feel food club

Season

Healthy Rhubarb Crumble Cake

by Kommentar verfassen

A nice, fluffy and juice layer of cake underneath a fresh and sweet layer of rhubarb topped with a healthy and crispy almond oat crumble. Is there anything else you want? Maybe having this healthy rhubarb crumble cake with a nice cup of coffee? you better don’t say no!

Why crumble cake?

Crumble cakes are one of my favourites. I love the different tastes and textures in each layer and the combination of them melting together in my mouth. Also, I think they are very fun to make and they always have something fresh in them with the fruits. I already have one crumble cake on my blog, an apple crumble cake, and it is so good! In this recipe I just added a spring twist on it instead of a fall one! Imagine this cake as a mix between my healthy apple crumble cake and my rhubarb compote!

I had my first crumble cake about 2 years ago. It actually also was a rhubarb one, and it was amazing! I can remember it very well because it was at a small café in Dublin where they had soo many different cakes! I shared one piece with my friends and let me tell you, it was amazing! So when I saw all the fresh rhubarb at the farmers market the other day, I decided to try to recreate it, but make it healthier. And let me tell you, I did not expect it to turn out THAT GOOD. I thought it would be fine but when I tried the first slice, I just wanted to eat the whole tray before photographing it. It is insane!! And really, it does not taste healthy or boring at all.

The layers:

The first layer is kind of a biscuit layer but a little healthier. It essentially comes down to only 5 ingredients! Who thought that you could make a cake with 4 ingredients only? Eggs, maple syrup, apple sauce (Apfelmuß in German, because so many asked me what this was), wholegrain flour, baking powder. That is it. The egg whites are separated from the yolks and whipped up until super fluffy and stiff. This makes the cake really airy. The applesauce makes it really juicy and the maple syrup makes it sweet. Both are combined with the egg yolk. Afterwards, the flour and baking powder as well as the egg whites are folded in. This need to be pre-baked a little.

The second, and middle layer is a fruit layer. This is even easier than the first one. You do not even need to peel the rhubarb (if you buy organic one preferably), just cut it into smaller pieces. Add it to a pot with some lemon juice and a date to sweeten it up (could use sugar or honey as well) and a splash of water. The heating up helps it to get a little softer and absorb the flavour of the lemon and date. Then this is added on top of the biscuit layer.

The last but definitely not least layer is the crumble. Contrary to conventional crumbles it is not based of sugar, butter and flour. NO. The base are oats and almonds. I like to use sliced ones but you could also just chop the up a little. Together with some chia seeds (optional) and coconut sugar (again, another sweetener works fine too, just a liquid one will not have the same crunch effect, so I would recommend substituting it out for white or brown sugar), and a little coconut oil it creates a sticky consistency. This on top of the fruit just tastes bomb. It is kind of like granola just on top of a cake. So good.

When to enjoy best?

So honestly, you are going to want to eat this at every time of the day. And basically you could. It would even work as a nice breakfast. It has about than 2.6g fibre, 3.3g of protein, and 14.2g of carbohydrates per slice. So having two slices for breakfast with some yoghurt on top wouldn’t be unhealthy. But this also makes a great snack or dessert. Even when having guests over this will be amazing! Or take it to a picnic?

Substitutions

If you do not like rhubarb at all, but still want a crumble cake, you can also substitute them out for berries, such as strawberries. It really is versatile but I believe that the little sour taste of the rhubarb just goes really well with the sweetness of the cake. Instead of whole grain flour, you could use plain one, and instead of the maple syrup you can totally go for honey, agave of coconut sugar. If you do not have almonds on hand, you can use any other nuts as well!

I hope that you like this recipe and it gives you some inspiration for cooking healthy! Enjoy!

Happy cooking,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisiniere

Print

Healthy Rhubarb Crumble Cake

The best cake you´ll ever have! Fluffly and juice biscuit, topped with fresh and tangy rhubarb and a healthy and crispy crumble! SO good.

