Healthy Cherry Crumble

Hello, weekend.  I am so excited to see your arrival.  I hope you guys had a great week, and have loads of exciting plans for the weekend.  Life just gets better on the weekend, especially when summer comes into play.  Wouldn't you agree? 

Cherries have always been one of my favorite summer treats to snack on.  When I was a little girl, I used to climb the large cherry tree in my grandmothers backyard and eat all the cherries until I made myself sick.  We all know that cherries have natural, ahem, "cleansing" properties. :)

This recipe is one of my new favorite clean eating ways to indulge in juicy, ripe cherries; in a crumble that's about as guilt free as they come!  My healthy version is vegan and gluten free & the all natural flavors really enhance the tart cherries.  It's the perfect light dessert to indulge in without derailing your whole diet.  I like to serve mine with a dollop of almond milk ice cream on top!

For this recipe, you will need to pit your cherries and I've found that a cherry pitting tool is the easiest way to do so.  I found mine at Williams & Sonoma for $13 {view it here}.
 
Enjoy!

Ingredients

6 1/2 cups pitted cherries (around 2 bags of cherries before pitting)
2/3 cup white rice flour flour (or any other gluten free flour)
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp sugar substitute
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 Tsp. grated lemon zest
1/4 Tsp salt
5 Tbsp coconut oil
1 Tsp + 1/4 Tsp almond extract
1/2 cup pecans
3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats
Almond milk ice cream for topping  *optional*


Directions

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Lightly spray the bottom and sides of an 8" square baking dish with non stick spray.
 
In a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar and salt.  Pulse until combined.  Add in the coconut oil, honey, and 1/4 tsp almond extract and continue pulsing until the mixture is completely combined. 

Next, add the pecans and pulse until the nuts are chopped and fully incorporated but the mixture is still chunky, taking care not to over mix.  Last, add the oatmeal to the mixture and pulse 2 to 3 times to incorporate.  Place the topping in the refrigerator and chill for 15 minutes.
 
To prepare the cherry filling, gently toss the cherries with the cornstarch, sugar substitute, lemon juice + zest, and 1 tsp almond extract in a large bowl.

To assemble, distribute the cherry filling evenly throughout the prepared pan.  Next, evenly scatter the chilled topping on top of the filling.  Place in oven, and bake until the top is browned and the fruit is bubbling, about 35-40 minutes. 

Check after about 20 minutes, and if the top is starting to brown too quickly, lightly tent with foil and continue baking until the filling is bubbling. 

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly.  Serve immediately with ice cream if desired.

original recipe source

Have an amazing weekend!  Thanks so much for stopping by.  xx

Banana Chocolate Cake In A Cup - Vegan & GF

We've all seen those recipes on Pinterest for 'Individual Mug Cake'.  They've been going around pretty strong for the past year.  I have my own version that I've been making for a couple years now, except I don't have a cutesy name for it like "mug cake".  I call mine cake in a cup, and I used to torment my husband with my best Austin Powers Goldmember impression, "Would you like a cake in a cup?  How about a smoke and a pancake?" :)  Ahhhhhh the joys of being married to me....

Anyhoo, my cake in a cup version is dense, fudgy and full of chocolate, banana, and coconut goodness.  It's super easy to whip up and cooks in approximately 3 minutes!  Oh, and did I mention that it's vegan, gluten, and refined sugar free?  Thank me later girls.  This is your new go-to for those type of days.  :)

Ingredients

4 tbsp white rice flour
2 tbsp sugar substitute {I use Z Sweet}
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
Dash of cinnamon
1/2 of a ripe banana; mashed
3 tbsp unsweetened apple sauce
3 tbsp almond milk {I use an unsweetened chocolate version from Almond Breeze, but any flavor is fine!}
2 drops vanilla extract
2 tbsp vegan chocolate chips
Large pinch of unsweetened shredded coconut
Almond milk ice cream **optional**


Directions

In a small bowl, combine flour, sugar substitute, cocoa powder, baking powder, and dash of cinnamon.  Set aside.

In another small bowl, combine banana, apple sauce, almond milk, and vanilla extract.  Slowly add in dry ingredients, mixing well to combine.  

Add in chocolate chips, and shredded coconut.  Pour batter into a microwave safe coffee mug, place in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes.

Serve immediately with ice cream on the side.  

How cute are these 'his ice cream & her ice cream' spoons?!  You can find them in the most adorable Etsy ever shop by clicking {here}

Have a great day! xx

Pumpkin Banana Bread With A Warm Nutella Center

I know what you're thinking.....pumpkin+banana plus Nutella??  Before you dismiss this recipe here me out first.  

