Archives for February 2014

​ Even though it’s fall, peaches and plums are still in season. I love the warm colors of peaches (that would be the art teacher in me speaking) and the texture of the fuzzy skin. Seeing all of the different colors in the produce section of the grocery store makes you truly appreciate the beauty of mother nature and the gifts she provides for us! Ground flax seeds give these muffins an extra fiber boost and also provides anti-inflammatory benefits; ginger and the cinnamon are wonderful anti-inflammatory foods as well.

Muffins have been on my mind the past few weeks (I think it’s the colder weather) and these hit the spot. The peach and ginger combination give the muffins sweetness with a little zing. Perfect for a quick, nourishing breakfast or a great snack for a pick me up in the afternoon! I hope you enjoy them too!

yields 6 muffins

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 cup almond flour (or ground almonds)
• 1 cup of peaches (washed & diced, not overripe)
• 3 tablespoons ground flax seed
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon (+ some for tops of muffins)
• 3/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Wash, peel and dice peaches. Make sure they are not overripe as that will affect the batter (too much moisture if they are).

3. Grind almonds until fine if needed.

4. Add almond flour, flax seed, baking powder, ginger and cinnamon together in a bowl and mix well.

5. Mix apple sauce and apple cider vinegar to the dry mixture of ingredients.

6. Gently fold in peaches.

7. Add paper liners to muffin cups (6)

8. Divide batter among 6 muffin cups.

9. Bake for 15 minutes.

10. Sprinkle with cinnamon if desired.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 165  Fiber: 4g  Sugar: 4g

​

Peach Ginger Muffins

gluten free, vegan, paleo

This weekend my husband, Jake, and I celebrated our one year wedding anniversary. We went back to the same Cape Cod beach we were married on, and had a lovely lunch by the same cafe that catered our wedding (Sesuit Harbor Cafe, you will not find better seafood on the Cape). The weather was beautiful, just like this time last year. We had an amazing day and we look upon it so fondly. It couldn’t have been any more perfect. I am truly blessed with such a wonderful husband.

Anyways…. Are you sick of pumpkin yet? Me either. These went fast in my house last week. Didn’t last very long. If it doesn’t make it to Monday when I can bring the extras to work, I know they were especially yummy.

​Makes 14 rolls

Inspired by Almonds & Avocados

Ingredients:

for the pumpkin rolls

• 1 cup almond flour (or ground almonds)
• 1/2 cup sorghum flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (room temperature)
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract

for the filling: 

• 2/3 cup cranberries (or other dried fruit of your choice)
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon

topping (if desired):

• chopped walnuts or pecans

Instructions: 

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Mix almond flour, sorghum flour, tapioca flour and baking soda together in a bowl.

3. Mix the pumpkin puree, coconut oil, honey and vanilla extract in a separate bowl (room temperate coconut oil highly recommended for the best consistency).

5. Mix the wet and dry ingredients together until you have a large ball of dough.

6. Roll out the dough into a large rectangle onto a piece of parchment paper or Silipat (a small amount of any kind of flour placed down on the parchment paper first will help to keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin). The rolls work best when it is thinned out to around 1/4 inch thick.

6. Buzz cranberries, honey/maple syrup and cinnamon in a food processor until smooth.

7. Spread the filling out onto the dough, leaving an inch around all sides of your large dough rectangle.

8. Slowly and carefully roll the dough. You can use the parchment paper as a guide by lifting it as you roll the dough.

9. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 2-3 inch thick rolls.

10. Place rolls down onto the parchment paper or Silipat (on a cookie sheet if desired) 2 inches apart from each other. Add nuts if desired.

11. Bake rolls in the oven for 18 minutes (they will begin to brown on the edges when they are fully cooked).

12. Allow to cool 10-15 minutes before serving.

*note: rolls will be more crunchy than soft

Nutritional Information: Calories:  147  Fiber:  2g  Sugar: 10g

If you like nutella raise your hand! (That would be me!) I LOVE nutella. It just has a lot of stuff in it that is just not so great for you. I had some raw hazelnuts in the freezer & I knew it was time to do something with them! I saw chocolate hazelnut butter from Justin’s in the store, and had my inspiration.

