Chocolate Coconut Bars (gluten, dairy, grain free!

Chocolate Coconut Bars...
Mounds Bars used to be my favourite as a child,
but THESE are a true explosion of happiness.



Prep Time:  15 minutes
No cooking needed




Ingredients:

3/4 cup / 160 gr coconut oil
1/4 cup / 85 gr  coconut butter or coconut cream concentrate
2 tsp / coffeespoons vanilla extract
3 cups / 225 gr shredded coconut
4 oz / 95 gr high quality dark chocolate

Instructions:

1. Place coconut oil & coconut butter in a pan, and melt over low heat.
2. Remove fro heat and add 2 tsp vanilla, whisk to combine.
3.  Add the shredded coconut & mix well.
4. Put into a 8x8, square baking pan.
5. Place in fridge.
6. Once the coconut layer is completely chilled and hardened, it is time to melt the chocolate!!
7. Melt chocolate in a bain-marie/double boiler  (one pan inside another pan of water). Do not let water boil over into the chocolate pan.
8.  As soon as the chocolate is melted, remove it from the heated water. Pour or spoon over the coconut layer. Spreading it as you go. I used a frosting spatula.
9. Place back in the forge for a few hours until firm.
10. Cut into small squares.. it is rich and you can eat way to much!

FUDGY Brownies

Gluten- Sugar & Diary Free and still delicious   

The verdict after our cooking class--- incredible, especially when we added the RAW chocolate frosting! The most important part of the recipe is to watch the baking time!  When they get over baked they are D.R.Y …  Or No longer fudgy! So once you start to smell that gorgeous chocolate aroma, rush to the oven and check them. It is better if there is a bit left on your toothpick after you check it, when you take them out.  Please do not leave out the 30 min rest period before cooking, if you do, be warned, they will be grainy.

4 oz/ 3/4cup + 2 TBL / 140gr ATK Gluten free flour blend (see recipe for this blend, or use the ATK Whole grain gluten free blend or just use spelt!)

½ tsp sea salt

½ tsp xanthan gum

7 oz / 200gr semisweet chocolate, chopped coarse

8 TBL / 75 gr coconut oil

3 TBL / 30 gr unsweetened cocoa powder

8 oz / 1 cup / 250 ml maple syrup

3 large eggs or 4 med-small

2 tsp vanilla extract

Pre heat oven to 350F/175C.

Line 8-inch / 20 cm square pan with 2 sheets of aluminum foil so they overlap the sides. Pushing well flat along the sides and into the corners.

Melt chocolate, cocoa powder and coconut oil together in a bain marie

Whisk flour, salt,  and xanthan gum together in a large bowl. Set aside.

Whisk maple syrup, eggs, and vanilla together with whisk or immersion blender.

Whisk in slightly cooled chocolate mixture. Stir all into flour mixture.

Scrape into prepared pan and smooth top.  Cover pan with plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes.

Remove plastic wrap. Place pan in middle oven rack. Bake around 45 minutes* remember the hint above- when you smell the chocolate check it! There should be some batter that sticks to your checking skewer!

Let Brownies cool completely in pan (it will be hard to resist!), about 2 hours. Using foil overhang, lift out of pan.  Cut into squares and serve, maybe with a nice cold glass of oat milk!?

These are best eaten the same day but maybe be stored in an airtight container for a few days.

Pina Colada Bites with Pineapple, Coconut & Pine Nuts – RAW !

This is a new family favourite, bringing us the feeling of sunshine treats in the middle of winter.  A great sweet snack for mid afternoon, after school or after workout. Full of good fats and super fruits & flavors !

