chocolate | Vegan Recipes from Cassie Howard

Chocolate & Coconut Pumpkin Bars (Raw, No Bake)

October 24, 2014 5 Comments

With a can of pumpkin in my hand, I was on a mission to make something tasty. I didn’t feel like cookies or cake or pie or fudge (WHAT?!), so I hopped on Pinterest and scoured the site for pumpkin treats I could make right here, right now.

Then I got distracted by quotes. And cute kitten pictures. And the next thing I knew, an hour had gone by and I hadn’t looked at a single pumpkin recipe. Focus, Cassie! Focus.

Okay. I will focus. Search “vegan pumpkin dessert”. Find lots of cookies, cakes, pies and fudge. NONONONOTHANKYOU. After searching for almost another hour (OMG WHAT IS HAPPENING, PINTEREST?!), I finally stumbled upon a recipe that looked yumz!

These no bake chocolate coco pumpkin bars. Okay FINE, these will do. As if I was settling or something. Man, I am grouchy when I’m on Pinterest too long.

Whipped up a batch, ate them all in 2 days. Didn’t share with my fam. They went bonkers. Made more, with slight changes to the recipe. They ate them, and I was the best mom/wife ever again. Awesome. I always knew I was the best. Score!

These guilt-free treats are so good. And they’re pretty! And you all know how much I loves me some pretty food. It makes my soul happy.

So today I encourage you to make some pretty food. It’s the weekend! Celebrate with some chocolate & coconut pumpkin bars. Preferably in front of the TV with a super scary movie playing. Halloween is coming and it’s time to scare yourself. And eat tasty fall treats. YES PLEASE.

Chocolate & Coconut Pumpkin Bars (Raw, No Bake)

Prep time

45 mins

Total time

45 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 8

Ingredients

10 dates, pitted
1 cup almonds
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup shredded coconut
¼ cup coconut oil
1 small banana
¼ cup pumpkin puree
2 tbsp agave
½ tsp vanilla
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

Instructions

Add dates, almonds cocoa powder and 1 tsp of cinnamon to your food processor. Process until it all comes together into a ball.
Transfer the mixture to a 9x5 baking dish and flatten it out in the pan. Set aside.
In small bowl, combine the shredded coconut and coconut oil. Mix well until thick (you may need to add more coconut oil or shredded coconut to get it to a spreadable consistency). Spread this mixture on the chocolate almond mixture in the pan.
Add the banana, pumpkin puree, agave and 1 tsp cinnamon into your food processor and process until smooth. Pour over top of the coconut mixture and smooth it out so that it covers the entire dish.
If desired, sprinkle some coconut on top.
Freeze for 60 minutes or until set. Cut into squares and serve. Store in the freezer. Remove for a few minutes to thaw before eating.

Notes

Adapted from Running to the Kitchen.

link

Chocolate Beetroot Dougnuts

October 22, 2014 3 Comments

Extra, extra! Read all about it!

I put beets in my doughnuts and I’m loving every last bite of these chocolate morsels!

I used to be one of those people who hated beets. In fact, just the sight of them alone would give me the heebie jeebies. My mom used to always buy the pickled beets in a jar, and those, I would eat, but fresh beets? No way! Those things are weird!

Well, flash forward to 2014 and fresh beets have now become a staple in my diet. They’re great for more than just eating, though! I also love (read: am obsessed with) them in my smoothies and juices. And they’re good for you!

Beets:

Lower your blood pressure
Boost your stamina
Fight inflamation
Are an aphrodisiac (no really!)
Are high in many vitamins and minerals
Help your mental health

Oh, beets. You are magic and I love you long time. Let’s be friends forever.

So! These doughnuts!

They’re pretty, right? That’s just another thing beets can do – make pretty food and drinks.

These doughnuts have a chocolate frosting on top (cause’ duh – chocolate), and I also added some beet juice & icing sugar on top to finish them off. And then I proceeded to eat 3 doughnuts before I could even snap a picture. Oops.

