Turkish Delight & Coconut Cream Jellies

I often find myself reinventing recipes to make them more nourishing and perhaps more satisfying to all the senses too.

This coconut cream Turkish Delight is deliciously light, looks so pretty and is ever so simple to make.  

I am so happy with it. 

The coconut layer is simply a can of coconut cream. Only Kara will will do- trust me, I tried another brand and it was grainy and truly horrible. Simply add a dsp of jaggery, honey or maple syrup, a tsp vanilla essence (homemade is so easy), and a dessert spoon and a half of gelatine.

Mix the gelatine with a little cold water, Sit for a minute to bloom. Microwave for 15 seconds & then stir through the coconut cream mixture. Make sure it's mixed through really well.

Pour into a glad wrap or greaseproof paper lined suitable container.

To make the Turkish Delight topping- brew 2 cups of rose petal & hibiscus tea (I add double pink hawthorn too), strain & add honey or jaggery to taste & a dsp of rose water.

Set with a dsp of gelatine- once again using a little of the liquid to dissolve the gelatine & then mix it back in the the rest of the tea. Cool. Carefully pour over the coconut base (which sets very quickly even out of the fridge) & leave to set fully in the fridge.   

Good gelatine itself is a wonderfully gut healing and nourishing food, along with the coconut and the lovely benefits of the herns (heart nourishing and spirit lifting especially) and the use of either honey or jaggery- a richly delicious and caramelly unrefined cane sugar product that I get from the Indian shop down the road, this really is a perfect summery delight..  

Jaggery. 

Very unrefined cane sugar with a delicious caramel flavour.

Katie X

Feijoa Jelly

 A few weeks ago when a man gleefully bought himself a large bag of feijoas from our wee stall he paused to chat and told me about how he likes to make a delicate jelly with the fruit. He uses a whole can of condensed milk to the blended fresh feijoas and them sets the liquid with gelatine. I just can't quite bring myself to use a tin of condensed milk so instead I used 1/2 can of Kara coconut cream, some honey and a little rose water. I soaked some gelatine in a little of the liquid, heated it gently to dissolve and then stirred some feijoa/coconut cream mix in to the warm gelatine stirring all the time- mix it all in together and then pour in to jars, small bowls or a larger one and leave to set in the fridge. It's quite gritty- feijoas will do that, but it's delicious. Adjust the amounts to suit. and gosh, use condensed milk if you want to!

Katie X

Hawthorn and Blackberry Ice Blocks, Jelly and Pastilles

Late summer in Hawke's Bay means that it's time for both blackberry picking 

& the gathering of hawthorn berries. 

Both are deeply rewarding but also rather challenging to harvest with all those thorns & prickles, providing a great opportunity to slow down & enjoy the experience.

So it's lovely to realise that there are so many delicious things to do with them both. Last summer I came across a brilliant little recipe for "ice pops" over at Learning Herbs. I have adapted the recipe to make use of blackberries, rather than raspberries. It is so worth reading the whole article about reducing inflammation & managing the heat of summer.

To make the basic mix: simmer 1/2 c haws & 1/2 c (or a little less) hibiscus sabdriffa in 2 cups of water in a medium sized pot for around 10 minutes, add 1 cup of blackberries & simmer for another 10 mins. Strain. While still warm add 1/2 c honey & a pinch of salt & stir to dissolve the honey.

When cool stir in 1/2 tin of coconut milk or cream. We prefer Kara coconut cream.

Stir altogether & pour in to ice block moulds. Freeze.

Any extra can be set in to a jelly with gelatine.

Or the same mix can be used to make a larger dessert like below.

Simply take a 1/3 c of the liquid before you've added the coconut cream/milk & add 1 1/2 dessertspoons of gelatine. Stir. Leave to swell for a few minutes. Microwave for 12 seconds & stir to dissolve. Pour the gelatine mix in to the main liquid & stir well. Now mix in the coconut cream.

Pour in to a pretty bowl, small bowls or little jars with lids. Pop in to the fridge. 

Each time we make this fabulously simple dessert it comes out a different colour. It naturally layers itself much like Spanish cream which is fun.

The final option is to make a batch of immune boosting, gut nourishing pastilles: use the same original recipe but leave out the coconut cream & add fresh or dried elderberries.

