Roasted Cauliflower and Quinoa Salad

Every time I have cauliflower I realise how much I love it, but I don't have it often enough. This roasted cauliflower and quinoa salad was perfect for a sunny winter's day. I got the inspiration from this recipe, but since I didn't have most of the ingredients I just used what I happened to have in the fridge. The original recipe sounds amazing though, so I might just give that a go next. 

Roasted Cauliflower and Quinoa Salad

(serves 4)

1 whole cauliflower, cut in to florets

1 red onion, cut into thin wedges

olive oil

salt

pepper

1 cup quinoa (I used white)

vegetable stock

1/4 lemon, juiced

baby spinach

slivered almonds

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. Scatter cauliflower and onion on a roasting pan, add olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes or until tender. 

2. Rinse quinoa and cook in vegetable stock until tender and fluffy. Add lemon juice and mix with a fork. 

3. Combine quinoa with the vegetables and sprinkle with almonds. Serve warm.

First Day of Winter

Winter is finally here, now bring on the cooler weather! I think this lentil soup will be my favourite this season.

Lentil Soup

(serves at least 6 people)

olive oil

3-4 carrots, peeled and finely chopped

1 brown onion, finely chopped

200g (1 cup) red lentils

2 tins of chopped tomatoes

2 vegetable bouillon cubes (or vegetable stock)

water

black pepper

1. Heat oil in a large pot, add carrots and onion and cook for a few minutes.

2. Add lentils, chopped tomatoes and vegetable stock. Add water as much as necessary (I like thick soups and lentils will thicken the soup as they cook). 

3. Simmer for 20 minutes or until vegetables have soften. Serve warm.

Nutritious Meals for Busy Mums (and others, too!)

After becoming a mum I quickly realised that time spend cooking meals (or in fact doing any other tasks around the home) was very limited. Not wanting to negotiate healthy meals, I dug through my recipe archives and found some nutritious meals that are quick and easy to prepare. Of course there are days when toast and snacks will have to do, but these meals don't take that much more time to make.

Here are some of my favourites:

Skin Beauty Salad

• Bonus: Includes good fats and protein
• Short cut: Use organic, tinned chickpeas
• Make ahead: Soak almonds over night
• Keep in the pantry: Organic chickpeas, tahini, almonds

Soba Salad           

• Bonus: Can be eater warm or cold
• Add on: Tofu or tempeh for protein
• Keep in the pantry: Organic soba noodles (I like this brand)

Cauliflower Curry   

• Bonus: Quick to prepare, filling 
• Make Ahead: Store the spice mix in an air-tight container and just add other sauce                       ingredients before preparing
• Keep in the pantry: Spices, sesame seeds, almonds, coconut cream, coconut oil

Also, Chickpea Curry

Earth Bowl

• Bonus: Filling with low GI carbs and protein
• Short Cut: Use organic, tinned chickpeas and quinoa instead of freekeh
• Keep in the pantry: Organic, tinned chickpeas, quinoa, hazelnuts (or use any other nut!), apple cider vinegar, tofu (or tempeh)

Black-Eyed Pea Stir-Fry

• Bonus: Quick and easy to prepare
• Short cut: Use tinned beans
• Keep in the pantry: Organic black-eyed peas (or replace with chickpeas or other beans)

Protein Smoothies

• Bonus: Super quick and filling snack, easy to prepare with whatever is available
• Keep in the pantry: Pure protein powder (brown rice or pea are my favourites)

Power Balls

• Bonus: Easy and delicious snack
• Add on: A scoop of protein powder
• Keep in the pantry: Almond butter, chia seeds, spices, raw cacao powder

Also, Coconut Balls

More Recipes Here! 

A Glimpse Into My Daily Diet

I thought I'd share a little snapshot of my daily diet, although you may have a pretty good idea of it already based on the recipes I've shared here over the years. I can quite happily eat the same foods (mostly plant-based whole foods) every day without ever getting sick of them, so my daily meals usually consist of copious amounts of vegetables served with legumes or whole grains, as well as some nuts, seeds and fruit. Of course there are sometimes exceptions to these daily foods, and those are often the ones that end up here on my blog.

During the cooler months I start my day with a bowl of oat porridge with a tablespoon of chia seeds, but as the weather gets warmer I tend to swap this breakfast to that of a protein smoothie. I drink a green juice most days and snack with raw nuts (mostly almonds and walnuts) and a few pieces of dried (Medjool dates or organic apricots) or fresh fruit.

