The Week in Eats! Le Sigh....

I'm going to throw in a Week in Eats. I know it's Tuesday, and my 'week' never is, but it rhymes and I've had a killer few days in the kitch with not a lot to show for it.

Underway is the cooking quest which shall be known as 'Cookin' with Erythritol'.  I've got several hundred kg's of it, and have this idea to whip up a bunch of awesome recipes and then promote it on the home page...

But, I'm having issues. I'm not blowing myself away with displays of kitchen genius. It hurts my ego.

This lemon syrup cake didn't work. The cake was a bit dry and the syrup crystallised back to erythritol, rather than soaking in and making the cake good. The resident cake fiend still made a dent in it though.

I love erythritol for sprinkling. It's perfect as a sugar substitute on things like pancakes and porridge, and does the job in smoothies and hot drinks, but baking is a bit hit and miss. I've made one batch of amazing friands, but otherwise, it's been a series of fails.  I need to do some research. Any ideas?

Is there a trick to cookin' with erythritol?

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Some Eats of the Week

(no breakfast pics today, I think you may start to throw stuff at me if you see any more buckwheat pancakes, right?..;):

Somebody ordered another two bottles of this. :D Not me...

..ok, it was me.  I shouldn't tell fibs, it gives me the guilts.

I have Swiss chocolate, from actual Switzerland, which for some reason is better than the locally made stuff, even though it's supposed to be the same recipe.  Pressies from Miss J (been missing her so much lately) :(    To develop some context, those are Swiss Alpine Marmots in the background (it's a wildlife calendar).  

These creatures can be spotted in the Swiss Alps, skipping around like Heidi. They make a crazy squealing noise when alarmed, or perhaps they just like to freak out the tourists from behind.  There is a stuffed one in my sister's lounge, which is kind of gross, but Miss J loves it. As a toddler she used to put her arm around it and stand there watching TV.

Gerry's Wraps, made here in Chch. What I like about these is, you can roll them and they don't crack up. They are super pliable, the ingredient list is short and there are many gluten-free varieties.

Something I did with.. mushrooms.  I like baked mushrooms, just like that. This may not be normal. Also, the presentation lacks.

Fermentation. There is much of it going on in the corner. Almond+cashew cheese (on the right), sprouted buckwheat mush and veges.

The wrap being put to its proper use. Those are panko coated pork schnitzels.

Using the classic sauerkraut recipe, I am attempting to create 'something' using cabbage and zucchini. I think this will be fab. I added grated and cubed zucchini.  That calico jar top makes me feel so earth mothery.

The semi-failed chocolate zucchini cake.  All gone now. ;D

Don't worry, there will definitely be another shot at that cake. Every day my zucchini plant welcomes me home with a gift of ever increasing size.

Pork salad.

..and now it's time to put on my blue blockers and start thinking about nothing.  I'm still not a sleeping pro, but there is improvement.  

If you have any tips about sleeping well that I didn't cover in this post, or if you can clue me up on making erythritol great in cakes, then please comment me.