Strawberry Fondue Smoothie

I got this inspiration for this smoothie at a local coffee shop. They were advertising a strawberry fondue latte and I thought wow that would make a really tasty smoothie. So, later that day I went to work in the kitchen to create this Strawberry Fondue Smoothie!



If you love strawberry fondue then this smoothie is for you. It combines the chocolate and strawberry flavours beautifully while really letting each flavour shine on its own as well.



Not only does this smoothie taste great and feel like your are eating a treat but it's healthy! All that is in it is fruit, waters and some natural sweeteners like coconut sugar and dates, making this a great "treat" for when you are feeling like you need to stop a sweet tooth. I hope you try out this creation and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

Chocolate Fondue Layer:

1 frozen banana

1 tbsp. cocoa

1/4 cup ice

approx. 1/2 cup water

1-2 tbsp. coconut sugar

Strawberry Layer:

1/4 cup fresh strawberries + 1/2 cup frozen strawberries

1/4 cup coconut water + 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup ice

2 medjool dates

1. Blend all chocolate fondue ingredients together. Pour into 3/4 of a mason jar.

2. Blend all strawberry ingredients together, pour into the remaining space of the mason jar. Enjoy!

Pea Shoot and Mixed Green Salad

Over the weekend my mom and I headed over to our local farmers market. Along with a dozen farm fresh eggs we picked up a bag of fresh pea shoots and sunflower shoots... I was so excited!



At that moment I decided we would be having salad for dinner, this way I had an excuse to use my fresh new ingredients. So this is the salad I created, it is just a simple combination of mixed greens, spinach, peas (one of my favourite salad toppings), red pepper, chickpeas and of course the star ingredient pea shoots! The combination was simple, clean and delicious, great for a quick dinner on a warm summer night. I hope everyone is enjoying their summer... what is your favourite summer salad combination?

 

Ingredients:

1 cup mixed greens
1 cup spinach
1/2 cup of peas
handful of red pepper, chopped
approx. 1/4 cup chickpeas
a small handful of pea shoots

1. Combine all ingredients, top with your favourite dressing ( I used my Garlic Oregano Salad Dressing) and enjoy!

Chicken Salad w/ Walnuts & Pumpkin Seeds

My lovely dinner from lastnight. I always enjoy a healthy, clean salad, it is fast and obviously easy to put together. 

For my salad I seasoned my chicken breast with some spices and garlic, then grilled it on the BBQ until tender. I then combined it with romaine lettuce, spinach, arugula, cucumbers, red peppers, cherry tomato’s, broccoli, red onion and shredded carrots. 

I topped it with walnuts, pumpkin seeds, alfalfa sprouts, feta cheese and finally a drizzle of Kraft huile d’ olive oil greek feta salad dressing. 

Raw Vegan Tiramisu

Vegan desserts are my favourite desserts to make. I find them to be the most creative and beautiful form of "baking".

This is a new raw vegan dessert recipe I decided to try and it turned out great! I'v been wanting to do a raw vegan tiramisu for a while now so I'm glad I finally got the opportunity and I'm even more glad that they turned out so well.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with raw vegan "baking",  it just means that the dessert at hand is not cooked and is free of all animal by products. I myself am not vegan, nor am I vegetarian but raw vegan baking is honestly my favourite form of dessert. My family and boyfriend also love these desserts and none of them are vegan either... so they must be really good.

This creation in particular was a lovely balance of sweetness, mixed with a flavour punch which was the coffee. These are gluten free, dairy free, lactose free and refined sugar free... so nothing to feel guilty about! These also have very limit oil, only 1 tbsp of coconut oil in the whole dessert. Try these out and let me know what you think !

Crust:

1/2 c. almond flour

1/2 c. oatmeal

2 tbsp. pure maple syrup

1 tbsp. instant coffee + 1 tbsp. boiling water, combine

1/2 tbsp. cocoa

1/2 tsp. vanilla

"Cream" Layer:

1/2 c. raw cashews, soaked for at least 4 hours

1/4 c. coconut flour

1/2 a ripe banana

2 tsp. unsweetened apple sauce

2 tbsp. water

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. pure maple syrup

Chocolate Mousse:

1/2 c. raw cashews, soaked for at least 4 hours

1/2 a ripe banana

2 tsp. unsweetened apple sauce

2 tbsp. coconut cream

1/2 tbsp. cocoa

2 tbsp. maple syrup

1 tsp. stevia

Espresso Topping:

1/3 tbsp. cocoa

1 tbsp. coconut oil

1 tsp. instant coffee + 1 tsp. boiling water,combine

2 tsp. stevia

1-2 tsp. pure maple syrup

1. Combine all crust ingredients in a bowl, mix well. Press firmly into the bottom of 6 cup cake moulds.

2. Combine all "cream layer" ingredients together in a food processor, process until a cream like texture has formed. Disperse evenly on top of crust layer.

3. Combine all chocolate mousse ingredients together in a food processor, process until a mousse like texture has formed. Disperse evenly on top of cream layer.

4. Combine all espresso topping ingredients in a bowl, mix well and pour evenly on top of chocolate mousse layer. Place in the freezer for at least 4 hours, then enjoy!