Mini Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls

Last month the lovely Kelly from Foodie Fiasco posted a recipe for The World's Healthiest and Easiest Cinnamon Rolls. They really do live up to their name! Check them out here. I've made them several times, but I've adapted the recipe slightly.

                                               Oh, and I added chocolate. :)

1 1/2 T chia seeds mixed with 6 T water
1/6 c. applesauce (I eyeballed half of 1/3)
1/4 c. coconut flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
shake of salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Filling
1 T date paste
1 tsp cocoa
1 tsp reduced calorie margarine
1 tsp xylitol (Or sugar, if you don't mind the calories)
chocolate chips
Let the chia seeds stand until gel forms. Mix with applesauce, then add coconut flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Mix until it comes together. Place on a piece of parchment paper and knead for two minutes then start smushing down. Top with another square of parchment paper and using a rolling pin roll into a square. The dough should be less than 1/2 inch thick. In a small ramekin mix the date paste and cocoa. Peel the top piece of paper off and spread the chocolate date paste on the dough. Liberally shake on cinnamon, and sprinkle about 1/2 tsp chocolate chips over the square. Roll and cut as you would a regular cinnamon roll. (You should get 7 rolls) In the same ramekin you mixed the date paste, mix the margarine and xylitol. Spoon a tiny amount (not even a 1/4 tsp) into 7 cavities of a mini muffin pan. Place the rolls in in the muffin tin and bake at 400 F for 7-10 minutes until done (You might need to bake them a little longer, but err on the side of slightly under-baked)  *if you don't own a mini muffin tin, don't worry! Just use a baking pan and spread the xylitol mixture in the bottom of it, then put in the rolls*        

oops, looks like someone took a bite ;)

Green Eggs

I continually come back to this recipe as a fast, easy lunch. No need for a salad, this has it all.

         You might get some weird looks though.

Green Eggs (but no ham)
2 handfuls spinach
1 egg
water
fennel
garlic salt
Heat a frying pan on med. Blend the spinach with about 2 tablespoons water in a magic bullet, then add the egg. Add the egg mixture to the frying pan and sprinkle fennel and garlic salt over top. Cook until the top starts bubbling, then start scrambling! Keep lightly scrambling the egg until done, about 5-7 minutes.
Serve hot with a slice of toast, and enjoy!

Tofu Ice Cream

Last weekend we entertained some guests, and this involved a make-you-own-sundae-spree (it really was a spree, you should have seen the kids!) Toppings included brownie chunks (homemade, so healthy!) sprinkles, fresh pineapple and chopped chocolate bars (I lost the battle on that one)
Oh yeah, and ice cream.
Breyer's ice cream.
What did I do? I ate tofu :)
Not plain, mind you. Tofu ice cream. It can be done!!!

Wanna know how?

'Course you do!

1/2 c. tofu (I used medium firm)
2 T date paste/syrup (you can also use honey or maple syrup, but I'm trying to be as sugar-free as possible)
3 drops almond extract
1/3 c. water
3 drops liquid stevia (Or more liquid sweetener)
1-3 tsp. carob powder (you can use cocoa, but then you might need more sweetener)
Optional: Ice cubes
 Blend everything except ice cubes in a blender/Magic bullet until smooth. Now you have a choice. You can either make a milkshake, or ice cream.
For a milkshake, add about 5 ice cubes (more, if you like your shakes thicker) and blend until the ice cubes are incorporated.
For ice cream, pour the mixture into a shallow container and freeze for 1-2 hours. Then, put back in the blender and whirl until it reaches the consistency of ice cream!

Are Your Veggies Boring?

This is something I've struggled with most of my life. Yes, I know that I need to be eating veggies every day, but sometimes there are so many other foods calling my name!
So here are a few of my favorite ways to make eating vegetables fun:
Salad. The possibilities are endless. Throw in some leftover chicken from last night's supper, a handful of roasted chickpeas (upcoming recipe!) Some fish.
Have fun and play around to find flavor combo's you like!
Two of my favorites to get you started:
Sweet 'N Crunchy Salad
1-2 generous handfuls spinach, ripped into bite-sized pieces (the amount depends on how much salad you normally eat)
1 Tbsp ricotta cheese (low-fat if you wish, but for me, cheese is something I eat sparingly, but when I do, it's the REAL stuff with full flavor)
Shelled sunflower seeds
Raisins
Simply mix the ricotta with the spinach until evenly distributed. Sprinkle with sunflower seeds and raisins. Eat.
Greek Salad
1-2 handfuls romaine lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces
feta cheese, crumbled*
Italian dressing, or other vinaigrette
*As I said before, I don't use a lot of cheese, just enough to add flavor. Especially with feta, less is more.
Toss everything and enjoy :)
Unexpected pairings:
Peanut butter and broccoli. LOVE! Again, with this less is more. I usually measure less then a Tbsp of peanut butter, then dip my broccoli and smile.
Add a Tbsp of medium salsa to your salad. It adds a great kick!
Roasted Cauliflower
cauliflower florets
lemon juice
chili powder
red pepper flakes (optional)
Spread out the florets on a baking pan and sprinkle/brush with lemon juice. Shake on some chili powder, and if you want an extra kick, red pepper flakes. Roast @ 400F for about 20-25 minutes then broil for 2.  
And there you have it! Just a few of the many ways to (gasp!) enjoy  love eating your greens! (and the not-so greens)
What's your favorite way to eat veggies?

