Savory Cookies with Sweet Basil, Sugar Free

Savory Cookies with a wonderful aromatic Sweet Basil are Sugar Free, a very close cousin to Shortbread Cookies with Whole Wheat flour and Coconut Sugar.

                       You need:
~ Whole Wheat flour - 250g (Whole Spelt or Polbyanaya flour works well too)
~ 1 Egg
~ Butter- 150g
~ Baking Soda- 1/2 teaspoon
~ Salt "Herbamare" or Sea Salt and Black Pepper
~ Dry Sweet Basil (any dry herbs can be added instead) - 3 teaspoons
~ A box grater

      ** Preheat the oven to 350F (177 C)
== Sift the flour and return bran and germ from the whole wheat flour back to the sifted flour. Note: Always sift Any type of the flour for baking.

 == Add Herbamare seasoning (or salt and pepper), dry Sweet Basil and Baking Soda. Mix all ingredients.

 == Grate the Butter into the Flour/Spices mixture in two portions by using a box Grater.

 == Grate one half of the Butter and mix  it with the flour/spices mixture with you hands, just lightly dust the butter particles with the flour. Do not squeeze.

== Grate the other half of the Butter into the Flour mixture and again mix it lightly with the flour. Do not squeeze.

== In a separate small bowl break 1 Egg and mix it lightly with a fork

 == Add the Egg into the Flour/Spices/Butter mixture

 == In this step, squeeze and mix at the same time the egg with the flour mixture.

 == Form a ball. Wrap it with a plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Note: you can freeze the dough for months.

 == To make a cookies. The dough contains fiber and not elastic as a white flour dough. It is not going to roll into one whole slice. That is why, cut the dough into 4 portions and roll every small portion to make cookies.

 == Bake cookies for 25 minutes. Check with a wooden (tooth) stick. It is ready when the stick comes out clean.

  The cookies are good on their own. They can be used as tartlets base. Also I use this dough for quiche. Dry herbs work better than fresh.
                    Enjoy and Be Healthy:)

Salus Red Beet Crystals Wipped Cream

Nutritional value of a whipping cream is quite limited. It is fat, tiny bit of protein, some Vitamin A. Can we make it more healthy and add more nutritional value, as Vitamin C and B1,B2,B3,B6, folate and minerals like Iron and Magnesium, Potassium and Manganese. Likely we can.
Salus Red Beet Crystals, an outstanding product from the Salus company not only give to the whipped cream a beautiful pink or magenta like color but also provide the cream with valuable nutrients that beets possess. 

  It is a pure concentrate from the juice of freshly pressed, within 2-3 hours of harvest, certified organic beets. It is 100% natural, with no additives and preservatives. It is soluble, sweet and contains all goodness of beets, as iron, magnesium, calcium, zinc, potassium, vitamins  A, B's, C, folate.  Each 200 gram jar equivalent of 2.5 kg of fresh pressed organic beets. Beet Crystals works well with smoothies, milk products, shakes, juices, practically with anything.
At this time, I incorporated Beet Crystals into my Pink Creation Whipped Cream for Buttermilk Pink Creation Cake  and it works great:)

                   You need:
~ Organic Whipping Cream - 500 ml
~ Raw Agave syrup to your taste
~ Salus Red Beet Crystals - 2 full teaspoons
~ Blender

== Place 500ml Whipping Cream into the Blender

== Add little by little Raw Agave Syrup to your taste. Agave syrup (nectar) is a very sweet liquid.  Do not over sweet. Add a little, mix with the spoon, try. If it is not enough to your taste, add some more drops.
== Add 2 full teaspoons of Salus Red Beet Crystals. One teaspoon of Crystals makes the color of the cream light pink, but 2 teaspoons makes it bright.

 == Blend all ingredients. Start with a low speed and increase the speed to high gradually. Do not overwork the mixture, otherwise you will get a butter, instead of the cream.

 Done. Beautiful color, great taste, with the goodness of beets. Enjoy and Be Healthy:)

P.S Right Picture- 2 full teaspoons of Beet Crystals (intense pink color)
      Left Picture - 1 full teaspoon of Beet Crystals ( light pink color)

Buttermilk Cake with Salus Red Beet Crystals Whipped Cream-Pink Creation

Cake can make any day special. But if you have a special occasion and you do not have much time, my Pink Creation - Buttermilk Cake with Salus Red Beet Crystals Whipped Cream is the one to bake.

                You need:
~ Whole wheat flour - 1 1/2 cups and a little bit for dusting
~ Soda - 1 teaspoon
~ Cinnamon - 1 teaspoon
~ Vanilla powder - 1 teaspoon or 1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla extract
~ Butter, organic - 100gram, room temperature
~ Coconut sugar - 3/4 cup
~ 3 Eggs
~ Buttermilk - 1/2 cup
~ Two mixing bowls and handy mixer
~ One, 8 inches Round Cake Pan

                  ***Filling
     ~ Salus Red Beet Crystal Whipped Cream
     ~  Blanched Split Almonds

 == Preheat oven to 350 F or 177 C
== Preparing Cake Pan. Butter and line with parchment paper.

 == Sift the whole wheat flour into the mixing bowl

== Return bran and germ of the whole wheat flour back to the mixing bowl

== Add Soda, Cinnamon, Vanilla powder to the whole wheat flour and mix all. If you have Vanilla Extract, add it in the last step, when you mix flour mixture with buttermilk.

== Take another bowl. Beat Butter till soft. Add Coconut sugar and mix well with the Butter.

 == Add 3 Eggs. ONE at a time.

 == Beat well every time when you add eggs.

== Add Flour mixture gradually in 3 batches, interchanging with 2 butches of Buttermilk. (in this step you can add Vanilla extract instead of Vanilla powder). Mix well.

== Spoon Cake dough into the prepared Cake Pan. Bake for 25 minutes in the middle of the oven.

== At the end, check with a wooden stick. It is done when the stick comes out clean.

== Cool the cake. Cut in half.

== Place on the bottom cake layer half of the Salus Red Beet Crystals Whipped Cream

 == Spread the cream evenly and sprinkle Almonds over the cake

 == Cover the bottom layer with the top layer of the cake and flat the top surface of the cake with a knife. (The trimmings can be used for later baking or can be used just on the top of this cake instead of almonds). Spread remaining cream over the top of the cake and on the sides as well.

 == Sprinkle Almonds. Done.
Enjoy and Be Healthy:)