Vegan Lemon Coconut Truffles

I had a white chocolate lemon truffle this weekend during the Masterworks Concert held in Harrison City. They served desserts prepared by the wife and other relatives of Dennis, the president of the Board of Directors of this Choir. They were mouthwatering including the white chocolate lemon truffle I just mentioned.  Here are some pictures from the concert.

I did not have white chocolate but I had fresh lemon so I researched the web to see if there is an ingredient I can substitute for the white chocolate.  I thought of coconut butter which I have used previously in the past, here and here.  Lo and behold I found this website with a recipe for lemon coconut truffle.  It entailed both coconut oil and coconut butter.  The latter is expensive so I decided to use my favorite ingredient, sweet potatoes which I have used before in some dessert recipes, here and here. So instead of using a half cup of coconut butter, I only used 1 tablespoon and used half a cup mashed sweet potatoes to give the truffle body. I still used coconut oil and also used a lot more sweetened coconut flakes than the original recipe.

This truffle has a tart lemony taste that is pleasing and enticing.  The texture is soft but has body to it. It could be one of the desserts you can have these coming holidays.

Vegan Lemon Coconut Truffles

• 1 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 tbsp coconut butter, melted
• 3 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• juice and zest of one lemon
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips or dried fruits like raisins or cranberries or nuts (optional)

Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cool in the refrigerator.

Roll into balls.

Slow Cooker Vegan Tikka Masala

This is adapted from the recipe of one of the dishes that Chef Wyatt Lash of the Commoner demonstrated when he stopped by Pittsburgh Today Live.  It has a surprising delightful ingredient, lime, which gives the dish a citrusy refreshing taste that I like. I decreased the amount of coconut milk and skipped the usually used ingredient in this dish, garam masala. Relax guys I added some of the components of this spice blend to this adapted recipe namely, cinnamon, turmeric, and coriander which were not in the original recipe.

This got two thumbs up from my vegan yoga teacher, Sally.  I love this so much I had this for breakfast with quinoa. So good.

Slow Cooker Vegan Tikka Masala

Adapted from this recipe

• 1 tbsp coconut oil

• 1 large onion, sliced

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated

• 1/2 Tsp ground cumin

• 1/4 Tsp ground cardamon

• 1/4 tsp ground coriander

• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder

• 1/8 tsp turmeric 

• 1 tbsp curry powder

• 2 dry red chili peppers, crushed or 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

• 1 tbsp coconut palm brown sugar

• 1 Zest Lime, Plus Juice

• 2 sweet potatoes peeled and cut into 1-inch cube

• 2 cups baby carrots

• 1 -14.5 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

• 1/4 cup coconut milk or non dairy milk

• 1 tbsp cornstarch in 1/4 cup water

• 1-12 oz can diced tomatoes

• 1 tbsp Sriracha

• 1 cup vegetable stock

• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste

• 2 cups spinach, (optional)

• 2 tbsp green onions for garnish  

1. In a skillet or in the slow cooker with saute mode, add  the coconut oil and heat at medium heat.  Add and sweat all onions, garlic, and ginger with dry spices. 
2. Add the rest of ingredients to the sauted mixture except spinach if using and green onions in the slow cooker bowl. 
3. Cook on high for 3 hours or at low for 6 hours.  I cooked mine in an Aroma Brand rice cooker/slow cooker for 2 hours at slow cooker setting.  
4.  Add the spinach if using at the last half hour of slow cooking. Garnish with green onions. 

Microwave Skinny Cookies

I recently visited my niece, Gia, and her family, in Canada and she brought us to Kelly's Bake Shoppe. Their most popular cookies are the so called Skinny Cookies.  Our gracious and resourceful hostess Gia had to research the recipe since their cookbook did not feature this.  She came upon this recipe from the web. She was preparing a batch before we left and I was convincing her they can be baked in the microwave. Thus I was challenged to prove it to her and came up with my own adapted recipe.

Austin, Dion, Gia and Rayshawn at the Botanical Garden, Ontario, Canada

I did tweak the recipe with several substitutions among which is swapping flour and coconut flakes for the oatmeal since I am allergic to the latter if I ingest a large amount. (and who can resist cookies with chocolate chips!).  The cookies are called Skinny Cookies since no sugar or butter or eggs or dairy are added to the batter.  To make it gluten free, stay with the use of oatmeal or use gluten free flour.  BTW my picky taster, my husband, gave the cookies two thumbs up.  It was that good, he ate one of four while I could not resist finishing the rest. Tsk, tsk.

