sweet miscellany

I was so ready for spring produce after a fall and winter full of root veggies, apples, and citrus. Strawberries are slowly starting to trickle into our markets here, but for some reason, there is still an abundance of blood oranges and other citrus. Instead of buying early season, somewhat over-priced strawberries, I decided to get some blood oranges. I’m glad I did because they inspired this delicious little dessert.

These tarts have a few flavors and textures going on. The crust is nutty and buttery while the coconut cream is light and sweet in constrast to the bright, tart slice of juicy blood orange. And, in addition to the wonderful flavors and textures going on, these are gluten free, grain free, vegan, and refined sugar free! So, enjoy these little cuties without any guilt, even if you eat 2 as your breakfast…

Mini Blood Orange Tarts with Coconut Cream
notes: make sure your coconut milk is full fat (not lite) and chill it overnight or for at least 6 hours. Also, I use un-bleached cupcake/muffin liners which release from the tart shells quite easily.

2 cups almond meal/flour
pinch of fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp maple syrup (or agave)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 can of full fat coconut milk, chilled
splash of maple syrup
pinch of fine grain sea salt

2 small blood oranges, peel & pith removed, sliced into about 1/4″ rounds

Make the tart shells: Preheat your oven to 350F. In a bowl, mix together the almond meal and salt. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the oil, syrup, and vanilla until combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a wooden spoon or spatula until the dough comes together. It should come together into a ball and stick together. Line a standard muffin tin with 6 liners and then divide the dough evenly between each. Using your fingers, press the dough in the liners to create your tart shells. Bake them for 15-20 minutes until the edges are golden. Let them cool completely before using.

Make the coconut cream: Put your chilled coconut milk (it should be very thick) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (you can also do this with a hand mixer fitted with the beater attachments). Beat the coconut milk on medium-high until it just starts to gain volume and thicken. Stop the mixer and add the maple syrup and salt. Start the mixer again on medium-high and beat until the coconut milk has more than doubled in volume and medium peaks form (it should be somewhere between a soft peak and a stiff peak). Use the mixture immediately or chill until ready to use.

Assemble your mini tarts: Remove the wrappers from the tart shells. Place a large dollop of the coconut cream in the shell, and then top with a slice or two or blood orange. If you want to get a bit fancier, you could layer the coconut cream and slice of blood orange twice to give the dessert a bit of height. Makes 6 mini tarts. Enjoy!

Traveling a lot for work = eating out a lot = a growing craving for whole foods and raw vegetables/fruits. This little equation is why I don’t have any lovely baked goods for you today. But, I promise to get on that as soon as the weekend arrives! 🙂

When I’m home, I don’t really eat meat (I rarely buy it at the store) or processed foods. I eat a lot of grains, fruits, and veggies. After being gone for several days, I was craving something raw, fresh, and delicious. This salad came together with the few things I had in my fridge, plus a homemade mustard-y vinaigrette. It was rather simple, but a revelation in taste. It’s light, crisp, refreshing, tangy, salty, and sweet all at once. If you’ve never tried a salad with shredded brussel sprouts, consider this your introduction.

Shredded Brussel Sprout Salad
I ate this entire thing for my lunch, but it can serve 2 as a side. To make it vegan, leave out the feta.

7 or 8 large brussel sprouts, cleaned and trimmed/core removed
1 orange
2 handfuls of sliced almonds, toasted
feta cheese (optional)
smoked sea salt or fleur de sel

1 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp agave

After you have washed and trimmed your brussel sprouts, use a sharp knife to remove the core. Thinly slice the brussel sprouts and set them aside. Peel your orange and cut it into segments (I did this by peeling my orange with a knife and then cutting out the wedges from between each membrane, also referred to as a “supreme”). Put the brussel sprouts in a bowl and separate the leaves with your fingers. Top with the oranges, almonds, and feta if using. In a small clean bowl or jar, mix the mustard, vinegar, oil, and agave. Drizzle a bit of the dressing over the salad, sprinkle with sea salt, and Enjoy!