almond meal chocolate chip cookies.

Im always looking for something gluten free to make for friends who avoid gluten, but i don’t always have the ingredients on hand. But I always have almonds, and for these cookies, you just have to blend some almonds in the vitamix, and you are well on your way. I used coconut palm sugar in replacement of the brown sugar, and halved the amount and these were sweet enough for me. I also used grain-sweetened chocolate chips, to keep the sugar down as much as I can. These will make a good little snack when I get a sweet craving in my day – and overall they are pretty healthy for you, and gluten free, and contain no refined sugars!

you can find the recipe and instructions here. 

• 1 1/4 cups almond meal (ground from raw almonds)
• 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips ( I used grain sweetened, linked above)
• 1/2 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/3 cup brown sugar (I used half this amount and used coconut palm sugar)
• 1/4 cup aquafaba (the brine/liquid in a can of chickpeas); if not vegan, use one egg
• 3 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

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strawberry rhubarb crisp.

Its that time of year again where I have rhubarb coming out of my ears and no clue what to do with it besides make pie. So I present to you a crumble. I tried to find something that was refined-sugar free; this was a little tart, but it was pretty good. I think it would be great mixed into some yogurt! The top makes almost like a granola – it was my favorite part.

• 2 cups rhubarb, diced
• 2 cups strawberries, diced
• zest from one orange (or lemon)
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 5 Tablespoons maple syrup
• a pinch of salt
• 1½ Tablespoons cornstarch

For the crumbles

• ½ cup chopped almonds
• ¾ cups old fashioned oats
• 2 Tablespoons coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the strawberries and rhubarb in a large mixing bowl with the zest, lemon juice, maple syrup, salt, and cornstarch and mix well.
2. Mix the almonds, flour, oats, cinnamon, salt and maple syrup together in a medium mixing bowl. Cut in the coconut oil with your hands or a pastry cutter until the mixture begins to form crumbs.
3. Grease an oven proof casserole or skillet and spoon in the fruit filling. Crumble the topping evenly over the top. Bake for 25 minutes, checking occasionally. When the topping is browned and the fruit is bubbling, remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.

date + almond butter cups.

Right before I stopped eating sugar, I discovered Justin’s Dark Chocolate mini Peanut Butter cups. I was IN HEAVEN. Honestly, they have been one of the hardest things to not get to eat. Just having a little bit of chocolate at the end of a meal has left me feeling kind of incomplete after  meal – not going to lie. But thanks to kittee’s recipe for these homeade chocolates I can eat candy again! Or at least feel like I am!

All of her combinations look and sound so good! I went with dates and almond butter, but I think I definitely want to add something crunchy to them next time. I store them in the freezer and grab one when I need something sweet!

2 parts cacao powder
2 parts melted coconut oil
1 part liquid sweetener
soft dates
almond butter

Line a mini cupcake pan with liners or grease them. If you mix about 1/4 cup of the cacao and 1/4 cup coconut oil with 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, you’ll get enough chocolate for a few cups.

Put the cacao powder, coconut oil and sweetener in a small dish and stir well to combine.

Spoon a little bit of liquid chocolate into each paper, just enough to cover the bottom, and freeze for a couple of minutes. Meanwhile, carefully split your dates in half lengthwise and remove the pits. Spread about 1/2 teaspoon of peanut butter onto each half. Remove the tray from the freezer and smoosh a date half into each chocolate circle. Spoon more chocolate on top, to cover the date and freeze until ready.

 

halloween cupcakes.

The last of the halloween posts!
Just wanted to share these fun cupcakes I made.

I used the chocolate recipe from vegan cupcakes take over the world, but can also be found here, along with some vegan creme cheese frosting. I decorated with gummy worms, oreos and skittles! (you can uses m&ms or reeses if you arent vegan)

Since you need the filling on the both sides for the owl eyes, thats where the dirt cupcakes came in.
On the left over side that didnt have the filling, i put these in a blender and made “dirt” then dipped the tops of the frosted cupcakes into the oreos – then crammed some gummy worms in there. These were of course, the first cupcakes the kids went to! They love their gummies.

