Here are the ingredients for your average Butterfinger:
SUGAR, GLUCOSE, PEANUTS, HYDROGENATED PALM KERNEL OIL, COCOA POWDER, MODIFIED MILK INGREDIENTS, MOLASSES, CORN FLAKES, SALT, SOYA LECITHIN, CORN STARCH, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOUR, TBHQ, CITRIC ACID, COLOUR.

Actually, I’ve read worse, but it just doesn’t sound very good or good for you. And how about that TBHQ? Yum!
So I decided it was time to re-think the Butterfinger. At its most basic, this bar is all about the sweet, sweet peanut filling, crispy corn flakes and chocolate shell. One peanut treat that we love and often eat in our house is the peanut butter lara bar, which is simply peanuts, dates, and a little salt. So I thought, why not make a homemade Lara Bar, give it a corn flake center for crunch, and dip or drizzle it in chocolate?

So that is exactly what I did.

How to make Gluten-free Dairy-free and Soy-free Homemade Butterfingers:

You’ve seen the toddler-friendly version at the top of the post, pictured with Toddler Yum’s Jack O’Lantern. Here is the sexy adult version, which I took to a pumpkin carving party.

It might be me, but I think it looks (and tastes) better than the packaged version! The Erewhon Corn Flakeswere perfect for this because the only ingredients were corn and a little salt. They were a tad plain all by themselves, but in a recipe like this where they are surrounded by healthy sweet ingredients, they are perfect! I’d buy them again, just for this recipe or to use in a savory breading recipe. This recipe was awesome, though, and I love how easy it is to adapt to various food sensitivities. If you need dairy-free but Soy Lecithin is ok and trace amounts of milk are ok, try the Trader Joe chocolate chips, which I used this time. If you need completely dairy-free and soy-free, use the Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips for your coating. If you prefer a really dark (70% cacao) type chocolate, use that. Want it strictly vegan with vegan sugar? Use a vegan chocolate bar. I think it will be delicious every way! Do store it in the refrigerator before eating, though, as the chocolates without soy lecithin are delicate and the bar will stay solid and easy to eat that way.

Here’s some fun pics from the Halloween party…

It was Toddler yum’s first experience carving a pumpkin, or rather, scooping out the pumpkin. Daddy helped, and gave the pumpkin little vampire teeth. Toddler Yum loved it, and even said “Vampire! vampire!” Oh dear, the things they pick up. And yes, there were other people at this party, including a wonderful gluten-free hostess that you might know from her blog that made wonderful sweet potato corn chowder and homemade mounds bars (yum!) I’m so lucky to know many of the gluten-free chefs around, and to be able to welcome this new gluten-free friend to our neighborhood.

Happy Halloween! I hope you have a wonderful holiday with your family, with plenty of treats that work for everybody’s tummy.

Looking for more gluten-free homemade treats?
Sunflower-seed Un-peanut Butter Cups
Elana’s Pantry Healthy Halloween Candy Recipes
Homemade Gluten-free Twix Bar Recipe
Nutty Vegan Butter Easter Candy
Ali’s homemade maple-sunbutter candor (like tootsie rolls)
Ali’s Chocolate Macadamia Nut Clusters
Nourishing Gourmet’s Healthier Candy Recipes
Kelly’s Raw Chocolate Raspberry Candy- refined sugar and other allergens free
Elana’s Peppermint Patties sweetened with Agave

Share your favorite gluten-free candy recipes in the links and I’ll add them to the list!

PS I was so excited about this candy recipe I decided to postpone the conclusion to pumpkin week until at least Monday… Sorry guys, but I wanted to make sure people had this recipe in time for the holidays!

