Organic Dessert Pizza

Basically, this is a giant sugar cookie, with frosting and fruit...well, and chocolate chips of course. My son despises fruit so I knew he wouldn't get any dessert on Thanksgiving if fruits were included. And since I made the desserts, I made sure he was able to indulge also. His slice was one with chocolate chips. This was a huge hit with all the children, and most of the adults also.

So, begin with a sugar cookie recipe. I used the following from my Better Homes & Gardens cook book:

2/3 C Organic Butter, Softened
3/4 C Organic Sugar
1 t Aluminum Free Baking Powder
1/4 t Sea Salt
1 Range Free Egg
1 T Raw Milk or Coconut Milk
1 T Organic Vanilla
2 C Organic Flour

Beat butter until creamy. Add sugar, baking powder and salt. Beat until combined. Beat in egg, milk and vanilla until smooth. Beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer then stir in any remaining flour.

Lightly flour baking stone and turn dough onto stone. Press down with hands to make a circle and press out as much as possible with your hands. Use a rolling pin to get dough out close to the edges.

Bake at 375 for approximately 15 minutes or until cookie is lightly browned. Let cool completely.

Frosting:
1 - 8 oz Organic Cream Cheese, Softened
1/2 C Organic Powdered Sugar
Blend together well and spread on cookie

Top with whatever kinds of fruits you like. I used strawberries, raspberries, oranges, blueberries and chocolate chips.

Organic No Bakes

 My cousins made these when I was a kid and now as an adult I’ve re-visited their chocolaty peanut buttery-ness. My daughter begs for them. But then again, she’s easy to please and loves all kinds of food.

Bring to a boil and stir just until sugar is dissolved:

2 C. Organic Evaporated Cane Juice

3 T. Raw Cacao Powder

½ C. Organic Butter

½ C. Raw Milk

Pinch of Sea Salt 

Add In:

3 C. Organic Rolled Oats

½ C. Organic Raw Peanut Butter (I blend my own*)

1 t. Organic Vanilla 

Drop onto wax paper by the spoonful. Put in refrigerator and cool 'til hard.

*I buy roasted salted peanuts from the Nutty Guys through a local vendor. I prefer these to the peanut butter stock type of peanuts. It has a much better flavor.

 

Enjoy! Happy Baking!

 

Organic Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies With Quinoa

 I really love quinoa. It is actually a seed and is gluten free. It is also a great source of protein. Besides making quinoa as a side dish like I would as with rice, I grind it into flour to use in baking. If I use it in breads, my husband thinks it tastes bitter. I've heard that about quinoa, but I never taste the bitter flavor. But, when I use it in cookies, I get no complaints! Just substitute regular white flour in your cookies with quinoa flour. It has a nice consistency and kind of a nutty flavor, something maybe a little like a granola bar.

·       Blend together: 1 C. Softened Organic Butter, 1 C. Organic Evaporated Cane Juice (white sugar) and 1/2 C. Organic Brown Sugar (I use *sucanat).

 

·       Add: 2 Free Range Eggs and 2 t. Organic Vanilla. 

·       Mix and add: 3 C. Organic Quinoa Flour, 1 t. Sea Salt, 1 t. Aluminum Free Baking Soda. 

·       After dough is blended, stir in: 1/2 C. Raw Chopped Nuts (optional), 1-1/2 C. Organic Rolled Oats, 6 oz. Chocolate Chips (I use **Enjoy Life® brand). 

I actually prefer raisins instead of chocolate chips so I'll half the batter adding chips to one half and raisins to the other. They make for a richer, sweet salty flavor in the cookies.  

·       Drop by spoonfuls on a baking stone and bake at 350° for about ten minutes. 

*I like using sucanat because it hasn’t been processed as much as brown sugar. And, you can substitute it for white or brown sugar. I do blend it though first before using or it doesn’t mix in or dissolve as quickly. I’ll buy a bag and blend the whole thing and then store it in the cupboard.

**I use Enjoy Life® baking chips or chunks. These are the only chocolate chips I have found, or any chocolate for that matter except raw cacao powder, that does not contain soy/soy lecithin. (They are also gluten and dairy free.) Soy is in so many foods we purchase, especially anything containing chocolate, and most baked goods. Soy in our diets can make us estrogen dominant which can lead to breast issues for women (maybe for men also, I’ve never looked into that). Soy is safe in a fermented state. Ancient cultures only used fermented soy.

I love baking stones. I'd love to have my pantry full of stone baking dishes. I have ones from Pampered Chef, Target and Bed Bath & Beyond.

Organic Chocolate Graham Cracker Cookies

I remember my Mom would make these when I was a kid. I still love them and now so do my kids. They are so easy to make and keep nicely in the frig for over a week.

Ingredients:
Graham Crackers (I use Erewhon Organic Honey Grahams)
3 C. Organic Powdered Sugar
1 C. Raw Cacao Powder
4 T. Organic Butter
Approx ½ C. Raw Milk, added a tablespoon at a time
1 t. Organic Vanilla

I start with the powdered sugar, cacao powder and butter and get them mixed together nicely. Then I add a tablespoon or two of milk and the vanilla. I work it all together for a consistency I like, then I go for taste. If it’s not sweet enough or not chocolaty enough I add more powdered sugar or cacao powder. If it’s way too thick I add more milk, etc. until I like the end product. You’re looking for a creamy, moist  spreadability.

Break graham crackers in half, spread on a gob of frosting, top with the other half and you’re done.

I keep them in the refrigerator. This helps the frosting set up a bit and makes the crackers a little soft.

˜˜˜For a vanilla version that tastes like Mother’s Circus Animal Cookies, you know the pink and white ones? Omit the cacao powder and add more powdered sugar. SO YUMMY!

 

**All ingredient quantities are approximates. I really don’t have hard fast amounts for the ingredients in this recipe.  I mix and blend, mix and blend until I get the consistency and taste I want. I’ve only ever used Erewhon brand graham crackers. I haven’t seen other organic brands in the stores near where I live.

Chocolate Covered Pumpkin Layer Cake

Chocolate Covered Pumpkin Layer Cake

I wanted to make this for Thanksgiving last year, hence the pumpkin, but there was never time and there were already so many desserts. So, I pulled out the recipe a couple months later one night for my family to try and wham bam thank you mam was the answer! Huge hit, soooo yummy! The sculpture atop the cake is my son’s invention, funny boy.

*Adapted from Recipe.com

¾ C. Organic Flour

1 ½ t. Organic Pumpkin Spice Mix

1 t. Aluminum Free Baking Powder

¼ t. Sea Salt

3 Range Free Eggs

1 C. Organic Sugar

¾ C. Organic Canned Pumpkin

Sift together dry ingredients. Mix eggs and sugar then add pumpkin. Mix together well with dry ingredients. Pour in two greased and floured cake rounds. Bake at 375°, 15 min. or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 min, remove from pans to cool all the way.

Filling: Beat ½ C. organic whipping cream. Beat ½ of an 8 oz. package organic cream cheese with ½ C. organic powdered sugar. Fold in the whipped cream. Spread between layers of cake.

Frosting: Bring ½ C. organic whipping cream to just boiling and remove from heat. Pour over 1 C. organic chocolate chips (Enjoy Life® brand is what I used) in a heavy glass bowl (I used a 2 C. measurer). Let sit for 5 minutes. Mix and spread over cake. You may need to refrigerate to thicken it up a bit before spreading. Mine still had some chips that hadn’t melted. Happy Baking!