Tag Archives: dessert

Vanilla Cake with Cashew Frosting and Strawberries | Paleo

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I made this for Maya’s birthday, which was back in…..

OCTOBER!

Sigh…

Poor thing’s birthday is right in the midst of my busiest time at work!  She still got the cake she requested, but I never had time to blog it!

I used Paleo Grubs “Famous Vanilla Cake” and only made a few changes.  Everyone LOVED it, and no guilt either!

Ingredients

For the cake
  • 4 eggs
  • 4 tbsp raw honey
  • 5 tbsp coconut flour
  • 5 tbsp almond flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract or seeds from one vanilla pod
For the filling
  • 1 3/4 cups raw cashews, soaked for at least 4 hour and drained well
  • ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • about 1/3 cup water
  • ½ tsp lemon juice
  • seeds from one vanilla pod
  • ⅛ tsp sea salt

Directions for Frosting

  • Original recipe says to make the filling a day ahead.  I made mine the day of, but made it first and chilled it while I was making the cake.
  • Place all the ingredients except water in a high power blender and blend until smooth. Add the water, a tablespoon at the time until the filling become silky and you get your desired texture.Having a cute assistant adds even more sweetness 😉 . Ok, that was bad…but true! 🙂
  • Transfer the filling to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight or for a few hours like I did 🙂

Directions for the cake

  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • Original recipe says to line two 8 inch spring-form pans with parchment paper, but I just greased two 8 inch cake pans really well and they popped right out.
  • In a large bowl or food processor cream the eggs with honey.
  • In a separate bowl combine flours with salt and baking soda.
  • Add the dry mixture into the wet mixture and add vanilla extract or seeds from vanilla pod.
  • Divide the mixture between prepared pans and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.

For visual reference.  The dough will be more dense. And it won’t rise much after cooking.

  • Remove cakes from the oven and set aside to cool completely.
  • After the cake is cooled off, smooth half of the frosting on top of one cake layer, and layer sliced strawberries.
  • Place 2nd layer on top and spread a thin layer of the frosting on top and place strawberries with the top cut off around the cake.
  • Scoop the rest into pastry bag or you can use a ziploc bag with the tip cut off.  Squeeze onto cake for decoration!

ENJOY!dit-elle-Lauren

Healthier Hello Dolly Bars

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I haven’t had much time to bake lately, much less take pictures and blog about it!  BUT…I had a client reschedule this past weekend, and I knew it would make Maya super happy if we made something together, so…we did!

I’d been dying to try Feasting on Fruits “Vegan Magic Cookie Bars” recipe ever since I saw her post it on Instagram.  The originals are my husband’s all time favorite bar cookie, so I couldn’t wait to try a healthier version.

While they are not as ooey gooey and decadent as the original version, they are really good!  I got a thumbs up from all the taste testers, including grandparents, teenage stepson, Maya, AND the Huz!

What you need…

ALMOND CRUST OPTION (she posts an oat crust option too)

What to do…

  • Preheat the oven to 350F and grab a cute assistant 😉

  • For the almond crust, combine the almond flour and maple syrup in a bowl. Mix to create a sticky and clumpy dough that holds together when pressed. Add 1 tbsp water if it seems too dry.

  • Press the crust into an 8x8baking dish  lined with parchment paper (I didn’t have any, so I just greased the pan). Bake for 10 minutes at 350F. Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes.

  • While the crust is cooling, blend the bananas until smooth.

  • Pour the banana puree on top of the crust.

  • Sprinkle on the chocolate chips, nuts, and coconut. Gently press down until the banana puree rises up covering everything.

  • Bake for 35 minutes at 350F.

  • Cool then chill (she said to do it overnight, but we ate them later that evening!)

    Enjoy!

    dit-elle-Lauren

 

4 Ingredient Protein Packed Pancakes (gluten free)

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These were a total spur of the moment “I have stuff that’s going bad, and I should probably make something!” recipe.

I had made a quinoa dinner earlier in the week that I’ll hopefully post soon (practically a one pot easy meal!)  So…why am I posting this before that?   was that good!!  And more importantly…THAT EASY!  Oh, and should I mention-HEALTHY?!

