Tag Archive for chocolate

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream!

Posted on by

That’s right!  I said Ice Cream!  Chocolate Ice Cream!

I’ve been experimenting all summer, and not only do I have a great recipe for you, but it is an excellent activity to keep the kiddos entertained at the same time (if you choose to do this method.)

 

images-1

The best part, other than the amazing taste, is the simplicity!  Just a few simple, pure, ingredients that you probably have on hand, a little waiting time, and dessert is prepared!  A creamy, delicious dessert that no one would ever guess is SUGAR FREE!

Here’s what you need:

3 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream

1/4 c Pyure Sweetener

1/2 c Unsweetened Cocoa

1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla

IMG_4700

 

Optional:

Ice cream salt

Ziplock Bags

or

Ice Cream Maker

 

Directions:

Whisk together cream, sweetener, and cocoa in a saucepan until it barely starts to simmer.  Add vanilla and remove from heat.

IMG_6822

Let it cool on the stovetop until the pan is not scalding.  Place in the refrigerator to bring down to at least room temperature. (You don’t want to add the mixture to the ice cream maker or plastic bags at a high heat.)

Here are your options:

Kids version:

Pour 1/2 cup of mixture in a quart size Ziplock bag.  Seal well!  Place that bag in a gallon size ziplock filled with several cups of ice and 1/4 cup ice cream salt.  Seal the gallon size bag.  Hand it to your child with a dish towel and have them shake it until exhaustion or until the ice cream is the consistency of soft serve.  Enjoy!

 

No mess version:

Pour your saucepan of cream mixture into an ice cream maker, turn on, and walk away.  It should be nice and creamy in about 30 to 45 minutes!  Enjoy.

 

I hope your family enjoys this as much as ours!  Happy summer!!!

images-2

 

Posted in Dessert, Holiday Dish, Kids, recipe, special Occasion, Sugar Substitute, Treat tagged with , , , , , ,

Baby, It’s Cold Out There!

Posted on by

It’s starting to FEEL (and look) a lot like Christmas!  My favorite season of the year!

We had such a hot fall in San Antonio, I was beginning to think it would never get cooler around here, but ‘lo and behold, we finally had a great cold front!  Finally!

The first cold morning around here, the kids were begging for HOT CHOCOLATE!!!

Can hot chocolate be Keto?

Absolutely!

Look at these smiling faces!

IMG_5386IMG_5382 (1)

There is nothing better on a cold morning than curling up in your cozy chair with a steaming hot cup of cocoa!  The kids were cozy, happy, and warm!

So how to?

Keto Hot Chocolate

IMG_5374

Do you see that half-gallon of cream????  Oh, yes it is!  Sam’s Club!

You can use more cream and less milk for more keto cocoa and thin with some more water, however, for the kiddos, I don’t mind them having whole milk.

Ingredients:

1 cup water

1/2 cup 100% cocoa

1/4 tsp himalayan salt

3/4 cup Swerve granular

2 cups milk

2 cups heavy whipping cream

peppermint flavored Stevia to taste – I used 2 droppers full

The kids especially liked the peppermint flavor added, but you could use any flavor Stevia drops.

71YvxSgqO9L._SY355_

In a heavy large saucepan, combine all your ingredients and whisk well.  Keep watch as you heat over medium heat.  At the end, when everything is combined, it can boil up quickly and make a huge mess, so keep and eye on your sweet treat.  When everything is combined and comes to a light boil, pour in mugs and top with sugar-free whipping cream!  Yum yum delicious!

IMG_5375IMG_5377

IMG_5378 IMG_5379

 

Posted in Beverage, Breakfast, Dessert, Holiday Dish, Kids, recipe, Snacks tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

A Decadent Dessert in Under 30 Minutes

Posted on by

Erin and I were able to take part in a fun party that a friend of mine hosted for about 20 friends.  She hired us to come in and talk about the benefits of Keto, the difference it has made in our lives, and how we cook.  After our talk, we prepared a complete Keto meal for the whole group.  It was a lively discussion filled with great questions and some new foods for most.  I always wait for the reaction after dessert.  It amazes people that we can make such decadent desserts without sugar.  One of the desserts we made was a rich chocolate tart that I have slightly modified from the brilliant Dr. William Davis’ book, Wheat Belly 30-Minute (Or Less) Cookbook.  If you don’t already have it, we do recommend it, and it is available for purchase in our Amazon store.

