Chocolate liquor rum date balls

When I was younger and doing athletics (running) mum got me onto date balls as a healthy energy booster. They tasted great and were all natural plus very easy and fun to make. All they consist of is pitted dates, almond meal and shredded coconut. So for Xmas I like to make them but with some added naughtiness! Rum or chocolate liquor rum (grandads homemade one). It's a healthier alternative to rum balls or chocolate balls. 

All you need to do is: heat the dates on the stove with a small amount of water. Let that dates soften and go mushy, they will soak up the water. Then add 1/4 cup of rum so it soaks in too. Stir in 3-4 table spoons of almond meal or lsa. You should be left with a gooey thick mixture that's easy to roll into balls. (Too much liquid and they won't set properly, so only add as needed, but make sure you taste to see if it's got enough of everything) Roll the balls into whatever size you want and roll in the coconut. Put them in the fridge over night and enjoy cold/room tempature. Also if your pregnant or don't want the alcohol use rum essence instead. Enjoy a healthy but yummy Christmas! 

Bread rolls

I was really cravings something healthy one weekend but didn't just want a salad or a rice dish, I braved looking in the bread section (thinking I wouldn't find anything decent g/f) and found some white bread rolls from Pure Bread. They were over $5 for 3 but ended up being so worth it. They tasted fresh for over 3 days with salad in them and even after being frozen and eaten with BBQ meat. For a 3 day lunch go get some, wrap them up individually in cling wrap then add salad and dressings just before eating. Yum, us Coeliacs really don't miss out anymore! 

Wraps that don't snap in half

I went to a staff retreat at Strathlyn Vineyard in Rosevears, I was treated to a morning tea of pumpkin pie, choc brownies and rice paper rolls. Lunch of quiesh and wraps. Afternoon tea of choc brownies again then a dinner of yummy salads. The main wow factor was the wrap I got. It looked and tasted like a normal wholemeal wrap. I nearly didn't believe it was gluten free. It was full of salad and ham and rolled beautifully. I was then given the left over wraps and made some for myself at work and they didn't snap in half! Very very tasty! Haven't tracked down where to buy them yet but when I do I will pop it on here! 

Fragrant Fish Curry

My Dad brought home from a fishing trip in Cairns some lovely fish and was generous enough to share some with me. We had it for dinner at his place fried, which was covered in whisked egg and gluten free breadcrumbs then chucked in the deep fryer. Gosh it tasted good and you wouldn't have even known it was gluten free. (shows gluten free substitutes are getting better, YAY)

With the pieces he gave me I decided to cook a curry. I searched through some cook books and found this recipe in an old book (something similar to women's weekly) and thought it looked simple and tasty. All the ingredients listed were all gluten free, the only things I had to check were the curry paste and fish sauce (I used Ayam: http://www.ayam.com/asian-range.html). Also instead of using all different seafood I just used fish and a few prawns for the top.
Give this one a go, it wont disappoint!

Mini quiches & creative salad

We got given some home grown eggs from my partners Dad so I decided to use them straight away as we don't eat eggs a lot. We had just gotten back from our 11 day holiday in QLD so I wanted to make something quick and easy, but also wanted to experiment. Therefore I made mini quiches and a warm salad, all very easy to make and it was a real hit. I even had it all cold for lunch the next day as it all kept well.

Quiche ingredients:

• 6 eggs
• Diced ham
• 4 finely chopped spring onions
• 3 finely chopped mushrooms
• 1/2 tin of corn 
• 1 finely chopped tomato 
• 2 table spoons of rice or almond milk
• Salt & pepper

Method:

• Beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper all together with a fork.
• Chop/dice all the ingredients.
• Stir into egg mixture
• Pour evenly into greased muffin tray
• Bake until egg is cooked through and is brown on top  

Salad ingredients: 

• 1/2 tin of corn
• 1 teaspoon of garlic
• 1 teaspoon of ginger
• 1 tin of mixed beans
• 6 thinly sliced mushrooms
• Half a bag of spinach leave
• 4 finely chopped spring onions
• Sweet chilli sauce
• Honey mustard dressing (featured in previous post) 

Method:

• Dice/chop all ingredients 
• Cook mushrooms with onions, ginger and garlic until browned 
• Add remaining ingredients
• Add sauce to taste, but not a lot is needed
• Stir continuously until cooked/mixed through
• Serve warm or cold  

River Bar & Kitchen in Brisbane, QLD

We were recommended to go have breakfast on our last day down at North Quay in Brisbane. Suggested was the River Bar & Kitchen which is one of Manu's restaurants. It was already 25 degrees at 9am down on the water and the day was beautiful. The setting was perfect and the Bar was really groovy. They had some rather different things listed on the menu and offered gluten free. I went with the big breakfast as I wasn't too sure what some other things were. I also has a juice that was raspberry, coconut, peach and mint, sounds a bit odd but it tasted great. I really enjoyed dining here but it would be a little hard if your a fussy eater as they don't change the menu at all for customers on weekends.

riverbarandkitchen.com.au