Chocolate Sprinkle Banana Bran Muffins (Clean)

You guys should probably all know by now that I love muffins. They’re perfectly sized on-the-go snacks, especially when traveling! In a couple of weeks, I’ll be heading off to Sri Lanka, so I’m going to need lots of yummy snacks for my long hours of traveling, and that’s where these guys come in – chocolate sprinkle banana bran muffins!

They’re not only suuper delicious, but they’re healthy too! They’re sweetened with coconut sugar and naturally sweetened thanks to the bananas, and I’ve reduced the oil to just 1/4 cup of coconut oil! But going back to the bananas – do you guys have any idea how good bananas are for you? A friend of mine just wrote an extensive article about it with 24 scientifically-backed reasons why bananas are your best friend. You guys can check out the article here (or http://www.well-beingsecrets.com/bananas-health-benefits/).

These muffins are everything you could want. They’re fluffy, and are covered in chocolate sprinkles and granola (my favorite part).

I’m literally getting hungry just from looking at these photos. I really want a muffin now.

In case any of you were wondering, the chocolate sprinkles I used in these muffins is “hagelslag”, which is a Dutch chocolate sprinkle for putting on bread. We always buy a ton of them when we go back to the Netherlands, but I seem to be the only one who eats them, so I figured I’d incorporate them into these muffins to get the rest of my family to eat them. It’s not that they don’t like chocolate, but they just don’t actively crave chocolate like I do.

Chocolate Sprinkle Banana Bran Muffin

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup coconut sugar
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
• 1 cup soy or almond milk
• 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup unprocessed wheat bran
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 + 1/4 cup chocolate sprinkles, divided
• 1/4 cup banana nut granola (or granola of choice)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius or 370 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and coconut sugar, before whisking in the bananas, milk of choice, apple cider vinegar, wheat bran, coconut oil, and vanilla
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and fold together gently until just combined
5. Fold in 1/2 cup chocolate sprinkles
6. Scoop the batter into a greased muffin tin and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate sprinkles and the granola
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean

Sugar-Free Chocolate Chip Quinoa Muffins (Clean)

School is starting up again, and as always, I’ve got a batch of muffins in my fridge to allow for easy school-snacking. A muffin (or two) a day keeps the school stress away.

So – why are these chocolate chip quinoa muffins so perfect as on-the-go snacks? Let’s talk quinoa.

Quinoa (pronounced keen-WAH) is a seed, though it’s often used as a grain. It’s gluten-free, with a tiny amount of fat, but more importantly, it’s a complete protein, making it an ideal protein source for all the vegetarians and vegans out there. A cup of quinoa gives you 222 calories, along with 8.1g protein and 58% of your RDA for magnese. It’s fibrous with a low glycemic index, keeping you full for a longer period of time, which is why I am oh-so-grateful for having these with me during school and getting me through the classes leading up to lunch.

Sugar-Free Chocolate Chip Quinoa Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups (240g) cooled, cooked quinoa
• 1 cup (120g) white whole wheat flour
• 1 cup (130g) light rye flour (Or more white whole wheat)
• 2 tablespoons powdered stevia
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 1 large egg
• ¼ cup plain Greek yoghurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup mini chocolate chips

*If you want a sweeter muffin, feel free to add in a bit of honey/coconut sugar and adjust to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together quinoa, flours, stevia, baking powder, and salt
3. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together coconut oil, buttermilk, egg, greek yoghurt, and vanilla extract until smooth
4. Pour the wet mixture into the smooth mixture and stir until just combined, before folding in the chocolate chips. Do not over mix
5. Transfer the mixture into a lined muffin/cupcake tin and bake for approximately 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of one comes out clean. Allow to cool and enjoy!

Unbelievably Healthy Beetroot Chocolate Microwave Cake (Clean)

Every year, millions of people make new year’s resolutions in determination to live a healthier year, and every year, millions of people cry. Personally, as you may have noticed from my little new year’s rant, I’m rather indifferent to new year’s resolutions. Nonetheless, I’m here to help out those in distress; sugar-free, gluten-free, oil-free, and veganize-able beetroot chocolate microwave cake under 200 calories to the rescue!

Let’s start off with the nutritional breakdown of this golden nugget – each serving has 186 calories, 1g of saturated fat, and 2g of sugar! On the other hand, 8g of protein! *Does happy dance*

There was a point where I was absolutely obsessed with using beetroot puré. Hence, the beetroot nut butter chocolate cups and the beetroot vanilla rice pudding with dark chocolate and the pink beetroot crepes and the skinny fudgy-cakey beetroot brownie bits. All of which, by the way, would work in benefit for that new year’s resolution of yours. Just sayin’.

This chocolate microwave cake is honestly one of my all-time favorites. It’s a shame that I can’t make it everyday, as beetroot purée isn’t exactly a staple in my house. Hence, there was a point where I just got a good load of beetroot and boiled it up and puréed it and made a ton of recipes with it, which you can do as well! Plus, adding it to your smoothies and oatmeal turns it bright pink, which always brightens your day.

This cake is so insanely soft and decadent and sweet and chocolately and it’s seriously what I’d eat everyday if I were in heaven. The beetroot purée keeps it ridiculously moist, and the egg white (can be substituted for vegans) keeps it fluffy and prevents it from getting too dense or spongey the way some microwave cakes get. Also, you gotta love the fact that this is sweetened with stevia only, which is a naturally sweet plant that I love using in baking. This recipe calls for 3 teaspoons of the powdered version, but you may need to change this around if you’re using pure stevia (you’ll need like, 1/10th of a teaspoon in that case – that stuff is strong!) or liquid stevia.

