Category: Sweets

Caulipower Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

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There are two problems with being a dietitian. The first one is that people often feel like you’re counting the calories they put into their mouths (believe me, I don’t like math THAT much), and the second one is that when you’re strolling down the aisles of the grocery store and see flour made out of cauliflower, you buy it. THIS STUFF.

I figured I couldn’t go wrong with cookies, right? Well, the Reilly clan had mixed reviews at first… mainly because the 4 critical kids *knew* that there was cauliflower in there (‘Why can’t we just have NORMAL chocolate chip cookies?!?”)… but when the cookies cooled down, the mild cauliflowerness disappeared and the reviews shot up from 3 to 5 stars! Boom. Buying cauliflower flour just moved out of the problem category. So, voila! Enjoy.

In veggies, Jen

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Watermelon Protein Cooler — Your New Favorite Smoothie and Treat!

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Watermelon Smoothie

No matter if it’s a hot summer day or a chilly winter morning, this watermelon cooler will refresh you and put an energizing kick in your step. It’s kid- and partner-tested and approved, so get that blender out and go for it!
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Annie’s Banana Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins: Low-Carb, High-Love

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Hi Bakers! Team Reilly has been koo-koo lately to say the least. Our youngest child Annie (age 2 3/4) was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in February, joining the ranks with our son Jake. Just like Jake, she was diagnosed at home when I got worried about the fact that she peed her pants twice in a row and was developing a yeast rash in her diaper area (she still wears a diaper at night). Her fingerprick blood sugar after eating a bowl of dried cranberries was 418. Luckily, her A1C was 7.8% and according to our doc, we caught the diabetes earlier than any other patient (Yay? Not necessarily a claim to fame that I was striving for!). And since she had only trace ketones, we put her to sleep and headed to the hospital the next day. Once we saw Annie’s high blood sugar, Jake (age 7 now) immediately took Annie to “Diabetes Camp” in the basement and secretly whispered to me that he’s glad he’s no longer the only kid in the family with type 1. On the bright side, these 2 kids will have each other for the long haul and that gives us amazing comfort.

While I dreaded the possibility of another type 1 diagnosis in our family, Annie has been unphased and was immediately put on a Dexcom continuous glucose monitor and the Omnipod insulin pump making our lives incredibly easier and making it so that she basically doesn’t even know she has diabetes. In fact, check out my blog on type 1 diabetes on KrisCarr.com – it was written before Annie’s diagnosis, but talks about the tricks and tips that have helped us with Jake’s diabetes management. And apparently the universe congratulated us in February for our mad skills in managing diabetes! Yikes.

So! Inspired by Annie and her minuscule needs for insulin right now, I created these mini muffins that she (and we!) could snack on all day long without needing insulin. They are full of healthy ingredients, taste amazing, are gluten-free, and go down really easily. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Annie’s Banana Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins
Makes 30

2 bananas, mashed (can be fresh or thawed frozen)
1/3 cup Smart Balance or Earth Balance margarine, melted
1/4 cup almond butter
2 Tbsp ground flax seed meal
1/3 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
1 cup almond flour
1/3 cup Swerve sweetener (Erythritol, found cheapest at Vitacost)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup Lily’s mini chocolate chips (Stevia-sweetened, but regular dark choc chips work too)

Mix all ingredients together except chocolate chips. Once mixed, stir in the chips and pour into lightly sprayed mini muffin tins 2/3 of the way, or regular muffin tins half way.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool before removing from tins (if you can!).

Per muffin: 70 calories, 6 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 5 g carbs, 2.4 g fiber (2.6 g net carbs), 1 g sugar, 2 g protein. 

Now I want to hear from you! Post your favorite low-carb snacks and recipes — Annie and her blood sugars will thank you!

xo, Jen

Almond Flour: Where Have You Been All My Life?

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I love baking. LOVE it. I love changing recipes, adding veggies and beans to cakes and brownies, tricking my family with nutrient-rich chocolate chip cookies, making the house smell a bakery, and I get giddy when I’m declared the best mom ever for feeding my tribe secretly healthy desserts.

