These brownies were a huge hit at a potluck I attended last night! No one could believe the secret ingredient was….BEANS!

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ c. Trader Joe’s Semi-sweet or Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips (for Gluten-free)
• 2 c. garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed (about 1 can)
• 4 eggs
• 1 c. organic Sucanat or turbinado sugar
• 2 tsp. true cinnamon (Ceylon cinnamon, or canela in the Mexican tiendas) Specialty spice stores will carry this.
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp baking powder (use gluten-free baking powder)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small bowl melt chocolate chips in microwave for 2 minutes.  Stir until smooth.
3. In blender or food processor, combine beans and eggs and blend until smooth.
4. Add sweetener, spices, baking powder, and melted chocolate, process until smooth.
5. Pour batter into a 9” or 8X8” non-stick pan.
6. Bake for 45 minutes or until edges pull away from baking pan. I like my edges a little crispy.
7. Let cook completely before slicing (as chocolate cools, it keeps the bars from being too crumbly).

This rice pudding is a perfect cozy breakfast or dessert on a cool day. You can also make this in the rice cooker and have it available to you – piping hot – for a few mornings!

2 cups water
1 cup brown rice, rinsed
1 1/4 cups rice or almond milk, or other non-dairy milk of choice
1/3 cup raisins (optional)
1/3 cup walnuts
1/3 cup brown rice syrup or maple syrup
1 t. vanilla
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. ground ginger
1/8 t. ground nutmeg

In a medium saucepan, place the water, and bring to a boil. Add the rice, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 35 minutes or until all of the water has been absorbed. Add the remaining ingredients, stir well to combine, and continue to cook the mixture over low heat until all of the liquid has been absorbed. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and place the pudding in the refrigerator to chill. Top individual servings with a little additional cinnamon before serving, if desired.

Serves 3-4

I’m on a roll tonight.  These cupcakes have been on my To Do list for about a month, and I’m nestling into Autumn with a desire to spend time in my kitchen exploring Delicious.

• 1 cup dehydrated cane juice (sucanat)
• 2 teaspoons dried lavender flowers
• 3/4 cup coconut oil, softened
• 4 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cup Gluten-Free flour mix (I successfully used Pamela’s in this recipe)
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoons hemp, coconut, or rice milk
• 2 teaspoon freshly grated Meyer lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake pan with 12 liners.
In a Vitamix or food processor, grind the lavender and sugar together for about 1 minute. The sugar will appear finer, and the flowers will be small/tiny pieces.  The aroma may make you compulsively use the sugar as a body scrub. That’s fine too, but you’ll have to repeat this step if you do that.

In mixer bowl, combine lavender sugar and softened coconut oil until well mixed. Gradually add in eggs- one at a time, mixing completely between each, then non-dairy milk, vanilla, zest, and mix all thoroughly. While this is mixing, sift together salt, baking powder and flour. Gradually add, a little at a time, to wet ingredients. Mix just until combined. Spoon into cupcake liners.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15- 20 minutes or until cake tester or toothpick inserted in center of one comes out clean.  Cool completely before frosting.

Meyer Lemon Frosting

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup sucanat
• 3 tbsp. meyer lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Blend sucanat in blender or Vitamix until powdery.  Cream Sucanat with coconut oil in a small bowl. Once blended, add lemon juice and vanilla. Chill until desired thickness is achieved before frosting.

I originally made this cake in 2005 and have recently been craving it. Here is the adapted recipe for food intolerances. It’s going to be the showpiece for Sunday Night Dinner. I also added crystallized ginger to the batter for an extra bit o’ spiciness. HEAVEN.

FOR THE TOPPING
3 tablespoon palm oil (coconut may be flavorful)
1/2 cup sucanat mixed with 1 tbsp. molasses
1 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
4 large Bosc Pears
– FOR THE BATTER –
4 ounces palm oil or grapeseed oil
4 ounce Applesauce
3/4 cup sucanat
2 tablespoon Ginger grated
3 Eggs (or Ener-G Egg Replacer as directed)
2/3 cups Molasses
3 cups gluten free baking mix
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
1/3 cup crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups rice milk
1 1/2 tablespoon Vinegar

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil a 9-inch springform pan, and line the bottom with a 10-inch circle of parchment paper.

To make the topping, combine 3 Tbs palm oil, ½ cup sucanat, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Melt the oil over medium heat for about 1 minute; then pour the mixture into the prepared springform pan, completely coating the parchment paper. Place the quartered pears on top of the oil-sugar mixture, lining the pieces up tightly in a decorative circle so that none of the bottom shows through.

To make the batter, cut palm oil into 1-inch pieces, and put them in a large mixing bowl. Add ¾ cup sucanat, and cream the mixture on medium speed for 3-5 minutes, until it is smooth and a pale tan color. Add the grated ginger, and beat 1 minute more. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating on low speed and making sure that each egg is fully incorporated before adding another. When all the eggs have been added, slowly pour in the molasses and beat to fully mix. The mixture will look as though it is “breaking” or curdling, but don’t worry—it will come together when the dry ingredients are added.