Cookie Development

I participated in a science a couple weeks ago. My project: The Perfect Healthy Cookie. 
I developed two recipes that I had people try and survey. 

 Cookie #1: Tropical Chocolate Chip Cookie (Makes 35 cookies)


11/2 large bananas
⅔ c. unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp reduced calorie soft tub margarine (the brand I used had 35 calories per two tsp)
2 c. rolled oats
½ c. unsweetened coconut
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ c. mini chocolate chips

1. Grind oats in a food processor until it becomes flour. Add salt and baking powder, pulse for about 10 seconds, so baking powder is incorporated. Set aside in a small bowl.
2. Microwave bananas for 1 minute. This makes them mash more easily, and also makes them sweeter. Mash bananas, applesauce and margarine. You can use the food processor to mix the wet, or do it by hand using a fork. Pre-heat oven to 350F
3. In a mixing bowl, combine wet ingredients, oat flour, chocolate chips and coconut.
Drop by tbsp into ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 5-8 minutes. Cookies are done when *slightly* firm to the touch.

Cookie #2: Chocolate Spice Cookies (makes 40-45 cookies)


1 c. oats                                             
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda 
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 c. cooked butternut squash                                                                        
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
¼ c. soy milk¼ c. warmed coconut butter
1 tsp cinnamon 
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp jaggery (or honey)
¼ c. mini chocolate chips                                       
3 tbsp date paste    

1. Blend dry ingredients in a food processor until oats have turned to flour. Set aside.
2. Blend chickpeas, squash, milk, date paste, jaggery and coconut butter until no lumps remain.  Pre-heat oven to 400F
3. Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips, pulsing until combined. Drop by tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.
*If you’re used to sweeter desserts, you may need to add more date paste or jaggery, keeping in mind that jaggery is more intense in flavour.

Vegetarian Meatballs

I recently had some lovely friends over. One is vegetarian, so I thought it would be a good reason to explore some meat alternatives. Hence, the creation of a chickball. That doesn't have the same ring as meatball. Oh, well, whatever you want to call it, here's the recipe:
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can navy beans, drained and rinsed (white kidney works too)
2 eggs
1/2 c. rolled oats
1/4 c. reduced-fat Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp rosemary
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 meat-free beef flavored bouillon cube, crumbled.
Pulse chickpeas in a food processor. You don't want to puree them, just get them to a crumbly stage. Add navy beans and blend for about a minute. Texture should be slightly lumpy, with no whole beans.
Transfer beans to a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. You can roll them into balls, but I just spoon the mixture into a greased muffin tin. Bake at 400F for 10-13 min, then broil on the middle rack for another 3 minutes.
I served the meat-less balls with salad, rice and home-made tomato sauce (same recipe as New Year's Eve dinner post)

Samoas?

Ever had a girl scout samoa?  

                                           I haven't. But I've heard they're an amazing cookie.

The traditional samoa has a shortbread base, a chewy coconut layer on top, then the whole thing is dipped in and drizzled with chocolate. Not exactly the best cookie health-wise. All the recipes I've found online call for butter, sugar and caramel. Caramel is made from butter and sugar, my two biggest no-no's. So, I present to you my made-over recipe: (which contains no butter or sugar ;)
1 c. toasted unsweetend coconut. (Please please please do this! just stir coconut in a heavy saucepan on med-high heat until it starts to brown. you need to watch it carefully so it doesn't burn)
1/4 c. unrefined coconut oil
1-2 T date paste (my palate has adjusted to lightly sweetened desserts. If you need more sweetness, give the dough a taste and adjust accordingly)
1/3 c. nondairy milk (you could use coconut, to go with the theme ;)
2 tsp ground flax
1 tsp vanilla
1/2-3/4 c. whole wheat flour
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt.
Chocolate Sauce:
1 T chocolate chips
1 1/2 T coconut butter
2 tsp peanut butter
Combine coconut oil, date paste, milk, flax seeds and vanilla. Add 1/2 c. whole wheat flour, baking soda and salt to form a thick dough. (If the dough seems really wet, add the extra 1/4 c. of flour.) Mix in toasted coconut. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. Flatten into disks, and use your finger to make a hole in the center on each cookie. Bake for 8 minutes @ 350F
Now you have two choices: clean up the kitchen or mix up the chocolate sauce.
For the chocolate sauce, microwave the three ingredients for 30 second intervals until melted.
Let the cookies cool before dipping the tops in chocolate.
Enjoy!