3-Ingredient Vegan Fudge Sauce!

I'm not going to talk a lot for this post, because this vegan fudge sauce is the star of the show. Seriously, you can put this stuff on anything and it will turn the even the most tasteless desserts into competition winners. 

My mom always made this fudge sauce for us growing up as a topping for our ice cream...which we at every night. I'm not lying. I used to eat a huge bowl of ice cream every night before bed. Actually all three of my siblings and I grew up thinking that was totally normal thing to do. My parents would buy a 5 gallon bucket of vanilla ice cream from Costco and the six of us would eat through that tub in no time. I'd add in sliced banana, whipped cream and this fudge sauce and sit on the couch in heaven. I have no idea how all of us kids didn't end up overweight. Thank goodness our bodies are forgiving when we're younger. 

And thank goodness I recently remembered this recipe and can now share it with you. I don't even know if you'd call it a recipe. There aren't really measurements which, in my opinion, is the wonderful thing about this sauce.

Please try this. Scoop large amounts of vanilla ice cream into a bowl and top it off with this sauce. You'll wish you too had grown up eating it every night.

Tomorrow I'll also be posting a recipe for Vegan Chocolate Cake which uses this fudge sauce as the icing. It's an amazing combination that you won't want to miss!

Vegan Chocolate Fudge

Ingredients:

• Almond milk
• 1/2-1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Place a small sauce pan on a burner and turn the heat to medium-low. Cover the bottom of the sauce pan with a thin layer of almond milk. Slowly increase the heat and let the milk heat up until tiny bubbles start to form around the edges. Don't let it get too hot or the almond milk will start to burn.
2. Pour 1/2 cup of chocolate chips into the sauce pan once the milk is warm and use a whisk to stir. The chocolate chips will start to melt and combine with the milk. If there is too much milk, add another 1/4-1/2 cup chocolate chips until all the milk is absorbed in the chocolate.
3. Add in the vanilla extract and continue to stir until all the chocolate chips have melted. 
4. Serve warm or store in an air-tight container in the fridge.

Picture of how to make it follow:

Pour a thin layer of almond milk into a small skillet until the bottom is covered.

Add in about a 1/2 cup of chocolate chips to start.

Whisk together the chocolate chips and milk until they start to combine. 

If there is still excess almond milk, add in more chocolate chips.

Add in the vanilla extract and whisk until all the chocolate chips have melted. 

Serve warm or refrigerate.

5 Ingredient No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars!

We've all had them. Those chocolaty, chewy oatmeal cookies made with tons of butter and sugar. While they can sometimes look like little cow pies, Chocolate No-Bakes Cookies are delicious. 

One of my first memories of Chocolate No-Bake Cookies was the summer after my freshman year of college. I was out in Colorado being a camp counselor at an outdoor adventure camp. I was living at 9,000 feet, hiking, making forts out of tree trunks, swimming in freezing water and running after energetic kids from the inner-city. It was an amazing fun job...if you're into that kind of thing. And I was!

My mom, being the thoughtful person that she is, probably knew that I was expending tons of energy everyday living at such a high altitude and constantly being active. So throughout the summer she sent me care packages of delicious home-made goodies. 

The first package she sent me had no-bake cookies in it. Wow oh wow. I had never had them before and I couldn't get enough. Let's just say they didn't last long, especially once my friends found out about them.

While your typical, no-bake cookies are stinkin' delicious, I'm not a huge fan of the amount of processed sugar and butter that can be packed into them. The other day I figured I'd try out my own recipe. I'm on a peanut butter kick so I thought I'd keep that the main flavor. I knew I'd have to sweeten them some, but I didn't want to use white sugar. I also knew that there had to be an ingredient that would hold everything together. 

I only experimented once and was happy with the result! There are only five ingredients and these bars are dairy-free and sweetened with agave instead of white sugar. I also used coconut oil to hold everything together. They're chalk-full of energy and are delicious! Soon I'll be experimenting with no-bake bars that are only sweetened with bananas. I'll keep you posted:)

Peanut Butter No-Bake Oatmeal Bars

(Serves 16)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup almond milk

Directions:

1. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a medium sized sauce pan combine the peanut butter, agave, coconut oil and almond milk. Slowly increase the heat while mixing constantly until the mixture starts to boil. 
3. Let the sauce boil for one minute while you continue to stir.
4. Remove the sauce pan from the heat and stir in the rolled oats 1 cup at a time until all the oats are fully covered in the peanut sauce.
5. Pour the mixture into your prepared baking dish and use a spatula to even everything out. Use your hand or the spatula to firmly press the mixture into the pan so that when everything cools, the oats will stick together.
6. Place the baking dish in the refrigerator for about 30 to 1 hour until it has cooled. 
7. Cut into 16 squares and enjoy!