I bet you can’t eat just 1 either! Go ahead, try it. I dare you.

Chocolate Beetroot Dougnuts

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

8 mins

Total time

18 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 6

Ingredients

Doughnuts

¾ cups + 1 tbsp kamut or all-purpose flour
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp ground flaxseed
½ cup almond milk
⅓ cup coconut sugar
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp vanilla
½ cup grated beet

Doughnut Topping

Chocolate: ½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips, melted
Beet Glaze: 3 tbsp beet juice + ⅓ cup icing sugar, whisked together

Instructions

Doughnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a doughnut pan with no-stick spray and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, mix together the flaxseed, almond milk, coconut sugar, vinegar, olive oil and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Fold in the grated beets.
Spoon the mixture into your doughnut pan and bake for about 8 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

Doughnut Topping

Spread the melted chocolate on the cooled doughnuts, then drizzle with the beet juice + icing sugar mixture.
Enjoy!

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

October 8, 2014 Leave a Comment

Halloween is just around the corner and the kid in me is more excited than I should probably admit. I get a little decoration-happy over here!

It’s a shame I can’t partake in trick or treating anymore. Not just because I’m a MOM and I’m pretty sure it’s a no-no to beg for candy door-to-door when you’re almost thirty, but also because – have you SEEN the crap people hand out on Halloween? It’s like they’re trying to kill those precious little children.

Everything is loaded with sugar, loaded with salt, and loaded with a bunch of ingredients that should never go into your body ever, ever, ever (I’m lookin’ at you, corn syrup!).

I let my kids go trick or treating, but only because I don’t want them to feel left out. I dump a good 75% of their candy into the trash when they go to bed, and honestly, they don’t miss it.

But I miss it! Before I switched to a vegan diet, I would rummage through my kids’ Halloween bags and eat their Coffee Crisp, Kit Kat, Doritos and Reese Peanut Butter Cups. Now, I have to look at those treats lovingly and then just toss them away. Which is probably a good thing, but I digress…

This year, I decided that if I was going to survive another year of watching my kids eat my favourite non-vegan treats from afar, I was going to need some treats of my own – like these peanut butter cups.

With only 3 ingredients and less than 15 minutes of time, this is probably one of the easiest recipes ever. If you can even call it a recipe.

Hello chocolate, meet peanut butter.

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

Prep time

15 mins

Total time

15 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Snacks

Serves: 12

Ingredients

1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life brand)
½ cup peanut butter (store-bought or homemade)
Kosher salt (optional)

Instructions

Add chocolate chips to a microwave-safe bowl and heat for about 2 minutes, stirring every 45-60 seconds, until melted. Stir until smooth.
Add paper or silicone liners to a large muffin pan. Add about 1 tbsp melted chocolate to the bottom of each liner. Freeze for about 10 minutes, or until the chocolate has hardened.
Add about 1 tbsp peanut butter on top of the hardened chocolate (you may need to spread it out a bit), then add another 1-2 tbsp melted chocolate on top, making sure to cover the peanut butter.
Sprinkle each peanut butter cup with a bit of kosher salt, then put the pan back in the freezer for another 10 minutes or so, until hardened.
Store in the refrigerator (when you want to eat one, remove it from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature).

Gluten-Free Pumpkin & Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

October 2, 2014 Leave a Comment

Have you ever made something that you just could’t bear to eat because it was cute?

For me, it was these cookies. LOOK AT THE CUTENESS!

A gorgeous orange-brown colour, so perfect for fall. So delicious for fall. So cute, so cute, so cute!

These pumpkin cookies are studded with mini chocolate chips, and made with gluten-free flour and oats, making them a delicious, gluten-free fall treat.

And they’re cute!

I got over the “can’t eat them ’cause they’re cute” problem quite fast, because although they are cute, surely they are delicious, especially with that yummy pumpkin scent swirling around in the air.

