Black Caramel Coffee Cake – Gluten and Dairy Free

Caramel. Coffee. Cake. These are a few of my favorite things — and in this yummy recipe, the three come together as one! I originally made this as my boyfriend’s post-birthday cake (his birthday falls between Christmas and New Year’s, so unfortunately I rarely bake him one of the day of because we’re pre-occupied with other plans… bad girlfriend, I know!). The “black” caramel in this recipe is actually just caramel that is flavored with coffee grounds. Grind them up as fine as you can to avoid any crunchiness (though the boiling step should remedy most of that). Though there are three parts to this cake, I wouldn’t call it labor intensive — it should take only about 30 minutes to prepare. It’s definitely more of a dessert, but for if you want a sweet something for breakfast, I won’t tell. It is a coffee cake after all ;-)

This recipe is:

• Gluten-free
• Grain-free
• Dairy-free
• Casein-free
• Soy-free
• Refined sugar-free

Clean Cranberry Chocolate Orange Pie – GF/DF, refined sugar free

Happy New Year! Here’s a recipe from some of my (post) holiday baking. Due to scheduling conflicts my family had a post-Christmas Christmas this year, and this is what I made for dessert! This delicious pie is sweet, tart, and chocolatey — the perfect treat to indulge in without feeling too indulgent.

There is absolutely NO refined sugar in this recipe, and no added sugar whatsoever in the fudgy chocolate layer! Pretty impressive, huh? This high-protein treat uses unflavored grass-fed gelatin in each layer, which helps things thicken up and stick together where more sugar or cream would typically be added. So if you’re still celebrating with loved ones into the New Year, try this treat as a nutritious alternative!

This recipe is:

• Gluten-free
• Dairy-free
• Casein-free
• Soy-free
• Refined sugar free

Gluten-Free Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vegan Buttercream Frosting

When birthdays come around it seems that, more often than not, I get put on cake duty. For the times that I don’t, I consider myself one of the lucky ones — for me, gluten-free is a choice, not a necessity, so I can partake in the celebratory cake eating if I choose to. For others, this isn’t an option. Recently, a coworker of mine noticed that she feels sick whenever she consumes pasta, baked goods, beer, etc., a clear sign of gluten intolerance. When I was asked to bake something for her birthday I knew it was my opportunity to introduce her to the world of gluten free baked goods, and these red velvet cupcakes seemed right up her alley. Both the birthday girl and my coworkers loved them, and no one would have guessed that they were gluten- and dairy-free! If you top yours with sprinkles, be sure to use a brand that’s gluten free as well. I used Let’s Do Organic Confetti Sprinkelz.

This recipe is:
• Gluten-free
• Dairy-free

• Casein-free
• Soy-free

Four-Layer Paleo Pumpkin Bars

This recipe started out with me wanting to make a gluten- and dairy-free pumpkin dessert that could be eaten by hand at a party. But I didn’t just want to make regular one-layer pumpkin bars or pumpkin blondies, and I wanted it to have a little more to it than pumpkin pie – but it definitely had to have a crust. I found recipes for pumpkin layer bars, but they all had coconut or coconut butter, which I feel takes away from the pumpkin-ness a bit.

After much research, inspiration, and experimentation, I present to you: Four-Layer Paleo Pumpkin Bars. Almond meal crust, date-cashew butter caramel, creamy pumpkin custard, and crisp maple pecans.  They’re a bit of work, a little rich, and ultimately indulgent… but best of all they’re clean as can be. No refined sugar or anything :)

Be sure to keep the bars refrigerated until serving, otherwise the pumpkin and caramel layers will soften and become much harder to eat with your hands. If you don’t mind the mess or prefer to eat them with a fork (perhaps topped with some dairy-free ice cream?) then disregard this and do yo’ thang.

This recipe is:
• Gluten-free
• Dairy-free
• Soy-free
• Refined sugar free
• Paleo

Paleo Cranberry Kale Turkey Meatballs with Garlic Cranberry Dipping Sauce

Light and healthy meatballs meet a tangy garlicky dipping sauce with Thanksgiving flair… Actually, before I dive into this can we talk about the word garlicky real quick? At first you’re like, “hey, K, what are you doing in there?” And while it may seem gratuitous at first, you then realize garlicy would be decidedly less appetizing. But I digress…

The month of November marks the true start of the holiday season: Christmas displays in the store, holiday music on the radio, and Black Friday commercials out the wazoo. But with the craziness comes something else – holiday parties! I absolutely love parties, but unfortunately no one entertains like they used to (Mad Men, anyone?). I grew up with a mother who hosted Bunco, Pampered Chef parties, jewelry parties, fabulous themed birthday parties for me and my siblings, etc. Seriously, she went all out! Though my 4th story studio doesn’t quite afford me the opportunity to entertain, I am fortunate enough to have a dear friend with a lovely house who shares the same love of entertaining. This past weekend she hosted the first party of the season, so naturally I had to do my part and provide a yummy appetizer for the hors d’oeuvre potluck!

My mother (coming full circle here!) introduced me to this recipe from Fresh4Five last holiday season and we could not believe how delicious it was, so I just had to make it again! However, I’m never one to leave a recipe alone nor do I like to go out of my way (or budget) just to find certain ingredients, so I substituted some fresh sage I had on hand for some of the dried herbs, and I put my own Thanksgiving-themed twist on the on the molasses sauce. Really, I should have just called these “Thanksgiving on a stick” even though they really, really should be enjoyed year-round.

I doubled this recipe with much success for the party – and it’s a good thing I did, because there were only 6 meatballs left at the end of the night! And just today I made another double batch for a beloved co-worker’s surprise baby shower potluck – they disappeared quickly. Whether made for dinner, a snack, or an appetizer, I think this it’s safe to say this recipe is a keeper :)

This recipe is:
• Gluten-free
• Dairy-free
• Soy-free
• Refined sugar free
• Nut-free
• Paleo