Category: Desserts

Leprechaun (Spinach) Muffins

When my Beautycounter friend Amy Carter shared her secret spinach muffin recipe that fooled even her tiny humans into thinking they were dessert, let’s say I was intrigued … and relieved because now there’s hope for all parents struggling to get their picky kiddo’s to eat their veggies. I wish I knew about this clever recipe when raising my kids.

#SpinachMuffinMagic is what I’d call it!

The recipe Amy shared was called Popeye Muffins from thegreenforks.com. I made a few changes to make it whole food plant based no salt, oil or sugar (WFPB no SOS) compliant and they turned out super delicious. My first attempt I used oat flour while in the second iteration I opted for chickpea flour. Much to my surprise there wasn’t a noteworthy difference between the two. This recipe strikes a perfect balance of sweetness, effectively masking any trace of spinach flavor. The dark green color may look intense, yet funny enough, it could pass as camouflage on St. Patrick’s Day. With everything healthy in this recipe the more your little leprechaun’s eat the healthier they will be!

Ingredients

  • 2 cups oat or chickpea flour (you can make your own flour by processing rolled oats or dried chickpeas into fine powder)
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup chopped raw pepitas
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 (6 oz. bag) fresh baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup mashed banana (about 2 bananas)
  • 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 3 – 4 unsweetened dry apricots

Directions

  • Wisk together dry ingredients and set aside (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pepitas)
  • Place milk and spinach in a high speed blender until completely pureed. Add the banana, applesauce and vanilla and blend until completely mixed.
  • Pour pureed mixture into the dry mixture and fold together with a wooden spoon or plastic spatula until completely combined.
  • Fill silicone muffin pan with the batter 3/4 full.
  • Top the muffin batter with small pieces of dried apricots
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until tootpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Kids that like to get involved will think the colors are pretty cool (but then that blows the secret of the hidden spinach)
I think the apricots look like little nuggets of gold
Very moist with very little crumbling

Apricot Walnut Crumble Bread

The inspiration behind this bread was a recipe from the Winter 2024 edition of Forks over Knives magazine for Irish Porridge Bread. I essentially used the same recipe but replaced the maple syrup with date syrup (the only approved whole food plant based sweetener next to molasses), used whole grain rolled oats instead of quick oats (less processed), crumbled the oats up a little bit in a food processor and added walnuts and dried apricots. The end result, in all honesty, was something more like cake then bread. Straight out of the oven it was a bit crumbly when cutting but once cooled it was nice and firm. This bread is so delicious and really moist. I made a loaf Saturday morning, by evening half of it was gone and come Sunday afternoon just a little sliver was left.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups unsweetened plant based milk
  • 3 cups rolled oats
  • 2 tbsps. apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tbsps. date syrup
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/3 cup dried apricots cut in pieces
  • 1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a small bowl mix the plant milk and apple cider vinegar together and let sit for 10 minutes. The mixture will curdle slightly from the acidity similar to, although not quite as dramatic, as buttermilk.
  3. Add all the other ingredients to a large mixing bowl and stir together. Pour in the milk / apple cider vinegar mixture and mix thoroughly.
  4. Pour the batter in the loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown. Allow to cool completely before slicing.
How could this possibly be so healthy when it tastes so sinfully delicious?

Know Your Oats

Steel-Cut Oats:

These are the healthiest oats because they contain the highest amount of fiber and are the least processed. They contain the whole oat kernel that has been cut into pieces with steel disks. It takes longer to cook steel-cut oats (30 – 40 minutes) but the result is a creamier and chewy porridge with the lowest glycemic index score of 53.

Rolled Oats:

These are often called old fashioned oats. The whole grains are steamed, flattened and flaked resulting in a softer texture then steel-cut oats. They are lightly processed. It takes about 5 minutes to cook rolled oats on the stove. The glycemic index score is 59.

Instant Oats:

These are rolled oats that are thinly cut to allow for quicker cook time – 1 minute. They are the most processed of the oats making them the least healthy choice. They have the highest glycemic index score of 83.

Healthy Pumpkin Spice Bread

There’s nothing better then warming up a cool late October day with a healthy home baked creation. This is the season for all things pumpkin and when I woke up this morning wanted the sweet smell of pumpkin and spices permeating throughout the house. Immediately I thought of pumpkin bread and I just so happened to have the most amazing plant based recipe. So at 10 o’clock in the morning I swung into pumpkin spice bread mode and before you know it that little loaf was in the oven baking.

