Raw Mango Coconut Bites

When the weather gets warmer, I'm always craving a cold treat to cool off. I love making smoothies or anything that has fruit because in my opinion, there's nothing more refreshing than that! I went to Trader Joe's the other day and stocked up on a bunch of frozen fruit, which called for some experimenting. I was a little skeptical about trying a mango and coconut combination, but it turns out they actually go so well together. With only a few natural ingredients and no added-sugar, these mango coconut bites are the perfect healthy and refreshing summer snack.

Ingredients

Coconut Crust:

-1/2 cup almond flour

-1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

-7-8 pitted Medjool dates

-1 tbsp coconut oil

-1/4 tsp cinnamon

Mango Layer:
-2 cups frozen mango cubes, slightly thawed (or fresh mango)

-2 tbsp coconut oil

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

-optional topping: unsweetened shredded coconut

Directions: Combine all ingredients for the crust in a food processor and blend until a slightly sticky dough forms. Press the dough into the cups of a muffin pan, about 1/4 of the way up (mine evenly distributed into 9 cups). Put that in the fridge while you make the mango layer. Combine all of the ingredients for this layer into the food processor and blend until a smooth mixture forms. Take the muffin pan out of the fridge and distribute the mango mixture among each muffin cup, smoothing the top with your finger or a spoon. Top with a little bit of shredded coconut if desired, and put in the freezer until firm. I like to let them thaw on the counter for a few minutes before I eat them.

Healthy Gingerbread Cookies

Whenever I'm really stressed out from school, I always find myself in the kitchen. Besides working out, baking is the one thing that always makes me feel better. It makes no sense because I'm putting off all the work I have to do, which will just make me even more stressed out, but taking a break never hurts! So tonight is one of those nights--I'm just a few days away from being done with my first semester of grad school, so naturally instead of working on the paper worth 30% of my grade, I baked some cookies. At midnight...on a Saturday night. Totally normal. They're similar to my healthy snickerdoodle cookies recipe, but in the spirit of Christmas being 2 weeks away, I came up with a gingerbread version. I seriously can't get enough of gingerbread lately! Just like my other cookies, these are paleo, vegan, and gluten-free.

Ingredients:
1 cup almond flour
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1/4 cup baking stevia (or honey or agave)
1/8 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp blackstrap molasses
1 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk, or milk of choice
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp each of nutmeg and ground cloves (I didn't measure any of the spices, this is just a guess)

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine almond flour, stevia, baking soda, spices and sea salt in one mixing bowl. Mix the coconut oil, milk, and molasses in a separate bowl. Then pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well. Form the dough into balls about 1 tbsp big. Then place on the baking sheet. Flatten each dough ball slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes. They will be very soft when they come out of the oven, so let them cool for a while before transferring them from the baking sheet. Enjoy!

Healthy Banana Bread

When I was little, banana bread was probably one of my most favorite things that my mom used to bake. When I got older and started to eat healthier, I tried to recreate her banana bread recipe so many times. I was determined to make one that still had the rich flavor and moist texture of her banana bread, but with some healthy swaps for the butter, sugar, and flour. I can't tell you how many failed attempts I had trying to create the perfect recipe, but I finally nailed it! My mom even approved :) 

Compared to most banana bread recipes, this is lower in calories and carbs, and higher in protein. It's also grain-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, and paleo friendly.

Ingredients:

-3/4 cup mashed banana (~2 bananas, make sure they're very ripe)

-1 cup almond meal

-1/4 cup coconut flour

-1/4 cup baking stevia (or honey or agave)

-2 eggs (room temp is best)

-2 tbsp melted coconut oil

-1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

-1 tsp baking soda

-1/4 tsp sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients in one bowl, and wet in another. Then pour wet into dry. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray or line with parchment paper. Pour in the batter and make sure it's evenly distributed in the pan. Bake for about 35-40 minutes. Let it cool before cutting into slices.

 

It was so good that I even had it for dessert one night! Topped with sugar-free vanilla coconut milk ice cream and some peanut butter :) Also perfect for breakfast or a mid-day snack!

Healthy Snickerdoodle Cookies

So I'm not going to lie, I've actually never had a real snickerdoodle cookie before! So I'm not exactly sure what they taste like. When I made this recipe, I actually didn't really have a flavor in mind. After I tasted them, I decided that they must be snickerdoodle because they had a sweet, buttery taste and when I typed snickerdoodle into google that's how it's described..haha. So if anyone ends up making these, let me know if I was right! Either way, they're delicious. They're also paleo, vegan, and gluten-free. There's no eggs, no dairy, and no grains, so they're very allergen-friendly!

Ingredients:
1 cup cashew flour (you can also grind up cashews in a food processor, or try almond flour)
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)
1/4 cup baking stevia (or sweetener of choice)
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp butter extract (use more vanilla extract if you don't have this, but I highly recommend using it!)
pinch of sea salt
cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine cashew flour, stevia, baking soda, and sea salt in one mixing bowl. Mix the coconut oil, applesauce, milk, vanilla extract, and butter extract in a separate bowl. Then pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well. Form the dough into balls about 1 tbsp big, and sprinkle with cinnamon. Then place on the baking sheet. Flatten each dough ball slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes. They will be very soft when they come out of the oven, so let them cool for a while before transferring them from the baking sheet. They end up being soft on the inside, and firm on the outside!