Primal Ooey Gooey Cake

Leave a comment
I have a really good friend that moved to St. Louis years ago and has never moved back! I go visit her every year, and she always comes home for the holidays.  However, babies change everything!  She wasn’t able to come home over Thanksgiving like usual and I didn’t get down to see her because of my teaching schedule.  So, what do you do when you miss your friend?!  Make food that reminds you of the person, of course!  They have a brewery down in St. Louis called “Schlafly” and she would always bring me home a 6 pack of their coffee stout after returning from her travels abroad.  They carry that stout now at Chalet!  Just my luck!  She would also bring back a St. Louis gooey butter cake.  The cake that I remember has a thinner crust, but this cake is a marriage of that St. Louis gooey butter cake and my family recipe for ooey gooey cake.  This is indulgent to say the least.  Butter, Sugar, Cream Cheese, need I say more?  You can miss people, but having things that remind you of them makes it okay. ;)
Ooey Gooey Cake
Ingredients:
1 cup of butter, at room temp
1 cup coconut sugar
3 eggs, at room temp
1 cup full fat coconut milk
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
16 oz cream cheese, at room temp
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
zest from 1 lemon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375F. Cream together the butter and sugar.  Add the eggs one at time until combined.  Add the coconut milk and vanilla.  Slowly add the almond flour, tapioca, baking powder, and salt until combined.  Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper and pour the batter into the dish.
Bake for 30 minutes at 375F, then turn the oven down to 350F and bake for another 10-15 minutes.  A toothpick should come out clean.
Make the cream cheese topping by whipping the cream cheese until slightly fluffed.  Add the honey and whip until creamy.  Add the vanilla until combined.  Fold in the lemon zest.
Once baked, allow the cake to cool slightly before adding the topping.
Allow the cake to cool before serving!

Paleo Cinnamon Sugar Beignets

Leave a comment
You have no idea how excited I am about this recipe!  I am always taking things from my experiences in the world as inspiration for food.  At Evil Czech Brewery, they have a brunch you can go to on the weekends, and I went for the first time the other day.  They have some pretty innovative ideas floating around!  They have cold brewed coffee on nitro, and if you have never tried this, you need to.  They have plenty of options that are “healthier” options in addition to some major indulgences.  One of the indulgences they had on the line when I went was a beignet.  A beignet is a little fried donut hole kind of thing that has a sugar coating or chocolate sauce, etc.  Donuts in the land of grain-free baking just aren’t work it.  The texture is never right and it’s always too much work for the level of satisfaction.  However, I had an epiphany when I was watching food network one day!  I can make mini cupcakes and turn them into donut holes!  So, here you have it.  A nutmeg mini cupcake rolled in butter and coated in maple sugar and cinnamon.  It reminds me of a cinnamon sugar donut hole and the flavor nods to a Rise n Roll.  I have a sensitive palate for sugar because when you eat healthy foods, sweet things taste that much sweeter.  These are sweet to me, which means they are probably perfect for those not used to eating a clean diet.  Perfect fake out!
Paleo Cinnamon Sugar Beignets
Ingredients:
2/3 cup coconut flour, sifted
8 eggs
1/2 cup full fat coconut milk
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil melted
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
maple sugar + cinnamon, butter for rolling after
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.  Rub some butter in the bottom of a mini muffin tin.  Add all the ingredients except the melted butter into a bowl and use a mixer to make it smooth.  As you continue mixing, add the melted butter until incorporated.  Fill each mini muffin hole with batter.  (You will have enough batter to make multiple mini muffin tins or you can make one mini muffin tin and then some full size). Bake for 14 minutes or until the middle springs back at you when pressed for the mini muffins.  If you bake some full size, you will need to let them go for 22 minutes.
After the muffins are baked and cooled, make 2 shallow dishes: one with melted butter and one with cinnamon and granulated sugar (I used maple sugar). Roll your muffins in melted butter and then in the cinnamon sugar.  Enjoy! Or store for later. ;)

Cinnamon Rolls (grain-free, dairy-free, nut-free)

Leave a comment

I have tried several versions of cinnamon rolls that use no wheat in the past, and I always came out with a disappointing , somewhat dry, fake cinnamon roll.  If it isn’t gonna taste like the real deal, then don’t spend the effort!  These are nice for a couple reasons, they are gooey and moist, they taste sweet and cinnamon-y, the dough rolled up easily, and they aren’t crazy expensive to make! These would be a great option for Easter Sunday morning!

The only warning I will give you is that there is some “rest time” involved.  So be prepared to let the dough chill while you enjoy some coffee, let them bake for more than 15 minutes, and put your mind somewhere else while you are letting them cool!  You could make them ahead of time and just pop them in the oven if you feel like doing all the work the night before!

Cinnamon Rolls (adapted from Detoxinista)

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups arrowroot powder
  • 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp coconut flour, sifted
  • 1/2 cup grassfed butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 eggs, whisked
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Filling:

  • 1/3 cup coconut sugar
  • cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix all the dough ingredients together until there are no clumps.  Place the dough in the fridge for 15-20 minutes to chill.

Dump the dough onto a piece of parchment paper and cover with another sheet of parchment paper.  Use a rolling pin (or a bottle of wine) to roll out the dough to an 8×11 ish rectangle.  Use a knife to cut off round edges and just pat the dough into gaps where you may need to make a corner.  Sprinkle the 1/3 cup coconut sugar on the dough and sprinkle a generous amount of cinnamon on the entire thing.  Using the edge of the parchment paper, begin to the roll the dough into a log from the end that is shorter.  Use a sharp knife to slice your log into 6-7 rolls, and transfer them onto a parchment lined round pan.

IMG_1024 This is what my dough looked like before cooking it.

(I used the pampered chef baking stone dome to cover mine)  Use aluminum foil to create a tent over the rolls. AKA just make sure the steam will stay in without anything laying on top of the rolls. Bake the rolls for 20 minutes then remove the cover and bake for another 7 until the outside of the roll have a firmness to them.

Cool for 10 minutes.

Serve with a tab of grassfed butter on top!

*Eat these warm or they won’t be as delicious.  That means right after you make them or heat them up.

*I tried a few different forms of storage and tried them all!  On the counter, in the fridge, and in the freezer.  All work great!  I just made sure to cover them in the oven at 350F for about 8-10 minutes when I reheated them so they didn’t lose too much moisture.  I do not use microwaves, but if you try that method, let us know how it turns out!

 

Mashed Potatoes

Leave a comment

mashed potatoes

Ok.  Who needs a recipe for mashed potatoes?  Well, I think it’s worth listing what I do with my mashed potatoes because they are delicious!

First I quarter some Yukon Gold potatoes and throw them in a stock pot with the skin on.  Then I pour in some homemade chicken stock.  Make sure the tops of the potatoes are still sticking up out of the liquid or you will have way too much stock.  I let that boil until most all of the liquid is absorbed into the potatoes.  Then I mash them up with some grassfed butter until creamy.  Here you can add spices.  I usually salt and pepper.  However, one of my favorite things as a kid was mashed potatoes with French onion dip in them!  So I have also been known to add some powdered onion dip mix (from soup of success) and it gives the same flavor!

No one will miss the milk.  The stock gives them so much flavor!  Enjoy!