettles and chop them finely using a pair of scissors or a knife. Add all ingredients into a big bowl and mix well. The dough should be very sticky, but not too runny. If it seems too runny, add a bit of rolled oats.

2. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the dough evenly to the baking sheet. Sprinkle the seeds on top. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the bread has got a beautiful golden brown color. Allow to cool slightly before serving. Cut into pieces and serve for example with some avocado, cherry tomatoes and sprouts, and enjoy!

Vegan Avocado Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

May 17, 2016

…and so she returned to her computer after a long silence…hiiiii! Here I am again! How are guys? How’s spring looking in your kitchen?

All the ice cream business has taken most of my time during the last few months, but now I’m back on my blog! And it really does feel nice to be back here, in my small little internet world. To celebrate all that’s happened I brought some treats…and it’s ice cream! What else, haha. But really, today’s a day for celebration as our N’ICE CREAM -book is OUT today in the States and in Canada, yay!

It feels kind of weird to be on the other side of the globe and only picture my and Virpi’s book in the stores. But there it is, sitting on the self among other cookbooks. Or maybe it got to be on a table? As I’m not physically there to see the book (at least not yet), I’ll just go with my vision of the book having a blast in the stores and making people stop when they see it, and then they have to read it. I really do hope that it will make people go crazy for vegan, good-for-you ice creams, and that it will have very many happy new owners all over the world. At least here in Finland people have gone nuts for the book, as we were sold out in a week! That’s crazy, and it makes me so so happy. THANK YOU guys!

So let’s move onto the treats I have here with me. Let me present: Vegan Avocado Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream! A true classic flavor with wholesome, good-for-you ingredients. The base is made with avocados, coconut milk, and mint and the end result is very creamy, super fresh and naturally with the chocolate chips, a bomb of deliciousness. And even if you’re not a fan of avocado or coconut milk, don’t worry, the mint is so strong and fresh that you won’t even taste the avocados or coconut.

So what else did I have for you? Oh yeah, a giveaway of the book! To celebrate spring and summer, I’m giving away one copy of the book. Just write a short hello to the comments below and you’re in!

You’ve got time to participate until Sunday the 22nd of May. And the giveaway is this time open to US & Finland only. Good luck! EDIT: The giveaway has ended, thanks to everyone for participating!

It’s going to be super exciting to see what kind of adventure our book will have, but I’m already so happy and grateful for the experience we’ve had, it’s been a true adventure.

But now, go and make some ice cream and click your way to the online shops to get our book! You’ll find it in the stores below:

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BAM | Indiebound

Wonderful spring days to you my friend! xo

Vegan Avocado Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

serves 4-6

2 (14 ounce / 400ml) cans full-fat coconut milk (refrigerated overnight)
2 ripe avocados, peeled and diced
5-7 tablespoons maple syrup (or coconut syrup or organic honey)
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
a big handful of fresh mint leaves
¼ cup (60ml) unsweetened chocolate chips / crushed raw or dark chocolate / raw cacao nibs

METHOD:

Open the coconut milk cans and scoop out only the thick, solid white cream into a blender. Add avocados, rice syrup, peppermint and fresh mint and blend until smooth. Add the cacao nibs/chips and stir with a spoon.

With an ice cream maker:
Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and prepare the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Serve straight away or transfer to a freezer-safe container, cover and freeze until ready to be served. Let the ice cream thaw for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Without an ice cream maker:
Pour the ice cream mixture into a freezer-safe bowl and freeze for about three hours, mixing well every 30 minutes. After three hours, scoop into bowls, serve and enjoy!

Raw Chocolate Sauce

4 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp organic honey or maple syrup
2-3 tbsp raw cacao powder (or unsweetened cacao powder)
a small pinch of salt

METHOD::

Melt the coconut oil and honey / syrup in a small saucepan on low heat. Add the cacao powder and salt and whisk into a smooth sauce. Serve and enjoy with the ice cream!

And hey! If you’re in need of some summer tunes, check out our N’Ice Cream -playlist, which is perfect for all the picnics, parties and get-togethers this summer. And feel free to follow me on Spotify for some of my favorite playlists!

