A recipe for delicious lemon and spinach bars and a review of the Veggie Desserts and Cakes recipe book. Vegetables in cakes? Sounds good to me.
Adding extra portions of vegetables to my food is nothing new to me. With a seven year old who eats no fresh fruit and vegetables I’d say that hidden vegetable recipes are pretty essential around here. Hey, I started a whole blog around the idea after all.
So when I saw that Kate Hackworthy had published a cookbook based around the idea of baking with vegetables I knew I had to try it. Read on for my review of Veggie Desserts and Cakes. Kate has also let me share her recipe for lemon and spinach bars.
What is the Veggie Desserts book like?
Veggie Desserts has taken the concept of using vegetables as an ingredient to a whole new level. Her recipes, both on her blog and now on her brand new cookbook, use all manner of vegetables to add vitamins, goodness and nutrients.
Veggie Desserts + Cakes*, which was published earlier this summer, isn’t a book about hiding vegetables into cake for kids. Nor is it a healthy baking book. The recipes use butter and sugar. You’ll find cheesecakes, cup cakes, muffins and layer cakes inside. What it is is a celebration of vegetables and proof that they can be used to add colour, flavour and taste to your baking.
The book isn’t just carrot cake. You’ll find peas, sweetcorn, kale, parsnip and courgettes used in the bakes and desserts in the book. There’s even a rainbow layer cake which would be perfect for a kids birthday party. And why wouldn’t you want to add a little bit of extra goodness to your bakes?
I love this book. I literally want to bake everything in it and struggled big time to choose a recipe to make to share here. However, every time I opened the book it fell open on the lemon and spinach bars page so it felt like I should start with that. Next on my list is mascarpone tart with beetroot pastry. I’m so intrigued by the idea of the beetroot pastry that I wouldn’t be surprised if a savoury version appeared on Sneaky Veg soon.
Kate and her publishers, Pavilion Books, have kindly agreed to let me share the recipe for the spinach and lemon bars here with you.
My kids (and the grown ups) absolutely loved these bars. R, 7, was suspicious because they were green. I told a tiny white lie – that they were made from green biscuits – as I didn’t want him to run away without even trying them. However, I was honest afterwards and told him they were made with spinach. He’s already asked me to make them again and I think next time I’ll get him to help me.
Here’s how to make Kate’s lemon and spinach bars:
Lemon and spinach bars
Ingredients
For the base
- 75 g spinach leaves
- 75 g unsalted butter softened, plus extra for greasing
- 2 tbsp caster sugar
- 115 g plain flour
For the lemon filling
- 4 large free-range eggs
- 200 g granulated sugar
- 150 ml lemon juice
- 3 tbsp lemon zest
- 40 g plain flour
- 1 tbsp butter
To finish
- 1 tbsp icing sugar
Instructions
-
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 20cm square baking tin.
-
Wilt the spinach in a pan with a small amount of boiling water, then run under cold water to refresh, then squeeze out the moisture. Purée with a hand blender until smooth.
-
In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth, but not too fluffy and aerated. Add the spinach purée and beat well. Sift in the flour and mix gently.
-
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, spread to the edges and press down firmly with the back of a damp spoon. Be sure that the mixture goes right into all the edges and there aren't any holes. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn golden.
To make the lemon filling
-
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, whisk the eggs and sugar until well combined, then add the lemon juice and zest and gently whisk until completely combined. Gradually sift in the flour, whisking gently to combine, and add the butter. Heat the mixture, stirring constantly, until thick and the butter has melted.
-
Spoon the mixture over the warm crust, spread evenly to the edges and bake for 25 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn golden. The filling will firm up as it cools. Leave to cool completely in the pan, then dust with the icing sugar and cut into squares to serve.
Want to read more reviews of Veggie Desserts and Cakes? Here’s a few:
Win a copy of Veggie Desserts and Cakes by Kate Hackworthy
As well as sharing the spinach and lemon bars recipe Pavilion Books are giving Sneaky Veg readers the chance to win a copy of Veggie Desserts and Cakes. If you’d like to enter you can do so via Rafflecopter below.
Open to entries from the UK only. You can see the full terms and conditions next to each entry option. If you haven’t used Rafflecopter before check out this useful guide by Super Lucky Me.