The smooth, rich, glossy layer of melted chocolate that sits atop the cake is optional, obviously, but come on. Just look at that chocolate! I’d very very highly recommend throwing a sizable square of chocolate on top of the mixture just before you microwave it, because that just turned the cake into a gooey chocolate mess, and nobody can deny the fact that gooey chocolate messes taste better than single-textured chocolate cake, no matter how moist and fluffy and decadent.

Beetroot Chocolate Microwave Cake

Makes 2 cakes

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup beetroot purée*
• 1/3 cup milk of choice
• 1 egg white or 2 tbsp aquafaba (the water from a can of chickpeas)
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup oat flour
• 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
• 3 teaspoons powdered stevia (adjust to taste)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• Large square of dark chocolate (optional, but highly recommended)
• Powdered sugar (optional)

*To make the beetroot purée, stick the beetroots (unpeeled) in a big pot of boiling water until they’re soft, peel them, and purée them in a food processor. Use leftovers for any of these recipes calling for beetroot purée.

Method

1. In a small bowl, use a fork or whisk to combine the beetroot purée, milk of choice, egg white/aquafaba, and vanilla extract until fully combined.
2. Add in the oat flour, cacao powder, stevia, baking powder, and salt, and mix until just combined. Do not over-mix.
3. Transfer mixture into two greased ramekins or mugs. Place the dark chocolate on top of the mixture if desired.
4. Microwave the ramekins/mugs on high for 2-3 minutes (depending on the wattage of your microwave and how gooey/cooked you want your cake to be). Dust with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

 

Nutrition Facts
Servings 2.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 186
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 3 g	5 %
Saturated Fat 1 g	5 %
Monounsaturated Fat 0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 0 mg	0 %
Sodium 91 mg	4 %
Potassium 266 mg	8 %
Total Carbohydrate 30 g	10 %
Dietary Fiber 6 g	23 %
Sugars 2 g
Protein 8 g	16 %
Vitamin A	2 %
Vitamin C	3 %
Calcium	10 %
Iron	14 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

Peanut Butter Granola (Clean)

It’s my first post of 2016! And I’ve decided to post….peanut butter granola.

Okay, I know, it doesn’t sound like the most fancy and impressive thing, but sometimes it’s important to enjoy simple things…like peanut butter granola, which as a matter of fact, is absolutely delicious and awesome. If you follow my Instagram you may notice that it’s in practically every recent photo of nana ice cream or smoothie bowls.

Now, homemade granola is something that I’ve been making for forever and it’s a staple in my pantry, but I get it if it seems a little intimidating at first. Just trust me on this one. Homemade granola’s are the best. They’re cheaper than store-bought granola, not to mention way healthier and crazily customizable. You could make pineapple-almond-cinnamon-nutmeg-matcha granola at home if you wanted, but you wouldn’t see that on a grocery store shelf! Speaking of customizable granola, you can check out all my other granola recipes here, which include mocha chocolate granola, cinnamon banana nut granola, oat-less granola, 7-ingredient granola chunks, and honey almond “quinola”.

Peanut Butter Granola

Adapted from Whole and Heavenly Kitchen

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 2 tablespoons flax seeds
• 1/4 cup unrefined coconut sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten until foamy
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius or 300 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the oats, peanuts, shredded coconut, chia seeds, flax seeds, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and salt
3. In a medium saucepan, heat the coconut oil and peanut butter and stir until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and add in the maple syrup, egg white, and vanilla extract
4. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and stir until combined
5. Spread the mixture in an even layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 25-30 minutes*. Allow to cool completely before breaking into clusters. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

*Baking time may vary. I’ve made granola many times and sometimes they’ll take longer than others, so use 25-30 as a general guide to when your granola should be done, but trust your instincts and use common sense as well 🙂

Vegan Spiced Pumpkin Bars + Is My Diet Vegan? (Clean)

As Thanksgiving grows closer and the world turns to gold, all of us are probably stocking up on pumpkin purée in preparation for all the delicious fall recipes that all the food blogs are throwing at us.

I fall (no pun intended) under both categories. Yes, I’m stocking up on pumpkin purée, and I’m also throwing a pumpkin recipe at you.

This recipe isn’t so much of a Thanksgiving dinner dessert or anything, but they’re still a great way to put all that pumpkin and pumpkin spice to good use.

I call them bars because, well, because they’re shaped like bars. In terms of texture and taste, they actually fit better under the ‘scones’ category. Mind you, they’re don’t taste exactly like scones. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of scones – they’re dry and I couldn’t eat one without drowning down a glass of water with it. On the other hand, these pumpkin bar-scone hybrid are wonderfully moist and fluffy thanks to the pumpkin purée.

If you’re super excited about the recipe, feel free to just scroll down now to get to the recipe while I discuss a recent event regarding the seemingly perpetual, controversial topic – veganism.

So yesterday, I conducted a workshop at my school’s Global Issue Conference. It’s a day combined with International Day, in which we all wear something of our countries, attend three workshops, and have a seriously amazing buffet of international foods (it’s everyone’s favorite part of the day. If you were there, you’d know why). Each year, we have a theme to the conference, and this year was no different -“Equality”. Naturally, the first thing my mind went to was animal equality, and so, I presented a workshop about it.

