Easy treats for Valentines Day ...and everyday!

I’m not a huge Valentines fan if I’m honest.

I’m definitely in the camp that says “don’t wait for a specific day of the year to show your loved ones you love them!”

Maybe it also has something to do with being single, ha ha ;-)

BUUUUTT I do want to share a round up of some of my favourite Valentines day treats because I know many of you do love Valentines day and would like to treat your favourite person (or people!) with an indulgent yet healthy treat.

Or even simply treat yourself… that may even be the best reason yet!

If, like me, your not V-day fan. Bookmark these and make them whenever love strikes!

If you make something from this list, let me know! Tag @johodson on Instagram.

P.s full disclosure, there is a lot of chocolate on this list. No apologies!

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Before you scroll down to the round-up… here is a super easy treat I haven’t shared before, but one I found in my photo archives… a little bonus for you!

Grab a pot of your absolute favourite nut butter (give yourself permission to splurge here - no holding back!) I love to use hazelnut butter for these - but almond, pistachio or cashew may be your jam!?

Melt a bar of your favourite chocolate - I use 70% vegan dark chocolate. Using mini silicone cake cakes spoon a teaspoon of melted chocolate, add a dollop of the nut butter then cover over with extra chocolate.

Repeat until you have used up all the chocolate. You can add some kind of sprinkle on top if you like. Chill to firm then pop out of the silicone cases. YUMM!

They make the perfect gift packaged in a box with a bow… just sayin’ :-)

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Easy love-filled treats for Valentines Day...and everyday!

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If you want more healthy indulgent inspiration… checkout my ebook, jam-packed with super tasty free-from treats!

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Pumpkin ideas for Halloween and beyond...

Looking for ways to use up your pumpkin?

Halloween celebrations may almost be over - but if you are lucky you may still find some super cheap pumpkin in the supermarket… or may simply be wondering what to make with this seasonal autumnal veggie.

Sweet or savoury, pumpkin has you covered!

Here are some ideas as a round-up from my blog archives, and with many of these recipes (such as the oat loaf) I have tried using both the blended scooped out flesh of fresh pumpkin and pumpkin puree from a can- both work well so use whatever suits you.

Squash or sweet potato would also likely be a good substitute… but don’t hold me to this as I haven’t tried in these recipes specifically.

What’s your favourite pumpkin recipe?

Looking for a sweet potato recipe? (or maybe more pumpkin!)

I recently made this yummy recipe for Real Food Source… check out their recipe here.

This sweet potato cake recipe makes quite a dense almost gooey cake, like a cross between a cake and a pie! I used sweet potato in this cake, but you could also try with other sweet root veg such as beetroot, pumpkin or parsnips. It is especially great served warm with cashew cream or yoghurt and a drizzle of light agave syrup. For added indulgence, throw some dark chocolate chunks into the mix! 

Try not to eat it all at once though, I thought the flavour and texture of this cake was even better the next day. 

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15 Carrot themed recipes in time for Easter!

I notice I have shared a few recipe round-ups recently. I promise I do have other new recipes waiting in the wings... I have just been busy with my coaching work and researching content for a new book I'm writing focussing on 'creativity' that I haven't had as much kitchen time for cooking and photography. 

I'm actually spending Easter in Vietnam with my mum, visiting my sister who lives overseas. In the meantime before I leave on Wednesday, I have Easter on my mind and the one food (other than chocolate) I associate with Easter is... carrots!

So here you have it, a few of the popular carrot themed recipes from my archives to tempt your creations over the holiday period and beyond!

There are plenty to choose from but if you are intrigued to know my personal favourites, they would be:

1) Carrot Cake Brownies

2) Carrot Apple and Ginger Cake

3) Carrot Burgers  (and oldie but goodie!!)

Enjoy... let me know if you make any of these recipes or come up with your own carrot themes Easter dish! Best place to catch me is Instagram

Pancake Day... 15+ Recipe Roundup!

It's less than a week until Shrove Tuesday.... yay Pancake Day!! 

I haven't made pancakes for ages but will definitely be doing so next week. In the meantime, I am re-sharing the classic British Pancake recipe (more like a crepe than a fat American style pancake) and a roundup of all my blog favourites.

I would love to hear your favourite recipes or flavour combinations you'd love to see me create?

Recipe: classic pancakes

Makes 3 medium pancakes (serves 1 if you are anything like me!)