More competitions at ThePrizeFinder
Pin lemon and spinach bars for later
*Disclaimer: this is an affiliate link meaning that if you buy something after clicking on it I’ll receive a small commission, which I will probably spend on buying more ingredients for Sneaky Veg recipes! The price to you remains the same. Thanks for supporting Sneaky Veg. Read my full disclosure.
The spinach and lemon bars look lovely, so I’ll say I’d like to try baking with spinach.
I’d love to try baking with root veg such as beets, potatoes, carrots this Autumn!
i’d like to try baking with Beetroot – gorgeous colour and have seen lovely bakes with chcolate!
I would love to try & cook with winter veg to spice up my cooking!
I’d like to cook with aubergine
I’d love to try making a courgette chocolate cake – I’ve tried beetroot cakes and truffles and they were really yummy, I think courgettes are my next experiment!
Parsnips like a mousse maybe with lemon and orange.
Beets as I’ve grown loads and parsnips – but would love to try lots really
Sweet potato as I love them!
Courgettes
Beetroot have never cooked a sweet dish with it but love it on salad and grow my own, so must give it a try.
Thanks for the lovely review and such gorgeous pictures of the spinach lemon bars! 🙂
You’re welcome – they were so tasty!
Have your cucumber and lemon cake recipe with the gin icing I’d love to try x
That’s a lovely recipe! I’d like to try using spinach in baking. It’s about the only vegetable our family unanimously dislikes!
Is it possible to use avocado ???
The book looks fantastic.
Junie
yes! There are some avocado recipes in the book
i would like to try baking with beetroot x
Sounds a really nice recipe I have made a chocolate cake with tomato soup in the past my family never knew until after they finished the cake then I told them.
I’ve never made a carrot cake so I might try that first (before I move on to anything more complicated!)
There is so much I love about this book. Love that you
Use butter and sugar. Love that it’s not about
demonising any particular ingredient but rather
being playful about the stuff that our bodies want
more of. Looking forward to trying the recipe x
Totally agree with everything you say Max. Hope you enjoy the recipes x
I absolutely love the sound of Kate’s book, and am very much intrgued to try some of her recipes. I think I’d like to try peas in a bake first, especially as they’re naturally sweet.
Angela x
Beetroot would give an awesome colour!
I would love to try cooking with aubergines
I think courgette. They’re quite a standard vegetable to bake with, but I haven’t got round to trying them yet; I think I’ve only baked with carrot so far. Thanks for the review and giveaway!
Beetroot would be good
I would love to try using beetroot in baking
Beetroot would be interesting
using beetroot intrigues me
Parsnips
love the sound of using KALE in baking and desserts – have only ever used Kale as a savoury ingredient before
Parsnips
I am going to try this Lemon and Spinach recipe and would like to bake with parsnips.
carrots
courgettes, we grow them but cant keep up with how fast they are ready
Beetroot the colour would CERTAINLY entice the little ones -they are not keen in fresh beets -a sneeky little recipe would be perfect
beetroot – I once tasted a wonderful red velvet cake made with beetroot and I’ve never got over it!
I’d love to bake with kale! 😀
Carrots
I’ve never been brave enough to try beetroot (fear of it being plastered across my kitchen) but would love to give it a go – got to be better than shots of beetroot juice to provide a nitrate boost for my running!
Courgette
Cucumber, it can be grated and the juice squeezed out to add to a cinnamon ans apple cake adding a little difference xx
I’d like to try baking with beetroot
Courgettes because we grow so many on the allotment
I would like to try baking with carrots
I have heard corgette is meant to be good to bake with
I would like to try beetroot as a friend made cakes with beetroot and they were delicious.
ive always thought beetroot would be interesting
The idea of baking with all sorts of vegetables sounds great. We are all used to standard bakes like with carrots or courgettes but kale or peas perhaps not so much lol and these are the veggies I would like to try baking with 🙂 x
Butternut Squash would be interesting!
I need to sink my gnashers into those spinach and lemon bars. Yum!
Butternut squash
I’d like to try something with beetroot, would be interesting in chocolate cake
I would like to try cooking with beetroot
Perhaps Cauliflower could be nice! It’s quite a subtle and versatile vegetable 🙂
I’ve tried baking with carrots, pumpkins and beetroot, so the next veg to try would be parsnips.
I like using courgettes because they add a lot of moistness to cakes etc. I would like to try using beetroots.
Beetroot
I think sweet peppers could be interesting!
Perhaps parsnips! They’re lovely and velvety.
i all ways love a bit of Beetroot
I’ve always heard beetroot was meant to be good, but have never tried it!
