Samoa Energy Truffles

So I have been seeing a lot of these great recipes that replicate a cliff bar or to make your own cereal bars, etc. It intrigued me, mostly because most of those bars you buy at the store have preservatives, chemicals, high fructose corn syrup etc. At the start of my healthy eating and weight loss journey, I looked for anything as long as it was low fat and now that is starting to change for me. I learned of all the crap that is put into processed food. So now I try and eat very little processed food (food in a box) or stick to Trader Joe's stuff (which has no preservatives, chemicals, GMO's etc.). With all these energy bars and protein bars out there, I thought I would give making my own a shot. Looking over some recipes I was inspired by these almond joy bites by Gimme Some Oven. I wanted mine to be a little indulgent and also fun like these, so I made a Samoa version.

Little chocolate salty balls that are just the right balance of what you want and what you need! You need energy that won't make you crash and you wanna eat a Samoa cookie to get it. This is not as good as a Samoa- it's better!

Why is this a Foodgasm?

Fudgey, soft, round balls covered in toasted coconut and drizzled in caramel and melted dark chocolate- 'nuff said there. But this texture doesn't come from fat- in fact you won't believe what gives it this texture. Dates! Okay don't be grossed out and think I'm tricking you into eating some nasty health food. Give it a shot and you will taste the magic and fall in love with these balls! 

These balls are da shit! Whole foods for the win! If you want these gluten or grain free just sub the graham crackers for more nuts of your choice.

To be clear these are healthy, but not a diet food. Eat 1 or two for some hunger fighting power to get through to dinner or before a workout. But definitely don't eat many since there's sugar and fat in these- HEALTHY sugars and fat. But I want to make sure if you are trying to lose weight you won't eat a ton of these! LOL! That said they have LOTS of fiber, some protein and natural sugars that won't make you crash!

Bonus about this post- ball jokes! Gotta love it! Especially balls you can put in your mouth. OMGeeee the jokes are endless!

What you need

12 oz mejool dates (unpitted) You can also sub regular dates, but you may wanna soak them so they become soft.
1 cup pistachios (Other nut if you like)
1 cup crushed graham crackers
1 tablespoon coconut oil
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons melted dark chocolate
1/4 cup toasted coconut

To finish em off you need:
1/3 cup toasted coconut (to roll the balls in)
caramel sauce to drizzle (I used Trader Joe's Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce)
Melted Dark chocolate to drizzle ( I used 1/4 bar or 1 oz. of dark chocolate in all including what I put in the balls)

How to make them

1- So I put in the dates in the food processor first and I added about 1/4- 1/3 cup warm water to help them combine.
2- Add in everything else and let 'er rip. It may take some negotiation and you may need to scrape the sides time to time
3- Roll balls in your hand and roll in toasted coconut.
4- Drizzle with caramel and melted chocolate

Nutritional Information

So a brownie and a pound cake walk into a brewery....

So you're probably seeing and expecting lots of wing recipes, nachos and all those other classic Super Bowl Snacks this week. That was the plan until I was snowed in and decided to experiment with some brown ale and developed my first ever scratch cake recipe. The results and response to the pictures were so amazing that I couldn't make you guys wait. It was delicious, fudgy madness! It also happened to be low in fat.

Well..... actually I made it that way. When I cook and bake I NEVER EVER add all the fat. My conscience just cannot allow me to do it. 3 sticks of butter?? 4??? Ouch! Unless of course I just need to learn how a recipe works in order to then find my own way to reduce the fat, LOL. 

Technically this is not a superbowl meal, but ummm who makes those rules as to what goes with football? If it were up to me, football would be a cake occasion and it DOES have beer in it after all, specifically some local Brooklyn Brown Ale. You need beer for your party and doesn't every party need cake?!

But if you don't want cake for your party (perish the thought!), fret not, I gotcha covered with some great healthy super bowl snacks from Peanut Butter and Peppers!! She has a TONS of recipes you are gonna LOVE! Check out more info at the bottom of the post!

