Paleo Pie Crust

Making a good pie crust can be quite the ordeal. However, with this recipe, the preparation for making a pie becomes an easy task. 

Combine 2 cups of blanched almond flour, approximately 1 tablespoon of coconut oil and one large egg in a bowl. Form into a dough and press into a pie container.

Bake at 350°F until it is light brown (approximately 10 min.). That's it! 

All you have to do now is allow it to cool and then pack it with a delicious filling. 

Try apples...

or sweet potatoes and dates...

or bumble berry...

 or plums...

 or with granola or ice cream.

The possibilities are endless. This type of pie crust is best used with cold applications. Once cool, the pie will slice like a dream.

Chocolate: Ready-Made

Finding dairy-free chocolate, suitable for a "no-refined sugar" diet can be somewhat difficult...especially if one is looking for chocolate that is made without artificial sweeteners. However, I've come across a few ready-made chocolate products that can help with those chocolate cravings.

Unsweetened Chocolate:

Firstly, unsweetened Baker's chocolate. This chocolate is relatively inexpensive and can be found in most grocery stores. It contains no sugar at all. It's great for use as an ingredient in desserts, cooking and baking (naturally).

Next comes chocolate made with unrefined cane sugar. Chocolate made with this type of sugar takes on a more complex flavour. Unrefined cane sugar provides some flavour details that are lost when sugar is refined. The earthy flavours of sugarcane mixed with dark chocolate work together beautifully.

Dark Chocolate:

One of my favorite dark chocolates, made with raw cane sugar, is by a company called Vivani. The packaging is horrible, but the chocolate is divine.

Note: You can find this product, as well as the other chocolates featured on this blog entry, in health food stores across Toronto.

This product by Giddy YoYo is made with simple ingredients and has a good, smooth flavour.

Alter Eco makes this product called "Blackout". The chocolate includes vanilla beans in its ingredient list. The chocolate is rich, but lacks the smoothness of the above two products. However, I'll still take it paired with a black coffee.

Flavoured Chocolate:

Alter Eco also makes an amazing product with rice crisps and puffed quinoa in it. It taste like a better version of Nestlé Crunch.

High End:

If you can find this product by Leone, its definitely worth its high price. This particular version is made with hazelnuts. Delicious.

Homemade Gianduia

Gianduia (also spelled gianduja) is a chocolate-hazelnut spread. You may have heard of an Italian product called Nutella. Well, Nutella is actually the brand-name for a type of gianduia.

If you have tasted Nutella, you are probably aware that it is awesome. Well, for those of you who have dairy and refined sugar restrictions, you definitely will not be able to enjoy the Ferrero version of the spread.

However, what if I told you that you could make your own dairy-free and sugar-free gianduia, in a matter of minutes?

Please note that the no measurements are required for this recipe.

You can work with a double boiler, in order to not scorch the ingredients, but feel free to work directly on the stove top if you feel that your skills are advanced enough. Note, chocolate can and will burn easily if you don't know what you're doing.

Begin with melting a desired amount of unsweetened Baker's chocolate.

Once melted, add carob powder to sweeten.

(Carob powder is derived from the fruit of the carob tree. It is also known as St. John's-bread or locust bean. Carob powder is used as a substitute for cocoa powder and can be found quite easily in bulk food stores. Simply put, carob powder is very similar to cocoa powder, except that it does not contain any stimulants, like caffeine. Additionally, it contains some carbohydrates, making it naturally sweet. To me, it tastes a bit like "caramel meets maple syrup".)

Add enough carob powder to meet your desired level of sweetness.

Your mixture may become clumpy at this time.

To the mixture, add enough hazelnut butter to equal approximately 1/3 of the amount of melted chocolate and carob.

(Gianduia normally consists of approximately 30% hazelnut paste. I use hazelnut butter, because in Canada, hazelnut butter can be found easily in major grocery stores.)

The natural oils in the hazelnut butter should smooth out the clumps and bring the mixture to the consistency of a spread. If the mixture has not loosened up enough, feel free to add either some olive oil or coconut oil in order to get it to the desired consistency.

At this point, your dairy-free, refined sugar-free gianduia will be ready to enjoy.

Luo Han Guo Tea

Luo han guo tea a.k.a. monk fruit tea is a naturally sweet, zero calorie beverage that is made from this dried Asian gourd. 

Simply break the hard shell, to expose the inner fruit, and place in a pot of water set to boil. Once at a rolling boil, set to simmer for 20 minutes. 

You can enjoy this tea warm or use it as a sugar-free sweetener.

Traditionally, this tea is used for throat-related issues and to boost one's immune system. 

Almond Milk Lattes

Try making lattes by substituting the cow's milk for unsweetened almond milk.