Meet the new kids on the block!

Here’s  heads up on some of my new products that you might be interested in….some of them are not technically new and might be very familiar to you but it has taken me several years to blog about them (…life got in the way…)

Activated mixed nuts: 

They are back! A mix of 8 different activated nuts and seeds. Similar to the snack mix but without the dried fruit. A great gift idea or for those who like variety or for new customers who want to try out all of my nuts (before deciding on which one is their favourite!).

Activated sesame seeds:

I use these for certain recipes including my Cypriot Easter slice – like a paleo bread- called Flaounes, and to sprinkle on top of Asian-flavoured meat dishes or in Asian flavoured soups.

Activated pine nuts:

I use these for certain recipes including my rosemary and pine-nut cake, pesto, to throw into my modern spanakopita (Greek spinach pie) or in salads. They have the highest amount of protein of all nuts.

Activated buckwheat:

These are whole hulled buckwheat groats which I activate (soak and dehydrate). I make 2 different varieties: a sweet buckwheat which is dusted with cinnamon powder before going into the dehydrator ovens, and a savoury version which is dusted with various Ovvio Organic herbs and spices (oregano, paprika, sage, thyme, pepper, garlic granules, all spice, sea salt) before being dehydrated. I grind the activated groats up just prior to use (to prevent oxidative damage) in a nut/spice/coffee grinder (or Thermomix if you have one)  to yield a very fine flour as opposed to an ordinary food processor. What do I use these for? Basically as my gluten-free breadcrumb and flour substitutes.

In particular, I use the savoury version for:

• bread-crumbing veal schnitzel, lambs brains etc (yes it’s STILL possible to eat schnitzel and crumbed food on a traditional  wholefoods diet!!)
• various semi-sweet/savoury cakes I have created (eg my rosemary and pine-nut cake and my Cypriot Easter slice ‘flaounes’).

I use the cinnamon buckwheat:

• for cakes, muffins, biscuits and pancakes. I still want to enjoy all of my old favourite sweet treats but have crafted recipes without all the gluten, refined sugar and other processed crap. Just nutrient-dense ingredients with no empty fillers. Click here for the recipe for my activated buckwheat pancakes.
• as a base for my gluten-free muesli
• to throw into yogurt (my kids love this for morning tea or dessert)
• in one of my sokolata (see below) recipes to create a Toblerone-like texture (aka maple crunch sokolata). Very yummy.

These activated buckwheats are very versatile and good ones to have stashed in the pantry as shelf life is about 1 year (or more).

Sokolata (Greek for chocolate):

This is my raw dark chocolate sweetened with maple syrup. Why? Because I couldn’t find a brand of chocolate on the market that didn’t contain refined sugar or agave syrup (too high fructose despite being natural) or other nasty ingredients. There are a couple new producers of clean chocolate out very recently but I still struggle with their texture hence why I’ve stuck with my own. Plus I love the whole process of making chocolate and creating different flavours……of which i have 11  including one that is totally unsweetened (mellowed with a hint of vanilla essence) for the hard-core espresso-drinking sweetener-free crowd. Hats off to them. Other flavours (sweetened with maple syrup) include: plain, fruit & activated nut, lemon zest & ginger, orange & chilli, maple crunch (which contains my activated buckwheat to give a Toblerone-like texture), peppermint, espresso, coconut, activated almond and rock salt. 4 new flavours are in the pipeline too (rosewater, rosemary, spicy chai and raspberry ripe). Yep, I’m a tab obsessed with chocolate. Raw cacao powder is high in antioxidants and the brand i use has been fermented for 3 days. Raw cacao butter is a source of quality saturated fats and all-important cholesterol (that’s NOT a typo. Confused? Come and see me for a personal nutritional consultation and have every notion of what constitutes a ‘healthy’ diet turned upside down and inside out).

Kombucha and beet kvass:

These are 2 lacto-fermented beverages rich in probiotics (good bacteria) essential for good gut health. The more different tasty strains of good bacteria we can get into our gut the better. Diversity of gut flora is key.

My Kombucha is made from Ovvio Organics tea, rapadura (unrefined cane) sugar, a kombucha scoby (a collection of friendly bacteria and yeasts) and filtered water. It is a refreshing bubbly tonic- I call it the original soft drink. Slightly sweet, aromatic, fragrant and effervescent… it is a hit with both kids and adults.  My kids could drink this by the liter if I let them. Beautiful on its own or teamed with ice and lemon/lime,  or makes a great base for cocktails (add to vodka, gin or champagne). Very timely coming into summer especially when entertaining.

Beet kvass is made from chopped beeetroots. It is a powerful blood tonic and detoxifier and excellent for promoting regularity.

I will be running a course on lacto-fermentation in the coming weeks (date yet to be set) so you can learn to make these plus more.

 Tallow:

This is the fat that rises to the top of the beef broth (from 100% pastured cows) that is skimmed and solidified. I save on butter costs and use tallow instead of butter when frying meat or baking root veggies or chips (I still use loads of butter and coconut oil for other things). Always store tallow in freezer and hack of a piece with a knife on a chopping board just before using. It’s a non-dairy natural fat alternative excellent for those with dairy intolerances (because let’s face it you don’t want EVERYTHING to taste like coconut oil!). It is excellent for cooking with due to its high smoke point. It also makes for an excellent (all natural/non-toxic/edible) body/face moisturiser esp when you add a couple drops of essential oils to masks any smell. You might get a few dogs licking your legs though (which makes for an interesting conversation opener when the dog owner proclaims “I’ve never seen Spot licking anyone’s legs like that before!!!”).

You can purchase directly from me (as per procedure on second page of price list) or selected products only sold at various retail outlets.

To learn of new recipes, nutritional info, what my kids are taking for school lunches and loads of other stuff you might like to follow me on instagram (soullachamberlain), Facebook andTwitter.