I made two tarts, one primarily the way it is in the cookbook with a coconut crust.  In my opinion, the natural taste and texture of the coconut helps cut the bitterness of the dark unsweetened chocolate for a perfectly balanced dessert that is very satisfying.  The coconut also provides a nice sturdy crust for the dense chocolate.  I do understand that there are some that really don’t like the texture of coconut.  For those individuals, I made a regular almond flour crust.  Just know that you can always change out your crust in any recipe.

Rich Coconut – Chocolate Tart

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 inch pie plate.

Gather your ingredients:

IMG_3698

Crust:

2 cups unsweetened coconut

3 Tbsp almond flour

3 Tbsp Swerve granular

3 Tbsp melted butter

Combine all of the above ingredients.  I use my hands to combine and then press into your greased pie plate.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Let it cool while you prepare your filling.

IMG_3699

Filling:

14 ounces of canned full-fat organic coconut milk

8 ounces of 100% Cocoa (Unsweetened) Chocolate

1 tsp of vanilla extract OR 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and 1/4 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup Swerve Confectioners

In a saucepan, over medium heat, heat the coconut milk just until bubble form.

IMG_3705

 

Add the chocolate that you have chopped to the pan.

IMG_3703

IMG_3704

IMG_3706

It will look like the above until it begins to melt, and then it will look beautiful.  Once melted, remove from the heat and add the Swerve and Vanilla or other extracts.

IMG_3707

IMG_3708

 

Whisk all your ingredients together and then pour in your crust of choice.

IMG_3709

Place your pie in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.  You can do it overnight which is great when preparing for a party or event.

IMG_3713

This is your finished product!  To add even more to the richness, add a dollop of whipped cream to the top and you are really set!  Cut with a sharp knife and enjoy.

 

 

 

 

Posted in Dessert, Holiday Dish, Kids, recipe, Sugar Substitute tagged with , , , , , , ,

Sugar-Free, Dairy-Free, Paleo, Keto Chocolate Pudding!

Posted on by

That’s a mouthful!  This may be the perfect Keto Chocolate pudding to put in your mouth though!

The kids always want some kind of treat, so I experimented with something different.  I wanted to go chocolate based off of a treat the kids picked out at the grocery store on vacation a few weeks ago.  I relax a little on the restrictions on vacation, and amazingly the treat they chose was not too far off.  It was a store-bought Jello-brand chocolate mousse at the grocery store in Port Aransas, Texas.  I expected it to be filled with artificial this and artificial that, but it actually had real cream in it!  Surprising, right?  It wasn’t perfect, but it did give me the idea of trying to create my own that was perfect!  The only ingredient I am still waiting on is my new gelatin, but the Knox worked for today.

This is not really a mousse, but a pudding.  With supervision, this is a great one to do with the kiddos this summer.

Start with your ingredients: (I also added vanilla and salt that are not pictured.)

IMG_2803

1 can Coconut Cream (I used Trader Joe’s)

1 can Coconut Milk

You can see the difference in consistency between the two:

IMG_2805

 

1/2 cup cocoa powder

3/4 cup Swerve Confectioners

3 packets of Gelatin or 3 Tbsp of this one

1/2 cup cold water

1/2 tsp Celtic salt

1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine your coconut cream, coconut milk, cocoa, Swerve, and salt.

Whisk over medium heat until warm.

In a small bowl, empty your gelatin packets and combine with your 1/2 cup of cold water.  Stir until there are no clumps.

IMG_2804

Whisk the gelatin mixture into your chocolate mixture, and stir until dissolved.  Add your vanilla, and stir until well combined.

IMG_2807

Spoon into 8 individual ramekins.

IMG_2809

Cover each bowl with saran wrap and place in the fridge for about 2 hours to set.

We topped ours with homemade sugar-free dairy whipped cream, but if you are Paleo or dairy-free, you can whip up some coconut cream with some Swerve and vanilla and use that as well.

IMG_2815

We all gobbled it right up.  Enjoy!

IMG_2816

 

Posted in Dessert, recipe, Snacks, Sugar Substitute, tips, Uncategorized tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

An “Almond Joy” Kind of Day

Posted on by

My most requested recipe at your fingertips!

Just because you go low-carb doesn’t mean you can’t ever have sweets again!  You just have to think differently!

These “Fat Bombs” are the bomb!  They are so easy to make, you get your intake of healthy fats, and take care of that little need for a sweet treat every once in a while.

You can keep them in the fridge, and pop them as you need them.

 

Fat Bombs

4 oz 100% Cacao

8 Tbsp Grass-Fed Butter (Kerrygold)

3 TBSP Coconut Oil

1 tsp Vanilla

1/3 cup Swerve Confectioners

2 Tbsp Cream

Shredded Unsweetened Coconut

Almonds, Pistachios, Macadamia Nuts

IMG_0657

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gather all of your ingredients along with a double boiler, a whisk, and either mini-muffin pans or candy molds.

