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Coconut Macaroons

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Can’t bake? Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered with these Mini Coconut Macaroons!

Ingredients: 
1 1/4 cup desiccated coconut
1 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour
1/2 cup soy (or other all-plant) milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
Generous pinch salt
Pinch chilli powder
8 squares of suitable-for-vegan dark chocolate, melted (optional)

Directions: 
1. Preheat oven to 180C, and line a baking tray with a silicone mat or baking parchment. 
2. In a saucepan, simmer the coconut, flour, soy milk, maple syrup, vanilla, salt and chilli powder very gently until the coconut has absorbed the liquid, stirring often. 
3. Take heaped teaspoons of the mix and with wet hands roll them into balls. Place the balls on the baking tray and bake for about 12-15 minutes or until golden on top. 
4. Drizzle with the melted chocolate, if using, and allow to cool fully on a wire rack before enjoying.

Vanilla frozen dessert with warm salted chocolate fudge and walnuts

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A simple dessert or a luxurious breakfast.

Ingredients

1/4 cup warm water
2-3 large soft dates, pitted and chopped
1T cocoa powder (I used a fair trade, Dutch-process brand)
4t chopped walnuts, divided
1/4t coarse sea salt (or to taste)
2 large frozen bananas (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4t vanilla extract

Optional: 1t maca powder

Directions

Mix the chopped dates with the cocoa, sea salt and warm water thoroughly.
Let stand about 5 minutes, add 2t walnuts, and puree until smooth.
If the mixture is too thick, add a little water; if too thin, add another date.
Puree the banana with the vanilla until smooth.
If using the maca, puree it with the banana.
Spoon out the banana to a dish garnish with the fudge and remaining 2t walnuts and serve.

Vanilla frozen dessert with cherries, walnuts and maple syrup

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What makes this dessert (or breakfast) more fun and more clean-up is the wholly unnecessary use of the piping bag for visual effect. But some things just aren’t as nice with a spoon. Carefully rolled parchment paper or a plastic storage bag with a trimmed corner make good, make-shift piping bags if you don’t need the refinement a tip provides.

Ingredients

1T maple syrup, divided
1/2 cup frozen cherries, divided
A pinch coarse sea salt
1T walnuts, chopped
3 medium frozen bananas (about 2 cups)
1/2t vanilla extract

Optional: 1t powdered maca and/or a little shaved chocolate for garnish.

Directions

Finely chop half of the cherries.
Toss the cherries, 1/2T maple syrup, sea salt and all but about 1t of the walnuts.
Let stand about 5 minutes at room temperature.
Puree the bananas, vanilla and 1/2T maple syrup until quite smooth. Add the maca if you’ll be including it.
Using a piping bag (I use it without a tip for this), pipe the banana mixture into an appropriate glass into the design of your choice, narrowing about an inch or in from the sides around the top for the cherries and walnuts.
Add the cherries and walnuts and drizzle with the maple syrup.
Sprinkle the top with the remaining walnuts and serve.

Vanilla frozen dessert with salted whiskey, coffee and cashew fudge sauce

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Ingredients

1/4 cup whiskey (traditionally Irish — I used bourbon)*
1T coconut sugar
1 shot espresso (short)
1T cashew butter
1/4 cup unsweetened plant milk (I use soy)
A pinch coarse sea salt
2 large frozen bananas (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4t vanilla extract
1/4 cup frozen cherries

Optional: 1t maca powder

Directions

In a small sauce pan with the lid handy, bring the whiskey to a light boil on medium high heat. Add the sugar and stir. Simmer for about 30 seconds, and then — carefully — light the pan. If the fire is too high, put the lid on. Otherwise, it should burn off the alcohol and caramelize the sugar a bit.