½ cup / 70gr raw pine nuts

½ cup / 75gr dried pineapple (unsweetened)

½ cup / 43 gr unsweetened shredded coconut

1 TBL/ 1 soupspoon melted coconut oil (or as needed)

¼ cup / 28gr Goji berries

Pulse the pine nuts into flour in your food precessor/Thermomix. Then add the rest of the ingrédients and process until they start to stick together.  If it is too dry, add a bit more coconut oil.  Adjust mixture according to taste. Roll into balls and let sit in refridgerator for a few hours.  Eat. J

GingerBread / Pain d’Epices

The Pumpkin puree in this gingerbread makes it so moist and fresh, you those cold winter mornings with a cup of spicy tea, will warm your heart and soul.  It lasts for days!  In place of the mix of spices you can substitute 3-4 TBL of a spice called “Pain d’epice.*   VANILLA FROSTNG (see other recipe)

DRY

2 cups/ 300 gr  ATK gluten free flour or Spelt Flour

2 tsp / 8 gr baking powder

2 tsp / 10 gr baking soda

1 tsp / 2 gr xanthan gum

1 tsp / 6gr seasalt

1 tsp / 5 gr cinnamon (or more to taste!  I double it.)

2 TBL / 30 gr powder ginger

¼ tsp / 3gr powdered nutmeg

WET

½ cup / 105gr coconut oil, melted

2/3 cup / 174 gr agave syrup

¼ cup / 66 gr molasses

2/3 cup / 155 gr rice or soy milk (or any kind of grain or nut milk)

1 TBL / 12 gr  vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean

1 1/3 cups / 300 gr pumpkin puree (unsweetened)

¾ cup /  XXX gr hot water

Pre- heat oven to 325F/150C. Lightly grease a loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk all DRY ingredients together.

In a very large mixing cup, emulsify all the wet ingredients, EXCEPT PUMPIN and WATER, together with an immersion blender.  Pour into DRY ingredients and mix until smooth.  With a rubber spatula, gently fold in pumpkin puree and hot water, just until batter is smooth.

Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake on center rack for 40 minutes, rotating 180 degrees half way. When cooked the gingerbread will bounce back in the middle when pressed, and a stock will come out clean.

Let the gingerbread stand fro 20 minutes, the gently run a knife around the edges and take out to cool on a wire rack.

If you want to make to a real treat, frost with the Vanilla Frosting!

Store in an airtight container for 4 days.  You can also slice and freeze. Toast to defrost and have as a perfect coffee, tea or breakfast time!

Life Changing Bread

I have long looked for a non-bread bread (does that make sense!) that I love.  Not to say that bread is bad. However when you live in the land of the perfect baguette, and it tempts you at every turn,  it might be nice to free up some space in a meal for more veggies and good grains. 

In addition, many breads contain some really kooky stuff. There are so many I cannot even count, but if your bread isn’t made of flour (preferably organic), water, salt (and maybe yeast) trust that it is NOT a healthy addition to your meal.

I found this (and these great photos!) on a blog called MyNewRoots.org.  It is a meal in one.  Just add olive oil, some spreads or an avocado & tomato and a salad.  And, yes, my whole family loves this lunch.

Ingredients

135 gr/1 cup sunflower seeds

90 gr/ ½ cup flax seeds

65 gr / ½ cup hazelnuts or almonds (leave out for nut allergy)

145 gr / 1 ½ cups rolled oats (get certified gluten free for gluten allergy)

2 soupspoons/ 2 Tbsp chia seeds

4 soupspoons/  4 Tbsp psyllium husks ( 3Tbl if using powdered)

1 coffeespoon/1 tsp fine seasalt

1 soupspoon / 1 Tbsp maple syrup (or a pinch of stevia for sugar free diets)

2 soupspoons / 2 Tbsp melted coconut oil or clarified butter

350ml / 1 ½ cups water

1.    In a flexible loaf pan, mix all DRY ingredients.  Or use a standard loaf pan lined with parchment paper or silicon paper.  Stir well.

2.    Whisk all Wet ingredients together. I use an immersion blender in a tall cup to emulsify them.

3.    Add wet to dry and stir very well until everything is completely soaked through and Dough becomes very thick.  If it is too thick to stir, add a few more spoons of water until it is manageable.  Smooth top with back of spoon.

4.    Let it sit on the counter for 2-12 hours. (I leave it overnight.)  To ensure the dough is ready, it should keep it’s shape even when you pull it away from the sides of the pan.

5.    Preheat oven to 175C/350F.

Now bake it!

6.    Place on middle rack and bake for 20 min.

7.    Remove from loaf pan. Remove parchment paper if used. Place UPSIDE DOWN directly on oven rack and bake for an additional 30-40 minutes.  Bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped.

8.    Let COOL COMPLETELY before slicing (this can be difficult, but is very important)

9.    Store in an airtight container fro up to 5 days, Freezes well to, but slice first for a quick & easy toast. 

By the way, this makes incredible toast!

Also, so much of this recipe is substitutable.  No maple syrup? Use honey or agave or pureed dates that have been soaked in a few spoonfuls of hot water. Not enough sunflower seeds? Then mix it up with pumpkin seeds. No chia? Leave it out or use hemp  or sesame.  YOU choose. The only thing you cannot change is the psyllium husk. This is what holds the bread together. In addition it is great for our intestines, full of soluble and insoluble fibers, assisting in a slower release of sugars into our blood stream.

Berries & Cream Mini Tarts (RAW)

I have just begun experimenting with raw, sugar free desserts.  My desire to non-bake like this started on a trip to Bali, where we encountered some of the most amazing raw food ever.  The raw coconut chocolate treats were literally worth swimming to Bali from France.  As for my children, ages 10 & 13…. Let’s just say… there was no sharing. Ha!

Here is my first attempt. Totally successful. Taken from a great book called Rawsome Vegan Baking.  What I loved about this experience was that

It took 30 min to make them, and even though we ate dessert close to midnight they didn’t give us that sugar-belly-hangover feeling.

Ingredients

Crust

1cup/ 145gr  raw pecans

1 cup/ 175gr pitted dates

Cream

1 cup/ 145gr raw cashews

2 Tbl / 30 ml melted coconut oil

1 Tbl / 20 gr liquid sweetener (maple syrup, rice syrup, barley malt, honey..)

1 tsp vanilla extract or the inside of 1 vanilla pod

Topping

Any kind of berries. I prefer Strawberries but I have used blueberries, raspberries and cut grapes!

Finely ground dried coconut to garnish

CRUST

Pulse the pecans into a flour in your food processor. Add the dates and process until everything begins to stick together. Press into tart molds and put in fridge.

Cream FILLING

Blend all ingredients until smooth and thick, adding water if needed to process.

Spread into your tart shells and refridgerate 4 hours to overnight.

Before serving top with sliced berries and sprinkle with coconut.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Breakfast on the go !

The first time I made thèse, they were stop-you-from-talking incredible. Then I started to replace chocolate chips with raisins, use less cinnamon for French palates… they were good, but not amazing. So I am sticking with this recipe !

Ingredients

WET

1 large egg

170gr / 1cup pumpkin purée

110gr / ½ cup soy milk (or almond or  your favorite milk)

100 gr/ 1/3cup maple syrup

45 gr/ ¼ cup vegetable oil (I use melted coconut oil)

2 coffeespoons /2 tsp vanilla extract or paste from 2 vanilla pods

DRY

2 coffeespoons/2 tsp pain d’epice spice or pumpkin pie spice

1 coffeespoon/ 1 tsp cinnamon (or to taste !)

pinch seasalt

335 gr / 3 ½ cups oats (not instant)

2 coffeespoons / 2tsp baking powder

200gr / 1 cup chocolate chips (or raisins, dried apricots etc)

Preheat oven to 175C/350F

Grease a muffin pan or use a good silicon muffin pan.

In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients.

In a tall cup combine all Wet ingredients. Emulsify with an immersion blender.

Add Wet to Dry. Mix well.

Evenly distribute into muffin tins.

