My first attempt at Nanaimo Bars

For the past couple weeks, I've had a severe craving for Nanaimo Bars and/or Lemon Bars (or lime, mmmmmm liiiiime). 

I found a bunch of varying recipes for each online but none of them really seemed to be what i wanted. I finally decided to mix both cravings together in my own zany way and created these evil yummies: Zesty Lime Nanaimo Bars. 

They're not just good, they're decadently scrumptious! (and by far the least healthy recipe you'll find here)




Bottom Layer
½ cup coconut oil (which worked surprisingly well instead of unsalted butter)
¼ cup sugar
⅓ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, lightly beaten
1¼ cups graham crumbs
½ cup shredded coconut
½ cup oat flakes
½ cup chopped nuts (I used cashews, probably should have chopped them more finely)

Mix last 4 ingredients and set aside. Melt first 4 ingredients in top of double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in graham mix 'til well combined. Press firmly into a parchment paper lined 8" x 8" pan (be sure to let the parchment paper overflow on two sides in order to pull out the block once finished). Chill in refrigerator while you prepare the next layer.


Second Layer

½ cup unsalted butter (i didn't dare replace it on my first run, but will next time)
2 tbsp custard powder (I used Bird's)
2 cups icing sugar
1 tbsp freshly grated lime zest (the smaller, the better)
2 tbsp fresh lime juice (next time, i'm getting key limes)

Cream butter, custard powder, icing sugar and lime zest together. Add lime juice and beat until light. Spread over bottom layer and chill in refrigerator.



Third Layer
½ cup dark chocolate 
1 tbsp coconut oil

Melt chocolate and coconut oil in a double boiler. Cool slightly then pour over second layer and chill in refrigerator again.

Before cutting, remove from refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to avoid cracking the top layer. Gently pull out of pan using the parchment paper flaps. Cut into small squares (I cut mine 6x6 so each square is approx 2-3cm wide, ie just big enough without over doing it). Store in the refrigerator in airtight containers. 

Voilà! Enjoy!

ps. I'm not responsible for pounds/kilos gained or teeth lost   :P

raw chocolate Easter... yetis??

I grabbed this super simple recipe from the Earth Diet a while back, finally got around to making it with the kids during Easter weekend.

You're supposed to roll this goop into balls but that's just boring and they end up looking like deer or rabbit droppings, which brings a new spin on "look what the Easter bunny left behind!", héhéhé. Why not mold them into fun shapes instead? This year, Ester and April Fools happen at the same time, so I was originally going to make Easter fish but opted instead for the abominable icemen. Oh yeah!

We had to add a little more maple syrup to the recipe, and a bit of coconut oil (instead of cacao butter, had none) to help with the molding. We put them in the freezer for a couple hours, removed them from the molds and voilà! Raw Easter chocolate Yetis!

Much better looking than the deer/rabbit droppings!    ;)

To make 'em "hairy", dip them in maple syrup, then roll them around in coconut. Raw, healthy and fun to make/eat.

crispy almond butter chews

these are sooooo yummy!! again, we modified the original version a teeeeeny bit and made two versions of 'em: cranberry and chocolate. (though i don't see why combining them would be a bad thing, lol)

3 tbsp smooth almond butter
3 tbsp brown rice syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup rice crisp cereal (we used the brown rice stuff, ie gluten-free, just cuz)
1 tbsp sliced almonds (chopped, could use ground almonds instead)
1 tbsp ground flax seed1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp of semi-sweet dark chocolate chips OR cranberries (chopped)

see link above for directions (cuz i'm too lazy to type it all and they did such a great job anyway, héhéhé). we didn't heat-up the mix in the microwave as suggested in the instructions, it sorta defeats the purpose of using all natural ingredients, i find.


* don't bother trying to mold these into anything but balls, we tried and failed.
** i'm not totally convinced about the sesame seeds yet, will try with 1tsp instead of 1tbsp.

no-bake energy bites

i found this great little recipe and had to try it with the kids. we made them this weekend. omg, sooooo good!  <:)

we changed the original recipe a tiny bit (someone in the house can't eat p-butter or coconut). since they were advertised as not being the prettiest bites, we used fun shaped ice trays to mold them (from ikea).

1 cup oatmeal 
1/2 cup almond butter 
1/3 cup brown rice syrup 
1/2 cup cranberries (chopped-up)
1/2 cup sliced almonds (ditto)
1/2 cup ground flaxseed 
1/2 cup mini dark chocolate chips 
1 tsp vanilla 

mix and mold! voilà! store in an airtight container for up to a week (if they last that long... we had approx 30 bites. pictured here is all that was left... 24 hours later!)