Category Archives: xanthan gum free

Monday, February 13, 2012

From me to You: Raw Carrot Cake Cookies. Happy Valentine’s Day!

I wish I could take credit for these delicious, healthy cookies but I cannot.  A while back I found these at my local Natural Foods Coop.  I was looking for something to snack on, and these looked perfect.  Can I tell you – they were AMAZING!!  They are super healthy, grain free, nut free, sugar free, and raw. See HERE for my homemade lemon cookies. 
Needless to say, I ate um’ all up in like 2 minutesand of course wanted more, but at nearly $6.00 for a bagno can do.  So I kept the little bag, made note of the ingredients (only 5), and then started making my own.  It took a while to find the right ratios, but I did it!  And my homemade creation taste just like the store bought variety.  So much more cost effective to make them.  My kids eat these up like gangbusters.  I made my family a batch with Valentine’s Day in mind and wanted to share them with you.  I also thought these cookies went well with this month’s “Go Ahead Honey” theme hosted by the lovely Heather at Gluten Free Cat.  Wishing you and yours a wonderful Valentine’s filled with love and laughter!


Ingredients 
-6.5 ounces of carrots, peeled then grated (3 medium) 
-14 soft dates, pitted and soaked in filtered water for an hour 
4.5 ounces unsweetened shredded coconut
-1 cup sesame seeds
-1 teaspoon nutmeg 
*(I didn’t make these “hot and spicy” but you totally could – for the hot and spicy factor, add in some ginger and/or a pinch of cayenne)

How To
1.  In food processor fitted with the s-blade, add grated carrots and dates.  Blend well.  
2.  In another bowl, add coconut, sesame seeds, and nutmeg.  Mix well. 
3.  Add carrot and date mixture to coconut, sesame seeds, and nutmeg and with clean hands, mix well. 
4.  Spread out “dough” on a non stick surface, I use this (spray the mat with a little oil before you spread out the dough) and then make your desired cutouts.
5.  The dough is a little tricky to work with, but you’ll get it.  My advice is to use a metal spatchula – slide on the cookie and then slide off (the slide action works well).  It took me a while to find my groove.  You can make any shape; I also made cute little carrot cake balls (see below)!  
6.  Okay so, place the cutouts in your dehydrator (on a mesh fitting) and dehydrate at 105 degrees for 24 – 30 hours.  Crank it up to 135 degrees for the last hour. I know this sounds like a long time, but this low temperature really preserves all the beneficial nutrition.  I have no idea how these would work in the oven, but please let me know if you try.  

Notes
*These cookies don’t get crispy hard like the store bought.  They are slightly chewy and soft.  However, you may be able to get that crisp cookies texture if you dehydrate longer.
*I put my dehydrator in the laundry room and just forget about it.  I make a batch at night and they are ready the following night. 
*If making the cute little carrot cake bites, dehydrate 105 degrees for 12-15 hours.  
*
*
A big thanks to Heather for hosting this month’s theme!
Shared on: Just Another Meatless MondayMelt in your Mouth MondaysMonday Mania, Ruth’s Real Food 101 (Mondays)Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays,  Traditional TuesdaysFat Tuesdays, Real Food WednesdaysGluten-Free WednesdaysAllergy Free Wednesdays, Whole Food WednesdaysPennywise PlatterMiz Helen’s Country Cottage Lunch Box Love Fridays, , Wellness Weekend, Allergy-Friendly Friday, Freaky Friday, Fresh Bites Fridays, Raw Foods Thursday, Raw Foods Thursday 
Posted by Amber at

Labels: dairy free, raw, SCD, soy free, sugar free, vegan, xanthan gum free.

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Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Double Chocolate Hazelnut Coconut Cookies (grain free, dairy free, cane-sugar free)

Once in a blue moon I crave chocolate like a crazy person.  This makes my chocoholic husband insanely happy.  These little double chocolate cookies really hit the spot.  Dates give this cookie a nice chewy, soft texture.  Generally I use almonds or walnuts as the base ingredient in grain free baking.  But I had some lonely little hazelnuts in the fridge just waiting for their turn.  Hazelnuts and chocolate?  Fuggedaboutit.   
 Ingredients 
-1 cup whole raw hazelnuts*
-1/3 cup whole raw almonds*
-1/4 cup coconut flour
-1/4 cup raw organic cacao
-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
-1/8 teaspoon salt
-6 dried medjool dates (pitted and soaked in filtered water for about 3-4 hours)
-1/4 cup coconut oil, melted 
-1/2 teaspoon vanilla 
-3 or 4 tablespoons honey 
How To
Preheat oven to 375
1.  In food processor with s-blade, grind hazelnuts until coarse.
2.  Add almonds and blend until nuts release just a bit of oil.
3.  Add coconut flour, pulse.  Add cacao, pulse.
4.  Add baking soda and salt, pulse, pulse, pulse.
(the dry mixture should feel like a fine flour).
5.  Transfer dry ingredients to a bowl.  Clean out food processor.
6.  In food processor with s-blade, add strained dates, coconut oil, vanilla, and honey and blend until incorporated. 
7.  Add wet ingredients to dry and mix.  
8.  Form small balls and press down into cookie shape
9.  Bake for 12 minutes.  
10.  When cool, top cookies with melted chocolate.  I use this chocolate bar (extreme dark chocolate 88%).  It’s cane-sugar free (sweetened only with filtered date sugar) and dairy free.  It does contain soy lecithin.  

Notes
*Soak and dehydrate nuts for optimal digestion 
Shared on: Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays,  Pennywise PlatterMiz Helen’s Country CottageTraditional TuesdaysThe Healthy Home Economist, Fat Tuesdays, Ruth’s Real Food: 101Real Food WednesdaysGluten-Free WednesdaysJust Another Meatless MondayMelt in your Mouth MondaysLunch Box Love Fridays, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Whole Food Wednesdays, Wellness Weekend, Allergy-Friendly Friday, Freaky Friday, Fresh Bites Fridays, & Superfood Sunday
Posted by Amber at

Labels: cookies, dairy free, dessert, egg free, gluten free, grain free, xanthan gum free.

33 Comments

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Friday, December 16, 2011

Vegan Persimmon Cranberry Coconut Pudding (no bake)

Is it just me, or are persimmons the most AMAZING fruit ever.  They taste like candy no?  My kids go crazy for them and it’s refreshing to have a different fruit there in the fruit basket.  

I know I’m not breaking the mold here with the idea of a no-bake pudding.  But I so wanted to find a way in incorporate persimmons into a dessert, and a no-bake pudding was the front runner.  No fuss, few ingredients, nutritionally denseall big winners in my book.  I was craving something cold, creamy, and sweet (but not too sweet, you know I like the tart stuff).  The coconut, persimmon, cranberry combo did the trick.  This pudding turned out really well and I wanted to share its wonderful, flavorful simplicity with you.  

Ingredients
1 can full fat coconut milk, I used this brand (it’s a BPA free can)
4 ripe fuyu persimmons (a non-astringent vareity; they are squat and look like a tomato) 
1/4 cup cranberries 
2 tablespoons ground chia seeds

How To
1.  Soak cranberries in filtered water until soft, 1-2 hours.
2.  Peel and chop persimmons 
3.  In blender (high speed or otherwise) blend coconut milk, strained cranberries, persimmons, and ground chia.  
4.  Store in refrigerator until cool.  Treat like pudding and enjoy with granola, dried fruit, or any other choice topping.  

Notes
*This pudding tastes better with time, as the flavors combine and the coconut flavor decreases quite a bit.  My husband had trouble identifying the coconutand this was shocking because he has impeccable taste buds.  
*Add more cranberries, if desired, it will certainly increase the tart factor. 
*You can add a sweetener of choice, but I prefer the sweet to tart ratio in this recipe.  I don’t care for too sweet.
*Coming soonpersimmon cranberry ice cream (stay tuned)
About Persimmons

Health benefits of persimmon fruit

  • The fruit is low in calories (provides 70 cal/100g) and fats but is rich source of dietary fiber.
  • Persimmons contain many health benefiting phyto-nutrients flavonoid poly-phenolic anti-oxidants like catechins and gallocatechins as well as important anti-tumor compound betulinic acid. Catechins are known to have anti-infective, anti-inflammatory and anti-hemorrhagic (prevents bleeding from small blood vessels) properties.
  • Fresh permissions contain anti-oxidant compounds like vitamin-A, beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin and cryptoxanthin. Together, these compounds functions as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that plays a role in aging and various disease processes.
  • zeaxanthin, an important dietary carotenoid, selectively absorbed into the retinal macula lutea in the eyes where it is thought to provide antioxidant and protective light-filtering functions; thus, helps prevent “Age related macular disease”(ARMD) in the elderly.
  • The fruits are also very good source of vitamin-C, another powerful antioxidant (especially native Chinese and American persimmons; provide 80% of DRI). Regular consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals.
  • The fruit is good in many valuable B-complex vitamins such as folic acid, pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), thiamin…etc. These vitamins act as co-factors for numerous metabolic enzymatic functions in the body.
  • Fresh Persimmon fruits also contain healthy amounts of minerals like potassium, manganese (15% of DRI), copper (12% of DRI), and phosphorus. Manganese is a co-factor for the enzyme, superoxide dismutase, which is a very powerful free radical scavenger. Copper is a co-factor for many vital enzymes, including cytochrome c-oxidase and superoxide dismutase (other minerals function as cofactors for this enzyme are manganese and zinc). Copper is also required for the production of red blood cells. 
    (above facts complied from this site)
Shared on: Wellness Weekend, Just Another Meatless MondayThe Prairie HomesteadMelt in your mouth MondayMangia Mondays, Midnight Manic Meatless Mondays, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Traditional Tuesdays,  Pennywise Platter Thursdays, Fat Tuesdays, Raw Foods Thursday 
Posted by Amber at

Labels: ACD, dairy free, dessert, gluten free, nut free, pudding, vegan, xanthan gum free.

10 Comments

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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Cranberry Almond Honey Cookies: A Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) Friendly Recipe

I’ve shared before that I often eat and blog.  I’m doing it right now in fact.  Eating this cooking (on number 5 to be exact).  Sigh, this is the beginning of something.  Something that may change my life. 


These cookies are a big deal for me because they are my first Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) cookie.  And they are goodand they didn’t fall apart!  I made these a few weeks ago but added baking powder (which is an illegal food), but luckily baking soda worked fine.  I will be starting the SCD here shortly and until then I will be creating recipes for myself to eat during this adventure.  My plan is to try the diet for 1 month.  The SCD has shown to help folks like me who suffer from Crohn’s Disease (and other forms of IBD, Celiac & Autism).  I was diagnosed with Crohn’s in 2004 and medication free up until a couple months ago.  Now I am determined to wean off the meds.  It’s hard for me to believe I just learned about the SCD like 2 months ago!!  Geez, where have I been?  Shirley over at gfe has been such a wonderful, loving support.  Thank you Shirley!  I’m sure I will be calling upon her for support and a pick-me-up here and there after I start this new food routine.  I’m currently reading this book and I will be sharing what I’ve learned, and my new recipes here very soon.

Shirley recently sent me some excellent blog resources dedicated to the SCD: 
1.  Mrs. Ed’s Research and Recipes 
2.  Straight Into Bed Cake Free and Dried 
3.  Z’s Cup of Tea
And a few I’ve found by luck:
 1.  Roost
2.  The Dietary Adventures of Jilluck
3.  Against All Grain

Ingredients 
1 cup dried cranberries, soaked in filtered water for about 2 hours (find unsweetened, or sweetened with only fruit juice, and always free of sulfur dioxide).  
2 cups raw organic almonds (preferably soaked and dehydrated for optimal digestion)
1/2 cup coconut flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla  

How To
Preheat oven to 375 degrees 
1.  In food processor (fitted with S-blade) grind almonds until they release a bit of oil.  Add coconut flour and blend into a light, fluffy flour.  Add salt and baking soda.  Blend.
2.  Strain cranberries and add to food processor and pulse, pulse, pulse, until the flour is incorporated with berries and forms a ball of dough.  
3.  In separate bowl mix together melted oil, honey, and vanilla. 
4.  With hands mix dry ingredients with wet ingredients.  To create cookie I recommend making a ball first, then with wet palms, press into little cookies.
5.  Bake 12-13 minutes.  Take care to not overcook   

Notes
*I recommend storing in a closed container in the fridge or leave open to the air on your counter.  Storing in closed container at room temp will cause these cookies to become very soft. 

Shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Traditional Tuesdays & Week 5 of Home for the Holidays: Gluten Free Style
Posted by Amber at

Labels: cane sugar free, cookies, dairy free, dessert, egg free, gluten free, SCD, vegan, xanthan gum free.

4 Comments

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Ginger Parsnip Muffins (grain free, vegan, dairy free, cane-sugar free)

(grain free, gluten free, dairy free, cane-sugar free, egg free, xanthan gum free, soy free)but oh so flavor-full


When I saw that Kim and Ricki’s SOS Kitchen Challenge for November was parsnips, I was pumped.  A vegan, grain-free muffin idea started to swirl around in my brain and yes it took me an entire month to finally bring this idea to reality.  Time can sure slip away from you when you’re a busy mommy.  Can I tell you though, I am so pleased with these muffins!  They are very moist (my favorite characteristic in a muffin) and my 2-year-old son LOVES them, which warms my heart because I make these allergy-friendly recipes with him in mind (due to his eczema ).  But kids are the world’s best food critics, don’t you think?  My husband also ate these up.  I hope you enjoy them too.  
Salud.

Ingredients
Dry:
2 cups organic almonds
1/2 cup coconut flour
2 tablespoons arrowroot starch or tapioca starch 
1 tablespoons GF aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger (or 1 teaspoon for a milder ginger flavor)
1 tablespoon cinnamon
Wet:
2 cups grated parsnips
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon vanilla 
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup coconut nectar  + 5 drops liquid stevia (raw honey or agave will also work)
1/4 cup filtered water 

How To
Preheat oven to 375
Bake time: 20 – 22 minutes 
(check at 20 and remove if tops are browned) 
Makes about 15 muffins 

In a food processor:
1.  Grind almonds until they release a little oil and you can make a ball

2.  Add coconut flour, pulse until incorporated 

3.  Add arrowroot, baking powder, salt, tapioca starch, cinnamon and ginger: pulse, pulse then blend, blend, blend!!

It should looks like this (and feel soft, like flour)

In a separate bowl~wet ingredients:

4.  Add oil, coconut nectar, vanilla, applesauce, stevia, and water; mix until incorporated 
5.  Add grated parsnips and mix
6.  Add dry ingredients from food processor and mix until incorporated.  Do not over mix.  
And don’t be afraidthis is a thick batter!  It’s all good.
7.  Immediately transfer to baking cups and fill about 3/4 full – they will rise slightly, but not much
*Bake as instructed above
*Make a warm cup of tea and enjoy a healthy snack

Also Shared on: Traditional Tuesdays, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Gluten-Free Wednesdays, The Healthy Home Economist, Real Food 101, Midnight Manic Meatless Mondays, Melt in your Mouth Mondays & Wellness Weekend
Posted by Amber at

Labels: dairy free, egg free, gluten free, grain free, muffins, vegan, xanthan gum free.

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Monday, November 7, 2011

Chocolate Pumpkin Brownies (vegan, grain free, cane-sugar free, dairy free, egg free)

Did I mention my husband is a HUGE chocoholic?  Well he is.  More than anyone I’ve ever met in my life.  And he likes the good stuff this man.  I’m not talking about a Hersey’s bar (although if you gave him one he would eat it).  My husband’s list of loves would probably go something like this: 1) his family, 2) the outdoors, 3) chocolate.  And if he was outdoors with his family eating chocolate he would probably explode (with joy).  So this chocolate series is dedicated to my sweet-teeth husbandand my daughter who is quickly following suit in the chocolate-loving department. 

Here we have recipe #2 in the pumpkin + chocolate series.  I don’t know about you, but I like chewy brownies.  Not cake-like brownies.  I thought it would be a fun challenge to make these grain free.  So the trick here was to make a grain free brownie that didn’t crumble apart.  I’m pleased with the final product.  My husband LOVES this brownie, as does my daughter.  They both gave it a two-thumbs up, and that’s saying something from my chocolate connoisseurs.  How wonderful to make something so healthy and sinfully tasty for the ones I love.    
(grain free, gluten free, dairy free, cane-sugar free, egg free, soy free, xanthan gum free) 

Ingredients
-2 cups raw almonds
-1 cup raw walnuts
-1/2 cup raw cacao powder
-1/4 cup coconut flour
-2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1/2 cup pumpkin puree 
-1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon grade B maple syrup (room temp) 
-1/2 teaspoon liquid stevia (vanilla or cocoa flavor is nice)
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1/4 cup applesauce (room temp)
-1 tablespoon ground chia seeds
-3 tablespoons water
-1/4 cup coconut oil – liquified
-1/4 cup non-dairy milk (or water)
-1/4 teaspoon ginger 

How To
Preheat oven to 375

In a food processor:
1.  Add almonds and grind until fine and slightly moist 
2.  Add walnuts to almonds and blend together until the nuts start to stick together a bit- test with fingers
3.  Add cacao powder, blend/pulse
4.  Add arrowroot, baking soda, ginger, coconut flour, and salt…
5.  Blend, blend, blend, pulse, pulse, pulse

In a separate bowl:
1.  Whisk together: pumpkin puree, maple syrup, vanilla, coconut oil, applesauce and milk (or water) 
2.  In a separate small bowl stir together chia and water until thick then add to wet ingredients. mix
3.  Add dry ingredients from food processor into wet ingredients and mix
4.  Transfer batter to 8×8 baking dish
5.  You can either line the 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper or spray oil and dust with coconut flour.  I used oil & flour.  
6.  Bake 30 minutes or until sides start to harden and crisp up

Notes
*The middle will be moist, but will firm up as it cools, but overall stays rather moist.  
*I would wait several hours before cutting into the brownies (if you can) or wait until the next day (yeah right).
*Top with melted chocolate (I melted 1/2 of this chocolate bar with 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice)
Shared on: slightly Indulgent Tuesdays,  
Gluten Free Wednesdays, Week 5 of Home for the Holidays: Gluten Free Style,  Fat Tuesday, Whole Food Wednesdays, GFE’s Virtual Support Group, Fresh Bites Friday, Freaky Friday, Fight Back Friday, Friday Food, Pot Luck Party Fridays, Feed Your Soul Friday, Superfood Sunday 
Posted by Amber at

Labels: chocolate + pumpkin, dairy free, dessert, egg free, gluten free, grain free, soy free, vegan, xanthan gum free.

23 Comments

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