'Greens powder' FREE recipe book!
You may have seen over on my Facebook page that I've been experimenting with all things 'green' in the recipe department recently!
No it's not St Patrick's Day, it's because I've been developing recipes for Real Food Source using their Matcha powder and their Green Tea Blend. I created another free ebook to add to their ever growing collection showcasing a collection of recipes using their green tea blend... most of these are also interchangable with pure matcha tea, so if you are a matcha fan you have loads of inspiration ready for you too!
The best thing about the green tea blend is that it combines a variety of nutritionally rich green powders at a very cost effective price.
Here's a little sneak peak.... but you can follow this link to download your very own copy!
One of my favourite recipes in the collection is this green tea 'Nice Cream'...so quick (with a little pre-freezing required) and perfect to pep you up on a summer afternoon. It's also totally ok to serve this as breakfast.... a seriously healthy treat! Don't skip the nut butter as this creates a much creamier, richer result.
Recipe: Green Tea 'Nice' Cream
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 2 bananas- chopped into chunks and pre-frozen
- 2 tsp of green tea blend (or matcha tea)
- 2-3 tbs cashew butter
- Mulberry crumble (or other dried fruits, granola or choc chunks) sprinkled on top to serve.
Method:
Blend all ingredients together until smooth and totally smooth and creamy, it will be very thick when you spoon it in to bowls
Add toppings of choice... something with a little chew or crunch works well. (In the photos is this mulberry crumble)
Chocolate Banana Ice Cream... and another ebook!
I've been in full on design mode recently!
Making tweaks to my website.... did you see I now have two separate blog rolls AND a funky highlight's page? Of course I've also been busy gearing up for the Lanzarote Wellness Retreat!
Behind the scenes there has been even more ebook action. I have been collaborating with RealFoodSource in designing another FREE ebook... this time featuring their 'as raw as it get's' chocolate powder blend.
You can grab the book here... it has loads of inspiration and you could easily swap regular raw cacao and add your own extra sweetness. Their own raw powder blends cacao powder with coconut sugar and sea salt for an all in one ready to go option (if you are in the UK they currently have a launch promo offer).
Here's a little teaser of the recipes I created inside!
One of my favourite recipes from the book is featured on their blog... the chocolate banana ice cream.
Perfect for the hot summer weather, or simply a treat all year round! Frozen banana makes the perfect no churn ice cream. Use greener bananas for a less dominant taste and add a little syrup if needed as they’ll be less sweet. You can add full fat coconut milk to replace some of the banana of you wish.
Or instead of a chocolate option, why not add fruits or vanilla powder to change up flavours. I feel a rum and raisin combo coming on! Or even a citrus flavour with orange and lemon.
You can find the full recipe HERE!
Why not sign up for my newsletter in my sidebar where I feature roundups and special offers plus my FREE ebook. If you are new round here you might like to check out my 'About' tab up top. To buy healthy nibbles you can also find me over at my sister site Wholeplus.
Day to day you can always find me hanging out in these places:
Double chocolate ice cream...no ice cream maker and sugar free!
It's hot hot hot!
I'm not usually that much of a ice-creamy girl which is why you don't see much of it around these parts BUT that said I do have my moments and such a moment occurred to me a couple weekends ago.
Banana ice cream been done a zillion times in 'healthy foodie blog land', not to say that its not amazing because it is (hence why it's been done a zillion times!) So I thought I'd put a tiny spin on things and make a plantain-based ice cream, the theory being a milder banana flavour that doesn't overpower the way that banana can do, as well as a slight change in consistency since plantain is a cross between a fruit and starchy veg in many ways. I feel as though the plantain is actually creamier... but I might be imagining that. What I can say is that it is in no way inferior to its banana counterpart.
Obviously I threw in extra mix-ins such as cocoa powder and my super healthy fudge chunks… well, you know how it goes! Erm, I like chocolate :-)
Plantains should be your new best friend...
I bought a whole bag of plantains at my local asian supermarket. I used a few pre-ripened (more like potato and not sweet) then purposely left the rest to go almost black and sweeten up before chopping them up to use for this ice cream and various other deserts… you'll be seeing some of these come up on the blog shortly! I also chopped the last few into chunks and froze them for future delights. Because plantains are typically larger than bananas and also pretty cost-effective if you can buy in bulk in a supermarket, they are a great versatile option.
This is my chocolate combo, but if you prefer to make a 'plain' version as per the yellow tub in the photos, just leave the cocoa out and maybe add some extra vanilla to taste.
At the bottom of the recipe I have given some ideas for other flavours but I'd love to know what you come up with too!! Tell me tell me... what's your favourite healthy ice cream creation?
Recipe: Super simple plantain ice cream
Makes approx. 1 pint ice cream
Ingredients
2 large plantain (approx. 500g)
¼ cup cashew butter (you could try hazelnut butter!)
¼ cup cocoa
1 tsp vanilla powder or paste (not extract with alcohol)
4-5 drops stevia (optional- omit entirely or us 2 tbs syrup)
toppings*
Method
Blend until very smooth. Spoon into a freezer and press toppings in. Freeze allowing approx. 20 minutes defrost time to serve.