That’s about when hubby came in the kitchen and told me to get dressed we’re going on an autumn hike. Well – so much for the smell of pumpkin and spices permeating throughout the house. In the 50 minutes that it took to bake my bread I managed to take a shower, get dressed, throw a little make-up on and by the time I laced up my hiking boots my little loaf of pumpkin spice bread was ready to come out of the oven.

It’s peak fall foliage season here in NE Ohio so the hike at Chapin Forest was like one out of a story book. The brilliant crimsons, yellow ochres and sienna oranges were somewhat of a visual overload. It was quite windy so the entire area was snowing “leaves.” We stopped at a viewpoint which overlooked a valley draped in the most magnificent colors and ominous Lake Erie in the background. Absolutely drop dead gorgeous!

The drive back home through scenic country roads was equally spectacular. I love the look of modest little country homes decorated with pumpkins, scarecrows and little homemade ghosts swaying from trees. I started thinking of toasty fireplaces, hot apple cider and then just as we pulled up in the driveway I started thinking about my freshly made pumpkin spice bread. As we opened the door it was just as I imagined in the morning – the sweet smell of pumpkin and spices permeating throughout the house. The bread was still warm and how delicious it tasted after our robust autumn hike!

Chapin Forest at one of the best scenic overlooks, quarry pond ledges, from which Cleveland and Lake Erie are visible on a clear day.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinammon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 15 oz. can of pure pumpkin
  • 1/2 cup date syrup
  • 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup dark raisins
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

  1. Sift together the first seven ingredients in a large bowl
  2. In another bowl stir together the pumpkin, date syrup and vanilla
  3. Add the flour mixture and stir until all ingredients are mixed. The batter will be firm. Fold in the raisins and walnuts.
  4. Pour the batter into an 8 x 4 parchment lined or silicone loaf pan
  5. Bake 50-60 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean) in a preheated 350 degree oven.
Slices so nicely and super moist. Everything about this bread is healthy (no refined sugar, butter or oil) but it tastes sinfully delicious – like cake!

Sinfully Delicious Banana, Date-Nut Muffins

Sinfully Delicious Banana, Date-Nut Muffins

Well the blueberry muffins from my last post were a real hit over here but this time I thought that I would experiment with bananas. I used the same recipe https://greenlighteating.com/super-moist-vegan-blueberry-muffins/ but with a few tweaks. I ran out of millet so I only used rolled oats, omitted the lemon zest and cardamom and added more dates.

When I was a child my mother would buy the most sinfully delicious date-nut cake at Baker’s Bakery in Parma, Ohio. Let me tell you that cake was to die for and my request every single year for my birthday. It is hard to believe but these muffins taste SO MUCH like that date-nut cake but without the eggs, sugar and butter. They taste like they should be a guilty pleasure but they’re not. As with all plant based, no sugar, oil or salt recipes the more you eat the healthier you are. I hope you try this recipe. As always, I love comments!

Ingredients:

  • 15 dates pitted
  • 1 cup unflavored, unsweetened plant based milk
  • 2 cups rolled oats
  • 2 cups overripe banana slices
  • 2 tsps. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 3/4 cup roughly chopped walnuts
Dates, plant milk, oats, bananas, baking powder, baking soda (not pictured), applesauce, walnuts

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
  2. Line muffin tin with 12 non-stick parchment cupcake liners or use a silicone muffin pan
  3. Cut the dates up roughly and add to the plant based milk and set aside (so the dates soften).
  4. Grind the oats in a high speed blender and place in mixing bowl. Add the baking powder and baking soda and stir with a fork.
  5. Add the date and milk mixture, applesauce, bananas and chopped walnuts to the bowl of dry ingredients. Mix gently to combine the ingredients. Do not overmix.
  6. Spoon the batter into cupcake liners or silicone muffin pan filling each 3/4 full. 
  7. Bake for 20 minutes or until tops are golden brown and inserted toothpick comes out clean.
The overripe bananas and dates make these muffins super sweet yet low on the glycemic index scale. Low glycemic foods do not have a dramatic effect on blood sugar levels. Enjoy these muffins for breakfast or as a snack with a nice glass of cold plant based milk!

