Lemon Myrtle Shortbread

gluten free dairy free egg free nut free vegan

Backhousia citriodora, otherwise known as lemon myrtle, was named after James Backhouse, an English botany collector. It's a flowering rainforest tree, usually growing to around 8m tall, with the leaves prized for their lemony essential oils. It is the highest natural source of citral, beating even lemongrass. The leaves can be used fresh or dried, and in both savoury and sweet dishes - fish, chicken, vegetables as well as tea, biscuits or cakes.

Now, I take kitchen failures very personally, so I'm persisting with gluten-free + vegan here. This is because just last week I was forced to admit defeat with a gluten-free cake that looked like a wet sponge sitting in a puddle of oil. And my most recent cookie attempt at Christmas time was a gingerbread so terrifyingly brittle I had to check my tooth repeatedly for cracks.

Thankfully, these shortbread cookies have a buttery, soft bite. That makes me happy.

100g brown rice flour
50g cornflour
50g coconut flour
1 tsp xantham gum
150g dairy-free margarine
80g caster sugar
1 tsp lemon myrtle (purchased online from Outback Chef)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 170 C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

In a bowl, sift together flours, gum and sugar. Add vanilla extract then add pieces of cold margarine and rub into flours. Combine and bring together into a dough ball. Roll dough into a log, wrap tightly in cling wrap and put into freezer for 1/2 hour to firm up. Unwrap and slice into 1.5 cm discs, place on tray and bake for about 10mins. They should be just golden. Let cool on wire rack.

Quandong Tea

Need a laxative? Try a quandong. The berries of this native Australian fruit tree (also referred to as wild or desert peach) were much valued by indigenous Australians for their medicinal purposes and often drunk as a tea for a bowel-cleansing effect. Quandong fruit can be eaten raw or dried, but mostly it is available in jars of dried quandong halves. You can rehydrate them in boiling water, and then cook until soft to make jam, or use in pies, cakes and tarts. Purchase online at Outback Chef - I've also seen them in Oxfam shops.

To make a mildly sweet and earthy quandong tea, steep 3 quandong halves in boiling water per cup. 

And because that is surely the tiniest recipe I ever did blog, don't leave just yet. Enjoy these quirky quandong facts courtesy of Nullabornet.com.au:

1. Fossilised Quandongs have been discovered in the coal seams of Southern Victoria. Apparently these fossils date from 40 million years ago - a time when Australia was still linked to the Antarctic continent.
2. Quandongs have a vitamin C content higher than oranges and and almost certainly saved many early Australian explorers from scurvy.
3. Quandong fruit can be dried and frozen for 8 years or more, without losing any flavour whatsoever.
4. Quandong trees possess an aromatic wood that was traditionally used by aboriginal people in "smoking ceremonies".
5. Rural Australian children often used Quandong seeds as Chinese Checker pieces.

Cherry Sorbet

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

Makes 7 cups

1/2 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup water
1.4kg pitted cherries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup lemon juice


Bring sugar and water to a boil over medium heat in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium and cook until sugar is dissolved and texture is syrupy. It should reduce to about 2/3 cup of syrup. Transfer to a bowl and cool.

Blend the cherries in a food processor until finely pureed. Stir in lemon juice and cooled syrup. Cover and chill for a couple of hours.

Turn on the icecream maker and pour the mixture into the freezer bowl and let churn for approximately 25 minutes. Transfer the sorbet to an airtight container and place in freezer for a couple of hours to set a little firmer if desired. Remove from freezer for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Coconut Vanilla Ice Cream

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

An ice cream machine is a very useful thing in the kitchen for those with dairy and egg allergies. Not least because the range of allergy-friendly ice creams and sorbets is fairly limited in Australia when you throw in the need to be nut-free as well. So I was pleased to road-test the Cuisinart Ice-Cream, Yoghurt & Sorbet maker and resolved not to use any soy. Enter coconut (of course). 


What a luscious and rich vanilla ice cream it makes! You need to freeze the bowl before churning, which a) takes a bit of planning, and b) doesn't leave much room in a freezer if yours is stocked to the brim like mine. Still, with a few simple ingredients, it's an immensely satisfying kitchen experience. Feel free to add melted dark chocolate or cocoa powder for a choc coconut version, pureed berries or throw in some nuts if you can handle them.

