Fudgy Healthy Avocado Brownies

Two versions of the same recipe below! See which one suits you best, both are great


INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup grass fed unsalted butter, ghee or organic coconut oil 

• 6 oz sugar-free dark chocolate chips (sugar-free, not unsweetened! I like using Lily’s 55% dark chips) 

• 1 medium sized avocado 

• 2 large eggs (whisked) 

• 1 tsp vanilla extract or powder

• 1/4 - 1/2 cup Lakanto or other monk fruit sweetener 

• 3/4 cup blanched almond flour 

• 1/4 cup cacao powder cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and allspice powders (*optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (163 degrees C). Line an 8x8 glass baking dish with foil or parchment paper and grease lightly. Clip the edges of the liner to the pan with plastic clips. (This is temporary. They don't need to be oven safe.) Set aside.

2. Melt the butter and chocolate in a double boiler on the stove. (Boil water in a pot, place the butter and chocolate into a heat proof bowl, and place on top of the pot. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted.) Set aside to cool for a couple of minutes. (You can also do this in the microwave if you prefer. Be careful not to burn it.)

3. Place the avocado, eggs, and vanilla in a high-power blender or food processor. Puree until smooth. Add the melted butter/chocolate mixture and puree again.

4. In a small bowl, stir together the almond flour, cocoa powder, and sweetener. Add the dry ingredients to the blender or food processor and stir in with a spatula. Pulse a few times until just combined, scraping down the sides as needed. (Don't overmix.)

5. Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan. It will be thick, so the clips on the parchment or foil will help. Smooth the top with a spatula. Remove the clips.

6. Bake about 20-30 min, until brownies are barely set. The top should no longer be wet, but still be very soft. An inserted toothpick will come out with just a small amount of batter on it. Cool completely to firm up before cutting.
   

 Here’s another version for you if you want more options with this recipe!


INGREDIENTS:

• 1 ripe avocado (about 6 ounces; 1/2 cup mashed)

• 1/2 cup organic cacao powder (or cocoa powder)

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup coconut sugar (or I like to use Lankanto monk fruit sweetener)

• 1/4 cup almond butter

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon vanilla 

• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (use a dairy-free brand, if needed or add in anything else you enjoy in brownies like walnuts!)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF and line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment paper. (Grease the pan first, so the parchment paper will stay in place.) In a food processor or with hand mixer, combine the avocado (peel and pit removed), cacao powder, eggs, coconut sugar, almond butter, baking powder, vanilla, and salt. Process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the bowl as needed.

2. Fold in the chocolate chips, then pour the batter into the prepared pan. (Decorate the top with a few extra chocolate chips, if desired.)

3. Bake at 325ºF for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the center of the brownies looks cooked-through. (You don't want it to jiggle when you shake the pan.) Be sure to allow the brownies to cool fully. The avocado flavor is more pronounced if you try these warm, so please wait to taste them once at room temperature. You can place them in the fridge to speed up the cooling process, or wait at least 2 hours for them to cool on the counter.

4. Slice the brownies into small squares and serve. It's normal for this brownie to stick to the knife a bit with you cut them, since they are flourless and very fudgy. Leftovers can be stored on the counter for up to 48 hours, or in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week.
   

Notes:

• If you need a nut-free recipe, try replacing the almond butter with 1/4 cup of your favorite flour. (Oat flour or a gluten-free mix, or you could use 1/4 cup of coconut flour instead.)

• If you dislike the flavor of avocado, you can replace half of it with butter or oil instead.

• You can make these brownies in a single bowl, mashing the avocado with a fork until relatively smooth. A hand mixer works well also. 

Candied Clementines

These intensely flavorful slices are the perfect garnish for a Clementine Cake(link below) and any other dessert that calls for a sweet dash of citrus. Though cooking down the fruit takes hours, you can start the simmer and leave it, checking in only occasionally. The syrup left after the clementines are removed is worth saving for cocktails or even pouring over pancakes.

Total time: 4 1/2 hours

Ingredients

• 1 cup Lakanto (calls for sugar which prob works best for this but I don’t know!)

• 2 clementines, peel on, sliced as thin as possible

Instructions

1. In a saucepan combine the sugar with 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Add the clementine slices, reduce heat to simmer, and place a piece of parchment paper over top of liquid to keep clementines submerged. Simmer 2 hours, then remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

2.Heat oven to 250 degrees. Lay a Silpat mat or parchment paper on a baking sheet, place clementine slices in a single layer on top (making sure they lie flat), then cover with a second mat or layer of parchment and top that with a second baking sheet. Put in oven and bake for 2 hours, then remove from oven. (Reserve citrus-infused syrup in refrigerator for cocktails or other uses.)

