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very berry sprouted tofu soft serve

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We are experiencing the biggest heat wave since 1948! Yes, it’s a sauna outside with temps of 38 degrees celsius – feeling like 48 with the humidity! That’s 118 fahrenheit (if that paints a better picture for you). It is most definitely a HOT picture. Although we’re tucked away in the coolness of our house with the AC blasting. I’m for once grateful that our roof drops down enough to cover our windows from the blasting sunshine. (In the winter months when I’m feeling depressed that there’s not enough sunshine in my home, please remind me of this one lovely day that I stayed cool thanks to this ;). But who cares about winter now! We are in the middle of summer and it’s lovely indeed. You just need to find ways to stay cool when the heat gets insane.

And to keep cool, I’ve got the yummiest dairy free/ vegan dessert for you! A Very Berry Soft Serve – so fruity and yummy, naturally sweetened with fruit and agave nectar! Yum.

This recipe is very simple to make with simple ingredients. All you need is a blender or a food processor (not even an ice cream maker).

Ingredients: 3-4 cups of frozen berries of your choice (I used a mix of strawberries, blueberries and blackberries), 1/2 package of organic sprouted tofu (silken texture), 1/2 cup of agave nectar (or honey if not vegan). (feel free to add more of these ingredients as you’re taste buds see fit).

Directions: Blend on a high setting until well combined. Should form soft peaks and have an icy texture. If it appears too soft, place it in the freezer for a few minutes to thicken it up.

Easy, quick & nice and icy – our ice-cream alternative is well received around here! I can’t wait to do more! I don’t care for fat-filled, heavy ice cream anymore filled with calories galore from all that sugar. This way, I know what I’m eating, it’s light and fruity, dairy-free, egg-free, (vegan), and has no artificial flavours or colours.

Although there are nicer alternatives to a good quality ice cream. If you are looking to purchase ready made ice cream or sorbet, than there are amazing styles and flavours that are dairy free and vegan. My favourite is the Soy Delicious Purely Decadent brand. (You must try it even if you’re not vegan!) There’s soy based, rice milk based, or dairy-free sorbets (which I don’t care for as they are loaded with sugar). If you’re not vegan – than the best ice cream out there is Haagen-Dazs. When choosing your ice cream – read the ingredients. If you have no idea what that word is or can’t even pronounce it – move on to a different brand.

Here’s a little scoop about the harmful chemicals that you could potentially be serving to your children: Read here.

How are you cooling off in this heat?

ps. my apologies for not posting as often as I would like. I just need to prioritize things lately and work’s been very busy (on here it’s easy to forget I’m a work-at-home-mama), and leaving little time to finish my website, and even less time for my blog…. oh and throw in mom duties in there somewhere, and eating and breathing….. cooking and cleaning isn’t even on this list lately ;)  It sucks to admit, but I can’t do it all….. you know what I mean?


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the ‘i love you’ cookies

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Hello my lovelies! I am loving all these Valentine’s Day preparations. I was never much of an overly romantic girl when it came to Valentine’s but something is different this year…. I have a little one that gives me endless hugs and kisses every morning and now drawing hearts is part of the everyday. Showing love and affection is so good for the soul and the heart, of course. And we discovered that there is nothing better than to share that warm love’y feeling with some heart shaped sugar cookies – that’s gluten-free and egg-free sugar cookies ;)  (if you’re not concerned with allergens – scroll down to see my old favourite recipe from MS)

Here is the lovely gluten-free and egg-free Sugar Cookie recipe, that we call:

The I Love You Cookies

(vegan & gluten-free)


+ Icing recipe and Old Fashioned Sugar Cookie recipe link below:

3/4 c Dairy free margarine (softened)
1 c Sugar
1/4 c Applesauce
1 t Vanilla extract
1 1/2 c Sorghum flour
1/2 c Sweet rice flour
1/2 c Potato starch
1/2 c Tapioca starch (sometimes called tapioca flour, they are the same thing)
2 1/2 t Guar gum (or xanthan gum)
1 t Salt
1 T Baking powder
Powdered sugar for rolling

Cream together margarine and sugar. Add applesauce and vanilla and mix well. In another bowl whisk together all the dry ingredients. Slowly add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and blend thoroughly. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 350. Cover work area and rolling pin with powdered sugar. Roll dough 1/4″ thick, or thinner if you prefer a crispy cookie. Cut into shapes and transfer to a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake for 10 to 20 minutes depending on cookie size and desired softness/crispness. 4″ cookies that are 1/4″ thick for 15 minutes are great and soft. Let cool on sheet for a few minutes then remove to cooling rack.

You can decorate with just a dusting of icing sugar or add some sugar crystals in pink or red.

A quick icing recipe is 1/2 cup of icing sugar mixed well with 1-2 spoons of warm water. That’s it. You never have to buy ready made icing again ;) Then sprinkle evenly with sugar crystals in your favourite colour or try raw sugar for an ‘earthy’ look.

For a traditional non allergenic Sugar Cookie recipe visit this Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies recipe from Martha Stewart for one of my old favourite recipes.

Here is to munching on lovely pink sugar covered hearts! Ahhh…. the perfect way to say ‘I love you’.

What are your favourite recipes or treats for Valentine’s Day?
Mine used to be….so very girly: champagne and truffles….. ahhh sob sob. Maybe I can still enjoy this treat one day ;)


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quick, chocolatey and delicious

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chocolate-snack-dessert

We made these delicious snacks the other day. My daughter had so much fun making these. For a three year old – breaking chocolate squares is even fun – so this is definitely a dessert making project you want to involve your little helpers.

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We used a variation of milk and dark chocolate. Some were one type of chocolate and some had both layers of chocolate in one. There are no rules – so make them as you wish. We started by breaking the chocolate bars into a bowl, I then put that on my ‘double boiler’ (which is a small pot with boiling water set on low heat – I stir the chocolate until all the parts are completely melted.) Remove the bowl from the pot and place on a tea towel so it’s not hot to the touch. Keep it away from the kids at this point while it’s still hot. They can have a go at scooping the chocolate a few minutes later. When I worked with my 3 year old, I scooped the chocolate for her and she layered her ingredients of choice.

For the ingredients we had: dark and milk chocolate, plain popcorn, Dried Fruit: sliced apricots, dried figs, dried cranberries, banana chips. Nuts: toasted and chopped almonds, walnut and pecan chunks. Use what you wish. This is great to customize for people with allergies too. For example both my daughter and I don’t eat dairy – so we used the dark chocolate for our treats.

chocolate-snack-dessert3

I used a silicone muffin pan to do these in. If you have one – that is awesome because it’s easy to take them out and handle with kids. You could use a regular muffin pan if you want the circular shapes, or any little plastic cups would do. Wait until the chocolate has completely hardened to remove.chocolate-snack-dessert4chocolate-snack-dessert5chocolate-snack-dessert6

These make great little gifts when wrapped nicely with a little cello and string. We made a few sets to give away. But this is definitely a repeat project I will do with my girl and a few of her friends when we have another play date over the holidays. I can just imagine how the kids will go nuts and bananas over the chocolatey fun ;)

As an alternative for adults only you can add a shot of your favourite liqueur ;) I used a mint liqueur on one batch – and it is heavenly topped with cranberries and almonds. Simply add the splash of alcohol to the melting chocolate and stir well. Enjoy my 19+ year old friends (umm 21+ if you’re in the States ;D)

Happy Holidays!

(pssst. 4 days left ;)

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