i dreamt about these, woke up and wrote down the recipe, then went back to sleep. hence the "dream" part of the title. all my dream recipes are so much better than reality ones.
these were a big hit. my family loved them and so did my friends. i really tried to do something sans chocolate, but hey - can you blame me? i'm sorry i dipped these delicious, healthy treats in dark chocolate.
sue me.
you can leave out the chocolate, but - no surprise - i recommend adding it. chocolate and lavender seem to like each other, and who am i to deny them a great relationship?
for some reason the coconut oil in these did not want to be part of the party. i only put in about 2 tablespoons but it wouldn't combine with the other ingredients! you can see it soaking into the cutting board... hopefully this won't happen for you. start with 1 tablespoon and see what it does.
after rolling out all the balls with my friend, we had coconut oil dripping from our hands - literally! so i just rubbed it all over my body. yum! i love when the food i eat is also the stuff i put on my skin to keep it glowing and healthy. like avocados, bananas, oats, papaya, lemon, mango, etc.
vanilla lavender balls: makes around 25?
1/2 cup coconut chunks
1 cup walnuts
1 cup cashews
3/4 cup dates
1-2 tb melted coconut oil
1-2 tb agave/maple syrup (optional)
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cinnamon
1/8 t ginger powder
seeds from 1 vanilla pod
2 t vanilla extract
1 t dried lavender
2-3 tb hemp seeds
in food processor, process coconut chunks and nuts until they're crumb sized. add dates and pulse until it clumps together. add all other ingredients and process until it forms into a ball.
roll this into balls and then dip in raw chocolate, or melted dark chocolate. stick 'em in the fridge for maybe 10-15 minutes and then gobble them up.
This is basically the same recipe I've used before, and it's become hugely popular! This time I made a simple vanilla bean cheesecake. Vanilla is underrated, don't you think? I've always loved it myself but people tend to categorize it as "plain". That's a shame (and a rhyme).
Vanilla Ice is also underrated...
That was joke. But I won't lie here - I have memorized the lyrics to this song. YOU LOVE ME, OKAY.
Ooooooh boy this is just plain freakin' delicious. I love the sour you get from the lemon, just the right amount to pair with the sweetness and richness of the maple syrup and cashews. This time I put coconut chunks in the crust and they added another texture. NOM.
Like I've said, this and the chocolate banana coconut cream pie are my family's two faves. If I were you, I'd trust their judgement. Now - if you're one of those people who are worried about many calories are in a slice of this heavenly creation... STOP IT! Who cares? You're not eating the entire thing, and all that's in it are raw nuts, dates, maple syrup (or agave) and vanilla beans.
I really just don't worry about calories. When you are eating whole plant foods in reasonable amounts - you shouldn't either. What do you think is healthier? A 100 calorie pack of Thinsations, or a 200 calorie Larabar?
I really hope you said the Larabar.
Let's compare the ingredients, shall we?
Thinsations: enriched wheat flour, sugar, glucose-fructose, canola oil with TBHQ and citric acid, cocoa, corn starch, sodium bicarbonate, salt, ammonium bicarbonate, monocalcium phosphate, colour and artificial flavour. - Larabar: nuts, dates... LOL! - Anyway the point I have to share is that "low calorie" is not necessarily synonymous with "healthy". This is a really important fact that I think too many people in North America don't understand or think of. The corporations have drilled into us that as long as it's low calorie - it's guilt-free! Ya know what, aspartame is low calorie and it causes blindness (it also turns into formaldehyde when it enters your blood). For Pete's sake, cement is low calorie. Getting my message? - If you'd like to email me about this, please do. Back to cheescake bliss. -
Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Almond Crust:makes 1 cheesecake
Crust:
1 cup dates
2 cups raw almonds
Surround the inside of a cake pan with wax paper or plastic wrap. Pulse dates and nuts together in food processor until you get a rough, sticky mixture that you can pat down with your hands into the bottom of the cake pan. Do so. Set in fridge.
Cheesecake:
3 cups raw cashews (preferably soaked for 3 to 4 hours)
3/4 cup lemon juice
2/3 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup melted coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Seeds from 1 vanilla pod
Blend all ingredients, EXCEPT coconut oil, together until smooth and creamy. Add coconut oil and make sure it blends completely. Taste it. Yes. Pour onto crust in cake pan and set in the fridge until it has the hardness you want (probably 3-5 hours or overnight). Take out of cake pan holding the wax paper or plastic wrap and put on your favourite plate. Slice and enjoy, or eat it like a wild animal.
Wow. I slept for about 15 hours. I am a sleep-o-holic anyway, but I could have easily slept more. The only reason I actually got up was to say hi to my friends who came over, and give them some of these:
They're Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Maple Whiskey Vanilla Frosting. Everyone is saying they're delicious so I advise you to make them TODAY. It is Saint Patrick's Day =)
Obviously I didn't eat any today, but I did have one yesterday and can tell you they're awesome. Super moist, chocolaty with just a HINT of excellent beer. Guinness is a family favourite here.