Shared with Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Made from Scratch Tuesday

Healthy Dairy-free Soy-free Butterfinger Recipe Dessert  American

Ingredients Layer 1: 1 scant cup pitted Medjool dates (or regular) 1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts 2 tbsp. smooth natural peanut butter 1/4 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. nutmeg (optional) Layer 2: 1 scant cup pitted Medjool dates (or regular) 1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts (can substitute almonds) 2 tbsp. smooth natural peanut butter 1/4 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. nutmeg (optional) enough Erewhon plain corn flakes to cover surface area of a quart bag Additional smooth natural peanut butter (optional) 1/2 to 3/4 lb of soy-free semi-sweet or dark chocolate for melting 1-2 tsp. coconut oil as needed Directions Get out two freezer-safe quart bags and reserve. Layer One: Put your scant cup of PITTED dates in your food processor and process until you have a smooth paste. Add your peanuts and process until mixture comes together when you press it but there are still chunks of peanut left. Add peanut butter, salt and optional nutmeg and pulse them in until mixed throughout. Remove from food processor with a spatula and put in one quart bag, pressing the air out and sealing it. Then flatten the mixture in your bag until you have a flat sheet of peanut dough. Place in refrigerator on an even, flat surface and chill. Layer Two: Repeat with the second batch of PITTED dates and peanuts. You will fill your second quart sized freezer bag. Chill along with the other layer for 30 minutes or so. Just before you are ready to take the peanut dough out of the refrigerator, put your semi-sweet chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and heat on half power in 30 second intervals, checking after each interval and stirring as needed. When chocolate is almost completely melted, stir until chocolate is smooth and reserve. I found I needed to add coconut oil to have a thin enough chocolate for dipping. Just add your oil and stir in gently. To prepare peanut bar for dipping, cut sides of freezer bags and peel off the top of the bag on layer one. sprinkle layer one with plain corn flakes. Peel the top of the bag from layer two and careful invert it on top of the corn flakes so you have a peanut bar “sandwich” with corn flakes as the filling. Gently press the layers together, remove the final layer of plastic on top and then cut the peanut bar “sandwich” in 7 logs horizontally and then cut half down the center vertically. If you are preparing this for a toddler, you can make two more vertical cuts for mini butterfinger bites. Prepare a large cookie baking sheet with a layer of wax paper and place a cooling rack on top. Place each bar on the cooling rack with space around each bar so that you can drizzle chocolate down the sides. Prepare each bar by putting a generous dab of peanut butter between the layers to stick them together OR a dab of melted chocolate and pressing then firmly together on the top. Don’t worry if they don’t seem very firmly attached. Once they cool they will firm up and stick together. For adults who like a fair amount of chocolate, you can drizzle chocolate over the top and sides of the bar, using a knife to evenly distribute it. For toddlers, kids, or healthy-minded adults you can drizzle strands of chocolate on the top for a little taste of chocolate. Place the tray in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes to an hour, or until chocolate has set. Remove bars from tray with a metal spatula and put in a tupperware. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve. Notes Got rave reviews from adults who couldn’t believe how such natural ingredients could taste like the real thing and have the real mouth feel. :D I raved, too.

Additional Pictures

Rating:  9 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1574 Added:  October 28, 2011 Last Modified:  October 29, 2011

Baby Yum was quite intrigued by the rose pudding and stalked it until she couldn’t stand it any more and just dove in for a snack. She also got into the melted chocolate later, but alas, I didn’t get a photo of the amazing chocolate dipped baby. Here’s evidence of the great custard capture:

This month’s Ratio Rally is hosted by Erin of the Sensitive Epicure.

Wondering what this ratio thing is all about? Shauna the Gluten-free Girl started this rally to encourage gluten-free bakers to use scales to measure ingredients, with the argument that it helps take the guesswork out of baking and corrects for the problem of different baking (and measuring) styles. The cutie patootie scale I use is pictured on the right. I got it at Amazon, like most things in my kitchen. I don’t know if I am ready to jump into using my scale for every recipe yet, but it is kind of fun spending quality time with my scale in the kitchen. Try it and see what you think!