Course brunch, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine austrian
Prep Time 20 Minuten
Cook Time 15 Minuten
Total Time 35 Minuten
Servings 12 slices
Calories 113 kcal

What you will need

For the first layer:

  • 2 eggs
  • 100 g unsweetend apple sauce (Apfelmuß in Deutsch)
  • 60 g Maple syrup agave, honey or sugar work too!
  • 125 g wholegrain flour normal flour is fine as well
  • 1 tsp baking powder

For the second layer:

  • 250 g Rhubarb
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1 large date (or 2 small ones, about 30g)
  • a splash of water

For the thrid layer:

  • 50 g oats
  • 25 g sliced almonds or any nuts
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar (or any other sweetener of choice)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil

How to

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

    For the first layer seperate the egg yolks from the whites. Whip the whites until fluffy and stiff. In the meantime combine the yolks with the apple sauce and maple syrup. Combine flour and baking powder.

    Once the egg whites are stiff gently fold them under the yolk mixture, along with the flour, one at a time. When combined pour it onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8 minutes.

  2. In the meantime cut the ends of the rhubarb and wash it gently. Cut it into about 3cm (1 inch) sized pieces. Take the pit out of the date and chop it finely. Add both to a pot along with the lemon juice and a splash of water (about 2 tbsp). Bring it to a boil and simmer until the first layer is done baking.

  3. While the rhubarb is simmering, combine the oats, nuts and seeds in a bowl. Melt the coconut oil and combine with the sugar and vanilla. Pour it over the mixture and combine everything well. It should all stick together a bit.

  4. When the frist layer is done baking take it out of the oven. Add the rhubarb evenly on top and sprinkle with the crumble. Bake for another 7-10 minutes.

  5. Take out of the oven and let cool. Serve with some ice cream, whipped cream or a dollop of yoghurt and enjoy!

Asparagus and Strawberry Salad

by Kommentar verfassen

This salad is like spring in a bowl. So mush freshness, fruitiness but also savoury goodness. Super easy to make, full of vitamins, perfect side dish or light main course. Absolutely in love!

Spring honestly is my favourite season. Everything is starting to bloom and coming back to life. Flowers are so colourful and the markets are full of fresh fruits and vegetables. Including two of my favourites: Asparagus and strawberries.

How we typically eat Asparagus

Asparagus is something very typical in Austria. We usually have it with Risotto, as a side or very very typical with potatoes, ham and molten butter or sauce hollandaise. But while this is good once in a while I feel like it is really heavy and not healthy in the long term. This salad, on the other hand is something very light and refreshing.

Which Asparagus works best?

Definitely a mix! Use some white stalks and some greens because the combination of the slightly different flavours is just super good! If you want, you can also use purple asparagus although I would not necessarily recommend to buy it extra for this. I have tried it out with purple asparagus but it lost its colour while cooking and turned green. So it was a bit of a pity.

How to cook asparagus?

This actually is not as easy as many people think. I mean it is to hard but you just need to know how. Green Asparagus is super easy. You just need to cut off the ends of the stalks and boil it in salted water for about 5-10 minutes, depending on how thick the stalks are. White asparagus is slightly different. It also needs some boiling water, you need to salt it, and add 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 teaspoon of sugar. This takes out the bitterness of the asparagus and makes it really good!

Do you need to peel asparagus?

Depends. Green asparagus does not need to be peeled. Neither does purple one. White one on the other hand needs to be peeled!! Generously! I would recommend to peel it twice. If it is not peeled well it will have strings when eating and that’s not good tbh.

Fruit in salad?

A big YES!!! This is game changing! Especially the combination of strawberries and asparagus is insane! The sweetness of the strawberry pairs perfectly well with the freshness of the asparagus. If you do not have strawberries on hand or do not like them, you can add in raspberries instead, which also must taste really good!

Other add-ins:

Here you can be really creative! What would 100% work well is some kind of cheese like mozzarella, burrata cheese, cottage cheese or feta. Those would make it really good! Also, grilled chicken breast or prawns would take this next level but also hard boiled eggs.

When & how to eat it?

You can have this as a nice side dish and leave it as is or make a little more and add in something like hard boiled eggs for example and enjoy it with some freshly toasted bread or couscous to have it as a filling salad!