Makes approximately 7 cups

1.5 cups rice milk 
1/2 cup raw sugar
3 cups coconut cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

Use a hand mixer to beat together the rice milk and raw sugar for a minute or so, until sugar is dissolved. Stir in the cream and vanilla. 

Turn the ice cream machine on, and pour in the mixture, letting churn for about 25 minutes. The ice cream will have a soft serve consistency. Transfer mixture to an air tight container and freeze for a couple of hours to firm if desired. Remove from freezer 5-10 minutes before serving. 

Ginger Treacle Loaf with Lemon Icing

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

This splendid loaf is an allergy-friendly triumph - a soft, light vegan cake using regular flour, which then translates beautifully to gluten free (as long as you incorporate the egg back in if you tolerate them.) Ok, so not a complete success - I'm still experimenting with a version for both gluten free and vegan - but still, the result from a commercial gluten-free flour mix was pretty impressive. Dead easy to make, this is now a market bake-stall favourite. Four tins ready for the oven in 10 minutes!

See both recipes below:

Gluten free & dairy free (using egg)

175g gluten-free plain flour mix

1 tbsp ground ginger

3/4 tsp soda bicarbonate

125g treacle

80ml vegetable oil

75g brown sugar

2 eggs 

100ml rice or soy milk

1 cup sifted icing sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 150 C and grease and line a small-to-medium loaf tin.

Sift the plain flour, ginger and bicarb into a bowl and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, mix together treacle, oil, brown sugar, egg and milk until combined. Bit by bit, pour the wet mixture in to the dry, and whisk very gently to ensure you combine it well without lumps forming. Don't pour it in all at once!

Pour batter into loaf tin and bake for approx 40-45 mins.

Cool in tin while you prepare the icing. Add lemon juice to sifted icing sugar and mix until a smooth glaze. Turn out onto wire rack and drizzle lemon icing over the cake. Zest some lemon and sprinkle on top.

Dairy free & egg free (using regular flour)

175g plain flour

1 tbsp ground ginger

3/4 tsp soda bicarbonate

125g treacle

80ml vegetable oil

75g brown sugar

1 egg replacer

100ml rice or soy milk

1 cup sifted icing sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 150 C and grease and line a small-to-medium loaf tin.

Sift the plain flour, ginger and bicarb into a bowl and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, mix together treacle, oil, brown sugar, egg replacer and milk until combined. Bit by bit, pour the wet mixture in to the dry, and whisk very gently to ensure you combine it well without lumps forming. Don't pour it in all at once!

Pour batter into loaf tin and bake for approx 40-45 mins.

Cool in tin while you prepare the icing. Add lemon juice to sifted icing sugar and mix until a smooth glaze. Turn out onto wire rack and drizzle lemon icing over the cake. Zest some lemon and sprinkle on top.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

dairy free egg free nut free gluten free vegan

Recently at Elwood Market, a new mum joined the ranks with gluten-free baked goods on our allergy-friendly baking table. I was so enamoured with her chocolate chip cookies that I hounded her for the recipe and then made them vegan. They are very very good! 


She used a commercial gluten-free flour mix but because I'd run out, I subbed in a mix of brown rice flour and coconut flour. And instead of using egg replacer, I just added 1/4 cup rice milk. It probably accounts for the slightly crackled appearance that weren't a feature of her cookies, but they weren't crumbly upon eating. The Sweet William choc chips tend to melt somewhat on baking, but it all still makes for an incredibly tasty (and rich) cookie. 

250g dairy-free margarine (Nuttelex)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup caster sugar

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup rice milk

1 1/4 cups brown rice flour + 1 cup coconut flour 

or 2 1/4 cups gluten-free plain flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

2 cups dairy/egg/nut free chocolate chips (I used Sweet William)

Beat margarine and sugars in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add in rice milk and extract and beat until well combined. Transfer to large bowl.  Stir combined sifted flour and soda into mixture, in two batches. 

Stir in chocolate, cover, refrigerate 1 hour.  Preheat oven to moderate (180 degrees/160 degrees fan forced). Grease oven trays. Roll dessertspoons of the dough into balls; place 3cm apart on trays.  Bake, uncovered, about 12 minutes.  Cool completely on trays.

