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4 ingredient maca-powered chocolate clusters

Have you used maca powder yet? Its nickname is “Peruvian ginseng” and was even used as currency during the Incan empire due to its energy and libido enhancing properties. It’s loaded with vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Buying it in powder form makes it easy to incorporate in many dishes: add it to smoothies, baked goods, sprinkle on salads, and add it to your morning oatmeal. 

I was so excited to find the Nature’s Path granola on sale this week. Apparently I didn’t have enough chocolate over the holidays so I grabbed a bag of chocolate too- which was also $1 off. Score! I’ll take any extra $$$ in my pocket to pay off the December credit card bill. 

These clusters can be made with almost anything you have on hand. Throw in some nuts and seeds into melted chocolate, chill in the fridge- and you have clusters. Get creative with cranberries, oranges, coconut chips, slivered almonds, etc. What I used was simply what I had in my kitchen at the time.  

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of bittersweet chocolate chips
1 tsp of maca powder
1/2 cup of granola
a handful of raisins
 
Instructions:
1) Melt chocolate (roughly 60 seconds in the microwave, or in a bowl over boiling water)
2) Blend in the remaining ingredients
3) Pour into parchment paper covered cookie sheet. With a fork or a knife separate the “batter” into small clusters. Chill in refrigerator for 15 mins.

Candied Cranberries

The adult version of sour patch kids! These are the perfect poppers for a holiday party. Double the recipe to make enough to go around.

Ingredients

3 cups of fresh cranberries 

3 cups of water

3 cups of granulated sugar + more for coating

Instructions

1) Wash cranberries and set aside in a bowl.

2) Over low to medium heat combine water and 3 cups of sugar. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Do not boil the water. Once sugar is dissolved allow mixture to cool to room temperature.

3) Pour cooled mixture over the cranberries until they are submerged. (If you pour hot water over the berries they will pop) Press berries down because they will naturally float. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

4) Strain berries out of the bowl and dry off with a paper towel. They should be a bit tacky. You can keep the syrup water for another recipe or discard.

5) Pour enough sugar to cover the bottom of a big flat dinner plate with a thin layer. Place berries in batches of about 10 on to the plate. Pick up the plate with both hands and very gently move it side to side. The berries will easily roll and get coated with sugar. Set coated berries aside on a baking sheet to allow the sugar to harden. 

6) Store in refrigerator. 


Banana Muffins

These banana muffins pick up on the nice fall flavors with the added applesauce and spices.  It's a slight variation of the Apple Pumpkin Muffins (the basic recipe is a perfect way to play around with seasonal flavors, or to take advantage of whatever you have in the kitchen).

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)

1/2 cup of rolled oats

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/3 cup of raw turbinado sugar (or brown sugar)

2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp of nutmeg

1/4 tsp of salt

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup of applesauce

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp of ground flax seeds + 6 tbsp of water, set aside for 6 mins)

1/4 cup of maple syrup

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, mix flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar and spices together until well combined.

2) Add mashed bananas, applesauce, flax eggs and maple syrup, stir until almost combined. Spoon into lined/ greased muffin cups about 3/4 of the way. Sprinkle additional oats and brown sugar over top if desired. Bake 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Apple Pumpkin Muffins

I'm loving the apple and pumpkin combo here. I left the apple chunks a little big so it gave a nice crunch but you can chop them into tiny pieces so that they cook through into a really soft consistency.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)

1/2 cups of rolled oats

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/3 cup of raw turbinado sugar (or brown sugar)

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp of nutmeg

1/4 tsp of salt

1 cup of pumpkin puree

1 cup of apples, chopped 

2 flax eggs (1 tbsp of ground flax seeds + 3 tbsp of water, set aside for 6 mins)

1/4 cup of maple syrup

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, mix flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar and spices together until well combined.

2) Add pumpkin puree, flax eggs and maple syrup, then stir until almost combined. Add apples, stir until just combined. Spoon into lined/ greased muffin cups about 3/4 of the way. Sprinkle additional oats and brown sugar over top if desired. Bake 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Baked Apples

Yahoo for apple season! I recently picked up a huge box of apples from the local farmer's market for a super cheap price. Gotta love the fall. Naturally, it calls for baked apples to be made... 

Ingredients:

3 Apples, sliced in half, deseeded 

About 1 cup of oats

2 tbsp maple syrup

Generous sprinkle of cinnamon 

Instructions:
1) Preheat over to 350

2) Arrange apple in an oven safe dish. Spread oats evenly among the apples. Pour in the maple syrup, and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake for about 1 hour.

Nutty Power Bars

The only problem with these bars is they are gone as soon as you make them. The crust for these puppies are a great base for any extras you may want to add. 

Ingredients:

1 cup of nuts (used 1/3 c each of walnuts, almonds, cashews)
4 soft medjool dates, depitted
1/3 cup of dark chocolate chips
1 tbsp. of coconut flakes

Instructions:
1) Grind the nuts in a blender. Mold in the dates until the mixture becomes clumpy.

2) Place a piece of plastic wrap on a cutting board and form the nut mixture into a thin flat sheet. Place in the refrigerator to firm up. This should only take about 10 mins.

3) While you are waiting for the nuts to firm up, melt chocolate chips in a metal bowl over boiling water. Take the nuts out of the refrigerator and pour chocolate on top.

3) Sprinkle with coconut flakes. Cut into small pieces. 

4) Refrigerate until ready to eat.

Pumpkin Banana Squares

Get your pumpkin craving satisfied with these delicious squares!

Eat them for breakfast, snack or dessert. Dress them up with coconut ice cream or a nutty dressing. This recipe is the perfect way to indulge your sweet tooth.

Ingredients:

1 banana

1/2 cup of raisons

2 cups of rolled oats

15 oz of pumpkin puree

3 tbsp of maple syrup

 

Instructions:

1) Pulse raisons and banana in a high power blender until creamy.

2) Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.

3) Line a 9x9 oven safe container with parchment paper. Spread mixture into the container and bake at 350 degrees for 30 mins. Let cool on a wire rack.