Banana ‘Nice’ Cream (vegan)

healthy living, recipes

Craving ice cream but not the guilt that comes with? This recipe is definitely for you. ‘Nice’ cream is a great low calorie, vegan option that takes little time to make. The best part is you can adapt this recipe to your taste so that you don’t even taste the banana.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup Frozen Banana (I used sliced ripe bananas)
  • 1-2 tbsp plant-based milk (I used almond)
  • 1 tbsp cacao powder

Optional

  • 1tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp cacao nibs
  • liquid stevia or agave syrup

STEPS

  1. Using a powerful Blender (I used a Nutribullet) blend the frozen banana until smooth. Add 1-2tbsp of almond milk to ease the process and pulse it at first.
  2. Once smooth, add any spices, flavourings and cacao nibs and blend further. The cacao nibs reinforce that chocolate flavour.
  3. Spoon the Nice cream into a bowl and top with granola and fruits or any nuts and seeds of your choice.

Other good flavour combos are Acai and frozen blueberries, coffee and cacao nibs, strawberries and coconut flakes. I hope you try out this recipe and let me know how it goes. This is great for dessert or even for breakfast! Thank you for reading and please like and follow for more delicious recipes, xoxo.

Vegan Snack Bars

healthy living

This recipe is an updated version of my older recipes. It’s a great snack for people on a gluten free and vegan diet. They’re my take on the snack bars we usually buy. Energy bars on the market often contain tons of sugar and preservatives and while they are advertised as being ‘healthy’, they are actually high in unnecessary calories, thus prohibiting weight loss. People often consume two to three of these bars daily, thinking they’re healthier, but that is a common misconception. Which is why I decided to make my own, now these bars last up to 2-3 weeks in the fridge and the recipe makes about 10 bars. The recipe can be adjusted to your preference, I’ve chosen a combination I enjoy, but you can experiment with others if you like. (Cocoa nibs and coconut are also a favourite of mine)

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups of gluten free rolled oats
  • 3 medium sized bananas
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup blueberries
  • 1/2 cup dried goji berries
  • 2 tbsp almond milk
  • 1tbsp chia seeds

Step 1: Blend the oats in a blender or food processor to obtain a grainy oat flour. Pour the oats into a bowl and mix in the cinnamon, chia seeds and berries.

 

Step 2: In another bowl mash the banana with a fork and add in the almond milk and vanilla.

Step 3: Fold the banana mixture into the dried ingredients to make a dough.

Step 4: Line a baking tin with parchment paper and spread the dough using a spatula or your hands.

Step 5: Bake at 170 ºC for 10-15mins. Check on them regularly as they cook pretty fast, once your fork cannot stick right through the bars, they are cooked.

Step 6: Once they’ve cooled, cut them up into bars and store them in the fridge.

 

I hope you try out this recipe, let me know  down in the comments if you do. Thank you for reading and please follow for more posts like this, xoxo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Healthy Cinnamon Rolls

healthy living

Cinnamon rolls are a great holiday treat and since it’s often difficult to keep healthy over the holidays, the best solution is to have healthier holiday recipes so that you can still indulge but without guilt. This recipe is both dairy free and gluten free, it does not contain yeast therefore it’s texture is different from traditional cinnamon rolls, but it’s still delicious and easy to make.

Ingredients:

Dough:

  • 1 cup of gluten free flour
  • 1 cup of cornflour
  • 1tsp baking powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup almond or rice milk
  • 1tbsp vanilla essence
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil

Filing:

  • 1tsp cinnamon powder
  • 3 tbsp coconut sugar

Directions:

  1. Mix together all the dry ingredients and add in the eggs, milk, vanilla and coconut oil.
  2. Fold the ingredients together and avoid over mixing. When the batter forms a dough, knead the dough with your hands.
  3. Roll the dough out on a piece of parchment paper until it’s about 1/2cm thick. Sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon and sugar.
  4. Using the parchment paper, start rolling the dough by lifting the paper and folding the dough.
  5. Cut the rolled dough into 2cm thing rolls and place them together in a baking pan. Make sure the pan is sprayed with coconut oil or lined with parchment paper.
  6. Bake the rolls in the oven at 180°C for 15 minutes. Once golden I like to drizzle them will a dash of dairy free milk to keep them moist. You can also use a glaze with melted coconut butter or thickened coconut cream.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, follow for more recipes like this. Thank you so much for reading xoxo.