3. When cool enough to handle, remove top baking sheet and carefully peel away top mat or parchment. Carefully lift and peel the candied citrus slices and set aside until ready to use.

Clementine Cake Recipe

Chocolate Glaze

Here is a delicious icing that was specifically developed for the Clementine Cake(link below), but can complement all kinds of desserts. It’s best made in a double boiler, but if you don’t have one, other pans will do, as described here.
Total time: 20 minutes, plus time to set
Yield: About 1 3/4 cups

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped or chips

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, room temperature and cut into 12 pieces. **I have also used cacao butter mixed with coconut oil in place of butter

• 1 tablespoon maple or any sweetener of choice.

Instructions

1. Heat a pan of water until simmering. Place all ingredients, plus 5 teaspoons water, in a slightly smaller metal or glass mixing bowl and set over the pan. Stir gently with a spatula until nearly all the chocolate has melted, then remove bowl from heat and set aside to finish melting, stirring occasionally until perfectly smooth, about 5 to 10 minutes. The glaze is ready to pour when it is between 88 and 90 degrees.

2. Pour glaze onto center of the cake’s top and let it run down the sides. Gently tap the cooling rack up and down so the glaze coats the entire cake. Let set for at least an hour before serving.

————————————-

***I have never made this. But it was suggested with original recipe***

Clementine Cake Recipe

Clementine Cake

This dessert, loosely based on a Sephardic orange cake, uses whole clementines, peels and all, for a flavor rich in citrus. The cooking time may seem long, but much of it doesn’t require much attention from the baker.

**And the first step, reducing the fruit, may be done ahead of time**
Total time: 3 3/4 hours
Yield: 8 to 12 servings

Ingredients

• 5 medium clementines

• Spray cooking oil

• 6 large eggs

• 1 cup sweetener of choice (I use Lakanto and often only 1/2 cup)

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 2 cups almond flour or very finely ground blanched almonds

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• (Optional: Powdered sugar, chocolate glaze or clementines, for garnish (see recipes))

Instructions

1. Place whole unpeeled clementines in a large pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer gently for 2 hours, adding more water as needed. Remove clementines with a slotted spoon and, once cool enough to handle, halve and remove any seeds or other hard bits. Purée in a food processor or blender and set aside. **May be done up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with cooking oil, line bottom with parchment paper and spray paper with oil.

3. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs together with the sugar, salt and clementine purée. Add the almond flour and baking powder and stir until just combined.

4. Pour into prepared pan and bake until edges are golden brown and starting to pull away from sides of pan, about 1 hour. Transfer to wire rack set over baking sheet. After 10 minutes, run a knife around edge of pan to loosen cake; remove cake from pan. Peel off parchment paper and return cake to wire rack to cool completely. Decorate with dusting of powdered sugar or with chocolate glaze or candied clementines, or both.

Chocolate Glaze Recipe

Candied Clementine Recipe

Blueberry Cobbler

Ingredients

• 3 cups fresh or frozen thawed blueberries

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (not necessary but helps with consistency)

• 2/3 cup almond flour

• 1/3 cup coconut flour

• 1/4 cup sweetener of choice *

• 1 egg beaten (optional— if making the recipe vegan, leave this out)

• 6 tablespoons grass-fed butter melted (dairy or vegan or can sub for coconut oil or ghee)
  
  
  Instructions
  Pour berries into a greased 9×9-inch pan. Sprinkle with lemon juice and xanthan gum. If desired, add in an additional 2-4 tablespoons of sweetener to the blueberry mixture. Stir almond flour, coconut flour, 1/4 cup granular sweetener and egg until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle dry mixture over berries. Drizzle melted butter over topping. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the top is browned.

  ** For sweetener, I prefer Lakanto Monkfruit Sweetener. You could also use others you prefer like maple or coconut sugar.

