Buckwheat Carrot Cake with Cashew Cream

Who says cake isn't for breakfast?

In the world of Savouring Stella, cake is a perfectly acceptable breakfast. Especially when it has densely nutritious buckwheat flour, carrot, and a lightly sweetened cashew cream frosting. Umm HELLO!

This beautiful cake is dense, moist, and just the right amount of sweet. It's spiced with cinnamon, and topped with cashew cream frosting- which when done right, is about the best thing in the world. How could cashew cream be done wrong you ask? I didn't think it was possible either until I had a cake with a cashew frosting and it was far too bitter and nutty. Not enough vanilla and agave in that recipe obviously. Fortunately for you, I've perfected cashew cream after years of practice. However, it's one of those things that's subjective to the individual, so when in doubt, keep adding agave, and lemon zest until it's to your liking.

Brunch spread; fruit salad, buckwheat carrot cake, yoghurt, granola, quinoa and greens, avocado. Photo credit: Brandi Daniels at Eat.Drink.Yoga

Buckwheat Carrot Cake makes one 9-inch round cake

cashew cream, cinnamon, lemon zest

Carrot Cake

• 1.75 cups buckwheat flour
• 3/4 cup gluten-free flour blend (I used Bob's Red Mill; alternately, you can use all buckwheat)  
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 cup almond or rice milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated carrot + extra optional for garnish
• 1/2 cup raisins + extra optional for garnish
• zest and juice of half a lemon

Cashew Cream 

• 1.5 cup raw unsalted cashews, soaked overnight, drained
• 3 Tbsp agave nectar (maple syrup would also be tasty)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease a 9-inch round baking pan.

Make cashew cream by combining cashews, agave, lemon juice and zest in a food processor or high speed blender. Let this baby BLEND until it's silky in texture. Add additional sweetener and lemon zest to your taste. Cover the frosting and place in the fridge so the flavors can meld.

 For the cake, combine flours, spices, baking powder and soda, and sea salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then whisk in apple sauce, milk, vanilla, lemon juice and zest. Add wet mixture to dry. Fold in carrots and raisins.

Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for 30-35 min, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Careful not to over-bake, once you hit the 30 minute mark, check on the cake and continue checking. 

Once it's done, remove the cake and let it cool. I let mine sit covered on the counter all day, or for at least a few hours. Run some errands, grab coffee with a friend, then come back to it.

When you're ready to frost, how easy is this, place the cake on your serving plate, dollop the frosting on top of the cake. For this version, I kept the frosting on top, you could also work it onto the sides. Use a spatula to smooth the frosting while twisting the plate in a circular motion. 

Optional garnish; I tossed the extra carrot in cinnamon and a touch of agave, and sprinkled it along the edges, then followed with raisins.

3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies

I heard today is National Peanut Butter Lover's Day. I'll take it! In honor of the holiday, I figured it was due time I share this recipe for 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies. Yeah, 3 ingredients. Does it get any easier than this? In the realm of daily desserts (ya'll eat dessert on the daily, right?), I love the combination of dates and nuts. So simple, so rich, and so clean. 

For these cookies, I use Adam's brand peanut butter. All natural, and it contains a little salt. If you're using an unsalted peanut butter, add a pinch of sea salt to the recipe.

3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies makes 16 cookies

peanut butter, dates, almond flour

• 3/4 cup natural peanut butter
• 1 cup dates
• 3-4 Tbsp almond flour

   

Method

Combine peanut butter and dates in a food processor until smooth. You should have a fairly thick paste.

Add 3 Tbsp of almond flour, blend again. Add another Tbsp if necessary to thicken. You want to be able to press the dough between your fingers and have it stick together. 

Use a 1 Tbsp measure to scoop dough, roll into a ball with your hands, and use a fork to cross mark and slightly flatten the cookies.

Cover and refrigerate! These babies will last for about a week in the fridge-- If they make it that long! And they freeze great.

Paleo Apple Crumble

I absolutely had to get this recipe out to you before Thanksgiving! Talk about under the wire! Well worth it, for real. I didn't make this with the intention of serving it on Thanksgiving, I just like to make healthy desserts for the week so I stay on track, and still get to indulge.

This recipe has been adapted from Primal Palate, a fantastic Paleo food blog for those of you primal eaters. I personally love Paleo dessert recipes because they likely contain a healthy dose of nuts. Coming in the form of almond meal, almond butter, roasted almonds... how many ways can you prepare almonds?