So last week I experimented with making pumpkin banana bread.  In our household it is absolutely mandatory that chocolate chips be added to all loafs of banana bread {if you're going to indulge it might as well be worth while!}.  So as to not break the rules, I threw in a smidge of chocolate chunks.  omg....so scrump!  Adam, being the beast that he is, was smearing every slice of my experimental bread with Nutella {yes, he likes to take it to that level} and it was SO delicious...like unreal delicious. 

That got me thinking about baking another loaf with a warm Nutella center.  The result is everything you could hope for in a pumpkin based dessert.  Nutella + pumpkin = pure bliss!  :)

I really hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!! xx

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup white rice flour {you can substitute with regular ol' flour if you'd like}
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup organic canned pumpkin puree {not to be mistaken for pumpkin pie filling}
1/2 cup brown sugar substitute 
2 tbsp softened butter
1 large egg
1 egg white
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup Nutella
cooking spray {I use a coconut oil version}
powdered sugar {optional for garnish}

Directions 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Grease a 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray.  

In a medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter + brown sugar using a stand or electric mixer at a low speed.  Add in egg, egg white, and vanilla while increasing speed to medium.  Incorporate pumpkin, and bananas; mix until well combined.

Decrease speed to low and slowly add in flour mixture adding a little bit at a time.  Make sure not to over mix.

Pour half of the batter into the loaf pan & spread out evenly.  Drop spoonfuls of the Nutella {evenly distributed} onto batter.  

Using a butter knife, slowly swirl down and mix the Nutella into the batter.  You want this to appear as a swirl so do not over mix!

Top with remaining batter and transfer to oven.  Bake for around 1 hour or until the top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Transfer to a wire rack and cool in loaf pan for 20 minutes.  

Using a butter knife, gently loosen loaf from the sides of the pan and cool completely on wire rack for around 30 more minutes before slicing.

Lightly dust with powdered sugar prior to serving. {optional}

Are you craving pumpkin everything as much as I am this year??

Guilt Free Vegan Apple Crisp

Four words: Vegan.  Gluten free.  Delicious.  Do I have your attention now? :)

Last week after dinner, Adam was craving dessert of some form {ok, so maybe I was too!}.  I quickly threw this together using staple ingredients in my pantry and was pleasantly surprised at how tasty it turned out!  

Gooey apples, cinnamon + spice flavors, and a crunchy topping are the perfect flavors to warm you up on a cozy Autumn night.  You honestly won't even notice that there is no eggs, no dairy, and no gluten of any sort.

If you manage to have any leftovers, you can heat it up the next morning and add it to your oatmeal like we did!  Soooooo yummy!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

3 apples {1 cored + cut into chunks, the other 2 cored and sliced thin w/ skin left on for extra fiber}
1/3 c. Oatmeal
Agave nectar
3 tbsp. cinnamon
3 tbsp. brown sugar substitute
4 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of sugar substitute


Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Grease the bottom of a ramekin with a small amount of coconut oil.

Taking the apple that has been cut into chunks, place in a blender or food processor along with a pinch of sugar substitute and pulse until you have achieved a smooth but still chunky consistency.  Set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine sliced apples, 2 tbsp cinnamon, nutmeg, 2 tbsp brown sugar substitute & 1 tbsp agave.  Gently toss to combine.

Heat a medium sautee pan over medium high heat with 2 tbsp. coconut oil.  Sautee apple slices, stirring occasionally for about 8-9 minutes or until soft.  Give one extra little dusting of cinnamon and remove from heat.

Using that same medium sized bowl that you tossed the apple slices in, combine oatmeal, 1 tbsp. cinnamon, 1 tbsp. agave, 1 tbsp of brown sugar, 2 tbsp. coconut oil, and 2 tbsp of the apple puree.  If the mixture feels too dry, add an additional 1 tsp. coconut oil + 1 tsp apple puree.

Using your greased ramekins, layer about 2 tbsp of apple puree at the bottom.  Next layer the sauteed apple slices about 3/4 of the way up and finish with the oatmeal topping.

Place in oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until oatmeal has achieved a nice crunchy brown texture.

Remove from oven and let cool about 5 minutes before serving. 

Serves 2-3 {depending on the size of your ramkekins}.

Need a few ramekins to bake this dish?  I love {these} adorable little chalkboard ones.  Also {these} from Bed Bath & Beyond that I own in red {but they come in many different colors} and I'm really digging {these} pretty gold rimmed ramekins from Williams & Sonoma which would be perfect for the holidays!