In winter I love having vegetables soups (like this one) for lunch and/or dinner, but in spring and summer I prefer a big salad made with legumes (chickpeas, lentils, etc.), various types of vegetables (kale, avocado, cucumber, tomato, snow peas, carrots, etc.), scattered with seeds (sunflower or pumpkin) and drizzled with some fresh lemon juice and flaxseed oil. Dinner is often very similar to lunch, but with a different type of protein, often tempeh or a different type of legume or whole grain (quinoa, freekeh, etc.) I do eat eggs occasionally, even a small piece of fish once in a while, but I can happily do without any animal products (including dairy) for long periods of time.

Since I don't have a particularly sweet tooth, dessert is more often than not a piece of fresh fruit or dark chocolate (Loving Earth is one of my favourites), even a glass of home-made almond milk before bed will do.

So there you go, a short glimpse into my daily diet. Please feel free to send through any comments/questions if you have any!

On the photos, left to right: almond milk, protein smoothie, green juice, lentil salad with kale, fresh salad with tempeh and fresh kale salad with chickpeas.

Protein Smoothies

 Strawberry Protein Smoothie

(serves 1)

a few fresh strawberries

250ml almond milk (recipe here)

a few ice cubes

2 tablespoons pure pea protein isolate

ground vanilla, to taste

Banana Protein Smoothie

(serves 1)

1 ripe banana, peeled

250ml almond milk (recipe here)

a few ice cubes

1 heaped teaspoon Miessence Berryradical Antioxidant Superfood/

raw cacao powder

Feel free to add your favourite leafy greens (kale is superb), avocado, different berries, etc. 
Sky is your limit!

Roasted Beets with Black Rice and Kale

I just can't get enough of kale, so here's another delicious little meal I made the other day. Beetroot are a great source of iron (as well as other nutrients) and I love how well they marry with earthy black rice. I add good oils to all my meals; sunflower seeds, flaxseed oil or tahini, for example. You can play around with the add-ons in this recipe; walnuts or tahini dressing would go great as well.

Roasted Beets with Black Rice and Kale

(serves 2)

3 small to medium sized beetroot

180g wholegrain black (non-glutinous) rice

a few stems of kale

sunflower seeds (or walnuts, sesame seeds, etc)

1/2 lemon

flaxseed oil

balsamic vinegar

ground pepper

pinch of salt (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 200C and clean the beetroot. Remove the leaves (if the leaves are in good condition, don't chuck them out! Just wash them well, steam lightly and enjoy as a salad) leaving some of the stems attached. Wrap each beetroot in foil and roast on a tray for about 45-60 minutes or until tender. Remove from the oven, let cool and peel off the skins. Cut into wedges.

2. Cook the black rice until tender. Set aside.

3. Remove the kale leaves from the stems, rinse well and 'massage' the leaves in a bowl until tender. Add rice and beetroot wedges. Add sunflower seeds, juice of 1/2 a lemon, a dash of balsamic, flaxseed oil and seasoning. Eat warm or room temperature.

Greenlicious Kale Salad with Tahini Dressing

It's been a busy weekend at home, catching up on housework and everything else that has piled up during the past few very busy weeks. With warmer weather I have been craving for everything green, including juices and smoothies, but also more and more salads. This kale salad, delicious and full of good oils, was a real energy booster after a long walk in the near by park.

Greenilicious Kale Salad with Tahini Dressing

(serves 2)

1/2 big bunch of kale, washed and stems removed

1 avocado, peeled, seeded and diced

2 green onions (shallots), finely sliced

a handful of walnuts

pinch of salt (optional)

freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons flaxseed oil

Tahini Dressing

2 generous tablespoons of tahini

1/2 small lemon, juiced

1-2 tablespoons  water

1. Massage the kale until wilted and tender. Add avocado, green onions and walnuts. Season with salt and pepper and toss in the oil. 

2. Whisk tahini, lemon and water in a jug and stir through the salad.

Grapefruit and Fennel Salad

Meillä on ollut ihanan aurinkoinen ja lämmin viikonloppu. Pitemmän kävelylenkin päätteeksi teki mieli vähän kevyempää lounasta ja tässä salaatissa yhdistyivät sopivasti herkulliset raaka-aineet. 

Voi kunpa nämä tällaiset säät jatkuisivat! Kevättä alkaa olla jo viimeistään ensi kuussa selvästi ilmassa ja odotan kovasti etenkin sitä kukkaloistoa mikä täällä on kevään aikana aina upeimmillaan. Pirteän vaaleanpunaiset tulppaanit piristivät kuitenkin kummasti kotiamme tänä viikonloppuna.

