Almond-Ginger Spelt Scones [vegan]

A tasty sweet scone that's vegan - and delicious!!!

I used the 3:1:2 ratio (spelt and almond flour:refined coconut oil:almond milk).

First add the spelt flour, salt, baking powder, a bit of coconut sugar and coconut oil in a food processor.  Blitz until the mix looks like bread crumbs.  Then add in the almond milk and a splash of vanilla.  Pulse in the food processor just until mixed - don't over mix.  Add in candied ginger and whole roasted almonds - incorporate them gently as you press the dough into a parchment lined baking tin.  Score with a knife or baking chopper/scraper (like this one OXO Scraper).

Bake at 400F for ~25 minutes or until golden brown.

While it's baking, I made a simple syrup and added finely julienned orange zest.  This made a wonderful syrup that I mixed with icing sugar for the drizzle as well as sweetened the zest.

While the scones are still warm, drizzle the tops with a mix of icing sugar and the orange simple syrup.

Poached Pear Frangipane

Happy Christmas! This is something I just recently discovered: frangipane. And, I'm addicted! It's a simple mixture of almonds, sugar, egg and butter, but I veganized it (with delicious result). It follow the typical frangipane mix of almond meal, white sugar and a bit of vanilla. I substituted flax seed and xanthan gum instead of egg and refined coconut oil for butter.

This is my favourite vegan hack: ~2T flax seed to 3T water (or almond milk) blend until creamy with an immersion blender. It makes a decent egg replacer. I've made vegan chocolate chip cookies with this trick and nobody could tell the difference.

Place the ingredients in the food processor and blitz until creamy.

The next part to this dish adds a festive nature to it: pears poached in pomegranate juice. First, peel and core the pears and place in a shallow skillet with a portion of pomegranate juice. Over low heat, allow the juice to begin simmering, and spoon over the pears.

When they're a nice colour, remove from the pan and allow to cool. Then, slide lengthwise and place in a prepared tart shell. I already had one in the fridge.

If I had to do it again, I'd have made the frangipane thicker, and I'd have put the pears on top of the filling. It was delicious all the same.

Bake at 350F until the filing is set, ~45min. I like to dust it with icing sugar and serve it with pomegranate kernels and a sprig of mint.

Mixed Fruit Pavlova

It's relatively easy to make, with three main components: meringue, whipped cream and fresh fruit.  It does take a while, though.

Start with a couple egg whites and a small bit of cream of tartar; whip until foamy.  Then add a bit of sugar and vanilla; whip to still peaks.  Spread the meringue onto a silicone baking mat.  Be sure to make walls around the edge of the meringue to form a shell (ya, know like in the picture).  Place it into a preheated 250F oven.  Here's the where the waiting starts: turn off the oven and leave the meringue overnight, or for ~8hours.  When it's done, it should be crisp and melt away when you bite it.

You can prepare the fruit while the meringue "bakes."  Be sure to use flavours that complement each other.  Also, the delicate fluffy composition needs the texture of soft fruits like berries and stonefruit.  Something like apple wouldn't fit the texture profile.

When the meringue is done, prepare the whipped cream.  I went with a light flavour profile to support the already delicate taste: acacia honey and almond.  Like the taste of angels dancing on your tongue, they are!

Finally, pile the whipped cream in meringue shell and layer the fruit atop the cream.  I also made a blood orange syrup to drizzle over top.  Be sure to serve it promptly so the meringue doesn't get soggy.