What’s the fudge all about? Part 2 - DARK

In ♥ Fudgelets part 2 ♥ I want to share with you some magic of the Mother Nature kind!

It is in the deepest dark earth that the most delicious things grow. When roots meet light, stems swirl into green abandonment and something special happens. In “What’s the fudge all about? Part 1 – I shared a delicious dark chocolate fudge recipe.

This time I’m delighted to be sharing it polar opposite, the silkiest white fudge that I’ve tasted and yes, it's good for you! It contains two of my favourite ingredients - coconut oil and Lúcuma.

Coconut oil

A cooks dream, it has a high smoke point and is far better for cooking with than olive oil, which becomes rancid and turns carcinogenic. It does contain saturated fat, though differs from the kind we know to loathe, the artery clogging kind, also known as LCT’s (long-chain triglycerides) Coconut oil contains MCT’S (medium-chain triglycerides) which are easily absorbed and digested, requiring much less energy and fewer enzymes to break them down for digestion, so they seldom get stored as body fat. Coconut goodness literally pours down like droplets of healing nectar – here is what it can do…

• Stimulate the metabolism
• Aid healing
• Prevents osteoporosis
• Prevents cancer
• Heals viruses
• Balances blood sugars
• Moisturises dry skin and hair

Lúcuma

Pronounced (Loo-Ku-Mah) is a whole fruit powder and tastes like paradise of a Peruvian kind. It's creamy texture gives grrrreatness to these gourmet Fudgelets. Lúcuma powder is delicious, butterscotch like, blending beautifully with ice creams, baby food, yogurts, biscuits, smoothies, raw treats and yumminess of all kinds.

The fruit grows from an evergreen and is also known as the “Gold of the Incas.” For some fudge gold, la la Lúcuma is the way forward!

• Gluten-free
• Rich source of antioxidants
• Anti-inflammatory
• Promotes wound healing and tissue regeneration
• Helps keep bones and teeth strong

Lace your taste buds lovingly. These Fudgelets will do just that, I promise. I also promise you that if you take moments each day to cherish the now and empty the mind of niggly nothingness – ie; pointless worries and endless things to do, you will in turn tap into your higher resonance and true worth.

Love,

FFX

White Fudge with Incas Gold

Cashew nuts, 180g

Lúcuma powder, 40g

Sea salt, a good pinch

Coconut oil, 55g

Sweet freedom/ maple syrup 155g

Vanilla extract, 1 tsp

Pistachio nuts, 40g roughly chopped

BLITZ first three ingredients together in a food processor until fine.

ADD wet ingredients to dry and blend until well mixed. 
ROLL into varying sized balls, to suit different appetites.

OR

SPREAD in a parchment lined baking pan. 
SPRINKLE with pistachio nuts and press down lightly.
CUT into varying sized pieces to suit all appetites. 

REFRIGERATE until very firm, for at least an hour.

ALWAYS serve chilled and love always!

What’s the fudge all about? Part 1 - LIGHT

FUDGELET HEART

Scarcely after midnight in a moment of free sans tranquillity –

Time stood still.

I fell,

In

Love.

I know nothing more than that which I am –

We communicate;

And largely,

Happily,

Understand.

Our sails are heading in the same direction –

Each storm stirs.

We hold,

Love –

Close.

Each day a new ingredient is added to an unfolding life –

Some spices shared.

Cooking connects,

Feels –

And heals.

Tomorrows yesterday melts into ambrosia -

Love is light.

FUDGELET SLAB - FEEL FREE TO ROLL OR SPREAD FUDGE MIX - TO SUIT YOU

Lovingly made fudge makes a memorable gift. There are as many types of fudge flavours as there are colours; from butterscotch, to mint, vanilla to coffee, ginger to rum and raisin. Today I’m sharing a classic chocolate one, in a raw style. My next post will be Part 2 - and I've included a picture above. These chilled cashew Fudgelets (a name I like to call individual pieces of fudge, made with love) bring smiles in abundance, and they are quick and easy to make, so even more smiles, if you please.

SMILES AND FRESH AIR MAKE FOR HEALTHIER APPETITES

I’m reading an interesting book, “Why love matters,” by Sue Gerhardt. She explains why love is essential to brain development in the early years of life and how “pathways” form that affect the way we respond to stress; these “pathways” may contribute to conditions such as anorexia and addiction.

So what has this got to do with fudge? Fudge is a childhood favourite of mine. I remember buying a batch in Cornwall as a gift for my family on a school trip. The gift was accidentally left on the train at Victoria… I make fudge to share, in fact sharing is my favourite part of cooking. I enjoy the gentle rolling of these soft and sticky Fudgelets, and the methodical and repetitive movements involved in preparing them. My oldest son likes cooking too, I actively encourage him to help in the kitchen. Cooking with children gives both parent and child time to catch up and share thoughts and stories, my youngest son is six months old and happily looks on. 

What’s the fudge all about?

Food is a medium that brings together loved ones. And as the ripples of positivity roll into daily life, perceptions and expectations become brighter. Cooking helps build self-confidence in children and also builds healthier appetites.

Sometimes love may be squeezed out of people, it is most visible in their eyes. However, treat someone with love and you become a beacon of hope, like an oasis in a dessert and droplets of kindness gently become free flowing and healing begins. Try making Fudgelets and share with someone you love.