TallennaTallenna

Asparagus & Goat Cheese Galette

April 13, 2016

Spring is finally here, hooray!

Every year the increasing amount of light and all the sunshine we get around this time feels like total magic. The sunset around 8pm gets my heart bursting every night and I always wonder does this really happen every year. Luckily, it does.

Along with all the spring vibes, there are dusty windows, messy closets and a way-too-full calendar. It’s been busy and a bit stressful around here lately with all the book excitement and other freelance work, but I’ve decided that things won’t become easier by complaining, but rather with changing my attitude. Sometimes life is messy and busy, and that’s okay. It all gets easier when we remember not to take things too seriously, and fight that stress back every now and then. A run or a walk in nature or by the sea always works, as does shutting my phone and staying away from social media. And baking does the trick too, at least for me.

Besides the inspiration to bake, there are a few new things in my kitchen: the first asparagus of the season and some colorful adds to my cup collection.

A few weeks ago I got a couple beautiful mugs from Vallila’s new spring collection called Bonsai designed by a Finnish designer Matleena Issakainen. I usually pick only natural colors and simple ceramics when buying new plates and cups, but a burst of color never hurts. The kitchen cloth is from the same collection and has the same beautiful illustrations, that bring some much-needed spring vibes to our very white kitchen. And take my attention away from the dusty windows ;)

All these spring-y feelings kind of demanded that I cook something with asparagus, the ultimate spring veggie. I’ve only recently started to actually like asparagus and I’m still experimenting a lot with it. It’s such a different type of vegetable compared to my usual favorites, but actually it’s kind of a nice to be a newcomer in this whole asparagus scene.

This time I used my asparagus to make a galette, a rustic savory pie. Baking a galette is a lot like making a pizza, but with different toppings. The key in my version is the soft goat cheese at the bottom and the drizzle of lemon on top of the asparagus, which brings a nice flavor to the otherwise simple recipe. And the whole idea behind galette is something that I’m really loving right now: it doesn’t really need to be pretty, there can be cracks in the edges and you can set the fillings any way you like. So if you’re in need of some stress-free baking, whip up a galette and enjoy it any way you like – for lunch, dinner or take it with you to a picnic when the weather is warm enough.

Enjoy the sun and all the spring goodies, friends! xo

Gluten-free Asparagus & Goat Cheese Galette

Crust:
1 cup gluten-free oat flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour (or almond or buckwheat flour)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 organic egg
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 – 1/3 cup cold water

Filling:
3-4 tablespoons soft goat cheese
1-2 bundles of asparagus
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
a small piece of feta cheese
salt & black pepper

METHOD:

1. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the egg lightly with a fork. Add the egg and olive oil to the flour mixture and mix until the dough starts to resemble breadcrumbs. Add the water and continue kneading with your hands until you get a solid ball of the dough. If the dough is too dry, add a bit of oil or water. Place the dough in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Take the dough from the fridge. If it feels crumbly, add a bit more water and oil, until the dough feel moldable enough. Place the dough between two baking papers and roll out into a thin sheet.

3. Spread the goat cheese evenly on top of the dough, leaving out a few inches from the edges. Rinse the asparagus and cut the hard ends off. Arrange the asparagus onto the base. Add a bit of lemon juice and olive oil and then crumble the feta cheese on top. Finish with salt and black pepper.

4. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Take from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes before serving. Serve on its own or for example with a green salad, fresh fruits and tea, and enjoy!

This post was created in partnership with Vallila Interior. All opinions are my own, as always. Thank you so much for supporting and reading!

Healthy Vegan Nachos + Pre-order gift: GATHER e-book!

April 7, 2016

Oh boy, do I have a bunch of good news for you today! There’s a whole lot of ice cream goodness + other fabulous news + healthy vegan nachos, so sit back, take a minute, and check it all out!

First of all, our book N’Ice Cream is now available for pre-order! Woohoo! That means that there’s only weeks until it comes out in the States on May 17th by Avery Publishing / Penguin. I am so excited, because this is the book of my wildest ice cream dreams, and I think it will be a dream come true for you too.

