Join Me for Merienda: Malagkit na may Malunggay at Manga/ Sweet Rice Porridge infused with Malunggay (Moringa) and fresh Mango

Hello again!

I really need to stop feeling like I have to apologize for my irregular posting, but I don't think there's anything wrong with living life outside of the computer and electronic devices ;)

Anyway, here is one to tide you over for the time being. I created this dessert on a whim while preparing some other food for a family gathering that was directly after  my cousin Eileen's wedding! I made it in the wee hours of the morning when I got back from the wedding (I went ahead and made a batch of Jesscafé style Mujadara and made sure to soak the malagkit ( you should soak it overnight or at least 5 hours before using for best results). A few hours later before we had to head out, I mixed everything together and history was made ;p

I love malagkit (sweet rice), it's one of the simplest pleasures when it's freshly cooked, the texture, bite and aroma are just heavenly. It's one of those culinary chameleons that can transform into sweet or savory. In whatever shape or form, it is a gift.

I decided on this combination on a whim (like most recipes), but perhaps it was also inspired by the need to recharge from all the dancing that we did the previous night at my cousin Eileen's wedding. We burned that dancefloor down to ashes!

I'm always looking for ways to incorporate even more nutrition into my already awesome dishes and by adding in some malunggay the nutrition statistics go up exponentially. Malunggay or Moringa Oleifera is an awesome plant that grows prolifically in the Philippines as well as in many parts of Asia. One of the last times that I was visiting the Philippines, while on the way back from an open air market, my Auntie Wilma pointed out a Malunggay tree to my brother and went to get some from the branches, but ending up taking down the whole branch down by accident. She told my brother to just keep moving along, as if nothing had happened. Hehehehe.

Jesscafé Presents:

V,GF- Sweet Rice Porridge infused with 

                  Malunggay with Mango

                        A recipe dedicated to Eileen and her new husband Nick:

May your partnership together be as wonderful as the wedding and continue to strengthen and                                                prosper for many more happy years!

Here it is when I plated it at home. It is truly satisfying without being overly sweet.

Ingredients:

2 C Malagkit/Sweet Rice (Soaked for at least 5 hours and cooked*)

1/3-1/2 C Organic Coconut Sugar

1 1/2 Tb Malunggay Powder

Dash of Himalayan Pink Sea Salt

Optional- Splash of pure vanilla

For topping:

Slices of Ripe Mango

Toasted Organic Sesame Seeds

Optional -Toasted Organic Coconut

*Cook the soaked rice with 2 Tablespoons of Organic Coconut Oil and 3 cups of water using a rice cooker and select the 'Brown Rice,' setting. Check after 1 cycle and if still uncooked; select the 'Brown Rice,' setting once again. Mix the rice around and let it sit on the 'Warm,' function for another 10 minutes

Directions:

Mix in the organic coconut sugar, malunggay powder, himalayan pink sea salt, (optional vanilla if desired) into the cooked sweet rice. Mix thoroughly and taste and adjust sugar level; if desired. Remember that you are going to be pairing this with sweet, ripe and juicy mango slices; so you don't want it to be overly sweet, just sweet enough. 

Here it is as plated at the gathering. Not a very professional looking shot of it, but it did not affect its taste at all ;p

You can serve it immediately or serve it cold; it depends on your preference. 

I served it in bowls and then topped each one with a few slices of sweet, ripe mango and then sprinkled on some toasted organic sesame seeds. You may want to go ahead and top it with some toasted organic coconut as well, but I was pressed for time and sesame seeds never let me down =)

I knew that I would like this dessert because it has more than a few of my favorite ingredients in it, but to my delight, the other family and guests at the gathering enjoyed it as well. In particular, the new bride Eileen; so I told her that I would dedicate it to her and her new husband; so here we are now =)

You can change up this recipe slightly by modifying the ingredients; such as cacao powder with or without the malunggay (I personally would always keep the malunggay) and then top it with toasted black sesame or serve it with cooked split mungo beans. I want you to have fun with this recipe because it's super simple (granted the rice preparation time needs to be given its due diligence, but other than that it's a fast and easy recipe.

Well, I hope that you will give this recipe a try and share it with your friends and family. All of my food is made with and out of love =) 

Wishing you all good health and happy cooking!

Love,

Jessica

Join Me for Merienda: V and GF Homemade Dark Chocolate

Hello everybody!

So, I've been busy freezing in my region, but trying to keep warm by keeping busy by testing out recipes etc.This is a quick post and is originally derived from a post that I shared for the 21 Day- Dairy Free Challenge, group on facebook that was sponsored by So Delicious. If you follow my blog; you know already that I am Vegan; so joining the group was for fun and also a way to show support to others who are trying to change their lifestyles. It's been fun so far and helping one another in whatever capacity that we are able to do so, has always been my way of life =) 

I love dark chocolate and I do believe that dark chocolate loves me back, too! =)

I will have to keep on refining the recipe, but for now, here is a a decent one that yields a yummy and dark chocolatey bar of goodness. You can play around with the ingredient add-in's as you go along.

This one was embedded with more toasted sunflower seeds and toasted coconut

You can see the original batch has a grittier texture due to the coconut sugar, as well as the add in's of coconut and sunflower seeds.

This is the 'plain,' batch made with the 'powdered,' organic coconut sugar

This 'plain,' batch with the 'powdered,' organic coconut sugar, yielded a smoother texture

It's really easy and quick to put together as long as you have all the ingredients.

Ingredients:

Roughly a little more than 1/4C of organic coconut oil, melted

4-5Tb Cacao Powder

A Handful of organic coconut sugar (you can grind this with a mixer into a powdered sugar consistency; if you want a smoother bar, otherwise mixing it in as is, will just give you a crunchier texture)

A pinch of Himalayan pink sea salt

A tiny splash of pure vanilla

*A pinch of powdered Moringa

Toasted unsweetened coconut

Toasted unsalted sunflower seeds

*This can easily be omitted, as it may be difficult to procure in the U.S.

Method:

Melt the coconut until liquid, add in the sweetener of your choosing and dissolve to combine as much as possible. Then add in cacao combining well until fully incorporated. Next add in the Himalayan pink sea salt, pure vanilla, optional powdered Moringa and lastly a handful of the toasted coconut and sunflower seeds.

Pour the mixture into the mold of your choosing and tap it to remove excess air bubbles. Top with additional sunflower and coconut; if desired.

Place into the fridge or freezer to harden uncovered for at least 15 minutes.

I usually wrap my bars in parchment paper and then keep them in a container with a cover in the fridge. I'm sure you could freeze them, but would they really need to last that long? ;p

I love being able to make these bars from scratch because it's really economical and a fun way to satiate your creative pleasure and craving, while still being healthy.

As I mentioned earlier, you can play around with flavors and add-in's.

I tried one batch adding in some organic orange oil and it reminded me of some fruit truffles that I had enjoyed in the past. I had another batch that had some organic lavender and ground vanilla bean sugar mixed with it and it tasted lovely =)

I did try to do a batch with carob powder and it didn't taste bad, but the texture is much different than cacao based bars (as anybody who has eaten carob confections vs. chocolate confections in the past, knows!) So, I will be working on that version for the future. 

This original recipe was thrown together in a span of less than 15 minutes; so I'm sure I'll be updating it again in the future. Until then, please feel free to follow this blog and leave me comments or questions in the section below!

Wishing you all much success!!!!

Love,

Jessica <3

*P.S. : The formatting for this post was weird, but as long as you can read it, I'll be glad.
I'll come back later and change it up ;)