DIY Wednesday: Dairy-Free Chocolate Ganache

December 2, 2015December 2, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

After DIY Wednesday: Dairy-Free Chocolate Ganache a week off, DIY Wednesday is back! I know you missed it and were totally lost without a fun DIY to fill your Wednesday. At least that’s what I would like to think.

I’m SUPER excited about this DIY because I didn’t think it was going to work and it did and it is amazing. If you don’t know what a ganache is, then you obviously don’t spend enough time in bakeries or watching the Food Network. A ganache is a glaze, sauce, icing, or filling that is typically made with cream and chocolate. It can be used for cakes, cupcakes, truffles, or donuts. Basically, anything that is delicious can be made even more delicious with ganache. DIY Wednesday: Dairy-Free Chocolate Ganache | Life Healthfully Lived

Ganache used to be one of my favorite things. It isn’t super heavy or super sweet like typical frostings and it really lets the chocolate flavor shine through. And let’s face it, chocolate is the reason many of us get up in the morning. Wait, is that just me? Oh well, it’s true and I ain’t ashamed of that.

So you can imagine how excited I was when I was able to make it without dairy but still just as delicious. I figured I would share this one with you right as the holiday season is upon us because this will definitely come in handy for all your baking needs. You can use it as a frosting or icing for you cooking, as a decadent hot chocolate drink, as a filling for pastries or sweet breads, or stick it in the fridge for a rich and creamy mousse and a simple dessert. The possibilities are endless and with just a few ingredients you can have this on hand at all times. That is a very good thing!

Dairy-Free Chocolate Ganache

1 cup full-fat coconut milk, unsweetened
2 oz unsweetened baking chocolate (I used Baker’s brand)
2-3 tbsp maple syrup, honey, molasses, whatever liquid sweetener you have on hand

Using a microplane or fine grater, grate the 2 oz of chocolate into a medium bowl until you have a little pile of chocolate shreds. Set bowl aside.
Get a small to medium saucepan and pour the coconut milk in. Heat the milk over medium heat and whisk frequently. You don’t want the milk to boil or scald. Whisk in the maple syrup or other sweetener and whisking until you get a light simmer. This should take about 10 minutes
Remove the milk from the heat and get your bowl with chocolate shreds. Slowly pour in the sweetened warm milk, whisking the whole time. Keep whisking until the chocolate is completely melted and everything is smooth.
You can use the ganache right away or you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

DIY Wednesday: Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing

November 18, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I have lived in Illinois my entire life, so I am a Midwest girl through and through. I think a big stretch of farmland is beautiful, I can drive in most snowy conditions, and I know malls are the best way to shop for everything. The other thing that my Midwestern upbringing has taught me?

Ranch dressing belongs on everything.

Raw vegetables? Instantly better doused in ranch. That boring old salad? Drench it in the white stuff. Chicken fingers and nuggets were made for dunking into the nectar of the Midwest gods. I’ve even dipped french fries, meatloaf, and sausage into ranch. Don’t judge until you try it.

Unfortunately, the combination of ranch dressing on all the food and frying everything possible has made the people of this part of the country just a little less healthy. When I changed the way I ate, I begrudgingly quit my ranch habit. After a short (read: longer than I thought) adjustment period, I actually started to enjoy the flavor of my food without the aid of ranch dressing.

But there was still that fat Midwestern kid inside that wanted to swim in a vat of ranch. I decided to fix it.

I made this dressing with full-fat coconut milk and my DIY ranch seasoning and was shocked with how much it tasted like traditional ranch. It was a little runny at first, but after a few hours in the fridge it thickened up nicely. I tend to like a more watery ranch, so I let it sit out a few minutes before I use it.

The fact that it’s so easy to make this dressing and the fact that I love it on everything have made it a weekly staple. Try it on roasted sweet potatoes or mixed into mashed potatoes. It is amazing with carrots and celery sticks and is wonderful whisked into a frittata. I even made a topping with mashed potatoes and this ranch and spread it on top of my lentil loaf.

