Choc Chunk Hot Cross Buns/ Hot Cross "Scones"

So, I did a thing. An Easter thing.

Besides Christmas, Easter is my favourite holiday. Why? Because a) it teaches us so much, be us Christian or not, about suffering and about sacrifice and about love and b) Chocolate and hot cross buns. The food at Christmas I feel I generally could eat all year round, but Easter eggs and hot cross buns… now that is seasonal.

And they are my favourites. So I decided this year, to both buy and make these goodies. And I was dying of jealousy over my family and their choc chip hot cross buns, so I decided to make my own. And I did! But they are sort of very crunchy, almost scone like. So I have called them hot cross scones, in lieu of the more bready texture I was hoping for. Still delicious? You betcha. Still vegan, gluten free and refined sugar free? You double betcha. Am I still going to eat all of them? That's just a silly question. Probably before the end of me typing out this recipe will I have eaten them all.

Better get cracking with it then. Now I baked these for 35 minutes at 190 degrees celcius, if you baked them for slightly shorter perhaps they would not be as crunchy. Also, if you perhaps kneaded them more than I did OR you used normal plain flour instead of gluten free, you might have better hope. Do you, make changes and be happy inconsitencies. It is what makes life exciting after all.

Ingredients: 

3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of Almond Milk (or dairy free milk of choice), slightly warm

2 tablespoons of coconut sugar, plus another 2 tablespoons of coconut sugar

1 sachet dried yeast (7g) 

1/4 cup melted dairy free margarine (I used the coconut oil based spread), melted

2 3/4 cup gluten free plain flour (plus extra for kneading later) 

1 teaspoon (or more, or less) mixed spice/ all spice 

Chopped chocolate, of choice (I used Loving Earth Dark) 

Spray oil, for pan 

Cross mixture: 

2 tablespoons of plain flour (approx., might need more or less) 

1 tablespoon water 

Glaze: 

1 tablespoon of coconut sugar 

1.5 tablespoons boiling water 

Method: 

In one bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of sugar, yeast and milk in bowl and set aside until yeast is activated (foaming). 

Add the melted spread of choice to this bowl and whisk until combined. 

In another bowl, add flour, mixed spice, chopped chocolate and the other tablespoons of sugar. Stir to combine. Then, make a well in the centre of this mixture bowl and add the liquid from the other bowl to the hole. Combine the mixtures until a sticky dough is formed. 

Lightly flour a clean surface (board, bench etc.) with flour of your choice (I used brown rice flour this time). Knead dough for as long as it requires until it is no longer sticking to your hands. 

Spray or coat oil on a bowl, and roll the dough into a ball and place it in the bowl, and cover with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap. Place in a warm area for an hour or until it has doubled in size. 

Just before your hour is up, preheat your oven to 190 degrees Celsius. 

Once it has, punch the air out on a clear (but unfloured) work space and knead for a little while longer. Divide the dough into even sections and roll these into small balls (as many or few as you like, these will be your buns). 

Spray oil a baking pan and place the balls right next to each other. 

Make your cross mixture, and pipe into cross shapes on top of buns (I cut a sandwich bag in the very corner very very tiny and used that haha) 

Pop the tray in the oven and allow to cook for 25-30 minutes or until hard on the top and when tapped, a hollow sound occurs. 

In the mean time, make your glaze and set aside. 

When ready, take the buns out of the oven and glaze them with a pastry brush. Allow to cool for 5 minutes so the glaze can harden, and then serve! 

Don't overcoat the buns, you don't want them to get too soggy. 

And enjoy with a nice cup of tea, or if you're like me, melted chocolate and banana stuffed. 

I like big buns and I cannot lie. 

Sweet Potato Pancakes

They are, as the title suggests, "sweet", even with the addition of sweet potato. Pancakes with an Autumnal flavour twist… me likey. Almost makes up for the cold… ALMOST. (I'm a summer girl but I don't mind autumn flavours, they can be so delicious… but I think I may like mango and ice cream more… and the heat. I can eat sweet potato pancakes in summer and be warm on the inside and outside simultaneously, universe!) 

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup buckwheat flour (or 1/4 cup buckwheat and 1/4 cup brown rice flour)

1 tsp baking powder 

1 tbsp maca powder (optional but recommended, I use this one ) 

1/2 cup steamed and mashed sweet potato (peeled before cooked) 

1 tbsp vanilla essence 

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp flax to 6 tbsp water, left in fridge overnight) 

1 mashed very ripe banana

1/2 cup plantbased milk 

Plantbased protein powder, optional (I use Rawr Energy vanilla in this recipe) 

Cinnamon and nutmeg, to taste 

Method: 

In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients and mix to combine. At the same time, chop your peeled sweet potato into chunks and steam it until soft. Then, put it through the blender until smooth. Put in bowl with dry ingredients and add mashed banana, flax eggs and milk. 

Heat a non-stick pan with your oil of choice (I love coconut oil) over medium heat, and one by one cook your pancakes until all cooked. Stack em up, and destroy them! It's easier than you think, especially if you add all your favourite toppings. I like Peanut butter, Dried figs, cacao nibs and coconut chips plus banana and berries. But be prepared for a large portion, that's the only way I'll eat my pancakes. Hehe. 

Sweet Potato Choc Chip Pancakes

Okay. I think the name of these explains it itself. Like, what more could you want in life? Sweet potato IS life.

These were so moist and sweet and delicious and ugh just give them a go will you? You won't regret it I promise.

Pictured: Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip pancakes topped with coconut PB, Square Bar Chunks, Blend Co, Banana, Blackberries and Raspberries. 