Healthy Cookie dough Bites

healthy living

food-1518445_640.jpg

This is a new recipe that I’ve created recently and the best part is it’s a no-bake recipe. These bites are a great snack that is gluten free, dairy free and nut free. I’ve struggled to fine a nut free recipe that does not include any complicated ingredients or a food processor, so you’ll find that most of these ingredients are pretty easy to obtain. However, the most important thing is that it is both healthy and tastes amazing!

Ingredients

  • 1.2 cup Gluten free flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
  • 1 large banana
  • 1tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp honey (or maple syrup if vegan)
  • 1tbsp chia seed
  • Raw cacao powder (optional)
  • Vanilla essence (optional)
  • cinnamon (optional)
  • Raisins or chocolate chips (vegan)

Method

  1. Firstly you are going to cook the flour. Don’t worry, this is fairly easy. All you have to do is cook the flour in a pan on low heat, stirring consistently until it slightly browns.
  2. Then place the flour in a bowl and add in the cinnamon, cacao powder, chia seed and raisins.
  3. In a separate bowl, mash up the banana until smooth and add in the coconut oil , vanilla and honey. Mix well, getting rid of any lumps.
  4. Mix in the wet and dry ingredients together. You should have a dough-like consistency.
  5. Roll the dough into little balls and then roll them in chia seed or coconut powder. Let them set in the fridge before having them.

 

This recipe takes about 10-15mins and it is truly worth it. It has healthy fats from the coconut oil and fibre from the chia seeds to help keep you full and similar to my other recipes, you can easily adjust it to your taste. I hope you enjoyed this recipe, let me know if you try it out and please like and follow for more posts like this one. Xoxo.

 

Chia Seed Pudding

healthy living

It’s vegan, gluten free and healthy! Chia seeds are a great source of fiber and protein. They help to cleanse your digestive system and are an antioxidant and therefore very effective in weight loss. This is the basic recipe for chia pudding.

Ingredients:

  • 2tbsp chia seeds
  • 1/3 cup of almond milk (or any milk of your choice)
  • 1tsp vanilla essence
  • Your choice of sweetener

Directions:

  1. Combine all the ingredients together.
  2. Set in the fridge overnight.
  3. Top with berries or any topping of your choice.

Other uses for chia seeds:

  • In overnight oats
  • In homemade granola bars
  • In cookies
  • In smoothies

Chia seed pudding is very versatile and it’s easy to modify the recipe to different flavors. Some of my favorites are chocolate and cinnamon. Hope you enjoy this recipe! Please like and follow for more recipes. Xoxo.

2 Ingredient Pancakes

Uncategorized

blueberries-919029_1280

A quick and simple breakfast idea for when you need a healthy but delicious fix. This is one of my personal faves and it’s gluten and dairy free!

Ingredients:

  • 1 banana (medium sized)
  • 1 egg (whole)
  • vanilla extract & cinnamon (optional)
  • Coconut oil (100% pure, virgin)

Method:

  1. Mash the banana with a fork or in a blender & (optional) add the cinnamon and vanilla.
  2. Add in the egg and mix well, making sure there are no lumps. (Tip: you want a slightly thicker consistency).
  3. Heat up your pan and brush it with around half a tsp of coconut oil.
  4. Turn your flame down to low and pour the batter in. ( Tip: it’s better to cook it on a low flame so that it cooks evenly).
  5. Once finished, you can top it with anything you like; blueberries, strawberries, honey or even coconut flakes.

I hope you enjoy this recipe. Let me know by giving this post a like and follow for more recipes! Xoxo.