Farinata (Chickpea Flatbread)

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

This recipe is from the River Cafe's Green cookbook, one of very few Italian cookbooks I treasure. It is divided into seasonal fruit and vegetables and features interesting produce with inspiring recipes. (eg. who knew Italians had even heard of ginger, let alone willingly cooked with it in both savoury and sweet dishes?!)

Because I am embracing all things gluten-free at the moment, it must be said that the farinata, a traditional Ligurian street food, is an ideal gluten-free pizza or flatbread.

Make sure the oiled pan is smoking hot before you pour in the batter or you won't get a crispy base. And the batter should only be 1cm thick (reserve the rest for another tray if need be) or you'll get a pancake rather than a pizza. I suspect it should be browner and crunchier than it looks in my picture but I was in a (hungry) hurry. In fact, if you squint, it almost passes for an omelette. Which gets me thinking that a bit of chickpea batter, liberally seasoned and poured into a pan with vegetables might make for a tasty egg-free frittata...

250g chickpea flour
750ml warm water
salt
75ml olive oil

*You can add any flavourings you like - strong herbs like rosemary, marjoram, thyme or sage. I sliced up some artichokes as per the original recipe and scattered fresh marjoram.

Add chickpea flour to the warm water in a bowl. If you can be bothered, sieve it first, but I didn't and given it sits for a couple of hours while it absorbs the water - it's not really necessary. Whisk it well to get rid of any lumps, add a tablespoon of salt, cover the bowl and set aside for at least 2 hours in a warm place.

Remove the foam that forms at the top of the batter and stir in the olive oil, mixing well. Pour a tablespoon of oil into your largest baking tray or pizza tray (around 40cm is best) and put into the oven until the oil starts to smoke. Remove the pan from the oven and quickly pour in the batter. It's supposed to be thin and not more than 1cm deep. Scatter over the artichoke slices and/or herbs, salt and a drizzling of olive oil. Place back in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes. Surface is supposed to bubble and the edges will crisp up.

Slice up and serve immediately.

Sunflower Seed Butter

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

I'm a fan of Eskal's Freenut Butter - a nut-free substitute for peanut butter. But it's quite sweet and has emulsifiers. Turns out it's dead easy to make yourself!

1 cup sunflower kernels
a few teaspoons sunflower oil or light olive oil

Roast sunflower kernels in a dry saucepan on low-medium to heat for about 5 minutes. Don't leave the stove, and turn them frequently so they don't burn.

Once they've cooled a bit, blitz them in a food processor. You'll need to add a little oil to help the binding process, but do this a little bit at a time.

You can add seasoning to taste (1/4 teaspoon of salt and/or 1/2 teaspoon of honey or golden syrup). It's delicious just on its own though.

Keep refrigerated in an airtight container. It might separate from the oil but just mix again before using.

Gluten-free Orange Poppyseed Cake

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

I'll admit to being a little cocky these days when it comes to vegan baking. After 6 long years, I reckon I could tackle just about anything. But recently, vegan combined with gluten-free baking, has reduced me to a blubbering mess in the kitchen! Gummy muffins, boulder breads and chewy cakes - I've baked and binned them all.

Now I'm happy to report that gluten-free disasters are happening less frequently for me (though I suspect they'll continue in the future). I'm also going through different brands of gluten-free flour mixes at a rate of knots. After countless hours of google research as well as investing in a growing library of gluten-free cookbooks, it seems the best cake and cookie mix is one which predominantly features fine brown rice flour. So my next challenge will be to make my own flour mix. However if you're up for baking a lovely cake such as this one, (adapted from Cybele Pascal) use a commercial mix, and I'll be back very soon with a DIY version.

This cake is best eaten on the same day, but you can refresh in the microwave for a good pudding-style treat. Zap for about 20 seconds per piece and serve with dairy-free vanilla ice cream.

2 cups caster sugar
1 tablespoon No Egg replacer mixed with 1/4 cup rice or soy milk
1 cup orange juice
zest of 1 orange, finely chopped
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 cups gluten-free flour mix
3/4 teaspoon xantham gum
4 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup poppy seeds

Orange Syrup
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornflour
1 cup orange juice

Preheat oven to 180 C. Grease a 20 cm bundt pan and dust with cornflour.