In a separate medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to fully combine.

Alternately add small amounts of flour and rice milk to the batter, stirring and folding with a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are just absorbed. Do not overmix the batter. Pour and scrape the batter into the pear-lined pan, smoothing the top with a rubber surface. The pan will be nearly full.

Carefully transfer the pan to the center rack of the oven, and bake for about 1 hour and 45 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the cake’s center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Cover the pan with an upside-down serving plate; then carefully invert them together. Release the sides of the pan, and lift it away. Gently lift the pan’s base off the cake, and peel away the parchment paper. Allow the cake to cool for a half hour or so, and serve warm.

Yield: One big cake, likely serving 10-12 people

RECIPE: Vegan Pumpkin Tart with Pecan Crust

These brownies are not too sweet; without the frosting they are a little on the unsweetened side – but the frosting gives them the perfect touch of richness without being overwhelming.  Zucchini adds extra fiber and moistness to this healthier treat!

Brownies:

• 2-2 1/2 cups finely grated zucchini
• 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana
• 1 Tbsp. water
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup oat flour
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 2/3 cup sugar (more if you like your brownies sweeter or want to skip the frosting)

Frosting:

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 3 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 4 tbsp. rice or soy milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup sucanat, blended until powdered

Mix the zucchini, banana, water and vanilla together in a large bowl. You may find the zucchini  oozes water a bit – this is fine.  Mix the remaining dry ingredients in a separate bowl and fold the dry ingredients into the wet batter. Oil a 9×13 baking pan with coconut, palm, or grapeseed oil and pour batter in. Bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the batter comes out clean.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool 20 minutes or overnight.

To prepare the frosting blend the coconut oil, powdered sugar, cocoa, rice milk, and vanilla together in a Vitamix or food processor. Spread over cooled brownies with a spatula. If you place the brownies in the refrigerator, the frosting will firm up nicely (due to the type of fats found in coconut oil).

• 1 qt. vodka
• 8 vanilla pods

Split vanilla pods lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the vodka. Place pods into the bottle as well. Cover and store for at least 2 months before using. This will keep for a year at room temperature.  Split into smaller bottles to give as gifts!

To make a smaller batch, use one vanilla pod for 3/4 cup of vodka.

This rice pudding is allergy free and quite exotic. Instead of using dairy and eggs, rice milk is used and the pudding is thickened with cornstarch. Arrowroot powder can be substituted for cornstarch, if desired. [2 teaspoons of arrowroot equals 1 tablespoon (3 teaspoons) of cornstarch.]

Place the pudding rice in a large saucepan. Pour in one cup of rice milk and enough water to cover the rice one inch above the level of the rice.

Bring to a boil and cook until rice is tender.

Add remaining rice milk and sugar, if desired. Sample the mixture before adding additional sugar. Rice milk is sweet, and you may find it doesn’t need additional sweetener.

Return pudding to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low and simmer.

Mix together the cornstarch with a tablespoon or two of rice milk to form a slightly runny paste.

While stirring the rice, slowly add the cornstarch mixture.

Mix in the rosewater and bring to a boil.

Remove from heat and transfer the rice into a large glass serving bowl or 6 individual ramekins. Cool at room temperature and then refrigerate for at least one hour. Garnish with rose petals before serving (if desired).

This ginger jam recipe is POTENT! I plan on using it on cashew butter rice bread sandwiches in the morning, since my supply of ginger spread is no longer being offered at Trader Joe’s. While sampling it during cooking, I realized it will also do nicely whipped into cream cheese, swirled into cheesecake, or layered between spice cake.

Makes 1 12 oz. jar.

3/4 cup Finely chopped peeled ginger
1 Apple peeled – cored and finely chopped
(note – no need to chop ginger and apple if using a Vitamix)
3/4 cup Sucanat (dehydrated sugar cane juice) or date sugar
1 cup Water

Combine all ingredients in a Vitamix or food processor – process until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan, place over medium heat and cook until the mixture begins to bubble. Stir consistently until it reaches a jam-like thickness, about 30 minutes.

Great for those with blood sugar issues and as a post-workout recovery treat!

This recipe was modified in response to a client’s request for a Cold Fusion Bar replacement!

• 1 1/2 lbs fresh strawberries, peaches, nectarines, melons, or berries of your choice
• 1 cup Water or 100% juice (try a mix of the two if the fruit is slightly underripe)
• 1.5 – 2 scoops Whey Protein
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt or soy yogurt

1. Prepare the fruits for the blender by hulling, removing the seeds, and peeling if necessary.
2. Combine all ingredients in an electric blender and puree.
3. Divide among eight 5-ounce paper cups, filling them about 3/4 full.
4. Place in the freezer until partially frozen, 60 to 90 minutes.
5. Insert a plastic spoon, handle up (or popsicle stick) in each the center of each cup and freeze until solid.
6. To serve, peel the paper cup away. Makes 8 popsicles.