For more amazing gluten-free recipes using pate a choux, see the recipes by
My fellow Ratio Rally Bakers*:

• Amanda of Gluten Free Maui | Earl Grey Cream Puffs
• Amie of The Healthy Apple | Pate Choux with Creamy Macadamia Icing
• Caleigh of Gluten Free[k] | Savoury Paris-Brest
• Caneel of Mama Me Gluten Free | Key Lime Cream Puffs
• Charissa of Zest Bakery | Choux Shine: Koshi-an Filled Cream Puffs
• Claire of Gluten Freedom | Chocolate Eclairs
• Gretchen of kumquat | Cheddar Gougères with Dates and Pine Nuts | A Danish Puff
• Jenn of Jenn Cuisine | Gruyère & Herbed Gougères
• Lisa of Gluten Free Canteen | Cracked Pepper & Cheese Gougères
• Mary Fran of Frannycakes | Marillenknodel with ginger and cardamom sugar & chai cream puffs
• Meaghan of The Wicked Good Vegan | Cardamom and Rose Water Cream Puffs (with Rad Whip!)
• Meg of Gluten-Free Boulangerie | Chouquettes
• Pete & Kelli of No Gluten, No Problem | Almond Choux Florentines
• Rachel of The Crispy Cook | Cream Puffs Filled with Coffee Cream
• Robyn of Chocswirl | Gruyere & Parmesan Gougeres with Sage & Thyme
• Sea of Book of Yum | Rose Vanilla Cream Puffs and Vanilla Eclairs
• Silvana of Silvana’s Kitchen | Gluten-Free Spinach Gnocchi Parm
• T.R.of No One Likes Crumbley Cookies | Beignets
• Tara of A Baking Life | Parmesan & Black Pepper Gougères | Frangipane Puffs

*oops, initially the links were wrong for a few of these blogs on top. I fixed the ones I found- let me know if any are still broken links!

Gluten-free Pate a Choux Recipe Dessert  Alternative Grains  French

Ingredients 200g water or milk (I used milk) 120g shortening or butter (I used butter) 3g salt (I used salted butter so left out) 15g sugar for sweet pastry 60g sorghum flour 60g cornstarch or potato starch 60g tapioca starch 300g eggs (for my supposedly large eggs it took around 6 eggs and 1 extra egg white) Directions Pre-measure flours and other ingredients so they are ready and waiting. Put your liquid, butter, salt and sugar in a pot on the stove on medium to medium high and bring to a full boil. Take the pot off the stove and dump in all your flour, stirring with a heavy-duty spoon. I like to use my wooden spoons for this. Mix completely and turn down the heat to low. Return the pan to the stove, stirring the heavy dough constantly until it forms a ball and leaves the sides of the pan. I put my dough in a standing mixer but if you are buff or want an arm workout, you can do the next step in the pan. Mix the dough on a low speed (or with your buff arm muscles) until the dough has cooled down to at least 140f (60c). Then you can add your eggs, one at a time, beating each one in on medium speed until it is completely mixed in, and then adding the next one. You can use your paste right away or cool it in the refrigerator overnight. I cooled it overnight. To bake, preheat oven to 425f. Then line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You can use a dab of dough as glue to keep the sheet stuck to the pan, or not. Put the paste in a sturdy freezer safe ziploc bag and cut a hole out of the corner. You can use pastry tips if you have them. I don’t, so I just use the 1/2 inch hole in the bag as my “tip.” To make eclairs, pipe 4 inch logs onto the pan. To make cream puffs, pipe or spoon out golf-ball sized spheres onto the baking sheet. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes and then, without opening the oven door, lower heat to 375 and bake for 10-20 minutes or until golden brown. Better to overbake than underbake! When the eclairs or cream puffs look really browned and sturdy, you can open the oven door and turn each one over, piercing the bottom with a toothpick. For my best results, I turned off my (gas) oven and let them sit in the oven and presumably come down in temperature before taking them out. Notes About half of my cream puffs looked pretty, and the rest cracked prior to taking them out. The non-cracked ones stayed inflated. The eclairs I took out too soon, so they deflated.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  Adapted to be gluten-free from Gisslen and Ruhlmen’s recipes. My creation, please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1554 Added:  May 31, 2011 Last Modified:  May 31, 2011

