Monday, April 22, 2013

Luka's Birthday Party my way! ~ Mariella


It’s all over! And it may take an entire year to muster the courage to do it again! I had a long list of intentions and some fell by the wayside. I have, in the freezer, two full fully forgotten trays of fruit juice ice-cubes with Strawberry slices in and enough home-made magnums to last the month! But the rest went down rather well! I have a confession to make though, I didn’t manage to keep the sugar monster away, there wasn’t enough cake for the moms too and my mother-in-law miraculously manifested a cake she’d baked specially for the event, the day before. Gotta love grannies! 



This was my menu for the day:

~Sliced carrots, red and yellow peppers, cucumbers, celery with tahina and tsatsiki:

Tahina:
Equal parts Tahini and water
A glug of olive oil
Lemon juice to taste (everyone is different but use juice of one lemon for a cup of Tahina)
1 clove of garlic (a common mistake it to put too much)
Salt, paprika, cumin and coriander powdered spice to taste
Blend it all with a hand held blender and presto!



Tsatsiki:
Cut cucumber into itsy bitsy cubes, this is where people make their first mistake, grating it makes the mix very runny, whereas cubing doesn’t,
Cube one clove of garlic, little little!
Add salt, paprika to taste. I’ve seen recipes where they add a splash of olive oil on top, looks yum!

~Oven roasted Cheese crackers
Too simple to pass up, slice cheese into thin slices, put on cracker, grill for 5 min, serve warm.

~Pancakes with cinnamon and honey



~Date Balls and Chocolate date balls, my husband says that I make them a little too cocoa-ish so I tried to go lightly on the cocoa this time but I get the feeling it was still a little heavy handed, I think for kinds, it’s best to use very little cocoa in the date ball mix as it’s rolled in cocoa powder.




~Fruit kebabs. When one of the kids got dropped off, I overheard him say to his dad that there won’t be any sweets at this party, this was the one kid who exclaimed, repeatedly, how delicious the fruit kebabs were!



~Iced tea.
Fresh mint and rooibos tea with fruit concentrate and as much honey as I could find in the house, (melted in warm water beforehand) One of the children took a sip and said, ‘This isn’t even nice!’ That’s seven year olds for you! I then proceeded to explain that that is how it should taste, once you take all the sugar out! I don’t know if I won him over but he did finish it!

 


~And then the Pièce de résistance, The Birthday Cake:
I wanted to try something new, so I googled and googled until my googler was sore! I even found a recipe where they elected to forgo sugar and wheat in favour of shop bought mayonnaise (which would have all that and more! Grim) Now, what I should have done was to peruse the Freshearth website where I would have stumbled upon the Low Carb Chocolate cake with Aubergine, 


Always start the search in your own back yard, but what I did find and used, to the unending laughter of my son was this recipe and the kids didn’t throw it away!

Healthy Flourless Chocolate Cake
Adapted from a recipe at LowCarbFriends
Makes a 9″ one layer cake
Ingredients:
1-15 ounce can of unseasoned black beans
OR 1 1/2 cup cooked beans, any color
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons unsalted organic butter OR coconut oil
3/4 cup erythritol + 1/2 teaspoon pure stevia extract
OR 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons honey + 1/2 teaspoon pure stevia extract
OR 1 1/4 cup Splenda (using Splenda is not recommended)
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon water (omit if using honey)

Mint Chocolate variation:
2 teaspoons mint extract (in place of 2 teaspoons vanilla)
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9″ cake pan with extra virgin olive oil cooking spray, or just grease it with a thin layer of butter. Dust cocoa all over the inside of the pan, tapping to evenly distribute. Cut a round of parchment paper and line the bottom of the pan, then spray the parchment lightly.
Drain and rinse beans in a strainer or colander. Shake off excess water. Place beans, 3 of the eggs, vanilla, stevia (if using) and salt into blender. Blend on high until beans are completely liquefied. No lumps! Whisk together cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat butter with sweetener (erythritol or honey) until light and fluffy. Add remaining two eggs, beating for a minute after each addition. Pour bean batter into egg mixture and mix. Finally, stir in cocoa powder and water (if using), and beat the batter on high for one minute, until smooth. Scrape batter into pan and smooth the top. Grip pan firmly by the edges and rap it on the counter a few times to pop any air bubbles.
Bake for 40-45 minutes. Cake is done with the top is rounded and firm to the touch. After 10 minutes, turn out cake from pan, and flip over again on to a cooling rack. Let cool until cake reaches room temperature, then cover in plastic wrap or with cake dome (I use an overturned plastic chip bowl). For BEST flavor, let cake sit over night. I promise this cake will not have a hint of beaniness after letting it sit for eight hours! If you are stacking this cake, level the top with a long serrated knife, shaving off layers until it is flat and even. Frost immediately before serving
~58g net carbs for the whole cake using erythritol/stevia.
~6g net carbs per 1/10th
~126g net carbs for the whole cake using honey/stevia.
~13g net carbs per 1/10th

Healthy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Makes enough to thickly cover one layer, or fill and frost a halved stacked layer
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted organic butter, softened, OR 7 tablespoons nonhydrogenated shortening
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon erythritol, powdered, OR 1/4 cup xylitol, powdered
5-6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons half and half OR coconut milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of sea salt
Good-tasting pure stevia extract, to taste
Optional addition for a glossy finish:
1 fresh organic egg yolk

Preparation:
Cream the butter in a small bowl until fluffy. Powder erythritol or xylitol in a coffee grinder or Magic Bullet for a minute or two, until extremely fine in texture (reminiscent of powdered sugar). Let sweetener settle in grinder before opening the top. Stir powdered sweetener into butter with a spatula, then beat until smooth. Slowly blend in the cocoa powder (unless you want to redecorate your kitchen), vanilla, and sea salt. Beat in the half and half and egg yolk, if using. Add stevia, starting with 1/16 teaspoon. You’ll probably use less than 1/4 teaspoon. Just keep tasting and adjust sweetness to your liking.
~7g net carbs for the frosting, using erythritol



I had to double up to feed sixteen kids. My son is still giggling at the thought of the ingredients, I only told two of the parents and they giggled too! Have a look at the website I got it from. 


It’s refreshing, in the meantime, since I fully advocate laughter as a real means of therapy, I am leaving you with this YouTube video a colleague sent me. If you have been in the situation where you have to change your diet as result of allergies, you’ll get it, if you haven’t, I’m sure you know someone who has. Have a look and ponder this, how do you milk an oat?




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