Banana-Flax Granola + Raspberry Chocolate Pudding

This granola is actually so good! Considering there is no oil and it is sweetened with a single banana and 1 tablespoon of tapioca syrup. I just can't believe how crunchy it was! I was expecting a chewier texture but was pleasantly surprised. This granola was inspired from Diet Girl's Pretty Darn Healthy Homemade Granola. I just reduced the water, and added flax and coconut instead of the nuts.

BANANA FLAX GRANOLA

1 banana
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp tapioca syrup (could also use agave nectar or maple syrup)
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup flaxseeds

Preheat oven to 375F. Blend banana, syrup, water, salt and cinnamon. Combine oats, flaxseeds and coconut in a separate bowl. Mix in banana mixture until distributed throughout. Spoon mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet, spread out into a thin, flat sheet. Bake for 40. Every 10 minutes take out baking pan and break up pieces + flip over. The more you break it up, the more it will brown, and the crunchier it will get! Let cool

Crunchy! ;)

I used this yummy granola on top of Chocolate-Raspberry Pudding! :)

Chocolate Raspberry Pudding!

1/2 an avocado, frozen raspberries, 3 tsp carob powder, stevia to taste

"Simple Yet Delicious" Veggie Fried Rice

Hey everyone, so I have a legit recipe for you, no more snacks, this is a meal man! Well, almost, it's a nice side dish...or lunch.

I love brown rice, like, love it, I especially like to eat it plain. I decided though it was time to dress up my rice, and what better way to do it than fried rice style! This recipe is simple, but the combination of all the different vegetables and seasonings makes for a very flavourful dish.

Celery, Mushrooms, Red Pepper and Onion

Fritzy fryer

1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
4 mushrooms, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
Handful of spinach leaves, chopped
1 small piece of ginger
1 clove garlic
1/4 tsp chili flakes
1 tbsp coconut oil, for frying
1 1/4 cups cooked brown rice
2 tbsp gluten-free tamari
Squeeze of lemon juice
Pinch of salt
Black Pepper, to taste
Sesame seeds

Heat coconut oil in pan on medium heat. Add onions, celery, garlic and ginger and a small pinch of salt. Saute for 3 minutes, add red bell pepper and mushrooms, chill flakes, continue sautéing until vegetable are cooked through. Add spinach and stir until wilted. Add brown rice and fry for 3 minutes, then add tamari and lemon juice, cook for a few more minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, serve hot. Makes 2 servings.

- Jac

Strawberry-Kiwi Smoothie, New Products + Chocolate-Banana PB Toast

We've been working on a smoothie post for One Green Planet and all this smoothie making really got me inspired. I bought a bunch of fruit yesterday and don't usually have that much fruit on hand. Usually I only have apples, bears (haha, I mean PEARS lol I wish I had bears...) and bananas (not the most appealing smoothie material). But now I have strawberries, kiwi, and mango as well as bananas to make dozens of smoothie combinations!

What I like about this smoothie is that there's no banana in it for those who are trying to decrease their sugar. And the cucumber adds volume and a clean, fresh taste. This smoothie is so refreshing, you may as well be drinking a strawberry-kiwi Capri-Sun! Please tell me someone remembers capri-suns...it's a 90's kid thing...

We've been buying this coconut water a lot lately and I've only found it in this one grocery store near where I live, I hope I can find it in Toronto when I move there this summer. But it is hands down the best coconut water I've ever tasted. It tastes like actual coconut water that would come from a coconut, haha I know that seems a little obvious but if you've tried some of the canned/boxed varieties you'd understand that not all coconut waters are alike.

Frozen, raw unpasteurized coconut water (thawed)

2 kiwis, peeled and chopped
6-7 strawberries
4 slices cucumber, peeled and frozen
1 scoop vanilla brown rice protein powder
Stevia, to taste

Blend and enjoy! Makes one serving.

Strawberry frost!

I saw this China Black Rice bread in the store. I usually buy the Brown Rice variety but wanted to try something different.

Food For Life China Black Rice Bread

It was about a dollar more expensive than the Brown Rice bread and I didn't really taste a difference, it was more of a novelty and it was kind of cool to eat purple bread. Also black rice has lots more health benefits than brown rice.

Jenn and I def have been over doing it on the peanut butter as you may have noticed based on our recipe choices on the blog lately. And we know we've heard somewhere that peanut butter isn't safe or something.

Well we don't let that stand in the way of our peanut butter intake!...But lately we've decided to try Valencia Peanut Butter which apparently has less mould in it and actually tastes much more fresh than the regular stuff.

I am obsessed with peanut butter toast, it's such a good comfort food, the melted, warm, gooey peanut butter on soft and crispy toasted bread. It's enough to make you peanut butter crazy like we've been the past week!

So with these two magical products I give you...the three best combinations in the world:

Chocolate-Banana Peanut Butter Toast!

Bare Purpley Toasts

valencia peanut butter, bananas, chopped vegan dark chocolate

Nummy nummy numchucks!

- Jac

Peanutty Treats + Healthier Version of Clif Bars!

