Gluten-free

I have a very simple recipe for you today! I’ve been craving, let’s say it in French so it looks more sophisticated: patisserie, or anything sweet and chocolatey for the whole week. I was adding coconut sugar to everything, but I needed something more. This recipe includes chocolate and walnuts, but it’s not a brownie: these are brownie bliss balls! They are so satisfying, I ate three and now I feel I have enough for a few … hours :D And you need only three ingredients, isn’t it just amazing?

What you’ll need for around 20 brownie bliss balls:

1 1/2 cups raw walnut halves  ♥  1/2 cup raw cacao powder  ♥  15 dried apricots

First, grind walnuts in a food processor. Then add apricots and cocoa powder and blend again. Raw cacao powder is much healthier from the roasted cacao powder – it’s rich in minerals and antioxidants, to mention just a few. Otherwise just use cocoa powder.

So, now you have a bowl of sticky, but delicious dough in front of you. Roll up your sleeves and start making dem’ balls! (But don’t forget to wash your hands first :P). This amount will make around 20 medium-sized balls, but you can always double the ingredients to make more.

When the balls are done, roll them in cacao to make them look like truffles ;)

I couldn’t believe it, but this dessert is the least messy so far and I made everything in less than 20 minutes, so it’s perfect if you’re in a hurry. And there’s no additional sugar besides the natural ones in the apricots. I really thought these would be very sweet, but it seems the apricots aren’t that sweet after all. You can add some honey or coconut sugar if you have a sweet tooth ;)

Take care ♥

Vesna

This recipe is for all onion lovers out there. I love pasta in every shape and form and it’s not surprising that I crave it every time I’m extremely hungry. I know there are so many healthier options, but you can’t resist every single time! And I didn’t even plan doing this post at first. But this dish is insanely simple, the only boring part is for the onions to caramelize – but it’s so rewarding at the end! For 2 people you’ll need:

corn/rice/regular spaghetti  ♥  2–3 large onions  ♥  4 tbsp olive oil  ♥  salt

Parmesan cheese  ♥  parsley

The first thing to do is to peel the onions, cut them in halves and slice them up. Then heat olive oil in a pan and add the onions. The most important part is to give them time, around 20 minutes or even more. In addition, you have to caramelize on low heat or they will get burned (and we don’t want that!). Don’t forget to stir occasionally and add some salt in the end.

When the onions start to get golden brown, bring water to boil, add some salt and your preferable type of pasta, it doesn’t have to be spaghetti. Cook it according to the directions on the package. When it’s done, drain the pasta and transfer it to the pan with onions. Mix it thoroughly and they’re ready to serve! Please, don’t forget to sprinkle it with Parmesan cheese as I did, it gives an extra something to the dish! And a parsley leaf on the top is, of course, obligatory. Bon appétit! :)

Take care ♥

Vesna

As I am still inspired by Greece and Greek cuisine, I decided to make a Greek cheesecake the other day and share the recipe with you. It was creamy, delicious, and just enough sweet, but I may have left it in the oven for a few minutes too long. Before we start, let me just say that I never count calories. If I did, I would probably feel bad and regret eating such a deliciousness. Now I don’t. ♥ But most importantly, it is gluten-free and sugar-free! Well, I cheated with honey, but it is completely natural and thus great to use. It is very similar to the blueberry cheesecake I made a while ago, but has some modifications. It is so easy to make that even those who never bake will want to try it ;)

For the crust:

2 cups ground almonds  ♥  1 cup coconut flour  ♥  40 g butter  ♥  2 tbsp honey

For the filling:

500 g cottage cheese  ♥  1 cup sour cream  ♥  2 eggs  ♥  3 tbsp honey  ♥  2 ripe bananas

For the topping:

slivered almonds  ♥  some more honey

First, preheat the oven on 175 °C and spread some butter on a round baking pan (23 cm) to prevent the cheesecake from sticking to it.

Crust: Mix the almonds, coconut flour and honey in a bowl. Then add warm butter and mix thoroughly with your hands (yumm!). If he mixture is too thick/too watery, add some more butter/almond flour. Spread and press it on the baking pan and put in the oven until the cheesecake filling is finished.

Filling: In a bowl, mash the bananas and add all the remaining ingredients. Mix with a hand blender and pour the mixture on the crust in the baking pan. 

Put in a preheated oven (175 °C) for approximately 50 minutes. After it is done, leave it in the oven for another 10 minutes (unless it starts to get brown on the edges, like mine!). Let the cheesecake cool for a few hours. Then carefully place it on a cake stand, sprinkle with almonds and drizzle some honey on the top. Enjoy the magic ♥

Vesna

The time for the gluten-free homemade granola recipe has come. I always do it out of the ingredients that I already have at home, which makes them different every single time. The main ingredients are nuts and seeds, everything else is just optional. You can always add oatmeal, usually essential in granola. 

Tako, pa je prišel čas še za recept za domače brezglutenske muslije. Jaz jih vedno naredim iz sestavin, ki jih že imam doma, tako da so skoraj vsakič drugačni. Glavna sestavina so oreščki in semena, ostalo pa dodajam po želji. Seveda lahko dodate tudi ovsene kosmiče, ki so pri muslijih običajno nepogrešljivi. 

We’ll need:

a package of slivered almonds  ♥  one cup of mixed seeds  ♥  one cup of coconut pieces and coconut flour  ♥ one tablespoon of flax seeds  ♥  one tablespoon of sesame  ♥  cinnamon  ♥  a big tablespoon of honey or two tablespoons of coconut sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl and pour them on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Warm up the coconut oil in a small bowl, add and dissolve honey or coconut sugar. Pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put in a preheated oven (180 °C) for 15 minutes. While baking, stir the mixture several times and watch out that all the parts are being baked equally. If you prefer a stronger flavor, leave them in the oven for a few extra minutes.

Potrebujemo:

paket narezanih mandljev  ♥  lonček mešanih semen  ♥  lonček kokosovih koščkov in kokosove moke  ♥  žlica lanenih semen  ♥  žlica sezama   velika žlica kokosovega olja  ♥  cimet  ♥  velika žlica medu ali dve žlici kokosovega sladkorja

Vse suhe sestavine zmešamo v posodi in stresemo na pekač, prekrit s peki papirjem. Nato v manjši posodi pogrejemo kokosovo olje, vmešamo med ali kokosov sladkor in počakamo, da se raztopi. Mešanico prelijemo čez suhe sestavine in dobro premešamo. Postavimo v vnaprej segreto pečico na 180 °C za 15 minut. Večkrat dobro premešamo in pazimo, da so vsi deli enako zapečeni. Če imate raje bolj močen okus, jih lahko v pečici pustite še nekaj minut.

Granola with fruits and yogurt is great for breakfast and also make a great snack by themselves. I used to adore purchased granola all the time, but they cannot be compared to the homemade ones! In addition, we always know exactly what they contain, without unnecessary sweeteners and other additives. :)

Musliji so za zajtrk super z jogurtm in sadjem, za malico pa jih lahko grickamo kar same. Ko sem muslije še kupovala, so mi bili sicer zelo všeč, vendar  se glede okusa niti slučajno ne morajo kosati z doma narejenimi! Poleg tega pa res vemo kaj vsebujejo, brez nepotrebnih sladil in drugih dodatkov. :)

Vesna