Vanilla Custard Recipe and chocolate sauce for eclairs Dessert  Dairy  French

Ingredients 3 cups milk 1 vanilla bean cut in half horizontally, or teaspoon vanilla 4 egg yolks 1/3 cup sugar 1/4 cup cornstarch 1 tablespoons butter Chocolate sauce for eclairs: 3 squares your favorite chocolate 1 tbsp. butter *if you use bittersweet chocolate, add powdered sugar to taste Directions Prepare filling by combining milk and vanilla and heat on medium-low until just before it starts to boil. Take off burner and let sit for 15 minutes. Whisk together eggs, cornstarch, and sugar in a large bowl until you have a light yellow, creamy sauce. Add 1/4 cup of your warm milk, pouring in gradually and whisking as you pour. Then add the rest in a slow, continuous stream, whisking. Pour back in sauce pan and bring to a low simmer , whisking all the while. When it starts to thicken, take your pan off the burner, whisking like mad. As it cools, add your tablespoon of butter and let it melt into the sauce. When it is no longer too hot, cover with saran wrap or wax paper so it can’t form a skin. Put in refrigerator as soon as it is not burning hot, or put the pan in an ice bath to cool it enough to place it on your refrigerator rack. For the chocolate sauce, combine chocolate with butter in a microwavable dish and nuke at 30 second intervals, stirring after each time until it is a smooth, melted sauce. Don’t overcook! If your chocolate is bitter, you can add sifted powdered sugar and whisk in to sweeten. For assembling eclairs, pipe custard inside the eclair OR if your eclairs have deflated, slice them neatly in half horizontally and either pipe or use knife to fill. Dip in chocolate sauce and then let harden on a cooling rack. If it is a hot day you could do this in a tupperware in the refrigerator- I hate to have custard out at room temperature for long! Enjoy!

Rating:  7 Original Source:  A classic recipe, adapted by me. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1557 Added:  May 31, 2011 Last Modified:  May 31, 2011

Rose Whipping Cream filling for Cream Puffs Dessert  French

Ingredients at least 1 cup whipping cream (more depending on how many cream puffs you are making) 1 tbsp. powdered sugar 1/2-2 tsp. rose water (to taste- I bought mine at an Indian market) *rose petals/ buds (*optional garnish found at Middle Eastern markets) Your favorite jam. I used cherry-plum Powdered sugar optional: rose custard to serve Directions Put whipping cream and powdered sugar in a bowl and whip to stiff peaks. Gently fold in rose water. Start with a small amount and add more to taste. To assemble your cream puffs, slice in half horizontally. Put a thin layer of your jam inside the cream puff and then fill with the rose water whipped cream. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. If desired, you can dip the underside of your rose petals in the whipped cream and gently attach them to the top of the cream puff for decoration. I served mine with rose custard on the side, in case there wasn’t enough rose-flavored goodness involved.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1555 Added:  May 31, 2011 Last Modified:  May 31, 2011

Vanilla Rose Pudding Dessert  French

Ingredients 6 egg yolks 1 tbsp cornstarch 50 g sugar 1 tbsp. edible dried rose petals or rose buds (from Middle Eastern market) 3 tbsp rose water (or more to taste) 500 ml drinking milk (whatever percent your family drinks) 100 ml heavy cream 1 vanilla pod, cut in half and then cut horizontally with seeds scraped 1/2 tsp vanilla (to taste) Directions Whisk the egg yolks, cornstarch, sugar and rose water together in a bowl until smooth. Put your milk and cream, split vanilla pod and rose petals or rosebuds in a saucepan on medium-low heat and take off heat before it reaches a boil. Let milk steep for fifteen minutes or so and then pour over your egg yolk mixture through a strainer, whisking together as you do so. Return the combined egg and milk mixture to your sauce pan and heat on low until it thickens. Remove from heat and let cool. Once no longer hot, put a layer of plastic on top of the custard so it does not form a skin and refrigerate. To serve, garnish with edible rose petals. Can be used as a cream puff filling, but I preferred rose water whipped cream for this.