Because this was that good!!  And more importantly…THAT EASY!  Oh, and should I mention-HEALTHY?!

When it’s a trifecta, I know I should blog it!  Ok, when it’s a trifecta, and I actually take pictures, I know I should blog it 🙂 

What you need… (makes 20 mini pancakes or 10 medium)

  • One overripe banana
  • One cup cooked quinoa
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened Almond Milk
  • 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

What you need to do…

  • Mash the banana, add everything else, and mix a lot (baby got back! ok, nevermind…)

blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-2 blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-3She’s usually up for being my baking assistant, but not always the willing photography assistant.  Totally understandable since it was first thing in the morning  🙂blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-4 blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-5Above are Tablespoon mini pancakes for Maya, which she’s flipping (and are pictured stacked later)

Below are the 1/4 cup pancakes that I ate (as well as a few of her mini ones :)).
blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-6The mini ones were easier to photograph, and….could she be a better assistant???!! blog-4-ingredient-protein-packed-gluten-free-pancakes-8

Just for kicks, I entered everything into VeryWell.com.  If you eat the entire batch, it’s less than 500 calories and has 20 grams of protein!  Honestly, they were so filling, I ate half the batch myself, and then worked out.  I was totally satisfied until lunch!  Normally, I eat a lot more of-to be honest…processed calories usually, and am not as satisfied.  Lesson to be learned.  But, let’s be real.  This was super simple, easy, and quick to do, but…it wasn’t as quick as grabbing something with no clean up.  I GET IT!  I’ll let you know if they toast well haha.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 (423g)
Per Serving % Daily Value*
Calories 458
Total Fat 13.6g 21%
Saturated Fat 2.9g 15%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 327mg 109%
Sodium 160mg 7%
Potassium 564mg 16%
Total Carb 66.9g 22%
Dietary Fiber 8.2g 33%
Sugars 15.1g
Protein 20.5g

Enjoy!!dit-elle-Lauren

Blood Orange, Almond and Ricotta Cake

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I was introduced to Tartine a few weeks ago when visiting San Francisco. I thought we had stumbled upon a small local bakery café.. not realizing it was THE Tartine.. world famous for their amazingness. Delicious looking tarts, croissants, quiches and more on were on display and I was not optimistic there were GF options.. but of course there were! 🙂 And behind the glass the server pointed out some beautiful tiny orange almond ricotta cakes.

The cake was delicious and my daughter (6 yrs) ate a whole piece of ham and cheese quiche. Tartine was just as amazing as the 6k+ reviews on Yelp rave about. And of course I couldn’t not try to make the cake! 🙂

 

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  •  1 tablespoon water
  •  3 large eggs, separated
  •  2/3 cup (135 grams) granulated sugar
  •  2 blood oranges, or another orange of your choice
  •  1/2 cup (4 ounces or 115 grams) unsalted butter, softened
  •  2/3 cup (165 grams) ricotta
  •  1/3 cup (45 grams) cornmeal
  •  1 cup (135 grams) firm-packed almond flour or meal
  •  1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  •  1/4 cup apple, quince or apricot jam (optional, for glossy finish)

Directions

Heat oven to 300 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper.

Stir brown sugar and water together so they form a thick slurry. Pour into prepared cake pan and spread thin. Set aside.

Whip egg whites in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until they hold thick peaks. Set aside.

Place granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl. Finely zest both oranges over it.

Cut both oranges in half. Cut one of the halves into paper-thin slices and arrange slices over brown sugar base in cake pan. Juice other three halves (I had about 1/3 cup juice) and set juice aside.

Add butter to zest and granulated sugar in large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer (you can use same beaters you just did for egg whites) until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, and beat to combine. Add juice and ricotta; mix until smooth. Sprinkle salt over batter, then add almond flour and cornmeal and mix until just combined. Gently fold in egg whites.