Ihanaa alkavaa viikkoa kaikille!

A sunny winter's day called for a lighter lunch. Ruby grapefruit, fennel, rocket and avocado turned out to be a perfect combination of flavours and textures. I added some walnuts for a bit more crunch.

Grapefruit and Fennel Salad

(Recipe adapted from here)

2 ruby grapefruit, peeled and cut to segments

1 fennel bulb, finely sliced

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1 avocado, sliced

a small bag of rocket

walnuts

 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

black pepper, to taste

Mix the salad ingredients in a bowl and toss with the dressing. Serve immediately.

 

I had to have some bright pink tulips for the weekend.

Marinated Fennel and Pear Salad

I finally had a chance to try lemon and olive oil marinated fennel, highly recommended by a friend who also happens to be one of my favourite bloggers. I love fennel as it is, but the simple marinade of lemon and olive oil truly take it to a whole new level. I whipped up a quick lunch by adding baby spinach leaves (but you could use rocket, if you have it), thinly sliced pear and macadamia nuts to fennel I had marinated for a couple of hours in the fridge.

Marinated Fennel and Pear Salad

(serves 2)

1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced

1 lemon, juiced

2-3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 pear, thinly sliced

baby spinach or rocket leaves

macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

1. Add fennel, lemon juice and olive oil in a bowl. Toss to combine and refrigerate for a couple of hours.

2. To serve, simply toss the marinated fennel with the rest of the ingredients.

Leek and Potato Soup

Sydney is still sweltering in summery weather, with temperatures reaching 30C almost daily. There was, however, a cooler break some days ago and I just had to take the opportunity to make another soup. Potato and leek soup has been a favourite of mine for a long time, and even though I've shared a recipe for it before, I thought it won't do any harm doing it again.

I used nutritional yeast to flavour this soup, but you could easily use a dash of cream or soft cheese (flavoured cream cheese, for instance) instead. All it needs is a little drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil and another one of those rye-crisp breads with cheese to serve with.

I'd like more of these cool days please!

Leek and Potato Soup

(serves 4-6)

5 big potatoes

2 big leeks

1 litre vegetable stock

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 

freshly ground pepper, to taste

extra-virgin olive oil, to serve

1. Peel and chop the vegetables and place in a large pot with vegetable stock. Bring to boil and simmer for about half an hour or until vegetables are tender. 

2. Turn off the heat and season the soup with nutritional yeast (or cream) and pepper. Purée the soup in a blender and serve drizzled with olive oil.

Barbecued Tofu and Portobello Salad

During summer, I mainly survive on salads, fruit and other cold, light meals without even craving for anything heartier. This summer we finally bought a little barbecue for our balcony and have used it a couple of times to mix things up a bit. This marinated tofu and portobello salad is one of my favourites; it's hearty enough to suffice for a proper meal, but light enough for even a hot summer's day.

Barbecued Tofu and Portobello Salad

(serves 2-4)

350g extra-firm tofu

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon tamari

pepper, to taste

a few large portobello mushrooms, sliced

mixed salad leaves

cucumber, sliced

cherry tomatoes, halved

avocado, diced

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1-2 carrots, coarsely grated

 extra-virgin olive oil or flaxseed oil, to serve

toasted sesame seeds, to serve

 1. Cut the tofu to about 1-2 cm slices and put in a shallow bowl. Mix the marinade ingredients in a separate bowl and pour over the tofu. Leave to marinade for about half an hour.

2. Prepare the rest of salad while the tofu is marinating. Barbecue (or pan-fry) the tofu first, then use the left-over marinade to brush over the mushroom slices before barbecuing. Mix tofu and mushrooms with the rest of the ingredients, drizzle with extra oil if necessary, extra pepper and scatter with toasted sesame seeds.

Quick Green Bean Salad

It's a sunny Sunday here in Sydney and there is no way I'm spending it in the kitchen! This green bean salad is perfectly quick to prepare before heading out to the balcony to enjoy some lunch and sunshine. Happy Sunday all!

 Quick Green Bean Salad

(serves 2)

a few handfuls of baby spinach

a few handfuls of green beans

3 tablespoons raw buckwheat 

3 tablespoons slivered almond

a good pinch of salt

pepper, to taste

1 small orange, juiced

a few tablespoons of good olive oil

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

feta or parmesan, to serve (optional)

1. Bring water to a boil in a medium sized pot. Add the beans and leave for a couple of minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Chop the beans in half (or to bite-size pieces).