Serves 4

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup raw hazelnuts (soaked for 30 minutes to 2 hours)
• 2 tablespoons of raw cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons honey

Instructions:

1. Drain hazelnuts.

2. Add all ingredients to food processor

3. Blend until smooth

4. Serve with fruit! Yum!

Nutritional Information (2 tablespoons):

Calories: 185 Fiber: 3g  Sugar: 8g

I think I mentioned last week my Mom and I went apple picking. We must have went home with over 20 pounds of apples.. (maybe more, I’m terrible at guessing things like measurements). Needless to say, we’ve been in the kitchen brewing up many delicious apple recipes. We are also entering lots of different recipes to a local apple cooking and baking contest! (And that would also be my adorable Mom in that picture to the left holding some of all those apples)!
​

This recipe came about because we all love apple crisp, but don’t love all of the unhealthy ingredients it calls for in most recipes. Since I’ve been back in school, many of my coworkers have been my taste testers! This one went over very well. Everyone started asking for the recipe right away! Just enough sweetness, tart flavor and crunch all in the same bite!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 4 apples, washed, peeled and diced (stems/seeds removed)
• 1 cup gluten free oats or gluten free groats (very minimally processed oats)
• 4 tablespoons earth balance butter, melted (or ghee if using dairy)
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar (granulated)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon (or more, to taste)
• 2 teaspoons coconut flour

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Rinse, peel and dice slice apples (removing seeds)

3. Combine oats, butter, coconut sugar, cinnamon and coconut flour in a bowl & mix well.

4. Place apple in a oven safe dish (I used an 8X8 pyrex pan).

5. Sprinkle oat mixture on top of apples.

6. Place in the oven for 25 minutes or until the apples are tender.

7. Eat while warm! Yum!

Nutritional Information: Calories: 258  Fiber: 6g Sugar: 19g

As a mostly vegan (I eat eggs sometimes, occassionally fish) it’s hard to get in all the protein I need every day. I find myself eating lots of beans, seeds, etc. I also eat tons of chia seeds! They provide 6 grams of protein and 12 grams of fiber in one serving (2 tablespoons). They are also anti inflammatory and help bone health. I’ve also eaten chia seeds, but recently found out about Mila Chia Seeds. These chia seeds are deshelled so that you recieve even more of those benefits. When I throw these into my smoothie in the morning and they keep me full forever! (or these protein poppers for a snack) I am never hungry afterwards. Can you tell the difference in the photo? The regular chia seeds are on the left, and the Mila Chia Seeds are on the right. It’s pretty awesome, right? The chia seeds are made by a company called Genesis Pure, an amazing health food and supplement company based out of Dallas, Texas. If you are a health junkie like me, check them out here!

Anyways, these protein poppers are perfect. I have been eating them non stop since throwing them together. Great for in between meals and a healthy dessert (and they are so easy to modify to your own liking, like adding almond butter)!

Makes 12 poppers

Ingredients:

• 12-14 dates, soaked 30 minutes (or more)
• 1/4 cup raw hemp seeds
• 1/4 cup raw cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup Mila Chia Seeds
• 1/4 cup raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips

Instructions:

1. Soak dates in a bowl of water (that covers the dates) for at least 30 minutes (more is fine).

2. Remove dates from water and remove pits.

3. Pulse dates in food processor.

4. Add hemp seeds, cocoa powder, sesame seeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds and chocolate chips to the food processor and pulse until smooth.

