Cookbook writer and mom proves you can cook delicious food for children without butter, white flour and added sugar
It's true: all of the recipes in Emily Rose's ebooks,
Healthy Home Cooking For Kids and
Have Your Cake are made without butter, white flour and added sugar-but kids still love them. The recipes include such crowd pleasers as spinach and mushroom lasagna, honey soy drumsticks, carrot cake, and a dessert pizza with chocolate and strawberries.
"When it comes to feeding our children, parents only want what's best for them-and kids only want what tastes good. I wrote my books to make both happy," says Emily. Healthy Home Cooking For Kids includes snacks, meals, side dishes, and even a special birthday party section. Have Your Cake is a collection of delectable dessert recipes, most which take only around 10 minutes to prepare. There is no sifting of flour or difficult methods and most can be made with just a bowl and a whisk.
All recipes are made from healthy ingredients that are high in fiber and low in sugars and saturated fat. As a busy mom of four kids ranging from ages four to twelve, Emily knows that parents are juggling lots of responsibilities and the time they can devote to cooking is often less than they would like. That's why all recipes are quick and easy to prepare.
COOKING WITH KIDS
"In both books my challenge was to make healthier versions of traditional recipes without sacrificing flavor," says Emily. To do this she turned her kitchen into a laboratory and recruited her kids as kitchen hands and taste testers. Emily and her kids experimented with healthier ingredients, like honey and whole wheat flour, until they won raves for everything from snacks to dessert. "Along the way, my kids learned that they can still have delicious meals and treats, using healthy ingredients without lots of preservatives, additives and artificial colors and flavors," she says. "Cooking is a great time to spend with your children. The more involved your kids are in the preparation and tasting the different ingredients, the more likely they will be to eat and enjoy the end result." And she has the photos to prove it!
ALTERNATIVE INGREDIENTS, TRADITIONAL TASTE
Butter, for example, is high in saturated fats. As an alternative Emily uses rice bran oil, which is a lot lower in saturated fats and free of trans fat. As a replacement for refined sugar, which plays a role in obesity and tooth decay, Emily uses raw honey, a natural sweetener. Her recipes require considerably less amounts of honey to achieve the same sweetness as refined sugar. In addition, raw honey is an unprocessed source of beneficial nutrients.
Using whole-wheat flour instead of white flour provides a higher concentration of fiber and the same great flavor and texture as what you would get with white flour.
ABOUT EMILY ROSE
Emily Rose is a Melbourne, Australia-based mom of four and an expert in healthy home cooking. She holds a degree in Commerce from Monash University.
You can purchase your own copy and visit her site at:
emilyroserecipes.com.au
And now for the delicious recipes!
Spinach and Mushroom Lasagne
Ingredients
380 g mushrooms
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon rice bran oil
salt
2 eggs
500 g spinach (frozen, allow to thaw)
250 g ricotta
1½ cups (380 g) napoli sauce (see meals: pasta with napoli sauce)
250 g wholemeal (wholewheat) lasagne sheets
90 g boccocini
Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) fan-forced.
To prepare the mushrooms, slice mushrooms and dice garlic into fine pieces. Place oil in frying pan on high heat. Add mushrooms and garlic, and lower heat to medium. Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon until cooked (approximately 2 to 3 minutes).
To prepare the spinach mix, place eggs in a bowl and whisk. Drain spinach, then add to eggs along with the ricotta and a pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly.
Place a small amount of napoli sauce over the base of the dish (24 cm x 22 cm), then cover with lasagne sheets.
Spread half of the spinach mix over the lasagne sheets, then add another layer of lasagne sheets.
Top with some napoli sauce and place the mushrooms on top. Add another layer of lasagne sheets followed by the remaining spinach mix.
Place the final layer of lasagne sheets on top and cover with the rest of the napoli sauce. Make sure that the pasta is completely covered. Using your fingers, crumble boccocini over the top.
Cover with foil and place in oven.
Bake for 35 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 10 minutes.
Serves 6.
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake
Ingredients
cake
2 eggs
1⁄2 cup (125 ml) rice bran oil
1⁄2 cup (150 g) honey
1⁄2 cup (125 ml) orange juice
3⁄4 cup (80 g) hazelnut meal
1 cup (160 g) wholemeal (wholewheat) self-raising flour
1⁄3 cup (35 g) finely grated 70% dark chocolate
Icing
70g 70% dark chocolate
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons rice bran oil
hazelnuts for decorating
Preheat oven to 160°C (315°F) fan-forced.
Whisk together eggs, oil and honey. Add orange juice. Mix in hazelnut meal and flour until combined. Add grated dark chocolate and mix.
Grease a 20 cm round tin with oil and line the base with baking paper. Pour in mixture and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.
Allow to cool for 20 minutes before removing and leaving to cool on a cake rack.
When cake has cooled prepare icing. Melt chocolate and stir in honey and oil. Mix until honey is dissolved. Use a blunt knife to ice the top and sides of the cake.
Decorate with hazelnuts.