So if you have been missing ranch dressing in your healthier lifestyle, try this dairy-free version. I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing

1 cup full-fat coconut milk, unsweetened
2-3 tsp ranch dressing seasoning, add more or less to your taste
1/2 tsp celery salt (sea salt will also work)
1 tsp roasted garlic (you could also use garlic powder)

Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend for a few minutes until everything is combined.
Pour into an airtight container (like a mason jar) and put in the fridge to thicken. Keep it stored in the fridge for up to a week.

That’s it. Easy Peasy, time to put ranch on all the things and not feel like the fat Midwestern kid you might just be at heart!

Have a great day everyone!

Gluten-Free Apple Ring Pancakes

November 13, 2015November 13, 2015 / ktbuchs87

Sundays are meant for a slightly fancier breakfast. You aren’t rushing off to work or school and you can take the time to put a little extra effort into your morning meal. I usually make Adam a huge plate of hash browns, eggs, and then pancakes or waffles depending on what I have on hand.

Lately, I have been craving his pancakes. I usually make his with whole wheat flour and that is a no go for me. So I decided to combine a few ideas and came up with this pancake.

I had seen apple ring pancakes online and always thought they looked delicious, so I thought that these pancakes would be good with a little taste of apple in them. The actual pancake part is gluten free and dairy free, plus they can be made vegan if you use a flax or chia egg instead of regular eggs.

I also left the pancake a little less sweet than normal because the apple adds enough sweetness for me. Other than that, these pancakes are a fun breakfast to make and serve, plus they look extra fancy without being that difficult to put together. So if you want to serve up a tasty twist on pancakes, try these ones out! Oh and if you need an idea of what to top it with, try my peanut-apple butter sauce.

Gluten-Free Apple Ring Pancakes

1 large yellow plantain
2 eggs or 2 tbsp ground flax seeds mixed with 6 tbsp water
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
2 tbsp pureed pumpkin
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp peanut or coconut flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 medium granny smith apple
chopped pecans, optional

Wash and dry the apple. Cut out the core and cut the apple into thin rings. Make sure you keep them thin or the pancake won’t cook right.
Place the plantain, eggs, almond milk, pumpkin, and maple syrup into a blender. Blend until you have a smooth mixture.
Add all the dry ingredients (not the pecans) into the blender and blend until combined.
Heat a little coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, place one apple ring into the skillet and then pour a little batter over the ring making sure it is completely covered. If you’re using the pecans, sprinkle a little onto the pancake.
Cook for about 3 minutes and then carefully flip the pancake. It’s ok if the pancake breaks a little, it took me a few tries to get the pancake to flip perfectly.
Keep cooking until all the apple rings and batter is gone, keeping the finished pancakes on a plate in a warm oven.
Top with maple syrup, your favorite nut butter, or the peanut apple butter sauce below!

Peanut-Apple Butter Sauce

2 tbsp apple butter or apple sauce
1 tbsp peanut flour or peanut butter (could sub almond butter too)
1 tsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt

Mix everything together until you have a smooth sauce and spread onto your pancakes!

Other than making these pancakes, what other plans do you have for this weekend? Adam and I are going to see Elf the musical to celebrate our anniversary and I’m very excited! Elf is one of my absolute favorite movies and I can’t wait to see the musical version.

Happy weekend everyone!

DIY Wednesday: Coconut Chips

November 11, 2015November 11, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I’m not a huge snacker, but every now and then the snacking bug will bite and I can’t seem to stop grazing. Luckily I try to only keep healthy snacks around the house so I’m not binging on cookies and chips, but store bought healthy snacks can be full of unnecessary ingredients.

While some people might crave sweet snacks or salty snacks, I usually crave a combo. I love the mix of sweet and salty. Kettle corn is a weakness and Garrett’s Chicago Mix (it will never be anything else to me)? Forget about it.

I have seen coconut chips in the stores and online for awhile now and they always sound really good. A nice mix of sweet and salty, healthy fats from the coconut, and the satisfying crunch of the baked chips. A snacker’s dream. Not so dream like? The cost. A tiny bag of coconut chips at the store can cost almost $15. Ain’t nobody got time for that.

