Sweetened condensed milk {paleo & vegan}

I wish I could say I was a fall girl. I'm not a fan of the legendary Pumpkin Spice Latte, I don't care for cranberry sauce and I honestly hate wearing pants. I am a beach loving, flip flop wearing, bathing suit and dresses kind of girl.  For me, fall is saved by chunky scarves and sweaters, crunchy leaves and the sudden demand for baking anything and everything that is rich, intensely flavourful and sweet. I'm all for that.

Since it happens to be that time of year again, I figured I would share a simple staple in my fall baking supplies; condensed milk. As a kid, I was one of the weird ones who loved sweetened condensed milk. Licking the back of an Eagle Brand lid was heavenly. Gross, I know, but there was something delicious about it back then. Now I won't touch the stuff, so I figured I would try my hand at making my own.  Condensed milk is useful for many fall and winter recipes, including pies and coconut macaroons. To date this recipe has worked wonders for pumpkin pie, pumpkin bars and coconut macaroons. Once chilled, it turns into a thick pudding, making it a good base for creme brulees or simply to be eaten on its own. It could easily take the place of yogurt in a recipe or simply be used to thicken a recipe that calls for milk or buttermilk. I've tried making it with coconut sugar and xylitol (for a friend who cannot use any other kind of sweetener in her baked goods) and both have worked just fine, although I prefer the caramel flavour that the coconut sugar lends to the milk. Keep this recipe in your back pocket when making your deliciously rich goodies this fall and feel free to let me know what else you're trying!

Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk {paleo & vegan}

1 can Arroy-D Coconut Milk (Do not use light coconut milk or coconut cream)
2-8 tbs coconut sugar, or other sweetener like honey, maple syrup etc, depending on sweetness. (Note: if using Xylitol, use 1-2 tbs as it is extremely sweet. It also thickens faster)
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, do not discard pod

In a small pot, mix all ingredients, including the scraped vanilla bean.

Bring mixture to a boil and let bubble for 20-30 seconds. Reduce heat to low. Mixture should be bubbling slightly, but not quite at a simmer.

Leave on low for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally and scraping down the sides as needed.  Mixture will reduce to half or even less of original amount.  Remove from heat when desired thickness is achieved. (1 hour = runny when cold, 2- 3 hours = thick pudding when cold) Discard vanilla bean.

Transfer to glass bowl or jar and refrigerate. Enjoy as is or use as a replacement for traditional sweetened condensed milk.

Autopiloting and a tasty case of identity crisis {Chewy Chocolate Pecan Brownie Cookies}

Do you ever find yourself on autopilot? We all do it in some way, shape or form. For some, it's doing a repetitive motion at work or school without even having to think about it. For others, we do it when we drive. You know, when you start at point A and suddenly find yourself at point B with no real recollection of how you got there. Scary stuff eh? For me, I turn my autopilot on when I drive and bake. Double threat right there. I constantly find myself driving to work and arriving without remembering much of the drive. Sometimes, when I am supposed to be driving to one of the pools that I work at, I find myself instead en route for the gym, my boyfriend's house or another pool. It's pretty dangerous when you think about it!

As for my autopilot baking adventures, I'd say they can be pretty dangerous too. Take this weekend for example; it was Thanksgiving and I had lots of work to do for the dinner we were going to host. I was making three pie crusts; two gluten free hazelnut sablee crusts and one regular old fashioned wheat. What did I make instead? The fantastically tasty and confused recipe I am about to share with you. I swear it started off innocently enough; one minute I was making pie dough, the next I looked down and I had made brownie cookie dough in my food processor. Oops. My bad.

Even though my unconscious desire to bake cookies ran rampant, everything else turned out great, including the dinner and delicious pies that I topped with some homemade salted caramelized hazelnuts. All other delicious meals aside, these accidental delights are the real winner of my baking adventures this weekend.  After a couple recipe tests to ensure their awesomeness, I can't quite decide what they are. They're fudgy and chewy like a brownie, yet hold together and melt down as they bake as cookies tend to do. The addition of the pecan crumbs simply adds another level of mystery to the tasty problem at hand. Quite the identity crisis don't you think? Taste them for yourself and then call them what you want, but these cookie/brownie treats are bite-sized examples of autopiloting adventures at their finest!

Chewy Chocolate Pecan Brownie Cookies

Makes 12

1 cup slivered almonds

2 tbs almond flour (use 1 tbs less for even chewier cookies)

2 tbs arrowroot powder

1 tbs honey

3 tbs coconut sugar

1/4 cup dark 70% chocolate, melted and cooled

1 1/2 tbs butter

1/4 cup cocoa powder + 1tbs

1 egg

1/2 tsp Soda 

pinch of Salt

1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

Dark chocolate pieces, or round drops of couverture, for decorating 

In a food processor, pulse pecans until they are very small crumbs. Set aside. (or chop them, and then stubbornly refuse to give up, like I did the first time)

Place slivered almonds in food processor and blend until they turn into butter, 5-8 min. 

