Emma Galloway shows how mealtime can be quick and easy, using simple ingredients
Everyday food should be quick and easy, using readily available ingredients and simple techniques. Over years working as a chef and as a mother of two, Emma Galloway has designed tips and tricks to make cooking simpler through planning ahead and using ingredients that are easy to swap out.
Emma says: “Dotted throughout Every Day, you’ll find my ‘anything’ recipes, with examples of how you can change things up to suit your tastes or what you might have on hand at different times of the year. My main goal is to create meals that are easy and totally doable, every day of the week.
I want people to feel confident in the kitchen and know that, by cooking at home, with simple real-food ingredients, they’re making one of the most powerful decisions we can make as humans: the decision of what goes into our bodies.”
Following is one of her recipes:
CARDAMOM + DARK CHOCOLATE ‘CHEESECAKE’ BARS
This ‘cheesecake’ makes a great plan-ahead dessert and will store happily in the fridge for 4-5 days, or in the freezer for up to three months.
I prefer to use freshly ground cardamom seeds because their flavour is superior, but you could use 1-2 teaspoons ground cardamom at a pinch. In recipes like these, where the cashews are blended, you can use cashew pieces instead of whole nuts because they’re usually cheaper.
Start this recipe the night before to soak the cashews.
Ingredients Base
240g (1 1⁄2 cups) dried pitted dates, roughly chopped 100g (2⁄3 cup) raw almonds
1 Tbsp virgin coconut oil, melted
Filling
375g (3 cups) raw cashew nuts, soaked overnight in cold water + drained well
185ml (3⁄4 cup) virgin coconut oil, melted 125ml (1⁄2 cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice 125ml (1⁄2 cup) pure maple syrup
2 tsp vanilla extract
1⁄4 tsp fine salt seeds from 20 cardamom pods (or 2 tsp ground cardamom)
Chocolate topping
85g dairy-free dark chocolate, roughly chopped 60ml (1⁄4 cup) coconut milk
2 Tbsp pure maple/brown rice syrup
Method
To make the cheesecake base, line a
28cm x 18cm slice tin with baking paper, overlapping the sides by 2cm. Put the pitted dates, almonds and melted coconut oil into a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Press the mixture into the tin, using the back of a spoon to pack it in firmly.
To make the filling, place all the filling ingredients into a highpowered blender and blend on high until smooth. If you don’t have a high-powered blender, finely grind the cardamom seeds in a mortar and pestle first, before adding to the blender. Pour the mixture over the base and smooth the top. Allow to set in the fridge for at least six hours or preferably overnight.
To make the chocolate topping, place the dark chocolate into a small heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of boiling water, making sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl.
Add the coconut milk and the maple/brown rice syrup and heat gently until melted. If it starts to look a little split (this can happen because of the coconut milk), whisk to bring it back together into a smooth sauce. When just melted, remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly, before spreading over the cheesecake. Return to the fridge until set. Once set, slice into 12-14 bars, using a sharp knife warmed under running hot water.
Makes 12-14 slices; Gluten-free | Vegan