In the workshop, I outlined the hypocrisy of humankind, and how cruel and unnecessary it is for us to eat meat. If you were to see someone on the street taking a baseball bat to a dog’s head, what would you do? You’d try to stop them, of course, as you’d recognize this as a violation of the dog’s right. As earthlings, we all have two things in common: 1. We all desire to live, 2. We all want to be free of pain. The first, creates an equality between us. We all desire the same thing. However, the second desire of earthlings is broken every time we kill a harmless farm animal, thus resulting in an inequality between all animals – including us. Milk isn’t the best source of calcium, and it’s weakening our bones. 100g of t-bone steak may have a whopping 24g of protein, but that comes along with 16g of fat and 20% of your RDA for cholesterol as well.

I could go on and on and on. In fact, I did go on about this for an hour yesterday – three times, at my workshop. My audience in the first and third workshop were rather passive, but my second workshop – oh, man, there were some damn heated debates going on, which made it my favorite workshop. Being able to answer questions in support of what I believe in is a pretty incredible feeling. However, at both the first and second workshop, there was the question: “Are you a vegan?”

In the second workshop, someone who knew my Instagram account shouted out an answer for me. It was an inaccurate answer. He said, “Yeah! She is!”, and I had to gently tell him that no, I wasn’t.

For the rest of the day, guilt gnawed at me. I called out on the hypocrisy of those who want animals to have equal rights, and still eat meat, yet here I was, doing exactly that. But then I thought about my food labels. Not vegan, but flexitarian, or plant-based.

I claim to eat “plant-based”, and yes, the word has “plant” in it, but it also has “based”, indicating that my diet doesn’t consist 100% of plants. If someone were to tell you to watch a movie that was based off of a book, then you’ll understand that although they may have similar characters, setting, and storyline, this doesn’t mean that they are exactly the same. Therefore, when I say that my diet is plant-based, this implies that the majority of the food I eat are sourced by plants, but not all.

Hearing that, you may claim that I don’t care about the animals as I say that I do, but that’s not necessarily true. There are three main reasons why I don’t go full-on “vegan”, and not one of those reasons has to do with a lack of compassion for the animals.

1. Family traditions/culture/accessibility. I live in China, my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents (I assume) are Chinese. If I still lived in the Netherlands, then this may not be as much of an issue, but here in China, vegetarianism isn’t too common, and veganism? Practically unheard of. Then again, this makes sense, as, among multiple other reasons, the Chinese diet doesn’t consist of a lot of meat in the first place. Nonetheless, this makes it difficult for me to access some ingredients that may be common elsewhere. For instance – I only know of one single shop in this entire city that sells coconut oil. Coconut oil is a substitution for butter in tons of vegan recipes. Naturally, there’s nowhere for me to get vegan butter, either, or vegan meat. In addition, my family is incredibly disapproving of vegetarianism. They do believe that we need to eat a variety of foods in order to intake all nutrients, and that includes meat. Fortunately, this, being my main hurdle, allows me to eat vegan foods for breakfast (which I always make for myself), and whenever I have options to choose vegan foods during non-Chinese dinners/lunches.
2. Experiences. Food is such an important part to our cultures and lives, and I strictly do not believe that diet should interfere with the experiences that life offers us. Now, I don’t mean that as killing a cow is a once-in-a-lifetime experience! No. Let me give you an example, yesterday, during the Global Issues Conference/International Day, there was some damn good food. I avoided meat where I could, but in all the excitement, there was no way that I was going to point at a cookie and ask for its ingredients, or to stop myself from grabbing a bitterballen from the Dutch food table just because it does contain meat. I put all of my food beliefs aside because I didn’t want it to ruin one of my favorite school events.
3. Baking. This one pretty much ties back into my first point. Ingredients for many vegan foods aren’t nearly as readily accessible here in Beijing as they are in many other vegan-friendly cities. Thus, I have to use what I’m given, because (tying back into my second point), I don’t want to limit my baking. As you can tell from this blog, baking is one of the single most important parts of my life. It’s where I find peace and comfort, and it’s something that I’m incredibly passionate about and love doing, and sometimes, I have to make do with what I have.

I want to reiterate that I do choose vegan when I can, but if you can relate to any one, or perhaps even all, of the points that I made, understand that you don’t have to feel guilty for believing in something that perhaps you aren’t able to fully commit to. Take things one step at a time. I’ve almost completely cut milk and cheese out of my diet, and consume the other dairy and meat at minimal amounts.

To conclude, no, I’m not a vegan, yes, I love animals, yes, I avoid animal products, and yes, I encourage you to do the same. Oh, and yes, these spiced pumpkin bars are vegan and delicious and you should go make some right now.

Vegan Spiced Pumpkin Bars

Makes 8 bars

Ingredients

• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
• 5 tablespoons coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup pumpkin purée
• 3 tablespoons soy or almond milk
• 4 tablespoons applesauce
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 Fahrenheit
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, salt, flaxseed, and coconut sugar until combined
3. Add in the pumpkin purée, milk, applesauce, and vanilla extract and fold together until just combined
4. Transfer the mixture into a greased 8-inch square baking tin and bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean

Brown Butter Banana Bread – The Best Ever Banana Bread (Cheat)

Photographing banana bread is frustrating. They generally all end up looking pretty similar. Usually, it’s fine, I’ll accept them, but with this recipe, I can’t stress how little justice these photos give to the insane moistness and flavor of this banana bread. This is my all-time favorite banana bread recipe.

I’ll attempt to use words to explain the perfection of this recipe, but truly, you must try this one. I’ve made countless banana breads (er…I’m still working on posting the recipes for them all), but this one has always been my favorite.