Cashew Fudgelets are even better than the fudge you may already have tasted, here’s why;

• They help people overcome depression.
• Cashew nuts contain significant amounts of B vitamins including niacin, thiamine, pantothenic acid and riboflavin.
• Are a very good source of copper and tryptophan.
• They have a mild sweetness and smooth texture.
• Full of vitamin E.

To all Mothers out there, wishing you a very Happy Mother’s Day, and a special thanks to the mother we all share, for all her deliciousness, Mother Nature!

Happiness and Love,

FFX

Cashew Fudge

FUDGELET BALLS

Cashew nuts, 180g

Cocoa powder, 30g

Salt, a good pinch

Coconut oil, 50g

Sweet freedom/ maple syrup 150g

Vanilla extract, 1 tsp

BLITZ first three ingredients together in a food processor until fine.

ADD wet ingredients to dry and blend until well mixed. 
ROLL into varying sized balls, to suit different appetites.

OR

SPREAD in a parchment lined baking pan. When serving cut into varying sized pieces to suit all appetites. 

REFRIGERATE until very firm, for at least an hour.

SHARE and love always!

Source is sauce

Smooth and lovely,

Lifting you to a place where all that is you –

Feels like you,

Is you,

And dreams that were imagined become true.

Follow the gentle stream,

Through the thick and thin,

Swim through the difficult times,

And find the source,

Your life sauce!

Sometimes, at the best of times, we connect with our source. Essentially, source, is the higher self, the best part personified. The brightest ideas and dreams all blossom when in source. Confidence and creativity bubble to the surface and life and everything it is more beautiful.

Have you ever tried to run whilst holding a cup of hot tea? No... I hope not, though imagine the challenge of not spilling any. A child knows no such fear or caution and up until the age of reason, seven for most, finds source as quickly as a bee finds honey. It is our birthright and is really quite simple.

Julia Child said, "Sauces are the splendour and the glory of French cooking." I agree and would like to add, "Source is sauce for life."

I have a little story to tell, though would like to mention before I begin, I'm not in the habit of accepting sweets from strangers!

Once upon a walk along the Finchley Road, I crossed paths with a Tibetan Monk. He stopped me, and we began a pleasant conversation. His eyes held a glint of peace and his irises flickered with life, they invited a sense of trust. He asked me to join him for lunch at a vegetarian cafe and though I was tempted, I said, “No thanks.” He didn’t seem to mind a jot, and from his canvas Nap sack handed me a sweet. In a moment of cream and silken spice, minutes later, I sat alone on some steps in a nearby park and tasted the stuff of dreams. The baker, the taster, the farmer, the shopkeeper, the many hands that the ingredients had fluttered by became irrelevant. I felt at one with nature.

I'd tasted Rasmalai

This is my interpretation of the recipe, it took me a while to discover it. I've not come across the Tibetan Monk since and would like to thank him for sharing such deliciousness! I’ve added a Goji berry, Ginger and Hazelnut twist to my version, though if you prefer a soft and smooth texture, leave them out. 

Goji berries...

• enhance fertility
• prevent fatigue and tiredness
• improve circulation
• boost the immune system
• protect the liver and kidneys

Hazelnuts...

• rich in vitamin E
• enhances energy 
• promotes a balanced appetite
• Essential for the reproductive system

The simplest pleasures are the best. An opinion, a statement, is just that – let go of those that leave a sour taste in the mouth – in source - there is only room for all things flowing, fresh and gently pleasing. 

This innocent exchange of generosity, between the monk and I, was felt deep in my heart, and a sense of gratitude and happiness acknowledged.

If you ever need cheering up – try this…

Think of a happy memory, one that teases your lips into a smile. Close your eyes and let that feeling lift your heart. Remember the smells, savour them, and colours, truly see them, relive the moment and feel it in your heart.

Alternatively... Make these, call up some loved ones and serve after a vegetarian curry, or some such delight.

Goji berry, Ginger and Hazelnut Rasmalai

SERVES 4

Ricotta cheese, 500g drained

Sweet freedom/ Maple syrup 2 tbsp

Hazelnuts, 50g chopped into small pieces

Ground ginger, ½ tsp

For the sauce!

Milk, 600ml

Vanilla extract, ½ tbsp

Dried Goji berries, 50g

Sweet freedom/ Maple syrup 2 tbsp

PRE-HEAT oven to 150C/300F/gas 2.

MIX the ricotta, sweet freedom, hazelnuts and ginger in a large baking dish, roughly 30cm in length.

SMOOTH over with the back of a spoon.

BAKE for 20 minutes.

POUR milk into a saucepan and heat gently.

ADD vanilla extract, goji berries and sweet freedom.

SIMMER for 20 minutes.

REMOVE baking dish from oven and allow ricotta mix to cool completely.

FORM mixture into walnut shell sized balls and place on a clean plate.

WASH baking dish and transfer balls onto it.

POUR over sweetened milk and bake for a further 20 minutes.

REMOVE from oven and allow to cool completely.

CHILL in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight before eating.

SCATTER over some of your favourite fruit before serving.

FEEL the source, now and always…