One-Ingredient Soft Serve, Plus Vegan Chocolate sauce

ONE INGREDIENT? WHAT? YESSSSS! One ingredient+one machine+one mouth=lots of soft serve in Sadie's mouth= Happy Sadie. What's the ingredient, you ask? Drum roll, please............. BANANA! And, you don't need an ice cream maker!!!
Who wants a vegan, paleo, bite of homemade ice cream topped with yummy chocolate sauce stuffed in their mouth? Everyone. (Except if they're allergic to bananas.) This soft serve has a rich, creamy texture to it, perfect for a hot summer day treat! Now, what more can I say? Let's go make some ice cream!


Serves 4 people.

For the Soft Serve:

Ingredient:

3 large bananas (which will later be frozen)
Optional add-ins: vanilla extract, cacao powder, ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Peel the bananas and chop them into bits.
2. Place the bits in a small plastic baggie, and then place it in the freezer for 2-3 hours, or until the bananas are pretty frozen. *NOTE*: the more frozen your bananas are, the colder the soft serve will be, but the harder they will be to blend.
3. Place all the frozen banana bits and any add-ins of your choice in a food processor, and pulse on and off for 3-6 minutes, until thick and creamy with no chunks left. *NOTE*: it may take a while for the bananas to become creamy because they are frozen, but be patient; it will happen!
4. Serve your soft serve IMMEDIATELY, before it defrosts. If you please, drizzle chocolate sauce (recipe below) on top of it. Enjoy!

For the Vegan Chocolate Sauce:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (preferably dairy and soy free)
1/4 cup coconut milk
Optional- 1 Tbs honey or maple syrup (if you prefer a sweeter chocolate sauce) 

Directions:

1. Place the chocolate chips in a double boiler or small saucepan over LOW heat.
2. Gently stir until they're completely melted, then pour in the coconut milk (and sweetener, if you're using it) and whisk until your sauce is thick and creamy.
3. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the mixture cool for 10 minutes, before drizzling on top of a bowl of soft serve.

Strawberry Shortcake

Nothing says "Strawberry Shortcake" more than warm summer eves! Fortunately, we've had no shortage of those :). This strawberry shortcake is light, fluffy, flavorful, and, best of all- strawberry-y!
And, during these warm evenings, you can enjoy this yummy treat even more knowing that it's paleo,
free of dairy and grains, and full of yumminess.

Makes 18-20 strawberry shortcakes.

Ingredients:

2 cups blanched almond flour
½ cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp sea salt
4 eggs
½ cup honey or pure maple syrup
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 Tbs vanilla extract
½ cup coconut or almond milk

 For the Topping:

1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream, or for a dairy-free version you could use coconut cream (the thick stuff at the top of a can of coconut milk)
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1 Tbs honey or maple syrup (optional)
1 ½-2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced

Directions:

1. Using a stand or hand mixer, stir together the flours, baking soda, and salt.
NOTE: If you don't have an electric mixer, you can just mix in a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon.
2. Mix in the eggs, honey, oil, vanilla, coconut milk, and stir until smooth.
3. Scoop 2-inch dollops of batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, placing each dollop about 1 inch apart from the other (they will expand while baking).
4. Using a metal spoon, slightly flatten out each dollop so the surface becomes a bit smoother.
5. Bake your shortcakes at 350° for 20-25 minutes, or until slightly crispy around the edges.
6. While the shortcakes are baking, whisk together the cream, vanilla, and honey using a hand or stand mixer, until stiff peak forms. NOTE: This can not be achieved without an electric mixer.
7. Let the shortcakes thoroughly cool, then place a dollop of whipped cream atop each one, and top with strawberries. Enjoy!

Paleo Chocolate-y Chocolate Cupcakes (Nut-Free!)

Chocolate is incredible. REALLY incredible. I love chocolate. Have I mentioned I love chocolate?
If you love chocolate as much as I do (and even if you don't), I am positive you will adore these cupcakes!

Makes 8 cupcakes.

Ingredients:


For the Cupcakes:

¼ cup coconut flour
¼ cup cacao powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
4 large eggs
¼ cup coconut oil
⅓ cup honey

For the Frosting:

¼ cup coconut oil
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions:

For the Cupcakes:

1. Pulse together dry ingredients in a food processor.
2. Pulse in wet ingredients.
3. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and scoop ¼ cup into each.
4. Bake at 350° for 15-18 minutes.
5. Cool for at least 30 minutes before frosting.

For the Frosting:

1. In a small saucepan over very low heat, melt the chocolate and coconut oil.
2. Stir in the vanilla extract.
3. Place the frosting in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes to thicken.
4. Remove it from the refrigerator and whip the frosting with a hand blender or in a stand mixer until thick and fluffy.
5. Frost the cupcakes, and serve!

Mocha Fudge Pops

Every few minutes, my dad kept opening the fridge and asking, "Sadie, when will those fudge pops be ready?" When they were finally done freezing and he got one, he was the happiest person on earth.
So was I, when I took a huge bite out of his.  ;) Unlike the actual Fudgsicle, these fudge pops are preservative-free (I mean, who would need that stuff to make them last, these disappear in one minute in my house!), artificial color and flavor-free, and vegan! I thoroughly agree with the mnemonic "Every Good Boy (and girl) Deserves (a) Fudge (pop)!

Makes about 8 popsicles (the amount depends on the size of your mold; my medium-sized molds made 8).

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas
½ cup almond butter
½ cup cacao powder
1 cup almond milk
3 tsp honey
8 drops liquid stevia (Optional: you can omit the stevia and just add another tsp honey.)
2½ tsp instant coffee or espresso powder (You can omit this to make your fudge pops non-mocha and just chocolate if you prefer, but just know it will make them a lot sweeter, because the coffee is bitter.)


Directions:

1. Blend all of the ingredients together in a high speed blender until there are no lumps.
2. Pour the mixture into a popsicle mold, then place a wooden popsicle stick or your mold's lid into each mold.
3. Place the mold in the freezer for at least 4 hours.
4. Run your mold under warm water for about a minute, then remove popsicles and enjoy!

Easy Peasy: Iced Chai Latte

What does 95° weather mean? Cold drinks. What do cold drinks mean? Iced chai lattes.
But when I think of a chai, I think of an overly sweet, caffeine-filled drink. These chais are caffeine- and dairy-free, full of protein, and paleo! And incredibly easy to make and refreshing, of course. Now, who could not want that?

Serves 2 people.

Ingredients:

2 cups almond milk/beverage
1 Tbs + 1 tsp raw, organic honey
1 date, pit removed
1/4 cup raw nuts (I used pecans)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 pinch ground nutmeg (optional)
2 cups ice cubes

Directions:

1. Place all of the ingredients (except for the ice) in a high speed blender, and blend on high for about 1 minute, or until no chunks are left.
2. Fill two glasses with the ice, then pour the chai over the ice. Enjoy!