With the other ones, I’ll usually just make the recipe once or twice, photograph it, and yadee yadee. I’ve made this one so many times.

My whole family simply adores this recipe. Every time we have the right number of overripe bananas, my mom will be hint at me to make this recipe, and I’ll gladly oblige.

So what’s so special about this recipe? Well, for the most part, it’s not even a special ingredient or anything, but a special method. Instead of just softening in the butter and beating it in, you brown it. In other words, brown butter. This means that you place it into a saucepan and melt it, letting it heat until it – literally – browns. This results in a wonderful, aromatic, caramel-y yet nutty ingredient that keeps your banana bread super moist and adds flavor without any special spices or anything.

 

Brown Butter Banana Bread

Adapted from Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body

Makes 1 8-inch loaf

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter
• 2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3-4 overripe bananas (approx. 370g or 1 1/2 cup mashed)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over high heat. Once the butter is mostly or completely melted, lower the heat to medium-low and swirl the butter around the pan without stirring. Leave it over the heat, swirling occasionally, until the butter turns brown and is slightly aromatic. Remove from heat and place in fridge to cool
3. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
4. In another medium mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, mashed bananas, and vanilla. Then, whisk in the slightly cooled butter
5. Add the egg mixture into the flour mixture, and fold until just combined. Do not over mix.
6. Transfer the batter into a greased loaf pan (approx. 8 inch) and bake for 60-70 minutes, until the top is beginning to brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean
7. Allow to cool (mostly) before serving. Store in an airtight container in fridge, and reheat when you want to eat 😉

Chocolate Oreo Ice Cream Cups (v) (Clean)

As the summer days turn to fall, I do have one last ice cream recipe to share with you.

Unlike the 3-ingredient no-churn cookies and cream ice cream, or the no-churn biscoff cookie butter ice cream, this one’s guilt-free, healthy, and nutritious.

Sure there’s still the black forest nice cream and the chocolate-covered mint avocado banana ie cream squares that you could indulge in without guilt, but neither of those have oreos, now, do they?

Disregarding the oreos, this recipe is pretty good for you. As for the oreos, there’s plenty of recipes for homemade healthy oreos out there, so you could use those if you want. If not, (and only if you’re reaaalllyyyy picky), then you could omit the oreos, but come on. It’s one oreo per ice cream cup, and it really makes it so much better, so just accept oreos, alright?

Moving on.

The base of these ice cream cups is the classic date-and-nut crust with a bit of cacao for the bonus flavor and antioxidants. The crust is soft and chewy thanks to the dates, but the nuts bring in an opposing, firm-to-the-bite texture. Throw in some cacao powder and you’ve got yourself a winning, healthy-as-f— crust.

The filling is made from coconut milk and raw chocolate. The mixture is combined and cooked at a low temperature, thus preserving all the nutrients in both ingredients.

 Chocolate Oreo Ice Cream Cups

Makes 12 ice cream cups

Ingredients

Crust

• 2 cups soft dates, pitted (approx. 300g prior to pitting)
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 1/3 cup raw cacao powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

Filling

• 1 can full-fat coconut milk (approx. 400ml or 2 cups)
• Pinch of salt
• 100g raw chocolate
• 12 whole oreo cookies

Method

1. Place the ingredients for the crust (dates, almond, cashews, cacao powder, vanilla extract, and salt) in a food processor and process until well combined. If you have a weaker food processor, process the dates until smooth before adding the other ingredients
2. Press the mixture into silicon/flexible mini cake tins or into the bottom of a cupcake pan lined with cupcake liners. Set aside.
3. For the filling, in a medium saucepan, heat the coconut milk until just boiling.
4. Remove the coconut milk from heat, and add in the salt and raw chocolate, broken up into small pieces. Stir until smooth.
5. Place a full oreo in the center of each crust
6. Pour the coconut chocolate mixture over each oreo until the oreo is fully covered
7. Freeze for 6 hours/overnight, until firm. Store in freezer.

Best Ever Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies (Clean)

~ These one-bowl, best ever healthy chocolate chip cookies are utterly perfect. You’ll never believe that they’re healthy! Gluten-free, flourless, no white sugar, no butter. ~

I didn’t think that chocolate chip cookies could be so healthy and so delicious at the same time. These cookies gave me so much reassurance that you can have a baked good taste amazing even with the absence of white flour, white/brown sugar, and butter. In addition to that, they’re ridiculously easy to make. You just need one bowl, and you don’t even need an electric mixer of any sort!

I keep track of all my recipes on Stickies, and under each one, I usually write a little comment. Sometimes it’ll be ‘sub stevia?’ or ‘too sweet/too dry – but worth adapting’ etc. For this recipe – and I kid you not – I simply wrote, ‘utterly perfect’. I intend to make these cookies countless more times in the years to come and I do not intend to change a single component of the recipe. 

Best Ever Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Chelsea’s Messy Apron

Makes 10 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoons coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 1 and 1/2 cups oat flour*
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

*To make oat flour at home, simply process rolled/old fashioned or quick oats in a food processor until the consistency resembles flour

Method

1. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the vanilla extract, egg, coconut sugar, and coconut oil until combined
2. Stir in the oat flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until just combined
3. Fold in the dark chocolate chips
4. Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and place in the fridge for at least an hour
5. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
6. Using a cookie or ice cream scooper, scoop out balls of the chilled dough and press them together (otherwise the cookies will come out too crumbly), before placing them onto a lined baking sheet. Make sure that the cookie dough hasn’t warmed up too much, and if they have, then place them back in the fridge for 10 minutes before baking
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the cookies are beginning to brown around the edges
8. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet, or transfer them onto a wire rack after 5 minutes to cool fully. They taste amazing fresh out of the oven, but they won’t hold their shape very well.
9. Enjoy. Keep the cookies stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you want a warm cookie, you can microwave a cookie for 10 seconds before eating. I quite liked the cookies chilled, but that’s up to you.

