For recipe #24, I decided to go the savory route as I realize the last handful of recipes have been sweet. This one is embarrassingly easy and yet somehow manages to totally hit the spot. It is the ideal winter dish. It tastes delicious, hearty, potentially even unhealthy in that mouthwatering-impossible-to-stop-eating kind of way. Its cozy and comforting. Yet, its gluten-free, lactose-free and of course, sugar-free.
Yes, I am showcasing yet another cheesecake. But are you really so surprised? With the holiday season underway, I felt like this was a great opportunity to continue with the experimental cheesecake flavors. This dessert is also in one of the key Christmas colors! How is that for some thematic fun? For recipe #23, I decided to jump on the Matcha trend bandwagon.
Along with pumpkin, butternut squash, cinnamon and sweet potato, carrot is another top contender for flavors of fall (though I realize at this point, we have segued into winter. But carrot cake is fitting for all cold months). Carrot cake, bread, muffins, cookies, its all delectable. There is something so homey, down to earth and invitingly earthy about a slice of this flavor of cake. I love the slightly spiced taste that this sweet bread lends.
These carrot cake cupcakes are refined sugar-free, gluten-free and dairy-free (though the frosting I recommend is not dairy free. But man oh man, a carrot cake sweet bread just isn’t the same without a cream cheese flavor of frosting).
Coming at you as recipe #21 is another lovely-to-look-at cheesecake. Cheesecake is simply the bomb diggity. It pairs beautifully with tea or coffee. Its the perfect recipe to whip up for any celebration or get together, as its an easy one and always a crowd pleaser. Plus, the possibilities for flavor combinations are wide open. Its rich but not overwhelming. Sweet but not too sweet. Creamy, totally delicious.
I have been smitten with this particular dessert (OK lets be real, all desserts) since I was roughly twelve years old. But the moment I truly fell in love with it was at my family’s little cottage where we used to spend a week or two every summer throughout my childhood, right on Lake Superior. Many of my most loved and nostalgic memories take place with our “camp” (as well called it) as the setting.
During the particular summer when I was first introduced to cheesecake, I was on the cusp of my teenage years, which is a period that comes with more free reign than being a child offers. I had my own money. I could actually buy certain things that I wanted, of my own accord. The power and thrill that came with that, watch out. I used some of my meager funds to purchase a box of Sarah Lee Cheesecake Bites, which I had never sampled prior to this summer. Since then, I haven’t looked back. My love affair with cheesecake has only deepened over the years.
A man I dated briefly about a year ago nearly caused me to fall out of my seat when he told me during our get-to-know-you conversation that 1. he was a professional chef and 2. his specialty? Cheesecake. My jaw dropped. The one heartbreak from that short and sweet handful of dates with this (another perk, admittedly beautiful) man? That I never had the chance to sample this supposedly earth moving cheesecake. Oh, the regret!
December, one of the best months of the year. Christmas lights twinkling. Fires roaring in hearths and rustic wood stoves. Mittens and scarves have officially made a reappearance. Hot chocolate and tea are constants on rotation as the comforting warm drink of choice (alongside of coffee, which diehards tend to drink all year regardless). Decorations are hung. Christmas music is played, to an annoying degree for some (though personally, I love it). Cookies are baked and piped with colorful icing. Cards filled with affectionate sentiments are penned. Church on Christmas Eve with choir sung carols, magical. Finding for the perfect personal gifts for those you love. Thick books truly ideal for this month of the year, diving into an immersive, spellbinding, towering tale while holed up under your favorite blanket. Snow, a glittering blanket across the landscape. All of this and more is why I think December is fantastic.
Another awesome aspect of December…chocolate cake. This particular cake is decked out, much like the halls, during this month of the year (wink, wink).
Its beginning to be that time of year again. For recipe #19, I thought I would venture into the traditional holiday/Christmas treat realm and go with gingerbread. Gingerbread is a multi-purpose dessert which can wear many hats appealing, don’t you think? One can make the traditional gingerbread men and women, decorating them with colorful piped icing for charming getup’s and physical features. An elaborate gingerbread house can be constructed, doubling as a work of art AND a tasty treat. Gingerbread cake is always a delicious decision. Gingerbread cupcakes with maple frosting. Gingerbread lattes. The list goes on.
I have a gingerbread cookie recipe for you but without all the less-than-healthy ingredients. You might just forget they aren’t the real deal and polish off the batch within a day or two if you aren’t careful.
The final cherry on top of all this good news? For those of you who are avid dough eaters (you know who you are. The ones who, whenever baking, you grab a spoon and eat a number of spoonfuls of the dough before baking whatever sweet treat it is that’s in the making), this dough is egg free, so eat away! (I certainly did ;-))
Mock Gingerbread Cookies
(“Mock” in the sense that these gingerbread cookies are sugar-free, lactose-free and gluten-free. Legit in the sense that they taste just like the real deal!)
