GRAIN-FREE BLACK FOREST PORRIDGE- Vegan, Gluten-Free & Refined Sugar-Free

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I’ve recently rediscovered my love for grain-free porridge. The extra boost of protein helps keep me satisfied until lunch and the flavour combinations are endless. This week I’ve been enjoying this every morning:

Grain-Free Black Forest Porridge

I’m not kidding, the combination of rich chocolate with sweet cherries is too much for me to resist. Cherries are absolutely my favourite food in the entire world, so I think this porridge will definitely be my go-to summer breakfast.

Grain-Free Black Forest Porridge

Rich and creamy chocolate lentils filled with juicy cherries and topped with crunchy cacao nibs and sweet coconut. 

Serves 1

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup uncooked red lentils
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tbsp ground flax seeds
  • 1 tbsp cacao (or cocoa) powder
  • 3-4 drops chocolate liquid stevia
  • 1 cup cherries, chopped
  • 1 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1 tbsp cacao nibs (or chocolate chips)

Instructions:

  1. Add lentils and water to a small sauce pan and bring to a gentle boil over high heat. Reduce to medium-low and let cook for approximately 10-12 minutes, or until the water is absorbed and the lentils are soft. Remove from heat. 
  2. Stir in the cacao powder, ground flax seeds and stevia.
  3. Fold in the chopped cherries and top with cacao nibs and shredded coconut.
  4. Grab a spoon and dig in :)

Grain-Free Black Forest Porridge

xoxo Erin

You Might Also Like:

Sweet Potato Breakfast Mash                         Grain-Free Cinnamon Raisin “Oatmeal”

    Sweet Potato Breakfast Mash                                            Grain-Free Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal

 

UPDATE! This recipe has been shared at Whole Food Wednesdays.

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5-Ingredient Mondays (Almond Apricot Bars, Apple Pie and Key Lime Parfait)

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It’s a long weekend here in Canada and I’m loving it! Yesterday I completely cleaned out the kitchen and now have a pile of stuff to donate. I can’t get over how much of a difference having less stuff makes. Today I relaxed and spent the afternoon having a picnic and walking along the Humber River- very beautiful. I hope tomorrow is another productive cleaning/organizing day, but if I end up reading by the lake I won’t complain either :)

Now onto the food, oh sweet food. Take a look at these amazing recipes from last weeks 5-Ingredient Mondays:

Almond Apricot Bars from The Healthy Maven

Apricot Almond Bars

Elimination Diet Phase 2 Apple Pie from The Daily Dietribe

Apple Pie

Key Lime Breakfast Parfait from Cats in the Kitchen

Key Lime Breakfast Parfait

It appears from my highlights that I’m wanting something sweet right now!

This week for 5-Ingredients Monday I’m submiting:

Fresh Bean Sprout Stir-Fry

Bean Sprout Stir-Fry

There’s my submission to 5 Ingredient Mondays, what will yours be this week?

Please review the following guidelines before linking up:

  1. Recipe should contain 5 ingredients or less, pantry staples excluded. So basically anything that is likely to be found in most peoples kitchen/pantry does not count as an ingredient, neither do optional ingredients. Examples of kitchen/pantry staples may include spices, baking soda, baking powder, milk/non-dairy milk, oils, etc.
  2. Recipe must be gluten-free. Bonus for recipes that are also dairy-free and double bonus for plant-based recipes.
  3. Lastly, please leave a link to your own recipe that goes to that week’s 5-Ingredient Monday post, not on this static page.

Your recipes don’t need to be from this week, but it does need to be your own recipe. I will sometimes share photos of the recipes with links back to your blog, so by sharing your recipe, you are giving me permission to use your photo and link back to your recipe. 

Powered by Linky Tools

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

xoxo Erin

 

FRESH BEAN SPROUT STIR-FRY- Vegan, Gluten-Free & Oil-Free

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Stir-fry is awesome.

Bean Sprout Stir-Fry

Especially when it comes together in a matter of moments with minimal ingredients!

Bean Sprout Stir-Fry

Fresh and Healthy Bean Sprout Stir-Fry

A real “fast food” meal. Healthy, nutritious and downright delicious!