The amount is a little less so in to a medium pot add 1 1/2 cups water & 1- 1 &1/2 cups of a mix of hawthorn berries, blackberries, elderberries & hibiscus sabdariffa. Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Strain. Add honey to taste.

 Take out a little of the 1 1/2 cups of liquid & add 3 tablespoons of gelatine. We really like Nutra Organics natural gelatine. Pop in to the microwave for 15 seconds (or use a small pot on the stove). Stir to dissolve. Pour the gelatine into the main liquid stirring well. Pour in to moulds or a small tin lined with baking paper. A syringe is a great tool to get the liquid in to small moulds. Leave to set- around 20 minutes. Press out shapes or use a biscuit cutter to make hearts etc, if you'd like to. 

Will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks. Best left uncovered to deter moulding. One or two eaten each day from late summer into autumn make a delicious seasonal support for old & young a like. 

 

Both pictures by Margaret Tarrant

Katie X

Yoghurt Cheesecake

This recipe for a yoghurt cheesecake was originally sourced from my time in Le Leche League back in Taranaki when the kids were little. This is just a basic outline- the photos are not overly inspiring but sometimes you just want to get on & make the thing. There'll be another time to do a better job of recording the process.

The base: is made by crunching up most of a packet of Krispie biscuits in the food processor with 1/2 cup of coconut. Add 100 grams of melted butter- or enough to bring the mixture together.

Press in to an oiled spring form tin with lightly wet hands.If it's still crumbly it needed more butter.

The middle layer is simply a kilo of Greek yogurt set with gelatine. You could use any commercial flavoured yoghurt if you prefer.

To set: in a small jug or pot soak 1 rounded dsp of powdered gelatine in a 1/3 c of cold water.

heat in the microwave for 30 secs, or gently heat in the pot on the stove.

Stir to dissolve.

Add a tbsp of honey (or to taste) and a dsp of vanilla essence- skip this if you've used a flavour like strawberry.

Cool. then add 1/2 cup of the yoghurt in to the gelatine mixture & stir well. Then pour that mixture in to the yoghurt & stir quickly to get the gelatine mixed right through with out going lumpy, as it sets quite quickly once it meets the cold yoghurt.

Pour over the base & pop in to the fridge to set.

You could leave it just like that, decorate with fruit or flowers to serve or serve with cream.

If you want to add a jelly layer then:

The jelly topping could be anything you like really, but this one made with half a  litre of water, a flat dsp of gelatine (soak the gelatine in a little water, heat to dissolve add in to the larger amount) sweetened with honey. add the juice of a lemon or orange & some elderflower syrup. You could also use just apple juice & sweeten it a bit, or berries or make it lemony- just use what you have & your imagination. Yum passionfruit would be brilliant!

Cool & then when the yoghurt layer has just set- very carefully pour the jelly over the top & return to the fridge. It'll take a couple of hours to set well. Best left all day or overnight before serving.

Katie X

More Violets- Simple Syrup & Cheesecake

Violets are amazing- they turn up in the depths of winter and provide such a wonderful lift through the coldest months with their glorious scent, sweet little flowers and their gentle medicine. Last week I popped in to the valley at Keirunga gardens to visit the wild violets under the oak trees and gathered a little basketful of sweetly scented blooms.

 I tried another recipe for making violet syrup this time round. It was so simple and so much fun.

Put 2 cups of violet flowers in to a bowl or jug & pour over them 2 cups of just boiled water.

Cover & let the violets steep for around half an hour.

After this time the colour will have drained from the flowers & the liquid will have become a gorgeous colour. Violet water is highly ph sensitive so your violet "tea" will alter in shade depending on what water you use and what else you add to the syrup.

 The little jug on the left is just the infused water, the one on the right has had a few drops of lemon juice added to it. 

Strain when you're ready & while the liquid is still warm stir in a tbsp of honey (to taste). This violet "syrup can now be stored in the fridge for a week or so, but I wanted to use the syrup so I made a cheesecake. 

I used my trusty base of 1/3 cup each of broken cashews, walnut pieces and coconut, 

add 4 or 5 soft dates (remove the stones first) 

Add a tbsp of melted coconut oil and briefly combine in a food processor until mixed to a fine crumb. Press in to a greased springform tin. I used two small tins.