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup buckwheat flour 

1 tsp baking powder 

1 tbsp maca powder (optional but recommended, I use this one ) 

1/2 cup steamed and mashed sweet potato (peeled before cooked) 

1 tbsp vanilla essence 

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp flax to 6 tbsp water, left in fridge overnight) 

1 mashed very ripe banana

1/2 cup plantbased milk 

Cinnamon, to taste 

Method: 

In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients and mix to combine. At the same time, chop your peeled sweet potato into chunks and steam it until soft. Then, put it through the blender until smooth. Put in bowl with dry ingredients and add mashed banana, flax eggs and milk. 

Heat a non-stick pan with your oil of choice (I love coconut oil) over medium heat, and one by one cook your pancakes until all cooked. Stack em up, and destroy them! It's easier than you think, especially if you add all your favourite toppings. But be prepared for a large portion, that's the only way I'll eat my pancakes. Hehe. 

Organic Burst Black Friday sales here, but only until Monday!

Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes

So fresh… so fruity… so perfect for the 38 degree and humid as heck day in Sydney on Sunday! Phwoar.

These really hit the spot though and as much as I love a decadent stack of 'cakes, fresh and fruity is so fineeeeee with me. Mmmhmmm.

Ingredients: 

About 1/4 cup buckwheat flour (plus a little extra) and just under 1/4 cup of brown rice flour (making half a cup in total of flour)

1 tsp baking powder 

1 tbsp baobab powder (Not necessary but recommended, baobab is such a wonderful superfood, so fresh and fruity! I use this one) 

1 banana, ripe and mashed 

2 flax eggs, left overnight in the fridge if possible (makes a better consistency) 

1/2 cup plantbased milk (or a little less, add as you feel) 

Juice of 1/2 a lemon 

1 tbsp of poppyseeds 

Vanilla essence, if you like 

Method: 

Mix the dry ingredients together to combine (flours, baking powder, superfood powders etc.) and then add the dry ingredients to the dry mix and stir all to combine (adding now banana, "eggs", milk, lemon juice, poppyseeds and vanilla essence). Now you are ready to cook! 

In a small pan heat coconut oil over medium heat until the pan is hot/ ready to cook. Cook pancakes one by one (turning over to cook on both sides before removing) until all are cooked and serve with whatever your heart desires! 

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

Autumn flavours are some of the best I reckon. So delicious, so spiced and warming and yet fruity and delicious and decadent? It's got it all going on. Winner.

And I swore I didn't like pumpkin… but I realised I do. A lot. I love pumpkin. I'm a pumpkin bumpkin if you will. And especially in pancakes (and in my cake, which the recipe for is also on this blog). But these pancakes… woah man. Also another fun way to get some vegetables in even before lunch ;) What more could you want really?

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup buckwheat flour (the density of this flour alone works well with the pumpkin and the other liquids) 

1 tsp baking powder/ soda 

1 tbsp maca powder (optional but I love maca as it has many nutritional and health benefits, I use this one) 

1/4 cup pumpkin puree (I made it myself, just by steaming some pumpkin and popping through the blender until a nice puree consistency) 

2 flax eggs, preferably left overnight 

1/2 cup of plantbased milk (I used almond milk) 

1 banana, ripe and mashed 

Spices of choice (I used vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg but if you have pumpkin spice that would be great) 

Method: Mix flour, baking powder and maca powder in a bowl until well combined. Then add your wet ingredients (puree, mashed banana, spices, milk, flax eggs) and mix in with dry ingredients until your mixture is a nice thick consistency (don't over-mix). 

Heat a small pan with coconut oil (my favourite) and then cook the pancakes one by one. Make sure the pan is hot enough before beginning, otherwise the first one is always a bit of a fail anyway (just saying… my first one rarely makes it to the plate because I say it was a draft and eat it… a lot of my pancakes end up that way actually… woops) 

When you have cooked them all, serve them up and add your favourite toppings (I ate mine with coyo yoghurt, banana, raspberry chia jam, blend co, strawberries and diced red apple… delicious and lots of fall flavours in there mmm) 

Enjoy poppets! 

Sticky Date/ Banoffee Baked Quinoa Porridge

Oh yep. This was damn delicious. The end. We all lived happily ever after. (But seriously this was really good, it must be my love of dates and bananas and maca… but baked into a pudding like decadent hug like warm deliciousness )

Ingredients: 

1 cup of quinoa flakes (approximately, you can really use as much as you like, just make sure the liquid amount is the same) 

1 cup of almond milk (or any milk, I like almond though, again up to you on portion size but quinoa flakes to milk must be the same, and extra milk if required) 

1 very ripe banana, mashed (I used a biggggggg one) 

1 tablespoon vanilla essence 

1 tablespoon of cinnamon 

Maca powder (optional but I really find it makes it that caramel-y Banoffee flavour we want here, I use this one)

A couple of dates, seed removed and roughly chopped (as many as you like)

Pre-heat your oven to 180-200 degrees Celsius. Place the quinoa flakes and almond milk in a bowl together and combine well and allow to soak for 10 minutes or so. In the meantime, get your dates ready and mash your banana. After the time has elapsed, combine the soaked porridge with the mashed banana, vanilla, cinnamon, maca and stir the chopped dates through so it's all combined well. Pour the mixture into a ramekin and bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until golden brown on the top. 

I topped mine with fresh banana, strawberries, dessicated coconut, tahini and chopped dark chocolate. You can add things before baking or like me, after baking, up to you! Go crazy with it. And enjoy <3