Now, as some of you know, my son Jake has type 1 diabetes. He’s nearly 7 years old and also happens to be one of my pickiest eaters. This stinks (in a non-bakery nice smelling way) because I’ll make or bake something that has lots of healthy protein from hemp seeds or chia seeds, is low in white carbs, and will be perfect for preventing roller coaster blood sugars, and everyone will love it but him. Makes me CRAZY!!!

Until finally…. the stars aligned and I was clued into Simple Mills gluten-free, handful-of-natural-ingredient baking mixes based on almond flour. Not the crunchy, coarse almond meal that was in my fridge, but a fine, delicate, rare gem-quality flour made from blanched almonds. The Simple Mills mixes are pricey, so after I tried making one of each of their offerings, I decided that all I really needed to do was replace regular flour with almond flour in my favorite (and Jake’s favorite) recipes. This is why:

almond-flour-table

Almost 1/4 the carbs, 6 times the fiber (so 1/7th the net carbs) and twice as much protein. I knew right away that if this simple substitution worked, I would have discovered the Holy Grail of diabetic baking.

So. I learned that Jake doesn’t care for pumpkin anything (no son of mine). But, if chocolate chips are involved, he’s all in (definitely my child!). I’ve redone my famous marriage-inducing and TJ’s-published Chocolate Things recipe, with Jake, health, and flatline blood sugars in mind. Now presenting!:

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Chocolate Things: Almond Flour Version
Makes 9 large squares

This is a lower carb, lower sugar, higher protein version of my classic “Chocolate Things.” It may look like there’s a bizarre combo of sweeteners. There is! While I tried to make these 100% sugar-free, too much erythritol or stevia gave them a not-so-funky funk. Feel free to replace the erythritol, sugar, and maple syrup with 1/2 cup sugar plus 1 teaspoon maple extract (optional).

2 cups fine almond flour (like Bob’s on Amazon here)
1/2 cup white, wheat, or oat flour (blend gluten-free rolled oats to make oat flour)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp iodized salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp ground flaxseed meal
2 Tbsp Swerve (erythritol)
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp lite maple syrup (like Wholesome! brand with 33 g carbs per 1/4 cup)
1/4 cup melted Smart Balance, Earth Balance, or other non-hydrogenated margarine
3 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup unsweetened soymilk or other nondairy milk
1/2 cup (100 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients to the dry and stir to combine. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour and spread into a lightly greased 9 x 9-inch baking dish and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Per square: 21 g total carbs, 4 grams fiber (17 g net carbs), 7 grams protein

And here is Jake’s blood sugar graph after eating one of these sweet little thangs at 10am. No spike! And no crash! We did it!

Let me know how almond flour works for you. It’s been a baking lifesaver for us.

xo

Jen

Homemade Dark Chocolate in 3 Minutes

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So I’m sitting here with a napping toddler writing some recipe substitution tips when it hits me: I could really use a bite of dark chocolate, and I don’t have any, I don’t have any chocolate chips, and I can’t run to the store. Serious Emergency!

But I have cocoa… and coconut oil… and maple syrup… and another wackadoodle recipe is born chez Reilly:

Emergency Dark Chocolate
Serves 10

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
3 tbsp liquid sweetener (maple syrup, agave…)
1/4 cup flax seeds, hemp seeds, or other seeds/ chopped nuts (optional)

In a saucepan over medium heat, heat oil, cocoa, and sweetener. Remove from heat and stir in seeds or chopped nuts if using. Pour into dish and spread thin. Chill in fridge for 1 hour. 

What do YOU do in this kind of emergency situation? xo

Breakfast in Dessert Clothes

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Choc Chip Protein

If you’re a busy parent, busy person, or night owl, this is one of the best quick breakfasts that has ever come out of my Bitchin’ Kitchen. Make a batch on a slow morning or weekend, freeze individual portions, and booyah! when the natives (or you) get restless and hungry. I went into the kitchen with my lab coat on specifically trying to invent a lower-carb, higher-protein, cravey (crave-able?) breakfast for my type 1 diabetic 5 year-old in prep for his upcoming kindergarten year — using stevia-sweetened protein powder to both boost and sweeten it. But now, we have something that is a family staple for the whole team. Best thing is, it tastes like dessert! Why not get the chocolate river flowing first thing in the morning? You only live once!

