Written by: James
Having been dead cert last week that everyone would be a on a major January detox, I have been set straight and told that such notions are soooo 2011, and everybody's eating cake like it's going out of fashion. Bravo, you only live once!
This week I've made spicy gingerbread, beetroot, cinnamon and chocolate muffins, (sugar free and wheat free no less, thank me later diabetics and parents*) rose petal and pistachio baklava (a test recipe for a box coming soon). We've got cinnamon and apple whoopie pies winging their way to spice box subscribers at the end of January (these are the ultimate in comfort food straight from the USA), and delicious spiced pancake sugar soon to be available for the big flip off on 21st February.
That's before I've mentioned that this year is a leap year, oh yes, all the single ladies, if you like it then YOU should put a ring on it and pop the question to your man on the 29th of Feb. (Not quite Beyonce's intended meaning, but this is 2012 people, strident feminists stand up!)
A helping hand with that loving feeling in the form of our fragrant valentines day curry, loaded with spices renowned for their aphrodisiac qualities; among them, cinnamon, black pepper, ginger, coriander, mustard and fennel.
The information bit...
In ancient Rome the word ‘cinnamon’ was akin to the modern day use of ‘sweetheart’, so highly prized were its love inducing properties.
Cardamon, nutmeg and ginger are thought to stimulate the senses, and raise the heart rate, mimicking feelings of love and lust.
Coriander is said to induce feelings of euphoria in women, cloves to increase a man’s desire and fennel was revered by the ancient Greeks for its libido enhancement; so much so that early cult images of the god Dionysus depict him holding a staff of fennel with a fennel wreath around his head.FACTOID.
Besides getting spiced right up with aphrodisiac curry, this week I managed to persuade my little man to get his hands dirty with a little bread making...
He says ' I like to punch the dough because it makes your arms strong'. Well said.
* Baking is a fantastic way to get kids into cooking, and using veggies like beetroot, carrots, courgettes along with agave syrup instead of sugar makes cakes waaay healthier and gets rid of the evil sugar rush. Spices like cinnamon and cassia also add sweet notes and depth to cakes, they can help manage diabetes too.
Chocolate, beetroot and cinnamon muffins.
100g good quality dark chocolate - broken up
200g butter - cut up
Either 40g golden syrup and 150g caster sugar OR 110g agave syrup
4 large eggs - separated
130g self raising flour (try doves farm for a wheat free flour)
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
a good pinch of salt (brings out the sweetness of the dark choc)
2 tsp cinnamon or cassia (or try ancho chilli, mixed spice or a scraped vanilla pod experimentez vous!)
250g cooked beetroot - pureed
Pre-heat the oven to 180C gas mark 4-5.
Melt the chocolate, sugar + golden syrup/ agave syrup and butter gently in a pan.
Sift the dry ingredients together in a bowl.
Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks.
Stir the egg yolks into the melted choc, then the beetroot puree.
Fold in the egg whites, then stir in the dry ingredients.
Pour into muffin cases and bake for 15-20 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
Lick the bowl, throw caution to the wind, eat 3 on the trot with half a tub of vanilla haagen daas INSTEAD of dinner. (Then write a food blog confessing your sins, go to the gym, overdo it, ache EVERYWHERE, feel grumpy for a few days whilst eating ONLY vegetable soup, then give in and do it all again. All in a weeks work people).
A quick SPICE APPRECIATION SHOUT OUT to fellow chef and spice lover Stevie Parle, check him and his restaurant out here: The Dock kitchen in London. He bravely ventured out of London to visit The Spicery towers, and is totally on the same spice page. I for one feel very excited about spice ice cream. Big up yerself Stevie!
Thanks for reading, I've been ladychef, you've been reading my Spicery kitchen diary.
Latest Blogs
