Come Christmas, we all enter the celebration mode. This festival is all about relishing various types of scrumptious dishes with our loved ones and now that there are just two days left for the festival, the majority of us have already started planning for it! While an X’mas cake is a must on the feasting table, how about adding the goodness of healthy nuts to some sweet recipes for your family and guests?
If you’re still scrambling for special recipes for sweets or sides, HealthShots can save you some time and can serve you with the best recipes for Christmas and New Year. The fact that they are made with nuts makes them strike a balance between taste and health! Plus, these are all so festive and delicious!
Can’t wait? Neither can we… So let’s begin!
1. Walnut Tea Loaf (Healthy Cake)
Chef Sabyasachi Gorai suggested this walnut tea loaf recipe to HealthShots. Antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids rich walnuts make this walnut tea loaf a super healthy dish.
Ingredients
100g dried apricots, roughly chopped
75g dried figs, quartered
75g pitted dates, roughly chopped
2 earl grey tea bags
2 medium eggs
250g self-raising flour
200g light brown soft sugar
75g walnuts, roughly chopped, plus 12 whole walnuts
Preparations
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 1kg loaf tin.
- Mix together the fruit in a bowl and add the tea bags, pour over 300ml boiling water and leave to soak for 20 minutes, then discard the tea bags.
- Whisk together the eggs, flour and sugar in a large bowl and stir in the dried fruits plus all the liquid and the chopped walnuts. Pour into the prepared tin, arrange the whole walnuts on top and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean, cover with foil if the top begins to get too dark.
- Allow to cool before removing from the tin and then enjoy.
2. Matcha Avocado Walnut Smoothie (For Hangover)
As the name suggests, this recipe is going to be a powerhouse of nutrition as it contains avocado plus walnuts. So, indulge in the goodness of matcha, avocado, bananas and walnuts with this quick and easy smoothie recipe!
Ingredients
1 cup low fat milk (or substitute non-dairy milk of choice)
2 tablespoons walnuts
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon matcha powder
12 fresh mint leaves
2 ice cubes
1 frozen banana
1/4 avocado
Preparations
- Place all ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
- Serve chilled.
3. Walnut Horchata (Mocktail)
A unique twist on the traditional Mexican Horchata, this version features toasted walnuts as well as rice to create the refreshing, milky drink. This recipe is also suggested by Chef Sabyasachi Gorai.
Ingredients
8 tablespoons white rice
1 cup walnuts, toasted
½ teaspoon cinnamon, ground
Zest of half a lime
3 cups hot water
3 cups cold water, divided
1 ¼ cups sugar, or to taste
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preparations
- Place the rice in a blender or spice grinder and process until thoroughly pulverized. Transfer to a large bowl or pitcher and add walnuts, cinnamon, and lime zest.
- Add hot water. Cover and let stand at room temperature overnight.
- Transfer mixture to a blender and blend as smoothly as possible. Add 2 cups cold water and blend again until thoroughly combined.
- Line a strainer with cheesecloth and set it over a large bowl. Slowly pour rice mixture into the strainer and let liquid drain into the bowl. Slowly press as much of the solids through the strainer as possible. (The more slowly you strain the mixture, the smoother the horchata will be).
- Transfer to a pitcher and stir in remaining 2 cups of cold water. Then add sugar and vanilla extract and stir well. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
4. Almond cinnamon tart (serves: 3-4)
A perfect combination of salted biscuit crumble with crunchy almond flakes and decadent toffee sauce, this dessert is sure to please all your senses. The credit for this recipe goes to Chef Manish Mehrotra.
Ingredients
1 cup almond flake
150 gm monaco biscuit
2 gm cinnamon powder
200 gm fine sugar
200 ml fresh cream
60 gm unsalted butter
Method
- Roast the almond flakes in a preheated oven at 180 degree celsius for 4 minutes or till golden in colour.
- For toffee sauce, caramelize sugar, add 40 gms of butter followed by cream and thoroughly mix it
- For monaco crumble, crush biscuits and mix 20 gm of butter with it. spread this mixture in a 6inch mould and bake at 160 degree celsius for 10 min.
- In a bowl mix roasted almond slivers and toffee sauce and pour this mix over biscuit crumble in the mould.
- Bake the mix set in a mould in a preheated oven at 180 degree celsius for 15 min.
- Serve once done and demould the tart. serve with vanilla bean ice-cream.
5. Almond pesto and paneer tikka
This almond pesto and paneer tikka recipe by Chef Manish Mehrotra, bursts with flavour and nutrients. It’s worth a try for Christmas.
Ingredients
Cottage cheese 250 gms
Almond flakes ¼ cup
Fresh coriander leaves ¼ cup
Basil 8-10 leaves
Chopped ginger 2 tsp
Chopped green chilli 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Grated parmesan cheese 2 tbsp
Chaat masala ½ tsp
For marination:
Fresh cream ½ cup
Chopped fresh coriander roots ½ tsp
Green cardamom powder a pinch
Turmeric powder a pinch
Salt to taste
Refined oil 1 tbsp.
Method
- Roast the almond flakes in a preheated oven at 180 degree celsius for 4 minutes and crush it to powder form once cooled.
- Blend fresh basil, coriander leaves, chopped ginger, chopped green chilli, chaat masala and salt to coarse paste.
- In a bowl; take out the blended mix and add grated parmesan cheese, crushed almonds and mix it well.
- In a bowl, mix fresh cream, chopped fresh coriander roots, green cardamom powder and a pinch of turmeric powder to get a pale yellow colour marinate. adjust the seasoning with salt.
- Cut the paneer in 2’x2′ size with 1′ of thickness. slit paneer pieces from the centre to fill it with pesto.
- Fill in the pesto mix inside the slit. coat the paneer with yellow marinate.
- Heat refined oil in pan, sear marinated paneer evenly on both sides to get golden brown colour.
- Once done, take the paneer from the pan and serve hot with chutney.
6. Honey Pistachio Cake
Honey and pistachio…. Yummm! Check out the recipe by Mansi Vyas, Co-founder and Director, Azafran Premium Tastes.
Ingredients
120 Gm Jowar Flour
40 Gm Corn Flour
40 Gm Rice Flour
120 Gm Ground Pistachios
15 Gm Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Ground Nutmeg
240 Gm Organic Honey
140 Gm Coconut Sugar
60 Gm Espresso
100 Gm Almond Milk
140 Gm Organic Coconut Oil
1 Tsp vanilla extract
Steps
- Preheat the oven to 170 degrees c
- Prep by sifting together all the dry ingredients in one bowl, and all the wet ingredients in the other
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients, and let sit. Meanwhile, grease a pan.
- Transfer the mixture into the greased pan and cook for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean
- Cool completely before frosting with dairy free whipped cream. Garnish with fresh figs and blueberries and drizzle with honey, if desired
Hope these delights add to the festivities! Here’s wishing you all a Merry Christmas.