Reduce heat to medium low. Let the whiskey simmer and reduce to about 2T, add the espresso and the cashew butter. Stir to thoroughly dissolve the cashew butter, and then slowly whisk in the plant milk and sea salt. It should emulsify quickly into a thick, fluffy cream. If the mixture is too thick, add a more plant milk. If it seems thin, ensure the cashew butter is thoroughly dissolved. Chill if necessary.

Puree the banana with the vanilla until smooth. If using the maca, puree it with the banana. Spoon out the banana into an appropriate dish, garnish with the cream and the cherries and serve.

*The quality of the whiskey makes a difference to this dish. Also, it’s rare, but some whiskeys are still produced using animal products.

Garnished with cherries!

Strawberry, vanilla, and white miso frozen dessert with chopped walnuts.

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A flavorful but light dessert or rich breakfast.

Ingredients

For the bananas
2 medium frozen bananas (about 1.5 cups)
1T sweet white miso
2t white pickling vinegar
1/4t vanilla extract
1-2T maple syrup (or to taste)

Optional: 1t maca powder

For the strawberries
1 cup frozen strawberries
1/2T maple syrup
1/2T lemon juice

For garnish
1t chopped walnuts

Directions

Puree the banana first and its ingredients first, including the maca if you’ll be using it. Let the flavours mingle for about 3-5 minutes in the freezer. Puree the strawberries with their ingredients. Spoon the bananas out into an appropriate dish. Swirl about 1/3 of the strawberry mix with the bananas and top with the strawberries. Garnish with walnuts and serve.

Note: If you’re not accustomed to white vinegar or white miso, start with smaller amounts and add more to your taste, or try apple cider vinegar instead. The flavours will mellow after a few minutes.

Blueberry, vanilla frozen dessert on a chocolate fudge brownie crust

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A simple but satisfying dish. The miso in this adds a rich, lightly fermented and salty flavor, but you can leave it out if it’s not readily available.

Ingredients

For the brownie
2T soft, dried dates, pitted and chopped
3T walnuts (reserve 1t chopped walnuts for garnish)
1t red miso
2t lemon juice
1.5T cocoa (I use a fairly trade, Dutch processed brand)
A pinch sea salt

For the bananas
2 small frozen bananas (about 1 cup)
1t lemon juice
1t white pickling vinegar
2t sweet white miso
1/4t vanilla extract
Agave nectar, maple syrup, dates, or stevia to taste

For garnish
1/4 cup blueberries (I use frozen, but fresh would be fine)
1t chopped walnuts (as noted above)

Optional: Add 1t maca powder to the bananas for a
decadent breakfast. Add 2T coconut oil to the bananas and double the brownie recipe for a dessert.

Directions

Make the brownie, then the bananas. In a small food processor, grind the brownie ingredients to a crust consistency (it will start to ball up). Flatten out into a 3″ circle. Let dry covered with a clean tea towel for 1 hour, turning once.

For the bananas, puree the ingredients until smooth. Sweeten to taste. Plate the brownie. Scoop the bananas onto the brownie. Sculpt a flat surface on top, add the blueberries, sprinkle with walnuts, and serve.

Vanilla flax and chia pudding with raspberries

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Flax and chia are very nutrient dense — and no danger of sprouting.

Ingredients

1 cup unsweetened plant milk
2T chia seeds (I use black)
1T cold-milled brown flax meal
1/2t pure vanilla extract
A pinch coarse sea salt
Sweetener to taste (stevia, maple syrup, coconut sugar, agave nectar, etc)
1/2 cup frozen raspberries

Optional: 1t powdered maca root. Blueberries,
blackberries, strawberries, etc., will all work fine, as will fresh berries. Different sweeteners will affect the texture and colour.

Directions

Mix the flax, chia, plant milk, vanilla and sea salt. Let stand 30 minutes at room temperature, stirring
periodically. Sweeten to taste, cover and refrigerate for about 8 – 10 hours. When the pudding is ready, the seeds will be puffed and the texture will be thick. Stir to homogenize, garnish with berries, and serve.