Blueberry Apricot Crisp

Blueberry season is in full swing! Just last week I made it out to a pick your own farm and walked away with nine pints of berries for a mere twelve bucks. I love blueberries in my morning yogurt or just noshing on them straight up, but the best part of fresh picked berries is making crisp.  I've made crisp with apples, strawberries, blackberries, and peaches, but blueberry crisp is where it's at!  I decided to switch things up a bit by throwing in some apricots (mostly because I had some in my fridge that needed to be used ASAP), and now I can officially say that blueberries and apricots are BFF's.

I have a go-to vegan crisp topping that I have used for years with much success, but wanted to switch it up and try it with butter instead of oil, because really, sometimes a little butter makes everything a little better.

The recipe for the topping is loosely adapted from a crisp recipe from this recipe from Nourish Your Roots.  It's bonkers good.  So good that my sister and my two little nieces ate the whole pan for breakfast within a half hour of coming out of the oven.  Yeah, we all burned our tongues on scalding hot blueberries, but it was oh so worth it.

...Homegirls are WEARING those blueberries!

Blueberry Apricot Crisp


1 pint blueberries
8 small apricots, pitted and chopped
2 T. white spelt flour
3 T. organic brown sugar


Crumble:
1/2 c. white spelt flour
1/2 c. organic brown sugar
1/2 c. rolled oats
1/4 t. salt
6 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place blueberries and apricots in a 9 by 9 inch glass baking dish. Sprinkle with the flour and brown sugar.
To make the crumble, combine the white spelt flour, brown sugar, oats, salt and butter in a small bowl. Work the mixture with your hands for a couple minutes until crumbly.
Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the apricots and blueberries.
Bake 40-45 minutes until the blueberries are nice and bubbly.

Serve straight up or with a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Raw Brownies

It's hot and sticky.  The AC has been running for three days straight and you've been craving brownies.  Not popcicles, or ice cream or anything else that would actually COOL you down. Brownies.

But.. making brownies means turning on the oven, and that ain't gonna happen.
You consider just eating a handful of chocolate chips, but really... how is that going to satsify a craving for brownies.

It's not.. and you will end up with melted chocolate all over your hands.

So then, you put two and two together.  Why not make a RAW brownie?  An ultra fudgy, gulit free, super healthy, gluten and refined sugar free, vegan raw brownie. They look like brownies and taste like brownies but require no oven, just a food processor and five minutes.

These sweet treats are packed full of walnuts, dates, raw cacao, and dried cherries. They are high in protein, fiber, rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.  They're sinfully rich and dense, curbing the desire to devour the entire pan(which I've done many a time with regular 'ol brownies).  Enjoy as a sweet treat after dinner, or crumble some on top of ice cream for a more decadent dessert. Dessert that's actually GOOD for you....

Raw Brownies (makes 9- 2" brownies)
From my dear friend Jane, via " Raw For Dessert" by Jennifer Cornbleet

1 1/2 c. walnuts
small pinch of sea salt
8 dates
1/3 c. raw cocoa powder
1/4 c. raw cacao nibs
1/4 c. dried cherries
1 t. water

Place walnuts and salt in a food processor and pulse until they resemble fine crumbs. Add dates and mix until it comes together  Add cocoa powder, cacao nibs, dried cherries and water and mix until well combined. Press into a pie plate or small baking dish (I used a tupperware container) and cut into small squares and refrigerate until firm. 
Keep refrigerated.

Black Bean Chocolate Truffles

How about getting a little extra fiber in your diet... In the form of CHOCOLATE??

Now, I'm not talking those miralax fiber chews that you can pick up at the pharamacy.  Those things sound gross.  Don't eat them.... There are much better ways to get your roughage.

Eating beans is a great way to up the fiber in your diet, and what better way to do so than in the form of chocolate... Chocolate DIPPED in chocolate.

Black beans have made their way into brownies, cakes, cookies and now, truffles. 

Pureed black beans are like a blank canvas of creaminess, so when cocoa powder, coconut oil and a some maple syrup make friends with the beans, the result is chocolatey goodness without the guilt.  I've eaten the mixture on it's own.. like alot of it, when I was having a crazy chocolate fit, and it's delicious.  Sure, it tastes a little like beans, but dip those bad boys in melted chocolate and you can barely tell the difference. 