I'll tell you what else I love about this recipe; it is made with Granny Smith apples, which are supreme for baking. They're just tart enough, and hold their texture when cooked. The apples are tossed in a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut sugar, and butter. Butter is the trick here- it pulls the whole thing together with just enough decadence, and zero food hangover. Do you guys get that? Too much refined sugars or oils, and I'll feel it the next day with a bangin' headache!

No sugar hangovers today! We enjoyed this crumble with Coconut Bliss ice cream, one of my personal favorites; it's made with coconut milk, and sweetened with agave. It also comes in a variety of flavors like Mocha Maca Crunch, Mint Galactica, and Cherry Amaretto. Try it, seriously.

Paleo Apple Crumble makes one 9"x9" dish

coconut sugar, walnuts, almond meal

• 8 Granny Smith apples, peeled, chopped
• 1/2 lemon, zested, juiced
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon, divided
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar, divided
• 1/3 cup softened + 2 Tbsp unsalted butter or ghee melted
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/3 cup walnuts, finely chopped (or pulsed in a food processor)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

 Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, lightly grease a 9" square baking dish and set it aside.
2. Combine in a large bowl, chopped apples, lemon juice and zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, 1/4 cup coconut sugar, and 2 Tbsp melted butter. Toss to coat apples completely, and pour apples into the prepared baking dish.
3. In another bowl, combine almond and coconut flours, walnuts, sea salt, 1/4 cup coconut sugar, and the remaining softened butter. Use clean hands to crumble the mixture. The flours will start absorbing the butter. You want the mixture to clump. Once it does, crumble it over top of the apples in the prepared dish. 
4. Bake on the middle rack for 40-45 minutes, until the top begins to brown and your house smells delightfully of apple crumble! Let cool for 10 min, serve with ice cream if desired.  
  

Wishing you all happy holidays filled with relaxation, good company, and plenty of good food.
#givepresence

Apricot Bliss Bars + Following Your Bliss

I had a beautiful meeting with a friend, mentor, and coach of mine this past weekend- my experience through which inspired this post.

I consider myself to be an ambitious person. I think it's part of the human spirit to be in constant growth. The nature of my work keeps me in constant development with my team and myself. I'm always asking myself, what's next, how do I get there, and the big one, what is my purpose and my intention?

This roots me into my True North as a leader, a coach, and a teacher. My aim is to empower people to see the possibility in their lives, and to create action around their goals.

I got disconnected from this.

I got caught up in not feeling ready and not feeling good enough.

I forgot my fundamental goal- to see possibility and to empower myself.

I got inspired to get into action. Inspired to use my resources and start teaching. I had a reality check in my meeting- if you want to teach, you'll teach. You just do. No limitations by circumstance or beliefs that hold me back. That's the power of choice in every moment. If you want to do it, you will. You just start.

The next six weeks are going to be BIG! Here's what I'm up to:

• igolu Level One, which will span the next four months and involves creating my personal legacy moment to moment, setting my intention in the world and acting on that purpose 
• attending the igolu Road Show with Susanne Conrad to benefit imagine1day
• Level Two Training through Baptiste Yoga in Sedona, Arizona, my final training before I start the process of getting certified as a Baptiste Teacher
• 40 Days to Personal Revolution kicks off at my home studio- that's 40 days of yoga, twice daily meditation, mindful eating, and self work through journaling and reflection

boom.

I could not be more excited and nervous with what I'm up to. Goose bumps are always a good sign.

I think where many of us get stuck is figuring out which actions to take to propel us towards our highest goals and intentions.  
Here's the radical truth: you need to get related to your intention. Why do you do what you do? What calls you into action? What gets you up in the morning?

And make it your mission to do more of that. The good stuff, the juicy stuff. This is where you find your True North. All else falls into line and suddenly the decisions to make become easy; because you're being guided by knowledge far more powerful that your logical mind.

____________________________________________

Now onto these bars- because every ambitious bliss junkie needs fuel. And the right kind. The kind of fuel that makes you feel good and keeps you crushing goals for hours!

Apricot Bliss Bars Adapted from Sprouted Kitchen makes 12

apricot, lemon, oats

• 1.5 cups dried apricots 
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/4 cup honey
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon
• 1.5 cups spelt or oat flour
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1/2 cup brown rice flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/3 cup almond butter
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• 6 Tbsp coconut sugar

method 

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.

Place dried apricots in a bowl, pour boiling water over apricots, cover and let steep for at least 10 minutes. 