Super Moist Vegan Blueberry Muffins

Super Moist Vegan Blueberry Muffins

Getting an invite to Cheryl and Ulle’s farm to pick blueberries is something I look forward to every year. I mean no where else could you pick blueberries among a friendly herd of Sheltie pups, a family of happy quacking ducks, honking geese and clucking chickens in the setting of a gorgeous farm on a hot summer evening. Cheryl and Ulle’s blueberries aren’t just any blueberries. These are the sweetest, juiciest and most flavorful blueberries EVER!! Every year I come home with a big huge bag of berries and dream of all the ways I am going to eat them.

Well today I started thinking about blueberry muffins. A few years back I made a batch of vegan muffins but wasn’t happy with the way they turned out. Yesterday I tried a new recipe in Fork Over Knives and all I can say is OMG!

These muffins are INSANELY DELICIOUS.

The recipe made 12 muffins. Today there are only 5 left. The good news is they are extremely healthy so, in the words of Dr. Michael Greger, “the more you eat the healthier you are!”

It is recommended that we get one daily serving of berries and three servings of other fruit a day. Berries are singled out for their potent anticancer properties. Berries are second only to herbs and spices as the most antioxidant packed food. Among all the berries, blueberries are the star performer.

Blueberry harvest 2023
Picked right off Cheryl and Ulle’s blueberry trees!

Ingredients:

  • 12 dates pitted
  • 1 cup unflavored, unsweetened plant based milk
  • 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
  • 3/4 cups millet
  • 2 tsps. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 tsp. lemon zest
  • 1 cup fresh blueberries
  • 1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
Dates, plant based milk, rolled oats, millet, baking powder, cardamom (as shown still in the pod but you can buy powdered in the seasoning aisle of most stores), applesauce, lemon zest, walnuts, blueberries

Directions:

  1. In a bowl cover the dates with the plant based milk and set aside (so the dates soften).
  2. Grind the oats and millet in a high speed blender and place into mixing bowl. Add the baking powder and cardamom and stir with a fork.
  3. Place the dates and plant based milk in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the date mixture to the bowl of dry ingredients along with the applesauce and lemon zest. Mix with a spoon until all the ingredients have been disappeared.
  4. Fold in the blueberries and chopped walnuts. Spoon the batter into a silicone muffin pan or parchment muffin papers filling each cup 3/4 full. Since the batter does not contain oil the muffins may stick to regular cupcake papers.

Note: The use of cardimom and lemon zest add a really special flavor to these muffins so neither should be omitted. Also, the dates give just the right amount of sweetness and have a low glycemic index (between 44 – 53) compared to table sugar which has a high glycemic index (100). Foods with high glycemic index raise blood sugar quickly. Foods with low glycemic index release glucose slowly and steadily.

These muffins are insanely delicious!

Cocoa, Date, Banana Confection

Cocoa, Date, Banana Confection

I had a few recent comments stating that my blog is a bit too heavy on soups and lacking in dessert ideas. Yes, I admit, I love my soups and don’t have much of a sweet tooth. I am going to try to focus a little more on whole food, plant based, no sugar, oil or salt desserts to satify everyone’s sweet cravings.

This quick and easy little dessert concoction is super delicious while also being very nutritious. Warning: it is very rich and filling.

The star ingredient is date syrup which is essentially just liquified dates. Date syrup is super sweet and with the heart healthy benefits of the actual fruit. It is hard to believe something this sweet has zero added sugars, cholesterol or triglycerides. Date syrup can be tricky to find. I have been having good success at Meijer’s but have also ordered it online.

100% cocoa powder is a great way to satisfy your chocolate fix without the extra baggage of added sugar and fat. In fact, cocoa powder contains phytonutrients which have powerful antioxidant properties shown to reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke and certain other neurological conditions.

Simply slice a chilled banana, sprinkle a little cocoa powder over and then drizzle with date syrup. Served on a fancy plate, I can easily see this on the dessert menu at a five star restaurant or your next dinner party.

Chilled banana, 100% cocoa and date syrup
To make it even more special you can add a few walnuts

Ginger Mango Delight

Ginger Mango Delight

Two nice cream posts in a row! Well, frankly, I just can’t get enough of this stuff. Plus it’s been mid to high 80’s with no rain in sight and nothing is more cooling then a nice bowl of nice cream.

I switched up the ratio of bananas to “other fruit” in this recipe. More mangos then bananas plus added more plant based milk then I normally would. The additional plant based milk makes the final product more creamy or custardy then my other nice cream posts.