Chocolate-Covered Mint Avocado Banana Ice Cream Squares (Clean)

~ These healthy, gluten-free, vegan chocolate-covered mint ice cream squares are super easy to make and perfect for cooling down or just to have as a low-calorie treat. ~

I’m sharing another recipe from my free ebook! They’re chocolate-covered mint avocado banana ice cream squares, and they are so good (and healthy)! Absolutely perfect for the summer heat.

I don’t know about you, but everywhere I’ve been this summer has been super hot. I’ve already shared a recipe for this quick and easy no-churn biscoff cookie butter ice cream, but that’s different from this recipe. That’s an ice cream recipe, and it’s not vegan or healthy or snack-shaped anything. This one? This one is.

It’s made up of a regular date base with dates and almonds and a bit of cacao powder, but the filling is the really amazing part. You guys all probably know about nice cream now – frozen bananas puréed into a soft-serve ice cream. In this recipe, I added a bit of coconut oil so that when it freezes, it resembles regular ice cream more than soft-serve.

Oh, and you know how I love watching chocolate set over nice cream? Yeah, this is 10x better. With the layer of chocolate at the perfect thickness, the chocolate satisfyingly breaks when you bite into it, and you’ll basically think that you’re biting into mint chocolate chip ice cream bar – but without any of the guilt.

Not only does are these guilt-free, but they’re nutritious, especially thanks to the super healthy fruit – avocado! Bananas are great, too, but avocados, man. I love them. You can’t taste them in this recipe, which is good for people who don’t like the taste of avocado (???). Either way, at first glance, avocados appear to be a fruit disguised as a vegetable that should be avoided at all cost. It is true that these green fruits are high in calories, but this is only because they are made up of fats – healthy fats. They’re also prized for their high nutrition value and their wonderful textures. Avocados have more potassium than bananas, and are loaded with fiber. In fact, a serving of 100g contains 14% of the recommended daily allowance, as well as 26% of the recommended daily allowance for Vitamin K. Also, avocados stand apart from other fruits because unlike most fruits, avocados are incredibly low in sugar, with only approximately 0.4g of sugar per whole avocado.

Interesting? I have one of these little about-the-ingredient paragraphs with every single one of my recipes in my free ebook, so go download it!

Chocolate-Covered Mint Avocado Banana Ice Cream Squares

(From Health-ified Chocolate)

Makes 15 squares

Ingredients

Chocolate Almond Base

• 1 cup medjool dates, pitted
• 1 cup raw almonds
• 2 tbsp raw cacao powder
• 0-2 tsp water, as needed

Ice Cream Filling

• 1 avocado, peeled and pitted
• 3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 4 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 medium, ripe bananas
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 5-10 drops peppermint extract, depending on how strong you want the mint flavor to be
• Pinch of salt

Chocolate Glaze

• 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
• 3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

Method

1. For the chocolate almond base, add all the ingredients into a food processor and process until the mixture sticks together, adding water as needed
2. Press mixture into a 8x8inch or 20x20cm baking pan lined with parchment paper
3. For the ice cream filling, add all ingredients into a food processor and process until the mixture and blend until smooth
4. Spread an even layer of the ice cream filling over the base and freeze while making the chocolate glaze
5.  Mix all the ingredients for the chocolate glaze together until smooth
6. Pour the chocolate glaze over the ice cream layer
7. Freeze the squares for at least 5 hours, until firm
8. After freezing, allow the squares to thaw at room temperature for about 20 minutes, before cutting into squares using a hot knife
9. Serve. Keep leftovers stored in the freezer

 

4-Ingredient Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles (Clean)

Someone take movies away from me, I beg you. It’s been a week of summer vacation, and I’ve watched too many movies already. 7, to be exact. In no particular order: Pitch Perfect 2, Whatever It Takes, Knocked Up, The Boy Next Door, The Loft, Jurassic World, Inception. I’ve got Jurassic Park sitting in my “to-watch” movies folder now, so that’ll make 8 by the end of today. I’m no movie critic, but 2 of the 7 have me going crazy with thoughts (guess which ones?) while 1 of the 7 has me fangirling over Chris Pratt (guess which one?).

Anyways, these lil’ truffles have been a perfect movie snack. They’re the ultimate food to cure hunger and cravings at the same time.

I have a small list of favorite snacks. They’ve gotta be small; easy to grab and go. They’ve gotta curb hunger. They should have chocolate. They should taste good.

These chocolate chip cookie dough truffles meet all the requirements, kinda like these skinny fudgy-cakey beetroot brownie bites.

And obviously, you can’t beat a recipe that only requires 4 ingredients.

4-Ingredient Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

Ingredients

• 1 (400g) can white beans or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup peanut butter, crunchy or smooth
• 2 tbsp honey or agave syrup
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Method

1. In a food processor, process the beans, peanut butter, honey, and vanilla extract until fully combined and smooth
2. Stir in the chocolate chips
3. Roll about 1 heaped teaspoon (you can make them smaller/larger if you want) of the dough into a ball. Eat them! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

Skinny Fudgy-Cakey Beetroot Brownie Bites (Cheat)

Summer vacation is my favorite time of year. If you’re not on vacation right now, I am so sorry.