Microwave Skinny Cookies

4 large cookies

• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup flour (or 1/2 cup oatmeal or gluten free flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup coconut
• 2 tbsp non dairy milk
• 1 tbsp chocolate chips 
• 1 tbsp raisins 
• 1 tbsp nuts

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl.  Place them in four round shapes into a microwave safe plate with space between them and the center of the plate empty.  Microwave for four minutes. (I used a 1100 W oven).

Here are the nutrition facts to prove that it is skinny and healthy.  Just use moderation and not eat all in one seating like I did.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 49 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 97 Calories from Fat 32

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 3.6g 6%

Saturated Fat 1.9g 10%

Cholesterol 1mg 0%

Sodium 19mg 1%

Potassium 264mg 8%

Total Carbohydrates 15.4g 5%

Dietary Fiber 2.1g 8%

Sugars 5.7g

Protein 2.2g

Vitamin A 0% • Vitamin C 4% Calcium 6% • Iron 7%

Nutrition Grade A-

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• Very low in cholesterol
• Low in sodium
• High in manganese
• High in phosphorus
• High in vitamin B6

Bad points

• High in sugar

Easy Microwave Macaroons (gluten free)

I had macaroons in a recent meeting and my love for them was revived. I had been playing with a microwave cookie recipe using bananas and coconut and a light bulb lit to use the same approach to make the macaroons.  I actually found out I only needed three ingredients.  I just needed to determine how best to do it in the microwave.  I was lazy and I wanted my macaroons right then so microwaving suits my impatient personality,

You can add raisins, nuts or chocolate chips but I found the sweetness of the banana that was ripened by the microwaving mixed with the coconut together was enough to satisfy my sweet tooth. Warning this is addictive.

Easy Microwaved Macaroons (gluten free)

• 1 banana
• 1/2 cup coconut flakes (sweetened or unsweetened)
• 1 tsp baking powder

Mash the banana in a small bowl with a fork. Add the coconut and baking powder and mix with the banana with a fork. 

Microwave the mixture in a bowl for 2 minutes. Remove from the microwave and form the mushy mixture into small balls. About 8 small balls.

Place the balls in a dinner plate along the edge of the plate in a circle leaving space in between and in the middle of plate 

Microwave for 2 more minutes till the macaroons have body but still pillowy. Too long amd they get tough. I used a 1100 watt microwave.You might have to play around a few seconds at a time if still too soft.  

Pineapple Carrot Coconut Snowballs

These coconut snowballs are "healthy-fied" with the addition of carrots and raisins to the pineapple cream cheese mixture.  They are melt in your mouth morsels which are not very sweet.  I consider it a perfect dessert to give to my granddaughter Maddie who loves carrots.  It will also appeal to her mom, my daughter Wendy, who prefers that her daughter not get used to desserts that are too sweet. 

Maddie at one year old with me.  I do have a  piece about Maddie and Me in this blog.

I have made Green Ice Cream for Maddie which she loves.   I incorporated spinach and cucumber in the list of ingredients.  At that time when she was barely one year old, Maddie was not into vegetables except for carrots.  Right now, she loves green beans and even ate my spicy Kale and Butternut Quesadillas with a lot of cute contortions of the face of course because it was spicy.  I have, however, discovered that at one and half years old, she has very unpredictable taste in food in the sense that she might shun what she had liked before.  Liking carrots, however, is a constant.

Maddie in her cute surprised pose.  Her latest adorable antic.

When I was developing this recipe, the handling of the cream cheese pineapple mixture was difficult when it comes to rolling it into balls even with refrigeration.  I decided to add a tablespoon of coconut butter to the mixture and that really helped.  I also mixed half of the carrot coconut mixture to the cream cheese pineapple blend and that further made the rolling into balls much easier

Pineapple Carrot Coconut Snowballs

 

Ingredients

1/2 cup cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1/2 cup of unsweetened crushed pineapple, well drained

1 tbsp coconut butter (optional but it really helps in rolling into balls easier)

1/4 cup raisins (you can use half this but the ball will not be as sweet)

1/4 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup dessicated sweetened coconut flakes

For topping:

1/4 cup more shredded carrots

1/2 cup more dessicated sweetened coconut flakes

Mix the first three ingredients in a bowl.  To this mixture, add the raisin, 1/4  cup shredded carrots and 1/2 cup coconut .  Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes.

Mix the topping mixture consisting of 1/4 cup more shredded carrots and 1/2 cup more coconut in a bowl. 

Roll the refrigerated mixture into small balls (about 1/2 inch diameter).  Roll the balls in the carrot/coconut topping.  You can place them in mini cupcake paper holders for ease of handling.   The balls are still soft and melt in your mouth beauties.  Enjoy.