GF, SF, Vegan Persimmon Muffins

Persimmons. What to do with persimmons?
I had never even tried one before we got them in our CSA box last year. I ate one- and they're pretty good! But honestly, it never sounds good to just eat as a snack. So, I looked up recipes.  Last year I  found a recipe for cookies, and they were delicious! For some reason I was having trouble this year finding anything that suited me, so I made one up :)
 I used my Better Homes & Garden cookbook to help guide me, but it looks nothing like the original plain muffin recipe anymore :)

You will need:
2 cups of all purpose gluten free flour
1 1/2 tsp xantham gum
1/2 cup of honey
3/4 tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp flax seed
1 tsp chia seed
1 Tbsp water
2 persimmons (about 1 cup of puree)
Walnuts (optional)
Coconut sugar to sprinkle on top (optional)

First, warm your oven to 350*

Then cut the tops of your persimmons off, and if you have a hard core blender like a Vita Mix, you are done :)  Throw them in and blend them up! 

Once blended, I added the water, chia & flax seed.  I blended them up a little more, then poured it into a measuring cup and let it sit.  The chia seed and water replace any egg needed and act as a binder.  The persimmon puree replaces the oil to make a moist muffin :)

                                                                     (my little helpers!)

Next I sprayed my muffin pans with Coconut Spray Oil.  Found this at Whole Foods. I was stoked :)

Then, mix together all the ingredients.  I did the dry first, then added the persimmon mix.  It solidified a bit, so Izzy had some trouble pouring it in.....

But we managed.  Once all the ingredients are mixed in, put in some crushed up walnuts.  Then divide into muffin tins- I filled up 18.  Then sprinkle coconut sugar on top of each one and stick in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes.

They turned out gooey on the inside and crispy on the outside, just how I like 'em!  Enjoy!

GF/SF Zucchini Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies!

ZUCCHINI CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free)

In a large bowl, combined:
1 ripe banana, mashed
1/4 cup chia seed (this, combined with the banana, binds the cookie together like an egg normally would)
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup mayple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

In a separate bowl, combined: .
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup gf oats
1/2 cup gf all purpose mix
1/4 hemp protein
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg

Pour the second bowl into the first, then add:

1 finely shredded zucchini (about a cup)
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup cranberries
1/4 cup nuts of your choice (walnuts are delicious!)
Stir these into other ingredients, mix well.  Drop by spoonful onto greased baking (I used coconut oil)
sheet, and flatten with the back of a spoon.  Bake at 350°, 10 to 15 minutes.

This was originally adapted from the book Animal Vegetable Miracle (inspired me to eat locally! AND to live on a farm. We'll see about that one. At least I'm working on getting my own chickens.....), but then I went a  little crazy and it now looks nothing like the original recipe.  Oh well!  It has almost all the food groups (except the meat & dairy, but is that still a food group? Or is it the protein food group? Cause we have that....), it has protein, carbs, fruits AND veggies, the good kind of fat, and its delicious!

sprouted lentils

One of the thing Raw Foodist are really into is sprouting foods. I have to admit, when I first started looking into the raw food thing, this part really scared me! It looked waaaaay too complicated. But the idea is that, when the grains are sprouting, they are starting to digest themselves, therefore making it easier on the human body to digest. Make sense? Kinda, not really, I know. I thought the same thing. But my friend Patty (she's my Raw food partner in crime these days) told me it was really easy to do lentils, and I should just give it a try. So I did.

First- soak a cup of lentils over night.  Be sure to at least double the water- those lentils will get big!!!

The next morning, drain and rinse the lentils.  I then laid them out on a towel covering a baking pan, covered it with another towel, and stuck it in a "dark place" ie. under my dining room table.  I kept it there until that night, where I rinsed them then re-laid them out.  The next morning I noticed some little baby sprouts!!!!  I let them sit another day and that night I put them in mason jars and in the fridge.  So yummy to snack on and in my salads!  And so good for you! (and for some reason I cannot understand, they are less calories this way than when cooked)

I tried to sprout some quinoa but they smelled funky. Guess thats part of the process, but wasn't a fan so not going to try that again.  Anyways, if you're thinking of sprouting, give lentils a try. So easy and so yummy!!!

Sweet Treats

One of my biggest concerns whenever starting a new style of eating (which sadly, has been too many times) is what kind of "treats" I would be able to get. I have a HUGE sweet tooth. I need me my treats!

So I was really worried about what kinds of treats are available in any kind of "RAW" diet- luckily, they are plentiful!  My friend Patty emailed me with a link to Likes Veggies & Yoga and the problem was solved!

Averie has some amazing recipes that are vegan, high or all Raw, gluten free, etc.  Then she busts out these totally gluten-full, white sugar, not so good for you (but she explains why in one of her posts) desserts as well, and those look just as yummy!

The desserts I have made so far:

Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip balls.  I have made these seriously a bazillion times. I LOVE them
And she has a whole section of raw vegan "balls." I have made them with cacao nibs and my dairy free soy free choco chips. All were delish
Marshmellow stuffed Rice Krispie Bars.  I used my marshmallows and my chocolate chips, but still used butter, so it wasn't 100% vegan, but they were sooooo so good. Steve's favorite- making it again for him for his upcoming bday :)
Microwave Chocolate Peanut Butter and Oat snack bar. Vegan, and Girls approved :)
Raw Vegan Peanut Butter Cups. Off the chain
Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Bars. I think these are my favorite bars I've made (another post on that, later)
Raw Vegan Chia Seed Pudding (you know I love me some chia!)
Raw Vegan Cheese Cake. Not exactly, but close enough for me!
Raw Vegan Chocolate Mousse. To DIE for.

To name a few. And I have actually LOST weight eating all those deliciousnesses. (I'm aware that I just made that word up).  Goes to show that good food is good for you, no matter the calories or the fat.  Girlfriend needs to make a cookbook. I'd be the first to buy it!

I've done a bunch of Averie's other recipes as well- I've taken a liking to her blog, and her. Probably because she's in SD and likes yoga and has a little girl and likes photography, so we share a lot of common interests!  But her blog is really easy to get lost in, she's constantly linking up to her old posts and recipes.  Go check her out!

Chia Banana Date Cookies- GF

Since I am now obsessed with chia, I was so excited when I found this recipe online.  Treats with the health benifits of chia! AND they're gluten free

Ingredients

8 Tablespoons of white chia seeds (though, from the minimal research I did, there isn't much difference between the two kinds)

8 Tablespoons of coconut flour

1 and a Half ripe banana

1 egg

4 tablespoons of chopped dates

4 Tablespoons of rolled oats

4 tablespoons of honey

2 teaspoons of baking powder

2 Tablespoon of water

Method

Grind the seeds and the flour together. This makes the seeds grind easier and aerates the flour. I did this in the coffee grinder- my first time EVER using it!

Put this mixture into a bowl and add the rolled oats.

Blend together the banana, dates, honey, baking powder and water. Love my Vita-Mix

Add this to the dry ingredients in the bowl. Mix together. The consistency should be similar to a cake batter but not as runny as a pancake mix.

Drop dessertspoons of the mixture on to an oiled tray. Bake in a medium oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned.

Made about 30 cookies.  Taste really similar to banana bread- thinking of trying it in muffin form next time :)

Recipe