Chocolate Chip Breakfast Bars
Makes 12 large bars
325 degrees, 40 minutes

WET INGREDIENTS: Stir to combine
2 ripe bananas, mashed
3/4 cup milk (I use vanilla soy)
1/4 vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

DRY INGREDIENTS: Sift together in a separate bowl
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 scoop Plantfusion protein powder or other protein powder providing ~20 grams protein per scoop

COMBINE WET & DRY, THEN STIR IN:
1/4 cup ground flaxseed meal, or ground or whole chia seeds
1/4 cup hemp hearts (shelled hemp seeds, ok to use other seeds or leave out)
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a 9X9-inch pan.

Stir to combine wet ingredients in a large bowl, and in a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients.

Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir to combine, and then stir in flax, hemp seeds, and chocolate chips.

Bake in a 9X9-inch pan for 40 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

NUTRITION FACTS PER BAR: 227 calories, 8.5 g fat, 32 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 14 g sugar, 6 g protein, 9% daily iron.

Strawberry Lemon Tart Reunion

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Strawberry Lemon Tart from "Skinny Dish!"

Strawberry Lemon Tart from “Skinny Dish!”

Now that you successfully decluttered your closet and possibly enjoyed the world’s tastiest latte on Day 8, it’s ok to add a little dessert back in without needing to detox again. When I wrote my Trader Joe’s Skinny Dish! cookbook, I really really wanted to master a cheeseless cheesecake eventhough I never understood the draw, and frankly never understood the point of dessert that wasn’t chocolate. Well, I failed! But, out of the laboratory, this tart was born. Free of chocolate and so totally good (huh?!?) that your engine might just start on its own. Embrace your success and celebrate! And call me crazy, but it totally rocks with green juice :>) xo

Strawberry Lemon Tart
Makes 12 slices
Prep time: 20 minutes
Hands-off cooking time: 35 minutes plus 1 hour for chilling

This far-out dessert started as a cheese-less cheesecake and morphed into a ridiculously delicious tart. It will wow you again and again.

Cinnamon Graham Crust
3 cups (about 90) Cinnamon Schoolbook Cookies, or about 8 oz graham crackers
1/3 cup Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread, or other non-hydrogenated margarine

1 Preheat oven to 350° F.

2 In a blender or food processor, blend cookies until they’re crumbs. Add margarine and process until evenly mixed.

3 Press mixture into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round pie pan so the edges come nearly to the top. The filling will only reach halfway up the pie pan, so the crust doesn’t need to come precisely to the top.

4 Bake crust for 5 minutes, and let cool completely before adding filling and baking further.

Lemony Filling and Strawberry Topping
1 (8-oz) container Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese, or other non-dairy cream cheese
¾ cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp cornstarch
10 medium strawberries, stems removed and sliced lengthwise (preferably organic)

1 Blend together cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, and cornstarch until smooth.

2 Pour filling into cooled crust and bake for 35 minutes, until the filling puffs up completely and has a golden glimmer. Let cool in the fridge for about 1 hour to solidify the filling. (If you can’t wait, at least let it cool to room temperature, and then top with strawberries. It will be a bit gooey, but still incredibly delicious.)

3 Arrange sliced strawberries on top and enjoy right away.

4 Store leftover slices (if there are any) in the fridge for up to 5 days.

NUTRITION SNAPSHOT
Per slice: 208 calories, 10 g total fat, 5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 169 mg sodium, 27.5 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 26 g sugar, 2 g protein, 0% vitamin A, 11% vitamin C, 0% calcium, 2.5% iron

Detox Day 1: Emergency Cookies

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PB cookies

Happy Detox Day 1! I just love this day. Everything green is exciting and beautiful. A piece of fruit tastes like sugary heaven, and the background headache is somehow OK. Enjoy!