I hope that you like this recipe as much as I do and that you will make it many times this spring!

Happy cooking,
Enjoy,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Print

Asparagus and Strawberry Salad

Not your average asparagus side dish but much better! Sweetness of the strawberries paired with the taste of fresh asparagus is just heaavenly!

Course Appetizer, lunch, Salad, Side Dish
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 30 Minuten
Servings 4 sides
Calories 149 kcal

What you will need

  • 500 g white asparagus
  • 500 g asparagus
  • 500 g strawberries
  • 2 spring onions
  • 1 handful mint
  • 1 handful basil
  • 1 handful parsley
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp maple or honey
  • 1 tbsp butter or magarine
  • 1 tsp sugar

How to

  1. Bring a large pot with water to a boil. Peel the white asparagus generously (about 2x). Cut the ends (about 3cm) of both, white and green asparagus and throw them away. Cut the asparagus into about 3-4cm sized pieces.

    Add the butter (or magarine) and sugar into the boiling water and salt it. Add in the white asparagus and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add in the green asparagus and cook for another 5-10 minutes, depending on how thick the stalks are. You can test if they are ready by pieking through them with a fork. If they almost fall off the fork, they are done. Then drain them.

  2. In the meantime remove the green part from the strawberries and half them or cut them into quarters, depending on how big they are. Slice the spring onions and seperate the onion rings from each other.

  3. Roughly chop up the basil, mint and parsley.

  4. Add the asparagus, strawberries, spring onions and herbs into a bowl. In a seperate small bowl combine the olive oil, the juice of 1 lemon and the maple syrup. Toss the salad in the dressing and serve!

    Enjoy!

Notes

If you want to have it as a main dish just make more (about half more, so 6 servings for 4 people). You can then also add in other things like hard boiled eggs, feta or mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken breast or prawns! 

Tomato white wine pasta with pistachio breadcrumbs

by Kommentar verfassen

I am gonna be honest. This is addicting! A creamy, fresh, quick, full of flavor and so many nutrients! You won‘t go back to store bought pasta sauces! Plus, its dairy free and vegan because we are topping it with pistachio breadcrumbs. You are NOT missing the parmesan in top! All in all it is just so tasty!

Is Pasta unhealthy?

I honestly love pasta, and despite all rumors it is not unhealthy. Well, at least not as is because it is a great source of carbohydrates. If you make wholegrain pasta, it is even healthier because you get an extra portion of fiber with it! But yes, just as everything else it can be prepared really unhealthy. Not the actual pasta itself but the sauce it comes with. If ypu use a very oil heavy or cream, cheese or butter based sauce such as alfredo or carbonara or one with fatty meat like bacon or salami, it can load up on calories and fats really quickly. But when you pair it with a rather light sauce like a tomato one or one with fresh vegetables it is not unhealthy at all! Also pesto is a good choice. I mean, yes it has cheese but it also has oil, nuts and fresh basil. Oil and nuts are high in healthy fats and fresh basil has so many vitamins!

What is special about this dish?

100% the sauce! Why? Because it is not your regular tomato sauce. And by „white wine tomato sauce“ I don‘t mean that you poor half a bottle if wine into your regular sauce (although this would probably also be super tasty :)). No, its a sauce made of only fresh tomatoes – of all sizes and colors, a good splash of white wine and lots if fresh herbs. And of corse, not to forget the pistachio breadcrumbs. They just take it next level!

Which tomatoes work best for this dish?

I believe that a mix of many different ones work best! A mix of large ones, cherry tomatoes or san Marzanl works best. Also, if you have access to it or can find them, feel free to add yellow, orange or brown tomatoes. The more you add, the more of a diverse, intense and interesting flavor and many different textures! So, use whatever you have on hand! The more different ones you have, the better!

Which wine works best?