There are more than 80 (!) recipes for healthy homemade vegan ice creams in the book. That’s right, all the recipes are plant-based and free from dairy, gluten and refined sugar. No weird stuff, just good-quality, natural ingredients that make you feel good inside and out. There are recipes for Creamy Ice Creams, Ice Pops & Sorbets, Instant Ice Creams, Milkshakes, and Ice Cream Cakes and Cookies. And the best thing: each and every one of the recipes can be made without an ice cream maker.

So to make sure you’ll have the chance to treat yourself with these goodies as soon as the book hits the stores, pre-order one now!

PRE-ORDER THE BOOK HERE

Read more about the book and pre-ordering from our website: www.nicecreambook.com!

And you know what’s cool about pre-ordering the book _right now_? The fact that you’ll get a fabulous gift as a thank you for doing that.

As a thank you for pre-ordering, we wanted to give you guys something special. So we came up with this little surprise. And not just any surprise, but a whole fricking *FREE* 40-page e-book filled with delicious summer party recipes.

The e-book is called GATHER and it offers more than thirty easy-to-make, healthy recipes for your upcoming summer parties and get-togethers. All the recipes in the e-book are vegan and free from dairy, gluten and refined sugar. The recipes are exclusive for this e-book, and they’re all new ones!

We’re really happy how it turned out and I can’t wait for the warm weather to arrive here, so that I can invite my friends to a picnic and make a bunch of these goodies!

GATHER e-book offers:

– 30+ healthy, easy-to-make recipes for your summer parties & get-togethers.
– Exclusive and original recipes, that are not available elsewhere.
– All recipes are free from gluten, dairy & refined sugar, and they’re vegan too!
– Recipes for savory snacks, sweet desserts and fresh drinks.
– A photo for each recipe.
– Tips for organizing a stress-free party.

I’d say it’s the perfect companion for your N’Ice Cream Book this summer!

To get the e-book, all you need to do is to pre-order the N’Ice Cream book, save your order number, send it to us and you’ll get the GATHER e-book straight to your email. Cool, right? And if you’ve already pre-order the book (thank you!), you’ll get the gift too.

Your N’Ice Cream To Do List

– Pre-order N’Ice Cream book and get a free gift!
– Download and save the e-book to your laptop, tablet or phone and enjoy the recipes!
– Sign-up for my newsletter to get extra recipes, cool bonus material and all kinds of fun.
– Follow @nicecreambook on Instagram to get sneak peeks of the upcoming book!

Before sharing a recipe from the e-book (Healthy Nachos!!), I just want to thank you for all the sweet words, likes, comments and support you have gave us with this book! It feel so great to hear that you’re as excited about this as we are and we’re ready to start a whole n’ice cream revolution! :) And if you feel like sharing this post with your friends, telling them about the e-book, the ice cream book, or anything else, we’d be so grateful!

But now, let’s move on to the nachos.

This is one of my favorite recipes form the e-book. Maybe because there are three things to be excited here: Homemade Tortilla Chips. Vegan Cashew Sour Cream. Healthy Vegan Nachos.

Making your own chips might sound hard, but really, it’s not. At least with tortilla chips. I made these from store-bought gluten-free corn tortillas and baked them in the oven until crispy. So good and crunchy. If you’d like to be a true artisan, you can of course make the tortillas from scratch and then turn them into chips. Or if you’d like to simple things down, you could just pick up organic tortilla chips from the store and focus on the creamy Vegan Cashew Sour Cream, that makes this whole thing so good.

In the e-book I made my nachos like this but had cherry tomatoes and chili in there too. So you can always change the toppings / fillings the way you like and what’s good at the moment. Enjoy the nachos! xo

Healthy Vegan Nachos with Homemade Tortilla Chips + Cashew Sour Cream

serves 4

1 batch Homemade Tortilla Chips
1 batch Vegan Cashew Sour Cream
1 large ripe avocado, cut into small pieces
1 cup black beans (or kidney beans)
1 cup corn
1-2 limes, sliced
a large handful fresh cilantro, chopped
a large handful watercress, chopped
+ cherry tomatoes, chili, etc.

METHOD:

Prepare the tortilla chips and The Vegan Cashew Sour Cream first. Drain and rinse the black beans and corn. Cover a plate with tortilla chips, top with all the fillings, and finish with a generous spoonful of Cashew Sour Cream. Serve, and enjoy!