5. Remove mixture from food processor and separate into 12 equal amounts (a cookie scooper works great for this).

6. Rolls mixture into balls and put in the refrigerator or freezer.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 116   Fiber: 5g  Sugar: 18g

When I first started baking for my husband, Jake, of course I never used anything ‘healthy’! Needless to say, as I’ve improved my diet and lifestyle I realized that I could actually cook and bake with healthier ingredients. These ingredients are much more nourishing and more important, ones that do not cause my body to become inflammed (which I didn’t even know at the time). It’s been a long journey with Jake getting to change his eating habits (still in progess, too). He still always raises and eyebrow and questions “Is this healthy?” before he pops whatever I ask him to try into his mouth. It’s okay, though. He’s great at giving me an honest opinion and it helps me go back to tweak a recipe so that they taste better! I also used buckwheat in this recipe. This is something I had in my pantry for a while that I had bought on a whim, and when I saw this recipe, I thought it would be a good time to take it out and give it a whirl. Fun Fact: Even though the name contains the word wheat, buckwheat is gluten free (the name comes from the triangular seed which resemble the much larger seeds of the beech nut from the beech tree, which is used like wheat).

This week I really craving something bread like, but I didn’t want to do too much work (and not exactly sure what I wanted to make). I knew I had pumpkin and chocolate. I was sure I could find something delicious to throw together! I scoured the internet looking for ‘easy pumpkin bread’ recipes, and then realized I had to bread loaf pan? (How is that possible?) I do have mini muffin pans however… so a mini muffin recipe was in order. And who doesn’t love things that are mini?. These made my kitchen smell amazing, and even better yet, Jake couldn’t get enough of them.  That does not happen every day. He was actually disappointed when I brought most of the batch to school for the rest of my coworkers and he had none left to munch on. These will definitely be made again! Yum!

Makes 48 mini muffins

inspired by The Detoxinista

Ingredients:

• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 can pumpkin puree (15.5 ounces)
• 1/4 cup raw cocao powder
• 1/4 cup Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips 
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees & set muffin liners in pan (if desired).

2. Mix buckwheat flour, raw cocao powder, cinnamon and baking soda in a large bowl.

3. Mix pumpkin, coconut oil, honey into the bowl with the dry ingredients.

4. Add apple cider vinegar to mixture.

5. Gently fold in mini chocolate chips

6. Using a tablespoon measure, place batter in muffin tin one at a time (I found the tablespoon measure works the more efficiently for getting equal amounts in the liners, but you could just as easily use a spoon.

7. Bake for 10-12 minutes in the oven.

8. Remove and reline/refill/bake again if needed for all for all those awesome little muffins you’ll be making!

Nutritional Information: Calories: 29  Fiber: 1g   Sugar: 2g

I have never been the biggest fan of whoopie pies… not my favorite go to dessert, for some reason. However, there is an amazing bakery in the Boston area called Something Sweet Without Wheat (their pastries are amazing, they are both gluten free & dairy free)! I had theirs a few weeks ago and have been thinking about making my own ever since… I had also stopped by Home Goods (where I always dig through the clearance section) and lo & behold, there was a whoopie pie pan for $3.50! I took this as a sign.

I did add an egg to the pumpkin mixture for this one, but I’m working on a vegan version. I’m hoping you all aren’t sick of pumpkin yet. When Thanksgiving is over the pumpkin recipes will subside…. (my mouth waters just thinking about Thanksgiving)! Do you like Thanksgiving? It’s a lot of work, but it really is my favorite! It’s like Christmas but without worrying about the gifts. Everyone gathering around the table to share good food. Nothing but love - it’s my favorite!

* note: this definitely is a calorie splurge, the majority of the calories coming from the coconut milk.

Makes 4 whoopie pies (8 cookies)

whoopie pies inspired by Deliciously Organic ​

filling inspired by Primally Inspired 

Ingredients: 

for pies:

• 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons almond flour (or finely ground almonds)
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree/canned pumpkin
• 1 egg (or egg replacer)

• 4 tablespoons melted coconut oil

• 2 tablespoons coconut flour

• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

• 1.5 teaspoons nutmeg

• 1.5 teaspooons cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

for the filling:

• 1 can full coconut milk (chilled at least 24 hours in the refrigerator)

• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine dry ingredients (almonds, coconut flour, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking powder) in a bowl and mix well.

3. In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients (pumpkin, egg, coconut oil, vanilla extract) and whisk well.