Bake for 23 minutes or until tops are set  when touched lightly

Cool COMPLETELY before taking out of pan. This will be extremely difficult as they small so good... but if you do not hold back,  they will fall apart)

SOCCA

(Chick Pea Flour light, thin, salty, crisp pancakes)

By Gael Verger

Speciality of Nice. This is an apperitif for 10 people

• 250g of Chickpea flour
• 500 ml of water 
• 2 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 tea spoon salt

Preparation

Mix flour and water to make a very thin batter, like a crêpe batter.  Add olive oil and salt.

Let the batter rest for 1 hr. Remix it before using.

Use a 35 cm diameter pizza pan, the oven must be extremely hot 230°C/410F. Put the empty pan in the oven and when is extremely hot and put 2 tbspoon of olive oil on it.  Put the pizza pan back in the oven to heat olive oil. 

Add 2 ladles of the batter on the extremely hot olive oil pizza pan. Thickness of the dough, approximately 0.5mm.  

Every oven is different so your first socca will guild you for the next batch.  Cook for 7 min at 230°C/410F (You my need to us the grill few minutes before the end of the cooking period). 

The texture of the socca must be crispy top and inside hardly soft (moelleux).

You can make 2 pizza pans with this.

Bonne dégustation   

AMAZING Pumpkin Pie with GingerSnap or Speculoos Crust 

Typically, I do not like Pumpkin Pie, actually I HATE Pumpkin Pie. I make it every Thanksgiving for people I love who Love it! Today, I had a Pumpkin Pie request at my Healthy Cooking class. So, I went for it. What a surprise! It was fantastic. I had 3 French, 1 Spanish and a non-cooking American raving. I used a straight edge cake pan instead of a typical American pie pan, like a small french art pan. This made it easier to press in the crust, and held more filling. You gotta try it.

Pumpkin Pie 
1 small cooking pumpkin (NOT a Halloween pumpkin)
3/4c raw cane sugar
1/4c maple syrup
3 eggs
1 cup soy milk or regular milk
1/2 cup soy cream or regular milk
1 Tablespoon melted coconut
1 teaspoon cinnamon (or more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon ginger (or more to taste)

GingerSnap Crust 
24 gingersnaps or speculoos cookies, ground to a crumble
4 Tablespoons melted coconut oil or butter
2 tablespoons raw cane sugar (use only if cookies are not overly sweet)
pinch of seasalt

Start by preparing the pumpkin... 
Preparing Pumpkin 
Pre heat oven to 400F/200C.
Cut pumpkin in half. Take seeds out. Place flesh down (skin up) on a cookie sheet. Poke a few holes in the skin. Add a few TBLS of water to tray. Place in oven and roast until pumpkin is soft. Be careful when you open the oven door, the steam will shoot out in your face!

Now, prepare the crust... 
GingerSnap Crust
Add melted coconut oil/butter to the cookie crumbs.
Stir in sugar and seasalt.
Press into pie pan. Cook for 10 minutes. 350F/175C.
Cool in fridge until filling is ready.

Now make the filling...
Blend all ingredient together until very smooth. Pour into cooled crust. Cook at 350F/175C for 30-35 minutes, until the center is not liquid-y when you touch it. Serve warm!

ThinMints- the vegan kind...

My daughter was playing around with my cookbooks recently, and lover of mint and chocolate that she is, she discovered and successfully vegan-ized these amazing cookies from the Tassajara CookBook. Just makes it easier to eat them! Who says we need to wait for the girls in green to come by....

 2+1/2cups (375gr) flour (I use spelt/epeautre)
1/2cup (125gr) cocoa powder
1+1/2 tsp (coffee spoon) baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1/2 tsp seasalt

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted (de-aromatized is the best)
1 cup maple syrup
1+1/2 tsp mint extract
1+1/2 cups chocolate chips

 Preheat oven to 350degrees F/ 175degrees C.
 Combine all dry ingredients, except chocolate chips, in a large mixing bowl.