Eat Consciously,

Faith

Experimenting with Breakfast Foods!

I'm one of those weird people that absolutely loves mornings. Sometimes I'll go to bed super early, just so I can wake up before the sun and the rest of humanity. If I could, I would wake up at 5 or 5:30 every morning. Mornings are when I'm most productive and my mind is most alert. I can crank out a ton of work before Brett even wakes up. 

Another major reason I love mornings is because I love breakfast. I could easily eat breakfast food three times a day. Lately I've been cooking and baking up a storm and so sometimes, due to the overflow of breakfast-like foods in our house, I just have to eat breakfast for lunch...or dinner. It's rough. Like these Lemon Poppy Seed and Yogurt Pancakes. Brett and I were working from home the other day and around lunchtime I began craving something lemon and poppy seed flavored. So...

...these pancakes made with Homemade Non-Dairy Yogurt were created. Brett and I loved them!

One of the main reasons I've been cooking and baking a ton is because I've decided that, when I have time, I want to get to the point where I can make most of our staple foods at home from scratch. Brett and I are planning to move overseas next year and I feel like I should get the basics down pat now so that if we don't have access to certain foods overseas I can just make them myself! Mainly, non-dairy foods like yogurt and almond milk have been on the top of my list to learn how to make. Other things are Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread, wheat thin crackers, tortillas and granola. 

Homemade Almond Milk

It's been so fun to learn more about the science behind the foods I love to eat and experiment making them myself...especially when those foods are breakfast foods!

So today I'm going to share with you "What-I-Made-And-Ate-For-Breakfast" and also some of the staple foods that I hope I can still make for Brett and me when we live overseas.

One of those staple foods just happens to be yogurt! I never knew making yogurt was possible a couple of weeks ago. I just thought it fell from the sky into our groceries stores. But seriously, I love yogurt, but non-dairy yogurt is so expensive and probably not as accessible overseas so I've been determined to learn to make it myself. And guess what? It's not hard!

I can make this whole quart of almond milk yogurt using a crockpot and it cost about two bucks! I'm going to keep experimenting with it until I can get a thicker consistency, but I still love it and have been eating it everyday and even using it to bake with.

Homemade Non-Dairy Yogurt with grapes, banana, strawberries and homemade granola!

Homemade granola sweetened with applesauce, agave nectar and cinnamon.

Still working on perfecting this!

Overnight oats with 1/2 cup Homemade Non-Dairy Yogurt, 1 mashed, overripe banana, 

1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons chia seeds and a splash of almond milk

I even used used my homemade yogurt in these fiberlicious Pumpkin Bran Muffins! Brett and I loved these and have been eating them daily for the past week.

 For our one year anniversary I made these amazing Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Candied Pecans (Recipe coming soon!). I usually don't call recipes I create myself amazing, but these really were to die for. Brett gave me a high five after the first bite. Success! It's definitely going to be a new family tradition to make these on special occasions.

And of course coffee. I've been trying to find the perfect ratio for making iced coffee concentrate and I just came across this recipe yesterday. Pour 1 cup of coffee grounds into a pitcher and then pour in 4 cups of water. Stir and let it sit overnight in the fridge. In the morning, pour the mixture through a coffee filter into a clean container (I filtered mine right into our coffee pot!) Now you have the perfect iced coffee concentrate! Mix 1 parts concentrate with equal parts water and there you have it!

This is the coffee grounds and water mixture before I strained it.

Don't worry, it doesn't turn out gritty like that!

Well there you have it: my experiments and breakfast foods from the past week! 

What foods do you try to make at home from scratch?

Do you have a recipe for making homemade yogurt?

Also check out Jenn's blog to see what other people are creating!

Eat Consciously,

Faith

Lemon Poppy Seed and Yogurt Pancakes

I love Saturday morning pancakes...especially for lunch on Friday because you're working from home and are still wearing your PJs. Yesterday Brett and I did just that. We worked from home and didn't get dressed until 5 PM when we had to leaving to go watch Frozen. Rough life right? My office was doing an outdoor showing of Frozen and they give away free hotdogs, pop corn, chips and slushies. It's always fun to watch a clean movie outside on a nice, Florida evening with friends.

But back to food.

I never get sick of breakfast food, but I rarely spend more than a few minutes zapping some oatmeal in the microwave or pouring almond milk over a bowl of cereal. Yesterday though I was craving some lemon poppy seed pancakes and thankfully that sounded good to Brett too. 

Lemon poppy seed is one of my all-time favorite flavor combinations. If I had to choose one kind of muffin to eat for the rest of my life, lemon poppy seed would win. Hands down. And we all know there are some amazing muffins out there. 