The middle layer is so simple and tastes quite a lot like milk bottle lollies.

Gently warm a tin of coconut milk in a small pot until the fats have melted. Cool, pour most of the milk in to a bowl. Add 1 tsp vanilla essence, and a tbsp of honey and stir to dissolve. 

Add 2 tsps of gelatine to the remaining 1/2 cup of coconut milk in the pot. Stand a few minutes and allow to bloom. Then heat gently, stirring to dissolve the gelatine. Mix the two lots together in the bowl and pop in to the fridge. 

Now go through the same process for the violet syrup. Add some more lemon juice to the syrup if you like as it enhances the flavour of the violets. Pour a little of the cooled violet syrup in to a bowl and sprinkle over 2 tsps of gelatine. Allow to bloom. Heat for 30 seconds in the microwave, or in a small pot. Stir to dissolve. Cool- add back in to the main syrup and stir well. 

Now pour the coconut mixture over the base and return to the fridge.

When the mixture is just set, pour over the violet jelly very gently.

Chill for several hours or overnight until well set.

For a firmer jelly add an extra 1/2 tsp of gelatine to each layer.

 It seems like a strange thing to do- head to the river for a picnic in winter, but honestly winter picnics are wonderful! This is one of our favourite spots up Ellis Wallace road alongside the Esk river. In under the hawthorn bushes there can be found a carpet of wild violets.

The spring flowers were gathered at Pandora Pond on our journey here- we mostly picked the ones with broken or bent stems that would otherwise have been wasted.

  I even found a little patch of white violets on this visit- perfect for the top of our little cheesecake.

 I made a decoction of Silver Linden flowers and bracts (simmered for 15 minutes with half a cinnamon stick) and short brewed Sagewood and Elderflower tea. Such a glorious fragrant combination that was perfect for sipping in the outdoors...

while eating such a delicious and delicate treat.

More about using violets just here.

And the recipe for violet honey cough syrup here.

Katie X

Elderflowers- Jelly & Fizz

Every October I start looking out for the first elderflowers.

 I just adore the sweetly scented bridal flowers.

They are also lovely medicinal plants- both the flowers & the berries being good medicine.

I am often drawn to posts with recipes for using the fragrant flowers, but when I look further I realise that they are really quite impractical- fritters & sugary cordials don't particularly work for me as useful food.

However, healing jellies & elderflower fizz certainly do!

So here is our simple little recipe for making both, in small batches, using 1 litre Agee or Mason jars.

As soon as the elders begin to flower we keep our eyes peeled for accessible bushes.

And gather just what we need- a little at a time.

This way we can make a dozen batches over the flowering season.

So- to a large Agee jar add 6-8 flower heads (no leaves & no washing- just shake the flowers out a little to dislodge any insects) & the juice of a lemon.

Add some lemon slices too, if you like.

Then pour boiling water over the flowers to fill the jar- once it's cooled a little, add a large tablespoon of honey. I'm sure you can use sugar if you like- dissolve it in to the hot liquid.

Pop the lid on & leave to sit for 24- 48 hours.

Strain through a sieve & using a funnel fill a small grolsch (or similar) bottle.

Clip down the lid & leave for 3-7 days.

You can check on the fizz from time to time if you like- it'll re-carbonate itself.

Take care when you take the lid off as it can froth everywhere.

The fizz is created by the action of the natural yeasts & pollens in the flowers.

Adjust the amount of honey to taste.

Chill well before serving.

The other half of the strained liquid is what we use to make elderflower jellies.

The quantity left will fill two small (225ml) Agee or jam jars perfectly.

How to make the jelly:

In a small pot soak 2 level tsps of powdered gelatine in half a cup of the elderflower liquid.

Stir together & then leave to soak a few minutes.

Set over gentle heat & stir to dissolve the gelatine.

Cool, then and in the rest of the liquid.

Taste & add more lemon juice or more honey to taste.

Pour in to the two jars, pop on the lids & in to the fridge they go.

 Perfectly portable, great for picnics & travelling. Lovely with roasted strawberries & yoghurt.
Makes a delicious breakfast or dessert. And best of all, is wonderfully healing & nourishing for the digestive system.

Katie