Pomegranate Curd Bars with Seedy Pine Nuts Crust - and a Baby Shower!

My friend Zita Nagy who I met in 2011 during the Food Blogger Connect in London welcomed her first child - a cute baby boy - yesterday! What great news! Congratulations Zita and Ivan! May you little treasure Adam be a happy healthy little bundle of joy to his parents!

Together with other food blogger friends we decided to throw a surprise baby shower for her but we are slightly fashionably late now :)

 Zita's blog Zizi's adventures (in English and Hungarian) is specialised in vegetarian and vegan cooking and shares healthy recipes combining fresh produce and raw foods. Her blog and she herself is a big inspiration to me to stay on track and include more raw foods in our diet. She's also a wonderful person and I am very happy to know her.
This year she and her boyfriend are experiencing a great life changing moment - welcoming their first child and jumping into the wonderful experience of being parents.


Parenting is one of a kind experience -  it's moving, ecstatic, exhilarating, energising and empowering but exhausting in the same time too. It makes you go to lengths you never expected you're capable of,
it constantly asks you to learn new skills and improve old ones, makes you a better teacher and sets you on a path to become a better person.
And at the end of the day it's totally gonna be worth it.

Zita and Ivan, I know you are going to be great parents and I wish you lots of happiness, wisdom and feeling of fulfilness in your new role. Congratulations!

As Zita is one of the healthiest food loving persons I know, my recipe for the baby shower includes lots of seeds, almond butter and to be true to myself - pomegranate molasses and rose water.

Pomegranate has been a symbol of fertility, abundance and prosperity in a number of world cultures and in Christianity is linked with resurrection and eternal life.
I really love its sweet-sour taste, that some people might find too sour, and for me it is like both sides of parenting, so I thought that would be the perfect choice.


Here are the rest of the recipes from the little belated virtual baby shower:

The wonderful Tuscan Sweet Zucchini Cake Scarpaccia from Giulia of Jul's Kitchen

The new mom's friendly Nourishing Stout & Oat Drink  from Regula aka Miss Foodwise

The succulent Moghrabieh Salad with Preserved Lemon and Coriander Pesto  from Beth of Dirty Kitchen Secrets 

The crunchy Whole Wheat Flour Cocoa Cookies from Jasmine of Labna - Amore in Cucina  

The fabulous Cheese Pie from Εpirus Kasopita from Artemis of Woderfoodland

The healthy Kiwi Carpaccio with Pecans and Manuka Honey from Sarka of Cook Your Dream  

The luscious Ricotta and Dark Chocolate Cake from Emiko

Simone: The heavenly fragrant Pistache Raspberry Cakes from Simone of JungleFrog Cooking 

The veggie blissful Fresh Pea Souffle with Goat Cheese from Karin, the mastermind behind the baby shower and Yum and More 

And that's my recipe

Pomegranate curd Seedy bars with a hint of Rose Water

Products:

for the crust:

100 g whole pine nuts

50 g whole pumpkin seeds

50 g whole sunflower seeds

100 g breakfast oats

170 g almond butter

2 tsp pomegranate molasses

2 tsp rose water

for the curd:

10 egg yolks

200 g honey

150 ml pomegranate molasses

70 ml pure pomegranate juice

juice of 2 lemons

200 g butter - cubed

50 ml rose water

Method:

For the crust:

Combine all seeds together with the almond butter and the pomegranate molasses - knead well with your hands. Finally add the rose water to the sticky mix. Press it flat on a lined rectangular tin and leave in the fridge for 15 minutes. Bake at 180 degrees for 10 minutes. 

Set aside and leave to cool down completely. 

In a bowl mix the liquid ingredients and the honey and put over a pan of simmering water until the honey dissolves completely. 

Transfer to a sauce pan with a thick bottom and incorporate the egg yolks mixing with a whisk on medium heat. Whisk continuously to prevent lumps from forming until the mix starts to thicken - about 20-30 minutes .

The mix will still stay quite liquid and will set more with tie and as it cools down.

Remove from heat and add the butter cubes one by one. 

Leave to cool down for 15 minutes in a fridge.

Top the seedy crust with the pomegranate curd and bake in a 180 degrees C pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.

Remove from heat, leave to cool down (it will be quite liquid) and leave it to cool and then keep in fridge overnight. On the next day cut rectangular shapes with a sharp knife.