In a large tall mixing cup, combine all wet ingredients with a stick mixer to emulsify. Or just whisk them together until smooth.

 Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until all the flour is combined. Then gently mix in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto baking sheet covered with baking paper, and flatten with the back of the spoon. Bake 12-16 minutes- wait for the chocolate-y smell and then check them! Cool.

In our home, since we no longer have store bought cookies, we make batter, ball it all, bake only 1-2 trays and freeze the rest of the balls for another day's instant warm cookies!

Blueberry Coconut Muffins

Coconut oil is really my chosen oil to bake with. It adds a richness of flavor while being truly the most heart healthy oil there is.

WET
3/4 cups safflower or melted coconut oil
1 cup maple syrup
3 eggs or 6 egg whites or 6 Tbl ground flax seed whisked with 12 Tbl water (set aside)
1 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
2 Tbl vanilla

DRY
4 cups whole wheat flour (or spelt)
1 1/8 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups blueberries- fresh, frozen or defrosted

Pre heat oven to 350F/175C.

Whisk all WET ingredients together.

Mix together flour, coconut and baking powder & soda.
Blend into WET ingredients.
Gently stir in blueberries.

The batter will be thick and delicious.
If you prefer a runnier batter, add some soy milk to get to the texture of batter you are used to.

Spoon batter into greased or papered muffin tins.
Bake at 350F/175C for about 30 minutes but check after 20. Bake until a skewer or knife comes out clean.

Ultimate Banana Bread

This recipe is a take on The Ultimate Banana Bread in Cook's Illustrated Magazine (July/August 2010). Always a source of inspiration and science for me. This one is really quite extraordinary. It reduces the JUICE of the bananas to increase the flavour....Plus, only good fat, and no sugar, eggs or dairy. :) The flax(lin) seeds not only replace the eggs as a binder but they add an amazing nutty flavor that you cannot exactly put your finger on....Nature as it can be.

1 3/4 cups (300grams) unbleached flour (I use spelt)
1 teaspoon (coffeespoon) baking soda
1/2 teaspoon (coffeespoon) seasalt
6 very large ripe bananas peeled, frozen and defrosted (save the juice!!--it is the KEY!)
or fresh and microwaved (see instructions)
8 tablespoons (125 grams) coconut oil, melted & slightly cooled
3 heaping tablespoons of ground flax seeds (lin)
3/4 cup (175ml) maple syrup or rice syrup or agave syrup
1 tablespoon (soupspoon) vanilla extract
1 cup (250gr) chocolate chips (optional)

1. Prepare ground flax (lin) seeds by whisking them in a small bowl with 7 tablespoons water. Let stand to get a gooey in texture.

2. Pre heat oven to 350F/175C. Oil whatever pan you are using, sprinkle a bit of pure unrefined muscovado sugar (or what you have) on the bottom. Slice a banana and arrange on the bottom of the pan. Ones that work are loaf pans, bundt pans, square pans. Just add on more cooking time for a loaf shape as it is thicker. Set aside.

3. If using defrosted bananas, save the juice!!! Put it in a small pan and heat on low to reduce into a thin syrup. Usually about 5 min but do it just as long as you can.

4. Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Flour, baking soda, seasalt.

5. Mash bananas and re-incorporate the reduced juice. Mix in all wet ingredients adding the flax (lin) seed last- melted coconut oil, maple/rice/agave syrup, vanilla extract and flax seed/water mixture. Pour into the dry ingredient mixture.

6. Stir in chocolate chips if using.

7. Pour into pan and shake and bang pan until it is evenly distributed.

8. Bake for about 45 minutes but check it! My oven is hot so time maybe a bit more in yours.
This can also be made as muffins.