Rating:  6 Original Source:  Inspired by recipe online but adapted to be my own recipe. Please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1556 Added:  May 31, 2011 Last Modified:  May 31, 2011

I also wanted to try a menu again. I’ve gotten out of the habit and I miss it, so here goes. The DH is out of town, so I just have to please Baby Yum and my Mother, who is living with us.

Monday: American
Tofu Meatball subway on Sorghum-Millet French Bread

Tuesday: Chinese
Vegetable Stir Fry

Wednesday: Indian
Masala Dosa
Manchurian Cauliflower

Thursday: American
Split Pea Soup

Friday: Italian
Prepared Ravioli in pumpkin-sage cream sauce

Dessert of the week: Fruit Cobbler

I shared this menu with Gluten-free Smiles for the Gluten-free Menu Swap and over at Org Junkie.

Dairy-free Soy-free Chocolate Frosting Recipe Sauces & Condiments  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients 1/2 to 3/4 cup powdered sugar 1/4 cup shortening 1 tsp dairy and soy-free Margarine (I use soy-free Earth Balance) 1/2 cup high quality cocoa 2 tbsp coconut cream (*you can add 1/2 tbsp more if you like) 1/2 tsp. gluten-free vanilla pinch of salt Directions Put your shortening, margarine and 1/4 cup of your powdered sugar in a standing mixing bowl or small to medium bowl and mix together until creamy. Add your cocoa and another 1/4 cup sugar and combine. Add coconut cream (the thick cream-like solid that forms at the top of a can of regular, full fat coconut milk) and vanilla and mix together. Add your pinch of salt and combine. Adjust as desired. If needed add final 1/4 cup sugar and whip together. Baste cupcake or cake with frosting. Will firm up as it sits, even at room temperature.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1540 Added:  February 6, 2011 Last Modified:  February 6, 2011

This 4th of July I had one goal. I hadn’t had a good brownie since I went dairy, soy and egg-free after Baby Yum was born, and I was determined to make a vegan brownie that would pass a glutenoid taste test and satisfy pesky chocolate cravings. It is easy enough to make a good brownie with butter and eggs and lots of melty, milky chocolate, but how about without those things? How could you compensate for their absence? As I researched, I found that the real sticking point was the absence of egg. Luckily, vegan bakers are extraordinarily creative, and have come up with all kinds of substitutes, including flax seed, applesauce, and even beet puree. Another sticking point was the chocolate of course. I wanted these brownies to be safe for me and my highly soy-sensitive friend (who avoids even soy lecithin), so I had to find safe chocolate for us. I found baking chocolate (melt in the microwave and add agave or other sweetener to taste), Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips, and cocoa powder (Penzey’s) to be my salvation. I knew a vegan brownie that would pass the glutenoid taste test would be a challenge. And when it comes to that, I’m not a huge brownie girl, either, so it would be tough to find one I liked myself. I like fudgey brownies, not cake-like or bread-like brownies. To find the perfect recipe, I decided to make three recipes, adapted from those above. I called the first recipe “F” for flax seed, the second “B” for beet puree, and the third “A” for agave. Note that except for the applesauce recipe, the recipes linked above are not gluten-free, but of course my versions were. Anyway. Then I lined up my testers. You all (may) know my friend JM, who has inspired many allergen-sensitive recipes here on the Book of Yum. She is free of gluten, potato, soy, avocado, and dairy. Her partner in crime, M, is an adventurous glutenoid who has patiently tried many gluten-free experiments over the years at gluten-free potlucks and the like. Then there was me, gluten, soy, corn, potato, etc. free. And finally, there was my glutenoid DH who loves chocolate and has also been the guinea pig for many recipe experiments over the years.

