Month: May 2014

Perfectly Paleo Parmesan Cheeze

Broccoli with non-dairy "snow" sprinkled on top. Yum!

Broccoli with non-dairy “snow” sprinkled on top. Yum!

When I found out that dairy products were triggering a lot of the health issues that had plagued me since childhood, I started to give them up little by little. I had been eating foods that I thought were good for me my whole life that had actually been harming me.

The more I cut out, the better I felt. It seemed like a miracle!

The last two foods I took out of my diet (after much resistance!) were yogurt…and my beloved Parmesan cheese.

Pasta, pizza, zucchini, ravioli, Beefaroni, zucchini, summer squash, and broccoli all tasted infinitely better when covered with a generous coating of Parmesan cheese.

I used it so often, I didn’t know how I would live without it and struggled to find alternatives that were even remotely comparable. Fortunately I’ve found a recipe that looks and feels just like it and tastes “cheesy” enough to satisfy! It’s considered paleo, too, because it doesn’t contain any dairy. (I don’t follow the paleo diet exclusively, but whenever I’m looking for recipes, I use it as part of my search since paleo automatically means it’s dairy and gluten free.)

The best part? It’s one of the easiest recipes I’ve made and has only 3 ingredients 🙂 Hooray for simplicity!

Perfectly Paleo Parmesan Cheeze

Parmesan cheese made with "nooch" and cashews!

Parmesan cheese made with “nooch” and cashews!

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 cup unsalted cashews (Trader Joe’s has the cheapest!)
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

Mix it in a food processor until it is the texture of Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle it on cooked veggies, salads, pasta, or on anything else you’d normally use Parmesan cheese. I used it on sauteed broccolini with tomatoes and garlic the other day and on my salads throughout the week, and it was so good! YUM!

You Had Me at “Fudgesicle”

With the weather finally resembling spring and the temps hitting almost 80 degrees today (yay!), I was inspired to share a new recipe for a deliciously decadent summertime (or anytime!) treat…

Fudgesicles!

I remember buying 18-count boxes of fudge pops when I graduated from college and enjoying them every day. Since they were a low-calorie AND sugar-free treat, I thought I was making a healthy choice!

Yum! Homemade fudgesicles!

Yum! Homemade fudgesicles!

Out of curiosity, I looked up the ingredient list for Popsicles Sugar Free Fudgesicles, and this is what I found:

nonfat milk, maltodextrin, lactitol, polydextrose, cocoa (processed with alkali), sorbital, whey, coconut oil, microcrystalline cellulose, tricalcium phosphate, mono- & diglycerides, guar gum, polysorbate 65 & 80, carrageenan, malt powder, salt, cellulose gum, aspartame, artificial flavor, acesulfame potassium, citric acid

Really? Do we need over 20 ingredients in a fudgesicle?? I don’t even know what half of those things are, but I’m pretty sure I don’t need them in my body.

I’m excited to share this recipe because it’s 2-in-1. The same recipe that makes fudgesicles ALSO makes creamy chocolate pudding if you leave it unfrozen. How cool is that?

This recipe is dairy-free and doesn’t contain any refined sugar (or the laundry list of chemicals in the store-bought kind!), and it results in a rich taste and creamy melt-in-your-mouth texture because of the avocado and coconut milk.

Bill and I and two friends tried these for the first time the other day, and we couldn’t tell the difference between these and the “real thing!”

Creamy Chocolate (Avocado) Fudgesicles (Dairy-Free!)

So decadent, chocolately and delicious!

So decadent, chocolately and delicious!

Ingredients

  • 6 medjool dates (pits removed, soaked and then drained)*
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 2 ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
  • 1/2 cup cacao or cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
  • 1 cup canned coconut milk (or other non-dairy milk) – I used full fat coconut milk to make these nice and rich. You can find the coconut milk at any grocery store, often in the international aisle. I use this kind.
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Click here for the full recipe from Tasty Yummies!

Ingredients laid out for the fudgesicles!

Ingredients laid out for the fudgesicles!

We bought the popsicle holders at Home Goods, and they were really cheap! You can also order them online here.

Page 2 of 2

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén