Saturday, July 5, 2014

Kinda Healthy Homemade Bounty Bars

VG, GF, Raw


Sometimes in life you just want something a bit yummy. Tonight is the very last night of my daughter being 9 so I thought we'd have a little farewell to single digits dinner.  I found this recipe on my new roots and made a few tweaks to suit what I had in the pantry. We all enjoyed these after dinner and they were a huge hit. They'd make a lovely dessert with some ice cream too!

Ingredients:

For the filling:

1/4 C coconut oil, melted
2 Tbsp coconut butter *
1 Tbsp maple syrup
pinch salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 C desiccated coconut
1 Tbsp water

For the raw chocolate:

1/4 C coconut oil
2 Tbsp nutella or equivalent - we have a GF version low in sugar (or you can make your own)
1/3 C raw cacao powder
1/4 C raw honey
two pinches salt, to taste

In a double boiler melt the coconut oil and coconut butter together. Add the maple syrup, salt & vanilla. Remove from the heat and add the coconut and water. Mix together well.

Line a square baking tin with cling film and add the coconut mix. Press down firmly and pop in the freezer for at least 30 mins to set hard.

To make the chocolate put the coconut oil and nutella in a double boiler and melt together over a gentle heat. Remove from the heat and whisk in the raw cacao powder and honey then add the salt. Taste and adjust the sweet/salt if needed.

Get a baking rack and place it over a piece of baking paper. Make sure it's a rack that will fit in your freezer and that you have space to pop it in.

Take the coconut filling out of the freezer and turn out onto a board. Cut into bars or squares then dip in the chocolate. When covered remove with a fork then place onto the rack.

When you've done all of your pieces put the rack in the freezer and leave for a minimum of 30 mins.

Allow them to rest for about 5 mins before eating. They can be stored in a plastic container in the freezer for up to two months.






* Not to be confused with coconut oil, coconut butter is a thick white pure form of coconut fats that can be used to make coconut milk by adding water. I used it here because I have it in the pantry but if you don't have it, you could use normal butter or more maple syrup. Coconut butter is lovely and versatile in whole food baking, but she ain't cheap. The one I bought was close to $10 for a jar. It does give baking a rich coconut flavour though.

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Vegan Gluten Free Lemon Blueberry Scones


VG, GF, Grain free

This afternoon I needed something nice and simple for afternoon tea so I thought I'd research some scone recipes. I've made scones using pumpkin or sweet potato before but today I felt like something sweet. This vegan GF lemon blueberry recipe hit the spot.

Ingredients:

2C almond meal
1C coconut flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 tsp mixed spice
1 teabag of herbal tea (the original recipe suggests chamomile, I used ginger and lemon)
1 heaped Tbsp coconut oil (solid, not melted)
1/2C brown sugar
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1 1/3C unsweetened milk of your choice (we used almond)
3/4C frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 205 degrees C or 400 degrees F. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

In a food processor combine almond meal, coconut flour, baking powder, salt, mixed spice and tea. Whiz a few times until combined. Add the coconut oil and pulse until it has a crumbly texture.

In a separate bowl mix brown sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice then add to the flour mix. Combine well.

Add the milk and pulse until a dough comes together.  Carefully fold in the blueberries. Form into whatever shape you like and place on the tray. Bake for 19 - 22 minutes (mine took 22).

Here's a photo of the dough before it's cooked. I always find it useful to see the before photos of GF baking because sometimes it's difficult to believe that it really does work into a manageable dough. Here's the proof:


These are nice and crispy on the top and soft in the centre. The coconut flour does have quite a strong taste and if I make these again I'd consider substituting it for 1/2 C coconut flour and 1/2 C brown rice flour or tapioca starch. As usual with GF baking they're quite crumbly to eat - but yummy. Enjoy.


The original recipe came from www.thekitchn.com and I have made some changes which are reflected in the ingredients list above.