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| Recipe of the Week... ... Coconut and Raspberry Macaroons with a Dark Chocolate Drizzle |
Ingredients: 150g desiccated coconut, 150g ground almonds, 2
eggs, 50g coconut sugar/nectar, a teaspoon of vanilla essence, 150g pack of
raspberries, 50g very dark chocolate (70% cocoa or more).
Serves: 12 modest-sized macaroons
Time taken: Half an hour or so to bake, and then an hour or
two for cooling, decorating and setting the chocolate. Start at least two hours
before you aim to be eating macaroons.
Hi readers,
How are you this week, lovely people? Is everything good?
Are you hanging in there? I hope all is well! Hope you had a fab weekend and
now you’re off to a smashing start this week. What do you think? You’re two
days in now – is the week shaping up the way you’d hoped? If it is – high five!
If it maybe isn’t – fear not! Let’s turn this week around. Just look forwards
and keep your chin up, readers. Tomorrow will be a better day.
How am I doing? Goood, I think! Pretty good. I’ve been upping my swimming and yoga lately, readers, and trying to eat more fruit and
veg. And I feel really upbeat and full of energy! I’m keeping quite a positive
headspace and waking up feeling switched on. It’s nice. June was a busy month
and I think I’m enjoying having a little more time and flexibility in July, to
mess with my routine and to be spontaneous. It’s fun.
Five things I’m enjoying of late…
1.
Jogging
Having spent the past few weeks struggling with shin splints in my right leg,
wincing as I walked my commute and taking the stairs facing backwards, it seems
I can finally jog again. I made it
out on a slow run over the weekend and my leg felt a lot more comfortable than
it has done (i.e. felt more like a leg than an instrument of torture). And I’ve
never appreciated running so much!
2.
New book
I got stuck in over the weekend with the latest book we’re reading for Book Club,
‘Oryx and Crake’ by Margaret Atwood. Bit strange so far – this is a book about
a character called the Snowman, living in a dystopian future world. Not the
kind of novel I’d normally choose to read! But this is a big book to sink my
teeth into and I’m enjoying discovering a new world. It’s nice to give
something different a try.
3. Vibe
feel good popcorn This is no paid product endorsement. I was wandering
around the supermarket on Friday evening, feeling pretty zen after yoga. Not at
all taking my shopping seriously. And happened upon a new brand of popcorn!
Bought it in two flavours – coconut and strawberry – and have enjoyed them
both. It’s a sweet honey-coated kind of popcorn (like an ethically branded
version of Butterkist toffee popcorn). Probs not healthy at all, but packaged
in a way that suggests it might be.. which is good enough for me. Tastes sweeet.
4.
New TV
show Aside from religiously watching ‘One Born Every Minute’ and ‘First
Dates’ each week (and – I’m not ashamed to admit – I quite enjoy singing along
to ‘Pitch Battle’ on a weekend), it’s been a bit of a dry patch for me and TV.
Nothing’s been taking my fancy! So, I decided to give a classic series a try
and have since become addicted to ‘The Bridge’ (/ ‘The Bron’ / ‘The Broen’). I’ve
already finished Season One! If you’re a lover of Scandi crime then I do
recommend.
5.
Reading a
Sunday newspaper I’ve been meaning to do this for weeks but haven’t been
able to. This Sunday, at long last, I
got the chance to amble down to the local newsagents for a paper. Then return
to bed (with crumpets) to read it from cover to cover. And it was so good! That
is what life is about at the weekend.
I intend to do this more often and enjoy Sunday morning from the comfort of my
bed.
 |
| Admiring my lovely flowers as they bloom |
How about you, readers? What have you been enjoying lately??
What are the things that you look forward to, and that really make your day?
Are these your favourite things you always enjoy? Or has there been any change –
maybe you’re losing interest in one thing but you’re really keen on something
new? Or someone new?? Hmm!
Whatever it is that’s making you happy, readers, pursue it!
Go with the wind and make time for the things you’re enjoying most. Even if it
changes every day! How about baking, readers, have you donned your apron
recently and mucked in for some baking? Or is your baking kit sat gathering
dust? I got back into baking this weekend for the first time in a while, and had
good fun in the kitchen!