Directions:

Melt your chocolate, butter, and coconut oil in a double boiler over simmering water, stirring often so it does not burn.  (This is a double batch.)

IMG_0655

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add the Swerve and whisk together until well combined.

After it is completely melted and smooth, remove from heat and add vanilla and cream.

Whisk until it looks like you have smooth chocolate sauce.

Set aside.

IMG_0654

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can either use a mini-muffin pan with paper cups or a silicon candy mold.  I use both.  If you want a variety of candies, you can tell them apart by using different colored paper cups.  For instance, my husband doesn’t like the texture of coconut in his desserts so I always do his candy without coconut in green paper cups because that is his favorite color, and he knows which ones are his.  In short, you can color code your candy!

I love the smooth texture of the candy molds though, so of course, I use those for mine!

Be creative!  I love mine with coconut and almonds!  Can you say, “Almond Joy!?!”

The kids like theirs with either macadamia nuts and coconut or plain coconut, and my husband loves his with pistachios.  Just have fun with your add-ins!

This is what it looks like when you add your fillings:

IMG_0652 IMG_0656

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the purple molds, I placed a dab of chocolate right in the center bottom of the circle so it would have a smooth chocolate finish when I popped them out.  Then, put the coconut and almonds on top.

Next, add your chocolate by the spoonful:

IMG_0651 IMG_0653

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After your molds are full, place them in the refrigerator to set.  This does not take long.  Give them about 45 minutes to an hour to set before you try to remove them.

IMG_0646

Once they are hard to the touch, you can invert the molds to pop out your candies and remove the paper cups from your muffin pans.  I throw them in a ziplock bag, and they are ready to grab when you need a bite!

Enjoy!!!

 

Posted in Dessert, Kids, recipe, Snacks, Uncategorized tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Devilishly Delicious Donuts

Posted on by

I get requests quite often from the kiddos to have something other than eggs for breakfast.  Enter Coconut Crusted Chocolate Donuts!  YUMMY!!!!

GRAIN FREE/SUGAR FREE

IMG_0678

I decided to experiment with a Paleo recipe this morning that needed some substitutions so that it could be sugar free, and the result was an overwhelming winner from everyone in the family!  Lots of smiles in our kitchen today!  These are so good you could top with some homemade whipping cream (using Swerve Confectioner as your sweetener) for dessert!

Yield One Dozen

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees.

1.  Start with your ingredients:

IMG_0669

DONUTS

1 1/2 cup Honeyville Almond Flour (Don’t even bother with a different brand…I’ve tried them all, and Honeyville is far superior with the best texture for baked items.)  I get the big bag at Costco.

1/2 cup 100% Cocoa

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Pink Himalayan Salt

6 eggs separated

6 TBSP Coconut Oil

1/2 cup Swerve Granular (Available at Sprouts, Whole Foods or Amazon)

1/2 tsp Vanilla

GLAZE

1/2 cup Coconut Oil

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 TBSP Swerve Confectioners (Available at Whole Foods or Amazon)

Unsweetened Coconut Flakes (I buy in bulk at Sprouts and keep in a sealed container.)

2.  In a large mixing bowl, combine almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and Swerve.  Make sure it is mixed well without clumps.

IMG_0670

3.  In a separate bowl, combine egg YOLKS, melted coconut oil, and vanilla.  Mix until smooth and slightly fluffy.

4.  Add the above to your dry ingredients, and mix well until a thick batter is formed.

IMG_0671

4.  In a third bowl, with a hand mixer, beat your egg whites until nice and fluffy – not stiff.

IMG_06725.  Add your egg whites to your thick batter and mix until you have a nice creamy batter.

IMG_06736.  Spoon batter into a greased donut pan (use Coconut oil spray).

IMG_06747.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.  Cool in pan for about 15 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack.

IMG_0675

8.  While the donuts are cooling, mix all your glaze ingredients together.   Once completely cool, dip each donut into the glaze.  (This is my trick for a smooth surface anytime you are icing with a glaze.  Dip – don’t spread.)  Then top each donut with UNSWEETENED coconut. I did some with and some without the coconut.  Both were devoured!  My husband put his in the microwave for 15 seconds to warm it, and said it was fantastic.

IMG_0677

9.  As I mentioned above, you could heat these as a dessert and top with whipped cream sweetened with Swerve Confectioners and a splash of vanilla.

Enjoy!!!!

IMG_0678

 

 

Posted in Breakfast, Dessert, recipe tagged with , , , , , ,