Serves 2

Ingredients:

  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 4 cups swiss chard, stems removed and set aside
  • 2 cups bean sprouts
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced

Instructions:

  1. Add onion and garlic to a frying pan with a splash of water. Saute over medium heat for 2 minutes, adding more water when necessary to avoid veggies from sticking to the pan. 
  2. Chop the removed swiss chard stems and throw them into the frying pan. Cook for 1-2 more minutes.
  3. Chop the swiss chard leaves into bite-sized pieces and add them, along with the broccoli and bean sprouts, to the frying pan.
  4. Cook until the swiss chard is wilted and the broccoli turns brighter green.
  5. Remove from heat, toss with lemon juice and dig in!

xoxo Erin

You Might Also Like:

Sweet and Sour Swiss Chard                                   Kale Protein Salad

   Sweet and Sour Swiss Chard                                         Kale Protein Salad

UPDATE! This recipe has been submitted to Meatless Mondays.

BLUEBERRY MUFFINS- Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free & Oil-Free

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Last week in Toronto the sun was out and the temperature was climbing. This week it’s back to clouds and wind. The change in temperature gave me the urge to bake in an attempt to warm the house up a bit. Blueberry muffins were on the menu- juicy blueberries for the upcoming summer and comforting muffins for the exiting spring.

Blueberry Muffins

Healthy Vegan & Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins

Moist, mouthwatering muffins spotted with juicy blueberries. You’ll never believe there’s a hidden vegetable in these beauties!

Serves 24

Ingredients:

Wet Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 6 tbsp unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar (any granulated sugar will work)
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 

Dry Ingredients: 

  • 1 1/2 cup brown rice flour
  • 1/4 cup tapioca starch
  • 1/4 cup potato starch
  • 1/4 cup ground flax seed
  • 2 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt

Fold-ins:

  • 1 1/2 cup frozen blueberries

Instructions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. 
  3. In a large bowl, stir together the wet ingredients until smooth.
  4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
  5. Fold in the blueberries.
  6. Portion batter between muffin pan, filling each muffin no more than 3/4 full.
  7. Put muffins in the oven and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake for 30 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
  8. Let cool completely before indulging!

Blueberry Muffins

And there’s a close-up so you can judge me for my stained muffin pan :)

xoxo Erin

You May Also Like:

     Banana Nut Muffins                               Pecan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

  Banana Nut Muffins                                       Pecan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins- Ready to Enjoy!

UPDATE! This recipe has been shared at Allergy-Free Wednesdays, Healthy Vegan Fridays and Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

5-Ingredient Mondays: SUGAR-FREE PEANUT BUTTER CUPS (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

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In case you missed it, there is a virtual vegan potluck that went live on Saturday! Check out my submission here OR start at the beginning and see ALL of the delicious submissions from bloggers around the world here!

Okay, now back to business. It’s Sunday night so you know what that means…5-Ingredient Monday time! Check out all of the delicious submissions from last week here. My favourites from last week were:

Healthiest Drink:

Strawberry Rosemary Sun-Tea from Spiced Curiousity

                  StrawberryRosemarySunTea_130419_IMG_9306Most Creative Appetizer:

Cucumber Chickpea Bruschetta from Gluten Free Easily

Chickpea-Cucumber-Bruschetta-041-2-300x225

Best Summer Refresher:

 Watermelon Mint Horchata from Living Large on a Tiny Lot

Watermelon Horchata

This week I’m sharing another peanut butter and chocolate recipe. And yes, I say “another” because since I announced my love affair with peanut butter and chocolate in my Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies post, I’ve gone on to create Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins and Chocolate Chunk Peanut Butter Cookies. Then I learned how to make the delicious peanut butter chocolate flavour without the peanuts with my Peanut-Free Tagalong Cookies and Peanut-Free Do-Si-Do Cookies. As I’m sure you can tell, I’m a little obsessed with this flavour combination :)

But who wouldn’t be with a treat like this staring you in the face:

Peanut Butter Cups

Super Healthy Peanut Butter Cups

Mouth watering peanut butter filling surrounded by rich dark chocolate. The perfect bite-sized treat!