I baked a batch of healthy, sugar-free macaroons (based on a
Fitness Forster recipe found here) to bring into work on Monday.. and they were
met with rave reviews! What do you think? Are you overdue some time spent baking,
readers?? Yeahhhh! It’s both therapeutic and tasty pursuit – win win! If you're keen, here’s
the macaroon recipe in just ten simple steps...
Recipe: Coconut and
Raspberry Macaroons with a Dark Chocolate Drizzle
1.
Throw open the windows, pour a chilled bev, get
yourself into a Mary Berry frame of mind, and set some music playing to
sing-a-long with.
ChefBeHere Top
Tip: This week I’ve been listening to ‘HAIM
– Ready For You’, ‘Joey Negro – Must
be the Music (disco version)’ and ‘Tom
Misch – South of the River’. If you’re stuck for a song, maybe give these a
try!
2.
Heat your oven to 180C and line a baking tray
with a sheet of greaseproof paper.
3.
In a bowl, mix the eggs until they become light
and frothy and begin to stiffen.
ChefBeHere Top
Tip: You could use a manual or electric handheld whisk. Or if – like me – you
lack either of these… you can blend your eggs in your smoothie maker and hope
for the best!
4.
Once the egg mix is stiffening, fold in the
vanilla followed by each dry ingredient one at a time (not the chocolate).
5.
Once the mixture has come together, and has a doughy
/ crumbly consistency, it’s time to get stuck in! Use your hands to podge
together small balls of macaroon mix and spread these balls evenly about the
baking tray.
ChefBeHere Top
Tip: Look out for pink flashes of raspberry in the mix and try to make sure
each macaroon has some raspberry in it.
6.
Carefully transport your trayful of macaroons
into the oven and leave for 15-20 minutes to bake.
ChefBeHere Top
Tip: Use this time wisely! While the kitchen fills with a delicious smell of
baking, you can be tidying about and getting the dishes done.
7.
Once your macaroons look golden and nicely
baked, you can safely remove from the oven and switch this off. Then leave your
macaroons to cool for at least half an hour.
8.
Once the
macaroons are cool, break your dark chocolate into small pieces in a
bowl and microwave until melted.
ChefBeHere Top
Tip: It’s a good idea to microwave is short 30 second bursts, then
check/stir/repeat until your chocolate has melted, as chocolate can easily burn
if left microwaving for too long.
9.
Use a spoon to artistically drizzle the
chocolate over your macaroons, and then leave to set for either a few hours on
the side or half an hour in the fridge.
10. Your
macaroons are ready to eat! You can tuck in straight from the tray, serve the
macaroons to friends and family, or Tupperware for another day.
What do you reckon, readers? Would you give this recipe a go? Are you a fan of a macaroon? I chose this recipe as it looked like it
wouldn’t all-out destroy my new health kick. And it looked like a fairly
straightforward recipe for getting back into baking, after a while away from my
wooden spoon. The coconut nectar required a trip to Holland & Barrett (my
home from home) but the other ingredients were all inexpensive and easy to
source.
And the macaroons turned out pretty well! A few broke apart
in the oven, so I donated them to my Father Bear as a
taste-better-than-they-look kind of pudding. Something he could chuck custard
on, he’s not fussy. And the rest turned out really well! They looked smart
plated up in the office, when I took them into work. Looking at the pics –
would you be tempted to give this recipe a try??
Admittedly, when I first tasted a bit of broken macaroon, I
wasn’t sure. I was quite unsure, readers, because they aren’t sweet! And they
do taste… sort of… ‘healthy’, these macaroons. BUT they grow on you, readers.
Once you get a taste for them (and you will because who throws away home
baking?!), then they’re really nice. Fruity and coconutty and homely. They look
and taste like they’ve been baked with love! And they have.
They won’t bust your diet, readers, and they’re easy to
bodge together – so give ‘em a go! Let me know how you get on with this recipe. Do
share your thoughts on these macaroons and relay great tales of your antics in the
kitchen. I hope they turn out well and you like them! Fingers crossed.
Podge safely,
Hayley
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