Ingredients:

• ½ cup white spelt flour

• 1 tsp ground flax or chia seed

• 1 tsp agave syrup

• 1 tsp baking powder

• tiny pinch salt

• 2/3 cup non-dairy milk (reduce to ½ cup if you prefer a thicker pancake)

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 tbs melted coconut oil

Method

Mix dry ingredients and then add wet ingredients. Mix well until you have a smooth batter with no lumps.

Meanwhile, heat a medium-sized frying pan with very light covering of oil (I used rapeseed oil lightly rubbed over the surface with kitchen roll). Once the pan is hot add a large spoonful of batter to the pan and move the pan in circular motions to spread the batter into a larger circle. Cook for approx. 2 minutes and then carefully flip to cook the reverse for approx. 1 minute until both sides are lightly brown. Run a little more oil over the surface of the pan and then repeat for two more pancakes.

Serve hot with toppings of your choice.

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Want more inspiration... here is a recipe round-up of pancake ideas, with a savoury option too!

AND, since pancake day is just the day before Valentines Day.. why not join forces and create a two-in-one dessert with wow factor... 

Peanut Butter Roundup... 15 recipes for #nationalpeanutbutterday

Do you know what day it is today?

January 24th 2018 = National Peanut Butter Day!

I almost missed it - again! It was brought to my attention in the nick of time by the peanut overload as I scrolled through Instagram. So yep, I am now adding to the noise by giving you a round up of top peanutty recipes from my archives to try! Plenty of sweet and savoury options to inspire you. Or maybe you've come up with a recipe combo of your own?

If nothing else... I hope you celebrate today by grabbing a spoon and dipping it in the peanut butter jar!

Mmmm, if you want to know my top two favorites out of ALL of these recipes, it would have to be...

1) Nutty Chocolate Truffles

2) Sweet Potato Rostis

If you make any of these recipes please tag @johodson on Instagram so I can see too! :-)

Enjoy...

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50 Vegan Curries Recipe Round-up for National Curry Week!

Earlier this week a friend reminded me that as well as being National Porridge Day... it was also National Curry Week! Oh gosh... I couldn't let that one sail by- I love a good curry! Actually, it was one of the first dishes I made on this blog and that recipe is still a firm favourite with everyone who had tried it since, and it has starred in many of my retreats!

I conjured up a super simple '5-minute curry' creation as shared below, but also decided to reach out to the wonderful community of Finding Vegan bloggers so see if they'd like to share with me their own favourite curry recipes and curry relates side dishes. I've added a couple of mine in the mix too. 

Ooooh it's turned into a big juicy round-up with plenty of inspiration to see you right through the winter and beyond. Bookmark this page (or save it to Evernote which is what I usually do)  and give them a go... let me know what you make! :-)

>>> Make sure you scroll down to below my '5-minute curry' recipe to check out the round-up recipe collection! <<<

Recipe: 5-Minute Coconut Curry

(cos' it literally only takes 5 mins - or 7 at tops!) ;-)
Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/2 onion
2 cloves of garlic
3 sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbs curry powder (or paste of choice)
1/2 cup grated courgette
1/2 cup grated carrot (or sweet potato)
1/4 cup coconut cream flakes*
1 1/2 cup boiling water*
1 heaped tsp veg stock (or 1 stock cube)
1 can of chickpeas
2 handfuls spinach (or other green leafy veg)

(*or sub 1 can coconut milk and a little extra water at the end to reach desired consistency)

Method:

Finely chop the onion, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes by hand or in a mini chopper, transfer to a lightly oiled medium sauce-pan and fry for 1-2 minutes. Meanwhile grate the courgette and carrot, once grated add to the pan along with the remaining ingredients and cook for a further 4-5 minutes.

Serve into bowls and optionally decorate with fresh coriander on top (if you have it- I didn't at the time!) Serve with quinoa, rice or naan as desired.

There are 50 epic recipes in this round up... there were many more to choose from but we would have been here all day if I'd included them all, so I chose a delicious selection to offer the biggest variety!

Enjoy...

