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Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies {Gluten-Free/Vegan}

Written on April 30, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

I love Jessica’s blog. It was one of my favorites since I started reading food blogs and it’s never disappointed—the recipes and pictures are always great.

When Jessica posted peanut butter banana chocolate chip cookies, I couldn’t resist trying them out. There are too many flavors there that I love.

I changed Jessica’s recipe around to make these gluten-free and vegan. I hope that’s not heresy for someone who loves butter and flour; but if it is it’s delicious heresy.

I chose brown rice for this recipe because it is soft and buttery when baked making a tasty, airy cookie. You can find brown rice flour in most grocery stores in the gluten-free section.

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies(adapted from this recipe)

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 18 minutes

Ingredients(Makes about 1 dozen cookies):

1/2 cup banana puree
1/2 cup runny peanut butter
1 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup sugar*
2 Tablespoons maple syrup*
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt**

*I used this to replicate the flavor of brown sugar. If you don’t have maple syrup, you can substitute 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons brown sugar and a Tablespoon of water.

**Omit if the peanut butter you’re using is salted

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Combine all of the ingredients together evenly into a thick batter.
Roll 1 ounce of dough into a ball in your hand and place it on a lined or greased baking tray.
Bake for 15-18 minutes until the sides are browning and the center has puffed up.
Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely before taking them off the baking tray.

These are seriously some of the best cookies I’ve tasted. Make this recipe. Or make Jessica’s recipe. Just make some recipe.

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Mint Carob Cupcakes

Written on April 27, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

Whenever I get an urge to make cupcakes, I don’t even question what flour I’ll use. Coconut flour by far makes the best and lightest gluten-free cupcakes around.

I’d like to say I chose carob because it’s exotic and unique but honestly I picked up carob powder by mistake one day and never figured out what to do with it before now. Since I’m not the biggest fan of carob, I wanted to add mint to distract the flavor a bit. I think the two balanced well to make a tasty cupcake. Of course you could always sub in cocoa powder for the carob powder and these’d be just as good.

The frosting I used was a mint chocolate buttercream. It wasn’t perfect but not a failure, either. Definitely not paleo like the cupcakes. For a first go at chocolate buttercream, I’d say it was a success, even though my frosting talent has a long way to go.

Mint Carob Cupcakes

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes

Ingredients(Makes a dozen cupcakes):

3/4 cup cup coconut flour
4 eggs
2 egg whites
6 Tablespoons carob powder
1/2 cup honey
1 cup almond milk(or any other milk)
2 teaspoons mint extract

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line 12 cupcake holders with paper liners.
Mix together the coconut flour, eggs, egg whites, carob powder, honey, almond milk, and mint extract in a large bowl.
Scoop the batter evenly into the cupcake liners. Hit the pan against the counter a few times to even the batter and knock out any air bubbles.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until the tops are firm to the touch.

They’re really too good to know they’re gluten-free.

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White Chocolate Popcorn

Written on April 23, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

I’m not a popcorn-at-the-movies kind of person. Buttery popcorn just doesn’t do it for me; I’d rather have the sour patch kids or peanut M&Ms. But when it’s chocolate on popcorn—that’s another story.

I’ve been obsessed with white chocolate lately and this is just another way to eat it up. It’s a crunchy, creamy, salty dessert that’s unexpectedly incredible. And it has whole grains so it’s not entirely unhealthy, right?

If you’re worried about this being a messy treat, the chocolate doesn’t actually stick to your hand once it’s cooled down to room temperature. It’ll make your hands about as greasy as any buttered popcorn, though, so have a napkin nearby.

White Chocolate Popcorn

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 8 servings):

8 cups plain popcorn
6oz white chocolate
1 1/2 Tablespoons butter
3/4 teaspoons salt

Method:

In a microwave or over a double boiler, melt the white chocolate and butter together until smooth.
Stir the salt into the white chocolate evenly.
In a large bowl, poor the melted white chocolate over the popcorn. Fold the popcorn into the white chocolate until it’s all coated.
Let the popcorn sit at room temperature and the chocolate solidify slightly. Scoop into bowls and serve.

This is definitely not as good as leftovers since it keeps so poorly, so I would suggest making it and eating it on the same day. I don’t think it’ll be too hard once you take a taste to finish the batch.

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Honey Almond Macaroons

Written on April 20, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

Cookie recipes can be hard sometimes. You need to preheat the oven, mix the ingredients in a certain order, chill and slice the dough sometimes—it’s usually more work than I want to do for a quick sweet fix.

I love macaroons since they’re about as easy a cookie as you can make and still have a satisfying dessert to bite into. As a bonus, they’re naturally gluten-free and have a healthy dose of fats and fiber. It’s even more fun when you make them extra big like they just came from a bakery and eat them warm.

