Rocky Road Cupcakes

My son is a big time chocolate chip cookie lover. Whenever I ask him what he wants me to make, his answer is always chocolate chip cookies (or mac & cheese). This time I said “What about something else?” He says “I want chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting.” I agreed but I like adding a little extra to the cupcakes so they aren’t so plain looking. The kids love marshmallows so I decided to throw a few minis on top and add some pecans to the base and the frosting. Check it out at the link below!

Rocky Road Cupcakes

Superfood Chocolate Bars

I have a weakness and it is chocolate… I just can’t seem to give it up. I have learned to enjoy it in moderation. It’s hard finding allergy free chocolate though. I have ran across a few brands that I like – Enjoy Life is one. They are free of the major allergens and are easy to find where I live. I’ve also found a couple brands online. Artisana is good too. These bars I used a little combination of chocolate, oils, fruits, nuts, etc to promote a healthy little treat. They are packed full of nutrients, antioxidants, etc. It may be difficult to find some of the ingredients at your local grocery store (especially in small town KS!) but I challenge you to venture out a little. Visit a health food store, check online, etc to find some of these ingredients. If you can’t, simply substitute something else! You can make these with regular chocolate too, just watch the sugar content! This makes about 24 small bars

1 12oz package of dark chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life 60% cacao dark)

1/3 cup coconut oil (or butter)

1 tsp vanilla

½ cup chopped, dried goji berries (cranberries or currants would work)

½ cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

¼ cup chia seeds (dry)

¼ cup red wine (just an extra boost! Omit if desired)

½ tsp sea salt

¼ cup organic dry sweetener (I used coconut sugar crystals – optional)

• In a large saucepan, melt chocolate chips and coconut oil together over low heat. Add in wine and vanilla and stir until smooth. Be careful not to over cook chocolate as it can burn quickly. 
• Toss in about half of the berries, nuts and chia seeds into melted chocolate. Stir until well combined. 
• Pour chocolate mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread into a thin layer. 
• Sprinkle remaining berries, nuts and chia seeds over top of chocolate. 
• Sprinkle on sea salt and sugar. 
• Chill chocolate for about an hour. Break or cut into small pieces. Store covered in refrigerator for best results. 

Chocolate Caramel Dipped Graham Crackers

I am not a huge fan of sugar cookies. They are a LOT of work and I haven’t been able to create a GF recipe that works. Plus I don’t like icing (I know weird). I do love graham crackers though! They too are some work BUT they are very good homemade! This year I decided to do a different take on a cookie cutout and use my graham cracker recipe. I made some homemade caramel sauce (SO good!) and some chocolate sauce to dip the crackers in. They are so delicious! Sprinkle on a little sea salt for even more flavor!

Graham Crackers – see my recipe for GF version here! (cut into shapes or just squares)

Caramel Sauce

1 Tbsp butter (I use Earth Balance DF)

½ cup sugar (I like the dark coconut sugar)

1 tsp almond milk

Chocolate Sauce

2 squares of chocolate baking squares (I used unsweetened natural chocolate)

1 Tbsp honey (if you are using sweetened chocolate, you can leave this out)

1 Tbsp almond milk

•  In a sauce pan, combine caramel sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. 
• Quickly (and carefully) dip graham crackers into caramel sauce. I find the best way to do this is to use tongs or forks. Place dipped crackers onto a baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper. Let chill for about 30 minutes. 
• In a sauce pan, combine chocolate sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil stirring constantly until chocolate is melted. Dip caramel coated crackers into chocolate sauce (or you could drizzle the chocolate over the top). 
• Return dipped crackers onto lined baking sheet and let chill for about 20 minutes. Store in a sealed container. 
• NOTE: This caramel sauce is also great over ice cream or for whatever you would use caramel sauce for!

Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Peanut & Chocolate Sauce

This evening my husband wanted peanut butter something. So I was going to make a cookie and my son pipes up with I want a peanut butter and jelly cookie! It then evolved into a peanut butter chocolate cupcake; so you can thank them for this creation. I was so impressed with the flavor and texture of the cupcake. It is very moist and airy tasting; not at all dense like some gluten free baked goods can taste. The sauce however was supposed to be a frosting so I did have an epic fail moment there. Oh well – it tastes wonderful! Be on the lookout for a peanut butter and jelly cookie something or other though – that sounds like I challenge I’m ready to try! This makes 9 cupcakes

½ cup sweet sorghum flour

½ cup brown rice flour

¼ cup almond flour

¼ cup tapioca starch

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp xanthan gum

½ tsp sea salt

1 cup almond milk

¼ cup applesauce

¼ cup peanut butter, creamy (almond butter would work also)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Chocolate Sauce

¼ cup carob chips or chocolate chips

1 Tbsp almond milk

Peanut Sauce

¼ cup peanut putter

½ cup peanut butter powder (PB2)

¼ cup tapioca starch

½ cup powdered sugar or coconut sugar

½ cup almond milk

• In a large mixing bowl, combine flours, starch, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt. Add in milk, applesauce, peanut butter, egg and vanilla. Blend over medium speed for about 1 minute or until ingredients are well combined. 
• Pour batter into greased muffin tins (or tins lined with baking cups). Bake at 350°F for about 20-25 minutes or until cupcakes are baked through. Let cool about 10 minutes. 
• While cupcakes are baking, combine ingredients for chocolate sauce in a glass bowl. Microwave for about 30 seconds or until chips are melted. Stir to blend sauce. 
• In a separate mixing bowl, combine peanut sauce ingredients and blend over medium speed for about 3 minutes or until well combined. 
• Drizzle peanut sauce over cooled cupcakes. Top with drizzled chocolate sauce. 

Lemon Lavender Chocolate Truffles

This recipe is a really good variation to traditional truffle recipes that is gluten, dairy, soy and nut free with a tart, savory flavor. The centers are so light and fluffy. These would be great coated in chocolate also but I liked the cocoa/sugar dusting on the outside. Makes about 30 truffles

1 pkg of chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life brand)

1 can coconut milk (or 1 cup whipping cream for dairy version)

1 tsp lemon juice and zest

1 tsp fresh lavender, finely chopped

1 tsp vanilla

Coating

½ cup powdered sugar

1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp lavender, finely chopped

• In a saucepan, melt chocolate chips. 
• While chocolate is melting, open your can of coconut milk. The coconut cream rises to the top while the liquid settles at the bottom. You want about ½ cup of the coconut cream and ¼ cup of the coconut milk liquid (save the rest for another recipe). 
• Once chips are melted, blend in coconut milk and cream, lemon juice and zest, lavender and vanilla using a mixer over medium speed. Blend for about 5 minutes or until mixture is smooth. 
• Chill in bowl for about 30 minutes. Spoon teaspoons of mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and chill for another 30 minutes. 
• Once truffles have hardened, roll into smooth balls.
• In a small bowl, combine coating mixture. Roll truffle balls into coating mix until covered. Keep refrigerated in a sealed container. 

Mint Hazelnut Chocolates

These are quick little chocolates that I whipped together real quick one evening. I was craving just a plain chocolate but we don’t have your typical candies lying around the house anymore. No, unfortunately no Reese’s, Hershey’s Kisses, etc. But out of necessity, these little devils were born. Another perfect gift idea for a friend or loved one.

1 regular package of chocolate chips (I like Enjoy Life)

1 tsp mint extract            
½ regular package of mint chocolate chips (if you can find them, if not just use regular chips)
½ cup finely chopped plain hazelnuts
1 tsp almond milk
¼ cup coconut oil, melted

• Melt chocolates and mint extract in the microwave (careful not to scorch them).
• Once melted, stir in almond milk and coconut oil until smooth. Add in nuts.
• Spoon into mini cupcake pans lined with mini cupcake papers. Freeze until set.
• Note: We like to leave this in the freeze and eat them cold!