Homemade Tortilla Chips

makes 2 baking sheets

12 organic non-GMO corn tortillas
2-3 tbsp mild tasting olive oil
sea salt

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Cut each tortilla into 4 pieces and spread the pieces evenly on the baking sheets. Using a pastry brush, brush the chips lightly with the olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the chips are golden brown and crispy. Let cool.

Vegan Cashew Sour Cream

1 cup raw cashews
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
1-2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
1 tsp sea salt
½-1 cup water

METHOD:

Soak the cashews in water for 4 hours. Rinse and drain. Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend on high until smooth. Add more water, if needed. Taste and add more seasonings, if desired. Serve immediately or store in an airtight glass jar in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Pre-order the N’Ice Cream Book now and get a free e-book as a gift!

PRE-ORDER HERE

Chocolate & Vanilla Hemp Smoothie w/ Mashed Berries

March 30, 2016

If there’s something I’ve learned about food blogging while doing it, I’d say the most important thing is this: when you discover a new, mind-blowing combination of flavors, create a simple, yet surprising recipe, or prepare something a few days in a row or at least over three times, it is your obligation to share it to your followers.

So friends, here I am, just fulfilling my civic duty. And it just happens to be in the form of a chocolate smoothie.

But if we’re being honest, it’s not just any smoothie, but we’re talking about a three-layered delicacy, that will make your taste buds veeeery happy. There are berries. Then there’s a thick vanilla layer. And then of course the chocolate layer to make it even more better. I think the holy trinity of smoothies have come together in this one.

This kind of layered smoothie isn’t really a new thing, as by taking a quick glance to my Instagram account I noticed that the first time I posted something like this was already last summer. Since then I’ve been making green ones, a few ones with berries and a very many chocolate ones. And as my inner chocolate monster has been rather active lately – meaning every single day at about 2pm – I decided to come up with something that would make me, and hopefully you, very happy. Enter: Chocolate & Vanilla Hemp Smoothie with Mashed Berries!

I’ve been cooking with hemp seeds for a few years already, so when Go Green asked me to come up with a recipe involving their new packet of hemp seeds, it felt super natural. I use hulled hemp seeds almost daily (they make an appearance in my photos quite often!) and I mostly add them to my porridge, to salads, smoothies, and granola. I store them in a glass jar on an open shelf in our kitchen, which results in consuming them, and all the good fats, fiber and protein they bring along, quite regularly. And as you can use them raw like they are, all their good nutrients won’t get lost on the way.

Naturally, I added some hemp seeds to this smoothie too, as they bring a really lovely creaminess. They also make a great little boost to the otherwise banana-based drink. And when you add some tasty berries to the bottom of the glasses, you’ve got your vitamin kick covered too. So basically, this chocolate smoothie is also a kick-ass health drink, whoopee!

So go ahead, put some bananas in the freezer, get your hemp seeds from the store, and treat yourself with some liquid love! Enjoy! xo

Chocolate & Vanilla Hemp Smoothie w/ Mashed Berries

serves 2-3

1 cup fresh or thawed berries
3 frozen bananas
4 tbsp hulled hemp seeds
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
2 soft dates, pitted
2 cups almond milk (or other plant-based milk)
1-2 tbsp raw chocolate powder

METHOD:

1. In a small bowl, mash the berries with a fork or spoon. Divide the berry mash to the bottom of two or three glasses.

2. Add bananas, hemp seeds, vanilla, dates, and almond milk to a blender and blend until smooth. Taste, and add more dates if desired. Pour about half of the smoothie on top of the berry mash. Add chocolate powder to the blender and blend until smooth. Top the vanilla layers with the chocolate smoothie. Serve and enjoy!

This post was created in partnership with Go Green. All opinions are always my own, thanks for reading and supporting! :)

Sweet Potato Toasts w/ Avocado Pea Mash, Feta & Eggs

March 24, 2016

A while ago, it felt like sweet potato was the only thing I wanted to cook with. First there were these sweet potato chips, then came the sweet potato stew, followed by sweet potato flatbread that’s rather genius, even if I say so myself. So three sweet potato recipes in a short period of time. And believe me, there were more! But I decided that maybe, just maybe, I should post about something else for a change. Or actually, it was my man who wished that maybe we could eat something else for a while.