Why is this a Foodgasm?

This is like a fudgy brownie and a pound cake walked into a brewery, had a threesome with some brown ale and they had a baby. Yeah that is totally what happened here. Totally fudgy while still holding the pound cake shape and could be cut into slices. But if that were already not good enough for you I decided to make a brown ale glaze to top it with. In this case the pics, totally speak of this magical texture!

I am proud of these photos, all the drippy deliciousness and really fudgey texture smack you in the mouth and say "Eat me". Yeah no caption needed. Just instant desire for putting it in your mouth!

How did I do it?

I used pumpkin puree to take the place of most of the fat, adding only a little coconut oil for some fat so it had a better texture overall. If you dont have coconut oil feel free to sub with some canola oil. It will work just as well. This also has 1 egg, but if you want to make this vegan you can try it without it, I am sure it would work, but may change the texture slightly.

What you need

1 can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling- this has added spiced and sugar)
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup brown ale
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

For the brown ale glaze

3 tablespoons brown ale
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

How to make it

Preheat oven to 350º
1- In a mixer combine together 1 can pumpkin puree, 2 tablespoons coconut oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 large egg with the paddle attachment.
2- In a separate bowl combine together:
1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, 1/4 cup brown ale, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3- Slowly and gradually add in the dry ingredient mixture into the wet ingredinets in the mixer until well combined (give it a couple minutes).
4- Grease a nonstick loaf pan (I used Trader Joe's Coconut Oil Spray) and pour in the batter.
5- Bake for about 1 hour and let it cool. (the toothpick method doesn't work too well here, it still comes out sticking due to the texture, but an hour should do it)

To make the brown ale glaze: Whisk together 3 tablespoons brown ale and 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar.

Pour over the top of the cake and ENJOY!

Nutritional Information 

Lots of Vitamin A and Potassium and very little fat!  AMAZING!! Yes you can have your cake and beer and eat it too!

Peanut Butter and Peppers Superbowl Recipe Round Up!!

Does my girl Jennifer have you hooked up?? Hell yeah, just look at all these! YUMMMM!

Get her recipes HERE!

#HolidayDetox Part 4- Guilt Free Snacks

This week my focus is snacks and I still got my girl Jennifer from Peanut Butter and Peppers on board to provide you with even MORE healthy recipes. Who doesn't love to snack? Myself, I am more of a meal kinda girl. So last week's post was my favorite, I am a dinner girl to the end! But I have come to realize that snacks can be very important. Like that moment in between meals, the moment that you would eat cardboard if you had to because your stomach is stabbing and nagging at you to eat. Well we gotta be prepared for this crisis and even if you don't think you will need them, pack yourself some snacks!

What kinda foods do you think of as snacks? Usually people think of the usual suspects: cookies, chips, candy, pretzels etc. These are common snacks, but the irony is none of these things fill you for long. They are all simple carbs and fats make your energy literally crash and burn. Yup more evidence we are what we eat!

I used to eat these kinds of snacks until I knew better. I wanna share with you some quick easy healthy snack recipes. Snacks that are delicious, easy to prepare, have some great nutrition and will get you to your next meal without the "hanger".

First up- I developed my very own Peanut Butter Spread! Because who doesn't love peanut butter, but who does like all the fat?!

Don't forget to see the bottom of this post for pics of Jennifer's recipes and a direct link to them!

Reduced Fat Peanut Butter Spread

Why is this a Foodgasm?

Peanut Butter is soooo good, but really high in fat. So I usually don't eat it much. You ever hear of Better n' Peanut Butter? It is a low fat peanut butter spread cut with some tapioca so it has a lot less fat. Well I came up with the idea to try and make my own natural peanut butter spread, but cut it with chickpeas. I figure the texture should blend well with it all. So I roasted some peanuts in the oven for a few minutes to make them fragrant and release the natural oil, them put them in a food processor and combined in some chick peas and additional oil as well as some honey for flavor. The texture is not the same as regular peanut butter but it is spreadable and it tastes really good. You can't taste the chickpeas nearly as much as the peanuts.  