Meanwhile, combine spelt flour, almond flour, brown rice flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt in medium bowl

In a separate bowl, add the almond milk, almond butter, 3 Tbsp coconut sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine fully. Add this to the flour mixture, stirring to combine fully.

Once apricots have softened, drain excess liquid, reserving it. Add the honey, lemon juice and zest to the apricots and use a hand blender to puree. Add some of the reserved liquid, a little at a time if needed to create a smooth jam like consistency.

Take half of the dough, press it into the lined baking sheet. Spread apricot mixture on top of this. Add rolled oats and remaining coconut sugar to the rest of the dough. Crumble the dough over the apricot mixture.

 Bake for 25 minutes. Remove and let cool completely. Use the parchment paper to remove the bars, then cut into 12 bars.

Dark Chocolate Courgette Muffins

This is a recipe that I've been hanging onto for quite some time. Why I haven't shared it yet? I don't know. This was a recipe that I created last year while working in Fuerteventura. We went through a few batches of muffins before landing on a perfectly moist, lightly sweet, rich muffin, studded with dark chocolate chunks! 

does it get better?!

YES! Actually it does! These babies are also gluten-free (made with buckwheat flour), refined sugar-free (sweetened with dates), and packed with shredded courgette. That, my friends, makes for a powerhouse combo!
 

Once we perfected the recipe, we made these muffins for our staff at the retreat, for team meetings, for guests as they departed, and simply for celebration of life! I propose you make these for your best friends, your sweetie, and the other people you love in celebration of Valentines Day this Friday! I truly believe great food is the ultimate way to say I love you. 

 So show the people in your life some love this weekend. Take some time to sit down, connect, and share yourself with them. Make time and being in relationship with others a top priority. I know how much I value the pillars of support in my life. Where I would be without them to keep me accountable and honest with myself. To keep my inspired and striving to reach even higher for my goals. They keep me accountable to have the right conversations, even when it's hard. I love these people dearly, and I make a point of telling them. You can never be told too many times how much you're valued. 

Dark Chocolate Courgette Muffins makes 8

dark chocolate chunks, roasted hazelnuts, coconut oil

• 2/3 cup buckwheat flou
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup date puree
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1.5 cups courgette (zucchini), grated, pressed dry of excess liquid
• 85 g dark chocolate from your favorite bar, chopped roughly
• 1/4 cup dry roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped (optional)+4 Tbsp finely chopped for garnish

Method

Preheat oven to 375 F/180 C. Lightly grease or line muffin tins and set aside.

Sift dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then stir in date puree, apple sauce, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. 

Grate your courgette, some moisture is absolutely fine, however if it's quite saturated, pat dry with a few paper towels. Roughly chop your dark chocolate, not too finely, the best part is a biting into a pocket of gooey chocolate, and you'll miss out on this if your chocolate is chopped too small. Fold in grated courgette, dark chocolate chunks, and hazelnuts if using.

Pour into greased/lined muffin tins, filling about three quarters of the way full. Back for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes.



eat well, friends!
  

Manuel's Super Vegan Cake

 I can't take credit for this recipe. I really wish I could because it's absolutely brilliant, but all thanks here goes to my great friend Manuel Molina whom I've been sharing a kitchen with (both at work and home) for the past three months. Manuel is a talented vegan chef in his own right and also teaches Ashtanga yoga here at Villa Azul. His classes are donation based and all proceeds go to White Ocean Project, an effort to raise money for underprivileged people in India suffering from skin problems such as high degree burns and leprosy. It's a great friend of his, Justi, who spends her time in India working directly with people, and Manuel runs a blog that keeps up on their efforts. Their work is truly amazing, read more about how they're changing lives on his blog, The Ocean of White.

We have celebrated a few birthdays at the Villa since I've been around, for one of the first ones, Manuel told me he had this really nice cake that he could make. He called it Super Vegan Cake, so I knew it had to be good. The ingredients alone tell you that it's going to be loaded with goodness; shredded carrot, coconut, raw sugar, and my favorite, turmeric, for it's beautiful yellow hue.

Since that first birthday, I've been topping this cake with a vegan chocolate ganache made simply from coconut milk and dark chocolate. There's something about moist yellow cake and chocolate frosting that just screams 'Happy Birthday!!' at me. Here we've subbed full fat coconut milk in for heavy cream for a rich dairy-free alternative to traditional ganache. This is a great recipe to have in your arsenal if you share your life with chocolate lovers. Not a single birthday has gone by where guests at the retreat aren't in awe of this Super Vegan Cake.