Honey, I tried. But the sweet potato craze just keeps coming back to me. So friends, here I am, back with my sweet potato recipes….haiii. But this is one of those recipes that you just really need to share, because it would be wrong not to share, you know?

Like a lot of food-related ideas nowadays, this recipe started from a photo on Instagram. Sweet Potato Toasts! How on earth haven’t I thought about it before?? Well, better late than never, and now I’ve made these a bunch of times for myself, for friends and for my man, who kindly hasn’t shown any resistance.

There are endless options for toppings for the so called toasts, but I made mine with spinach, a quick Acovado Pea Mash, feta cheese and boiled eggs. Lots of greens and plenty of flavor, aka delish in my world. I’d really love to top these with poached eggs, but I still haven’t had the patience (or the courage?) to try those, so I’m sticking with these boiled eggs with a runny yolk.

While I’m waiting for that patience to rise in me, I’ll be sure to have these toasts until I get bored, and then come up with a new sweet potato craze. I’ve got my eyes on this Sweet Potato Juice and on this Laura’s gorgeous Sweet Potato Noodle Salad…and you know, there’s even an ice cream recipe with sweet potato on our upcoming book!

Just a quick word about the recipe: to make these even more simple, skip the Avocado Pea Mash and just use mashed avocado, it does the trick too. Plenty of other veggies and toppings would also be great here, and I’ve served these with salmon at brunch, which made them even more filling. If you’re interested in a vegan version, you could replace the feta and eggs with fried tofu or even tempeh.

If you’ve got a breakfast/brunch/lunch date coming up this weekend, these toasts + smoothies = winner combination. I made a quick smoothie with banana, mango and lingonberries but I bet Belen’s Pina Colada Smoothie or something as fresh would be perfect with these. Or make chia puddings, fresh juice or anything that brings spring vibes to the table. I wish you a relaxing and delicious Easter, take it easy! xo

For more inspiration, follow me on Instagram and tag photos of my recipes with #tuuliablog so I can see!

Sweet Potato Toasts w/ Avocado Pea Mash, Feta & Eggs

serves 4

1-2 sweet potatoes
2-3 tbsp olive oil
a few handfuls of baby spinach (or other leafy greens)
Avocado Pea Mash, for serving
sheep feta cheese, crumbled
4 organic eggs
salt & black pepper
fresh herbs or sprouts

Avocado Pea Mash:
1 big ripe avocado
1 1/2 cups / 200g fresh or thawed peas
1/2 lemon, juiced
3 tbsp olive oil
salt & black pepper
a bit of water, if needed

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F°. Wash the sweet potato thoroughly and cut it into about one inch slices lengthwise. Cover a baking tray with parchment paper and place the sweet potatoes on the baking tray. Sprinkle with olive oil. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are soft. Prepare the avocado pea mash and the eggs in the meantime.

2. Add all the avocado pea mash ingredients to a blender and pulse until relatively smooth with some bits left. Add a bit of water, if needed. You can also mash the ingredients with a hand mixer. Add salt and black pepper to taste.

3. Boil the eggs for about 4 to 5 minutes, so that the yolk remains runny. If you like, you can also do poached eggs or just fry the eggs on a pan.

4. When the sweet potatoes are ready, remove them from the oven. Place the slices on plates and top with spinach, avocado pea mash, crumbled feta cheese and the eggs. Sprinkle some fresh herbs on top too. Serve straight away and enjoy!

Oat, Buckwheat & Banana Waffles

March 16, 2016

I’ve never been much of a shopper, but I’m really good at buying food and all kinds of kitchen equipment. I also love grocery shopping online because I can easily compare the prices of the products plus it’s very convenient especially when I don’t have time to go to a physical grocery store. And since I started to blog about food, my interest towards plates, cups, cutlery and whatever that’s pretty and can be fit into a photo with food has gotten onto a whole new level. And I think that’s pretty clear if you’d take a look into our cupboards. If we’re looking for someone to blame, I think it’s the mini closet we have in our kitchen, that offers way too much space for my impulse buys. In the beginning I was able to step in and stand inside the closet, but lately my things have taken over the floor space too. Whoops..

