AN EXOTIC FRUIT GATEAU WITH NUTS AND SEEDS

NO BUTTER, NO EGGS, NO FLOUR, NO SUGAR, NO BAKE!
Ideal for vegans and celiacs

225g dried apricots, prunes or dates, quartered
275ml orange juice
100g sunflower seeds
50g sesame seeds
50g pumpkin seeds
150g ground almonds
150g ground roasted hazelnuts
100g finely chopped hazelnuts
175g raisins
1 tsp vanilla essence
Toasted flaked almonds to decorate

Soak fruit overnight in orange juice.
Line a 7" cake tin with greaseproof paper leaving plenty around the sides to lift cake out later.
Mix all dry ingredients except raisins in a large bowl.
Half-puree the fruit with juice, raisins and vanilla essence in a food processor or blender.
Add to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Transfer to the lined cake tin and press down with a large spoon or masher until well compacted.
Cover with a round of greaseproof paper with a side plate topped with a heavy weight.
Chill in the fridge for 7 - 8 hours.
Ease the cake out of the tin by lifting the greaseproof carefully. Peel off the paper and decorate the cake with the flaked almonds.
Serve as a cake or dessert with cream.

THE TRUTH ABOUT ORGANIC v INDUSTRIAL

Only popped online to check out my emails this morning and found a link to this article. Naturally it is of great interest to us and our business, but we also believe it explains clearly, if somewhat lengthily, why we are wedded to organic.

The issue of feeding the world is perhaps, alongside global warming and expanding populations, the most important challenge we and future generations have to face. Of course, they are all linked.
Like most people we just want to get on with our lives and not have to think about what looks like an increasingly bleak prospect for the future, but can we afford to? It's up to each of us to decide. What we do urge is that you read this article. What it has to say seriously affects not just our planet, but our health. Secondly, we ask that your forward it to your friends. We're in this together.

Here are the first couple of paras to get you started. (Click on 'this article' (in green above) to read the rest)

Organic can feed the world

by Maria Rodale

(September 2010) — You probably buy organic food because you believe it’s better for your health and the environment but you also may have heard criticism that “organic cannot feed the world.”

Biotech and chemical companies have spent billions of dollars trying to make us think that synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are necessary to feed a growing population. But science indicates otherwise.

There’s clear and conclusive scientific data showing organic agriculture is key not only to solving global hunger but also to curbing global warming, promoting public health, revitalizing farming communities, and restoring the environment.

WHOOPS!

Have just noticed the Apricot and Oat Square recipe (3 posts below this ) already appeared back in March, so am up-dating this latest one - as a variation. I think I prefer this (softer) version.

SUNFLOWER AND SESAME BISCUITS and HAZELNUT AND ALMOND BISCUITS WITH POPPY SEEDS - suitable for celiacs

Both are great with cheeses, jam or honey or as a base for canapés.

SUNFLOWER AND SESAME

200g ground sunflower seeds · 25g sesame seeds · 1 tsp baking powder · 25g melted butter ·
2-3 tbsps water or milk · 1/2 tsp salt (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 190˚C/375˚F. Combine seeds, baking powder and salt (if using) then mix in the melted butter thoroughly. Add water/milk gradually, stirring as you go, to achieve a sticky dough. Take small handfuls one at a time, squeeze together tightly, flatten on a board with the palm of your hand then cut into small rounds with a pastry cutter. Lift each one carefully onto a baking sheet covered with greaseproof paper.
Bake for approximately 10 minutes until slightly browned and firm to the touch. Allow to cool a little on the tray before transferring to a wire rack.

You can use this mix as a base for savoury flans too.

HAZELNUT AND ALMOND WITH POPPY SEEDS

75g ground hazelnuts · 150g ground almonds · 1 tbsp poppy seeds · 1 tsp baking powder · 25g melted butter · 2-3 tbsps water or milk · 1/2 tsp salt (optional)

Instructions as above

You can use this mix (without salt) as a base for sweet flans too.

DANGER!

High Fructose Corn Starch is used in just about all processed, packet foods, colas, baked goods, fruit-flavoured drinks and even some flavoured yoghurts! It's a lot cheaper than ordinary sugar and extends shelf life, but that's where the advantages end.
It's well known that cancers thrive on glucose but recent studies at UCLA have shown that fructose too can cause a rapid increase in certain cancer cells. (HFCS is made by converting some of the glucose in corn to fructose)
HFCS can also worsen diabetes, affect the immune system, increase weight (more than ordinary sugar) and even speed up the aging process. It's wise to be wary of artificial sweeteners in 'diet' foods too. Even though the vested interests may maintain they're safe, they should surely be obliged to PROVE they AREN'T dangerous.

If you buy processed foods and drink lots of colas you may be consuming unhealthy amounts of HFCS. Yet another reason to buy fresh food only.

P.S. ACCORDING TO THE LATEST FIGURES, ONE IN THREE OF AMERICAN CHILDREN BORN SINCE 2000 HAVE EARLY ONSET DIABETES (IN THE POORER CLASSES, THE FIGURE IS ONE IN TWO)!

To find out more, Google HFCS and check out some of the sites.

APRICOT AND OAT CAKES

Despite strong competition for tasty nibbles, these easy-bake cakes were very popular at the Kingdom Végétale charity fair in Boulogne-sur-Gesse:

INGREDIENTS

100g softened butter
3 tbsp sunflower oil
175g soft brown sugar
225g plain flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
40g oatflakes
60g ground oatflakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
200g dried apricots stewed and pureed (drain off excess liquid into a jug before pulverising)
grated rind of 1 lemon to sprinkle over the apricot layer (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 180˚C/350˚F.

Combine the butter and oil with the sugar then mix in the flour followed by the rest of the dry ingredients. Line a 20cm x 30cm shallow baking tin with greaseproof paper. Spread half the mixture evenly into the tin and flatten well. Spread the apricot puree on top then finish with the rest of the oat mix. Flatten really well.

Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes until firm to the touch and slightly browned. Mark out into squares in the tin and leave to cool. Carefully remove from the tin, lay on a board and cut out the squares. Decorate with a little icing sugar.

Enjoy with a cuppa or pour some of the leftover apricot juice over the top of each square and finish with a blob of cream, or even custard, for a tasty desert.

We're frequently advised to reduce salt in our diets but it has a myriad of other uses in the home. If we want to get away from those toxic cleaning fluids displayed in colourful containers in the supermarket - expensive as well as dangerous - let's not forget the virtues of simple salt.
Here are a few useful tips:
Pour salt and hot water down your sink to prevent grease from building up.
Mix salt with soda water to clean and deodorize the inside of your fridge.
Keep a bag next to your cooker to put out accidental fires; it forms an oxygen-excluding crust and extinguishes the flames. Never use water, particularly on grease fires.
Add a dash of salt to fresh flower water - they will last longer.
Repair small holes in plasterboard walls - mix 2 tablespoons salt with 2 tablespoons cornflour then add enough water to make a thick paste. Fill the holes and leave to dry.
To ease bee stings, immediately dampen the area then apply a teaspoonful of salt to reduce the pain and swelling.
For mosquito bites, a saltwater soak is good and you can also use a poultice of salt and olive oil
And outside:
To deter patio weeds, pour salt in between the cracks, sprinkle with water or let the rain do the rest.
These are just a few. There's loads more info here on The Salt Institute website.