I think its safe to say that winter is officially upon us. Would anyone disagree? The temperature seems to have finally dropped to subzero levels of chilliness. A fact of which I am a bit disheartened since I love nothing more then being toasty warm as often as possible. Being within the heart of winter makes this a difficult task to accomplish. So for recipe #18, I decided to go with a cozy, warm, winter themed dish.
One of my favorite cafes here in Frankfurt is Cafe Crumble. Another favorite is aptly named Sugar Mama. Both of these inviting little eateries have delicious fruit crumbles on offering. I have sampled both dishes more then once and each one gets major props. Delicious. Homey. Comfort food that totally hits the spot on a brisk afternoon. So, I decided to make my own version, except this one is refined sugar-free, gluten-free and lactose-free.
The great news? This version is just as tasty as my two favorite cafes takes on the fruit crumble, though thankfully, this is far better for your health.
Recipe #17 is not only delicious but lovely to look at, as you can see. I decided to play with my passion for cheesecake this weekend and whip one up. However, I didn’t just want to make any old cheesecake. I wanted to come up with a slightly more unique flavor combination than the usual offerings one finds with cheesecake flavorings.
I have been using lavender a lot lately, especially in my pancakes. One of my most raved about recent pancake varieties is my blueberry lavender recipe. So naturally, all this lavender I have been working with as of late sparked a bulb when considering cheesecake possibilities. I have also heard of all things earl gray flavored being a trendy as well as simultaneously rather timeless flavor, especially in combination with recipes involving creams or sweets. So I put two and two together and that set the course of my experiment.
I am excited to report rave reviews from the handful of people who sampled it. This recipe is refined sugar-free as well as gluten free. Its not lactose-free. Personally, I don’t think a cheesecake is cheesecake unless its made of cream cheese. While I have sampled some excellent raw cheesecakes which are dairy-free (and I plan to attempt one for this very website at some point in the near future ;-)), I had to go with a legit cheesecake (aka, with dairy) for this particular recipe (just minus the sugar and gluten).
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Obviously Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated here in Germany, so I am imagining all the people I love in the US crowding around full tables (probably at this very moment actually) with their families and loved ones, the surfaces heaped with DELECTABLE food in all manner of dishes, conversation, stories and laughter filling the room, candles aglow along the length of the spread. I love all of this. After the meal, a game of cards might break out, or everyone may cozy down in front of a movie. And of course, watching Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade here and there throughout the day as fun background filler is a must. And finally, once dusk gives way to night and people start to get the late night munchies, they head back into the kitchen to assemble a small plate of…drum roll…one of the best parts about Thanksgiving…LEFTOVERS!!!!
Therefore I thought with recipe #16, I would stick to the traditional-thanksgiving-foods theme, so here is an awesome Pumpkin Pie for you to sample and fall in love with. Alongside of stuffing (though not literally eaten together. That would be gross :-p), pumpkin pie is the most sought after item on the Thanksgiving spread for me. I could easily kill half a pie if you twisted my arm (or, even if you didn’t).
Yes, the crust on this recipe is a tad complicated but its WELL WORTH IT.
What is the must have item on your Thanksgiving menu?
Recipe #15 is another top contender for me. I make these far too often. You can customize this one flavor-wise to your hearts content. The sky is the limit. So for a playful and creative cook, this is an especially sweet recipe to add to your repertoire. The other awesome news? These are gluten-free, sugar-free AND lactose-free!
Pancakes. As those of you who have read my previous entries know, pancakes hold a special place in my heart. I adore them. I would eat them every day if I could. For me, pancakes evoke images of cozy, leisurely breakfasts crowded around a cramped table full of friends, lots of laughter and stories filling the air between all of us. Or, of a lazy brunch having rolled out of bed in the golden hours of late morning with a lover, getting ready together and strolling down the street hand in hand, leaves wrestling in the grates as as we huddle against one another and push inside the cafe. We sink down into the comfortable booth, scanning the worn menu but already know what we want (or at least I do). A plate of towering pancakes, warm, syrup dripping down the sides.
Fun fact: these guys are made with buckwheat flour, which is actually a fruit seed. Its not a grain at all. It comes from the same family as rhubarb. And, did you know that buckwheat is awesome for you!?! Its good for your cardiovascular system, helps control blood sugar and may lower ones risk of diabetes, helps prevent gallstones, and has health promoting potential that is equal to or even higher than that of some fruits and vegetables. How cool is that?
Sugar-free, raw, gluten-free or lactose-free recipes. 