What have I been doing this summer? Partying – in my kitchen. I did watch Jurassic World the other day, though. Chris Pratt is lyfe ❤

About the title – because this recipe does have butter and flour and whatnot, I couldn’t classify it as a ‘clean’ recipe, but it is a lightened-up version and each brownie is small, making it a perfect small snack that wouldn’t fatten anyone up – hence the ‘skinny’ part. Each brownie bite is less than 100 calories, too! Nutrition info is at the end of this post.

Let’s talk brownies. I’d say that most people like fudgy brownies as opposed to cakey brownies. When someone asks me, I say fudgy, but personally, I don’t think that brownies fall under two simple categories.

I used to associate “cakey brownies” with the texture of chocolate cake, which I assume a lot of people do, and I’d associate “fudgy brownies” with just the average brownie. As much as I love sweets, some brownie recipes out there make me cringe at how insanely fudgy they are, with a single bite having enough calories to last the day.

So let me try to describe these brownies. They’re soft, fluffy, moist, flavorful, and bite-sized. They are neither “fudgy” nor “cakey”, but a delicious hybrid of both.

*This recipe is vegan-ize-able. Replace the butter with Earth Balance and the egg with a chia/flax egg

**To make the beetroot purée, just stick the beetroots (unpeeled) in a big pot of boiling water until they’re soft, peel them, and purée them in a food processor. If you have leftovers, you can use it to naturally dye all your food pretty and pink, or use it to make my many recipes that use beetroot purée

Fudgy-Cakey Beetroot Brownie Bites

Adapted from Boards and Knives

Makes 36 bite-sized brownies

Ingredients:

• 8 tablespoons (120g) unsalted butter*
• 150g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
• 1 cup beetroot purée**
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg*
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Powdered sugar (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a double boiler, microwave (at intervals), or directly in a saucepan, melt the butter
3. Gently stir the chocolate pieces into the bowl/saucepan with the butter until melted
4. Remove from heat if using double boiler or saucepan, and stir in the beetroot purée, vanilla extract, sugar, and salt. When the mixture has mostly cooled, stir in the egg as well
5. Fold in the flour and baking powder until combined. Do not over-mix
6. Transfer the mixture into a greased or lined 8×8 (inch) cake tin and spread the batter so that it fills the cake tin properly
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before cutting into bite-sized pieces and sifting on powdered sugar if desired

Nutrition Facts
Servings 36.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 87
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 4 g	7 %
Saturated Fat 3 g	14 %
Monounsaturated Fat 1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 12 mg	4 %
Sodium 145 mg	6 %
Potassium 19 mg	1 %
Total Carbohydrate 11 g	4 %
Dietary Fiber 0 g	2 %
Sugars 7 g
Protein 1 g	2 %
Vitamin A	2 %
Vitamin C	0 %
Calcium	1 %
Iron	1 %

Beetroot Nut Butter Chocolate Cups (Clean)

Oh, dear God.

The frustrations and difficulties and exhaustion people have to deal with these days.

The frustration of writing poetry and having to justify your decisions

The difficulty of memorizing French terms

The exhaustion of learning about polynomials and factoring them without a GDC

The annoyance of having a VPN that constantly quits on you

The struggle of getting home at 6pm, and having to eat dinner, do homework, practice piano, practice violin, Instagram, check emails, reply to emails, leaving no time for rest

The misery of majorly organizing an event without credit

The realization that you’re so tired that you’re sorta writing really bad poetry.

Oh, English.

And so there’s the relief of chocolate, which supposedly makes you happy (according to SCIENCE, guys). That’s where these lil’ beetroot nut butter chocolate cups come in.

Quite frankly, chocolate usually doesn’t require tempering as long as you heat it very, very gently. I mean, c’mon, who wants to deal with all those temperatures and mixing and taking 2/3 of the chocolate out and blah blah blah.

The thing I love about these chocolate cups is that when the chocolate bar is melted and changes form, with a little dollop of beetroot nut butter wedged in the center, the texture changes. It’s difficult to explain, but trust me on this one. The chocolate – although the content doesn’t change much – takes on a completely new satisfaction to the bite. It’s like the difference between eating a really cold chocolate bar that you can bite into and get that gadijp sound, verses eating a warm chocolate bar thats melty and that you don’t really bite into. With these, essentially, you could just shove the entire chocolate cup in your mouth and let it melt (though you won’t be able to speak for a minute or two), but I’d rather bite right through the middle of it and let the chocolate break into it’s naturally thin, beautiful, yet chunky pieces, revealing a gorgeous, hot pink patch of creamy goodness hidden inside.

Yeeesss ❤

I’m writing so much. Can you tell I’m tired? I went swimming. We did hypox. Don’t blame me.

Oh and hang in here for just another second…or not. You can just skip to the recipe now if you want, but there’s something I need to talk about. Something non-food related (unless you count Zack Merrick as being ketchup idk). Imma do an album rating thing, just because.

ALL TIME LOW’S NEW ALBUM IS AMAZING. It’s called Future Hearts. If you guys haven’t heard it – go listen to it now. I don’t care what you “usually” listen to. Heavy metal, k-pop, alternative, country – just go listen to it.

The entire album is preetty perfect. Imma talk about what I think just because I have nothing better to do and I need text to balance out the large number of photos (jk that’s just an excuse).