Oh well! I’m not going to blaim myself for buying that stuff, as almost all of it is actually really useful. The plastic things are unnecessary, but for example my mandoline, juicer and the newest add – spiral slicer – were impule buys but they’re my total favorites and they’ll definitely last long.

The point of this story about our kitchen closet was to tell about the great find from the top shelf: my waffle maker. I remember buying it when it was featured at spicekitchenandbar.com. It’s always love at first sight when I remember that it exists. ‘Cause really, is there anything better than waffles?

This waffle recipe is one the few ones I’m making for Urtekram this year. The theme for this month was flakes, and I chose to bake with two of my favorites: oat and buckwheat flakes. I’ve been a fan of the company’s products for long, as they’ve got loads of high-quality, wholegrain gluten-free products, and a lot of them are organic too, which I love. Instead of stacking my pantry with separate bags of flour and flakes, I like to buy only the flakes, as they’re good for a lot of things, and then if needed, I make my own flour by grinding the flakes into flour in my blender. Easy, affodarble and space-friendly!

This time I turned my flakes into a waffle batter. Besides oat and buckwheat, I added a few eggs and couple bananas to bring some texture, protein and sweetness. The waffles turned out delicious and filling, so they’re totally acceptable for breakfast. And to bring some spring vibes to the table, I savored mine with blueberries, passion fruit and coconut milk – total perfection and balance of flavors. And totally okay for eating a few days in a row. So to give myself a pat on the back, I’d say these gluten-free breakfast waffles are the perfect excuse for owning a waffle maker, even if it’s sometimes forgotten to the depths of the closet.

Spring-y vibes and happy waffle times, friends! Enjoy the sun! xo

Oat, Buckwheat & Banana Waffles

makes about 8 waffles

2 ripe bananas
3 organic eggs (or three flax / chia eggs for a vegan version)
3/4 cup organic gluten-free rolled oats
1/2 cup organic buckwheat flakes
1 tsp baking powder
a pinch salt
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1 cup oat milk (or other plant-based milk)
+ coconut oil for frying

for serving:
passion fruits
blueberries
coconut milk

METHOD:

1. Chop the bananas into a blender or a food processor. Add all other ingredients and blend until smooth. The batter will be quite thick.

2. Heat your waffle iron on a medium-high setting. With the help of a pastry brush, brush the waffle iron with coconut oil and pour a few tablespoons of the batter onto iron. Cook for about 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown. Repeat with the remaining batter.

3. Serve warm with passion fruits, blueberries and coconut milk and enjoy! Store leftovers in the fridge and heat in the waffle iron or in the oven before serving.

This post was created in partnership with Urtekram. All opinions are always my own, thanks for reading! :)

N’Ice Cream – Breaking the News!

March 9, 2016

You know the feeling when you’ve waited for so long to tell something and when the times comes, you’re faced with a total loss of words?

Well, that’s been going around here lately. First last week with my site update and then this week with one the biggest news of my life. But here it comes:

We’re making a cookbook! Or actually, it’s kind of finished already and comes out in two months! So exciting! And by we, I mean myself and my gorgeous friend Virpi Mikkonen behind the blog Vanelja.

Phew. What a journey it has been.

And the most exciting thing about all this? The book will come out in Finland in April AND in North America in May. That’s right! In the States and in Canada! And by no other than Avery, an imprint of Penguin. Like one of the biggest publishers out there. And once it’s out, this book will be the first Finnish cookbook published in the US. No wonder I’ve been feeling quite dizzy for the last few days, or more like for the last few months.

So how did this all happen? Let me tell you about it shortly.

Some of you might remember the Kind Ice Cream for You e-book we published with Virpi last summer. A year ago we decided to work together on an e-book about ice creams and thought about making 20 to 30 recipes. Well, we got kind of excited about the topic and the e-book ended up having over 60 recipes. And to our great delight, a lot of people found it, loved it and made the recipes.

And then on one sunny day in August, I almost choked to my ice cream, as I read this one special email. A literary agent from New York had found our e-book, loved it and wanted to represent the book and us. What a dream come true, seriously. This stuff just doesn’t happen. And around that same time we also got a publishing deal in Finland. It’s still hard to believe all this happened, but sometimes when you put your passions together, put yourself out there and work hard, dreams do come true. Whoa. From there, things evolved, we signed some papers and then got to work. To some serious make-a-lot-of-ice-cream work.

We wanted to create more recipes to this new version and there definitely were enough ideas for new flavors flowing around. We ended up adding about 20 new recipes (so there’s now 80+ recipes!) and I found a lot of new favorites. We created more ‘instant ice creams’, that are made using only a blender and can be savored straight away. Fast food ice cream, that is. My total favorite thing. And the next big thing in this food blogging scene, trust me. All of the other recipes are quite simple too and everything can be made without an ice cream maker! But I’ll get back to these details later on.

Both of our books are now heading to print and I can’t wait to see and touch them. To see all that hard work we did in a physical form. But before getting some copies to ourselves, I just had to show you the covers. The one on the left is the Finnish one, and the one the right is the one in English and it’s called N’Ice Cream. All the recipes are free from dairy, gluten and refined sugar – and they’re totally vegan too. So they’re good for you inside and out!

In order to survive to May, we’ve got some goodies for you of course. In a few weeks, that being the beginning of April, we’re organizing a preorder campaign for the book and right now we’re working on a special bonus recipe bundle for the campaign. It’s the perfect companion to N’ice Cream, you’ll love it. So sign up for my newsletter at the end of this post and stay tuned for another surprise in a few weeks!

And one more, very special thing: Thank you so much for everyone who purchased our e-book. Without you we wouldn’t be here. So thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

The book is already online, so go and see it, maybe preorder it already (!) and visit the website for the book: www.nicecreambook.com! xx

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BAM | Indiebound

Double Chocolate Banana Oat Cookies (gf + v)

March 3, 2016

I’ve now written and deleted this post about three times. Nothing seemed right and I didn’t know what to write. Should I be really cool about this, or super excited and jump around, share my life story, or something in between all those things? All I knew was that I’ve been waiting for this day for long and now it’s finally here. So let’s just try to get this out there:

My new site is up! Yay! It’s here! You’re on the site right now! Welcome!!

Let’s have a party! I brought cookies! And maybe I’ll keep a little speech. You in? Okay? Okay!

I’ve been blogging for a few years now and for the last six months I’ve been struggling with it a bit. Sure, there’s been a lot going on that has kept me busy, but I got kind of bored of my site. It didn’t inspire me or encourage me to share new stuff. It felt like it wasn’t me. So clearly, it was time for a change.

And so here we are. On my new site. You like it?

Luckily I didn’t have to do all this by myself, as I had some awesome people helping me with this site and I’m super grateful for them. It’s not all finished yet (it never really is) but still I’ve got this feeling of excitement and inspiration flowing inside me and it’s just the thing I’ve been searching for in the last few months.

In addition to the new look, my site now also has a new name! This little nook of the internet is now called Tuulia, just like me. In Finnish the word tuulia means ‘the winds’ and for me, it symbolizes the journey I’m on with this blog, as this is a collection of the stories, experiences and recipes that are relevant to me in a certain moment of life. But I also hope that as a name it’s now a bit more memorable, even though you’ll probably pronounce it in a funny way ;)

What else? You’ll find all my recipes from the top bar under ‘Recipes’. When I went through my archives I got this urge to delete a lot of the old stuff, start a new Instagram account and so on. But… It would be like deleting my own story. Deleting the journey I’ve gone through since I picked up the camera for the first time and had the courage to publish a blog post. It shouldn’t be erased but instead it should be embraced. We all started from somewhere and we’re always growing and getting better, and that’s what’s great in all this.

Now that I’ve had my speech, I’d like to welcome the main performer of this party: Double Chocolate Banana Oat Cookies! They’re gluten-free and vegan (if using maple syrup), and oh so good. I’d say I made these for you, but really, I made them for myself to celebrate this moment. And as I’m not seeing anyone else here in our kitchen, I’ll just grab one more.. but if you’re quick, make a batch of these and do join me!