Flourless Double-Chocolate Cauliflower Brownies

Makes 1×8-in. pan (and instead I often make in silicone cupcake baking container)

Ingredients:

½ head cauliflower (about 1 ½ cups florets)

½ cup organic milk (I have used either coconut milk or my homemade brazil nut milk), room temperature

1 cup fair-trade bittersweet chocolate chips (I use the homemade kind or I have also used either Lily’s for baking or 100% Dark Organic Evolved brand and mix the two depending on what is available), melted

½ cup butter or ghee or coconut oil, melted (plus more to grease pan)

3 organic eggs (sometimes I add one extra egg)

½ cup grade B organic maple syrup (or sweetener of choice. I usually use Lakanto Monk Fruit)

1 cup pecans, ground (I have also used hazelnuts)

¾ cup coconut flour

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I usually sub for cacao powder)

2 tsp cinnamon 

½ tsp baking powder

⅛ tsp sea salt

Note: To make these brownies vegan, substitute plant milk for milk, coconut oil for butter, and 3 flax eggs for eggs. And I always add in extra Ceylon cinnamon, plus a tbs of vanilla along with a pinch of cardamom and sometimes turmeric and black pepper if you want to spice it up!)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan and set aside. (or cupcake container)

Add the cauliflower and milk to a high-speed blender and puree until smooth. Add in melted chocolate, butter, eggs and maple syrup, and blend until combined. (I like to melt the chocolate with the oil or butter combined) and I do this in a food processor which works really nicely. 

In a medium bowl, combine the ground pecans, coconut flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Gently fold the wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes (20-25 minutes if cupcakes), or until firm to the touch. Cool before slicing.

My Spring Lemon-Poppyseed Birthday Cake

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup coconut flour (level measurement, not heaping)

• 3/4 cup maple syrup, at room temperature (or you can use ANY sweetener of choice here!!)

• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil (I also like to sometimes use ghee and some people use grass-fed butter instead)

• 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

• Zest of a whole lemon (though I often add in extra lemon OR I use my lemon essential oil which is wonderful)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 6 eggs, at room temperature

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or two!)

• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds (I like adding a little extra) : )

Creamy Lemon Glaze:

• 1/4 cup raw cashew butter (OR I have also used coconut butter or even thick coconut cream refrigerated to thicken and solidify)

• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (or sweetener of choice)

• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

• 1 to 3 teaspoons water, as needed to thin

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a standard muffin tin with 12 baking cups. (I use silicone for best stick prevention.)

2. Make sure your maple syrup and eggs are at room temperature. You can place the eggs in a bowl of warm tap water for a few minutes to help warm them up quickly. This will ensure that your muffin batter will be runny, like traditional muffin batter, and will easily mix and pour into the muffin cups. (Otherwise the coconut oil may harden and won't mix evenly into the batter.) In a large bowl, combine the coconut flour, maple syrup, coconut oil, lemon juice and zest, salt, baking soda, eggs, and vanilla, and use a whisk to stir the batter until smooth. The whisk should help break up any clumps, making the batter very smooth. Stir in the poppy seeds, then divide the batter evenly among the 12 baking cups.

3. Bake at 350ºF until the centers are firm to the touch and the edges are lightly golden, about 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely before topping with the icing below.

4. To prepare the Creamy Lemon Icing, stir together the cashew butter, maple syrup, and lemon juice in a small bowl until smooth. Add water 1 teaspoon at a time, as needed to thin the icing to your liking. Drizzle it over the top of each muffin just before serving.

5. Leftover muffins can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Substitution notes: 

Flour: Since the muffins are made with coconut flour, I don’t recommend making many modifications to this recipe– coconut flour is SO tricky to work with and cannot be substituted for all-purpose flour, almond flour, or any other flour that I know of. If you’re put-off by the amount of eggs this recipe calls for, you could try substituting a 1/4 cup of applesauce or a flax or chia egg for 1 of the eggs in this recipe, but I wouldn’t stray too far from the number of eggs called for, as they provide the structure of this recipe. Flax and chia eggs rarely work in coconut flour recipes because they don’t rise and firm up in the same manner that chicken eggs do. If you do decide to try working with a vegan egg, make sure you’re prepared for a different results– the centers of the muffins might remain gooey inside.

Immunity Boosting Gummies

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup coconut milk

• 2 Tablespoons grated fresh ginger

• 2 Tablespoons monk sweetener (or more to taste)

• 1 Tablespoon grated fresh turmeric

• 2 Tablespoons powdered gelatin

• You will also need silicone candy or ice cube molds

• Also great to sneak in some powdered probiotics to this one AFTER the heating, stir in!
  