Well, as a preventative measure just in case the excitement of plant matter wears off during the week, make up a batch of these. They fit in the detox guidelines nicely and will taste oh so good while you’re drowning in raw green goodness. I mean, while you’re LOVING drowning in raw green goodness of course. To dessert!

Gluten-Free, Banana-Sweetened Almond Butter Cookies
Makes 20

1 cup gluten-free oat flour, almond meal, or coconut flour (see below on how to make oat flour)
1 cup cooked garbanzo beans (no liquid)
1/2 cup almond butter (or other nut or seed butter)
1 ripe banana

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make oat flour, in a food processor or blender, blend about 1 1/4 cups of gluten-free oats to make about 1 cup of flour. Set aside.

In a food processor or Vita-Mix, blend beans, nut butter, and banana until creamy.

Combine “flour” with bean mixture until mixed through.

With wet hands, form dough into balls (if not detoxing, the balls can be rolled into a bit of sugar at this point), and place on an ungreased baking sheet. Press down in a criss-cross fashion with a wet fork to prevent sticking.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Per cookie: 77 calories, 4 g fat, 9 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 1 g sugar, 2 g protein.

See you tomorrow! xo

High & Mighty Brownie Cookies

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Ever thought to put veggies and beans into brownie mix and then turn them into cookies? Wait, that’s not what you think about as you lie in bed at night? Oh. Well, I’ve taken on the age-old question and attempted an answer: How do we make brownies a complete meal? Announcing the High & Mighty Brownie Cookie. High in nutrients, mighty in taste and energy. And while I still serve them for dessert, they can certainly pass for a side dish or maybe even a main squeeze…

High & Mighty Brownie Cookies
Makes 48

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained & rinsed (about 1 1/2 cups cooked beans)
Large handful kale, about 2 cups chopped
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (the canned type)
1 box brownie mix
1/2 cup coconut flour, almond meal, or cashew meal

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Blend or food process beans, kale, and pumpkin into a smooth, olive green glop (probably not wise to taste-test this…).

Stir glop together with brownie mix and coconut flour (or almond or cashew meal).

With slightly wet hands, form into 1 1/2-inch round balls (slightly smaller than golf balls) and drop onto an ungreased cookie sheet about an inch apart.

Press down gently with a fork in a criss-cross fashion.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and chow down!

Nutrition Information Per Cookie: 74 calories, 1 g fat, 36 mg sodium, 0 mg cholesterol, 11 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 1 g protein, 21% vitamin A, 3% iron.

Now you (or at least I) can rest soundly. Cheers to chocolate! xo

Anytime Apple Crisp

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applecrisp

When the Reilly kids go apple-picking, they take it to the extreme. I kid you not, they picked 100 pounds of Fuji apples in less than 15 minutes! Of course, they had to taste-test an apple before deciding Fuji was the one they wanted, and I *have* read that an apple can energize you more than caffeine….

kellerapples

So other than eating them, handing them out to everyone we see, and making a lifetime stash of addiction-worthy Pumpkin Apple Butter, what will we do with all these apples? First on the list, an apple crisp so tasty and balanced, that it qualifies as a complete meal. My oldest mini chef played a key role in the super simple prep…

Anytime Apple Crisp
Makes 8 generous servings

FILLING
8 apples, unpeeled, cored, and cut into chunks
1 tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
Juice of 1 lemon, or about 2 Tbsp lemon juice

TOPPING
1 cup oats (I use gluten-free rolled oats)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/4 cup chia seeds (optional)
1/4 cup almond flour, cashew flour, or coconut flour
1/4 cup pure maple syrup or agave
1/4 cup melted non-hydrogenated margarine, or coconut oil
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss to combine all FILLING ingredients. Pour into a lightly greased 9 X 13-inch baking dish.

In the same bowl (no need to rinse), stir together the TOPPING ingredients. Pour evenly over apple combo, cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake another 10 minutes to let the topping brown.

Nutrition Info Per Serving (including walnuts and chia seeds): 292 calories, 14 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 41 g carbohydrate, 8 g fiber, 21 g sugar (mostly apples!!), 5 g protein, 10% iron.

How do YOU apple up? xoxo