Paleo Chocolate Pudding

I'm a day late (sorry!), but here it is. Behold it... it is glorious.

Paleo Chocolate Pudding
1/4 c. coconut palm sugar
1/4 c. arrowroot starch
2 T. cocoa powder (If you dare, go with the 'Special Dark' kind)
pinch of salt
2 c. coconut milk (the stuff in the cans - not the cartons!)
4 egg yolks
2 T. coconut oil
1 t. vanilla extract (you could totally use coconut extract here - I bet it'd be awesome!)
3 oz. (by weight) chocolate chips (optional, but good)



Directions:
1. Set a fine-mes sieve over a medium sized bowl. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, starch, cocoa, and salt. Gradually whisk in the coconut milk, then the egg yolks.

2. Cook the mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened to the consistency of mayonnaise, 7-8 minutes. Continue to cook, whisking, 1 minute more. Remove from heat and push through the fine-meshed sieve using a rubber spatula to help. Add the coconut oil (and chocolate chips, if using) and stir until melted and well combined. Mix in vanilla.

3. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the pudding and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Before serving, gently stir to loosen it.

Serve with coconut milk 'whipped cream' and/or shredded coconut.

Yummy! Enjoy!

Paleo Apple Crisp... yummy.

I love apple crisp. Like, so much so that it might be a little bit unnatural. I've run across tons and tons of Gluten Free and/or Paleo recipes for various crisps over the last 2 years. Most were good, a few were not, but I never really found one that was... it. Until yesterday.

Yesterday I found the blog I Cook Free COMPLETELY by accident (Side note: FANTASTIC blog - go check it out). Then I noticed that she had a Paleo Apple Crisp Recipe that looked pretty close to what I had been going for. I gathered my ingredients and went to work...

Now, here's the thing, I'm completely incapable of actually following a recipe. No matter what recipe it is, I have this bizarre urge to change something and make it my own. Which is exactly what I did here.

It. Was. Awesome.

The filling was sweet, but not too sweet. The topping wasn't spongy and weird - it actually had a bit of crunch! And that's when I decided: it must be shared.

I apologize for my lack of food photography skills.

Paleo Apple Crisp 

Filling:
6 apples, sliced (peel if you want, but I never do)
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice
1/4 c. coconut sugar (you could also sub honey, agave, maple syrup or plain white sugar)
1 T. arrowroot starch (you can sub cornstarch if you aren't worried about being a Paleo purist)
1/4 c. liquid (apple juice, cider, water, lemon juice... whatever you have will be just fine)
1 t. vanilla
pinch of salt

Topping:
1/4 c. coconut oil and/or butter, melted (I used a combo)
1/2 c. almond flour
1/4 c. milled flax seed (I prefer golden flax)
1 T. coconut flour
1/2 c. unsweetened dessicated coconut (feel free to just use shredded coconut for this)
1 T. vanilla
1 t. cinnamon
pinch of salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease 8 or 9" square pan with coconut oil or butter.
3. Mix together all filling ingredients and place in pan.
4. Mix together all topping ingredients and crumble on top of filling.
5. Bake for approximately 45 minutes, or until filling is bubbly and top is browned.

Enjoy!

Super Easy Dairy Free Popsicles!

On Friday my son was BEGGING me for ice cream. We've been trying to eliminate dairy from his diet over the past 2 weeks due to some behavior issues that we're trying to take care of, so ice cream was obviously out of the question. I was racking my brain to figure out something fun for him... to no avail. Then I had an epiphany - Chocolate Almond Milk! Here is our creation - they're delicious!

Banana and Dark Chocolate Dairy Free Popsicles:
2 c. Dark Chocolate Almond Milk
1 ripe banana

Blend until smooth and pour into popsicle molds or small dixie cups (with popsicle sticks). Freeze for at least 6 hours, but preferably overnight. Enjoy!