I think I used up all my wit in my speech, so I’ll keep the rest of this short. These cookies are crazy good. I kept thinking about the recipe in my mind until I was sure about it, then went to the kitchen, got all the ingredients out and made a huge mess. And I nailed it.

The cookies are soft and chewy and the chocolate glaze makes them sinfully good. The secret ingredient in the cookies is mashed banana, which I love, as it brings a natural sweetness and keeps them juicy. If you’re anything like me and can’t wait to taste your own creations, you’ll want to have the cookie straight after it’s dipped to the chocolate. And definitely do not worry about the stains you’ll might leave to the kitchen floor or the melted chocolate on the corner of your mouth, it’s just part of the process. And if you’d like to take this whole thing to the next level (oh yes!), make a cup of hot chocolate as your drink of choice. Oh, what a wonderful life.

I think these cookies (and the hot chocolate) will get us through the weekend, don’t you think? And then we’ll be ready for next week, as I’ll be sharing some pretty exciting news here..so be sure to come back, as it will be a pretty major surprise!

As usual, to keep up with the latest news + recipes you can follow me on Instagram and Facebook and if you have any comments, wishes or you’d just like to say hi, please drop me a comment below, I’d love to hear from you! xx

Double Chocolate Banana Oat Cookies (gf + v)

notes: I like to make my own oat and almond flour by grinding rolled oats / whole almonds in a high speed blender until they turn into fine flour. super easy and affordable! these could be amazing with other nut flours too, like hazelnut or cashew meal.

10-12 big cookies

3 ripe bananas
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup organic honey (or maple syrup for vegan option)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
a pinch salt
1/4 cup raw cacao powder (or unsweetened cocoa powder)
1 1/2 cups gluten-free oat flour
1 cup almond meal

Chocolate Frosting:

1/3 cup raw cacao butter
1-2 tbsp organic honey (or maple syrup)
3 tbsp raw cacao powder (or unsweetened cocoa powder)

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Chop the bananas into a blender or food processor. Add coconut oil, honey, vanilla, baking powder and salt and blend until smooth. In a big bowl, combine the raw cacao powder and flour and mix. Pour the banana mixture to the bowl and mix well.

By using a spoon and your hands, roll the cookie dough into 10 to 12 balls and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Press down the middle of each cookie ball slightly. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until slightly browned. Let cool and prepare the chocolate frosting,

Melt the raw cacao butter in a warm water bath or in a small saucepan on low heat. Add honey and cacao powder and whisk into a smooth sauce. One by one, dip the cookies into the chocolate sauce, place on plate covered with parchment paper and let the frosting set either in room temperature or in the fridge. Once the frosting has set, serve and enjoy!

Rhubarb Bread w/ Coconut Cashew Cream

Gluten-free Rhubarb Bread w/ Coconut Cashew Cream

Coconut Cashew Cream

Quick & Easy Nettle Flatbread (gf + vegan)

Nettle Flatbread (gf + vegan)

Vegan Avocado Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Vegan Avocado Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Raw Chocolate Sauce

Asparagus & Goat Cheese Galette

Gluten-free Asparagus & Goat Cheese Galette

Healthy Vegan Nachos + Pre-order gift: GATHER e-book!

GATHER e-book offers:

Read more about the GATHER e-book and get yours HERE!

Your N’Ice Cream To Do List

Healthy Vegan Nachos with Homemade Tortilla Chips + Cashew Sour Cream

Homemade Tortilla Chips

Vegan Cashew Sour Cream

Pre-order the N’Ice Cream Book now and get a free e-book as a gift!

Chocolate & Vanilla Hemp Smoothie w/ Mashed Berries

Chocolate & Vanilla Hemp Smoothie w/ Mashed Berries

Sweet Potato Toasts w/ Avocado Pea Mash, Feta & Eggs

Sweet Potato Toasts w/ Avocado Pea Mash, Feta & Eggs

Oat, Buckwheat & Banana Waffles

Oat, Buckwheat & Banana Waffles

N’Ice Cream – Breaking the News!

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BAM | Indiebound

Double Chocolate Banana Oat Cookies (gf + v)

Double Chocolate Banana Oat Cookies (gf + v)

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