Verdict? Yes. Yes they are delicious. Now I must eat another. And another more. And another… um, okay, don’t pay any attention to me over here.

If you’re a pumpkin lovah like me, you will love these delicious (and cute!) little cookies. I won’t judge you if you eat 5 in one sitting like I did. Okay fine, it was 6. Cough.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin & Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 12

Ingredients

¾ cup sorghum flour
½ cup gluten-free rolled oats
¼ cup coconut sugar
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
¼ cup maple syrup
½ cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1½ tbsp coconut oil
¼ cup dairy-free chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, add flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin spice. Mix until well combined.
In a small bowl, combine maple syrup, pumpkin, vanilla, and oil.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Do not over-mix. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Using 1 tablespoon per cookie, scoop dough onto your baking sheet, and flatten with your hand a bit.
Bake 10 minutes, or until edges turn golden brown.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.

Mini Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

September 17, 2014 7 Comments

Today is a special day for me.

It’s my 1 year vegan anniversary! One year ago today, I watched the documentary Vegucated, and it changed my life forever. It’s now been 365 days since I decided to make the switch to a vegan diet.

And to celebrate, I made myself some yummy chocolate chip cupcakes. Then slathered them with vanilla buttercream frosting. ‘Cause that’s how I roll.

But first, a few things I’ve learned since switching to a vegan diet:

It’s not as hard as you think it will be to eliminate all animal products from your diet.
Instead of thinking about foods I was eliminating, I thought about all the new foods I would be adding to my diet. This made it much easier for me to make the switch.
Once you stop eating animal products, people are suddenly extremely concerned about your protein intake. And iron. And calcium.
There are a ton of amazing vegan food substitutes out there that, although are not ideal on a regular basis (as they are often highly processed), make transitioning to a vegan diet so much easier.
Vegan food is kind of delicious and amazing. And by kind of, I mean definitely.

Things that have happened to me since switching to a vegan diet:

My compassion for animals skyrocketed. It’s always been pretty high to begin with, but I actually feel compassion for bees and flies, elephants, chickens and whales now, too. All animals are friends. Not food!
I have lost weight (without even trying). It’s been months since I’ve stepped on a scale, but at that point it was 10 pounds.
I’ve lost my love of all things super-sweet. In fact, super-sweet foods make me feel ill most of the time. I even switched to dark chocolate, when before, that stuff tasted like burnt cardboard to me. Now – I love it.
I’m more excited to cook now, when before, I was bored with the repetition of meat, potato/rice, veggie. My meals are way more exciting these days!
My hair is stronger and no longer falling out every time I run a brush through it.
My nails are stronger and growing like crazy.
I’ve introduced a whole heap of new food to my diet, things that I never knew existed before are currently some of my favourite foods.
I’ve increased my awareness of the things I put in my body.
I haven’t had a pimple in an entire year. Yippie!

Foods/Drinks that I consume (and love) now, that I wouldn’t touch before:

Tofu!
Asparagus
Avocados
Mangoes
Dandelion Greens
Swiss Chard
Farro
Freekeh
Buckwheat Groats/Flour
Cashews
Coconut Water
Hemp Milk/Protein/Seeds/Oil
Bananas (I used to hate them!)
Agave

My life has changed a lot in the last year, and all for the better. Happy 1 year anniversary to me!

Now, time to stuff my face with these amazing chocolate chip cupcakes.

They’re moist, sweet, chocolate-y and the vanilla buttercream frosting on top, well, that just takes these babies right over the edge. Perfect for a 1 year vegan celebration.

