BERRY DELIGHT

I just recently purchased a birthday gift for my niece, Becka.  She had asked for a blender, as she didn't have one yet.  This post is dedicated to her to give Becka some ideas for the use of her blender. I'm sure, you, the reader will get plenty of ideas on your own too.

Here's some ideas...
salad dressing
smoothies
"ice cream"
milkshakes
daiquiris
pina coladas
margaritas
and fruit sauce,
among many other ideas, these are obviously just a few.

After a Zumba workout today I needed something to eat to get my energy levels back up.  I had a couple of packages of berries in the fridge to use up, so I came up with this yummy Berry Delight. It's all raw and totally delish.  This dish can be used for a meal for one or dessert for two. Double the ingredients and use for a dessert for a gathering.  Oh, and by the way, this is super easy.

BERRY DELIGHT


INGREDIENTS

1 lg pkg raspberries (about 12oz or 340g)
1 lg pkg blackberries (about 12oz or 385g)
2 medjool dates
1/4 cup or so of frozen mango
splash water


INSTRUCTIONS

In a blender, blend up a handful of the raspberries with the dates, frozen mango and the water.  You can add more or less of the water to reach desired sauce consistency.  I like it quite thick, so I only used a splash of water.  Blend until smooth with no more lumps.
Wash and pour all of the fresh berries into a bowl.
Pour your fruit sauce over the top of the berries.
Done!!! Easy and yum, yum, yum.
Enjoy.

Any berries can be used for this recipe.  Only have strawberries and blueberries, try those. I'm sure any berry combination will turn out just a tasty.  The colour might be a bit different but the taste will still be there.
You can also use a combination of fresh and frozen berries for the sauce.  No need to use the mango.  I threw in the mango for the extra creaminess to the sauce.  Feel free to use frozen and fresh raspberries for the ultimate raspberry delight.  Mmmm.  If you happen to not have any dates, they can easily be substituted with honey, although more fruit or frozen fruit may need to be added so the sauce doesn't turn out too runny.  And heck to make this recipe even easier, throw all of the ingredients in a blender, add a little more water and make the berry delight smoothie. Wow!

I had forgotten to take a picture.  I was so excited to be eating this creamy berry creation, that I had forgot, so in the pic, the bowl is already half empty. It was quite a full bowl of yumminess.  I didn't even get a chance to give you a pic of the ingredients, I ate is so fast!  Oops:}

Eat Well.
:)

EASY CHOCOLATE TOFU CAKE

This will be your next favourite cake.
It's super easy to make and only requires 3 ingredients.
It's become my favourite in a pinch recipe.
I made it for my nieces birthday cake.  No one in the family knew it had a "secret ingredient" in it.
It's soo good.  You'll be surprised at how not tofu-ee it really tastes.  Just regular chocolate cake. I promise!!
You will not need to add in any oil, or eggs.  The tofu covers all that. You'll be missing out on the cholesterol filled egg yolks and fattening oil. Although I haven't tried it yet, I'm sure any flavour of cake mix will work just fine. This recipe is vegan and vegetarian.

EASY CHOCOLATE TOFU CAKE


INGREDIENTS

1 box any brand chocolate cake mix (i used super moist devil's food)
1 300g pkg silken tofu
1/2 to 3/4 cup water


INSTRUCTIONS

Remember this is EASY.
Spray your desired baking pan or line cupcake pan with paper liners.

Pour contents of cake mix into food processor.
Add in tofu.

Process until combined.

Add 1/2 cup water and process again.

Continue to add a bit more water in between processes until desired consistency is achieved.
Pour into baking pans or cupcake pans.

Bake according to box directions.

This is the end result. Now take out of pans and let completely cool on a wire rack.

At this point, you can turn these cakes into a birthday or other occasion cake or if making cupcakes eat one warm to make sure they are "okay" for your family to eat.
I made an Oreo cookie cake for my nieces birthday.  I used the recipe from the Kraft Kitchens cook booklet. The filling is tasty but terrribly fattening and calorie loaded.
Next recipe I will probably look for a vegan/vegetarian filling. The chocolate glaze is just butter and chocolate melted and spread on top layer. Then put in fridge to harden.

Oreo Cookie Cake

Do you have a favourite cake/cupcake recipe you'd like to share? Leave a comment.
I'd love to hear from you.
Eat Well.

PINA COLADA MOCK ICE CREAM

What?  Did I read that right?  Pina Colada Ice Cream?
Yup, you sure did!
The only ingredient missing is the rum!  Oh well, it's really tasty anyway.
I created this recipe trying to use up the last bit of coconut milk I had leftover in the fridge. I suppose the proper term for this 'ice cream' should really be 'frozen yogurt', but ice cream makes it sound much more decadent.

