Home and my Lemon cake - Sugar free!!

It has been so nice to spend a weekend home so far. I arrived home yesterday afternoon to help Nicole and Dan look after Bella and Lucy while mum and dad are in Europe and found it so therapeutic to do my washing, sweep the floor and water the vegetable garden, sit on the patio in the sun with a nice cup of tea and take the dogs for a walk along the inlet.

Lizard Hunting!!

Loving the attention! 

Lucy ready for walkies :)

It was also nice to have a chat to Nic which we don't get to do too often, she showed me a blog she likes called 'Loving Fit' which is all about exercise health and nutrition and is really good!! I had a lovely sleep in my own bed and woke up to a have a lovely catch up with Lex. I wish we could catch up more often i miss being around her! I loved in 2nd year at Trinity when she was just across the hall and i could always know how she was and have chats everyday and tea breaks, cook or go for walks. We tried walking our dogs together - 2 Bella's, Tilly and Lucy at Hay park. Poor Bella was still scared with other dogs even though she was the bigger one! I was very proud of her when she started walking though even if it took a few stops. Lex and i then went to the Happy Wife for morning tea in the nice warm sun. She has gotten into such a wonderful program called Big sister, Little sister where she meets a younger girl who may have some family or friend issues and becomes their friend or 'Big sister'. She met her little sister the other day and it seems like it will go really well! She would make an amazing big sister and her match is very lucky to now have Lex in her life! I would love to be involved in a program like that one day too but don't think i could fit it in at the moment.

Then i did what i do best at home... I baked!! :) I redid my 'Sugar-free Blueberry' muffins take 3 and added a grated apple this time and they have turned out their best so far! I also added a mix of berries with the blueberries, i really like them. I also experimented with another recipe i found and baked a Sugar-free Lemon cake! It turned out well for an experiment and is tasty, i think it would be yummy with yoghurt on top too! Here's what i did...

Ingredients

• 1 cup self-rising flour
• 1/4 cup Wholemeal self-raising flour
• 1 teaspoon Bicarb soda 
• 2/3 cup organic shredded coconut (or just desiccated coconut would work) 
• 1 Egg 
• 7 Tablespoons water
• 2 Tablespoon vegetable oil (or melted butter)
• 2 1/2 teaspoons of grated lemon rind
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• *Note: If you do not have self-rising flour, you can substitute 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour and add 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder to the dry ingredient mix.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius. Line a cake pan or square baking dish with baking paper. 
In medium mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients.
In a mug or liquid measuring cup, combine egg, lemon rind and juice and other liquid ingredients. Beat with a fork until the egg is well mixed.
Pour liquid into dry – mix well with fork. 
Pour batter into prepared pan or baking dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 180 degrees. Cake will not turn brown, so do not go by appearance. Cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
You can also make 6 regular sized muffins or 18 mini-muffins. 
Optional: I sprinkled muesli, pepitas and sunflower kernels on top of mine - yum! If you like it sweeter you can add 1/2 cup of sweetener such as Splenda but i find it tasty just as it is :) I think next time i will add 1/2 a cup of natural Greek yoghurt to make it that little bit more moist! 

Sugar-free lemon cake :)

The end product!

Sugar-free Apple, Banana and Blueberry muffins

Followed by a quinoa salad with sundried tomato, spinach leaves,
home grown beetroot, avocado, pepitas and flaxseed oil for lunch

At the Happy Wife they had lovely savoury muffins which were really good! I want to try cook some savory foods too next time i am home and am thinking of using the same base recipe for the muffins but instead of the fruits add pumpkin, zucchini, carrot, onion etc and mix it up a bit :) My sugar challenge has been going well, i love having a hot drink of cacao at night time which taste like chocolate but in my opinion better! and full of anti-oxidants, iron and magnesium :) I have been having a cranberry biscuit on the odd night which mum made for me as my little 'reward' with my cacao, it has been a little test to see if i can only eat one and i have been doing well!

On a side note i want to remember this to tell my patients in the future when they think they are 'boring patients' in the hospital... "Be boring in hospital, but exciting in life" :)