When choosing nuts, I usually go for the almond or cashew but this time I decided on organic dry roasted peanuts. I never saw them before in the grocery store, and I don't know about you but it seems organic peanuts are hard to come by while organic peanut butter is very common. So I took advantage of this rarity and used them in these three awesome treats! Check out the peanutty inspiration starting with Peanut Butter Banana Protein Ice Cream:

1 frozen banana, 1 tbsp peanut butter, 1 scoop brown rice protein powder, top with peanuts

This fudge is made with carob, peanuts and raisins. I've come to appreciate fruit and nut treats, ever since making our Superfood Nut and Fruit Clusters.

2 tbsp coconut oil, 1 1/2 tbsp sunflower seed butter, 1 1/2 tbsp carob powder, 1 tbsp brown rice syrup, stevia to taste, pinch of salt, handful of peanuts, handful of raisins

A few days ago I picked up some amaranth at the store, I originally wanted quinoa, but noticed amaranth was cheaper for the same amount so I went with it. I tried cooking it as you would quinoa and let me tell you, it is very soupy! No wonder it's often used to make porridge!

*I've heard of popping amaranth before but always thought it would be a difficult process. Well turns out, it's not! It literally takes 20 seconds. Heat a wok or frying pan on medium heat, when pan is fully hot, add in just under 1 tbsp of amaranth and stir continuously with a wooden spoon. It will start popping after 3 seconds. Continue stirring until the un-popped seeds turn brown and popping slows. Only do a little bit at a time or else you will get burning.

Popped amaranth and ground peanuts

We adore Clif Bars! And although they are marketed as nutrition bars, we eat them as a treat, equivalent to a cookie because of the high sugar content. Here are our version of Clif Bars with wayyy less sugar but the same Clif Bar texture: 

Peanutty taste

PEANUT-COCONUT CLIF BARS

1/2 cup ground organic peanuts

1/4 cup coconut, shredded

6 tbsp popped amaranth *see above for directions*

6 tbsp crushed organic cornflakes (fruit juice sweetened)

2 tbsp whole peanuts

1/4 cup brown rice syrup

Drops of stevia to taste

1/4 tsp vanilla bean powder

Pinch of sea salt

Combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl, add brown rice syrup and combine with hands until a dough forms. Shape into "cliff bar" shapes. Makes 4 bars.

If you're in the mood for some more Sketch-Free Vegan Treats, check out our ebook Simple Sweets!

Rainbow Snacks

Hey health freaks! Today we have no recipe :( But we dooo have some random food photos! Almost just as good in my opinion. Here's some items we've been munchin' lately...

Cheesy Crackers we made out of ground almonds, carrots and seeds. Needs something else....

One of our favourite snacks of all time! Carrots and Apples with Tahini. Yum!

A mediocre juice. Celery, Carrot and Swiss Chard. Chard isn't that good in juice. Kale is better

Banana-Blueberry Protein Ice Cream! 

Peanut-Butter Carob Protein Freezer Cookies + Ice Cream

Oh my these actually taste like a Reese's peanut butter cup. I think the secret hear is adding salt or using a salted peanut butter. It adds so much to the flavour. We've been loving our freezer bakes! Especially since we're cutting back on grains and sugar.

3 tbsp peanut butter (natural stuff)
1/4 cup water
17 drops stevia
2 1/2 tbsp carob (or more depending on taste preference)
2 tbsp vanilla brown rice protein powder
salt (unless peanut butter is already salted)
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp chia seeds

Combine peanut butter, water and stevia until a pudding consistency is achieved. Mix in other dry ingredients until a dough forms. Flatten into cookie shapes, freeze, makes 6 cookies.

Reese's...honestly

Amazingly fudge texture

Juice! : Carrot, Celery, Fennel, Dandelion, Mixed Greens

Chocolate Blueberry Ice Cream: Avocado, protein powder, frozen blueberries, carob and stevia blended w/ frozen blues added right in

Peanut Butter Mallow Blaster Cups + Hummus

We have another grain -free freezer treat for you this sunny Friday. Peanut Butter Mallow Blaster Cups! It sounds like a hard core junk food doesn't it? Believe it or not these little guys are completely sugar free and 100% pure.

Chocolate Coating:

3/4 cup almond butter

6 tbsp coconut oil, melted

20 drops vanilla stevia

1/2 cup carob powder

Mix all ingredients together. Layer 1 tbsp on the bottom of 6 baking cups. Place in the freezer for a few minutes.

Next, spread a bit of peanut butter on the chocolate coating and then dollop a bit of marshmallow creme (click link for recipe) over the peanut butter. Spoon on more of the chocolate coating until flat on top. Freeze for about 1/2 hour until chocolate is set.

Cuppa cuppa

Blast off!

We also made this edamame hummus but didn't write down the recipe! It's basically just hummus with edamame beans and chickpeas. :)

Eda

And this is our new favourite coconut water! It's frozen, raw and unpasteurized and therefore not as sweet as the canned or boxed coconut water, but it has such a complex, stronger taste and flavour. So refreshing!