Easy No-Bake Pumpkin Pie - Bulletproof, Paleo

Easy No-Bake Pumpkin Pie - creamy and luscious!

This year at Thanksgiving, I'm keeping it super easy, as well as Bulletproof and Paleo, and making my Easy No-Bake Pumpkin Pie. It's absolutely perfect for Thanksgiving, or any time for that matter. In fact, I make this often and just have a slice any time I want a guilt-free dessert. It's lusciously creamy and full of pumpkin spice goodness.

Easy No-Bake Pumpkin Pie (Bulletproof and Paleo)

Makes one 8" or 9" pie

Filling

1 - 16 oz container pure organic pumpkin purée

1 - 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk

4 Tablespoons North American birch xylitol (I like Xyla brand)

4 teaspoons organic pumpkin pie spice

2 Tablespoons Bulletproof Collagelatin (or other gelatin like Great Lakes)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

pinch Himalayan pink salt

Place everything in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk together until well incorporated, smooth and warm - about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool while you make your crust. 

*Crust (optional but highly recommended, see note)

4 Bulletproof Vanilla Collagen Bars, crushed

1 Tablespoon ghee or grass-fed butter, melted

Place both crust ingredients in an 8 or 9" pie plate, mix together and press into the bottom (no need to do the sides, the bottom is sufficient). Place in freezer for 10-15 minutes until the ghee or butter re-solidifies. Remove crust from freezer, pour pie filling in and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight until pie is set. Store pie covered in refrigerator until ready to serve. 

Serving Suggestion: Top with fresh whipped coconut cream (dairy free), or raw organic cream, and a sprinkle of cinnamon and serve.

*Note: Crust is optional, however the Bulletproof Vanilla Collagen Bars add a sweetness to the overall pie that puts this recipe over the top. Should you decide not to use a crust, you may want to add an extra Tablespoon or two of xylitol to the filling mixture. Bulletproof Bars are available at Whole Foods Markets around the country as well as online at Bulletproof.com.

Should you like to create your own crust instead of using Bulletproof Bars, you can use a mixture of almond meal, grass-fed butter or ghee and xylitol. Trust me, it's not near as delicious and doesn't come out of the pie plate near as easily. I've made it both ways, as well as used different Bulletproof Bar flavors, and the vanilla ones just put this dessert over the top.

Enjoy!

Holds up nicely to slicing and serving

Crushed Bulletproof Bars with ghee or butter
make an amazing bottom crust that easily slides right out

Bulletproof Cupcakes

Bulletproof Cupcakes {special thanks to my husband for being my hand model}

Believe it or not, these cupcakes including the frosting and filling are completely all natural, grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free and basically flourless (there's 1 TBSP of sweet rice flour in the whole recipe for over a dozen cupcakes). And they taste amazing! So, regardless of whether you follow a Paleo, Ketogenic or the Standard American Diet, you can enjoy these delicious treats guilt-free.

The recipe for this cupcake, plus over 120 more dishes that are equally amazing, may be found in "Bulletproof: The Cookbook" which releases on December 1, 2015 but thanks to the kind folks over at Bulletproof, I get to share it with you now and also let you know how you can enter a GIVEAWAY to win a signed Cookbook and a Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit. Scroll to the bottom to see how to enter (it's easy, just leave a comment). I was inspired to make the recipe into "Hostess Cupcake" lookalikes, complete with a vanilla creme filling but these fudge-y, dark chocolate cakes are equally delicious just plain, the way the recipe is written in the cookbook. If you'd like to make just the cakes without the creme filling or ganache topping, simply follow the recipe for just the cupcakes below.

Bulletproof ("Hostess"Inspired) Cupcakes
makes 14-15 cupcakes

Oven 350

Cupcake Ingredients:
6 Tablespoons non-GMO erythritol
6 Tablespoons 100% American hardwood xylitol
12 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
6 Tablespoons grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt
6 eggs at room temperature, yolks and whites separated
1 teaspoon ground vanilla powder (like BP VanillaMax) or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cocoa powder or raw cacao powder (like BP Chocolate Powder)
1 Tablespoon sweet rice flour (do not use normal rice flour, which is gritty)

Chocolate Ganache Ingredients:
4 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
1 5.4 ounce can coconut cream
Pinch of instant coffee (do not use ground coffee beans since they will not dissolve)

Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping Ingredients:
1/3 cup grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup erythritol or xylitol, finely powdered like confectioner's
Heavy pinch of ground vanilla powder or 1/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt


For the Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a muffin tin with individual cupcake liners. You will have enough batter for a few more than a dozen so you may use a second tin or just wait and bake the additional ones in a second batch.

