Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes - Dairy and Gluten-free

When I was presented with a jar of peanut butter through the week (thank you Michelle), I thought I'd play with something a little different, and came up with these for breakfast this morning.  Probably a bit more like breakfast than the snickers slice from last week, but equally as tasty.

Keeping them totally dairy free, I used a little coconut oil in my non-stick pan when cooking, but you could easily use a little butter here for flavour if dairy's not an issue for you.  You will also see there is no sugar in the mixture at all.  The ripe bananas are the sweetener with these, and having maple syrup on top, you really don't need any sugar in the batter.

When made as directed, you will get 10 pancakes.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups gluten free plain flour
2 tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp himalayan salt
1 lge very ripe banana
1/3 cup good quality/organic peanut butter (100% peanuts)
1 lge. free-range egg
1 tbsp. coconut oil
1 1/4 cups of almond milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract concentrate

Method:

Place the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl and mix together.

  

In a separate bowl, mash the banana with a fork and add to it the peanut butter, egg and  coconut oil.  Mix these together well.  Then add the almond milk and vanilla extract and whisk. Add these wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until well combined.  You should have a fairly smooth batter at this stage.

  

Heat a little extra coconut oil/butter in a non-stick pan and cook about 1/4 cup of mixture for each pancake. Flip to cook the second side after small bubbles appear in the pancake.  About 2 minutes each side.

Serve with a few extra slices of banana, fresh berries and a little pure maple syrup drizzled over the top.

♥ Shaz ♥

Raw Snickers Slice you could have for breakfast!

 

This slice or tart is really something that could be eaten at any time. I have once or twice even eaten it at breakfast time too.  No joke!  When you look at the ingredients, if you make it with the crushed nuts as pictured above, there are plenty of reasons to treat yourself to this goodness at any time of the day.  In moderation of course and listen to your body.  Perhaps not just before heading off to bed though, as it will actually provide you with a little boost of energy with the dates and honey/maple syrup.

The version pictured to the right I have made with a drizzle of a good quality dark chocolate over the top to finish it.  I perhaps wouldn't have this one for breaky, but you get the idea.  Full of goodness and very moreish. Again, the raw cacao and dark chocolate have benefits, which is why I tend to use them often in my cooking.   http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/03/31/dark-chocolate-health-benefits.aspx

Ingredients:
Base:
1 cup almond meal
6 medjool dates (fresh from fruit section)
1 tbsp. coconut oil
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract concentrate
2 tbsp. raw cacao powder

Caramel Filling:
8 medjool dates
2 tbsp. boiling water
1 cup organic peanuts
pinch Himalayan salt

Chocolate Mousse:
2 cups cashews*(soaked for 5 hours or more, then rinsed and drained ready for use)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup coconut oil
3 tbsp. raw cacao powder
1 tbsp. honey or pure maple syrup
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract concentrate
*Make sure you have already soaked your cashews

First the Base: Blend all the base ingredients in a food processor until crumbly, then firmly press them into a lined pan or cake tin. Place in the fridge while you make the filling.

Caramel Filling: Soak the pitted dates in hot water for a few minutes, then blitz in the processor to make a paste.  Stir in the peanuts by hand before evenly spreading over the base.  Sprinkle a pinch of salt on top of the caramel filling and place this back in the fridge while you work on the mousse.

Chocolate Mousse:  Place the cashews, water and coconut oil in the blender and blend until they're smooth.  Add the remaining mousse ingredients and mix through until well combined.  Gently pour/spoon on top of the caramel layer and pop it the freezer to set.  This may take an hour or so.  Once firm, you can sprinkle with a few extra crushed cashews, or you can drizzle a little melted dark chocolate on top.

Once sliced, you can store this one in the fridge or freezer until you're ready to share.  Just remember to get it out of the freezer about half an hour before serving so it's not too hard to eat.

I have a little twist on this version I shall share with you around Christmas time.  

Festive Snickers Slice ♡  Give the original a try first ;) . 

 ♥ Shaz ♥

 

 

Raw Cacao Mousse

I love making these up into their own little shot cups when setting them.  Super easy to share this way.  They can be quite rich, so it's good to have them already in a single serve size.  You can also pop the mixture up into a medium sized bowl before setting it in the fridge.  They're just a little more fun to eat the other way.♥

Ingredients
2 medium ripe avocados
6-8 medjool dates (pitted)
2/3 cup coconut cream
2 tbsp. raw cacao powder
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract concentrate
pinch Himalayan salt

Method

Blend the dates in a food processor until a soft paste forms.  Then simply add the flesh from the avocados, the coconut cream, the cacao powder and a pinch of salt and blend until nice and smooth.

Using a spatula, scrape out all the goodness into a medium bowl, or as I mentioned above, into little serving cups/shot cups.  Set in the fridge overnight, garnishing the top with a slice of strawberry and a few blueberries before serving.

Quick and easy to make this one ahead of time.

Enjoy 😍 Shaz

Butter Chicken

 This would have to be one of our family favourites for a warming family meal.  My son has made this one for me with white rice, but I'm definitely not going to complain.  It tastes so delicious.  Each time we cook this, we use a little more chicken, so there are always leftovers for someones lunch the next day.  
You can modify according to your families tastes.  ie. a little less curry when making the sauce if they don't like things spicy.  You could also add a tin of tomatoes instead of using fresh tomatoes to save a little time and make less mess.  As pictured above, it even works and still tastes great, without that final tablespoon of butter doesn't it Adam?  Both of us often forget this step at the end ;).

Ingredients
For the Chicken & Marinade 
1 kg chicken breast or boneless thigh fillets
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 garlic gloves, crushed
1 heaped tsp. of your favourite curry blend/garam marsala
¼ tsp. Himalayan salt

For the Sauce 
¼ cup coconut oil
1 medium – large brown onion, finely chopped

Approx. 3 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

1 tbsp. your favourite curry blend/garam marsala

¼ tsp. cinnamon

A pinch of ground cloves

A pinch of Himalayan salt

4 medium tomatoes, diced

¾ cup coconut cream

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 dessertspoon butter

Fresh Coriander for garnishing

Method
Marinade first:  

Cut chicken into 2cm cubes and place in a shallow dish.  Add to this the remaining marinade ingredients and massage into the chicken.  Set aside while you prepare the sauce or marinate in the fridge overnight.

Next for the sauce: 
Heat the coconut oil on a medium/low heat in a large non-stick pan. Add onions and gently cook until they are golden, around 15 minutes. Reduce heat to low if they are starting to brown.  You don’t want them crispy. Just translucent to golden.  Add the garlic and cook for approx. 1 minute.  Next stir in the curry blend, cinnamon, cloves and salt, and cook for 1 more minute. Chopped tomatoes are next to be added, cooking for approx. 2 minutes before adding the coconut cream and bringing to a gentle simmer.

Lastly add the chicken to the sauce, loosely cover and gently simmer on a medium/low heat for approx. 15 minutes until cooked through. Check and ensure they are not pink inside for breasts. Final step is to stir in lemon juice and butter just before serving.  Serve with brown rice and garnish with coriander.

Enjoy!   ♡   Shaz