You could try to make these with an egg substitute, but definitely use some sort of binder since the almond butter alone isn’t really enough to hold them together.

Honey Almond Macaroons

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients(Makes about 1 1/2 dozen):

2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup almond butter
1/4 cup honey
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.
Either fill an ice cream scoop with dough and release as mounds on a lined baking tray OR roll balls of dough in your hands, flattening one side and placing it on the baking tray.
Bake for 15-17 minutes until the outside has browned slightly.
Remove from the oven and let cool.

These aren’t too sweet, so I like a little extra honey drizzled on top. They’d be perfect for dessert with some tea or coffee.

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Green Bean Almondine Quinoa

Written on April 18, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Side Dish

Green beans are definitely not the sexiest of vegetables. I think they took a hit in the 50s when green bean casseroles were all the rage and they never really recovered from that. That’s a shame because cooked just right they can be delicious!

I love the idea of pairing green beans and almonds. But that alone doesn’t sound particularly enticing since it’s been done to death. I thought I’d try mixing that in with quinoa, since it’s filling and all the rage these days. This is a much heartier side dish that’s bright and flavorless and doesn’t taste dated.

If fresh green beans aren’t available, look for frozen green beans, which will have a better taste and texture than canned.

Green Bean Almondine Quinoa

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 6-8 servings):

2 cups dry quinoa, washed and rinsed
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and washed
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shaved or slivered almonds

Method:

Cook the quinoa according to the package directions(I usually cook mine with 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa).
While the quinoa is cooking, cut the green beans into a bite-sized length. Steam the green beans until they turn a bright green color and are cooked through.
When the quinoa is fully cooked, turn off the heat and stir in the beans, olive oil, lemon juice, and salt.
Move the quinoa to a serving bowl and garnish with the almonds. Serve hot or at room temperature.

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Easy Black Bean Salad

Written on April 11, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

I’m usually too tired to want to cook at night; during the Summer I have the lovely excuse of not wanting to turn on a stove or a grill because it’s already too hot. That’s why I love bean salad recipes: You never have to cook them and they’re easy to throw together.

It’s really easy to make a big pot of rice and a bunch of bean salad and keep it for yourself to eat throughout the week. Most of the ingredients I used were canned, which is also a plus since I almost always keep them on hand. I’m not a big cilantro fan so I leave strong herbs like that out usually, but you could just as easily add them in. This would be best with a big plop of firecracker guacamole on top.

I left the onions out because I’m not a fan of the strong flavor. One way to get rid of the intense bitterness is to soak it in cold water for 5 minutes before dicing it.

Easy Black Bean Salad

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

1 1/4 cups black beans
1/2 cup corn
1/3 cup sliced cherry tomatoes
1/3 cup sliced olives
1/2 red onion, diced(optional)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro(optional)

Method:

Take all of the ingredients and toss together until the salad is evenly mixed.
Serve with rice, tortillas, or over a bed of greens.

So simple and delicious. It feels like eating at chipotle only without the drive. What could be better than that?

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Gluten-Free Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Written on April 9, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

I saw a lot of carrot cake recipes last week leading up to Easter while I was planning to make one for yesterday, too. I’d forgotten it’s sort of an Eastery dessert. Easter is also the time I celebrate my birthday with my extended family and carrot cake has always been one of my favorite cakes. It’s kind of an odd choice(or so I’m told), but I love it. I even asked to have it as my graduation cake after 6th grade when everyone else was choosing chocolate and chocolate fudge; it’s their loss.

I haven’t had carrot cake since eating gluten-free a few years ago and have been meaning to make this for months. Of course, when I did decide to make it things started going wrong. I realized Friday night I only had one cake pan, so a layer cake was out. I also didn’t have a grater so I had to peel and chop the carrots. I completely forgot to add the pineapple I bought just for this, and as I went to add in the walnuts I remembered my aunt’s allergic to walnuts, so I swapped in some pecans at the last minute. Still, this was one of the best carrot cakes I’ve ever had.

This recipe makes one cake layer. You can double it to make more for a layered cake. To make the cake dairy-free, use a vegan cream cheese substitute. I’d recommend something organic since vegan cream cheeses tend to have odd ingredients.

Gluten-Free Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts(or any other nut)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup maple syrup
4 eggs
6 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted
8oz cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 Tablespoons milk or cream

Method:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Mix together the carrots, raisins, walnuts, coconut, almond flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Mix in the maple syrup, eggs, and coconut oil until the batter is even.
Pour the batter into a 12-inch cake pan and spread out evenly.
Bake for 40 minutes until the cake rises and the center has cooked through.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely before frosting.
To make the frosting, sift the powdered sugar into a bowl with the cream cheese.
Add in the extract and milk and beat until completely mixed.
Spread on top and around the sides of the cake.
Garnish with extra nuts if desired.

