Strawberry Fluff Pie

I made this on a whim yesterday just to see how it would turn out. I've been toying with the idea lately of a homemade ice cream cake,of course with good, wholesome ingredients. And since my birthday is just around the corner, and a mint chocolate chip ice cream brownie cake would just be the best dessert ever, I decided to try my luck with a raw strawberry pie using the same method. I realize not everyone is a mintaholic like me, therefore, strawberry was the tester. But come birthday week, the strawberries are out and the mint chip is IN! This really turned out surprisingly well and the base is very versatile. At room temp, it would be an amazing cake frosting, and frozen, it's a delectable, ice creamy pie! For this I did a raw chocolate larabar crust, but for my birthday version, I think I'll do a healthy brownie base:) After all, it is a birthday:)

For the fluff:

3/4c. coconut butter( this is just raw unsweetened coconut flakes that have been ground in the vitamix or a food processor into a nut butter form. Takes about 5-10 min. You can purchase it, but it's so simple to DIY. The end product, once mixed with other ingredients DOES NOT TASTE COCONUTTY! I PROMISE! )To get 3/4c. you'll probably need close to 2 cups of coconut. I just dumped it in then measured after the fact.

2c. frozen strawberries 

1/2 frozen banana

stevia to taste ( I used 3 little tablets)

If you have a vitamix, use the tamper to press the frozen berries in with the coconut butter. If not, you can use a food processor, but you'll have to process in batches, as the mixture is very thick and it makes a good bit. That's it! Now you can either use as a fluffy strawberry icing, or assemble into a frozen pie using my chocolate  cookies as the base (recipe found on blog) If you are doing the pie, once you've made the chocolate cookie base, press them into a 9'' circle pan lined with parchment. Then top with fluff. Freeze for at least 30 minutes to set. You can keep it in the freezer or the fridge. It holds it's shape pretty well at room temp too:) Once it is set, I like to slide it off the parchment onto a pretty plate. Will post pics soon. It was gobbled before I had a chance to photograph:(
Note: If you really don't feel comfortable with coconut butter, you could probably sub 1c. cashew cream, which is simply cashews soaked for at least an hour in water, then blended along with some of the soaking liquid to make a cream. This has worked very well with some other frozen pies I've made, but I wanted to try the coconut butter, and see if I favored one over the other. Answer: I feel the coconut butter held up a little better at room temp:)

Super Yummy Party Crackers

These little babies are deliciousness! They are very easy to make and each batch makes about 40 crackers, which is about the same amount you'd get if you spent tons of $$ buying them at the store. And you can control what goes in them! You can flavor them any way you want. My favorite is with fresh herbs like rosemary and thyme, but I made a version the other night that was for a guacamole dip and they were awesome too!

1 1/2c. almond meal
1/2tsp sea salt
2tbls fresh herbs or 1tbls. dried herbs
1tbls. olive oil
1 egg
2tbls. water
Preheat oven to 400
Combine all ingredients together and stir until a ball forms. The dough will be a little sticky so you can coat your hands an the dough with olive oil before rolling out. Roll the dough out thin onto a piece of parchment paper. Cut into small squares or whatever shape you like. The dough doesn't have to be completely cut, just make an indention so they cut easily after they cook. Bake for 7-10 minutes until golden. Really watch them because they can burn very easily, so start at 7 minutes then go from there:)
Note: If you want more of a spicy mexican flare, you can sub 1tsp. garlic powder, 1tsp. paprika, 1/2tsp. cumin and 1/2tsp. cayenne pepper instead of the herbs:) Of course you can also add some real cheese or almond cheese for an even better cracker! I think I'm gonna get some little fish cut-outs and make them into goldfish crackers for the kiddos next time:) Pics to come soon!

Carrot Cake Larabar

The possibilities for larabars are ENDLESS! It's really just a matter of what you have in your cabinets and how far you're willing to go to experiment. Plus, it's one of those recipes where the base stays the same, so you know it's pretty much gonna be delicious no matter what else you put in it. The carrot cake version has become another favorite. The carrots make them very moist, and the cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice just scream FAAAAAAAALLLLLLL! Yes, I realize it's still August, but fall is in the air as far as I'm concerned, and the fall flavors AND my knee high boots are about to be in full swing! As a matter of fact, next week will be a perfect time to make my friend Mindy's "Raw Pumpkin Pie"@biteoflifeblog.com. But, for now, carrot cake larabars;)

Makes about 20 small cookies
1c. raw almonds
1/2c. medjool dates, pitted
1tsp. cinnamon
1/2tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1tsp. vanilla
1/2 a large carrot
Combine all ingredients in food processor until fine.
Note: If you want to add raisins, or unsweetened coconut, that would be delicious I'm sure. And as for the amount of carrot, if you find it needs a little more, then add it. I only added half a carrot because I didn't want them to be too moist:)

Peppermint Patti Larabars

Well these are just my new favorite thing! I have ALWAYS been a fan of chocolate and mint. Mint chocolate chip ice cream reigns supreme over all other ice cream flavors...and as a child, my mother would've passed up just about any other dessert for one peppermint patti! They were her FAVORITE thing. Of course she no longer eats them, so hopefully, this recipe will make her peppermint patti lovin self happy:) Really, I don't know why it's taken me this looooooong to make a chocolate mint version of a larabar...DUH! I'm gonna need major concentration not to eat the whole batch myself....or I can just swim a few extra 100 yards tonight:) Oh good my children are up from their naps....problem solved:) :)

Makes about 20 small cookies
1c. raw almonds ( or almond meal if you want a smoother consistency)
1/2c. pitted medjool dates ( I get mine from Sams, they are $7 for 2 lbs!)
2tbls. cocoa powder
1/8-1/4tsp. mint extract ( start small as mint is very strong)
Combine all ingredients in food processor until fine
Note: if you're using another brand of dates that are drier in texture, you may need to add some coconut oil to the mix, or you can soak the dates in warm water for 10 minutes then drain before processing:)