Mini Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

12 mins

Total time

42 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

1 cup non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
½ cup vegan butter, softened (I used Earth Balance)
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1½ cups kamut flour
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ cup + ¼ cup vegan chocolate chips

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

½ cup vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
2½ cups powdered sugar
½ tsp vanilla
2 tbsp non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)

Instructions

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray your muffin pan with non-stick spray (or use paper liners).
In a small bowl, add non-dairy milk and vinegar. Set aside.
In a large bowl, add butter, sugar and vanilla, and using an electric mixer, beat until light and fluffy.
Sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add in the milk/vinegar mixture and beat again until incorporated. Do not over-mix.
Add in ½ cup chocolate chips and mix with a large spoon, until combined.
Divide batter evenly among your cupcake holders, being sure not to over-fill. You will likely have a bit of batter left over.
Bake for 12 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Set aside and allow to cool.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

In a large mixing bowl, add your butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and non-dairy milk. With an electric mixer, beat until light and fluffy. If the frosting is too thick, add a bit more non-dairy milk. If it is too thin, add a bit more icing sugar. Add in a drop or two of food colouring too, if desired.
Once your cupcakes have cooled completely, frost them and sprinkle a few more chocolate chips on top (the remaining ¼ cup, divided). I used a piping bag to pipe the frosting on my cupcakes, but you don't have to!

Raw Vegan Dessert Pizza

July 25, 2014 3 Comments

Summer makes me crave cold food, so when my husband suggested pizza for dinner the other night, I offered up a much cooler suggestion – dessert pizza!

That’s right. Dessert for dinner. Why not?

This ain’t your usual dessert pizza, though. Those are often made with a sugar cookie crust, and I just wasn’t in the mood for a big cookie for dinner (although I did consider it).

So, I thought I’d try for a raw crust, and since Medjool dates are always plentiful in our kitchen, I used those as my inspiration. I opted for a chocolate crust, because… well, IT’S CHOCOLATE. And you can’t complain about chocolate. Ever. Chocolate is always delicious.

I wasn’t really sure what would work best for the pizza “sauce”, so I tried cashew cream, but thickened it slightly, by adding less water than I normally do. It was perfect. Next time I may add some cocoa powder for an even bigger chocolate kick.

After freezing the crust and “sauce” until firm, I topped the pizza with fresh fruit, a drizzle of chocolate, and called it a day. A damn good day, if I do say so myself.

And I must add – my husband loved the pizza. OF COURSE.

Vegan Dessert Pizza

Prep time

4 hours 35 mins

Total time

4 hours 35 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Vegan Dessert Pizza

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Pizza Crust

1 cup Medjool dates, pitted
½ cup almonds
½ cup rolled oats
2 tbsp cocoa powder
½ tbsp coconut oil
½ teaspoon vanilla
¼ tsp salt
½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life brand)

Cashew Cream

1 cup raw cashews (soaked for at least 2 hours)
½ cup water
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp agave
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp vanilla
¼ tsp salt

Chocolate Drizzle

2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
1½ tsp agave
2 tbsp cocoa powder

Fruit Topping

½ cup strawberries, sliced
½ cup raspberries
½ cup kiwi, peeled & sliced

Instructions

Pizza Crust

Rub a bit of coconut oil on your pie plate, lightly covering the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Set aside.
Add the dates, almonds, oats, cocoa powder, coconut oil, vanilla and salt to a food processor and process until a chocolate "dough ball" emerges, about 2 minutes. Make sure there are no large chunks left in the mixture. Add the chocolate chips and pulse for just a few seconds. You don't want to chop them up, just incorporate them into the "dough".
Transfer mixture to your pie plate press the crust into it, making sure to cover the bottom of the pan evenly. You also want to go up the sides of the pan a bit. Set aside.

Cashew Cream

Add cashews, water, lemon juice, agave, and salt to your food processor or high powdered blender. Blend/process until smooth.
Pour sauce over the pizza crust and spread around, without going all the way to the end of the crust (leave about an inch or so that has no cashew cream on it). Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 4 hours, or until the cashew cream is firm.

Chocolate Drizzle

In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, agave and cocoa powder, until smooth. Set aside.