Chocolate Black Bean Truffles (makes 16)
From So Good and Tasty

1 c. cooked black beans
2 T. coconut oil
3 T. cocoa powder
pinch of sea salt
3 T. maple syrup
1 t. vanilla extract
1 c. chopped dark or semi sweet chocolate

Place beans, coconut oil, cocoa powder, sea salt, maple syrup and vanilla in a food processor and process until creamy, scraping down the sides as needed.  Transfer mixture to a container and refrigerate at least 6 hours. 
Roll the mixture into small balls (about 1 Tablespoons worth) and place on a sheetpan lined with parchment paper. Place in the fridge for thirty minutes.
Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. When the balls have chilled, pull out a few at a time (you want them to stay cold, so it's best to do them in batches). Carefully insert a toothpick in the center and dip in the melted chocolate to coat. I found the best way to remove them from the toothpick was with a fork. Carefully slide the fork tines under the side where the toothpick is inserted and slowly twist while pulling upward, placing them on a sheetpan lined with parchement paper. Let them chill a bit to allow the chocolate to harden. Store truffles in the fridge.

Apple Crisp

Apples, apples, apples...

These days I'm borderline obsessed with the fruit. Apple cider, apple pancakes, hard cider, cider donuts, apple muffins, apple butter.. and now..

Apple Crisp!

I'm usually not a dessert person, but a recent trip to a local apple orchard left me with more apples than I knew what to do with.  I picked up some braeburns, which seemed like a good apple: hard, tart, and crisp, perfect for snacking or baking. 

They weren't all that.

Crunchy, yes. Flavorful, no.

So, I added some sugar, spice and everything nice, popped it in the oven and transfomed my ho-hum apples into a delicious sweet treat.

I'm one of those people that will justify eating apple crisp for breakfast. I mean it's got oats and apples and it's vegan.. It's pretty much like eating a bowl of heart healthy oatmeal.

Or so I tell myself.

Apple Crisp (serves 4-6) Slightly adapted from this recipe

4 lbs. apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. organic sugar
1/2 c. apple cider
1 T. arrowroot
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. allspice
1/8 t. cloves

Topping:

1 c. oats
1/2 c. oat flour
1/2 c. spelt flour
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. organic sugar
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/3 c. sunflower oil
3 T. rice milk
1/2 t. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place sliced apples in a 9" by 9" pan. Mix together the sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves, pour over the apples and mix well. In a small bowl, dissolve the arrowroot in the apple cider, then pour over the apples.
Now for the topping: Mix together the sugars, flours, baking soda, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl combine the sunflower oil, rice milk, and vanilla. Stir the oil mixture to the flour/sugar mixture.  Crumble the topping evenly over the apples. Bake for 45 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. Let cool fifteen minutes before serving.

P.S. share the apple peels with your dogs... they will love you hardcore.

Rawsome Banana Cacao Ice Cream

Holy amazeballs this stuff is no joke.

Banana ice cream has been all the rage lately. I mean what could be easier than throwing some frozen bananas in a food processor and having a creamy treat in less than five minutes.
I decided to give it a go, but wanted something a little more decadent.

I mixed together some unrefined coconut oil, raw cacao powder, raw cacao nibs and some honey to transform this dessert into a superfood treat!

Coconut oil has gotten a bad reputation for being unhealthy since it contains saturated fat.  However, most of the saturated fat in coconut oil is easily digestible and turned into quick energy, and therefore is less likely to cause obesity.  It has also been shown to have anti-microbal benefits and can boost immunity.

RAW cacao is known as food of the gods and is actually one of the healthiest foods on earth.  No joke. It has one of the highest levels of antioxidants on the planet.  It lowers blood pressure and can prevent heart disease.  It has more magnesium than any other food (the one mineral westerners are most deficient in). Magnesium helps to reduce stress, relaxes the muscles and builds strong bones and teeth. It also makes me feel amazing!! After consuming raw cacao I feel more energetic, like a great coffee buzz but without the crash.

RAW honey is anti- bacterial, ani- microbal and anti- fungal.  It boosts immunity, is great for ulcers and aids digestion and has anti-cancer properties.  A spoonful of local raw honey is also great for those of us that suffer from seasonal allergies.

So... now that you know how good the stuff is.. Let's do this!

Fun with science:
Coconut oil is solid below 76 degrees and turns liquid at any temperature above that. When the liquidy coconut cacao mixture hits the ice cold banana puree it instantly turns solid.  Hello, magic shell!!!

Rawsome Banana Cacao Ice Cream (serves 2-4)

5 bananas, peeled, cut into pieces and frozen for at least 12 hours

Magic shell:
1/4 c. coconut oil (if your coconut oil is solid, heat it gently till it becomes liquified)
1/4 c. raw cacao powder
1 T. raw cacao nibs
1 T. raw honey

In a small bowl mix together the coconut oil, cacao powder, nibs and honey.
Meanwhile, place the chopped frozen bananas in a food processor and give it a whirl, scraping down the sides every thirty seconds or so (it took about five minutes to get a creamy texture).  When the texture is nice and smooth, add in half of your "magic shell" ingredients and pulse a couple times to incorporate.  Divide the ice cream between bowls and top with the remaining shell mixture.  Dig in and prepare for a serious energy boost!

Next time I'm totally adding peanut butter.  Just sayin'.