Instructions:

1. Set the silicone mold(s) onto a tray and set aside

2. Place the coconut milk, ginger, turmeric and sweetener into a small saucepan and slowly heat the liquid until it is just starting to simmer.

3. Remove the saucepan from the heat and set aside for 15 - 30 minutes to allow the aromatics to infuse the coconut milk.

4. Strain the coconut milk through a fine sieve, mixing the ground ginger and turmeric with a spoon to ensure you extract all the milk.

5. Rinse the saucepan and add the strained coconut milk. (If you are using honey as your sweetener, stir it in now.)

6. Sprinkle the gelatin over the surface of the coconut milk, whisking gently as you do so to incorporate it into the milk.

7. Allow the milk to sit for 2-3 minutes, which allows the gelatin to absorb some liquid. This process is called 'blooming'. The coconut milk will turn to a thick paste, which is how it is supposed to look. Don't panic.

8. Return the saucepan to a low heat, and whisk continuously until the gelatin melts and the mixture becomes smooth. You should not be able to see any little specks of gelatin remaining in the milk.

9. Blend in the probiotic once it’s cooled a bit.

10. Remove from the heat and spoon into your molds.

11. Place the molds into the fridge for 30 minutes or until firm.

12. Pop out your gummies and enjoy!

Notes:

There is enough gelatin in this recipe for a firm set, but the gummy is not overly chewy. If you prefer a firmer set increase the gelatin to 3 Tablespoons per cup of liquid.
Keep the gummies in a sealed container in the fridge. They should last at least a week.
Just remember that the base color of these is yellow-brown so choose your coloring accordingly. You can add a splash of juice to alter the color if needed.

Green Gummies

Ingredients:

• ½ cup Collagen gelatin
  

• 1 ¾ cups green juice, home juiced or fresh-pressed using some variation mixture of celery, cucumber, basil, mint, lemon, lime, and spinach — easy to buy bottled at the store!
  

• Add Monk Fruit Sweetener or Stevia to taste

Instructions:

1. Mix ½ cup green juice with Collagen/gelatin in a small container and set aside to bloom/ thicken.

2. Once ready, add all the ingredients into a small saucepan and heat on low until gelatin has completely dissolved.

3. Pour mixture into a cup with a spout, then begin to fill up your gummy molds with the mix. If you don’t have molds, pour mixture into a lined container.

4. Place in the freezer for 15-20 mins or until set. If you use a container instead of molds, it may take a little longer to set.

5. Once they’re ready, pop them out of the molds or slice into squares and enjoy. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Blueberry Gummies

Ingredients:

• 3 cups blueberries

• 2 cups water

• 1/3 or 1/2 Cup (to taste) Monk fruit

• 1 lemon juiced

• 1/4 Cup gelatin
  

Directions:
1. Boil water and blueberries in a medium-size saucepan.

2. Remove from heat and puree with an immersion blender.

3. Pour fruit mixture through a wire mesh strainer, using a spoon to stir it and coax all the juice to separate from the pulp (when I make it I don’t strain it out but some people like to or set aside the pulp to use in smoothies).

4. Stir monk and lemon juice into the juice mixture then pour in gelatin.

5. Use the blender to quickly but thoroughly mix gelatin into the fruit.

6. Pour jello into an 8×8-inch glass baking dish or jello mold. Allow it to cool, then cover it and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Fruit Roll Ups

Ingredients:

• 6 Pears (core removed)

• 4 Apples (core removed) – you can also use Applesauce

• 1 lime – Peeled (or the juice from one lime) – This will help preserve the color and the fruit.

Optional Ingredients / Variation Ideas:

• Handful of Spinach (washed)

• Handful of Grapes

• Carrots (washed & peeled)

• Strawberries (washed & de-stemmed)

• 1/2 Banana (peeled – but, don’t over do the banana or the fruit roll-ups won’t dehydrate well and can end up sticky)

• Liquid or Powdered Stevia Extract for Additional Sweetness (use sparingly)

Directions:

• In your VitaMix, combine fruits & veggies until pureed completely. Be sure to use Lime or Lemon to preserve the color and fruit during the dehydrating process. Citrus also adds naturally adds pectin to help bind the fruit.

• Pour fruit mixture onto dehydrator trays lined with ParaFlexx Non-Stick Reusable Liners.

• Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 8-12 hours until entire Fruit Roll Up is dry, but not over dry or hard.

• Serve immediately or store rolled in wax paper, parchment, or plastic wrap in sealed glass container, or ziplock bag… For long term storage, use a food sealer or store in Fridge.