Makes 10

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup cacao powder (cocoa powder will also work)
  • liquid stevia to taste (I used 5 drops of the dark chocolate liquid stevia)
  • 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
  • 2 tbsp brown rice flour
  • 2 tbsp coconut sugar (any granulated sugar will work)

Instructions:

  1. Line a mini muffin pan with silicone liners and place the tray in the freezer.
  2. Melt the coconut oil in a small sauce pan. Remove from heat and stir in the cacao powder. Add the liquid stevia and taste to ensure it is sweet enough for your liking.
  3. Remove the lined mini muffin pan from the freezer and use a cooking brush to coat each silicone cup with the chocolate. Place back in freezer until the chocolate sets.
  4. Add 2-3 more layers of chocolate to the silicone cups, letting set in freezer between each layer.
  5. Next, prepare the filling my mixing together the peanut butter, brown rice flour and coconut sugar.
  6. Add a small spoonful (approximately 1/2-3/4 tbsp) of peanut butter filling to each chocolate lined silicone cup. Gently smooth the top with a wet finger and place in freezer for 2 minutes.
  7. Use the rest of the chocolate mixture to cover the top of each peanut butter filled cup.
  8. Let set in freezer and keep in fridge until ready to serve.

Peanut Butter Cups

There’s my submission to 5 Ingredient Mondays, what will yours be this week?

Please review the following guidelines before linking up:

  1. Recipe should contain 5 ingredients or less, pantry staples excluded. So basically anything that is likely to be found in most peoples kitchen/pantry does not count as an ingredient, neither do optional ingredients. Examples of kitchen/pantry staples may include spices, baking soda, baking powder, milk/non-dairy milk, oils, etc.
  2. Recipe must be gluten-free. Bonus for recipes that are also dairy-free and double bonus for plant-based recipes.
  3. Lastly, please leave a link to your own recipe that goes to that week’s 5-Ingredient Monday post, not on this static page.

Your recipes don’t need to be from this week, but it does need to be your own recipe. I will sometimes share photos of the recipes with links back to your blog, so by sharing your recipe, you are giving me permission to use your photo and link back to your recipe. 

Powered by Linky Tools

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

xoxo Erin

P.S. Check out previous 5-Ingredient Mondays:

Chunky Monkey Cereal                                                                   Cherry Citrus Popsicles

    Chunky Monkey Cereal                                                                   Cherry Citrus Popsicles

UPDATE! This recipe has been shared at Wellness Weekend.

Virtual Vegan Potluck: BANANA SPLIT DESSERT LOAF (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free & Oil-Free)

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As the air begins to feel a bit like summer my craving for traditional summer foods have followed suit. There aren’t many things that are better than a cold scoop of non-dairy ice cream on a hot summers day, unless of course that ice cream is served banana split style. A sweet banana topped with strawberry, vanilla and chocolate ice cream, all drizzled with chocolate and pineapple sauce and sprinkled with crunchy nuts. Heaven, sweet, sweet summer heaven. But it’s not summer yet and in the absence of the blistering heat I find myself wanting the banana split flavour without the brain-freeze inducing ice cream.

Banana Split Dessert Loaf

And I’ve accomplished exactly that. Mouth watering banana bread, spotted with chunks of strawberries, dark and white chocolate and waluts, and smothered in a pineapple glaze before being sprinkled with shredded coconut.

Banana Split Dessert Loaf

Banana Split Dessert Loaf

All of the flavours of summer baked into your loaf pan. For an extra special treat, serve this loaf with a scoop of your favourite ice cream. 

Serves 12

Ingredients:

Wet Ingredients-

  • 1 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 6 tbsp unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar (any granulated sugar will work)
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Dry Ingredients-

  • 1 cup gluten-free oat flour
  • 1 cup white sorghum flour
  • 1/4 cup ground flax seed
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Stir-in Ingredients-

  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/4 cup dairy-free dark chocolate chunks
  • 1/4 cup dairy-free white chocolate chunks
  • 1/2 cup diced strawberries, tossed in 2 tsp arrowroot starch

Glaze Ingredients-

  •  1/2 cup diced pineapple
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tbsp arrowroot starch
  • 2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut

