Kokova Magazine

With the new series of 'The Great British Bake Off' under way, the nation's love affair with baking is set to go up another gear.

If you've got the baking bug this autumn but are looking for healthier, yet still delicious options, then make sure you have wholemeal flour, rapeseed oil and oats in your kitchen cupboard.

Rapeseed oil, sometimes labelled as vegetable oil, can be used in place of other fats such as butter and contains less unhealthy saturated fat than all other cooking oils and fats - although it is still important to remember that, gram for gram, rapeseed oil contains the same number of calories as butter.

Meanwhile, as long as you have no intolerance to gluten, the fibre in oats and wholemeal flour can help maintain a healthy digestive system.

Oats are a really useful ingredient in baking as they add both texture and flavour.

Rolled oats can be toasted and mixed with soft fruits and cream for a simple dessert or add oatmeal to cakes, biscuits and breads - the options are almost endless.

As a wholegrain food, adding oats to recipes is a convenient way to enjoy one of your three daily servings of wholegrain. Another way is by baking with wholemeal flour.

So if you're keen to bake tasty and nutritious dishes, try these baking recipes and visit website www.WholegrainGoodness.com for more.

Seeded Cheese Tear 'n' Share Scones

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10-13 minutes
Makes: 8

Ingredients

• 225g self-raising flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 50g mixed seeds + 1tbsp
• 75g cheese, grated e.g. Cheddar
• 50ml rapeseed oil
• 125ml semi-skimmed milk

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 220oC, gas mark 7.
2. Place the flour, baking powder, 50g seeds and cheese in a bowl.
3. Mix in the oil and milk to form a dough. Divide into 8 and roll into balls.
4. Place 1 in the centre of a greased baking tray and then the others around it pressing them in so they all touch.
5. Brush with milk and sprinkle over the remaining 1tbsp seeds.
6. Bake for 10-13 minutes until golden.

Hints and tips:
Serve with extra light soft cheese. Try adding chopped chives or parsley to the dough.

Carrot Cake

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Serves: 12

Ingredients

• 200g self-raising flour
• 100g wholemeal flour
• 2tsp baking powder
• 150g dark muscovado sugar
• 5 medium eggs
• 75ml rapeseed oil
• 350g carrots, grated
• 200g low-fat soft cheese
• 2tbsp icing sugar
• 1tbsp lemon juice
• Zest of 1 lemon, to decorate

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC, gas mark 4. Grease and line the base of a 21cm round cake tin with baking parchment.
2. Mix together the flours, baking powder and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and rapeseed oil until creamy and fold into the flour with the carrots.
3. Spoon into the tin and bake for 45 minutes until cooked throughout.
4. Cool slightly before removing from the tin. Allow to cool completely.
5. Whisk together the soft cheese, icing sugar and lemon juice and spread on the cooled cake.
6. Decorate with the lemon zest.

Hint and tip:
Ideal for freezing.

Oatmeal and Honey Cake

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 45-50 minutes
Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 300g butter
• 100g honey
• 150g regular or jumbo rolled oats
• 50g medium oatmeal
• 100g light brown muscovado sugar
• 150g self-raising flour
• 4 medium eggs, beaten

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC, gas mark 4. Grease and base line a 20cm round loose bottomed cake tin.
2. Melt 100g butter with the honey and add the oats.
3. Mix together the oatmeal, sugar and flour in a large bowl. Melt the remaining butter and stir into the dry ingredients with the eggs.
4. Pour into the cake tin.
5. Sprinkle the oat and honey mixture on top and bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
6. Serve warm with a drizzle of honey.

Hints and tips:
Try adding some chopped walnuts to the oat topping for an extra crunchy texture.

Apricot and Almond Slice

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Makes: 8 slices

Ingredients

• 100g rolled oats
• 150g flaked almonds
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 100g golden caster sugar, plus 2 tsp to sprinkle
• 2 medium eggs, beaten
• 2 pieces stem ginger from a jar, chopped
• 150g soft dried apricots, roughly chopped

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC, gas mark 4. Grease a 450g loaf tin and line the base and long sides with a strip of greaseproof paper. Grease the paper.
2. Put 50g of the oats in a food processor and blend until finely ground. Tip into a bowl.
3. Blend half the flaked almonds until ground and add to the bowl with all but 2 tbsp of the remaining flaked almonds, the rolled oats, baking powder and 100g caster sugar.
4. Mix the eggs with the stem ginger and 75ml cold water and add to the bowl with the chopped apricots. Mix well then turn into the tin and scatter with the reserved almonds.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden and just firm to the touch. Loosen the cake at the ends of the tin then lift out onto a wire rack.
6. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar and leave to cool. Serve thinly sliced.

Hints and tips:
Plump prunes or figs make good substitutes for the apricots. A teaspoon of ground ginger or mixed spice can be used instead of the stem ginger.

Fat Free Fruit Loaf

Prep time: 15 minutes (plus soaking time)
Cook time: 45-50 minutes
Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 1 tea bag
• 200g sultanas
• 100g dried apricots, chopped
• 175g soft brown sugar
• 2 medium eggs, beaten
• 225g wholemeal flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp mixed spice

Procedure

1. Soak the tea bag in 300ml boiling water and steep for 5 minutes. Add the fruit and soak for 2-3 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 180oC, gas mark 4. Grease and base line a 1kg loaf tin.
3. Mix the sugar and eggs into the fruit mixture.
4. Mix the flour, baking powder and mixed spice together and stir into the fruit mixture.
5. Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for 45-50 minutes or until firm to touch and a skewer comes out clean.
6. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin.

Hints and tips:
Serve with fat-free Greek-style yogurt or half-fat crème fraîche. Add some mixed spice or ground cinnamon for extra special flavour.