(Pics run Left-Right, Top-Bottom)

• Kathy @ Health Happy Life - Curried Eggy Scramble Toasts

• Shannon @ Yup It's Vegan - Lentil Spinach Curry with Coconut Rice

• Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine - Thai Green Curry Tacos

• Linda @ Veganosity - Simple Curry with Tofu and Pineapple

• Melissa @ My Wholefood Life - Chickpea Curry Lettuce Wraps

• Rhian @ Rhian's Recipes - Vegan Chickpea Curry Salad Sandwich

• Mary @ V Nutrition and Wellness - Quick Curried Noodles with Toasted Cashews

• Melanie @ A Virtual Vegan - Green Bean and Potato Curry

• Steve @ Circus Gardener - Green Pea and Coconut Dahl

• Marina @ Yummy Mummy Kitchen - Yellow Curry with Chickpeas

• Jennifer @ Veggie Inspired - Curried Tofu Salad

• Dixya @ Food Pleasure and Health - Restaurant Style Red Thai Curry

• Uma @ Mrishtanner - Cabbage Koftas

• Diane @ Plant-Based Cooking - Thai Curried Potatoes with Chard

• Rebecca @ Vegan Blueberry - Chickpea and Cauliflower Curry in the Slow Cooker

• Kaitlin @ The Garden Grazer - Vegetable Curry Soup

• Melissa @ The Stingy Vegan - Curried Rice Vegan Buddha Bowl

• Karen @ Soup Addict - Vegetarian Curried Lentil Stew

• Kaila @ Healthy Helper - Coconut Curry Quinoa Risotto

• Melville @ Sugar Loves Spice - Red Curry with Coconut and Squash

• Brandi @ The Vegan 8 - Easy 1 Pot Creamy Curry Rice Soup

• Jacinthe @ Simply Vegelicious - White Bean and Butternut Squash Curry

• Tricia @ Rhubarbarians - Roasted Masala Cauliflower with Coconut Lentils

• Jasmine @ Sweet Simple Vegan - Curried Cashew Veggie Trailmix

• Richa @ Vegan Richa - Cauliflower Kofta Curry

• Aaliyah @ Sipping On Soy - Eggplant and Lentil Peanut Butter Curry

• Katie @ Delightful Vegans - Vegan Palak Paneer

• Sarah @ Champagne Tastes - Slow Cooker Vegetable Masala

• Jess @ Choosing Chia - My Favourite Red Lentil Dahl

• Dianne @ Dianne's Vegan Kitchen - Coconut Curry Tempeh

• Michelle @ Healthier Steps - Curried Cabbage

• Molly @ Cooking With Molly - Healthy Indian Cauliflower and Peas Recipe

• Alexis @ Hummusapien - Curried Chickpea Salad

• Brittany @ Eating Bird Food - Curried Tempeh Salad

• Jackie @ Vega Yack Attack - Slow Cooker Potato Curry Chilli

• Caitlin @ From My Bowl - Mango Curry Jackfruit Tacos

• Sarah @ Fried Dandelions - Coconut Carrot Rice

• Kari @ Beautiful Ingredient - Vegetable Curry with Quinoa and Red Lentils

• Amber @ Quite Good Food - Mushroom Korma with Chickpeas

• Cadry @ Cadry's Kitchen - Indian Vegetable Fried Rice

• Charity @ Vintage Kitty - Green Thai Curry

• Hedi @ Hedi Hearts - Clean Eating Veggie Curry Recipe

• Anjali @ Vegetariangastronomy - Tomato Sev Curry

• Anne @ The Mostly Healthy - Easy Vegan Naan Bread

• Aimee @ Wallflower Kitchen - Easy Vegan Samosa Pie

• Swati @ Watch What U Eat - Red Lentil Curry

• Becky @ Glue And Glitter - All Purpose Coconut Curry Sauce

• Sam @ Ahead Of Thyme - Pumpkin Chickpea Coconut Curry

• Jo (me!) - Courgette Curry Soup

• Jo (me again to wrap it up!) - Super Simple Gluten Free Flatbread

Enjoyed this round-up? ...please share!

Also, let me know what other round-ups you'd like to see in the future!

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New Christmas recipe round up... including a FREE ebook!

Wow... nearly a month since I last wrote a food post! How has it been that long!

Well, I guess my mind and energy have been occupied with other things- namely my wellness retreat. It was amazingly epic, but I won't bore you here- you can hop across and find out more here and watch my videos if you fancy ;-)

Luckily I have festive recips to indulge in and share with you as during November I was busy creating an update ebook for Real Food Source and so here you have a little round up of some of the new delights we have for you... including these amazing sprinkles (aka bauble truffles!)

There are loads of other great recipes in the book (all but a couple are vegan- those ones aren't mine!) 

These are the new recipes I created for this year...

• Christmas Truffle Baubles
• Rudolph Oaty Cookies and raw cookies (2 options!)
• Choc-brownies xmas trees with festive frosting (love the frosting!!)
• Choc-brownie trifle
• Christmas wreaths
• Mini Christmas puds

Plus you still get the awesome recipes from last year...