Instructions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line loaf pan with parchment paper (lightly greasing the edges not covered by the paper).
  2. Mix together all of the wet ingredients in a medium bowl.
  3. In a separate bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients.
  4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
  5. Fold in the stir-in ingredients and add batter to the loaf pan.
  6. Bake loaf for 45 minutes, or until the edges are slightly golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let loaf cool before removing from pan.
  7. Meanwhile, prepare the glaze by blending diced pineapple with water in a blender until smooth (a few small pineapple chunks is fine too).
  8. Add the pineapple mixture to a small sauce pan and whisk in starch. Heat over medium heat, while whisking frequently, until the mixture begins to thicken (approximately 3-4 minutes).
  9. Remove from heat and let cool for 5-10 minutes before brushing the cooled loaf with it. Then sprinkle the loaf with the shredded coconut.
  10. Slice the loaf and bask in the flavours of summer!

Dessert Split Dessert Loaf

I am very excited that this recipe is a part of the Virtual Vegan Potluck (a GLOBAL potluck party)! Follow the links below to navigate through the potluck and see all of the delicious recipes other bloggers from around the world have created!

To visit the blog that precedes mine in the Potluck, click here!

To visit the blog that follows mine in the Potluck, click here!

To start at the beginning of the Potluck, click here!

xoxo Erin

UPDATE! This recipe has been shared at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Tried and True Recipes and Allergy-Free Wednesdays.

5 Ingredient Mondays: SUGAR-FREE CHERRY CITRUS POPSICLES (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

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It’s that time again, 5 Ingredient Mondays! Last week we had a bunch of delicious recipes, check them out here. It was very hard to pick my favourites (so I highly suggest checking them all out), but I managed:

Cauliflower Crust Pizza- Carrie on Vegan

Cauliflower Pizza

I love pizza, like, really LOVE it. A crust that includes a vegetable is therefore a dream come true for me!

Cinnamon Sweet Potato Frosting- Sandi’s Allergy Free Recipes

Sweet Potato Icing

Frosting is something I’ve been doing a lot of experimenting with. It’s challenging to make without oil, but this recipe does it and does it with brilliance! Who needs oil when you can use sweet potato?

This week my 5-Ingredient recipe was inspired by the weather, anti-inflammatory foods and satisfying a sweet craving without any added sugar. My partner is recovery very well (and quickly) from his surgery and has actually told me he thinks it’s because of the foods I’ve been feeding him!!! Woohoo!!! He’s even trying to convince me to make a few posts about the pre and post surgery diet I’ve put him on. In the meantime, I thought I’d share one of our favourite treats. It’s cold, it’s refreshing, it fights inflammation and it’s down-right delicious:

Cherry Citrus Popsicles

Anti-Inflammatory Cherry Citrus Popsicles

A fresh summertime treat that cools your inflammation, while cooling you from the heat!

Serves 6

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups frozen dark cherries
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used almond)
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
  • 1-2 tsp fresh ginger

Instructions:

  1. Add all ingredients into a blender (I used my Vitamix) and blend until smooth. 
  2. Pour into popsicle moulds and place in freezer.
  3. Once they’re frozen, run the mould under hot water until the popsicles can be removed.

Cherry Citrus Popsicles

There’s my submission to 5 Ingredient Mondays, what will yours be this week?

Please review the following guidelines before linking up:

  1. Recipe should contain 5 ingredients or less, pantry staples excluded. So basically anything that is likely to be found in most peoples kitchen/pantry does not count as an ingredient, neither do optional ingredients. Examples of kitchen/pantry staples may include spices, baking soda, baking powder, milk/non-dairy milk, oils, etc.
  2. Recipe must be gluten-free. Bonus for recipes that are also dairy-free and double bonus for plant-based recipes.
  3. Lastly, please leave a link to your own recipe that goes to that week’s 5-Ingredient Monday post, not on this static page.

Your recipes don’t need to be from this week, but it does need to be your own recipe. I will sometimes share photos of the recipes with links back to your blog, so by sharing your recipe, you are giving me permission to use your photo and link back to your recipe. 

Powered by Linky Tools

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

xoxo Erin

UPDATE! This recipe has been shared at Raw Food Thursdays, Fat Tuesday, Whole Food Wednesdays, Thank Your Body Thursdays, Pure Potluck Party, Natural Living Mondays and Healthy 2Day Wednesdays.