Sugared & Stirred

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Gluten-Free Healthier Banana Nut Bread

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Ever since my GF Zucchini Choc Chip Muffins, I have been shook at how simple it can be to create a delicious and moist quick bread with the texture of a regular glutenous bread. I’m sure we’ve all had at least one bad experience with a gluten-free muffin or cookie that just didn’t live up to our expectations. Well, this bread. This bread! It’s good. It’s moist. It tastes just like the real deal. And it’s better for you than other sugar loaded banana breads!

I took my favorite Healthier Banana Nut Bread and simply swapped out the flour for my own GF flour/starch blend! Once you have all of your ingredients compiled, this recipe is so easy! I like to bake this bread at a lower temperature for a tad longer just to make sure it comes out nice and moist – as I think a banana bread should be. Feel free to omit the walnuts and add in your favorite mix-ins – white or dark chocolate chips, blueberries, poppy seeds, etc. And as always, happy baking!

Gluten-Free Healthier Banana Nut Bread
Makes one 9×5” loaf

1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs*, room temp
3 ripe bananas (~1 1/3 cup mashed banana)
1/2 cup almond milk, room temp
3 Tbsp applesauce
2 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup oat flour
2/3 cup white rice flour
1/3 cup almond flour
2/3 cup tapioca flour/starch
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1.) Preheat your oven to 300°F. Spray a loaf pan with olive oil and then line with parchment paper, making sure you a couple of parchment “tabs” overhanging the sides to make for easy removal of your baked loaf. It’s very important to make sure all four sides of your pan are lined with parchment (and not just non-stick spray) as the almond flour will cause the loaf to stick. Bring your eggs to room temperature by placing them in a glass of warm water for about 10 minutes.

2.) In a medium bowl, mix together the coconut sugar and honey. Whisk in the eggs and then the mashed banana, almond milk, applesauce, and vanilla until totally combined; set aside.

3.) In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, tapioca flour/starch, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Add the liquid ingredients and gently mix until nearly combined. Add in the chopped walnuts, mixing gently until no flour pockets remain. Feel free to get creative with your mix-ins (add chocolate chips, poppy seeds, or other fruit!).

4.) Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake at 300°F for 65-75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the loaf comes out with crumbs. The lower temp + longer cook time yields a moist banana bread.

5.) Allow your baked loaf to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before gently using the parchment paper to lift it up and onto a cooling rack. Slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for a longer shelf life.

*you can use 2 flax eggs if vegan: 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal + 6 Tbsp water, mix and allow to thicken for a couple of minutes

Gluten-Free Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins (dairy-free)

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I’m so excited to bring you guys these Gluten-Free Muffins! Some of you have been asking for GF recipes, and I’m happy to report that these muffins are also dairy-free, can easily be made vegan, and they taste like regular, glutenous muffins! Yes!! While researching how to come up with my own GF flour mix, I stumbled upon this super helpful formula by The Heritage Cook – check it out if you’re interested in coming up with your own mix!

These muffins are a super moist (thank you, zucchini!), better-for-you muffin that I think you’ll love. Once you have all of your ingredients ready, they’re super easy to get together. As noted in the recipe below, I recommend using paper muffin liners, along with non-stick spray. These muffins will stick to your pan without a liner (thank you, almond flour), and they may even stick to your liners – I found that spraying the inside of the liners with olive oil remedied this. Happy baking!

Gluten-Free Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins
Makes 9 regular muffins

1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp white rice flour
1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp GF oat flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch/flour
1/4 cup almond flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, room temp
2 large eggs, room temp (or two flax eggs* if vegan)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups finely shredded zucchini (about 1 1/2 medium zucchinis)
1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips + more to top each muffin

1.) Preheat your oven to 300°F and line your muffin pan with liners. Then, spray the liners with non-stick spray (I used olive oil spray). I don’t recommend making these muffins without liners, as baked goods made with almond flour tend to stick. Bring your eggs to room temperature by placing them in a glass of warm water for 10 minutes.

2.) In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, tapioca starch, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the coconut sugar, coconut oil, almond milk, eggs, and vanilla extract.

3.) Shred your zucchini until you have 1 1/2 cups. Then place the zucchini shreds on a paper towel or cheesecloth and squeeze out and discard the excess juice. Add zucchini shreds to your wet ingredients, breaking up the clumps and mixing in.

4.) Pour wet ingredients into dry and gently mix until no flour pockets remain. Mix in the chocolate chips. Fill the muffin wells all the way to the top (I distributed my batter between 9 muffin wells). Top each muffin with extra chocolate chips.

5.) Bake at 300°F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out with a few crumbs. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan on top of a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Carefully remove each muffin and enjoy warm or allow to cool on the cooling rack. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy!

*two flax eggs = 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal + 6 Tbsp water. Allow “eggs” to thicken for a few minutes before adding to your mix

Vegan Tahini No-Bake Cookies

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No-bake cookies are one of those ultra simple, totally sweet cookies that just taste like home. I grew up eating no-bakes and even remember my mom waking up early when I was a kid to make them before she went to work. She always remembered to leave a small container of cookies for me and my siblings – I would have been heartbroken had she not. When I visited home during the first trimester of my pregnancy, no-bakes were one of the few foods I could stomach, and my mom happily made them for me! They’re just that good.

Now I’ve baked my own version of no-bake cookies using both coconut oil and coconut sugar and like them well enough. But then I decided to use vegan butter and add tahini in place of peanut butter, and OMG these cookies are freaking good. If you don’t like tahini, you can definitely use natural peanut butter, but the sesame adds such a unique flavor that pairs so well with the dark cocoa. I decided to use regular sugar in these because I was really looking for that traditional, almost-too-sweet no-bake cookie taste. But I’ll warn you, these cookies are addicting (and best eaten fresh!), so I recommend making them when you have somebody to help you eat them. Happy baking!