* for my topping I used approx. ¼ cup worth of my 'worlds healthiest fudge' as I had a batch in the freezer, or you could use chopped up 'smoosh bars' or other simple mix ins such as dark chocolate/nuts/dried fruits
Why not try some other flavours...these are a few I've come up with but i'd Iove to hear your suggestions too!
Peanut butter and cinnamon
Carob powder and toffee extract
Beetroot and raspberry/redcurrants
Cashew butter and lemon
Cocoa and peanut butter
P.s shout out for my Rude Health giveaway which ends in 4 days... you can enter here!
I'd love you to join me in other places too!
Why not sign up for my newsletter in my sidebar where I feature roundups and special offers plus me FREE ebook. If you are new round here check out my 'About' and 'Getting Started' tabs up top. To buy nibbles you can also find me over at Wholeplus. Day to day you can always find me in these places:
Ridiculously healthy - 3 ingredient - pinktastic ice cream!
Please tell me the title grabbed your attention...?
I had to come up with something suitable fitting for this concoction. Simplicity at it's finest.
I made this recipe on Saturday in the midst of having a rather overwhelming and floopy weekend...and this turned the whole thing around for me. Yep this in indeed a game changer! I posted a sneak preview on my Instagram and one comment received was doubtful of the beetroot.... wooah no...most definitely not! This is some seriously good pink stuff ;-)
Even though the main ingredient in this ice cream is banana, the combo of beet and raspberry is pretty powerful and gives a lovely sweetly sharp hint, and so the result is not an immediately obvious banana flavour. My dad couldn't even guess what was in it at all when I presented him with a bowlful for dessert on Sunday evening... he started reeling off ingredients such a white beans... ha ha, he knows me too well! :-)
This will probably be my last pre-Valentines pink post. I'm not even a lovey duvey kind of girl. I think I've simply liked making pink things. I hope you do too!
However you happen to be celebrating On Friday...if indeed at all, I hope you enjoy your Valentines Day. For all those singletons out there, how about a booking a massage or a bubbly bath with oils and a face mask. I've been trying to find time for a bit of self-love as I know I don't prioritise 'me' time nearly as much as I should.
Recipe: Banana beet and raspberry ice cream (no ice cream maker needed!)
Serves 3-4 (or two if you are ice cream obsessed!)
Ingredients:
3 bananas- chunked and pre-frozen
1 cup frozen raspberries
1 cooked beetroot (i bought them pre-packed)
1 tsp vanilla extra (or other flavouring) optional
few drops stevia (optional for a touch extra sweetness)
Method:
Blend all ingredients together until smooth- but don't over blend as the ice-cream consistency will begin to soften. I added most of the raspberries into the blend, then added at the last few for decoration.
You can serve this immediately as a soft serve or spread into a tub and freeze for a few hours to serve with a scoop. Because this ice-cream uses a banana base, there is no need for an ice cream maker and the ice cream won't form icy crystals as some ice creams can tend to. Winner!
Maple pecan ice cream
Up until now I hadn’t tried my hand at ice creams…or any form of frozen desserts. But all that may be about to change…! I already have few ideas up my sleeve and a few tests underway. So first up ice cream!
This last week summer has been in full swing (I hope I haven’t just jinxed it) and I could no longer ignore the urges for some ice cream. There is something about ice cream that really is the epitome of summer, and it also makes you feel 10 years old again!
I debated long and hard about the flavour choice and the ingredients to form the base of this ice cream. I had thought about going for a traditional vanilla, but then had second thoughts that maybe such a ‘simple’ flavour may be deceivingly difficult to pull off. Bearing in mind I had never tasted vegan ice cream…neither shop bought or home-made, and also I don’t have an ice cream maker.
So, I settled on a banana and cashew combo for the base, to create a really creamy ice cream with a subtle hint of banana rather than a full on banana flavour. Through my extensive research into homemade vegan ice creams I came across a recommendation to add raisins to achieve a really buttery texture, hence why they’ve also been added here, also for the additional natural sweetness.
The maple syrup and pecans provide the dominant intensity of flavour. The key is to blend everything really well to achieve the full on creamy effect that these ingredients offer. I kept the pecans chunkier for extra texture. I froze the ice cream in ice cube trays, to pop out and blend again just prior to serving, this achieves the creamiest consistency without the need for an ice cream maker. The ice cube trays are also great for making mini servings to melt over pancakes or desserts, or insert a toothpick for a mini frozen lolly!
I served mine on bed of chocolate shavings over my newly created ‘speediest sponge ever’….recipe to come shortly!
Recipe: Maple pecan ice cream
Makes approx. 2 cups
Ingredients:
- 1 banana
- ½ cup cashew butter
- 1 tbs tahini
- ¼ cup raisins
- ½ cup soy milk (or other alternative milk)
- ½ cup pecans (or walnuts although they are more bitter)
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Method:
In a food processor add the banana, nut butter, tahini and raisins and blend to form a paste. Add all remaining ingredients and blend together to break up the pecans into smallish pieces. Pour into ice cube trays and freeze
For best results re-blend the frozen chunks briefly and re-freeze to desired consistency to serve.
Alternatively, freeze in one container and remove from freezer 10 minutes prior to serving to slightly soften- note resultant ice cream may not be as creamy as above method.
This recipe was shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesday's and Allergy Free Wednesday's.