I asked three grown, beer drinkin' men (including my husband) to be my Guinea pigs, to try my mock ice cream and tell me what they thought about it.
The response was unanimous.  They all said it was really good.  One of the guys even had to "TRY" it three more times until he said that he liked it.  Ha, ha.
No milk is used in this recipe and it's super easy. This ice cream is gluten free and  vegetarian.  Soy yogurt can be replaced with the Greek yogurt to make a vegan variation.  Try putting a little thawed mock ice cream in a blender with protein powder and banana for a pina colada smoothie.

PINA COLADA MOCK ICE CREAM


INGREDIENTS


4 cups frozen cubed pineapple (buy in freezer section of grocery store or purchase fresh pineapple, cube and freeze yourself)
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 can coconut milk (put in fridge to get cold)
1 tsp. or so of grated nutmeg
2 tsp vanilla sugar

INSTRUCTIONS


Process the frozen pineapple in a food processor until broken down into pea sized bits.

Add in rest of the ingredients.

 Process until the consistency of ice cream.
 You may need to scrape down the sides a few times as needed.

Scrape into a freezer friendly bowl or dish. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and freeze until ready to eat.

 Or have a treat now if you wish, the consistancy will be like soft ice cream.  The mock ice cream won't take long to be ready, the frozen pineapple speeds up the process.  So yummy ice cream sooner.  Yeah!  Enjoy.

Eat Well.

BAKING ALTERNATIVES

Mmmmm,
I love the smell of cookies and cakes baking in the oven. I especially love the aroma of chocolate anything baking in the oven.
Even though the traditional methods of baking are delicious, they are however not the healthiest.  With all of the saturated fat from the butters/margarine, the non nutritious white flours and fattening refined sugars, no wonder the obese popularity has grown to new levels.  It's like a heart attack in a cookie, cake or pie or brownie, or...yum????

Well, the YUM! factor is still possible, with a few little twists and turns.  Here's a brownie recipe that's EASY, gluten free, moist and delicious. And best of all they're actually good for you.  They're made with black beans for fibre, to keep you regular and full for longer, so a little of the yummy bites goes a long way, chocolate for its antioxidant properties and eggs for protein. When I tried these for the first time I could hardly wait to share them with my husband and son and in laws(who live right around the corner).  They all agreed that these chocolaty squares ARE moist and delicious, and passed the YUM test, even though they are made with black beans!!!  Best part of all, you can't even taste the black beans amongst all of the chocolate.
You can easily make these into a vegan treat.  Just omit the eggs and replace with an equal measure of silken tofu. Or you can add in a little grated zucchini and sneak in some veggies. The kids will never know!  I love this recipe and make it often, maybe for this years Easter celebrations.  Easter's all about CHOCOLATE anyways.....right!!!

BLACK BEAN BROWNIES


INGREDIENTS

cooking spray
1oz. organic dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)

1 - 398ml can black beans (drained and rinsed)
2 eggs
1 egg white
heaping 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
heaping 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup local honey

optional
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or grated zucchini or for a triple chocolate treat, add in some semi sweet chocolate or carob chips.


INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350degrees F. Spray an 8" baking pan with cooking spray.
Melt dark chocolate in saucepan with 1 Tablespoon of water on low heat.

In food processor, add melted chocolate and all of the remaining ingredients.

Process until smooth.

At this point stir in nuts or zucchini if you choose to do so.
Pour into baking pan.

 Bake for 30 minutes until top is dry and the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Cool slightly and serve warm. Or cool completely, these can be served both warm or cold and will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days. If they last that long.
Makes approx. 9 - 2" squares.


BAKING ALTERNATIVES


Some of these alternatives are not limited to baking only but can be used in everyday cooking as well. For example the vegetable oil can be substituted with a healthier oil like a cold pressed extra virgin olive oil.

BAD INGREDIENT                          GOOD SUBSTITUTE

vegetable oil                                        unsweetened applesauce, mashed banana,
                                                           nut butters, coconut oil, olive oil, canola oil

whole eggs                                          egg whites ( use 2 whites for 1 whole egg)

eggs and oil                                         silken tofu (see future post for a recipe)

refined white sugar                               honey, maple syrup, agave ( be careful of
                                                           the liquid substitutions as they may alter
                                                           your recipe by making it too runny), sucanat,

white flour                                            whole wheat flour, oat flour, spelt flour,
                                                            corn flour, brown rice flour
                                                            soy flour, kamut flour

white rice                                              brown rice

cow's milk                                             coconut milk, rice milk, soy milk, or my
                                                             favourite almond milk, flax milk, nut milks