Florentines

Florentines, coated with chocolate on the bottom
 

From the Whare Kea lodge in New Zealand.  We were lucky to stay at this fabulous resort in New Zealand.  The chef prepared the most delicious degustation menus each night.  Every day at 4:00 pm, there would be Florentines and coffee & tea, prepared by Sarah.
She was kind enough to give us the recipe.

Ingredients

 

50 g coconut oil

50 ml water

100 g caster sugar

Pinch of salt

150 g sliced almonds

50 g coconut chips

20 g desiccated coconut

50 g coconut cream 

1 egg white

150 g dark chocolate

Method

 

Place oil, sugar, water and salt over med / high heat. Whisk

Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes till it turns golden

Mix in almonds, desiccated coconut, coconut chips and coconut cream 

Whip egg white in a small bowl till firm peaks form. Fold into coconut mixture

Place on a lined paper sheet and bake for 15 minutes at 180 C

Cool

Melt chocolate and paint onto bottom

Chill until hard

Store in a cool place or in the fridge. 

 

The coconut cream is weighed - double checked this with the chef 

Halibut with Herbes de Provence

 

 

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 6 portions of skinless Halibut (about 5 ounces each)
• 1 teaspoon of herbes de Provence
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Whisk the oil, herbes de Provence, salt and pepper in a bowl to combine. 
3. Arrange the halibut pieces in a lightly oiled baking dish.
4. Drizzle with the oil/herb mixture and spread with a spoon over the halibut.  Leave a little space between each piece of fish.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes in the middle of the oven, uncovered,  till it is white and flakes easily with a fork.  Be careful not to overcook the fish or it will be dry.  The fish will continue to cook a bit when you remove it from the oven.

Tips

• Serve with colorful vegetables such as red, yellow and orange peppers.  Broccoli, asparagus or green beans also go well with a white fish.  Baby Broccoli is a nice change and is milder, sweeter and more tender than broccoli.  It's sometimes call broccolini. 
• Herbes de Provence is available in the herb section of the grocery store; different brands will have slightly different mixtures.  It usually contains thyme, marjoram, rosemary, basil, fennel, sage, lavender - and sometimes tarragon.

Salmon with Hemp Seeds

This is a great recipe to incorporate healthy hemp seeds into your diet.  Look for the raw, shelled hemp seeds to add a nutty flavor and Omega 3 to your dish.

Ingredients

2 salmon filets

4 tbsp shelled hemp seeds

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup sliced fennel

1/2 cup chopped watercress

1 cup fresh radish sprouts, well rinsed

Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse and pat dry salmon filets. Rub lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Place hemp seeds in a shallow dish and dip salmon filets in on the flesh side.

Heat an ovenproof cast iron skillet over high heat for 3 minutes. Reduce to medium and place filets, seasoning side down, into the pan and allow them to cook for 2 minutes without moving them. Turn the filets over and place in the oven for 5-7 minutes, until the salmon is just cooked. Time may vary depending on thickness of the salmon.

While salmon is in oven, in a small bowl whisk the mustard, juice, vinegar and salt. Add fennel, watercress and sprouts and lightly toss until combined.

Put each filet on a dinner plate. Place a heaping handful of the salad on top of each of the salmon filets.

Coconut Oil Granola

Ingredients

2 cups of oats

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup seeds (I used 1/8 cup hemp, 1/8 cup chia and 1/4 cup pumpkin)

1 tsp vanilla

3 TBS honey

3 TBS coconut oil

Method

Preheat oven to 300F

Heat the oil and honey till melted together (microwave 30 seconds).

Add the vanilla.

Mix the oats and nuts in a bowl.  Add the honey/oil mixture and combine.

Put on a greased baking sheet.

Bake or 15 minutes. Stir in the pan, and bake about 10-15 minutes more till golden brown.

Once it has cooled, you can add dried fruits like cranberries, cherries, raisins, apricots, mango.

I left the fruit out, and just use it as a topping on fruit/yogurt.

It's really good because it's not very sweet!

Chia & Coconut Pudding

Chia & Coconut Pudding

Ingredients

400g can organic light coconut cream or milk (unsweetened)

1/3 cup honey or less ( 1/8 c or 1 TBS)

1/3 cup Chia seeds

Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries to serve

Toasted coconut for garnish

Method

1) Mix the milk, honey and seeds in a bowl. Stir well.

2) Cover and store in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight to thicken.

3) Divide among serving bowls and top with berries and nuts,

4) Drizzle with a bit more coconut cream if desired.

You can reduce the honey.  I used about 2 TBS and then you can always add a bit more to taste when you serve it.

Sprinkle with toasted sliced almonds to garnish.