• Christmas baked oatmeal
• Coconut cream cheesecakes
• Spiced Rice Pud
• Mince pies with homemade refined sugar free mincemeat
• Mini christmas pudding
• Cranberry almond cookies
• Christmas Cake
• Chocolate Tiffin
• Vegan 'Egg' Nog
• Orange Cranberry Pancakes
• Chocolate Muffins with ganache frosting 

You can download the book for FREE here!! 

They also have some lovely new products on their website that would make amazing Christmas gifts or stocking fillers- I will note here that not all are vegan- but they sent me a sample of their dark chocolate coated coconut balls and they are amazing- I have eaten way to many these last couple of days. I've had to hide the bag in a box in the garage to stop me digging in overtime I walk into kitchen. Seriously!  They have choc-raspberry balls too!

How will you be indulging this Christmas?

What is your favourite treat to buy or make?

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Product roundup... big up the super smoothies!

It's quite rare that I do a review post, and when I do it is usually when I have come across great products that have inspired me at food and wellness shows, and so I have personally asked the brand for some samples to try, instead of the other way round! 

I have been to so many health, wellness and food shows this year and have eaten soooooo many samples!! But now as we are heading swiftly towards the end of the year, and I have no more shows on my agenda, I figured a review post could be a useful thing - with the spotlight on two healthy new and unique smoothie brands in particular!

First up Pack'd Frozen Smoothie Kits...

As taken from their website: 

"Cutting edge frozen Smoothie Kits, designed with nutritionists to bring out your best. Each PACK’D Kit contains a pouch of freshly frozen, whole fruits and vegetables plus a sachet of natural superfoods. Simply blend ingredients with a choice of liquid - coconut water, almond milk, juice or water - for the ultimate smoothie without the hassle."

I drink geen smoothies and blends pretty much every day, I personally don't feel the need to buy kits BUT I appreciate that many people do not have the same flexible lifestyle I have and don't necessarily want to buy a cupboard full of expensive 'superfood' products. 

In that respect I felt that these frozen blends ticked a few innovative boxes- whole frozen fruits and veggies as well as a sachet of 'booster' ingredients. The least amount of processing for the easiest smoothie blend. One downside for some would be space- you need to fit the pacs in your freezer- there are two servings in each pack.

So far I have tried the Detox and Defence blends. I tried both mixed only with water as I want to test the flavour in the purest form. The flavours were great in my opinion, the Detox blend does taste of 'green-ness' which might be too much for some, but I enjoyed it and you could easily make it sweeter with a touch of juice or coconut water.

My top tip- when you open the little 'superfood' sachet and pour the contents in, refill it with water and add then that too to make sure you get all the bits that might stick to the packaging- no wastage that way!

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Second up... Love Your Blender

As taken from their website:

"We combine superfoods, whole nuts, seeds and other tasty ingredients such as vanilla pod and rose petals. Over 90 per cent organic, 100 per cent vegan, and totally delicious! Simply add to fresh produce in your blender to super-charge your smoothies."

What I liked most about these little packets of goodness, when I found them at a food event, was the fact they contained whole foods as well as being very conveniently packaged. I also liked the label which offered suggestions to changed up the flavour to suit all tastebuds (I tried the creamy option with both). The offer another convenient way to portion up your power packed smoothie ingredients.

I did find these blends still had a slightly grainy texture even with my high powered blender, not a problem for me but something to bear in mind if you are a bit sensitive to texture. 

Note: neither of these blends offer you something you can't create for yourself with a little effort and a few ingredients BUT for many it's that little bit of effort too much to fit into a busy schedule and I feel that inspiring yet easy ways to get good nutrition is a good thing. :-)

I'd love to hear from you... what are your favourite new products of this year?  What would you like to see more of on the shelves?

Here's a little shout out to some of my other interesting favourites...

In particular (now that I have had a chance to try all of the items in the photo) Savvy Spreads chocolate and sesame spread, Teapigs Matcha tea drink, Pumpkin Tree oat and smoothie blends and Kind Bars.

Plus all the brands in my porridge ebook launch giveaway- there was a reason I asked to collaborate with them after all! :-) I highly recommend OMG Matcha Tea, Steenbergs Organic, Sweet Freedom & Choc Shot, Real Food Source... and last but not least Thrive Magazine.

On that final note Thrive Magazine are offering a special discount for Including Cake readers.... enter #CAKE at the checkout for a discount of £5 off a printed or digital subscription.

This was a haul from one single food show!!! (I then had to carry this lot across London and on the tube and train home!)

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