1. Satellites – Something really different from ATL’s usual stuff. I don’t mind. I found the line “Wishing on a star that’s just a satellite” to be kinda sad though. Like, you’re wishing on something that’s believed to be magical and natural and mysterious and far away, and in reality, it’s just an artificial, man-made imitation of stars. I like the song tho
2. Kicking & Screaming – There’s a proper scream in this one. ‘Nuf said.
3. Something’s Gotta Give – I will admit that the music video scared me. I won’t talk spoilers. Well, I won’t talk about music-video spoilers, but I can say that omFG THE FINAL NOTE OF THE SONG MADE ME DIEE.
4. Kids In The Dark: Holy moly I love this song so much. “Beautiful scars on critical veins. Come together. State of the art. We’ll never surrender. The kids in the dark.” Plus, the music video’s preetty cool tho and ALEX LOOKS HOT AF.
5. Runaways: Another favorite. Okay, this one’s really good. I mean, I know that I said the same thing about all of them, but I really love this one.
6. Missing You: Aw man this one’s beautiful. It’s one of those songs where you feel like the lead singer is holding you close and that everything will be okay and listening to it makes you feel like you’re getting the biggest, warmest hug ever from Baymax.
7. Cinderblock Garden: I love the intro a lot but tbh it’s not my fav song (sorry guys)
8. Tidal Waves: OH MY GOD NO WORDS C’MON MARK HOPPUS IS IN IT! NEED I SAY MORE? MARK HOPPUS! IT’S GORGEOUS AND LISTENING TO IT MAKES YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE BEING CARRIED AWAY BY TIDAL WAVES AND IT’S WONDERFUL.
9. Don’t You Go: I’m obsessed with the way Alex sings the line “Don’t you go”. There’s just so much force and emotion. Agreed? Agreed.
10. Bail Me Out: Kay Joel Madden sings in this song and there’s definitely that Good Charlotte influence, so his voice fits in perfectly. I know that the lyrics aren’t necessarily super happy and stuff, but the song makes me want to do that thing where you nod your head from side to side and tap your feet and makes you happy?
11. Dancing With A Wolf: Oh my god. There’s so much sass and attitude in this one, which I think is awesome considering Alex Gaskarth has that sass and attitude. It’s definitely going into my workout playlist. I’m listening to it right now and suddenly I’m not even tired anymore. Please listen to this.
12. The Edge of Tonight: LISTEN TO IT LISTEN TO IT! I BEG YOU THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SONG EVER I MIGHT EVEN LIKE IT BETTER THAN THERAPY. IT MIGHT BE MY FAVORITE ALL TIME LOW SONG – EVER. THAT’S SAYING A LOT!!!! I BEG YOU TO CLICK ON THAT LINK AND PLUG IN EARPHONES AND LISTEN TO IT. I LOVE IT SO MUCH IT’S BEAUTIFUL AND THE MELODY IS GORGEOUS AND I CAAAN’T
13. Old Scars/Future Hearts: I thought this song would be better, since the whole album is titled Future Hearts. I absolutely adore the bridge, “We got scars on our future hearts, but we never looked back, no we never looked back.” It’s a good song though.

Back to these things.

You will end up with leftover beetroot nut butter, but I think that’s kinda a good thing. I’ve been using it on everything. I add it onto my oatmeal, I spread it on bread or rice cakes… It’s like any other nut butter, but with a girly makeover.

Notes: I apologize for using both weight and volume in the ingredients list. Anyways, for the beetroot, you can just stick the whole thing (unpeeled) in a pot of boiling water for 20-40 minutes (depending on size) until it’s tender. Then, you can purée it in the food processor, remove the purée and place it in a bowl, and then use the food processor for the cashews (in the recipe). Less clean-up! Also, make sure to melt the chocolate in a double-boiler, or in the microwave at short 10-second intervals, stirring in between and stopping when 80-90% of the chocolate has melted and there’s still a few chunks, allowing the rest to melt from residual heat.

Beetroot Nut Butter Chocolate Cups

Makes 8 chocolate cups

Ingredients:

• 200g cashews (or other light-colored nut. e.g. peeled almonds)
• 3 tbsp beetroot, cooked and puréed
• 250g chocolate, melted
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• Shredded coconut (optional, for garnish)
• Cacao nibs (optional, for garnish)

Method:

1. In a food processor or strong blender, blend the cashews until they form into a thick paste, scraping the sides down as necessary. This may take anywhere from 5-20 minutes depending on the strength of your food processor.
2. Add the beetroot purée into the food processor and process until fully combined
3. Transfer the beetroot nut butter into a jar and store in refrigerator until ready to use (You can use it as regular cashew/peanut/almond butter)
4. In a medium bowl, stir together the chocolate and coconut oil until combined
5. Spoon approximately a tablespoon of the chocolate onto the bottom of a muffin tin lined with paper liners, or into metal cupcake liner/mold things
6. Place the liners in the refrigerator until they set (5-10 minutes)
7. Remove the liners from the refrigerator and spoon a teaspoon of beetroot nut butter onto the center of each one. Use a wet spoon or a wet finger to press it down into a small disk in the center of the chocolate.
8. Spoon more chocolate over the beetroot nut butter until the nut butter is completely hidden by the chocolate. Sprinkle some shredded coconut and/or cacao nibs on top and repeat with the rest of the liners
9. Place in refrigerator until completely hardened, and store these in the refrigerator

Sugar-Free Blueberry Pecan Oatmeal Muffins (Clean)

I feel like these muffins are going to become a staple in my house. They’re just so snackable and yummy.