As the name says, white wine! This can be a fruitier one or one that is rather on the dry side. This is up to you and what you like to drink! My dad always says „use a wine for cooking that you will also drink with the dish“. So use a good and tasty wine because you will also taste it in the sauce. It is as important to use a good quality product in a dish as it is to drink it. You could, however, also use some sparkling wine because the carbon dioxide will cook down anyway. If you only have red wine on hand, you can use this too but be aware that this will make it more of a heavier dish whereas the white wine makes it rather lighter.

Pistachio breadcrumbs?! What and how?

I have never eaten that before. Neither at a restaurant not at someone’s home! But it is game changing. I know, we all love some parmesan on top of our pasta, but if we are longing for a dairy-free, healthier and vegan option, this is amazing! And so simple. 3 ingredients and addicting! The only ingredients you really need are pistachios (whole grain) bread crumbs, and olive oil. The pistachios are chopped finely and mixed with the breadcrumbs. After they are pan fried in some olive oil to get them crispy and bring out the flavor. If you want a slight cheesy flavor, you can also add in some nutritional yeast (Hefeflocken) if you want but it definitely is not necessary! When putting them on top of the pasta, the add a nice crunch and texture and also some saltines as cheese would do! You need to try this! I swear it is so good!

Is it family friendly?

Yes! 100%! You do add wine, but the alcohol boils away, so even kids can eat it! And it is vegan (if you use vegan pasta of corse) but if you want to add some parmesan or mozzarella on top you of course can do so! Ir if you want some prawns of grilled chicken with it, it works as well. Plus, it is less than 30 minutes, so it‘s a great weeknight dinner!

We absolutely love having this dish in pur house and make it pretty often! Its super tasty, simple, and full of vitamins! I hope that it gives you some inspiration to cook something healthy & tasty!

Happy cooking,
Katie || Une Petite Cuisinière

Print

Tomato White Wine Pasta with Pistachio Bread Crumbs

Quick, simple, healthy, tasty. Fancier than your average tomato sauce, full of vitamins, 30 minute and tastes so incredibly good!

Course bowl, dinner, lunch, Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 25 Minuten
Total Time 30 Minuten
Servings 4 servings
Calories 627 kcal

What you will need

For the tomato sauce:

  • 400 g tomatoes large ones, can be any color
  • 300 g cherry tomatoes or any other small ones, it is best to mix the colors
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 white onion
  • 1/8 l white wine
  • 1 tsp chili flakes (optional)
  • 2 small branches rosemary and oregano
  • 1 garlic clove grated
  • 1/2 lemon juiced

For the pistachio breadcrumbs:

  • 20 g pistachios
  • 20 g breadcrumbs
  • 1 tsp olive oil

Other:

  • 500 g Pasta tagliatelle work best

How to

For the tomato sauce:

  1. Chop the large tomatoes into about 1cm sized cubes. Half the cherry tomatoes. Finely mince the onion. In a large pot heat up the olive oil. Add the onion and sautée it until it is translucent. Then add in the chopped tomatoes and reduce to medium high heat. Also add the herbs and the garlic clove (and the chili flakes if using) into the pot and give it a stir. Add the white wine and let simmer for about 10 minutes on medium heat. Then add the lemon juice and salt generously and let simmer for another 10 minutes on low heat. Before serving take out the herbs.

For the Pistachio Breadcrumbs:

  1. In the meantime make the pistachio breadcrumbs. Therefore add the pistachios to a food processor and pulse until they have gotten a fine consistency. If you do not have a food processor, chop them up with a knife. Combine them with the breadcrumbs. heat up the olive oil in a pan and fry the mixture on high heat for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly so they do not burn. Take them off the heat and set them aside.

  2. In the meantime cook the pasta according to package instructions. Once done reserve 1/2 cup (about 100ml) of pasta water and drain them. Add the drained pasta, along with the reserved water to the sauce and mix through. Seperate them onto 4 plates and top with the pistachio breadcrumbs and serve.

    Enjoy!

Honey Eggplant and chickpea salad with grilled halloumi

by Kommentar verfassen

Sounds like a lot and it is. So many flavors, so much goodness but still so simple and quick. Leave the boring salads behind and start making those next level ones. Salads have never tasted that good! 

