Posts Tagged by sweet tooth
Avocado Chocolate Banana Pudding
| September 16, 2013 |
So this recipe I actually created as one of the first recipes for my blog, but I came across the issue of not having a high speed blender OR a food processor. If you aren’t sure if you have a high speed blender versus a regular blender, generally the question to ask yourself is, “does my blender work as well or better than a food processor.” Ok, well that may not be the official question to ask yourself but I sure asked myself that one.
The first time I tried making this I put the avocado and banana in a blender with the almond milk, thinking that it might blend like I was making a smoothie and I would add all the other ingredients after. FAIL! There was not enough liquid so it barely blended and there were still chunks of avocado and banana. I ended up pouring it into a bowl and trying to mash it by hand and then I whisked the ingredients together. I ended up with chunky pudding, and no one wants chunks of avocado in their pudding. It was gross. So if you get chunky pudding, you might not have a high speed blender.
But after all said and done, I am finally sharing my recipe (and it tasted good this time) because I finally got my kitchen essentials. I got a food processor as a house warming present from a friend and this Summer I bought a Vitamix at the OC Fair. So giving it another whirl, my recipe really was good once the chunks were no longer in the equation. Enjoy 🙂
PS – I promise you that you can’t taste the avocado. It’s my secret ingredient … it adds the creaminess to the pudding without any dairy products.
Avocado Banana Chocolate Pudding
- 1 ripe avocado (pitted & peeled)
- 1 overripe banana
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup raw honey
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor. Store in an airtight container in the fridge if you can’t eat it all in one sitting. It should serve two for a snack or one for a full meal. Feel free to garnish with an extra banana cut into slices (to get a similar look to my photos).
If you are like me and add protein powder to everything: Reduce the honey to 2 tbsp and hold the cocoa powder. Add a scoop of chocolate protein powder to the blender or food processor. Then add raw cocoa to taste. You probably wouldn’t be adding any more than a few tablespoons max. Most flavored protein powders will have enough chocolate to flavor your pudding. Also, they usually have added sweeteners which is where the decrease in honey comes in. Of course if it’s not sweet enough for you, you can add more honey.
As for using the raw honey – You don’t have to use raw, I just prefer raw because it’s less processed. Easy 1:1 conversion for raw versus regular honey if you don’t have raw. Although I suggest you try raw honey at some point. It tastes amazing!!!
 Look how beautiful the pudding looks in my Vitamix … it’s a swirl!!!
Saying Hello to the Bunnies
| August 21, 2013 |
This week, I was a guest blogger on Rabbit Food For My Bunny Teeth.
Now if you haven’t checked out Catherine’s blog, you really should. Catherine is both a friend and sorority sister of mine and all her recipes are to die for. They are super easy to make and follow the Rabbit Food Pyramid, which consists of produce, whole grains, protein and plant-based fat. The bunny diet!
Wanna know a little fact? I actually started NomNomCrunch on her couch. Haha.
When I was brainstorming what to blog about, I always think first, “what have I personally been eating or wanting to try lately?”
I’m going to tell you a little secret: I never really liked oats.
As I mentioned in my last blog post, I just started working out with a new trainer. I wanted a meal plan to follow because lately I have just been all over the place eating caloric and fatty foods left and right. When I got my meal plan, oats were listed on there every single day!
Note: My trainer DID ask me if there was anything I didn’t like, but I told her I liked everything… I knew there would probably be oats on there, and honestly I really just wanted to learn to like them.
So it came to me. Catherine has an awesome Fluffy Oats Recipe that I could add my little extra touches and make it something I like. So after many mornings gone awry, I finally figured out a few recipes that make me LOVE my oats.
Head over to Rabbit Food For My Bunny Teeth
to check out my oat recipes (or scroll below)!
I’m going to tell you a little secret: I never liked oats.
Recently I started working out with a new trainer and she asked me if I liked oats because that’s what she was planning for my daily breakfast. I told her, “of course I like oats!” But the truth is, I only WANT to like oats. I never actually made it to the point of actually liking them yet…. until I got creative. I have a sweet tooth so you’ll notice I added stevia in EVERYTHING!
For my oat customization recipes, use Catherine’s Fluffy Oats Recipe as the base.
Fluffy Oats
Serves 1
1/4 cup whole rolled oats
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/4 cup water
1 egg white (1 egg white = 2 tbs if you’re using it from a carton)
Whisk the egg until it gets a little fluffy/foamy. Combine with oats, water, and almond milk in a saucepan and bring heat to medium. Whisk the mixture until it starts to simmer. Raise the heat to high and continue whisking for a couple of minutes until it starts to thicken. Reduce heat back to medium and whisk until most of the liquid is soaked. Transfer to a bowl and enjoy with toppings!
Note: Be sure to whisk the egg before combining with other ingredients!
Now for the customizing…
Berry Bliss
When you are combining the oats, water and almond milk together:
+ 2 tsp of vanilla extract
+ 2 tsp of stevia
Top it off with a berry reduction:
Put a handful of mixed berries into a food processor or blender. (I used raspberries and strawberries.) Then pour into a sauce pan, add 1 tsp of stevia and bring your stove to high heat, slowly stirring the mixture consistently. When the sauce begins to bubble and the color darkens, reduce to medium heat and continue to stir to prevent burning. After about 2-3 minutes, it’s ready to pour onto your oats. The sauce will be the consistency of olive oil.
PB&J
When you are combining the oats, water and almond milk together:
+ 3 tsp of PB2 or another powdered peanut butter alternative
+ 2 tsp of stevia
Top it off with a spoonful of your fav jam or jelly. I used a natural huckleberry jam I got from while on vacation in Yellowstone. Just keep in mind when adding your jam/jelly, many of them have added sugars so you don’t want to go crazy with it.
Choconut
When you are combining the oats, water and almond milk together:
+ 1 tbs of unsweetened coco powder
+ 3 tsp of stevia
SWAP the water for coconut water
Top it off with some coconut shreds and almonds.
Apple Pie
When you are combining the oats, water and almond milk together:
+ 1 tsp cinnamon
+1 tsp vanilla extract
+ 3 tsp of stevia
Top it off with caramelized apples:
Heat up 1/2 tsp of coconut oil and 1 tsp of honey in a small skillet on high heat. Once the oil and honey are warm, add half of an apple to the skillet, chopped or sliced. Any type of apple will do. Traditionally apple pie is made with McIntosh apples (according to Eating Well), but I just like to use whatever is on hand. I used HoneyCrisp. With a wooden spoon, stir the apples around until they are completely coated in the oil and honey. Continue to stir until the apple begins to soften and turns to a golden brown. Then pour onto your oats.
Note: Because this recipe has real sugar (honey) in the mix, it will burn a lot easier than the berry recipe. Keep an eye on your apples and keep stirring. Burned honey on your pan can mean death to your pan.