9. See if you can keep it on a plate longer than an afternoon....

By the way, for you France enthusiasts... this cake is great to hide a feve in during Galette de Roi saison!!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla-Coconut Frosting

This is by far been my best dairy free, sugar free chocolate cake recipe ever. And the frosting! To die for. No more too sweet, to rich buttercream. I knew there had to be a filler, a bit like a flour-milk base is the thickener for soup or salad. Full credit goes to me finally really looking at a book I bought years ago, The Vegan Cupcake, by I.C. Moskowitz & T. H. Romero. Two of the original cupcake heroines, before it became so trendy. I love this book as it still using the basic ingredients you can find at any grocery store.
Makes and Frosts 12 cupcakes.

Simple Chocolate Cupcakes

2/3 cup soy milk
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup agave syrup
1/3 cup vegetable oil (I use de-aromatized Sunflower Oil, or melted coconut oil)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour (I use white spelt, you can use whole spelt)
1/3 cups cocoa powder (unsweetened)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Mix soy milk with Apple cider vinegar in a large bowl and let sit 5 minutes to curdle.
TIP: If you are doubling or tripling the recipe DO NOT increase the vinegar in the same fold. DO NOT exceed 1 tsp vinegar. It works the same and won't make the cakes asidy tasting)

Meanwhile, line muffin tins with cupcake liners.
Pre-heat oven to 325F/160C.

Into milk/vinegar mixture, beat in oil, agave syrup, and vanilla extract.
Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
Mix until smooth.

Fill liners 2/3 full.
Bake 20-22 minutes until a knife or toothpick put in center comes out with a very few crumbs on it. DO NOT over bake or they will be dry. If baking more than 1 tray at a time, be sure to switch the trays top/bottom-bottom/top after 12 minutes.

Let cool FULLY.

Vanilla-Coconut Frosting

This frosting is not quite as fluffy as a real buttercream, it has a creamy, custard like consistency. Make sure you cool the milk/flour mixture FULLY to ROOM TEMPERATURE, not cold refridgerator temperature, before you add the coconut oil, or you'll get... soup. If the mixture is cold from the fridge, it won't blend into the coconut oil properly and will look a bit curdled. Although it won't be curdled and tastes fine, and you will have a few small lumps of pure coconut oil in there. It happened to me today, and I could not get them out. I sent them onto my daughter's Pony Club anyway! Covered with a few sprinkles...

2 TbL white flour
1/2 cup soy milk
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup margarine or butter or coconut oil (the margarine or butter makes it creamy-er, I usede all coconut oil)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup superfine sugar or castor sugar

In a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk together flour and soy milk. Stir constantly until it starts to thicken, about 3-4 minutes. If you under cook or your frosting will taste like raw flour. Remove from heat and let cool 2 minutes.

Transfer to a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap so the custard doesn't get that skim on top. Let cool FULLY, at room temperature. Do not refridgerate. It will take time. Therefore, I did this before I started making my cupcakes!

With a mixer, as coconut oil is pretty hard, cream together coconut oil, margarine/butter, vanilla and sugar. Watch out! When you taste this mixture it becomes addictive!

Then beat in the COLD custard. Beat with electraic mixer for 4-6 minutes. It should get lighter in color and have a very creamy texture, similar to very thick whipped cream.

Frost on cooled cupcakes and decorate as you love!
Enjoy!

Poached Pears

A simple, healthy dessert that sounds and looks... special.
You can upgrade it to an adult version by using red wine or Muscat wine.

500ml/2cups red or white grape juice/ or wine as above!
100gr/1/2cup raw sugar or maple syrup
2 Tbl/soupspoons lemon juice
4 Conference pears (if possible, but really any hard-ish pear will do) peeled, cored & halved
1 stick cinnamon (optional)
3 cardamon pods (optional)
2 anise stars (optional)

In a heavy sauce pan, bring grape juice or wine amd sugar/syrup to a boil. Add which ever spices you are using. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Add lemon juice and pears. Cook for 10 minutes over medium low flame.
Cool and refridgerate.
Bring to room temperature. Serve with a dollop of yogurt or ice cream.

