A few days back I made this tart using the base I found in Carol Lovett's e-book, Indulge, which I mentioned in my last post. I have been looking for a good grain and nut-free pie crust which didn't fall apart and this is it. It was so easy to make - I actually used a food processor and it all came together like a dream. I didn't attempt to roll it out but just pushed it into the pie dishes and that worked well. This is the second recipe I have made from Carol's book and I am very pleased with it. If you are interested in the book, Click here to visit Ditch The Wheat and scroll to the bottom of the page to buy it. I filled it with the simplest of dairy and sugar-free fillings - uncooked banana, cocoa and coconut oil. Even out of the fridge it holds its shape well and the filling stays firm. I would say this was a triumph and the tarts look so pretty. I actually had all the ingredients in the house and it was all done and dusted in very little time. This would be a great dessert … [Read more...] about Chocolate Banana Tart – grain, dairy and refined sugar-free
paleo diet
Classic Vanilla Cake – grain, dairy and refined sugar-free
I belong to a Facebook group of wonderful women with food blogs and one of them, Carol Lovett, has written an e-book of grain-free desserts called Indulge. I offered to try a couple of recipes and this is the first one. I couldn't be more pleased with the result. It was easy to prepare and even easier to eat. It is light and a great basic for various different flavours and desserts. This could be the cake part of a trifle for example or the base of lamingtons. I decided to frost it with the coconut topping I have used before on my Banana Strawberry Muffins. Coconut cream whips up exactly like whipped cream and can be used as a substitute. Coconut is a healthy fat as long as it has not been hydrogenated but don't buy it in a can because BPA (Bisphenol-A) is used in the can lining. BPA especially leaches into canned foods that are acidic, salty or fatty, such as coconut milk, tomatoes, soup, and vegetables. BPA is not a good thing to have running around in your body so buy all … [Read more...] about Classic Vanilla Cake – grain, dairy and refined sugar-free
Chocolate Vanilla Tart – grain, dairy and refined sugar-free
My search for great grain, dairy and refined sugar-free sweets continues. The ingredients for such creations are often similar with some variations. They need a base of nuts to create something solid, then some oil, usually coconut for moisture and something sticky to keep it all together like a nut butter. The toppings or frostings involve bananas or whipped coconut cream for bulk with various flavourings like chocolate, almond, mint or vanilla - as in this case. The sweeteners can be either pureed dates, honey or stevia. Now let's get to today's offering - a chocolate tart with vanilla banana topping. This is not a low Fodmap recipe. Chocolate Vanilla Tart Print Prep time 15 mins Total time 15 mins Serves: 8 slices Ingredients For the base: 1.5 cups roasted unsalted cashews 1 cup date puree ½ cup smooth peanut butter For the topping: 120g sugar-free chocolate 1 banana 3 tbsp honey 2 tsp vanilla essence Shredded coconut or extra cashew … [Read more...] about Chocolate Vanilla Tart – grain, dairy and refined sugar-free
Christmas Cookies – gifts for all – gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free
It's Christmas Eve and I have spent a lot of the day baking cookies for little gift bags I want to give to each of the 19 people present at our family Christmas lunch tomorrow. I tested some on Saturday using recipes I found on gluten-free or paleo food blogs but two lots of the resultant cookies were pretty awful … [Read more...] about Christmas Cookies – gifts for all – gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free
Chocolate Marshmallow Slice – gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free
Today's offering is multi-layered and quite delicious. It is, of course, gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free. The only part I might need to play with is the base. I found the recipe for it on The Healthy Foodie blog. I did, however, use brown rice flour instead of spelt flour and added raisins to the mixture. Because of my stupid, erratic oven, the top started to burn before it was cooked so I placed some tin foil on it but I think I still pulled it out of the oven too soon because it was a bit sloppy. Of course the changing of the flour might have mucked around with the chemistry a bit. It also was not very sweet at all and a little tasteless but this doesn't matter because of the top two layers. I think I will try a different base next time. The marshmallow layer worked really well but you do have to follow the directions carefully. I found the recipe at The Urban Poser blog. The top frosting is the same that I used on my chocolate carrot cake and is totally delicious. I … [Read more...] about Chocolate Marshmallow Slice – gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free
