Super Easy Pumpkin Spice Dip, Whipped Topping, or Ice Cream

Ingredients

2 cans of full fat coconut milk refrigerated for at least 24 hours. (The brand I use is pictured below.)

1/4-1/2 cup canned pumpkin pie mix

1/4 cup (or more to taste) of granulated sugar (I use sugar in the raw.)

Dried Spices: ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg

I use this brand of coconut milk. I have found that this brand works the best. The coconut fat seems to get the hardest and rise to the top the best. Do not use canned coconut cream. It does not stay as firm as full fat coconut milk. 

Method:

Open both cans of coconut milk. The coconut fat will be at the top. With a butter knife, carefully scrape the sides of the can to loosen the coconut fat. With the knife still in the can and between the cans edge and coconut fat, carefully pull the coconut fat out. Be sure not to use any of the coconut juice at the bottom of the can. If you do, your mousse will not thicken properly. Put the coconut fat into a mixer or bowl if hand mixing. 

This is what the coconut milk looks like when you take the fat out of the can. Pictured is four cans of the coconut fat. 

Add the canned pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg to taste. 

Mix until peaks form from the coconut milk. Refrigerate until serving. 

Here is the finished product still in the mixing bowl.

If serving as a dip, serve with graham crackers, ginger snaps, ginger thins, or apples.

This can also be used as a whipped topping on pumpkin pie.

You can also freeze the leftovers and eat as pumpkin spice ice cream. It is soooo good!!!

Best Ever Chocolate Mousse!

Some people at the CrossFit that I go to have been doing a clean eating challenge. One part of the challenge is consuming NO sugar, including agave nectar and maple syrup. This honestly has been the hardest part for me. Sugar is in so many things! 

An old friend was in town and I was going to a get together to see her and a bunch of my parent's friends. I wanted to bring something tasty, but healthy for everyone to try. I've made coconut cream dip with pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg before and it was delicious. Since strawberries are in season (and I've been craving chocolate) I wanted to make a chocolate mousse version. I wasn't sure  how my creation would turn out with no sugar, but it was pleasantly amazing! Everyone seemed to love it. One person even ate the leftovers out of the bowl once the strawberries were gone! :) 

This mousse is light, chocolaty, and totally guilt free! It can be eaten on its own or with your favorite fruits!

Ingredients

2 cans of organic full fat coconut milk, refrigerated for at least 4 hours. (I used Thai Kitchen organic coconut milk.)

1/3 cup of unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon of 100% pure vanilla extract

6 packets of stevia (I used Sweet Leaf natural stevia sweetener.)

Method

Open both cans of coconut milk. The coconut fat will be at the top. With a butter knife, carefully scrape the sides of the can to loosen the coconut fat. With the knife still in the can and between the cans edge and coconut fat, carefully pull the coconut fat out. Be sure not to use any of the coconut juice at the bottom of the can. If you do, your mousse will not thicken properly. Put the coconut fat into a mixer or bowl if hand mixing. 

Add the vanilla extract, chocolate, and stevia to the bowl. Mix at a medium high speed, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix until you have a creamy consistency and peaks start forming. This should be relatively fast. 

Pour the mixture into your favorite dish and serve! Voila! You're done. If you are making this for later, keep in the refrigerator until serving. :)

I hope you enjoy this! Please let me know if you make this recipe! I'd love to know if you enjoyed it as much as my friends and family did. :)

Raw Vegan Zucchini "Alfredo"

A couple of weeks ago Jake brought me home a raw vegan dish from Roaming in the Raw at  the Englewood Farmer's Market. It happened to be Raw Zucchini Alfredo. I was seriously in LOVE. I had never had zucchini noodles and I now had to buy a spiralizer. I went on Amazon and bought the Spirooli Spiralizer ($22). Today was my first attempt at making Raw Zucchini Alfredo. I was pleasantly surprised! I went to follow a recipe from Choosing Raw.Com and ended up changing up the recipe a bit because I did not have the miso and I felt that the Alfredo sauce was a bit too lemony for me.

I added nutritional yeast, garlic powder, and a bit more salt to the Alfredo sauce. I also used zucchini and carrot "noodles" only. I did not add the other veggies listed in their recipe. I did however add mushrooms to my dish.

This was seriously the easiest recipe to make!  I know many of you have never tried raw zucchini and carrot noodles as well, so I wanted to share this with you!

Collard greens, black eyed pea, and tomato soup!

Happy New Year! I wish you all a happy and healthy new year! This year Jake really wanted some collard greens and black eyed peas to celebrate the beginning of 2014. I decided to make a soup with both of them. This soup definitely hit the spot today. I had 3 bowls! At least it's healthy! :) :) :) I hope you enjoy it as much as we did! 

Ingredients:

6 cups vegetable broth

2 cups water

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 sweet onion

1 can diced tomatoes

2 6oz cans tomato paste

1 diced tomato

1 large carrot sliced into small pieces

5-6 cups cleaned and chopped collard greens

1 16oz package of frozen black eyed peas. 

6 diced red potatoes with skin

2 tbs salt (or more to desired taste)

1 tbs onion powder

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil 

1 tsp cayenne pepper

Cooking Method:

In a large pot sauté garlic and onion on medium heat until slightly transparent. Add all other ingredients. Cook on medium heat until boiling then cook on low heat for 1 1/2-2 hours. Once the potatoes and carrots are tender it's done! Enjoy!