Extreme Banana Bread

This isn't just any banana bread. Its like eating a banana split, with out the ice cream of course. Then again, you could add that on the side! Its the intensity of the banana flavor that sets it apart, and the lack of sugar and cream and butter that make it actually light enough to eat, well, to eat alot!

The way the banana flavor is formed is a tip from my favorite cooking/baking authority- Cook's Illustrated. They test recipes as if they were in a science lab, tell you waht happens at each step so you can USE the knowledge elsewhere, adn then inject thier passion for flavor.

The trick is in the banana prep I will describe. But as I do not have, nor will ever have, a microwave, I freeze bananas in bags of 4-5. Then I defrost them in the bag, so to keep the juice that comes out, in a bowl of hot water. Quick and easy. The microwave version is below.

Extreme Banana Bread

2 cups whole wheat flour (I use spelt)
1 Tabl baking soda
1/2 tsp seasalt
4-5 large very ripe bananas (if possible, frozen then thawed)
1 large ripe banana for topping
1/2 cup melted coconut oil (cooled a bit)
1/2 cup agave syrup or maple syrup or rice syrup
2 eggs
1 Tbl vanilla
3/4 cup chocolate chips or nuts or both! or none!

Pre-heat oven to 325F/160C.
Prepare pan. Use either loaf pan or a 6 inch round spring form. "Paint" with some of the melted cocnut oil and dust with flour.

In large bowl whisk flour, baking soda and salt.

If you are not using frozen then thawed-in-the-sink bananas as described above.
Place 4-5 large bananas in a microwave safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and poke in some steam vents. Microwave on high until bananas are soft and havce released liquid, about 5 minutes.

Now you who used frozen-thawed bananas can rejoin us...
Saving the liquid that has come out, place soft bananas in a sieve OVER a bowl and let the liquid drip out of them for 5-10 minutes. Then smash them down & stir around to get anymore liquid out. You should have 1/2 - 3/4 cups) Just use whatever you have.

Place bananas in another mixing bowl. Transfer liquid to a small sauce pan and cook over medium-high heat until it is reduced to about 1/4 cup. About 5 minutes. Now mix that liquid into the smashed bananas, smashing some more until fairly smooth. Whisk in coconut oil, eggs, agave/maple or rice syrup and vanilla.

Pour banana mixture into the flour mixture. Stir just until all flour is wet. You can even still see a few streaks of flour in the batter. Gently fold in chocolate chips and /or walnuts of using. Pour into prepared pan. Shingle banana slices on top as you like. For a treat I sometimes put a bunch of chocolate chips on top too.

Bake 1 hour. until wooden toothpick comes out clean, but rememebr to poke all the way down to the bottonm-center.

Spicy Rice Pudding

As is often the case, I was in the mood for rice pudding one recent evening. I usually start cooking it just after dinner so it is ready when the kids are just in bed! They get their fiar share the next day!
In this version, I use the spices most often found in December baking. Others might recognize this as Pepernoten Rice Pudding. In anyway, it WOWed me.

For you Busboom-Maitland family.1 cup whole grain brown rice, rinsed (and if you think ahead, soaked as long as possible)
1/2 cup whole grain sweet rice, rinsed (ditto)
1 inch (5 cm) piece of konbu dried seaweed, optional
(this aids digestibility and adds lots of minerals)
1 can of coconut milk
equivalent of 1 can of soy milk
(or use another can of coconut milk or water if you don't want soy milk)
water
dash of seasalt
1/2 cup agave syrup or rice syrup or maple syrup (or more to taste)
1/2 - 1 vanilla bean

Spices- all are optional and should be used to your taste. You can add more during and after cooking but you cannot take any away! But be bold, the strenth wanes as it cooks.
3 Tbls cinnamon (canelle)
2 Tbl nutmeg (muscat)
1 tsp cloves (girofle)
1 Tbl ginger
1 tsp cardamon
1/2 tsp anise powder

Place medium size pan on smallest burner on lowest heat.
Place all rice & can of coconut milk in pot. Refill can from the coconut milk with soy milk, add to pot. refill again with filtered water, add to pot. Keep can on side to add liquid as you go if needed.
Then stir in all spices.