Melt chocolate double boiler style while almonds are processing. 

Once almonds have turned to butter, add honey and pulse, then add the butter and chocolate then pulse to combine. Add the rest of the ingredients, minus the dark chocolate pieces, and pulse until just combined and dough ball forms.

Transfer to small bowl and place in fridge or freezer for at least 20 min. Preheat oven to 350 while you wait.

When ready, roll out your dough into 12 even balls and roll each one in the pecans to coat. 

Place on a parchment lined baking sheet with enough room for spreading. Place your thumb in the centre of each cookie and press lightly, creating an indent. 

Bake for 6-8 minutes, until cookies have spread and cracked on top, but are not fully cooked. Remove from heat. Immediately place dark chocolate chunks in the middle of each cookie, pressing down slightly. Once finished decorating, transfer cookies to a wire rack or cooler surface and let cool. 

Cookies keep covered and at room temperature for 3-4 days. 

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Ferrero Rocher Cookies

I'm not going to be humble or quiet about this. I am incredibly proud (and astonished) that I went an entire month without eating chocolate. No cocoa powder, chocolate bars, chocolate cake, nothing. That being said, when I woke up this Wednesday after 4 straight weeks sans my number one love, I was more than a little giddy to put some cocoa in my bulletproof breakfast coffee. (We'll skip the story about how I quite literally fell to the floor after taking a bite of my favourite chocolate cake from Thierry in Vancouver.) I didn't do it for health reasons or for dietary reasons, I simply needed to make sure that I could survive without the stuff. It wasn't anywhere near as tough as I'd anticipated, but I definitely won't be taking another break anytime soon.

Spending a month without chocolate also meant I was baking without it too. I did succeed in making a batch of my mexican hot chocolate cookies without sampling any of the batter though! Quite proud over here, if you can't tell. In all honesty though I can bake without chocolate, no problem, but I can't be the only one who loves to taste and then re-taste my recipes. It's all about quality control in this house.

These little nuggets of deliciousness are fantastic just as the recipe calls for, but can also be modified to suit different levels of density, depending on how you like your cookies. These are soft, thick and slightly chewy, but omit 1 tbsp or both tablespoons of coconut flour to create a thinner, chewier version for yourself. Even if you haven't spent a month depriving yourself of the stuff that most baking dreams are made of, whip up a batch of these and give yourself a pat on the back anyways. You deserve it.

Ferrero Rocher Cookies

1 1/3 cup hazelnuts, divided.

1/4 cup dark chocolate, melted (min 60-70%, dairy free, filler free)

1 tbs cocoa (raw, not raw, whatever you like)

5 tbs coconut sugar

2 tbs honey

2 tbs grass-fed butter, melted

1-2 tbs coconut flour (depending on chewy factor)

Pinch Salt

1 tsp Soda

1 tsp Vanilla

1/4 tsp espresso granules or instant espresso

1 egg plus 1 yolk

dark chocolate pieces or disks of high quality couverture, for decorating. 

Preheat oven to 350.

While the oven is heating up, toast 1 heaping cup of hazelnuts until the skins have cracked open and they begin to look shiny. Remove from heat and let cool.

Place room temperature toasted nuts in a food processor and blend until they turn to nut butter. Add in melted chocolate and espresso powder and pulse until combined. Measure to ensure you have about 1 cup of chocolate hazelnut butter. If not, add back some of the mixture, adding a few more nuts and blend. Chunks are ok.

Mix 1 cup of hazelnut butter, sugars, melted butter, egg and yolk and vanilla. Stir until combined.

Using a sifter, sift coconut flour (if using) and cocoa powder with soda and salt over wet ingredients. Fold in until combined.

Roll small 1 1/2 inch balls out onto parchment paper. Press down slightly with chocolate discs or pieces, then fold up sides to cover most of the chocolate. Chop up remaining hazelnuts into small pieces and sprinkle on top of chocolate pieces.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until puffed up and spread out. Let cool 2 minutes on tray, then transfer to racks to finish cooling.

***Side note!! If you want a real deal ferrero rocher experience, chop your hazelnuts really finely and spread on top. If you're feeling extra adventurous, caramelize them in a pan with homemade caramel: 1 tsp water, 2 tbs coconut sugar, let bubble for a few minutes, then toss in crushed toasted hazelnuts to coat, 1-2 min. Dry on parchment then break apart and spread on cookies***