No Flaws Easy Almond Bark

We’re often too critical of ourselves, but who can find fault with candy? This simple recipe reminds us that something as delicious as this chocolate, peanut butter, honey nut bark doesn’t have to look perfect to be so scrumptious and flawlessly fantastic.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 cup of almonds

• 1/4 cup of walnuts

• 1/4 cup of cashews

• 2 tablespoons of honey

• 1 tablespoon of peanut butter

• 1/4+ cup of chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Lightly toast all of the nuts on medium heat. Option to add salt

• Add the honey and peanut butter, coating the nuts, stirring so the honey doesn’t burn

• Place the nut/honey mixture on a piece of parchment paper

• Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave (30-second intervals)

• When it’s smooth enough, spread the chocolate over the nut mixture.

• Place in refrigerator or freezer for 10 minutes

• Eat as much as you like!

Crispy Coconut Peanut Butter Cookies

You can be more than one thing at a time, sweet and salty, smooth and crunch, happy and annoyed. This recipe is both chewy and crunchy, nutty and coconuttty.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2+ cups of shredded coconut

  • Optional- 1 tablespoon honey and cinnamon

• 1/3 cup of vegan butter (or regular butter) or 1/3 cup of sunflower oil

• 1/3 cup of peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)

• 1/2 cup of coconut sugar

• 2 heaping tablespoons of brown sugar (or about 1/4 cup)

• 2 “vegan” eggs (2 tablespoons of oil + 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed)

• 1 cup of flour (regular or gluten free)

  • Option to add some protein powder with the flour

• 1 teaspoon of baking powder

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Toast the shredded coconut until golden brown

• For extra sweet cookies, drizzle honey oven the coconut and sprinkle on cinnamon

• With a hand mixer, blend the butter, peanut butter, sugars, and eggs (optional to use real eggs).

• Mix in the flour and baking powder

• Stir in the coconut

• Drop on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper

• Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until golden brown

Citrus Surprise Almond Cookes

Whoever thought an orange could be surprising? It’s not really, unless you decide that it is. It’s like most things in life, they can seem ordinary until you add a dash of wonder to them. These cookies are low in fat, full of moist flavor, and have pecans and chocolate chips hidden inside.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 orange

• Zest from orange and lemon

• 1 cup of almond flour

• 1/2 cup of Gluten Free flour

• 1 teaspoon of baking powder

• 3 tablespoons of oil

• 3 tablespoons of ground flaxseed

• 1/2 cup of sweetness

  • 1/4 cup of maple syrup + honey

  • 1/4 cup of organic coconut sugar

• 1 cup of goodies ( or 1/2 cup)

  • pecans + chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Pre-heat oven to 350

• Shave some zest from the orange and a lemon

• Put the orange in a blender (without the skin) until it’s pulpy

• Pour orange in a bowl with zest and sweetness

• Add oil and ground flax seed

• Mix the flours and baking soda together

• Mix together the wet and dry ingredients

• Add the goodies

• Drop onto a parchment papered baking sheet and bake for 25+ minutes until golden brown

Subtle Sweet Potato Cranberry Walnut Muffins

Superlatives are everywhere, so let’s just be subtle for a moment like these muffins. You can make these taste more like spring by swapping out the cranberries for strawberries or raspberries. These are also gluten free!

Simple Pineapple Salsa

Why complicate things? Here’s a recipe that takes two minutes to make.

INGREDIENTS:

• Fresh (or frozen) pineapple sliced into small pieces

• Toasted sesame oil (use toasted sesame with chili oil for a kick)

• Rice Wine vinegar

• Maple syrup

INSTRUCTIONS:

• The amount you use of the oil, vinegar, and maple syrup depends on how much pineapple you have.

• Taste it as you’re making it to see what it needs

Surprise Yourself Black Bean Chocolate Torte

I know what you’re thinking, black beans and chocolate sounds like a gassy and pimple-y nightmare. Trust me on this one. It’s delicious, nutritious, high in fiber, and the black beans are so over-powered by the chocolate that you don’t even taste them. They add a smooth and dense texture because they’re pureed, which will help you to digest them, so you’re not at risk for turbo-charging your colon. However, I can’t promise no pimples because this recipe is loaded with chocolate. You can always snazz it up with strawberries and hazel nuts on top for extra fanciness. Who knew a can of black beans could look this good all dressed up!

Ingredients:

• 1 Can of Black Beans (drained and rinsed) - Option: 1 Can of Black Lentils

• 1/2 cup of almond milk, unsweetened (to make the bean paste)

• 3 eggs (egg substitute: 1/4 unsweetened applesauce or 2 TBS. Sunflower oil + 1Tbs ground flaxseed)

• 1 teaspoon Vanilla

• 1/4 cup peanut butter

• 1/4 cup of cocoa powder

• 2/3 cup of turbino sugar (or brown sugar or coconut sugar)

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

• Optional: 3 tablespoons of coconut flour or gluten free flour for a more cake-like texture.

Instructions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350-375

• Drain and rinse the black beans, puree in a blender or food processor with 1/2 cup of almond milk

• Mix the black bean paste with the eggs (or substitute), peanut butter, and vanilla

• Mix all the dry ingredients together (cocoa, baking powder, sugar)

• Combine the wet and dry ingredients, add the chocolate chips

  • Option to add 1/4 cup strawberries, nuts, or more chocolate chips

• Pour into a cake pan or quiche dish

  • I like to put a drop of oil, spread thin on the bottom, then add a layer of parchment paper. The oil makes the parchment paper stay in place. The parchment paper doesn’t let the torte stick to the bottom - it’s a win for everyone!

• Bake for 30-40 minutes

• Add any strawberries and hazelnuts as a topping. Since everything goes with chocolate, you can go wild with the topping (peaches, mango, blueberries, sliced pears, gummy bears, etc.)

Always Amazed Apricot Almond White Bean Cake

Admittedly, I’m getting a little carried away with this bean puree in baked goods, but this one works for a different reason. The white beans in this cake add texture, moisture, protein, and fiber. The key to using beans in baked goods is to camouflage the flavor. This cake has almond extract and tahini (or almond butter), so it’s rich and rewarding. Fresh apricots and/or sliced pears work best with this flavor. I’m a fan of slivered almonds or pecans as a complimentary nut to the sweetness of the cake.

Of course, the name is meant to inspire you to live with a sense of amazement instead of on the edge of expectations unmet.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of great northern white beans

• 1/4 cup almond milk

• 1/4 cup of nut or seed butter, like tahini or almond butter

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 teaspoon almond extract

• 3 eggs

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/4 cup of almond meal

• 2/3 cup of sugar

  • This can be a combination of sugars like brown sugar and coconut sugar or you can substitute 1/3 cup sugar with honey, maple syrup, or molasses

• fancy stuff for the top:

  • Fresh apricot slices with slivered almonds

  • Fresh strawberries or any other berries that are in season

  • Sliced pears or apples with candied pecans

  • Nutella and hazelnuts

  • Grand mariner in the cake with chocolate chunks and orange marmalade on top

Instructions:

• Heat oven to 350-375

• Drain and wash the white beans

• Puree them in a blender with the almond milk, vanilla, and almond extract

• Mix in the eggs

• Mix all the dry ingredients (cinnamon, almond meal, and sugar)

• Combine all the ingredients together

• Spread the batter into a baking pan

  • drop of oil spread on the bottom with a circle of parchment paper on top

  • Pour batter on top of parchment paper

• Bake for 30-40 minutes

• If you’re adding a fancy topping, bake for about 20 minutes, then put on the top so you don’t dry it out. This timing depends on what you use for the topping

Another Precious Day Date Loaf with Blueberries

Every day is precious, especially when you’re still breathing, haven’t been shot, and have time to bake something yummy like this date loaf bread. It’s the small things that remind us to feel grateful and to savor every moment and every bite.

I don’t drink alcohol, but for those of you who do, you can also add a tablespoon of your favorite liquor to booze up this dish. You can also swap out the blueberries for another fruit like apricots or raspberries or strawberries or rhubarb.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of dried dates

• 1 cup of boiling water or strong coffee

• 3/4 cup of Walnuts

• 1 cup of blueberries

• 1.5 cups of baking flour (or gluten free flour)

• 3-4 Tbs of butter or sunflower oil

• 2/3 cup of brown sugar

  • Option to replace with date sugar or coconut sugar

• 1 egg (non vegan)

  • Option to replace with 2 Tbs. Sunflower oil + 1 tsp. group Flax Seed meal or

  • 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• Instructions:

  • Pre-heat over to 350

  • Pour hot water or hot coffee over the 2 cups of chopped dates, add butter (or oil), sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and vanilla. Let that cool for about 15 minutes

  • Chop up the walnuts

  • Mix the dry flour with the ‘wet’ ingredients

  • Pour into greased loaf (or loaf lined with parchment paper)

  • Bake 35-40 minutes or until a butter knife comes out ‘clean’

  • Option to make muffins with this batter instead

Make-Your-Mark Thumbprint Cookies

Everyone is a storyteller. It’s how our brain disseminates information. From nursery rhymes to religion to the human interest clips on the news. Stories swirl around our lives all the time. The story of your life is the imprint or the mark that you make on the world. Like these cookies, you can fill your life with different colors and hopefully, with a lot of sweetness.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of coconut flour (Or any baking flour. This one is gluten free)

• 1/4 cup of protein powder

• 1/2 Tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp of salt

• 1/2 Cup of peanut butter

• 1/2 cup of sugar (organic coconut sugar works great)

• 1/4 cup of oil

• 1 egg (if you’re vegan, omit this and add three more tablespoons of peanut butter)

• 1 Tsp vanilla or cinnamon

• 1/3 cup of Raspberry jam (or other flavors)

• Your thumb or a spoon

• Instructions:

  • Pre-heat oven to 350+

  • Mix wet ingredients

  • Mix dry ingredients

  • Mix them together slowly.

  • When the dough becomes sticky or thick, scoop it onto a baking sheet with parchment paper

  • Press down in the center, fill with jam (coffee measuring spoon works great)

  • Back for about 15 minutes until the dough is golden brown