Keep on the low heat and stir in thre milk scum that rises to the top as often as you think about it. The less it is there the better. It creates a seal and cooks the rice as if it were in a covered pan and this is NOT how you get the right consistency. SO keep stirring it in.

After about 1/2 hour, check the spices and see if there is enough. Add if necessary. Watch the liquid level. You want it to stay with a "sauce" as when it cools it soaks back into the rice.

It takes a good hour or more to cook, be patient. Keep stirring off and on and keep tasting. It is done when the rice is soft.

To reheat, place in a pan with a bit of water. Stir it up and heat. The fat from the coconut will melt and go back into the rice pudding.

If it doesn't work out, write me!

Chocolate Chip Brownies

Sounds decadent? INDULGENT even? It is! That's what this blog is all about. LOVING what you eat in all the senses of the word Loving it during the making, loving the eating, and loving how you feel after you have eaten it. This is a no-sugar, no egg, no dairy recipe!

Eat.Love.Enjoy.

Chocolate Chip Brownies

DRY
2 cups flour (I use spelt/epeautre)
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp seasalt
1 TBL + 1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

WET
3/4 cup melted coconut oil
1 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup almond butter
1/4 cup soy milk
2 Tbl liquid vanilla extract
1/4 cup espresso or water

1 cups chocolate chips
1 cup roasted walnuts or almonds (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 325F/165C.
Oil a square baking pan.
In large bowl, combine all DRY ingredients.
In another bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together all WET ingredients.
Pour WET into DRY.
Mix until just blended.
Blend in chocolate chips and nuts, if using.

Pour into pan. Shake pan to make flat.
Bake for 20-30 minutes. Check at 20 min, when you really smell the chocolate. Then add on baking minutes slowly. They can easily go to overcooked.

Leave in pan to cool throughly. They longer they stay in the pan the more brownie-lke dense they will get.


Oh yes.... Sometimes, when i am in a really festive mood, I add a "Rocky-Road" kind of topping. In a small bowl I mix up chopped nuts, coconut, and cut up marshmellows and sprinkle on top after 15-20 minutes of cooking.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

You can really call these "healthy indulgence"... which is another musing for another time. I thank my friend Laura for that beautiful description of my "type" of cooking. Just look at the ingredients and see that they are harmless, harmless, harmless yet again I had kids asking me to give the recipe to their Mums. Love that, and so will you....

1 cup (200ml) coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
2 eggs
1 1/4cups (155 grams) organic cane sugar
1 cup (125 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp/coffee spoon sea salt
2 Tbl/soup spoons vanilla extract
2 cups (250 grams) flour
1 tsp/coffee spoon baking soda
1 cup chocolate chips or one large dark chocolate bar broken/cut into small pieces

Pre-heat oven to 325F/160C.
Line 2 baking sheets with baking/parchment paper.

In medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredient - oil, eggs and vanilla.
In another medium bowl mix dry ingredients - flour, baking soda,sea salt, cocoa powder, sugar.
Using a rubber spatula, carefully blend wet ingredients into dry.
Gently fold in chocolate pieces/chips until evenly distributed throughout the dough.

If the batter seems to loose or liquidity to make cookie, keep adding 2 spoons of flour until it gets to a firmer consistency. (I'll adjust this measurement in my future trials).
With a spoon, scoop onto cookie sheets 5 cm/1 inch apart. You can gently press with the heel of your hand to flatten OR round them a bit into little balls with your fingers to make a puff-ier" cookie.

Bake cookies on center rack for 12-14 minutes, rotate pan 180degrees after 9 min., if you can remember.
Let the cookies stand on the sheet for a good 10 min before moving to a wire rack to cool- if they aren't eaten already.....

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

For a egg & gluten free version of this recipe, ask!