Combine the sugar and egg replacer mix and beat in a mixer for about a minute. Add orange juice, zest and oil and mix for another minute or so.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour mix, xantham gum, baking powder and salt.

Add the dry ingredients into the wet in three batches, beating after each addition. Mix in the poppy seeds.

Pour batter into the pan and bake for between 30-40 minutes.

To make the syrup, whisk together sugar and cornflour in a small saucepan. Whisk in the juice and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring continuously until it thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.

Once the cake has cooled in the tin for 5 minutes, turn onto wire rack. Pierce holes in the top of the cake with a skewer (about 20 times) and then pour over the syrup.

Gluten-free Anzac Biscuits

I like the addition of quinoa flakes here - it makes them slightly more nutritious! If you're a coeliac and can tolerate certified gluten-free oats, try asking at your local health food store. Bob's Red Mill is now being imported from the US and their range of gluten-free oats and flour mixes is excellent.

(If you're watching your weight, my healthier version is available at www.weighitup.com.au)

1 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup gluten-free cornflakes
1/2 cup quinoa flakes
1 cup gluten-free plain flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 dairy-free margarine (Nuttelex)
1/4 cup golden syrup
1 teaspoon bicarb soda
2 tablespoons hot water

Preheat oven to 180 C.

Place flour, cornflakes, quinoa flakes and sugar in a bowl, mixing well.

Melt margarine and golden syrup in a saucepan over low heat. Mix water and bicarb then add to saucepan.

Add liquid to dry ingredients and combine very well, with hands if you have to. Place tablespoons of mixture onto a lined baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes. If you like your Anzacs chewy, reduce baking time by a few minutes.

Cool on a wire rack.

Nut-free Baklava

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

This recipe makes an enormous slab of baklava. It's a special event dish, so you'll need more than a few friends to help eat it. Toasting the sunflower kernels brings out their nutty flavour making them an ideal nut substitute.

If you are gluten-free, you could try layering with just a few sheets of Pastry Pantry's Rough Puff Pastry which is also vegan, preservative-free and trans-fat free.

750g fillo pastry (Antoniou)

2 cups sunflower kernels, lightly toasted in oven

300g dairy-free margarine (Nuttelex)

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1tsp cloves

Syrup

2 cups water

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup honey or golden syrup

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

TIP: When using fillo pastry, ensure you bring the unopened packets to room temperature for a couple of hours prior to using. Use fresh (refrigerated) fillo rather than frozen. Always keep the unused pastry covered while you're layering or it will dry out and crack, making it difficult to handle.

Preheat oven to 180C.

Melt margarine and lightly grease 25 x 43cm baking tray. Trim pastry to size of tray and keep trimmings. Layer one packet of pastry, brushing with margarine after every second or third sheet of pastry.

Roughly process toasted sunflower kernels in a food processor, then combine with sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over top layer. Place the trimmed pieces of pastry from both packets on top of the nut mixture before continuing to layer the remaining pastry.

Cut into diamond or square shapes, making sure to cut right through to the base. You may want to refrigerate for half an hour as it makes cutting the fine pastry a little easier.

Pour remaining margarine (if any left) over the baklava and it will be absorbed by the pastry. 

Bake for about 1 hour or until golden brown. Make the syrup while it's cooling - combine all the ingredients, bring to the boil and cook for 10 minutes.

Pour hot syrup over baklava and sprinkle with kernels.

Vegan Palak Paneer

dairy free egg free nut free gluten free vegan

I did promise a nut-free chicken korma recipe a while ago except I'm still experimenting (last attempt yielded an inexplicably fluorescent yellow hue!)

In the meantime, here's a vegetarian contribution - a classic Indian spinach curry. If you can eat dairy, go ahead and cube up some paneer. To keep it vegan, you can add some lightly fried tofu pieces. But if that's not your thing (and quite frankly, it wasn't ours - it makes the photo look more authentic but we enjoyed the curry far more without it), steamed/boiled waxy potatoes cut into cubes would also be delicious.

