Recipe: The Optimum Breakfast Cookie

It seems like I am forever on-the-go…primarily Monday-Friday. Getting out the door can be a bit of a chore, especially if making the extra effort to eat something nutritious. And as a mother of a 11 month old who is breastfeeding, consuming the adequate amount of vitamins and minerals is essential. These cookies definitely became my solution. I eat 2 every single morning. They have boosted my energy and I feel balanced and ready-to-go when I arrive at work. I’ve forgotten to throw them in my bag on a couple of occasions and was super bummed, as they’ve now become a huge part of my morning ritual. 🙂 Hope that you enjoy them as much as I do! Cheers!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of chopped walnuts
• 1 cups of regular oats, divided
• 1 3/4 cups of brown rice flour (can substitute with oat flour for that extra boost)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 5 dashes of nutmeg
• 1/2 cup of pure maple syrup
• 1/2 cup of almond butter
• 2 tbsp almond milk
• 3.5 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup of cranberries
• 1/2 cup of pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup of coconut flakes

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. In a large bowl, add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg – MIX
3. Add in maple syrup, almond milk, canola, vanilla – MIX
4. Add walnuts, almond butter, oats, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, coconut flakes (stir batter after adding each individual ingredient)
5. Take about 2 tbsp of dough, make a ball, and then flatten with fingers. Place on cookie sheet. Repeat.
6. Bake for 10 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and let sit on for 2 minutes before placing onto a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes.

Recipe: Vegan Hummingbird Cake

I absolutely love hummingbird cake. The banana, pineapple, cinnamon, walnuts…this is a delectable treat! I first fell in love after a visit to my favorite donut shop, Do-rite Donuts. Don’t let the inconspicuous location fool you…if you ask me, they have some of the best donuts in Chicago. And for us vegan folk, they have one vegan option every single day. Can’t beat that!

**always check the top left, the vegan option is there!

So, after my exposure to their mouthwatering, tasty, vegan hummingbird donut, the search was on! I wanted more! Had to take a crack at this recipe. So, I google’d “hummingbird cake” and found a few vegan cake options. Score! After a little bit of tweaking, I think that I’ve mastered this dessert. Thanks Do-rite! Hope that you enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
• 3 cups coconut flour (all-purpose flour is an option too)
• 1 1/2 cups coconut sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 flax “eggs” (3 Tablespoons flaxseed meal + 9 Tablespoons warm water)
• 3/4 cup coconut oil (canola oil is an option)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 – 8 ounce can crushed pineapple, do not drain
• 4 bananas

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two – 9 x 2 inch round cake pans.
2. Chop walnuts finely (as desired)
3. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon
4. In a small bowl, mix the flaxseed meal and water and set aside for 3-5 minutes
5. In another large bowl, mash bananas. Mix in the flax “eggs”, oil, vanilla extract, pineapple and chopped walnuts
6. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir until combined
7. Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean
8. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about 10 minutes invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove the pans and parchment paper, and then cool completely before frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

2 Tbsp. “butter”, room temperature
8 ounces Tofutti cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

In the bowl, beat the “butter” and cream cheese, on low speed, until very smooth with no lumps. Gradually add the powdered sugar and beat, on low speed, until smooth. Add the vanilla extract.

Assembly:

Place one cake, top side down, onto your platter. Spread with about a third of the frosting. Gently place the other cake layer, top of cake facing up, onto the frosting, and spread the rest of the frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate cake for a hour for frosting to set.

courtesy of and adapted by  — www.singerskitchen.com

Enjoy!