• If stored in container, Use within 7-10 days. Or if refrigerated, use within one month.

This recipe makes approximately 8 Large Circles (or 8 full dehydrator tray sized), but feel free to scale it in half if you don’t need so much.  I cut each large circle in half or quarters before giving them to the kids… its just easier to make large ones instead of multiple small sizes for dehydration & storage.

If you don’t have a Dehydrator, you can use your Oven.  Set the oven at the lowest temperature (mine is 170 degrees).  Line Cookie Sheets with parchment paper & spread mixture evenly with a spatula.  Dry in oven for 2-4 hours depending on your oven.  Do not over dry or the Roll-up can become brittle.

FOODS TO AVOID:

Although these items might dehydrate well on their own, I don’t recommend putting them in your Fruit Roll-Ups (especially in great quantity) – They can cause them to be too sticky or not dry correctly for storage:

• Pineapple

• Honey

• Citrus Fruits (other than Lemon or Lime for preservation)

• Broccoli or very Fibrous Veggies

Rawnola

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup gluten free oats
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup goji berries
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup raw honey, to taste 1/2 cup almond butter

Directions:
Mix all in bowl, starting with 1/4 cup honey. Taste for sweetness. Add more if desired. Dehydrate 8 hours or overnight. Great with almond milk or as a snack to grab.

Banana Chips

Ingredients: 2-3 Slightly brown-flecked bananas will have the sweetest, most concentrated flavor when dried.

Directions: Peel the bananas. Slice bananas into 1/4-inch or 3/8-inch chips.

Dip each banana slice into the lemon juice (or drizzle lemon juice over all the slices). This lessens browning of the banana chips and adds a bit of vitamin C back into the banana.

Shake off the extra lemon juice and lay the banana slice on the dehydrator tray. Leave enough space between banana slices on the tray to allow sufficient air flow for drying.

Fill the available dehydrator trays with banana slices. Turn the dehydrator on to 135 degrees and go about your day. Check the bananas after about six hours; it typically takes six to eight hours, but this varies depending upon the thickness of the banana slices.

A perfectly dehydrated banana slice is leathery and dry, but might be slightly sticky to the touch. If the bananas tear easily as you remove them from the tray, they’re probably not quite done. Slices that feel at all “fleshy” or soft should go back in for awhile longer. Store in an airtight container.

Half way through, stop the food dehydrator and flip over all the banana slices. The slices are easy to peel off the dehydrator tray when they are warm, and turning ensures dryness.

Test for dryness. If the banana chips are leathery to crisp, they are done depending on if you like them softer or crispier.

Cool the banana chips for a few hours in the food dehydrator before removing them. Pack dried chips into plastic bags when they are fully cool. Store at room temperature.

One bowl buckwheat cake (gluten free)

10 min prep time/40 min cook time

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups buckwheat flour

• 1 cup monk fruit sweetener

• ½ tsp baking soda

• ½ tsp fine sea salt

• 2 large eggs, at room temperature

• ⅔ cup melted organic coconut oil

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1-3/4 cups mashed very ripe bananas

• optional: ⅔ cup semisweet chocolate chips (I like using Lily’s http://lilyssweets.com/baking-chips/)

• ¾ cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and oil a 9-inch (23 cm) square metal baking pan.(or use cupcake baking dish (l like using the silicone ones — makes it really easy)

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

3. Add eggs, oil and vanilla to flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just blended. Gently stir in bananas and pecans or walnuts and chocolate chips if so desired.

4. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yummy Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1/3 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
2 whole eggs
1/4 cup organic, cold-pressed virgin coconut oil
1/4 cup raw honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°

2. Grease a baking tray or line it with baking paper.

3. Mix the coconut flour, salt, eggs, coconut oil, honey, and vanilla extract together thoroughly with a whisk.

4. Continue whisking and you’ll notice the mixture change consistency from runny to slightly thicker as the coconut flour begins to soak up the moisture from the wet ingredients. If the mixture remains runny then you might want to add a small amount of extra coconut flour until the right consistency is achieved.

5. Add in chocolate chips and make sure they’re evenly distributed throughout the cookie dough.

6. Use a tablespoon or dessert spoon to portion out the cookie dough onto your baking tray. Around a dozen cookies should do the trick.