Scoop batter in large dollops over prepared cake pan base. Gently spread batter flat, trying not to disturb orange slices underneath. Bake in heated oven for 35 to 40 minutes [updated to warn that this took longer for many people, but remains accurate for my oven– better to check early than late], or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and then (my preference) for 5 more minutes. The final cake is so moist, almost damp, I found the extra baking time beneficial.

Cool cake in pan on rack for 5 minutes, and then run a knife around the side and invert onto a cake plate. If any orange slices don’t come out easily, just gently arrange them on the top of the cake. If desired, heat jam until loose and brush over cake top for a glossier finish. Let cool and cut into slices. This would be delicious served with an extra dollop of ricotta, creme fraiche or barely sweetened whipped cream. The cake keeps at room temperature, but we prefer it from the fridge.

Thank you Smitten Kitchen! Visit their page for beautiful pictures and more tips on making this cake: https://smittenkitchen.com/2016/01/blood-orange-almond-and-ricotta-cake/

 

dit-elle-Esther

Watermelon Granita

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This is quite the simple summer treat! Love watermelon? You’ll love watermelon granita!

watermelon granita blog (2)watermelon granita blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 3 cups roughly chopped watermelon
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 6-8 mint leaves and more for garnish
  • 1 Tbsp honey

Directions

  • Freeze a glass baking dish for an hour
  • In a blender, puree watermelon, lime juice, mint leaves and honey until smooth
  • Pour through a fine-mesh sieve and discard solids
  • Pour juice into chilled baking dish and freeze until slushy, ~45 minutes
  • Rake surface with a fork to break up ice crystals
  • Freeze 30 minutes
  • Repeat until frozen
  • Scoop into bowls, garnish with mint and serve

dit-elle-Esther

Balsamic Strawberries

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I discovered strawberries with balsamic recently – wow – yum! Strawberry goodness with a pop from the vinegar and pepper. Try it!

balsamic strawberries blog

Ingredients

  • 2 cups strawberries, rinsed and sliced
  • 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar (optional, omit for paleo version)
  • Pepper to taste
  • Mint for garnish

Directions

  • Combine all ingredients and let marinade for at least an hour or up to four
  • Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Blackberry Crisp with Vanilla Ice Cream

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As mentioned in my blog post on the topic last week, Blackberry season is in full swing and so much fun! The berries are fun to pick, eat and make yummy things with. Today, a Blackberry Crisp.. pretty much paleo, but add some vanilla ice cream for some non-paleo, but totally delicious, goodness!

Blackberry paleo crumble 2016 with vanilla icecream for blog

Ingredients

  • 4 cups blackberries
  • 1/4 cup sweetener like honey or sugar as needed (if you have very ripe blackberries this may not be needed and you can certainly make it without sweetener for a slightly tarter crisp)

For the topping

  • 1 cup almond meal
  • 1/2 cup golden flax meal (or any ground flax)
  • 1 Tbsp honey
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • Vanilla Ice Cream and mint leaves for garnish

Directions

  • Rinse blackberries, drain well and pour into glass baking dish (9×11″ works well) and drizzle with some honey or sprinkle with sugar (as needed)
  • Mix topping ingredients with a fork until butter is distributed and ingredients are combined well
  • Sprinkle topping evenly over berries
  • Bake @ 350 for 35-45 minutes with tinfoil on. Remove tinfoil and bake for another 10 minutes as needed or until crust is a golden brown.
  • Enjoy with your favorite vanilla ice cream or drizzled with some cold coconut milk

Modified quite a bit, but thanks for the inspiration http://paleoleap.com/berry-crumble/

dit-elle-Esther

Frozen Strawberry Lime Coconut Margaritas

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Nothing says summer like a Frozen Strawberry Lime Coconut Margarita! Totally delicious and I made mini frozen slushies for the kids with the ingredients (except alcohol!). It was a nice cool treat for them, and you could serve this as a fun (non alcoholic) and festive dessert drink for grown-ups as well!

strawberry lime coconut margarita blog (3) strawberry lime coconut margarita blog (2) strawberry lime coconut margarita blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup coconut milk (full fat)
  • 1/4 cup Simple Syrup
  • Zest from 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 2 cups strawberries
  • 3 Tbsp lime juice
  • 3 oz tequila
  • Lime and shredded coconut for garnish

Directions

  • Combine first four ingredients in blender, blend until smooth and then pour into ice cube tray or a large Ziploc bag and freeze for 2-4 hours
  • Combine strawberries and 3 Tbsp lime juice in blender and blend until smooth
  • When ready to make margaritas, put frozen coconut lime mixture in blender and puree. At this point you can remove some for the kids. then add in tequila and blend until smooth.
  • Pour coconut lime mixture into four margarita glasses, add some strawberry puree to each glass and garnish with lime wedges and shredded coconut
  • Serve! Enjoy!

Inspired by Tequila Avion’s mini video on Instagram.

dit-elle-Esther

4th of July Almond Zucchini Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

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Happy 4th of July, happy Independence Day! Hope you have a wonderful and safe holiday!

Need a festive dessert for the holiday? Make these cupcakes and decorate with berries – a beautiful and great cooking project for kids to help with (especially the decorating part)! 🙂

And.. the secret ingredient? Zucchini! This makes them moist and delicious, and who can say no to some extra healthiness? 🙂

zucchini cupcakes with lemon cream cheese frosting blog (2) zucchini cupcakes with lemon cream cheese frosting blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 stick butter
  • 1 1/2 cups almond flour (spooned and leveled)
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons potato starch (or corn starch is fine)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
  • dash sea salt
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/3 cup coconut sugar (or other sugar, white/brown)
  • 2 tsps pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup finely grated zucchini (from 1 medium zucchini), squeezed of excess liquid

Frosting

  • 16 oz cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 3 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp lemon zest
  • Berries for garnish (I used raspberries and blueberries)
  • Shredded coconut for garnish

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cupcake tin with paper forms.
  2. Whisk together almond flour, potato starch, baking powder, and salt.
  3. Set a large heatproof bowl over (not in) a pot with 1 inch barely simmering water. Add eggs and whisk until foamy, about 1 minute. Whisk in sugar and continue to whisk until mixture is fluffy and sugar is dissolved, 3 minutes. Remove bowl from pot and, using a mixer, whisk on high until mixture is thick and pale, 7 to 10 minutes (I did this in my food processor with the standard chopper blade).
  4. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in melted butter, flour mixture, vanilla, and zucchini. Pour into tin and bake until cupcakes are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cupcakes cool.
  5. For frosting, with mixer (or again I used the food processor here) beat together room-temperature butter, cream cheese, lemon juice and zest until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat until combined. Spread on top of cupcakes and decorate with berries and shredded coconut.

 

I originally made this recipe as a cake inspired by the queen herself (Martha Stewart’s Zucchini Almond Cake).

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Healthy Chocolate Chip Mint NiceCream

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Ever since I successfully made a Healthy Cherry Garcia, I’ve been dying to make a Mint Chocolate Chip version.  I’ve had this recipe in my mind for a LONG time, and finally got around to making it last night.  I might play around with it a little more, but overall, I think it was pretty good for the first try!Blog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-1 Blog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-2 Blog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-3Ingredients (serves 3-4)

  • 3 Frozen Bananas (cut into 2-3 inch pieces prior to freezing)
  • 1/2 cup frozen Avocado (cut into cubes then frozen)
  • 1/3 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
  • Half of a vanilla bean (slice open and scrape inside out)
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Peppermint Extract
  • Garnish with dark chocolate chipsBlog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-4

Directions

Put frozen bananas, Avocado, almond milk, peppermint extract and inside of vanilla bean in a high speed blender or Cuisinart, and pulse/stop and stir occasionally until it gets to a creamy consistency.  You might need to add more almond milk.

Maya loves to push the button 🙂 Blog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-5

That’s it!!

Garnish with the dark chocolate chips (although, omit this if you are strict on certain diets). Blog Healty Mint Chocolate Chip NiceCream-6

Enjoy!  We did 😉dit-elle-Lauren