The owl cupcakes, i just split the oreos, placed some skittles for the beak and eyes, (I used frosting to “glue” the eyes down) and spiked up the frosting at the top for ears.

baked pumpkin doughnuts.

Time to break out all things pumpkin, am I right?! I veganized this recipe and made some baked pumpkin donuts to make it feel more like fall around here.

Donut

4 tbsp. almond milk

1/2 tsp. apple cidervinegar

6 tbsp. earth balance, melted

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder

heaping 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg, fresh

1 c. canned pumpkin

1/2 c. brown sugar, packed

4 tbsp. maple syrup

Egg replacer equal to 2 eggs

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Glaze

1 c. powdered sugar, plus more

1/4c. almond milk

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a small cup, stir together almond milk and vinegar. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes to curdle. Melt earth balance and set aside to cool.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, in a large bowl.  Set aside.
4. Into the cooled butter, whisk in pumpkin, sugar, maple syrup, egg replacer, vanilla extract, and curdled almond milk until evenly combined.
5. Whisk together wet and dry ingredients until just combined. Over-mixing will create a dense donut.
6. Spray donut pan. Add batter to a piping bag and pipe evenly into the pan.
7. Bake for 7 minutes. Allow to cool 1 minute before turning pan over to remove donuts onto a cooling rack.
8. Meanwhile, make glaze. In a flat-bottomed bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, and almond milk, until smooth. Once donuts have cooled completely, about 15 minutes, dunk in glaze rocking the donut around the bowl to evenly coat. Place on cooling rack. With the remaining glaze, stir in about a tablespoon or so more of powdered sugar to thicken. Spoon extras around the top of each donut.

apple slab pie.

It’s apple picking season! So time to break out the apple recipes. We went apple picking and got a 1/2 peck of golden delicious, empire, and a few red delicious.

I took at stab at making this apple slab pie, since I had some leftover dough. It would normally call for a 9×13 pan, but i didnt have enough dough, so I halved the recipe and put it in a smaller, rectangular pan (probably equal to about 8×8, just proportioned differently) and it worked out perfectly. I veganized the recipe, added some of my own elements. I will DEFINITELY be making this again. It turned out to be so fantastic!

• One batch pie crust. I used this one
• 6 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 cup flour
• 2-3 T oats
• 1/2 cup earth balance
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup almonds (or any kind of nuts)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Prepare pie crust according to directions and pat it into the bottom of a 9×13 pan.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine apple slices, sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon. Spread in an even layer over crust.
3. In the food processor, combine the flour, butter, and brown sugar, pulsing until coarse crumbs are formed, Add the chopped nuts and oats and pulse a little bit more. Sprinkle crumb top over apple layer.
4. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until filling bubbles. Cool completely.
5. If preparing ahead of time to freeze. Wrap with foil and label prior to baking and freeze. Then, when ready to serve, bake the frozen pie at 425° for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 375° and continue baking as directed.

peanut butter chocolate chip cookies (gluten free!)

I’m remembering this recipe b/c its a random gluten free recipe that doesnt call for strange ingredients! Once in a while I need to make something gluten free, and the only thing i can think of other than rice krispie treats are these black bean brownies, which might be for everyone because they have a REALLY rich, dark chocolatey taste. (they are super delicious though!)

So i was happy to come across this recipe, and modified it a bit – and really love how these turn out. Thye are crispy around the edges, but definitely chewy and sweet.  They have kind of a healthy taste to them, but in a good way. The chocolate chips round everything out.  Will be keeping these in rotation for sure!

1 flax egg: (1 tbsp ground flax mixed with 3 tbsp water)
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup organic cane sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
1 1/4 cup gluten-free rolled oats, blended into a flour
3/4 cup almonds, blended into a flour
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together the flax egg and set aside for 5 minutes so it can thicken up.
2. Using a mixer, mix together the peanut butter and coconut oil until combined. Add both sugars and beat for a bit more. Beat in the flax egg and vanilla extract until combined.
3. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients (baking soda, baking powder, salt, oat flour, and almond flour) one by one. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Shape 1-inch balls of dough (smaller than golf balls) and place on the baking sheet.  There is no need to flatten the balls as the cookies spread out a lot. Place balls 2-3 inches apart.
5. Bake for about 12 minutes until lightly golden. Allow to cool for 5-10 mins. on the baking sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack for another 10 minutes.

cookies and cream cheesecake

I tried this recipe to make cheesecake. Now, mine not have turned out to be the prettiest, but it defintely tasted good. Its really rich and decadent and tastes alot like the real thing, from what I can remember. My non-vegan friends loved it as well!