The many faces this cake has taken on in the past few months.

The original recipe used a whole meal flour. Something mild like whole wheat pastry flour would be fantastic if you're not gluten intolerant. For a while we made the cake with straight rice flour to cater to our gluten-free guests, but after a little trial and error, we've found that a combination of rice flour and oat flour (certified gluten-free oats optional) is the way to go. It results in a lighter version, yet still holds enough moisture. Shredded carrots and desiccated coconut create a truly pleasing texture. The cake itself is not overly sweet, so the chocolate ganache is especially lovely to create contrast both tastewise and visually. There really aren't enough wonderful words to describe this cake.

Alright to recap the benefits of this cake, in case my rambling confused you. Dark chocolate and cake will do that to a girl.

• Chock full of shredded carrot and coconut
• Gluten-free
• It's the color of sunshine (thank you turmeric)
• Coconut dark chocolate ganache? Sold.
• Moist, filling, but it wont weigh you down

There's no denying it, this cake kills it as far as cake goes. And if you're eating cake, it may as well be a delicious, nutrient dense cake made with love and intention. It's great for a special occasion, celebration of any kind, and the perfect way to bring a little sunshine into your life.

Happy Easter and Spring my friends!

Super Vegan Cake with Coconut Milk Dark Chocolate Ganache  makes one 8" cake

Cake ingredients

• 100 g rice flour
• 100 g rolled oats ground to flour (certified gluten-free oats such as Bob's Red Mill optional)
• 150 g unsweetened desiccated coconut
• 130 g raw cane sugar or coconut palm sugar
• 1/2 package/7.5 g dry yeast 
• 1.5 tsp turmeric
  
• 150 g shredded carrot
• 110 g sunflower or coconut oil
• 150 g unsweetened soy milk
• 3 Tbsp corn starch dissolved in 6 Tbsp filtered water

Ganache Ingredients

• 6 oz dark chocolate from your favorite bar
• 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk  

Method

Preheat the oven to 340 F/170 C, lightly grease an 8" cake pnn.  

In a large mixing bowl, combine dry cake ingredients, rice flour, oat flour, coconut, sugar, and yeast, mix well. In a separate mixing bowl, dissolve corn starch in water, add shredded carrot, oil, and soy milk to create a homogenous mixture. Add wet to dry and mix until no white streaks of flour remain.

The batter will be thick, pour it into your greased cake pan and smooth out the surface so that it's evenly distributed. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Meanwhile, start your ganache by finely chopping your dark chocolate, transfer to a medium bowl. Shake up your can of coconut milk to combine the thick cream that rests on top and the liquid. Heat 1/2 cup to a slow boil over medium-high heat. 

Pour hot coconut milk over chocolate, whisk until chocolate is melted and fully incorporated. Keep at room temperature.

When your cake is done, allow it to cool and set for 10-15 minutes. Transfer to another plate and pour ganache into the middle of your cake. Spread out the the edges in a circular motion. You may have a little ganache leftover but who's complained about that ever? Keep in mind that as it cools, the ganache will thicken and harden slightly.

"Life is uncertain, eat dessert first"

-Ernestine Ulmer

Orange Anise Muffins

Orange and anise, why haven't I put you together before? You're a match made in heaven! Inspired by Caitlin over at Roost, who made these Toasted Fennel Orange Morning Cakes, I knew I wanted to play with this. I love fennel, but as I was rummaging through our extensive cupboard of spices in the retreat I could not for the life of me find fennel!

"I know it's here somewhere, we just had a huge jar of it!" I kept telling Manuel as I got my elbows deeper and deeper into various spices.

Fennel-less and smelling of every union territory in India, I gave up, coming to peace with the fact that I would simply have to wait to try this recipe.
"What if you use anise seed?", Manuel asked. I smelled the jar of anise seed. Sweeter than fennel, a more subtle liquorice flavour.
"I don't know..", I replied, pretty dead set on fennel. "...I'll give it a try."

The next morning in the kitchen, Manuel actually found our jar of fennel seed. I even took home enough for the recipe. Then at the last minute when I was beginning to toast the fennel, I decided to put it back in lieu of anise seed. Good call. The result was a moist, lightly sweet, flowery rich tasting batch of muffins. Thank you Manuel!

