Well, hello Spring. Lovely to see you. Here in Melbourne we have been waiting a while, but I’m glad you’ve finally arrived. Spring brings us some new beginnings, like two baby pigeons in a nest in one of our hanging pots outside (it’s great breakfast table entertainment watching the little ones being fed by their mum), and the 6 now three-week old chickens (or potentially roosters, only time will tell) that we have living in our bathroom right now. We got a bit excited and got 6 day old chicks a few weekends back, so our house is literally full of the cheeping of new life.
What’s new for me right now is that I have decided to trial a grain free diet. I have been studying integrative nutrition this year, and have learned about the huge range of dietary and lifestyle theories out there. I have given quite a few different ways of eating a go; in my own diet there have been some changes that have stuck and some that haven’t! And after studying about the effect of grain on our bodies (especially those of us with auto-immune) I have decided to go grain free, and see how my body likes it. Seeds and legumes are so the new grains. At least in my house anyway 🙂
Right now, I am all about experimenting with grain free flours. The good news is I love trying out new ingredients, and seeing how many different directions I can take them. Often with an ingredient I will get a little obsessed, like those times in the year when I want to eat only Japanese food, or weeks when I want eggplant in everything. My year could probably be broken down into culinary phases, which float in an out like the seasons.
While I am in this experimenting mode, I love taking my new found favourite ingredient to different flavour places. The way I see it, it’s from these experimental phases that new weekday staples are born. Even though I rarely cook the same thing twice, it’s always good to have a base recipe in the back of your mind, that you can whip up without too much thought on a weekday night and give a little twist to right at the end. You have to keep it interesting, but manageable too!
So, the theory of the moment is grain free! According to some doctors, grains aren’t able to be digested properly by our bodies (you know, evolution and all that stuff), which can cause all kinds of problems, especially of the auto-immune kind. I have auto-immune and so do a few others in my family, so I thought I would go grain free for 6 weeks and see how my body responds. So far so good, and I have really enjoyed pushing my boundaries and coming up with new meals that are grain free. Ever tried pasta made from edamame and mung beans, it’s awesome!
One of my new favourite recipes that has become a basic staple at our house are chickpea pancakes. They are super quick and easy to make, and straddle that territory of a little bit savoury and a little bit sweet. My kids like them because they are ‘pancakes’, I like them because they are quick, grain free and delicious, and my husband likes them because they are vegetarian and light but satisfying at the same time. This recipe I have just lightly adapted from Anna Jones’ great second book ‘A Modern Way To Cook’. It comes together in about 10 minutes, so you can whip it up a delicious lunch or dinner in hardly any time at all. And because I am loving herbs at the moment, I made a punchy garlic and dill tzatziki to go with them.
Spiced Chickpea Pancakes
(with turmeric for extra goodness)
Serves 2-4
150g chickpea flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp ground turmeric
230ml milk of your choice*
2 medium carrots, grated
2 tablespoons olive oil plus a little extra for the pan
Zingy Dill and Garlic Tzatziki
3/4 cup of thick natural yoghurt* (I love sheep’s yoghurt)
1/2 cucumber, grated
1 handful of dill, roughly chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed and finely chopped
salt and pepper, and lemon to taste
In a medium bowl, stir together the chickpea flour, salt, pepper and turmeric. Stir through the milk and olive oil until the mixture is smooth and then stir though the grated carrots. Set aside until you are ready to cook.
For the tzatziki, grate the cucumber, and then place into a sieve over the sink. Allow to drain for a few minutes, then press the grated cucumber against the bottom of the sieve to squeeze out any excess juice. In a bowl measure out the yoghurt, add the dill, garlic, salt, pepper and lemon zest and juice. Add in the drained cucumber and stir together. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
Heat a heavy based frying pan over medium heat. Drizzle with a little extra olive oil and once the pan is warm pour in the pancake mixture, then turn the heat to low. Cook for around 5 minutes, or until the edges of the pancake look golden, and there are some bubbles appearing in the surface of the pancake. Flip, as best you can and any way you know how, and cook on the other side for another 4 or 5 minutes.
Serve with the tzatziki, a fresh dressed green salad, an extra crack of salt and pepper and a sprinkling of dukkah. You can also dress it up with a fried egg, some crumbled feta, or a dollop hommus and a slice of avocado.
*If you would like to make this vegan then simply replace the milk with your favourite plant based milk, and swap the yoghurt in the tzatziki with coconut yoghurt.
Spiced Chickpea Pancakes
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Loading...Ingredients
- 150g chickpea flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 230ml milk of your choice
- 2 medium carrots, grated
- 2 tablespoons olive oil plus a little extra for the pan
- +
- Zingy Garlic and Dill Tzatziki
- 3/4 cup of thick natural yoghurt (I love sheep’s yoghurt)
- 1/2 cucumber, grated
- 1 handful of dill, roughly chopped
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed and finely chopped
- salt and pepper, and lemon to taste
Instructions
In a medium bowl, stir together the chickpea flour, salt, pepper and turmeric. Stir through the milk and olive oil until the mixture is smooth and then stir though the grated carrots. Set aside until you are ready to cook.
For the tzatziki, grate the cucumber, and then place into a sieve over the sink. Allow to drain for a few minutes, then press the grated cucumber against the bottom of the sieve to squeeze out any excess juice. In a bowl measure out the yoghurt, add the dill, garlic, salt, pepper and lemon zest and juice. Add in the drained cucumber and stir together. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
Heat a heavy based frying pan over medium heat. Drizzle with a little extra olive oil and once the pan is warm pour in the pancake mixture, then turn the heat to low. Cook for around 5 minutes, or until the edges of the pancake look golden, and there are some bubbles appearing in the surface of the pancake. Flip, as best you can and any way you know how, and cook on the other side for another 4 or 5 minutes.
Serve with the tzatziki, a fresh dressed green salad, an extra crack of salt and pepper and a sprinkling of dukkah. You can also dress it up with a fried egg, some crumbled feta, or a dollop hommus and a slice of avocado.
*If you would like to make this vegan then simply replace the milk with your favourite plant based milk, and swap the yoghurt in the tzatziki with coconut yoghurt.
Notes
• gluten free • grain free • vegan option • quick •
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