2. Toast buckwheat and almonds on a dry frying pan for a few minutes, stirring continuously. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. Whisk orange juice, olive oil and ACV in a bowl. Toss all ingredients in a large bowl and serve immediately. Add feta or parmesan, if you wish.

Sunnuntai Sämpylät - Sunday Bread Rolls

 

 

Sunday mornings call for baking. When the smell of fresh bread filled my kitchen I knew the day had started just right. Warm bread rolls smothered with fruit spread and a big cup of tea was perfection. Peaceful and lazy Sunday was exactly what I needed ahead of a busy week.

Sunnuntaiaamut kutsuvat leipomaan. Eilen aamulla sämpylöiden tuoksu täytti pienen keittiöni ja tuntui kuin päivä olisi lähtenyt juuri oikein käyntiin. Lämpimät sämpylät hedelmäisellä hillolla ja iso kuppi teetä – täydellistä! Rauhallinen ja laiska sunnuntai tuli tarpeeseen, viikosta on tulossa kiireinen.

 

Sunday Bread Rolls

(makes 16-20)

(recipe adapted from pirkka.fi)

500ml warm water

11g dry yeast

150g rolled oats

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons treacle

about 400 wholemeal flour

about 200g plain flour

50ml olive oil

1. Mix yeast with rolled oats and add warm (42C) water. Add salt and treacle.

2. Knead flour in bit by bit until you get a soft dough. Add oil and knead until smooth. Cover and leave in a warm place to double in size.

3. Roll the dough into buns and place on baking sheets lined with baking paper. Cover and leave to rise for about 20-30 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 200C. Bake the bread rolls for 12 minutes or until browned from top and the bottom.

Friday Bites: Mushroom Lasagne

Here's a rare treat for you - a pasta recipe! You might remember that I'm really not the biggest fan of pasta and tend to only cook it for my husband who is not as fussy as I am. Although tasty, I must admit that even this dish was mainly demolished by him and not me. Regardless, I wanted to try making a dairy-free (and vegan) lasagne and this turned out surprisingly well.

 

The trick is to use a lot of mushrooms for a hearty result. You could even use more than I did, up to, say 700 grams. Add flavour with capers, olives, sundried tomatoes and (dried or fresh) herbs and use wholemeal lasagne sheets for a nuttier flavour.

 

 

Mushroom Lasagne

(serves 4-6)

olive oil for the pan

1 onion, finely diced

1 clove garlic, grated 

3 small carrots, finely diced

500g mixed mushrooms (button, shiitake, portobello), sliced

2 tins diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons French capers
olives, sundried tomatoes, optional

salt, pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon paprika

grated nutmeg
fresh or dried herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano), optional

300-500ml vegetable stock

300g silken firm tofu

pepper to taste

2-3 tablespoons plain flour

100-150ml cold water

wholemeal lasagne sheets

1. Heat oil in a large pan and add onion, garlic and carrots. Cook for a few minutes, then add mushrooms. Cook for a further 3-4 minutes and add rest of the ingredients. Leave to simmer on low heat for about half an hour.


2. Bring vegetable stock to a boil in a medium sized pot. Use a hand blender to blend in the tofu. Season with pepper. Whisk flour with cold water and stir into the stock. Stir until the sauce thickens, then remove from the heat.

3. Preheat oven to 200C and grease a baking dish with olive oil.

4. To assemble the lasagne, spoon some of the tomato sauce on the bottom of the dish. Add a layer of lasagne sheets, then some of the white sauce, tomato sauce and more lasagne sheets. Continue for a few layers. Finish off with a layer of white sauce and tomato sauce. Bake for 40-45 minutes and leave to cool for at least half an hour before serving.

Oven-Baked 3-Grain Porridge with Blueberry Soup

It was a beautiful weekend here in Sydney, so sunny and warm! I got most of the things done on my to do-list, including this oven-baked porridge which I've been craving for a while. The recipe is based on my old favourite, pearl barley porridge, but this one has a lot 'grainier' texture and nuttier flavour. Sweet blueberry soup was a perfect companion and I was happy as ever to devour a bowl of this whilst enjoying the sun on our balcony.

Bring on the new week!