4. Combine wet and dry ingredients together in one bowl and mix until mixture is smooth.

5. Grease whoopie pie pan with coconut oil if needed. If you do not have a whoopie pie pan, you can easily use a cookie scoop on a cookie sheet or parchment paper to create the cookie for the pies.

6. Put whoopie pie pan or cookie sheet in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until you can put a knife into the cookie and it comes out clean.

7. While the whoopie pies are in the oven, use a can opener to open coconut milk (drain the water off the top). Here you can also do one of two things. You can do it the lazy way (like I did) and put the coconut milk and cinnamon in your kitchen aid mixer on high for about 5 minutes until it is fluffy like whip cream; or, you can do it by hand (a little more time consuming) by adding your coconut milk and cinnamon to a large bowl and use an electric hand mixer to create the ‘whip cream’. If you would like your cream thicker, you can add in the arrowroot powder. When the whip cream is done, place it in the refrigerator in a bowl until you are ready to put the cream in between the cookies.

8. Once your whoopie pie cookies are done and taken out of the oven, allow them to cool.

9. When cookies are cool, distribute cream evenly on top of four of the cookies. Place one cookie on top of each of the cream cookie creating your pumpkin whoopie pie!

Nutritional Information: Calories: 467  Fiber: 4g  Sugar: 4g

​ My husband Jake and I invested in a fixer upper house at the end of April this year, and it’s been fun working on it. We still have long way to go, but it’s coming along… Anyways, last weekend I had my family over for a mini ‘Thanksgiving’ dinner. It was a lot of fun putting everything together for everyone, decorating the table, preparing all the food. I know people tend to indulge a lot at Thanksgiving dinner so I wanted to make a small, light dessert that would be just enough sweetness to finish the meal. These went over really well and were just the right amount, a fun twist on the classic pumpkin pie. The best part is that it took me only minutes to put together, by far the easiest dish of the meal to make! What is your favorite food to eat at Thanksgiving?

Makes 6 mini parfaits

graham crackers recipe inspired from Elana’s Pantry

whip cream recipe inspired by Primally Inspired
Ingredients:

• 1 can pumpkin puree (15.5 ounces)
• 1 full fat can coconut milk (15.5 ounces, refrigerated for at least 12 hours)
• 3/4 cup finely ground almonds or almond flour
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons arrowroot powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a food processor, buzz almonds/almond flour, 1 tablespoon molasses, 2 teaspoons arrowroot powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt until dough forms. This is the mixture for the graham crackers (this recipe has been halved for 12 crackers instead of 24, double for extra)!

4. Take the dough out of the food processor and place dough between two pieces of parchment paper. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is 1/4 - 1/2 inch thick.

5. Remove top parchment paper sheet and place on a cookie sheet. Cutting or scoring can be done with a knife to separate the crackers, but you will be crumbling them for the bottom layer of the bars.

6. Bake the graham crackers in the oven at 350 degrees for 5 or 6 minutes or until the edges brown.

7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

8. Open can of pumpkin puree and place entire contents into a bowl. Add one tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and one teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice into the puree and mix well. Set aside.

9. Take the can of coconut milk out of the refrigerator, open the top and drain the water.

10. Here you can also do one of two things. You can do it the lazy way (like I did) and put the coconut milk and cinnamon in your kitchen aid mixer on high for about 5 minutes until it is fluffy like whip cream; or, you can do it by hand (a little more time consuming) by adding your coconut milk and cinnamon to a large bowl and use an electric hand mixer to create the ‘whip cream’. If you would like your cream thicker, you can add in an extra teaspoon of arrowroot powder.

11. Remove crackers from parchment paper, place in a plastic ziplock bag and roll over the bag with a rolling pin. Make sure all of the air is out of the bag first!

12. Begin to layer the pumpkin and the whip cream in each parfait cup. I used about one tablespoon of each, pumpkin layer, whip cream, pumpkin, whip cream.

13. Top with graham cracker crumbles as desired (extra cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, too)!