I’ll always have a soft spot(and empty stomach) for carrot cake. Since there are vegetables and fruit in this I’m going to go ahead and say it’s fine to eat the leftovers for breakfast, too.

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Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Written on April 6, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

The last time I made chocolate peanut butter, I meant to use it for making cookies. But before I knew it the jar was licked clean and that was that. Oh well—tasty food is never a loss. But since I recently had a jar of dark chocolate dreams, I was determined to make cookies out of it before eating the whole thing.

Peanut butter cookies were an obvious choice since they’re so easy and gluten-free. But why stop there? Adding chocolate chips makes them that much chocolatier and that much better. You could also try adding salted peanuts, and even chocolate covered peanuts if you have some on hand.

You could use any type of peanut butter for this recipe as long as it’s the no-stir kind, even homemade chocolate peanut butter.

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients(Makes about 1 1/2 dozen cookies):

1 cup chocolate peanut butter such as Dark Chocolate Dreams
1 egg
1/2 cup cane sugar
6 Tablespoons chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Beat together all of the ingredients until it forms a batter.
Take pieces of cookie dough and roll it into 1-inch balls in between your hands. Put the balls on a lined cookie tray and press them down with a fork in a criss-cross pattern.
Bake for 16 to 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely before moving them.

When I took these out of the oven, they were very fragile. But as the cookies cooled to room temperature, they could be moved and lifted without cracking at all. Just be careful not to move them around too quickly fresh from the oven or you might end up with crumbs.

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Roasted Asparagus

Written on April 4, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Side Dish

It’s exciting to have fresh produce back on grocery store shelves. I was getting tired of looking at potatoes and squash, but now asparagus, berries, and avocado are all plump and on sale and it actually makes cooking seem less like a chore now.

My favorite method of cooking is still to chuck things in the oven and forget about it. I mean, how easy is that?(Cue the Ina Garten voice) Roasting also adds a lot of flavor as it cooks the vegetables through in a way that steaming or boiling doesn’t. This asparagus comes out much richer and nuttier than if it were cooked any other way.

The lemon and salt at the end brighten up the flavor and brings out the sweet side of the asparagus. The garlic powder is completely optional but a nice touch to add a comforting savoriness to the dish that would go well along side red meat and potatoes.

Roasted Asparagus

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 bundle of asparagus, washed
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder(optional)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees
Toss the asparagus in the oil and garlic powder if using.
Roast for 30 minutes until the asparagus is slightly past fork tender
Remove from the oven and drizzle with the lemon juice. Finish with a sprinkling of salt.
Serve hot.

Alright, show of hands—who else forgot vegetables could actually taste good after the last 6 months?

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Buttercream Shots In Chocolate Cups

Written on March 29, 2012 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

This I know to be true: There are cake people and there are frosting people. And I most definitely am a frosting person. I’m guilty of taking a slice of cake and just eating the frosting. I’m also guilty of running my finger along the edge of the cake before it’s been cut into just to taste the frosting. But don’t worry–I haven’t done that in any recent years… that I’ll admit to.

Today’s my birthday, and on your birthday you shouldn’t have to eat anything you don’t want to. Apples. Broccoli. Even cake. You should be able to just eat your frosting and have it, too.

I’ve been wanting to make a recipe like this for a long time and never found an occasion. I suppose now is as best a chance I’ll get; don’t judge me if all of these are gone by the end of the day.

They’re easy enough to make and just need two ingredients. You can use canned frosting but homemade is so much better tasting and just as easy. If you don’t have a favorite recipe, I’d recommend mocha buttercream or vanilla buttercream.

Buttercream Shots In Chocolate Cups

Prep time: 15 minutes(Plus 20 minutes of cooling time)

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 2 dozen):

7oz good quality dark chocolate
3/4 cup store-bought or homemade buttercream
24 miniature cupcake holders

Method:

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or over a double broiler until it’s smooth.
With a spoon, drop a Tablespoon of chocolate into the cupcake holder and paint it around the sides. Make sure the layer of chocolate isn’t too thin or it will break.
Put the chocolate cup on a tray and repeat until all of the chocolate is used up.
Refrigerate the tray for 20-30 minutes until the chocolate has hardened.
Gently peel off the cupcake holders until just the chocolate cup remains.
Fill the cups with a tablespoon of buttercream each. Store in the refrigerator until ready to eat.

If you tried to tell me there’s a better kind of birthday shot, I wouldn’t believe you.

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