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Sunday, 5 June 2011

Agave Limeade

An interesting, healthy take on a summer drink I found this Limeade recipe which uses agave in the place of spoonfuls of sugar and because it is already in liquid form its very easy to mix in. This was incredibly refreshing and considerably less calorific than the traditional alternative...

Ingredients

8 cups sparkling water
4-5 limes

A few mint leaves
3/4 cup agave
1/4 cup milk
Lots of ice

Method

Squeeze 4 limes using the Lime Juicer - Hint: if you put them in the microwave for 30 seconds, you will get more juice from them. Put all the sparkling water in a jug and then...

Add lime juice

Add torn mint leaves
Add milk
Add agave
Add lots of ice
Stir well and serve

The milk takes the bite off the lime and gives it a nice smooth texture.

Don't use too much lime as this will overpower the taste - If you use too many, you have to add more agave to balance it.

Once you have done the above then taste it and then tweak it from there to suit your preferences.

Italian Pine Nut and Agave Cookies

Agave can be used as part of a raw diet and these cookies are actually dehydrated rather than baked. A really healthy alternative to the usual. First off make a batch of the Almond Paste and then go on to make the cookies with this as follows:

Almond Paste

1 cup almonds, soaked, skin removed, and dried

Using a food processor, grind almonds into a powder. Add ½ cup agave and 1 teaspoon almond extract [adjust more or less to taste], and process into a paste. Knead the mixture a bit using a mortar and pestle or by hand.

Yields 1 ¼ cup almond paste

Almond Cookies
1 cup almond paste
1/2 cup pine nuts, reserve half
1/4 teaspoon Himalayan crystal salt or sea salt
1/4 cup agave
Combine the ingredients

In a food processor, process 1/4-cup pine nuts and sea salt into a fine meal like consistency. Add almond paste and agave, process into a smooth paste. Using a rubber spatula, scrape out dough from the food processor bowl and transfer to a bowl or container. Chill in the refrigerator for 1 hours.

Shape the cookies

Scoop out about a tablespoon of cookie dough and roll the dough between the palms of your hands to form a round ball. Place macaroons on a cutting board, you should have about 18 macaroons. Take reserved pine nuts and lightly yet with firm pressure; press 6-8 pine nuts into each macaroon while simultaneously flattening it a bit. Use a spatula to gently lift macaroons from the cutting board and place on the dehydrator tray. Place in dehydrator. Remember to turn the macaroons midway through dehydrating.

Dehydrate at 115 for 6 hours.

Yield 18 macaroons

The Facts and Figures

Agave nectar is a versatile alternative to sugar that has become a health phenomenon in America. But what are the facts ?

Derived from the Blue Agave of Mexico agave nectar is a natural syrup which can be used as an alternative to sugar in drinks, cakes, sauces and a variety of other recipes.

Agave nectar is one and a half times sweeter than sugar and as such it contains proportionally less calories.

Agave nectar is low on the glycemic index (32) which means that rather than causing the energy high (and consequent low) of regular sugar it has a more sustained energy release which is further aided by a naturally occurring fibre called inulin.

Agave nectar is used as an alternative to more distinctive tasting syrups such as honey since it has a neutral flavour. Vegans also use it in the place of honey since it is derived from plants and it is also considered kosher.

Agave nectar has become incredibly popular in recent years due to the backlash against cheap, synthetic sweeteners such as aspartame and the prolific use of High Fructose Corn Syrup which is being increasingly linked to obesity amongst other ailments.

Those are the facts, but what about the food ? Agave nectar has become a popular choice in food preparation not only because of its health benefits but also because of its culinary versatility. We decided to test it for ourselves...