1 block of firm tofu, cubed and lightly pan-fried in oil OR 2 cups of steamed waxy potato, cut into cubes
1 large bunch of spinach, washed
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
piece of ginger, about 1/2 inch, grated
2 green chillies, finely chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp garam masala
3/4 cup tomato puree
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup water
salt to taste

Blanch spinach in a large pot of boiling water. Drain then blend in a food processor to a smooth paste.

Heat oil in pan and fry onions until translucent.

Add the garlic, ginger, green chillies and turmeric and fry for about a minute.

Add the tomato puree and fry for another minute.

Add spinach paste, tofu or potatoes, garam masala, salt and water then bring to the boil.

Serve hot with steamed basmati rice.

Grilled Radicchio

dairy free egg free nut free gluten free vegan

I'm afraid my new year's resolution to eat more seasonally, and therefore sustainably, is off to a shaky start. Radicchio is normally harvested in winter, however given the unusually cool start to our Melbourne summer (it even snowed, you know!) I declared its discovery at the grocer this afternoon "unseasonably sustainable".


It was a head of very pretty radicchio and I immediately thought of grilling it on the bbq, something I have never tried. I think the Treviso variety is more suited to grilling, though it was delicious all the same - the bitterness mellowed by the chargrill and the final dressing.


But I promise to wait until winter before buying it again.


1 head of radicchio
2-3 cloves finely chopped garlic
a few tablespoons of olive oil then more for drizzling
1/4 cup chopped parsley
lemon juice or some good quality balsamic vinegar to finish
salt & pepper to season


Cut the radicchio into quarters or wedges, depending on the size of the head.  For the Treviso variety (elongated), cut them lengthwise. Brush all over with a mixture of olive oil and finely chopped garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place on a medium-hot grill or bbq.  Grill for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a serving platter. Drizzle olive oil, sprinkle parsley and finish with fresh lemon juice or balsamic vinegar.

Chocolate & Raspberry Brownies (vegan, gluten free)

dairy free, egg free, nut free, vegan, gluten free

Gooey and intense and very chocolatey, with a hint of tartness via the raspberries. The perfect brownie, really. Vegan and gluten-free too! Beware though - without the addition of a couple of binding eggs, they're in danger of complete collapse. Best kept refrigerated and you must have cooled the pan for a good hour or two in the fridge before attempting to cut them. They would definitely improve their shape-holding capacity if you cooked them 5-10 minutes longer...but as most of us know, an overcooked brownie is a travesty, so don't even think it.

175g coconut oil
200g dairy/nut-free chocolate (eg. Kinnerton), in pieces
1/3 cup organic cocoa powder, sifted
2/3 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup apple puree or 2 egg replacers
3/4 cup plain flour or gluten-free flour, sifted
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Preheat oven to 160 C. Lightly grease an 18cm square cake tin and line the base with baking paper.

Place oil and chocolate into a saucepan over low heat and stir until the butter and chocolate have melted. Remove and set aside to cool slightly. Transfer to a large bowl.

Add cocoa, brown sugar and vanilla and mix to combine. Stir in apple puree/egg replacers and flour. Gently fold in raspberries.

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for approx 40-45 minutes or until the cake starts to come away from the sides of the tin. Cool in the tin and then in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before cutting into squares. Dust with pure icing sugar before serving.

Gluten-free Shortbread

dairy free egg free nut free vegan gluten free

Gluten-free! What a minefield. The growing interest in the allergy-friendly baking section at Elwood Market meant that sooner rather than later, I had to cater for our coeliac friends. I'll admit to feeling a bit apprehensive. Apparently gluten works in mysterious ways so while one substitution can work perfectly in a recipe, it will fail dismally in another. Luckily shortbread is practically gluten-free anyway....so this turned out very nicely without much effort. Phew!

1/2 cup maize cornflour (some cornflours are wheaten so check ingredients)

1/2 cup pure icing sugar

1 cup rice flour

180g dairy-free margarine, chopped

Sift the cornflour, icing sugar and rice flour together. Add chopped margarine, and mix with hands until a soft dough forms. Chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 180 C and line two baking trays. Roll out dough to 5mm thick, sprinkling lightly with cornflour (it's quite a wet mixture, so I also rolled out onto baking paper to prevent it sticking to the board). Cut into desired shapes and bake for approximately 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before storing.