First: the flax seed recipe. I am a recent convert to this egg substitute, so I had high hopes for this recipe. However, I’m afraid I was disappointed. It had a heavy, vegan brownie feel and the DH condemned it as “Tasting gluten-free.” Darn it. Unexpectedly, our tester M chose it as his favorite, perhaps because he likes that type of texture in his brownie and felt it was closer to a traditional brownie. JM and I gave it a resolute thumbs down.

Second: the beet puree recipe. I had a sneaking fondness for this recipe because I liked the novel idea of adding beets to chocolate, AND it had coffee, which just makes me happy. JM said it had an “earthy” aftertaste and M said it was his least favorite. The DH shrugged and said “well, it’s chocolate” and ate it. I might make this recipe again, actually, perhaps with some modifications. The lack of sweet chips (its chocolate was provided by agave sweetened baker’s chocolate and cocoa powder) may have made this less popular than it would have been otherwise. -I liked its deep dark chocolate flavor and earthiness, personally, but it isn’t for milk-chocolate lovers.

Third: the agave sweetened brownie recipe. This was the only recipe that started out gluten-free, but I had to radically change the flours to accommodate our various intolerances. JM, I and the DH all chose this recipe as our favorite, making it a clear winner. It was the only recipe that wasn’t lowfat as it actually contained oil, which might have helped its cause. The texture was also nice, having an appealing fluffy lightness not often found in gluten-free, vegan recipes. It might not have screamed brownie, but that made me like it a little more, and it was sweet (without being too sweet) and nice and chocolate-rich thanks to the generous amount of chocolate chips it called for.

And so, our gluten-free vegan brownie taste off ended with success and an empty box of brownies. Even the brownies that we supposedly didn’t like vanished from our picnic basket. After all, they were all chocolate, and were all pretty tasty, judging aside. Here’s our favorite recipe to share with you, and a few more gluten-free recipes I found online that I would love to try when my diet includes things like nuts and eggs again. Have any favorite gluten-free brownie recipes? Share the link in the comments and I’ll add them to my list!

If you can have nuts and eggs, try Elana’s Almond Butter Brownies
No eggs, and prefer the raw foods approach? Try Elana’s Chocolate Espresso Power Bar Recipe
Eggs are Ok and you want dairy-free dark chocolate? Karina’s Rich Dark Chocolate Brownie Recipe may be the ticket!

Just for fun, here is a pictures of Baby Yum taken on her first 4th of July. We had a lovely family picnic with friends and were all set for her to see the fireworks- but literally minutes before the show began she decided to nurse and didn’t so much as peek at the show as she fell fast asleep mid-snack. Better luck next year. I can’t believe my baby is almost one!

Gluten Free Sorghum Vegan Brownie Recipes Dessert  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients Spectrum Palm Oil Shortening or mini cupcake liners 1/2 cup your favorite oil (I bet coconut oil would be really yummy, but I used canola) 3/4 cup plus 4 tablespoons sorghum flour 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Penzeys Dutch) 10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons agave nectar 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 2 tablespoons vanilla 1/2 cup brewed coffee or espresso (I use decaf) 2 cups dairy-free and soy-free chocolate chips (Enjoy Life) Directions Special equipment: 2 Mini muffin tins or mini donut molds, although they are a bit delicate for the latter. Preheat oven to 325. Either line mini muffin tins with mini cupcake liners or baste with shortening. Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl, mix, and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Gently fold in dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill each mini muffin cup (or mini donut mold etc) with 1 tbsp. batter. Put in oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 12 to 15 minutes. Place muffin tin on a cooling rack and let cool. Don’t put warm muffins on a plate or moisture may make the bottom soggy. Gently remove mini muffins or mini donuts (the latter is more challenging) and serve. Yummy! Notes A light and delicate chocolate feast, winner of our vegan brownie taste-off!

