Pecan Date Bars

Hello dear TCB readers! Long time no see, right? I was literally shocked when I saw that there was no entry in September. Not even a Pinteresting post. Wow! A lot has happened since I last posted a recipe. As you know I tend not to reveal much of my personal outside-the-blog life, but I sure can tell now that life happens when you're busy making other plans. 

I am delighted to share a great recipe with you today. It is another vegan, no bake recipe which I love so much these days. Pecans are my number one snack - they are so nutritious and rich in taste you should definitely buy some. I carry a small zip-lock of pecans in my bag as an emergency when I get hungry or need a snack right away. 

These bars are totally addictive. I love them as an afternoon snack or pre run fuel. You can even enjoy them for breakfast if you wish.

You need:

1 cup pecans

1 cup dates, pitted

1 cup shredded coconut

a pinch of salt

1/2 cup unsweetened dark chocolate (I used 80% cocoa)

Gather your ingredients and put them in your food processor. Mix until everything holds together and it is a sticky mess. 

Put the mixture in a brownie pan or any other pan you have on hand (just make sure it is not too big). Press down with your hands firmly. Put the pan in the fridge for one hour to set. Meanwhile melt the chocolate - my trick is to put it in the microwave for one minute and there you have it. 

After one hour, remove the pan from the fridge and drizzle the chocolate over the bars. Let cool in the fridge for another hour. Slice into bars and dig in.

Chocolate Popsicles

Summer calls for ice cold desserts. I crave popsicles / ice cream / semifreddo's almost every night and therefore the ice pop mold I bought a few months ago comes in handy. There are many popsicle recipes on the internet, but I don't like the majority of them because it takes so much time to prepare all of the ingredients, and cook a syrup, and so on. These chocolate popsicles are made in no time and taste so amazingly like a chocolate cake. Plus, they're vegan!

What other excuse do you need for a brain freeze?

You need:

2 ripe bananas

2 table spoons cocoa

3 table spoons natural peanut butter

a dash of salt

1 tea spoon vanilla

Put all of the above ingredients in a blender. Mix until combined, use the pulse function to make sure everything is mixed and there are no banana chunks. 

Pour the mixture in a popsicle mold. 

Freeze overnight or for at least 5 hours.

Orange Pancakes (Vegan)

Everyone who loves pancakes get ready. These pancakes will blow your mind. They are so easy to do (3 ingredients!) and taste like fresh oranges squeezed into it. Okay, I really love pancakes and since I try to veganize some of my favorite recipes (nothing major, just trying to eat healthier) I came up with this one. 

You need:

1 cup plain flour

1 1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1 table spoon baking powder

Mix the above ingredients until combined. Bake pancakes. Serve with blueberry jam or plain. Eat. 

Now go and bake some! You can thank me later. :)

Mini Vegan Cheesecakes

Hello dear readers! It feels so good to be back again. This past month was crazy - with some health issues, and mentally I wasn't quite prepared to blog. I am glad that it's all behind me and I can focus on much more positive and fun things. 

Sometimes when life gets difficult, I crave something sweet but don't want to bake and go through the whole process of it. Ahh, the cosiness of no-bake desserts!

So, I came over this blog and found the perfect little treat to do. It takes some time to make it because you have to soak the cashews, but it is worth the try! I prefer making such treats late at night, and then finishing it the next morning before work. Then I know a little something will wait for me in the fridge when I come home.

You need:

4 table spoons cashews

1 table spoon agave

4 table spoons coconut, shredded

2 table spoons oats

fruit of choice for the topping

Put the cashews in a bowl, pour enough water over it and leave to soak over night. The next day, put the cashews, agave and coconut in a blender (I use my Magic Bullet) and blend until smooth.

Put the oats in a small saucepan, add two tablespoons water and cook for two minutes or until the oats soak up the water. 

Prepare a mini pie dish by covering it with foil. Spread the oats thinly on the bottom and put in the fridge for a few minutes. Then put the cashew batter over the oats, slightly pressing it down with the backside of a spoon or a spatula. Put your fruit on top and let sit in the fridge for a few hours to cool completely.

Vegan Banana - Date Buns

My dad is the biggest anti-vegan I've ever met. He truly believes that there is nothing better than meat for dinner and he will never ever eat any vegan dessert. Sometimes I trick him by not telling him what a certain (vegan and non-vegan) dish contains - this is the only way he even tries it. Last week however, he came to me and said he had found a great looking recipe and if I want to give it a try. Can you believe it? Of course I made a vegan dessert for him, and he loved it. He even requested another batch the following day. Win-win.

You need:

100 ml lukewarm water

150 grams whole-wheat flour

50 grams all-purpose flour

3 table spoons light muscovado sugar

pinch of salt

1 table spoon dry active yeast

3 table spoons olive oil

For the filling:

8 dates

1 banana

Put the yeast, sugar and warm water in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside, in a warm place (I love using the microwave or the oven), cover and leave it there for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together all of the other ingredients and make a hole (for the yeast) in the middle. 

Combine with the yeast and mix well, first with a wooden spoon and then knead until you get a nice, stretchy dough. Cover and let sit for one hour in a warm place.

After one hour, knead the dough one last time and roll it out, about 2 centimetres thick. Use a glass to cut out individual circles and put them on parchment paper. 

Put the dates in a small bowl and pour some hot water over them, leave them in it for five minutes, then cut them into small pieces. Cut the banana into thin pieces. 

Put two slices of banana, with a few dates on top on the buns. Cover with another circle of dough, press the edges firmly with your fingers so the two parts will not separate while baking. 

Put the buns into a preheated oven (to 50°C) and let them rise for ten minutes. After that, turn the heat up to 180°C and bake for 20 minutes, or until golden.

Let them cool down completely, then sprinkle the buns generously with powder sugar and enjoy.