Putting it all together

Remove the pie plate from the freezer about 30 minutes before you plan to add your toppings. This will make the pizza crust come out of the pan much easier. Remove and place on a large plate, cutting board or serving platter. Layer strawberries, raspberries and kiwis on your pizza, overlapping just a bit.
Drizzle with chocolate, cut into pizza slices and serve.

Rich Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

July 18, 2014 20 Comments

I’m always looking for ways to sneak veggies into my kids’ diets. They flat out refuse vegetables most of time, so I have to hide them in foods they’ll eat – like chocolate. That’s where these muffins come in.

Zucchini and black beans are my favourite to use in chocolate muffins/brownies/cakes/anything with chocolate, but I had no black beans and one medium sized zucchini in my fridge – so zucchini and chocolate it was. I made muffins, since my kids love them.

The verdict? 2 thumbs up – from both kids!

Of course, with chocolate, it’s hard to go wrong, right?

You can’t taste a single hint of zucchini in this recipe, just chocolate, which is why my kids kept begging for more and more muffins, until eventually they were gone (in just 2 days)… okay fine, I may have eaten ~~one~~ three myself, too!

Rich Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

30 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Snack, Dessert

Serves: 10-12

Ingredients

1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax seed, 3 tbsp water)
1 cup whole wheat flour
¾ cup coconut or brown sugar
⅓ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup dairy-free milk (I used soy)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
¼ cup coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla
¾ cup grated zucchini
¾ cup chocolate chips
½ cup water

Instructions

In a small bowl, whisk together the ground flax seed and water for your flax egg. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a muffin tin with 12 liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder , cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
In another bowl, whisk together non-dairy milk, apple cider vinegar, coconut oil, vanilla and flax egg, until combined.
Pour wet mixture over dry mixture and mix well, until all the flour is incorporated.
Stir in the zucchini, ½ cup chocolate chips and water.
Fill muffin liners (almost to the top), sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips and bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Healthy & Delicious Trail Mix Cookies

May 14, 2014 5 Comments

I was trying to come up with a way to get more nuts and seeds into my kids’ mouths, since they usually refuse to eat them unless they’re covered in chocolate.

I tried putting them in oatmeal, in smoothies, in cereal – anywhere I could sneak them in, but they always seemed to know, and they hated that I “tricked” them.

Even though I explained that they needed to eat their nuts and seeds in order to be healthy and get all of the nutrients these foods provided, they didn’t care.

They are kids, afterall. And kids don’t like it when you’re right and they’re wrong.

I asked them how I could make them eat these seeds and nuts, and the only thing they agreed to try was if they were in cookies.

So, cookies it was. Of course, I didn’t want them to be loaded with sugar, so I loaded them up with lots of healthy options instead.

And a few chocolate chips. Because a few chocolate chips never hurt anybody.

And wouldn’t you know it – they ate the cookies! Which means they ate the seeds & nuts. Success!

The funny thing about this story is that they now ask for raw nuts on a regular basis. These cookies won them over! Thank you, trail mix cookies.

Adapted from Oh She Glows.

Healthy & Delicious Trail Mix Cookies

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

14 mins

Total time

34 mins

Author: Vegan Insanity

Recipe type: Cookies

Serves: 24 cookies

Ingredients

1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water)
1 cup oat flour (just take rolled oats and throw them in your food processor)
½ cup almond flour (just take almonds and throw them in your food processor until they resemble a "crumb-y" flour)
½ cup rolled oats
½ cup sliced almonds
¼ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup shredded unsweetened coconut
¼ cup chocolate chips (or finely chopped chocolate)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp dried cranberries
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
1½ tsp baking powder
¼ cup peanut butter
¼ cup coconut oil
¼ cup maple syrup or agave (I used maple syrup)
1¼ tsp vanilla

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat.
Mix together the ground flax and water in a small bowl and set aside for about 10 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients, including the flax egg. Yes, add every last ingredient to your bowl!
Scoop about 2 tbsp of the cookie "dough" and form into balls. Place them on your prepared baking sheet, and flatten slightly with your hand.
Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottoms. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before handling.