Rating:  8 Original Source:  Inspired by Babycakes Brownies but with entirely different flour combination. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1505 Added:  July 5, 2010 Last Modified:  July 5, 2010

This recipe has been begging to be posted since I first made it. Soy-based vegan chocolate mousse recipes are a dime a dozen (although possibly quite yummy) but finding one free of most major allergens is quite a challenge. Sorry to those of you who can’t have avocado- I’m afraid it is indispensable to this recipe. However, I hope those of you who are nut, dairy, soy, and gluten free will enjoy it. The ingredients are simple, but magical in this combination. I’d like to try it with a little bit of steamed or canned peach or mango blended in- but I thought I’d better post quickly while Baby Yum is still asleep! It is suitable for a Raw Foods Diet, if you do processed Agave. I’ve tried other oils and other sweeteners but wasn’t happy with them… so in the end, it had to be coconut oil and agave. A yummy nut oil or maple syrup might be interesting, too… And if you are chocolate sensitive and don’t worry about shared equipment, you could use Chatwick carob powder for a carob version, although I haven’t tried it myself. This chocolate mousse is a perfect chocolate “fix” and even better for busy mommies (or students, or daddies, etc) in its frozen bon-bon form. Enjoy! I’ve missed you guys!

Gluten-free No-Soy Dairy-free Chocolate Mousse Recipe Dessert  American

Ingredients 1 avocado 1 tbsp. unrefined coconut oil 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa 1/4 cup agave nectar *if you want to be fancy, 1/2 tsp vanilla, dash of salt Directions Combine ingredients in blender or food processor and blend until creamy. Serve! If you have leftovers, put in ice cube tray for raw frozen chocolate “bon-bons” or put in a Popsicle tray and freeze. Once frozen, the bon-bons can be put into a freezer safe container and stored for weeks or possibly months, although mine never last that long!

Rating:  9 Original Source:  Inspired by Mothering magazine recipe, but with several fun twists to make it my own. Please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1503 Added:  June 24, 2010 Last Modified:  June 29, 2010

*This recipe is easily vegan if you substitute vegan sugar and use agave nectar instead of honey. Go for it!

Homemade Dairy, Soy and Nut Free Sunflower Butter Chocolate Cup Recipe Dessert  American

Ingredients 1 cup Enjoy Life DF SF chocolate chips 1 tablespoons palm oil shortening (Spectrum or Whole Foods) 1/3 cup Earth Balance No Soy margarine 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp. crunchy homemade sunflower seed butter 1/4 cup honey 1/4 cup organic sugar 1/4 tsp. salt Shaped paper cups (for confectionery or mini muffin tin liners) Directions Melt chocolate and shortening in microwave on half power for 1 minute, stirring and then heating in 30 second intervals, stirring after each cycle. It only takes me one or two 30 second cycles. Baste your paper cups with a layer of melted chocolate on the bottom and sides. Put in refrigerator to cool and harden. Reserve enough chocolate to cover the top of your cups. Meanwhile, combine margarine, sunflower seed butter, sweetener and salt in a pan and heat on medium-low, stirring frequently. When smooth and tasty, remove from burner and let cool. To assemble fill each cup with your cooled sunbutter filling and then drizzle chocolate on top, using a spoon to spread it and smooth around the edges. let cool and then enjoy as desired. Freezes well! Notes *I had 6 tini heart-tins and six about the size of a regular 12 count muffin liner, but had to be slightly skimpy with the chocolate. Recipe makes extra nut butter filling- try it in a “nut butter chocolate pie”

Rating:  7 Original Source:  Contents of my brain. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1484 Added:  February 14, 2010 Last Modified:  February 14, 2010