Gather your ingredients for the cupcake batter:

separate your yolks and whites

Place the erythritol and xylitol together in a blender or spice grinder and pulse until reasonably fine, being careful not to let it get too hot or it may melt. It does not have to be superfine like confectioner's for this batter, just powdered. Set aside.

pulse until powdered

Place the dark chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat and melt stirring constantly until smooth then remove from heat and set aside. Make sure to stir occasionally so it does not separate while you make the egg yolk batter.

heat and stir until smooth

Place 6 Tablespoons of the powdered erythritol/xylitol mixture into a large bowl along with the 6 egg yolks and beat using a stand or hand mixer on medium-high speed until thick and pale yellow, about 3 minutes.

beat yolks with powdered sweetener mixture until thick and pale yellow

Add the yolk and sweetener mixture to the melted chocolate mixture along with the vanilla powder, chocolate powder and sweet rice flour. Using a spatula mix until blended and set aside.

Place the 6 egg whites in a large bowl. Using a stand or hand mixer, beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Then slowly add the remaining 6 Tablespoons of the powdered sweetener mixture and beat on high speed until medium-firm peaks form.

Gently fold the egg white mixture into the chocolate mixture a little at a time until incorporated.

Fill the cupcake liners to the top. My batter was pretty airy and somewhat gooey so I lightly filled each liner completely full to the top but was careful not to press down on the batter.

Place in the oven and bake for 11 minutes. Rotate the pan and bake for 11 minutes more. Remove from the oven and place pan on a wire cooling rack. Cool completely. You can eat them as is now or proceed to the next steps for frosting and/or filling.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

Gather your ingredients for the chocolate ganache:

Add about 2 inches of water to the bottom of a small saucepan fitted with a heat-proof bowl or smaller saucepan (like a double boiler) over low heat. Add chocolate, coconut cream and instant coffee to the bowl or top pan.

Stir until melted and creamy.

The ganache should be loose like a thick sauce. Set aside (stirring occasionally to keep it well blended) while you prepare the cupcakes and creme filling.  Optional:  IF you would like to skip the creme filling part, you may dip the cupcakes upside down into the ganache now to coat or drizzle the ganache atop and allow to set for a few minutes before eating.

For the Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping:

Gather your ingredients for the vanilla creme filling:

If you cannot find or do not have confectioner's erythritol or xylitol, you will need to powder it yourself. A spice blender works well for the small amount you will need for this. Keep pulsing until you have a very fine powder being careful not to let it get hot so it doesn't melt. This may take several minutes but is critical to getting a smooth and creamy texture to your filling.

In a medium bowl, place the powdered sweetener, softened butter and vanilla powder. Using a hand mixer set to low, incorporate the ingredients then mix on high until creamy. Set aside.

Cut wells into your cupcakes. This nifty cupcake corer by Cuisipro works nicely:

Fill each well with some of the vanilla creme. You may do it by hand or use a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Be sure to reserve a small amount of the creme filling for the top decoration.

Place these into the freezer for a few minutes to set up before dipping into the chocolate ganache. Then carefully dip and roll each cupcake into the chocolate ganache and let set up for another few minutes before piping on the top decoration.

Place the remaining vanilla creme into another piping bag fitted with a very small round tip.

Pipe the design onto the tops like you see on a Hostess Cupcake:

These are now ready to enjoy or you can store them briefly (1-2 days) in a plastic container with a lid. They do not need to be refrigerated but can be. After a day or two the ganache will start to break down so these are prettiest when eaten very soon.

*******GIVEAWAY Details!*********

****Dec 1, 2015: This giveaway has ended and the winner has been notified. Please stay tuned for more recipes and giveaways.*****

Leave a comment below letting me know your favorite dessert to be entered automatically! Be sure you are logged in (not posting as anonymous) so I can contact you if you win. You may also visit my Instagram and/or Facebook page for additional entries.

Winner will receive:

• Bulletproof: The Cookbook personally signed by Dave Asprey
• Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit

Winner will be notified on December 1st.

Chocolate, PB, and Banana Smoothie {healthy, high protein, low calorie}

Chocolate, PB and Banana Smoothie

In an effort to get a jump start on my annual New Years Day resolution to eat healthier and lose weight, I discovered the best protein shake ever. Heck, it's a great shake - period. In fact, I hesitate to even tell you that this is a "protein shake" because most of the protein shakes I've tried usually have that funny aftertaste that always gives it away. You know, the kind you have to make yourself drink because it's good for you?

Well, enter this sinfully delicious and creamy masterpiece of a smoothie to the rescue! It's breakfast...it's dessert...it's healthy and low cal! How can a smoothie with chocolate, peanut butter and a banana be low calorie, you say? Well, I'll show you...

The "magic" ingredients to the best protein shake ever!!!!

Below is the nutritional data for everything but the banana which is approximately 105 calories for one that is medium size.

The big savings on calories and fat comes from the PB2 (45 calories vs the usual 200). There's also considerable savings using unsweetened almond milk vs. regular milk. And the Bluebonnet Whey Protein Powder has excellent stats as well, not to mention GREAT natural chocolate flavor. Lastly, I highly recommend Nancy's Organic Plain Nonfat Yogurt vs. other similar brands. Nancy's has considerable flavor (tart), whereas other brands lose their flavor when they lose the fat. {Update:  When I can't find Nancy's, I use Chobani's 0% Plain Greek Yogurt and am very happy with the substitution. I especially love Greek yogurt for it's amazing texture and very high protein content.}

So the following recipe will yield around 24 ounces (this is a HUGE and very filling drink) at approximately 343 calories, 38 grams protein, 3 grams fat, 25 grams of sugar (24 grams of the 25 coming from naturally-occurring sugars in the yogurt and banana). Feel free to halve the recipe if you like, however I prefer to have this as a meal replacement and I love getting the full 38 grams of protein in.

Chocolate, PB, and Banana Smoothie

Serves 1 (very large drink, approximately 24 ounces)

Approximately 343 calories and 38 grams of protein

Ingredients:

1 scoop Bluebonnet Whey Protein Isolate, Natural Chocolate Flavor

2 Tablespoons PB2

1/2 cup Nancy's Organic Nonfat Plain Yogurt (or Chobani 0% Plain Greek Yogurt)

1/2 cup Silk Unsweetened Almond Milk

1 medium-sized ripe banana

5-6 cubes of ice

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

Next, enjoy drinking the most delicious guilt-free, chocolatey, peanut buttery, banana smoothie!!!

I have one almost every day and it fills me up for hours!

{Falling in Love with Lebovitz} Sweet Goat Cheese Souffles

Sweet Goat Cheese Souffles {a la David Lebovitz}

Just in time for Valentine's Day, I've discovered something the rest of you have no doubt known for years...


David Lebovitz is a master dessert artisan.


I know, I know.. Where have I been?? Make no mistake, I've known of David Lebovitz, but I hadn't previously made any of his recipes. As usual, I have no idea what I was waiting for, but I'm happy to have finally come around. And just in time for V-day, I'm falling in love with his recipes, one at a time.  Let's start with his Goat Cheese Souffles.

So how did I happen upon this recipe and decide to make it? Well, my friend Elizabeth McNair who, btw, has been a fan of his for quite some time, mentioned she had scored a ticket to see him live and in person at a demo he was doing in Dallas, Texas at Central Market.

I was thrilled for her to get to go, but little did I know how thrilled I would be for me.. THANK YOU E for sending me this recipe. It's to die for. It's light and airy but with a lightly creamy soft lemony center. David says in his post that you can make it as sweet as you like by adding more sugar to the base. Instead I opted to add extra sugar to the inside of my souffle dishes as well as extra on top. The result was nothing short of Heavenly.

heavily sugared souffle dishes

I used Native's Crystal Organic Sugar that I picked up at Whole Foods and the larger crystals worked perfectly for these souffles. He also mentions that you can drizzle a little fresh-squeezed lemon juice atop the souffles before placing in the oven to give them an extra lemony zing. I will try this next time I make them, but the flavor was nothing short of amazing even without doing so. Also, David's recipe calls for 4 4-ounce souffle dishes but since I only had 8-ounce souffle dishes, I made 2 larger desserts. I actually had leftover batter, too.

Sweet Goat Cheese Souffles

{adapted from David Lebovitz}

Serves 2-4

Oven 400 degrees F

Special equipment - 2 8-ounce souffle dishes or 4 4-ounce

1/4 cup full fat organic cream cheese, room temperature

4 large organic all-natural eggs, room temperature (separate eggs from yolks right before using)

4 ounces fresh organic goat cheese

zest of 1 lemon

4 Tablespoons sugar, plus more for sprinkling

pinch of salt

butter for coating souffle dishes

If you don't have one of these Microplane zesters, may I suggest trying
one out? They make zesting so much easier than any other zester I've used.

Generously butter and sugar the insides of your souffle dishes and set aside. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or you may whisk by hand), place the cream cheese, egg yolks, goat cheese, and lemon zest in the bowl and mix until creamy. Set aside.

Next, using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, place the egg whites and salt in a glass or metal bowl and beat until frothy. Increase the speed on the mixer and continue mixing until they begin to hold their shape. While beating, gradually add in the sugar, one tablespoon at a time and beat until stiff.

Using a spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the goat cheese mixture. Do not over fold. It's okay to have some white bits showing.