7. Pat down cookie "dough” with your hands to form them into the shape you desire.

8. Place cookies into the center of the oven and bake for around 10-15 minutes, depending on the texture you want. If this is your first time baking with coconut flour then aim for around 12 minutes and check to make sure the outsides of your cookies have turned an inviting golden brown color.

9. Remove from the oven, fill your lungs with sweet, warm, cookie goodness, and leave them to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes if you have one.

Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 1 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

¼ cup palm shortening, ghee, or grass-fed butter
¼ cup coconut palm sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 large egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups blanched almond flour
2 tablespoons coconut flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup dark chocolate pieces (just chop up a dark chocolate bar)
¼ cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips or other you like

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a food processor, cream the palm shortening, coconut sugar, honey, egg, and vanilla for about 15 seconds until smooth and fluffy.

3. Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and sea salt and mix again until combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if needed in order to incorporate all of the flour. Pulse once or twice more.

4. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand.

5. Place golf-ball sized balls of dough on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or a SilPat. Using another sheet of parchment on top of the dough, flatten them slightly with the palm or your hand or a spatula. The cookies don’t spread much so create the size and thickness you want prior to baking them.

6. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges.

3 Ingredient Cookie Dough Bites

Makes approximately 15 tablespoon sized balls

Ingredients:

1 cup raw organic cashews
1 cup fresh medjool dates, pitted
2-3 Tablespoons raw cacao nibs
Hemp seeds for added fiber and protein if desired

Directions:

1. Put the cashews into a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until they are very small pieces. Then, add in the dates and blend to combine. If using a high-speed blender, you may need to stop the blender to stir the mixture, making sure the dates get diced into smaller pieces.

2. Take the mixture out of the blender and place in a bowl. The mixture will be sticky! Use your hands to fold in the chocolate chips so they spread evenly throughout the mixture.

3. Take a tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll around in your palms, forming a ball.

4. Repeat until all of the cookie dough is used.

Vegan Zucchini Brownies

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup organic almond butter
1 1/2 cup organic zucchini (peeled and finely grated)
1/3 cup organic maple syrup
1/3 cup organic raw cacao powder
1/3 cup organic applesauce
1 teaspoon organic ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon organic ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Peel and grate the zucchini. Important: Make sure you squeeze as much liquid from the zucchini as possible. This will keep them from becoming soggy.

2. Put all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until well combined. (If using a flax egg, prepare it separately with 1 tablespoons of ground flax + 3 tablespoons of water).

3. Pour into an 8 x 8 glass baking dish.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Fudgy Date Brownies (Gluten-Free)

Prep time: 15 minutes.

Bake time: 20 minutes.

Total time: 35 minutes.

Makes 16 brownies.

Ingredients:

1 cup pitted Medjool dates
3/4 cup hot water
3/4 cup almond flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 Tbsp. honey/maple
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Pinch of sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Pour the hot water over the dates in a bowl and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Drain the water from the dates and place the dates in the bowl of a food processor or in a blender. Process the dates until they are smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
3. Add the almond flour, cocoa powder, honey, vanilla and sea salt to the food processor or blender. Process again until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. Spread the mixture into an 8x8-inch pan, greased with coconut oil. Bake for 20 minutes, and allow to cool before cutting.
5. Cut brownies into 16 square pieces. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Moist Chocolate Zucchini Bread (nut free)

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Total time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

1 medium zucchini, shredded (equal to 1.5 cups shredded zucchini)
2 eggs, whisked
¾ cup sun-butter (or nut butter if you prefer)
⅓ cup raw honey (or maple if you prefer)
¼ cup cocoa powder
2 tablespoons coconut flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2. Shred your zucchini. Use the shredding attachment on your food processor or take the long and boring route using a cheese grater. Whichever works.

3. Once yours zucchini is shredded, you need to remove the excess liquid. And zucchinis have a lot of it! (What I did was place a couple paper towels down on the counter, throw the zucchini on top, then place another paper towel on top of the zucchini and squeeze. The more you squeeze, the more liquid will come out. Genius. Use more paper towels as needed, but be sure to squeeze until the zucchini feels water-less.)

4. Place zucchini in a bowl with the rest of your ingredients. Use a large spoon to mix well until all the ingredients are combined and you have a deep chocolate color.

5. Pour your ingredients into a loaf pan. IMPORTANT NOTE: I used 2 mini loaf pans that were about 5×3.

6. Place in oven to bake for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when you poke it. Mine took almost 35 minutes to completely cook through.

7. Let cool, cut and serve!