Chocolate Peppermint Layer Cake

So I tried to think of a witty name for this masterpiece… but nothing came to me. It was until I tasted it that I decided it was so similar to a cup of hot cocoa stirred with a candy cane. It was so moist and airy with a deep chocolate taste topped with marshmellow crème frosting and crushed candy cakes… oh perfection! Don’t be scared of the four layers – if I can do it, you can do it! Here’s a suggestion though, if you are going to have a cake with several layers, use a separate cake pan for each layer. For example, this cake is four layers, so use four cake pans and divide batter into four sections. I only had two cake pans so I just make two layers and cut each layer in half. It was difficult to keep the layers from falling apart after cutting, but I managed (just would have been better if I’d had more pans). This cake also freezes well. Just bake the layers, freeze, thaw before serving and frost as normal. It’s perfect for those holiday parties when you want a fancy looking dessert without a lot of work.

1 box of GF chocolate cake mix (I like Namaste brand but any kind should work)

3 eggs
1 ½ cup water
½ cup applesauce
¼ cup crushed peppermints or candy canes
1 recipe of frosting (I prefer marshmellow crème but vanilla sugar frosting would work also)
1 cup crushed peppermints or candy canes

• In a large mixing bowl, blend together cake mix, eggs, water and applesauce until well blended, about 2 minutes.
• Pour batter into greased 9” round baking pans. Bake at 375°F for about 25-30 minutes or until cooked through.
• Let cool for about 30 minutes on a wire rack and cut cakes in half if necessary to make 4 layers.
• Make frosting according to instructions.
• On a serving dish, place the bottom layer of cake. Add ¼ of the frosting mixture and sprinkle crushed mint over frosting. Repeat with remaining layers.
• Refrigerate any leftovers. This serves about 12.

Homemade Twix Bars

I have two favorite candy bars, Twix and Reese’s. Before my health problems, I would buy the bags of the bite size bars for holidays (Easter, Christmas, etc). I always had to buy two bags at least because I knew I would eat one bag before I could give them away. Of course, we don’t have candy at the house now. One day I decided we would have a little cheat day and I would make my own Twix bars. They turned out great! I will also give you a heads up – I will be posting homemade gluten free peanut butter cookies (similar to the Girl Scout Peanut Butter Patties). Those are equally fantastic!

1 package of cookie mix (sugar or shortbread preferably – I used Bob’s Red Mill Shortbread)

¼ cup coconut oil
½ cup applesauce or yogurt
1 large egg
¼ cup water
¾ cup caramel sauce (store bought or made with ½ package of Kraft caramels, melted)
½ cup chocolate chips
1 Tbsp almond milk

• Mix together cookie mix, oil, applesauce, egg and water until mix is well combined and crumbly. It will look very dry – this is fine.
• In a greased 9x13 baking pan, press cookie dough until it covers the bottom of the pan. Try to make the cookie dough as level as possible in the bottom of the pan.
• Bake the cookie dough at 350°F for about 10 minutes or until just slightly browned along edges.
• While your cookie is baking, make your caramel sauce or just warm up over low heat in a saucepan. Once the cookie has finished baking, pour over caramel sauce. Let set for about 20 minutes.
• Melt chocolate chips and almond milk together either over the stove or in microwave according to your chocolate chip package instructions. Pour chocolate sauce over caramel cookie. Let this set for about 20 minutes.
• Cut into pieces and serve. Cover and refrigerate leftovers.
• NOTE: I froze my bars instead of letting them cool for 20 minutes. We also liked eating them cold.
• Also – you can bake your cookies according to package instructions if desired – I just lightened ours up a bit.
• This recipe will cover a 9x13 pan, but we ended up just using a 9x5 bread pan and also made some plain cookies, it all depends on how much you want to make!