Almond flour as a base creates a deeply flavorful, moist, gluten-free muffin. They contain no additional fat, only that from the almond flour and whole milk yogurt, so they still remain moist and decadent, but with a lighter quality, and full of flavor. They are sweetened with honey, making them completely free of refined sugars. The anise seeds are toasted and then finely chopped to scatter a subtle sweet very mild liquorice flavor that permeates the batter. Orange juice and zest keeps things light, floral, and refreshing as ever. I intended for these to be an afternoon treat with tea, but they could easily be baked and frozen, taken out for guests or breakfast on the road. 

Orange Anise Muffins makes 12

• 3 cups fine ground almond flour
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1.5 Tbsp whole anise seed
• 3 farm fresh eggs
• 1/4 cup whole milk yogurt or full fat greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• zest and juice of 1 small orange (I ended up with 1/3 cup orange juice)

 

 Method

Preheat the oven to 350 F/ 175 C, lightly grease or line your muffin tins.

Heat a small skillet over medium heat and toast anise seed until they become fragrant, about two minutes. Chop them finely and set aside

Add almond flour, sea salt, baking soda, and anise seeds to a large bowl, whisk to combine. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, yogurt, honey, vanilla, orange zest and juice, mix well. Fold into dry ingredients.

 

Pour batter into greased/lines tins, filling three quarters of the way. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Watch them carefully in the last 3 minutes, almond flour goes from almost done to burnt in moments, so resist the urge to walk away.

Now comes the hard part, let them rest for 10 minutes before digging in. The batter is moist, so these will crumble if you jump the gun on taking them out. I know this from experience.

These are lovely with a cup of chai or even crumbled over yogurt and drizzled with honey. Of course I'll find a way to add yogurt to anything. 

Enjoy my friends, eat well.

Cheers!

Raw Vegan Apple Pie

What could be more American than sweet apple pie? What could be more west coast American than making it raw and vegan friendly? I present to you, this Raw Vegan Apple Pie.

I was given free reign to choose a dessert for Friday evening's meal. I'll take any occasion as an opportunity to make a healthy dessert. Birthdays, potlucks, new pair of training shoes. All pie worthy, no?

 Friday evening is the farewell meal for our guests at Villa Azul and the menu is filled with traditional Spanish fare; paella, tortilla, tomato salad with fresh goat's cheese, pimientos de padron, mojo, etc. I felt like we could use some west coast love. Thus this pie was born.

This pie is something truly special, it maintains all of the flavor components of traditional baked apple pie, lightly crisp apples tossed in cinnamon, with undertones of lemon to brighten it up. The addition of date puree adds a rich, almost carmel, flavor, all on top of a buttery crust thanks to walnuts and almonds. The best part about this pie? It takes only moments to toss together, entirely from scratch.

Raw Vegan Apple Pie makes one 9" pie

Ingredients

• 80g date puree/ 8-10 dates soaked in warm water for 15 minutes
• 1.5 cups raw unsalted almonds
•  3/4 cup raw unsalted walnuts 
• 1/4 tsp sea salt 
• 3 apples, cored and peeled
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 1 cup filtered water
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1. Line a 9" tart pan with parchment paper, set aside.

2. In a food processor, pulse almonds to a fine meal, set aside in a medium bowl. Next, pulse walnuts. Walnuts are considerably more oily than almonds, so watch closely, if you see the walnuts start to stick to the sides and bottom of your food processor, scrape them off into the bowl with the almonds. Continue to pulse until all of your walnuts are of a uniform texture, combine with almond meal.

3. If using dates, pulse them in your food processor to make a mini batch of date puree. Add about half of this mixture to the almond/walnut meal along with sea salt. Start modestly with the date puree, you can always add more. Use a wooden spoon or your hands to mix until just combined. The dough should be crumbly, but stick together when pressed between your fingers. 

 If it's too dry, add more date puree, if too moist, add more almond meal. Press this mixture into your prepared tart pan, cover, and place in the freezer to chill.

4. Meanwhile, thinly slice your apples. This can be done with a mandolin to get uniformly thin slices, or you can simply use a sharp kitchen knife. I used a soft golden apple for this pie. Because it is raw, the soft apples don't give you too much crunch or overpower the other subtle flavors. This is however, totally adaptable to your personal tastes. Toss the sliced apple in lemon juice and zest, set aside.

5. Combine the remaining date puree with filtered water, and cinnamon in your food processor until smooth, about 15 seconds. Pour over sliced apples and toss to evenly coat.

6. Remove crust from the freezer, layer in apple sliced. Freeze for at least 45 minutes before serving. This is also great to enjoy within the next few days (if it lasts that long), just be sure to remove from the freezer 30 minutes before serving if completely frozen.

 Enjoy in good company. Que aproveche!