Good for you and me that it’s really easy to make your own at home! A few things, don’t worry if you don’t like the flavor of coconut these do not have a very coconutty taste. You will also want to make sure that you get the coconut flakes and not shreds otherwise you’ll end up with a pile of shriveled and burnt coconut shreds.

These come together fast and don’t require many ingredients, so if you feel a snack attack coming on you’re only a few minutes away from these sweet and savory coconut chips!

Coconut Chips

2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes, not shreds
2 tbsp coconut aminos, you can also use liquid aminos, soy sauce, or tamari
1 tbsp maple syrup, honey could also work
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Preheat the oven to 350
Dump the coconut shreds into a large bowl. Add in the rest of the ingredients and stir to coat everything.
Place some parchment paper or Silpat onto a large baking sheet and spread the chips in an even layer.
Bake for 5 minutes and stir the chips. Bake for another 2 minutes, watching carefully so the chips don’t burn.
Remove from oven and let cool…. or dig right in if you can’t wait!

Make sure to keep an eye on the coconut chips in the last few minutes because these can go from golden and delicious to charred very quickly. Store them in an airtight container for up to a week…. if they last that long!

Caramelized Onion and Roasted Apple Soup

November 6, 2015November 6, 2015 / ktbuchs87

Have you heard the term, “soup weather”? Not to be confused with soup-y weather, soup weather is what happens when the temperatures start to cool down, maybe it gets a little rainy and windy, perhaps it’s gray and gloomy outside. Soup weather is the kind of weather that makes you just want to sit inside, wrap yourself in a blanket, and eat some soup.

It’s awesome.

Soup weather is just another reason that I love fall. Soup is one of my favorite things to make because it is so easy, but there are so many different flavors, combinations, and even techniques that can make soup feel gourmet or rustic. I could make soup every night, and because there is such variety, I wouldn’t get bored.

While I have my favorite stand by’s (like this chickpea dumpling or slow cooker minestrone), I like to try a few new recipes each year. One soup that I have never had is French Onion soup. When I was younger, I didn’t like onions so anything with onion right in the title was out. By the time that I started to really love onions, French Onion soup really wasn’t on my radar. Then I discovered caramelized onions and I decided it was time to try my own spin on French Onion soup.

Traditionally French Onion soup has a thick layer of cheese on top that you break through and eat along with the onion soup. This soup is not going to have any cheese, but that doesn’t make it any less delicious. I decided to keep it fairly simple but added in roasted apples for a little sweet taste of fall. Overall, I was thrilled with the flavor. A little sweet and a little savory.

You can save a little time with this recipe by caramelizing the onions in your slow cooker the day before. If you do that, this soup comes together really fast and that means you can spend more time snuggling in your blanket and enjoying soup weather!

Caramelized Onion and Roasted Apple Soup

4 large onions, thinly sliced (make them in your crockpot beforehand to speed things up)
1 large granny smith apple, cubed (you can also use any other tart apple)
1 tsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth or water
1 cup celery, sliced
salt and pepper

If you haven’t caramelized your onions beforehand, heat a little olive oil in a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add in the thinly sliced onions and cook low and slow until they turn a deep brown. Make sure you keep the heat LOW, you don’t want to burn or brown the onions. This should take about 20 to 30 minutes.
While you’re caramelizing the onions, you can roast your apples. Preheat the oven to 375. Place the cubed apples in a small bowl and add the teaspoon coconut oil. Toss to coat. Sprinkle the celery salt, fennel seeds, and allspice over the apples and toss again. Spread the apples in an even layer on a parchment or Silpat-lined baking sheet. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and set aside.
In the same pot that you caramelized the onions, add the sliced celery to the onions and bring the heat up to medium-high. Saute the celery for about 7 minutes until soft. Add the roasted apples and stir to combine everything.
Add the vegetable broth or water to the pot, season with salt and pepper, and bring the whole thing to a boil. Cover and lower to a simmer. Cook the soup, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper right before serving.

Simple ingredients turned into something that tastes fancy and awesome. That’s my kind of meal!