Sunmer ist getting closer and closer, which means many people try to live and eat healthier. And whats the stereotype thing to do in order to eat healthiet? Salads! But contrary to commin believes, the plain ones only containing leaves and a dressing, maybe a piece of chicken, are bot the healthiest ones! 

Why are conventional salads not necessarily healthy?

Because they will fill you up for an hour maximum and wont leave you satisfied! Whats the problem with that? If you are not filled and satisfied for long, you will start to get hungry again very soon and snack or binge eat on unhealthy things as you will develop cravings for that. In order to bot develop these, it is important to have a filling, nutritious and delicious meal. And I know that this can be difficult with salads but believe me, this one is everything else than boring. 

Whats in it?

You bake the chickpeas and eggplant in the oven, with a slight olive oil and honey drizzle to get them crispy and a bit sweet. Honestly, life changing! If you habe never done chickpeas or eggplant with honey, I‘d say you should head straight to the kitchen and get started! And its so simple! You place the main components of the salad in the oven for 20 minutes and you are already half way there. 

The most extra dressing

The remaining base of the salad is some basic spinach. Bot a lot, just to add some color and vitamins! But whats a salad without a dressing? My brother would say rabbit food! And he is right. It is boring and plain. I do not get those people who skip on salad dressings because they literally are the easiest thing ever and add a ton of flavor. Honestly, don‘t skip on that. In here we have a super extra, still super simple dressing. 3 ingredients (!!) so much flavor! The ingredients are purred tomatoes (the ones from the can or box), Tahini and lemon juice. I do not know why I have never thought of making dressing with tomato sauce before but it is good. I wouldn‘t do it with a green side salad but on top of buddha bowls or italian inspired ones or ones that are pretty extra, as this one, this is so good! Highly recommended!

The star of the show

Last but definitely not least, the grilled halloumni. I have never had halloumni up till a few months ago and from then on it is a must in my diet! So addictingly good. On salads, on bowls, on pasta, on everything. It really adds this last pinch of salt to anything. Like here. It adds the extra wow, the saltiness and satisfying touch. We essentially only need to grill it for a few minutes on each side and thats it! Assemble! You can serve it with some bread, although I believe that this is not necessary because it is amazing and filling as is! 

You can meal prep it, just leave the dressing extra and keep in mind that the halloumni won’t be as melty and good but it still tastes pretty solid. My recommendation: make it fresh, it is better.

I hope that you will like this recipe and that it will change up your regular salad routine a little! 

Enjoy,

Print

Honey Eggplant and Chickpea Salad with grilled Halloumi

Next level salad. Has nothing to do with the boring image of salads you have in your head. Sweet and tangy eggplant & chickpeas, combined with salty fried halloumi and the most extra dressing. Enjoy now & Thank me later!

Course Appetizer, bowl, lunch, Salad
Prep Time 5 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 25 Minuten
Servings 4 servings
Calories 366 kcal

What you will need

  • 2 large handful spinach
  • 160 g chickpeas from the can, rinsed, drained, and pat dry
  • 1 eggplant
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • some salt & pepper
  • 200 g halloumi
  • 1/2 lemon juiced

For the dressing:

  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil (just pured tomatoes from the can/ boy without anything)
  • 1 tbsp Tahini
  • 1 lemon juiced

How to

That is how it works:

  1. Slice the eggplant into about 2 cm sized cubes. Drain, rinse and pat the chickpeas dry. Place both in a bowl. In a seperate bowl combie the olive oil, lemon juice and honey. Generously salt and pepper the eggplant and chickpeas and then toss in the dressing. Bake for abou 20 minutes at 180°C.

  2. Meanwhile combine all the ingredients for the dressing.

    Heat up a grilling pan to high heat. Slice up the halloumi in about 0.5 cm thick slices. Just before the chickpeas are done baking, fry the halloumi on it for about 2-3 minutes on each side until it gets some grilling marks and melts nicely.

  3. When the tray is done baking, combine the ingredients with the spinach and the dressing. Seperate on bowls and top with the grilled halloumi!

    Serve and enjoy!

Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière