Dairy Free Chocolate (Avocado) Pudding

Ok, this is going to sound strange, but here are your ingredients:

avocados
cocoa powder
vanilla extract
maple syrup


(not so scientific) Directions

Place desired number of avocados in food processor. (Three regular sized ones give a nice sized portion for four people.)

Start processing. Add cocoa powder by the tablespoon until the green turns brown like chocolate. You may need to stop the processor and scrape down the sides. Add a dash of vanilla. Then begin adding the maple syrup while processing and do several taste tests until it is sweet enough.

Enjoy!

PS. My kids have been known to make a mess while eating this! :)

~I found this recipe at Green & Crunchy

Jeff's Favorite Cobbler

I think I've only actually made this a couple of times, but Jeff has made it many times over. He's used fresh peaches, fresh blueberries, and for his last creation shown here, a combination of fresh cherries and blueberries. YUMMMmmmmm.....

Cook time will vary depending on how you like your breading. I personally like my cobbler a little gooey, so I take it out a little sooner than most. These pictures show it completely cooked, almost like a cake, but it was still oh. so. good! Let me say it again: YUMMMMmmmmm...... :)



2 large peaches, peeled and sliced (or equivalent amount of other fruit)
1 1/2 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup DF margarine, melted
1 cup AP flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
dash ground nutmeg
3/4 c up almond milk (or other milk substitute)

In a bowl, combine peaches and 3/4 cup sugar; set aside. Pour margarine into an 8" square baking pan. In a bowl, combine flour, baking poser, salt, nutmeg and remaining sugar. Stir in milk until just combined. Pour over the butter. Top with peaches.

Bake 375 for 45 - 50 minutes until golden brown.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

***************

This month's Daring Baker's Challenge was a bit of a stretch for me. The original flourless cake recipe they gave us had 5 eggs in it! I almost opted out, until a recipe link was posted for a flourless chocolate cake that used black eyed peas and tofu!


I used her recipe, and received similar results... an extremely moist cake with a sunken middle.


Granted this isn't a recipe I would normally choose and probably won't make again, but it was a challenge and I worked with some ingredients I wouldn't normally pair together. As for taste, I could certainly taste the black eyed peas and although I do like BEP's, I'd rather have them as a side dish than a dessert. :)

Now, my BEP-loving son (who will drink the BEP juice!) enjoyed the crusty outside of the cake; he didn't like the moist inside.

As a secondary part of the challenge, we were to pair it with homemade whipped topping, ice cream, or a fruit puree. I chose a berry fruit sorbet... YUM!

Dairy Free Sorbet

I adapted this recipe from The Minimalist.


1 cup frozen fruit (I used a combo of black berry, blue berry, and raspberry)
2 Tbsp white sugar
3 Tbsp Silk vanilla creamer
4 - 5 Tbsp water

Put the first three ingredients in your food processor and pulse to break up the frozen fruit. Add water slowly so it stays in a sorbet consistency and doesn't turn into a smoothie.

The boys and I ate this immediately, so I haven't experimented with putting it back in the freezer for a later time... if you try to, let me know how it goes!

Enjoy!

Dairy Free Caramel Apples

If you'd like to read about my mishaps with this recipe, you can get a good laugh reading this post on my personal blog.

For the recipe (and a much better picture), you can find it here: Dog Hill Kitchen: Vegan Caramel Apples

These taste FANTASTIC!!! Enjoy!

Green Smoothies

There's no "real" recipe for these, it's just a hodgepodge of veggies and fruits. However, I have learned that I like the veggies to be liquefied, so I generally add them first with about 2 - 4 cups of water and blend. Then I add my fruits and other ingredients. Blend again. (I love the liquefy button!) I like to drink mine with a straw especially when I'm adding more greens and removing some fruit.

Here are the foods I've used in my green smoothies (not all at the same time... different combinations each day):

Veggies
Spinach
Kale
Mustard Greens (don't like)
Collard Greens
Yellow Squash
Zucchini
Snow peas
Snap peas
carrots
avocado

Fruits (fresh or frozen)
apples
pears
bananas
peaches
pineapple
mango
kiwi
strawberries
oranges
blueberries
raspberries/blackberries (don't like because the seeds never really go away)

Other
Milled Flax Seed
Wheat germ (very little... I don't like the taste)
Hemp seed
Stevia
Frozen orange concentrate
Vanilla
Cinnamon (just a little... too much will numb your tongue... trust me.)
Vanilla Soy/Rice Milk


Basically anything will do. Fruits and veggies don't have a chance to go bad around here anymore!

I haven't tried a savory green smoothie yet (garlic, onion, other veggies, no fruit).
Have you?

Blueberry-Flaxseed Muffins (Dairy Free)

It's been forever since I've posted a new recipe. Sorry folks, I've been sticking with the good old standbys you already see listed! :) I did, however, make try out these muffins last weekend with the boys. We all loved them! The boys really enjoyed topping them with sugar - they thought that was spectacular!

I got this from my new favorite cookbook, "Cooking for Health & Flavor", and it's on page 67.

1/2 cup milled flaxseed
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 egg
1 egg white
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup buttermilk substitution
3 Tbsp canola oil
1 Tbsp orange juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries, rinsed, patted dry
1 Tbsp sugar for tops (or however much your kids put on top - mine used much more than a Tbsp!)

(The recipe also calls for 2 tsp grated orange peel, but I didn't feel like grating the orange so I left it out.)


Heat oven to 400. Coat 12 muffin cups (or the muffin pan) with nonstick cooking spray. If you will be using the substitution, start it first.

Now, the original recipe says to mix all the dry stuff first (except the brown sugar) in one bowl and the wet stuff with the brown sugar in another. As usual, I just threw it all in my kitchenaid stand mixer (without the blueberries) and let it do the work of mixing it all. Then I folded the blueberries in by hand.

Scoop batter into muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with sugar.

Bake 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned and tops spring back when touched lightly. Loosen edges; turn muffins out onto wire rack to cool slightly.