• 25 Oreo cookies (or 1½ cup Oreo cookie crumbs)
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil

Vegan Cheesecake Filling:

• ½ cup raw cashews
• 15 oz can coconut milk
• 2 (8 oz) packages of vegan cream cheese (I used Tofutti)
• 14 oz container of extra firm tofu
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• 2 tablespoons Earth Balance margarine
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 10-12 Oreos, roughly chopped for the batter
• 10-12 Oreos, roughly chopped for the topping
  For the Crust:

  1. Place the whole cookies (filling and all) in a food processor or blender and pulse until the cookies resemble a coarse crumbly flour. Add the coconut oil and pulse for another second or two to combine.
  2. Press the cookie crumb crust into an 8″ springform pan. Distribute evenly across the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Set aside.

  For the Vegan Cream Cheese Filling:

  1. Place the cashews and the coconut milk in a vitamix or high powered blender. Pulse the food processor for several seconds to break down the cashews. Pulse until smooth and creamy.
  2. Add the vegan cream cheese and extra firm tofu and pulse again until smooth and creamy.
  3. Next add the sugar, corn starch, margarine, and vanilla. Pulse for several seconds, up to a minute until you have a nice, creamy mixture.
  4. Add the 10-12 roughly chopped Oreos and give it one more stir to combine. Set aside.
  5. Turn your oven to 325F while you let the filling settle for a few minutes.
  6. When the oven is ready, pour the cheesecake filling into the prepared crust and spread the 10-12 roughly chopped Oreos over the top.
  7. Bake your cheesecake for 60 minutes and then turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before placing in the fridge. I recommend letting the cheesecake cool for at least four hours (or even a full day) before slicing and serving.

smores cake.

Although I didn’t do alot of baking and cooking this summer, i DID manage to whip up this smores cake for a dinner with friends one night. I woke up the next morning wishing we hadn’t eaten it all. It was a fun take on the classic smores (which is one of my most favorite deserts ever).

The cake recipe comes from the smores cupcake in vegan cupcakes take over the world.
(Shutterbean recently made a smores cake and posted a recipe here – No doubt hers is delicious!)

I poured the recipe into a 8×8 pan and baked it for 20 minutes.
After it cooled I made a chocolate ganache

1/3 cup almond milk
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

In a small sauce pan, bring the almond milk to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer and add the chocolate and syrup. Mix with a rubber spatula for about 30 seconds. Turn heat off, continue stirring until the chocolate is fully melted and the icing is smooth.

Ice the cake and then top with dandies marshmallows. Put back in the oven for about 3 minutes, but watch closely so your cake doesnt overcook and your marshmallows dont burn!

peanut butter muffins.

Peanut butter, chocolate and bananas are like the ultimate baking trifecta.

Here they are in muffin form. I found the original recipe here, and modified it a bit to my liking. You can probably use any oil, but I especially love the sweet coconut-y flavor that coconut oil brings to the mix.

These muffins are so good served right out of the oven with a smear of peanut butter in the middle.

dry ingredients:
1 1/4 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/3 cup rolled oats

wet ingredients:
1/4 cup almond milk + 1 1/2 tspn flax meal
1 large banana, mashed
1/2 cup agave syrup
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract

warmed:
2-3 Tbsp virgin coconut oil
4-5 Tbsp peanut butter

fold in: 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, vegan

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mash the banana. set aside. Combine the flax seeds and almond milk and let sit for a few minutes.
3. Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Add in the wet ingredients.
4. Warm the oil and peanut butter in the microwave until soft and liquid in texture. Pour into your batter and fold well. The batter should be about room temperature at this point – you don’t want it too warm or it will melt the chips.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips.
6. Pour into muffin cups.
7. Bake for about 18 minutes at 350 degrees.