It just light and sweet but not too heavy. I whipped these up with half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour and I used almond milk and my homemade non-dairy yogurt as the main wet ingredients. Add in some lemon juice, zest and some poppy seeds and then you're good to go!

Look how light and fluffy those lil' guys look!

And you can never go wrong with some earth balance and agave on top. Perfection.

This was a new recipe and I'm happy to say that it is Brett approved. I was pretty pleased with the results myself. It's so fun to make something common like pancakes a little more special, especially on a Friday afternoon.

Lemon Poppy Seed and Yogurt Pancakes

(Serves 3-4)

Ingredients:

• Scant 1/2 cup almond milk
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup non-dairy, plain yogurt
• 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water)
• 2 tablespoons applesauce
• 1/2 whole wheat flour
• 1/2 all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons natural cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons poppy seeds
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest (about 1 lemon's worth)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, stir the lemon juice and milk together and set it aside for a few minutes to curdle.
2. Prepare your flax egg by whisking 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and 3 tablespoons of water together. Set aside. 
3. In a medium sized bowl mix together the dry ingredients: flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, poppy seeds and zest.
4. Add in the yogurt, flax egg and applesauce to your milk and lemon mixture and stir until combined.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until mostly lump free.
6. Using a skillet and some cooking spray, cook about 1/4 cups of batter at a time, flipping each pancake when the edges begin to bubble and the bottom is golden brown.
7. Serve warm with earth balance spread and your choice of syrup!

Eat Consciously,

         Faith

Mind Blown...Homemade Almond Milk!

Seriously. I don't know why I haven't done this sooner! In my last post I talked about how I wanted to start making everything at home from scratch that I can. I know there will be times when I'm to busy to make fresh bread or tortillas, but I really want to get some basic foods down pat before I move overseas. That way I can make things like almond milk and whole wheat bread wherever! 

Homemade almond milk has been on my list of things to try for a long time. I just seemed intimidating. Man was I wrong. This took no time at all to make and I know exactly what's in it! You can make simple almond milk with just two ingredients, or you can easily add in some vanilla and sweeteners for vanilla almond milk. And another great thing about making homemade almond milk is that you can use the leftover pulp to make Almond Pulp Freezer Fudge or Almond Pulp Cracker. I'll share these recipes soon!

Almond Pulp Freezer Fudge

Recipe coming soon!

I'll start by showing you how to make basic almond milk, but I'll share how you can add in additional ingredients to make sweetened vanilla milk. If you're going to use your milk for baking or in tea, I would suggest leaving it plain. If you want it for drinking or in cereal try sweetening it up!

Basic Almond Milk

(Makes 4 cups)

 Ingredients:

· 1 cup almonds, whole

· 3-4 cups water (see notes below)

· Optional Add-ins: 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 2-4 pitted dates, 2 tablespoons honey or agave nectar

Directions:

1. Soak. Soak the almonds in cold, clean water for at least 8 hours or up to 48 hours.  They’ll expand and become soft.

2. Drain and Rinse. After the almonds have soaked,  drain and rinse them.

3. Blend. Place the rinsed almonds and 4 cups of water in a blender. Blend on high for about 2 minutes until the liquid is white and you only see small bits of almonds. (If you're making sweetened vanilla almond milk, add in 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract and 2-4 pitted dates to the almonds and water before blending.)

4. Strain. Pour the milk into a nut milk bag, paint strainer bag or over cheese cloth that has been positioned over a bowl. Allow the milk to drain out as much as possible into the bowl

5. Squeeze. Once most of the almond milk has strained out of the bag on its own, use your hands to squeeze the bag or cheese cloth so that you extract out as much milk as possible. Soon you’ll be left with a dense lump of almond pulp in your bag. (Don't throw the pulp away, but use it in other recipes!)

6. Refrigerate. Refrigerate the milk in a pitcher or container for 3-5 days. You will need to shake it before drinking as the mixture may separate while sitting.

7. Enjoy! Enjoy your homemade almond milk in cereal, tea or with a warm cookie!

Notes: If you like your milk thicker, use only 3-3.5 cups of water.

Below are step by step instructions with pictures!

Soak 1 cup of almonds uncovered in cold water for 8 hours or even as long as 

48 hours until they are big and plump.

After soaking your almonds, place them in a blender with 4 cups of water and any additional add-ins you may want. Blend on high for 2 minutes.

You can stop blending once you have white milk and only small almond particles left.

 

Using cheese cloth, a nut milk bag or a paint strainer bag, strain your milk by pouring it into the bag over a large empty bowl.

I would have used a paint strainer bag if I had gone to the store in time, but cheese cloth inside a strainer works great too!

Let the almond milk strain through the bag or cloth for a while.

  

Then use your hands to squeeze the remaining milk out of the almond pulp. Soon you'll just have almond pulp and...

...beautiful, homemade almond milk!