Oven-Baked 3-Grain Porridge

(serves 4)

70g oat groats

70g rye groats

70g brown rice

700-800ml unsweetened oat milk

a pinch of salt 

olive oil for the baking dish

1. Start by soaking the grains for at least a couple of hours. When ready to bake, drain the grains.

2. Preheat oven to 150C and brush an oven dish (21cm x 15cm) with some oil.

3. Combine all grains and add to the dish. Pour milk on top (enough to reach a couple of centimetres from the top) and season with salt. 

4. Bake for a couple of hours or until the milk has soaked in and the grains have softened. Leave to cool slightly before serving.

Blueberry Soup

250g fresh or frozen blueberries

800ml water

2 tablespoons raw vanilla sugar

2 teaspoons granulated stevia

2 tablespoons potato starch

100ml water, extra 

1. Combine blueberries, sugar, stevia and most of the water in a pan. Bring to boil, then add rest of the water and take the pan off the heat.

2. Whisk potato starch in cold water and add to the blueberry soup while whisking continuously. Leave to cool before serving.

Scandi Foodie Turns Three, Queen Muffins

Three years ago today I published my first blog post. It was a poem my mum used to read me in the mornings to wake me up. I started the blog to keep in touch with my parents, to show them the Finnish treats I was baking and the vintage Scandinavian design pieces I had found. Very soon I realised blogging had opened up a whole new world to me; a world of recipes I had never tried before, ingredients I had never even heard of, flavours I had never tasted and people I had never met. I loved sharing pieces of my everyday life to my imaginary audience. I had no idea if anyone apart from my parents ever read my blog, but I kept posting new recipes day after day. 

I've come a long way in three years. I've experienced both sides of the blogosphere, the good and the bad, I've found new friends along the way and I've learned a lot about food, styling and photography. Blogging has also opened up a new career to me as a stylist and a freelance writer and I couldn't be happier and more thankful for it. 

However many changes there have been along the way, this blog has remained first and foremost a personal account. There have been very few commercials and I've never been interested in making money with this blog. I continue to write content that feels comfortable to me and I don't feel a need to publish something only to attract more readers. I am open to feedback, but for the above mentioned reason I don't take criticism very well; it always feels as a personal attack and sometimes I feel that some people tend to forget that there is a real person behind every post.

I thank you for following and I plan to continue blogging for as long as it feels right and doesn't become a chore. I have many more recipes to try and I definitely still have a lot to learn, so I feel no need to stop now. I hope you will continue reading and sharing your thoughts - thank you again.

 Queen Muffins*

(makes 12)

2 apples (Granny Smith)

1 banana

1/4 lemon, juiced

180g wholemeal flour

1 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon pure, ground vanilla

30g raw vanilla sugar

50g raw caster sugar

60ml olive oil
150g fresh or frozen raspberries and blueberries

natural, unrefined icing sugar to serve

* In Finland we call the combination of berries 'kuningatar' (queen), hence the name! :-)

1. Preheat the oven to 175C and line a 12 cup muffin tray with paper cups (or use oil to grease). 

2. Finely grate peeled and cored apples and put in a bowl with chopped banana and lemon juice. Puree with a hand mixer until smooth. Set aside.

3. Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add oil into the dry ingredients and stir, then add the fruit puree. Stir briefly to combine and carefully fold the frozen berries in to the batter. 

4. Divide the batter evenly between the cups and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Leave to cool on a wire rack before dusting with icing sugar.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Whipped Porridge

Spring is in the air! I can feel a warmer breeze during my morning walks, the days are getting longer and the light just that tiny bit brighter. I have kick-started my spring cleaning and I can sense fresh energy floating about our home.

I picked up a punnet of fresh strawberries from a local green grocer and decided to use them for yet another childhood favourite of mine: whipped semolina porridge. Traditionally made with lingonberries, this sweeter version combines rhubarb and strawberries resulting in a smooth, delicious dessert. 

Rhubarb and Strawberry Whipped Porridge

(Serves 2)

500ml water

250g chopped rhubarb

250g fresh strawberries

50g semolina

1/2 teaspoon pure ground vanilla

1 teaspoon granulated stevia

1. Bring water to a boil in a medium sized pan. Add rhubarb and simmer until completely softened.

2. Puree strawberries with a hand mixer and add in to the pan. Scatter in semolina, whisking continuously to avoid any lumps. 

3. Keep stirring the porridge and let simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Add vanilla and stevia.

4. Leave to cool completely. Whisk the porridge with electric beaters until light and fluffy. Serve at room temperature.