Seriously I think sometimes the fact I am not a trained chef can be as much as strength as a weakness. When it comes to low fat recipes you really gotta think outside the box and I am really proud of the ingenuity I used with this one! Seriously, chickpeas and peanut butter, who woulda thought of that?! It is actually good too!! Like I was really enjoying every bite!

What you need

1 1/2 cups unsalted peanuts
1 cup chickpeas
7 tbsp canola oil
4 tsp honey

How to make it

1- Roast peanuts in the oven at 350 for 7 minutes
2- Put all ingredients into a food processor and let it run until mixture is creamy

Nutritional Info 

 All the protein punch of Peanut butter with 30% less fat!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roasted Red Pepper, Basil and Goat Cheese Hummus

Why is this a Foodgasm?

Hummus is something I have really come to love. It is a dip made of ground chickpeas and it's packed with flavor and protein and very low in fat! Of course you don't eat it by itself. I LOVE hummus with baby carrots! So I decided to make my own variation with goat cheese, because I am obsessed with goat cheeese soooo sweet and creamy! Also been loving the combo or roasted red peppers and basil. So I added these flavors together to give you this Mediterranean masterpiece. A trip to Italy for your mouth. If you cannot afford the real thing, if you close your eyes and really concentrate you may see yourself in a villa in Tuscany, but no promises. This is a little sweet, a little spicy and very savory. It would also be amazing with toasted pitas! Why not add it to a sandwich?

What you need

2 cups chickpeas
1 roasted red pepper
2 tsp chopped garlic
1 teaspoon chili Oil
5 basil leaves
2 tbsp goat cheese

 How to make it
1- Combine ALL ingredients until creamy in food processor
2- Top with some extra goat cheese if desired and serve with the dipper of your choice.

Nutritional Info

Lots of vitamins up in here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Salt and Vinegar Kale Chips

Why is this a Foodgasm?

So I totally jumped on the Kale bandwagon guys, it happened. Mark this day on your calenders, LOL. So I will let you in on the secret, Kale chips are NOT potato chips, don't expect them to be. If you don't expect it to be a potato chip and take it for what it is they are quite tasty.

So every experience we have shape us weather we realize it or not. When making these I didn't realize it, but they were totally inspired by a dish that I had recently and LOVED, Burnt Sprout Leaves! Basically they were crispy leaves from brussels sprouts with salt and vineger reminiscent to that classic potato chip. The flavor of salt and vinegar lended itself really well with the present veggie flavor. So these were definitely inspired by Jackson's Restaurant, thanks Shelby and Harry!

So I made my own version. These are soooo easy to make and pretty addictive to eat, I could have eaten the entire batch! Really delicious!

What you need

1 large bunch of kale, ripped into bite size pieces.
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Splash of Red Wine Vinegar
Salt to your liking
Dash of pepper

How to make it

1- Preheat oven to 300º
2- Toss kale pieces in 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Salt and pepper (if desired)
3- Bake for about 14 minutes
4- Toss in a drizzle of vinegar and a little more Salt.

Nutritional Info

Can't argue with these stats! AMAZING source of Vitamin A and C! Super low in fat and calories too!

Jennifer's Snack Recipes this week!

Awesome yogurt recipes!!!

Peanut Butter and Honey Oat Bars

Seriously I want one NOW! Great job Jennifer!

Strawberries with Balsamic and Goat Cheese

Why is this a Foodgasm?

Why just add strawberries to lettuce for a salad, why not have a salad/ dessert? The sweetness of the strawberries mingles with the tart vinegar and together they kind of boost up the flavor of one another, like a delicious high-5. Add in that little bit of goat cheese for some salty and creaminess and now you got the FULL effect, Sweet, Salty, Tart and Creamy! This also happens to be incredibly easy, delicious. quick and healthy!