You won’t understand how addicting they are until you make them. I was so surprised at how sweet and flavorful they tasted. There’s hardly any added sugar. No refined sugar, no coconut sugar, no agave syrup, no honey, no maple syrup, nada. There is a tablespoon of powdered stevia, but still.

They’re really flavorful too. There’s plenty of plump blueberries in each muffin, which pairs beautifully with oats and buttery pecans. JUST TRUST ME ON THIS ONE.

Before I give you guys the recipe (technically you already have it, if you just scroll down, but shh), I just wanted to talk about something I saw on Youtube the other day.

Generally, I don’t talk about anything except for food in my posts, but I felt like this is important and something that we all have to keep in mind. I watched Why Our Hearts Ache by Carrie Hope Fletcher yesterday, and I just can’t stop thinking about it. Carrie explained that the amount of heartache you feel reflects how much you cared about whatever it is that caused the heartache. (You guys should still go watch the video, because it sounds so much nicer and makes more sense coming from her…I think. Plus, she’s perfect and kind and inspiring and gorgeous and wonderful and I love her.)

Sometimes you put a lot of work into something, and when it doesn’t come out right, whether its a relationship or a project or something, you won’t really care too much. Other times, you’ll feel like your world has collapsed and it’ll take you days or months or even years to get over. Those are the times where you realize how much you truly cared about whatever it is that you did.

It makes perfect sense, and I couldn’t agree more. I’m slightly surprised that I hadn’t come to the same conclusion, but it just makes so much sense.

And on a more personal note, the video made me realize what I really care about, and I found that to be fascinating. For example, some days, I’ll be in the kitchen and I’ll put all my effort into creating amazing food. When they don’t turn out right, I do get really really upset. I’ve gotten used to kitchen experiments not working out, but when I spend hours baking with tons of effort, and not ending up with a good product, I’ll essentially feel heartache. Not in the lovey-dovey way, but I will truly feel disappointed.

Then again, there is that lovey-dovey stuff.

Take this example.

A guy liked you two years ago, and you treated him badly without thinking twice, but then, he was all you wanted, and it was too late. You spend the next two years missing him and wishing that you were closer, though you get all anxious and nervous and jittery around him and when he’s around you can’t focus on anything and you practically forget how to speak and be yourself. You want the best for him, and you’d do anything to make him happy. He’s the only one who can make you smile just by saying your name in that special way, or just by giving you that look. Sometimes you’ll talk for hours and you’ll never want to stop. Then, in the middle of math class, your friend tells you that he’s moving at the end of the year, and you nearly break down crying in the middle of class. The rest of your high school life seems to crash and you can’t bear with the thought of him leaving. You wish that he told you earlier, and that he’d told you himself. On the bus ride home, you cry, and on your walk home, you cry. At night, you can’t fall asleep because you’re so filled with grief, so you click open your phone and you say, “hi”. He says, “hii. I’m sorry for not telling you >.<” and endless waves of tears stream down your cheeks as you type back, “It’s okay”, even though its not. And then you tuck your phone away and curl up under the covers and you cry and you cry and you cry your f***ing eyes out.

And that’s when you know how much you cared.

Oh. I didn’t expect for all of that to end up being typed up. What the hell, though. Maybe it’ll help you guys get through difficulties in life and maybe you can relate. When things go bad and you feel like everything is breaking down, at least you’ll know how much you cared and to know how much you could possibly care for something or someone.

BACK TO THE MUFFINS.

They’re delicious. Full stop.

Blueberry Pecan Oatmeal Muffins

Adapted from Sugar Free Mom

Makes 14-15 muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp powdered stevia
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 3/4 cup milk of choice
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup blueberries, frozen or fresh (I used fresh)
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped roughly

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the oats, buckwheat flour, ground cinnamon, sea salt, baking powder, baking soda, and powdered stevia
3. Stir in the eggs, applesauce, coconut oil, milk, and vanilla extract until just combined
4. Fold in the blueberries and pecans
5. Pour the batter into a lined cupcake/muffin tin, filling them about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way, and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean
6. Serve!

Classic Oatmeal Cookies (Cheat)

Who here loves oatmeal?

Me: *raises hand*

Who here loves cookies?

Me: *raises both hands*

Who here loves oatmeal cookies?

Me: *raises both hands and a foot*

                

I used to think that cookies and milk simply looked nice together, but I never actually ate cookies with milk. Milk wasn’t something I drank because I liked drinking it. For my entire childhood, I’d chug down a giant cup of warm milk at the end of breakfast just because my mom told me to.

 

That’s different now. I tried sugary cereal with cold milk, and discovered the joys of cereal milk. I tried packaged chocolate biscuits with milk, and now I can’t get enough. Now, there’s oatmeal cookies with milk. H-e-a-v-e-n.

Milk and cookies aren’t just a pretty picture. You need that glass of milk.

Classic Oatmeal Cookies

Makes approx. 18 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1  cup flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tbsp molasses
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon
3. In a large bowl, use a stand mixer or hand mixer to cream together the butter and both sugars until the mixture is fluffy
4. Beat in the egg, vanilla, and molasses until fully combined
5. Fold in the flour mixture until just combined. Do not over mix
6. Fold in the oats, cranberries, and chocolate chips until evenly mixed in
7. Take about 2 tablespoons of the dough and roll it into a rough ball, placing it on a lined cookie sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough. You should get around 18 balls of dough (aka cookies). Don’t place the cookies to close together
8. Bake for 11-13 minutes until golden brown
9. Allow to cool and serve (with milk 😉 )