Tasty Tuesday: Cocoa Oat Cookies

It’s Tuesday, which means I can talk about food, right? Well, here goes. I’ve taken a wonderful recipe from my most favorite plant-based foodie, Deliciously Ella and I’ve just shifted a few things to make these Black Bean cookies that are REALLY so good. Soft, sweet (but not too sweet), chewy, packed full of protein and fiber and containing no gluten ingredients or sugar, they’re a perfect cookie for literally anytime!

Cocoa Oat Cookies

Ingredients:

4 Cups black beans (I’ve been making my own now in a pressure cooker, but you can use canned beans too!)

4 heaping Tbs cocoa powder

4 Tbs melted coconut oil

14 medjool dates, soaked in hot water for 1-4 hours

3 1/2 cups rolled or quick oats

3/4 cup raw cacao nibs (optional, but super yummy!)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and oil (I use coconut oil) two cookie sheets.

Combine the cooked black beans, cocoa powder, coconut oil and dates in a food processor or powerful blender and blend it all up! The mixture should be sweet, smooth and thick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Transfer the combined “wet” ingredients into a bowl and mix in the oats and cacao nibs. Form into balls on the cookie sheets and bake for about 12 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly browned and the tops are firm(ish).

Take a few of these cookies with you for a long day out and about, they’re a perfect pick-me-up snack when you need something sweet and flavorful that contains protein!

Enjoy!

Peace, Love and Black Beans,

~kiki

Healthy Chocolate Mousse!

Happy Sunday! It also happens to be Valentine’s Day, which, for me, is an excuse to eat more chocolate, and I’m always looking for a reason to do that, so it’s great!

Dark chocolate tastes incredible and actually has many health benefits…

Avocados are also wonderful and can do really incredible things both IN (ingested) and ON (hair and skin) our bodies!

SO naturally, I wanted to combine my obsession (I take full responsibility for it) with both of these power foods and make some kind of delicious treat for Chocolate Consumption Day.

And starting with these….

I proceeded to make the most delicious and decadent chocolate mousse in 5 minutes.

Ingredients:

4 ripe avocados

1 cup raw cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk of choice (I used almond milk)

8 Tbs maple syrup

Combine all ingredients, blend them up in a food processor or blender and store in the fridge. Serving tip: The icing on THIS cake is when you top the mousse with cacao nibs and fresh raspberries!

NOTES: The less milk  you use, the thicker the mousse will be, the more you use, the thinner and creamer it will be. Chef’s choice! You may also need to adjust the sweetness according to your taste, and you can obviously sub a different kind of sweetener if you choose.

Go forth and be chocolate-full!

Peace, love and healthy fats,

~kiki

Tasty Tuesday: Raw Vegan Chocolate Macaroons

Happy Tasty Tuesday, arguably my favorite day because I love food and sharing it with other people!

I’ve gotten some emails/comments recently about my Only5 cookies and how they were a big hit at a party or gathering or breakfast or whatever, so I thought I’d post another recipe for other cookies that I LOVE and that are even easier to make than the Only5 cookies and equally delicious, but only if you like coconut.

RAW VEGAN CHOCOLATE MACAROONS 

Ingredients:

1 Cup raw cashews

1 Cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 Cup raw cocoa powder

2 Tbs liquid sweetener (I love maple syrup but you could use agave as well, or honey if you eat that)

2 Tbs melted coconut oil

Directions:

All the ingredients will be blended in a strong blender or food processor. First, the cashews, then add the coconut, oil, coconut powder and the sweetener. Once it’s all combined, check for sweetness and also texture. Adjust as needed. The sweetness needs to be where you want it, if it’s too chocolatey, add more syrup, if it’s too sweet, add more cocoa powder! The batter needs to be able to hold a ball shape.

Once the batter is ready, spoon it out and into balls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze the cookies for two hours so they really hold their form and from there you can transfer them to a sealable tupperware to store in the fridge if you don’t devour them all before they make it to the fridge 😉

Alteration: You can add cinnamon and cayenne pepper powder for a more “Mexican Chocolate” vibe, if you like that hot chocolate! Any other ideas?

These are AMAZING for an afternoon chocolate fix pick-me-up or dessert after dinner, or a midmorning snack.. really anytime. They have a lot of nutritional value because of the simplicity of the ingredients!

Let me know what you think in the comments or message me!

Peace, love and macaroons,

~kiki