I've seen this recipe a lot for St. Pattie's, but never a vegan one. So here ya go! Enjoy.
Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Whiskey Frosting: makes about 20 cupcakes
Cupcakes: 1 bottle of Guinness Extra Stout (other kinds are NOT vegan) 2 sticks vegan butter 3/4 cup cocoa 2 cups whole wheat flour 2 cups raw sugar 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp cayenne 1 tsp instant coffee powder 1 tsp salt 2 Tb ground flax mixed with 4 Tb water 1/2 cup vegan yogurt (or use non-dairy milk)
Frosting: 1/2 package tofu 1/2 cup vegan butter 1/2 cup raw powdered sugar 1 cup non-dairy milk Vanilla seeds from 1 pod 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 cup agave/honey/maple syrup (if desired) 1/4 cup whiskey
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift all dry ingredients together, set aside. Melt butter and beer together, then stir in the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together until just combined and pour into cupcakes molds, or a cupcake pan lined with papers/vegetable oil. Bake for about 20 minutes.
While they're baking, make the frosting: blend all ingredients together in blender until smooth and thick. I fiddled with mine a lot and so ended up with a lot extra. If your frosting is too thick - add more whiskey, non-dairy milk, or liquid sweetener. If it's too thick, add more powdered sugar, tofu or vegan butter. Keep in fridge until the cupcakes are ready to decorate.
Pipe the frosting onto each cupcake and decorate with green sparkles for St. Pattie's! =)
Now, you probably care a lot more about Chocolate Beer Cupcakes than hearing about my water fast; but I'll talk more anyway. Today is good so far, it's the first day so nothing much happens in terms of detox. I feel a bit hungry but not uncomfortably so. I've dranken a quart of water, I'll probably drink another before I go to sleep. Actually, now that I'm typing this, I realize I'm thirsty! -
My friend Amanda was at my house the other night, and we were planning on going to a party... but it was raining, we were tired, and we just didn't feel like going out anymore. So we were left with some free time, what to do? Amanda declared she wanted to bake "something crazy-awesome with swirls".
We ended up with a tray of Vanilla Cupcakes and Peanut Butter Frosting. Not too shabby.
We found this recipe. I modified it a bit: used oat flour instead of all-purpose, used more tofu, added some agave and left out some sugar, used real vanilla, and made up my own icing. They were REALLY moist, and not too sweet. The combination was a delight. These cupcakes were gone in a day.
Vanilla Cupcakes: makes about 12
1 ½ cups oat flour 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
4 oz. tofu 3/4 cup sugar ½ cup soy milk/water 2 tsp. vanilla extract
Seeds from half a vanilla pod 1/3 cup vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, whisk together the first 3 ingredients. In a blender, combine the remaining ingredients; blend until smooth. Stir the wet ingredients into the flour mixture; and pour all the batter into muffin tins (lined with paper).
Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
Peanut Butter Frosting: makes 4 or so cups, you'll have extra
These are totally delicious! Everyone in my family agrees, even Greg (my big brother) who has the pickiest palate of all. If you want to make a cute, sweet and tasty dessert for a party, or for no reason at all - make these!
I'm basically saying whatever your situation: go make these. now.
As with most raw desserts, they're mostly nuts, seeds and dates... hur-RAW! I made them specifically to post on the blog, actually. I feel bad because lately I've just been eating tons of salad, and a bit of fruit... wonderful for me, but not that exciting for you. We all know what a banana looks like, and how amazing salad is.
So I hope you like them! I like things sweet, so feel free to take out some of the agave in the frosting. And with all raw recipes, you can pretty much do/change whatever you want and they'll still turn out great. The recipe does make a little extra frosting... but I'm sure this won't be a problem for you =)
Raw Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla-Cashew Frosting: makes about 15-20, with extra frosting
frosting:
1 cup raw cashews
2-4 Tb agave
Seeds from 1/2 vanilla pod
1 t vanilla extract
Pinch sea salt
2 Tb melted coconut oil
Water, only if needed
cupcakes:
1 cup raw nuts (ex. walnuts, almonds, pecans, etc.)
1/2 cup dates
2 Tb agave
1 t vanilla extract
Pinch sea salt
1/2 t cinnamon 4 Tb cacao
1/4 cup coconut flakes
1/4 cup hemp seeds
To make frosting: blend raw cashews into cashew butter in a high-speed blender (Vita-Mix). Make sure to keep pushing the cashews down so they get blended and you don't burn out your motor. It doesn't need to be super creamy, but make sure it's past the floury stage. It'll probably be really thick.
Then mix the cashew butter and all other ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Put in piping bag and set in fridge.
To make cupcakes: Pulse nuts in food processor until very fine, add dates until they're broken down. Then add all other ingredients and pulse until it sticks together, but doesn't stick to your hand (rough dough). Use a cookie cutter to form the "dough" into shapes; I just used a circle. Pipe frosting onto the top of the cupcakes and refrigerate for a bit if you want. Then enjoy!
This is a crowd-pleaser for sure. It's fun when you get to tell people they're healthy.