Store your milk in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.

Ignore the mess in my kitchen:)

Eat Consciously,

     Faith

Peanut Butter Overnight Oats

The first thing I wanted to eat for breakfast after getting home from a week in Arkansas was oatmeal that hadn't been zapped in a hotel microwave. Cue overnight oats. The cold, flavorful oats were a nice change from my plain, hot oats from the past week.

If you try to cram a lot into your mornings and need a quick breakfast, overnight oatmeal is a great solution. Just take a few minutes at night to prep them and then you'll be all set to run out the door with a healthy breakfast. 

To be honest, the last time I got sick it was right after having peanut butter. I couldn't eat it for a week or so without having some kind of physical reaction to the thought of it. Thankfully, I got over that food aversion pretty quickly and was excited to enjoy this simple and delicious combination. 

Four ingredients.

Mix and pour into a jar.

Let sit overnight.

Done.

Peanut Butter Overnight Oats

(Serves 1)

 Ingredients:

· 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

· 1 tablespoon chia seeds

· 1/4 cup peanut flour

· 3/4 cup almond milk

Directions:

1. Pour all of the ingredients into a mason jar or bowl and mix well.

2. Let sit for 4 hours or over night.

3. Stir before eating.

4. Enjoy!

Eat Consciously,

     Faith

Homemade Vegan Graham Crackers

I know you're going to think I'm lying, but it's actually been quite chilly in Florida the past few days. I've started sleeping with our comforter at night for the first time ever! Seriously, we've never had to use it until this past week and it's been glorious. I have a hard time sleeping when I'm hot so being able to snuggle up in a fluffy comforter makes me sleep like a baby. 

Another thing that I love about colder weather, other than getting to use a comforter at night, is fires. Some of my favorite memories involve sitting around a camp fire with good friend while roasting a mallow. It always seems like the best conversations happen late at night around a camp fire--when most of the party has left and the fire has died but the coals are still hot.

My friend recently had a birthday party and I brought some chocolate, marshmallows and homemade graham crackers just in case a late night fire pit happened. It didn't, but the beautiful thing about s'mores is that you can make them in the microwave or oven if you don't have a fire nearby. And that's exactly what people did. The marshmallows expanded drastically in the 13 seconds that they were in the microwave so some people had to eat their s'mores with a fork and knife. That's definitely not a bad thing. Gooey, drippy, chocolaty s'mores. Delicious.

The recipe I used was from Deb Perelman's Smitten Kitchen blog. Basically I just "veganized" her recipe. They turned out great!! The process takes a while, but they're easy to make. The dough needs to be chilled before it's rolled out and cut into squares and after each "roll-out" I would place the scraps back in the fridge to firm up again before I re-rolled the dough and cut more squares. Like I said, not hard, just a little tedious. 

Vegan Graham Crackers

(Makes 24-30 Squares)

 Ingredients:

· 2 cups all-purpose flour

· 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

· 1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed

· 1 teaspoon baking soda

· 3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt

· 7 tablespoons earth balance spread

· 1/3 agave nectar

· 5 tablespoons almond milk

· 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

Cinnamon Sugar Topping:

· 3 tablespoons sugar

· 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

   

Directions:

1. Place the flours, brown sugar, baking soda and salt in a food processor and pulse using the steel blade until well incorporated 

2. Add in the butter and pulse until the consistency becomes a course meal.

3. In a small bowl whisk together the agave, milk and vanilla.

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in the food processor and pulse on and off until the dough forms. Do not over mix!

5. Take the dough out and lay it on a piece of saran wrap. Flatten it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick and wrap all the dough in the saran wrap.

6. Place the dough in the fridge for 2 or more ours, even overnight.

7. After the dough has gotten firm, remove half from the fridge.

8. Flour a work space well and roll the dough out into a rectangle that is 1/8 inch thick and 4 inches wide. Trim the edges to be straight.

9. Cut the dough into squares 2 x 2 inches big and place on a parchment-line baking sheet.

10. Sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar topping and place the tray in the fridge for 30 –40 minutes to firm up (or in the freezer for 20 minutes).

11. Take the scraps and form them into a ball. Place the ball in the fridge to firm up.

12. Repeat this process with the remaining dough, making sure the dough is well-chilled before trying to roll it out.

13. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions.

14. Once the squares have been in the fridge for 30-40 minutes, remove the sheets from the fridge and decorate the squares by making a vertical line down the middle of each square. Then use a fork to poke two rows of vertical dots.

15. Bake the squares for 15-25 minutes depending on your oven temperature. Rotate the crackers half way through baking.

16. Make sure you check them occasionally so that they don’t burn!

17. Let them cool and eat plain or with some chocolate and marshmallow sandwiched in between.

Eat Consciously,

     Faith