Scoop the mixture into the the prepared souffle dishes to just below the top of the dishes and gently smooth the tops. Don't overfill, or your batter will spill over when baking. Sprinkle the tops with sugar (I did this liberally and it was yummy). Place filled dishes on a baking sheet and place in oven in center of middle rack.

I overfilled my souffle dishes and they spilled over when baking,
but they were still fantastic.

Bake 10 - 15 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned and the center still feels a little jiggly when gently moving from side to side. Serve fresh from the oven with fresh blueberries or raspberries on the side if desired. The souffles should be soft and slightly runny in the center.

I can't wait to make these again for Valentine's Day!

Do you have a favorite David Lebovitz recipe?

Lemon Bars

Lemon Bars

Ahhhh...a little plate of sunshine if ever I saw one.


I just love lemon bars. There's something ethereal about them. Fresh, lemony goodness on a perfectly baked shortbread crust with a gentle dusting of powdered sugar on top.. like fresh fallen snow.


As the winter comes on strong, why not bake your own little plate of sunshine - a sweet reminder that spring is just around the corner.

Please check out my guest post on Chef Dennis' blog - More Than a Mount Full - where I share the recipe, the inspiration, and step-by-step photos.


And just in case you've never visited More Than a Mount Full, you're in for a treat.  You can thank me later :-)

Enjoy!

Easy Chocolate Truffles

Easy Chocolate Truffles

Okay these truffles are unbelievable! I've never made truffles before in my life, nor did I think I would be able to make them, much less make them so effortlessly.

Well let me tell, you I was wrong! Thanks to Wendy at The Weekend Gourmet, I am a truffle-making fool. This recipe is so versatile. Wendy says she makes them all through the year with different variations. I first saw them when she made them with peppermint for Merry Mondays. I took her recipe and instead of peppermint, I added Reese's Peanut Butter Chips and Heath Bar Crunch to the already chocolatey filling. The result was pure rich and creamy Heaven.

I'm fairly certain you could hardly go wrong modifying it to suit your own taste.  Check out Wendy's recipe HERE and let me know what you think!

Holiday Menu Item: Peppermint Chocolate Ganache Mini Cupcake Bites

Peppermint Chocolate Ganache Mini Cupcake Bites

It's Merry Mondays again! And the theme for week two in this four-week series is Mint. I was thinking of all sorts of things to make, like a nice mint chutney for rack of lamb, or a lovely pomegranate mojito, but in the end my sweet tooth won out and I went with Peppermint Chocolate Ganache Mini Cupcake Bites. They're bite-sized, chocolatey and minty and they're perfect for a holiday party.

Merry Mondays is a festive blog event that is being hosted by Claire at Claire Cooks and Taylor at Greens and Chocolate. Everyone is welcome to join in the fun! Last week the theme ingredient was Cranberries and there were lots of great recipes submitted. 

Quite awhile ago, I made Ina Garten's Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes and put edible flowers on top:

When I was thinking about this week's Merry Mondays, it occurred to me that crushed peppermint would be an excellent accompaniment to these dense chocolate cupcakes and making them in a miniature size would make them easy finger food for a holiday party. Turns out I actually like them better in this bite-sized format. The batter is not all that sweet which goes wonderfully with the rich chocolate ganache but I like my ratio of cake to frosting to be a little more equal, especially in this case.

Peppermint Chocolate Ganache Mini Cupcake Bites

(inspired by Ina Garten)

Makes 60 cupcake bites

Oven 350 degrees F

Ingredients:

1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

4 extra-large eggs, room temperature

11 fluid ounces chocolate syrup (I used Hershey's)

1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

Ganache:

4 ounces semisweet chocolate (I used Ghiradelli)

1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1/4 cup heavy cream

Topping:

4-5 candy canes, crushed (I used Hershey's Chocolate Mint Candy Canes)

Line mini cupcake pans with mini paper liners and set aside.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle, cream the butter and sugar.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing in between. Then mix in the chocolate syrup and vanilla.

Add in the flour and mix until just combined. Do not overbeat or the cupcake bites will be tough.

Scoop the batter into the mini muffin cups filling to almost full. Using a 1 Tablespoon cookie scoop worked well for me.

1 Tablespoon Cookie Scoop

Bake in oven for approximately 20 minutes or until the center of the cupcake bites are just set. Do not overbake.

Remove from oven and let the cupcake bites completely cool.

Meanwhile make the ganache. Using a double boiler, or a heat proof glass bowl fitted over a saucepan of simmering water (this is the method I use), place the chocolate, coffee and cream in the bowl.

Cook gently over simmering water, stirring occasionally until melted and blended together.

Dip the top of each cupcake in the ganache and then sprinkle crushed peppermint on top.


May be made a day in advance. Do not refrigerate.

Happy Merry Mondays!