Butternut Squash – I just love them
Courgette. Have just started growing them so need some new recipes.
Beetroot, but only cos everything I make would turn out pink!
Courgette would be good
definitely sweet potato xx
Id love to try cooking with beetroot again, we have lots around at the moment from the garden
Beetroot
Parsnip
I’ve got about 100 courgettes in the fridge so I’d like to start there!
I keep seeing some lovely sounding recipes with beetroot, so I’d love to try baking with beetroot!
beetroot, I’m intrigued by cakes made with it
parsnips x
Loving the look of these spinach and lemon bars. I’d love to try sweetcorn, I can see it working really well in bakes with the right recipe.
id love to try baking with spinach more i love it!
Courgettes
courgette- after watching GBBO!
Beetroot is supposed to be nice
parsnips , i could eat them with everything
Sweet Carrots x
I’d love to do something tasty with a Swede…and I don’t mean Bjorn or Bennie 😉
That made me laugh – thanks for brightening up my Friday morning!
courgettes we eat loads and it would be nice to find a different alternative way of using them
I’ve heard of courgette in baking so would like to give that a try
Sweet potatoes,
Pumpkins!
I would love to bake with beetroot as its one of my favourites
I would love to be able to bake with pumpkin
Beetroot because I love the flavour and the colour!
beetroot
Beetroot or courgette
Beetroots – I’ve heard they go really well with dark chocolate, but I am yet to try it!
Beetroot as i love it!
This looks fascinating. Beetroot, carrot and courgette in cakes!
I have used courgettes before and it was delicious, now I would really like to try beetroot as I love them anyway
Beetroot. The colour is truly delightful.
i always like to make carrot cake – so tasty
I would love to learn to bake with butternut squash, it seems like such a versatile vegetable, but I just have no idea what to do with it! 🙂
I’ve never tried making a courgette cake but have heard they work really well
I like carrot cake. Maybe try courgette?
Sweet potato
I’d love to try baking with sweet potato 🙂
These bars sound soo delicious, I’ve added them to my list of recipes I want to try!
Sweet potato pie
I’ve never used parsnips in baking but I can imagine it would work really well
carrot would be good, love a good carrot cake
Carrot, as I know it works in desserts 0 i.e carrot cake!
Sweet Potato
parsnip, those lemon bars look lush
Carrots, my son loves them
I have seen recipes for Cauliflower brownies, I would love to try but I’m not sure if I am brave enough!
carrot
Cauliflower
I’d like to cook with beetroot
Parsnips
Parsnips…..they are so full of flavour, it would be quite interesting
Beetroot 🙂
id like to try baking with beetroot
Apart from having Beetroot in salads, I would love to try it in cooking
My friend makes a gorgeous beetroot and chocolate cake – so moist! I’d love to try making little cupcakes with the same recipe 🙂
I’ve used courgettes a couple of times in cakes and they work great. I would love to find some more recipes using these too
Aubergines
Butternut Squash
asparagus
Carrot because I’ve never even made a carrot cake
I’d love to introduce asparagus into my baking as it’s my favourite vegetable 🙂 x
Pumpkin!
Carrots
Courgette
Courgette. A friend once made me a courgette cake which was divine and I’d like to replicate it!
Courgettes
Courgettes would be lovely
I would like to try baking with beetroot.
I have used beetroot, courgette and pumpkin but never made a carrot cake so it would have to be carrots
Red peppers!
Sweet potato, yum yum
I’d love to try cooking with courgettes!
It’s got to be beetroot or parsnips
I already use spinach in quite a few recipes so I’d like to try something with beetroot next.
I would love to cook with beetroot. I think the colour would be amazing
Parsnips
Courgettes xx
Carrots!
these bars look lovely – id like to try baking with cabbage or kale as I am not a fan of it as part of a meal
Beetroot. I love beetroot on salads but never baked with them.
I have only ever baked with carrot so would love to try something different. Beetroot woul be something I would like to try in a recipe
I want to try using beetroot, perhaps in red velvet cake for the colour
I’d like to try baking with courgettes – we always have a summer glut so it would be good to know of some ways of eating them all!
Sweet potatoes
Butternut Squash x x x
beetroot.
Parsnips
Parsnips
Carrots 🙂
Broccoli
Beetroot. I tend to eat it in salads, but have never used it to make a cake
Spinach
BEETROOT