Personal Pecan Pie

Sometimes I feel like a broken record. Words like Yummo, easiest recipe, best I ever made, and I never miss the old glutenous version come spilling from the keyboard onto my blog. But by golly, it's how I feel. 

I can't take credit for this recipe. I found it on the blog, Gluten Free Fix. Also known as Pecan Tassies. I have shared my experience with Michelle's recipes before and I have never been disappointed. You won't be disappointed either.

Personal Pecan Pie

Crust:

• 8 Tbls butter, melted
• 4 Tbls maple syrup
• 2 egg whites (reserve the yolks for filling)
• 3 cups almond flour or meal, firmly packed
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp sea salt

Filling:

• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 1/2 cups maple syrup
• 4 Tbls butter, melted
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Combine all the crust ingredients until it forms a soft dough and set aside.
2. Combine all filling ingredients and except the pecans and set aside
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Assemble 

Drop a scoop of dough into a well greased mini muffin pan. About a teaspoon of dough.

Wet your fingers and smash the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the cup.
Sprinkle about 1/2 to 3/4 tsp chopping pecans into each formed crust.
Spoon in about 1 Tbls filling into each formed crust.
Bake for 18-22 minutes.
Let cool about 15 minuted before removing from pan.

Enjoy!!

Almond Butter Cups-Vegan

   I recently made a quick trip to Ft. Lauderdale to visit my 98 year old grandmother. While I was there we went to a vegetarian restaurant called GreenBar&Kitchen . My daughter and I shared the Avocado Toast,( Avocado, sprouts, cashew-truffle dressing, pink peppercorns, on flax & millet toast) and the Roasted Bowl (Brown rice, quinoa, garlic, cauliflower, broccoli, sweet potato, onion, zucchini, yellow squash, garlic aioli & Santa Fe dressing). Both delicious and totally gluten free, and did I say vegetarian? 

   I'm always interested in trying alternative desserts and comparing them to mine so when I looked in the dessert case and saw a dessert that looked like my Almond Butter Cups, I knew that was what I needed to try. So, that's just what I did. I picked the Raw Cashew Butter Cup. It was delicious and very sweet. It had a layer of chocolate on the bottom then a layer of cashew butter then a top layer of chocolate. It kind of looked like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup but with cashew butter and about the same size. 

   The Almond Butter Cup recipe was adapted from Megan's (Detoxinista) No-Bake Peanut Butter Cup Bars.. This recipe is vegan and does not require cooking. It has a total of six ingredients and it's made in 3 easy steps. 

Here you go!!

Almond Butter Cups

Layer 1, Chocolate Cookie Crust:

• 1 1/2 cup almond meal or flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 Tbls melted coconut oil
• pinch sea salt

Layer 2, Almond Butter Filling:

• 1 cup creamy almond butter(salted or unsalted depending on how salty you like the filling)
• 6 Tbls pure maple syrup
• 2 Tbls melted coconut oil
• pinch sea salt

Layer 3, Chocolate Ganache topping:

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil
• 6 Tbls pure maple syrup

Instructions

1. Line mini cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together all the Layer 1 ingredients until a soft dough is formed.
3. Scoop a small amount of the dough into each cupcake paper and press to bottom.
4. Set pan in freezer while you make Layer 2.
5. Rinse out the bowl you prepared the crust in and combine Layer 2 ingredients.
6. Combine Layer 2 ingredients saving the salt to last. 
7. Add salt to your taste.
8. Remove the pan from the freezer and scoop a small amount of almond butter mixture in to the cupcake papers and smooth out.
9. Place back in freezer and prepare Layer 3 in the same bowl that has been rinsed out following Layer 2.
10. Combine cocoa and melted coconut oil and slowly add maple syrup until ganache is shiny.
11. Remove the pan from freezer again and spoon a small amount of the ganache over the almond butter layer. Smooth out ganache in each cup as you go. 
12.  Place the pan back in the freezer and let set for about 15 minutes.
13. This recipe makes 48 mini cups.
14. This can also be prepared in a 13X9 parchment lined glass dish and cut into small squares. Follow the same instructions.
15. These can be kept in the refrigerator or freezer. I can't tell you how long they will stay good since they don't keep very long. They get eaten up. Yep all eaten up.

This is one of the most decadent chocolate recipes I make. It's easy! It's delicious! It's chocolate! It's worth making for your family.Need I say more? 

This is a kid approved waffle recipe. It can also be made into pancakes but my preference is making waffles. I saw this recipe here first. Kelly writes The Spunky Coconut blog and is one of my favorite recipe bloggers. 

Paleo Waffles

Ingredients

• 1 cup coconut or almond milk
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
• 5 large eggs
• 1/4 cup -packed- almond flour (any brand)
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup arrowroot
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil or ghee
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until incorporated into a batter.
2. Add some coconut oil to pre-heated waffle iron.
3. Drop some of batter onto waffle iron and spread out. Close top down and let cook for approximately 4-6 minutes. Check for crispness by opening up the waffle iron. Leave in until you get your desired browness.
4. Serve with pure maple syrup and Kerry Gold Butter.

Makes about 6 waffles and they great leftover and freeze. 

Just pop them in the toaster for right from the freezer and toast to desired crispiness

Freezes well

It's as easy to make something from scratch as it does to dump the ingredients out of a box. The difference is worth it so that you can enjoy real food.
What do you like to eat for breakfast?

No-Fail Paleo Mayo

Never buy Mayonnaise again!! Seriously! Never buy mayonnaise ever again!!

Have you ever looked at the list of ingredients on the mayonnaise label? Lots of words I can't pronounce, not to mention there is sugar in nearly every brand.

Well, a while back I found this recipe online at The Healthy Foodie for NO FAIL MAYO. The trick is in the tools you use.

First you need to have an immersion stick mixer. It is hand held and looks like a wand.
Mine disconnects on the middle and is easily put in the dishwasher to clean. I inherited my mixer from my mom however over the years I have seen immersion mixers at Goodwill for $4 to $5. Always plug them in to make sure they work before you buy it at Goodwill. If you don't have this tool then don't attempt to make mayo using this recipe. It probably won't work!

Next you need a wide mouth pint mayonnaise jar or other jar or cup that can accommodate the immersion mixer all the way to the bottom of the cup/jar. I like an old mayo jar because it has a lid that can store my mayo.


No-Fail Mayonnaise

immersion mixer

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1 cup extra lite olive oil
• 1 Tbls Lemon or Lime Juice
• dash sea salt, to taste
• garlic powder (optional)

Directions

1. Put all ingredients in the wide mouth mayonnaise jar.
2. Place immersion mixer in bottom of the jar and turn on.
3. Hold the mixer in place at the bottom of the jar for a full 20 seconds.
4. Watch as the ingredients emulsify before your eyes.
5. At the end of 20 seconds move the mixer up and down to incorporate the rest of the olive oil into the mayonnaise.
6. This is where you add a little garlic or other seasoning such as chipolte or taco seasoning to flavor your mayo if you like. 
7. BAM!! DONE

Another easy recipe with a few ingredients you can pronounce and no added sugar.

Enjoy good food!