Ingredients

  • 1 ripe banana sliced
  • 2 ripe mangos cut in pieces
  • 1 – 2 tsp. grated fresh ginger (preferred) or ground ginger
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

Directions

  1. Freeze banana slices and mango pieces for at least 4 hours
  2. Place frozen banana and mango in a food processor or high speed blender
  3. Add grated fresh ginger or ground ginger and almond milk
  4. Puree until smooth and creamy

High fat, high sugar and high calorie ice cream is so yesterday. Zero fat, zero added sugar and nutrient dense nice cream is so today. Say no to ice cream and yes to nice cream!! Remember, the more you eat the healthier you are!

Cherry Nice Cream

Ohio has been blessed with some really warm weather and, I don’t know about you, but I am thinking ice cream. That’s right. Peace, love, joy and ice cream! I like my ice cream nice and creamy but without the added sugar, fat and a gazillion of empty calories. Is that even possible? Yes it is and here’s the scoop.

Nice cream is a sugar and dairy free dessert made by whipping together chunks of frozen bananas along with other fruit. The result is super rich, silky smooth and absolutely delectable. For added excitement walnuts, almonds, pecans, cocoa nibs, dried fruit, instant expresso or matcha powder can be added. And if you want you can even drizzle some date syrup over the finished concoction for an extra special bonus.

It is called nice cream because it is nicer for the body – easier to digest (gluten-free), 100% natural and super healthy. In fact, unlike regular ice cream, the more you eat the healthier you are. The best time for nice cream is always!

Cherry Nice Cream

Ingredients

  • 3 ripe bananas (the riper the bananas the sweeter the nice cream)
  • 1/2 cup fresh cherries (pitted)
  • 1 – 2 tbsps. unsweetened plain almond milk

Directions

  1. Cut bananas in 1″ slices, place in a freezer bag and freeze for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight
  2. Place pitted cherries in a freezer bag and freeze for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight
  3. Place frozen bananas, cherries and almond milk in a high speed blender or food processer and whip until nice and creamy

Note: If bananas are completely solid (left in freezer overnight) leave out at room temperature for 10 minutes before whipping.

Look at how smooth and creamy! For a Cherry Garcia copy cat just add cocoa nibs.

Strawberry Banana Nice Cream

Imagine a world where eating creamy ice cream is actually good for you instead of bad. Imagine a world where you can lick the plate clean and have seconds without feeling one bit of guilt. Imagine being told that the more you eat the healthier you are. This can’t be real, right? Wrong.

I wish I could take credit for the genious invention of “nice cream.” I first found out about it a few years ago while reading Dr. Michael Greger’s bestseller book “How Not to Die.” This was a recipe he put in his cookbook. The term nice cream was originally coined to describe a soft plant-based confection made by whipping frozen chunks of bananas and sweet fruits into a creamy delectable custard-like consistency. It is dairy, sugar, fat, sodium and preservative free, low in calories and not processed. With so many people wanting to eat healthy restaurants are now serving nice cream on their dessert menus. In fact, there’s even a Nice Cream Food Truck based in Southern Florida that serves this plant based ice cream with plant based toppings like granola, cocoa nibs, nuts and berries!

You scream, I scream, we all scream for ice nice cream!

Ingredients

  • 2 frozen bananas
  • 1 1/2 cup sliced strawberries
  • 1/3 cup walnuts
The base is always frozen bananas but get creative with your sweet fruits and additional ingredients. Blueberries, cherries and pineapples work well. I have also made this with pumpkin and dates. If you want a little extra sweetness add date syrup which is a completely whole food and natural sweetener. How about adding fresh coconut, pecans or cocoa nibs on top? Get creative. There are so many possibilities.

Directions

  1. Cut over-ripe bananas in pieces, place in a zip lock bag and freeze for at least 2 hours. Tip: Never ditch overly ripe bananas. I always have a bag of frozen bananas in my freezer for when I get the taste for nice cream. They can be kept frozen for about 1 month. If the bananas are completely frozen solid I would keep them out at room temperature for 5 minutes to thaw them out a bit.
  2. Place bananas, strawberries and walnuts in a blender and whip until smooth and creamy. Lastly, I add a few more cut up strawberries and blend together slightly so the pieces still stay intact. Serve and enjoy! Nice cream can be made in advance and frozen in a large container or put into individual serving size containers.