Vegan Tahini No-Bake Cookies
Makes ~18 cookies (with a 1 Tbsp cookie scoop)

1/4 cup vegan butter
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp dutch-process cocoa or special dark cocoa*
1/4 cup tahini
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats (make sure yours are gluten-free if necessary)

1.) Prepare a baking sheet – or an area of counter – with parchment paper or wax paper; set aside. Measure out your tahini and get your vanilla extract and oats ready. Set out a mixing spoon or spatula and a cookie scoop.

2.) In a medium saucepan, whisk together the butter, almond milk, sugar, and cocoa powder over medium-high heat. Bring mixture to a rolling boil – you want the entire pot to be very bubbly – and boil for 60 seconds, whisking constantly.

3). Immediately remove mixture from the heat and stir in the tahini and vanilla extract until totally combined. Stir in your oats. Scoop cookies onto parchment or wax paper and top with sesame seeds. Allow cookies to set (or don’t) and enjoy!

*regular cocoa powder will work just fine, but the chocolate flavor is elevated so much with the dark cocoa that I highly recommend using the dark. I made both versions, so you can at least see the difference for yourself!

 

Grain-Free Almond Butter Brownies

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There’s just something so good about sinking my teeth into an ultra chewy, fudgy brownie. I’ve always liked my brownies a bit underdone as this guarantees the ultimate fudgy texture. With these Almond Butter Brownies, there’s no need for under-baking because they are perfectly soft and fudgy as-is! I decided to use melted chopped chocolate – the kind in a bar – instead of cocoa powder to get as far away from a cakey texture as I could (the first ones I baked were literal chocolate cake). I also added an extra egg yolk for chewiness.

These brownies are super moist without being overly sweet, and they’re so easy to throw together! I feel like I say that about everything, but it’s true! I love an easy dessert. I topped mine with a drizzle of melted chocolate – one of the fancier bars I had saved – to add an extra layer of chocolatey goodness. This step is optional, of course, and you could even add chocolate chips to your batter pre-bake or top your brownies with an almond butter drizzle. Get crazy and happy baking!

Grain-Free Almond Butter Brownies
Serves 9-16, depending on brownie size

1 cup almond butter
2 large eggs + 1 large egg yolk
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
6oz dark chocolate, chopped
1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 Tbsp coconut flour
1/2 tsp fine sea salt or table salt

1.) Crack eggs and egg yolk into a small bowl; set aside.

2.) Melt chopped chocolate using the double boiler method – place in a heat-safe bowl over a pot with about an inch of simmering water, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool down a bit.

3.) Preheat your oven to 350℉. Prepare an 8×8″ baking dish with parchment paper. I like to cut two long, thin strips to allow for the paper to hang over each edge. Then I’ll spray olive oil into each exposed corner. This makes it easy to pull the entire dish of brownies out at once.

4.) Mix coconut sugar and maple syrup (or honey) in a large bowl. Whisk the eggs and egg yolk into the sugar mixture. Add almond butter and mix until combined. Mix in the cooled chocolate. Then the coconut oil. And finally, stir in the coconut flour and salt.

5.) Bake at 350℉ for 15-20 minutes* or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out with a few crumbs. Place on cooling rack or in the refrigerator to totally cool before removing from the dish. Slice into 9 or 16 brownies and enjoy!

*this is for a glass baking dish. If you’re using metal, I suggest checking the brownies at 10 minutes and going from there.

Keto Strawberry Protein Mini Muffins

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When one of my Instagram followers messaged me about high-protein, ketogenic desserts, I knew I wanted to really branch out (y’all know I love my carbs!) and attempt something that was keto-friendly and made with protein powder! I came up with these Strawberry Protein Mini Muffins after doing a bit of Googling on what kind of foods are keto-friendly. I was looking for ingredients that were low-carb and higher in fat, so I chose to use almond flour as the base and added three large eggs, protein powder, olive oil, and a sprinkling of coconut flakes – these get nice and toasty in the oven.

I’ve had a big bag of Stevia in the Raw sitting around for a while now, so I took this opportunity to finally put it to use! Yes! I’m so excited to offer you guys a yummy, keto-friendly treat in portions that are small enough for you to decide how many carbs you want to add to your daily diet. My husband and mom (who is a major sweets lover!) both love these! Happy baking!

Keto Strawberry Protein Mini Muffins
Makes ~40 mini muffins

2 cups almond flour
1/2 cup protein powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt or table salt
3 large eggs, room temp
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup Stevia in the Raw
1 cup chopped strawberries
1/2-1 cup flaked coconut for topping (optional)

1.) Bring your eggs to room temperature by placing them in a glass of warm water for ~10 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 350° and line your mini muffin pan with paper liners*

2.) In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, protein powder, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

3.) In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs. Whisk in the olive oil, almond milk, and vanilla extract until combined. Add the Stevia and stir until combined.

4.) Add liquid ingredients to dry and stir until just combined. Fold in the chopped strawberries until no flour pockets remain.

5.) Fill mini muffin pan 3/4 of the way full (I used a 1 Tbsp cookie scoop of batter for each muffin). Top with desired toppings – I chose coconut flakes! – and bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean**

6.) Allow muffins to cool in the pan on top of a cooling rack for 10 minutes before removing to totally cool on a cooling rack until ready to eat. We actually liked these better the next day, and I recommend storing them in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

*I highly recommend using liners when baking muffins with almond flour. I’ve found that this kind of flour tends to make quick breads stick to the pan, no matter how much oil spray I’ve used
**before using a toothpick, I like to lightly tap one muffin to see if it bounces back. If it does, I know there’s a good chance the muffins are done