Crumbly Choco-Pumpkin "Cheesecake"

I swear it tastes better than it looks! ;)

Do you love chocolate? What about cheesecake? And pumpkin too? "YES, YES, YES!" should be your answer. ;) I know that's what I would say. Anyways, this is my humble attempt to combine some of Brent's and my favorite treats--chocolate, pumpkin, and cheesecake. 

Ingredients

1 cup almond flour

4 tsp honey

3/4 cup coconut butter

1 and 1/2 tsp fresh lime juice

1 and 1/2 tsp honey

1/4 cup 100% coco powder

1/2 cup coconut cream from can of coconut milk*

1/4 cup organic pumpkin

1/16 tsp freshly ground clove (or a few good shakes)

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp cinnamon

*Tip: Let the can chill in your fridge for a few hours before, then skim off the cream that rises and settles at the top.

Method

Start by blending the cup of almond flour and 4 tsp of honey in a Ninja or blender. Then, press into your dish round or pie pan using a spoon or your fingers to form a crust.

In a medium or large mixing bowl, blend the coconut butter, lime juice and 1 and 1/2 tsp of honey. This is the "cheesecake" base. Split the mixture, scooping about half of it into another medium or large mixing bowl.

Next, blend the coco powder and coconut cream with first half of "cheesecake" base in the large bowl.

Mix the organic pumpkin, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon in with the second half of "cheesecake" base.

Finally, layer the mixes over the crust, pressing each layer gently down with a spoon (or your fingers--who doesn't love to use their fingers?!) to form a solid surface. 

As you can see, I chose to have a layer of chocolate mixture, then a layer of the pumpkin mixture, and lastly a second layer of the chocolate mixture. 

Allow the whole thing to chill in your refrigerator for at least 5 minutes before serving.

I'll be the first to admit, it's a little dry; but Brent and I think the flavors are good. I'll be sure to keep tinkering with this recipe (and post successful updates) so that it's in prime condition for our Paleo Thanksgiving. This year, we're hosting both parents and some of my siblings--it's going to be a zoo! I'm hoping this dessert will tame the masses, that is, if the tryptophan from the turkey doesn't. :-p

21DSD's Sweetener Free Chocolate Almond Butter Cups

Even though Brent's and my sugar detox is over, I still like to check the 21DSD program for delicious ideas. One recipe I resisted while doing the detox was the Sweetener Free Chocolate Almond Butter Cups. I was a bit skeptical, but I have to admit, these are pretty good!

Here's my final product (I just had to take a bite so you could see the almond butter in the center, haha).

Ok, these are not perfect replicas of the Reese's Peanut Butter cups. But I'm willing to bet they are a million times less unhealthy. And the flavors are awfully similar. The chocolate flavor is rich and dark. The sprinkle of sea salt is a perfect complement to both that and the savory almond butter center. In my opinion, almond butter is nearly as scrumptious as real peanut butter.

Anyways, these little guys are a tiny bit chalky, but otherwise very good. I think the next time I make them, I'll play with the recipe a bit. For now, they will certainly satisfy my occasional craving.

As a disclaimer, for those of you who are disappointed that I'm not providing the recipe: I'm sorry, but Diane Sanfilippo of BalancedBites.com has a copyright on her 21DSD program, and as someone who's involved in the publishing industry, I believe in respecting copyrights (most of the time... I'm only human). Plus, I had to pay $21 for the 21DSD program (it's a PDF and it's really quite handy), and if any of you really want to discover the awesomeness that is the 21DSD, you should buy it too. Or, if you just want an almond butter cup recipe, I'm sure someone has one online somewhere. When I get around to tweaking this recipe to suit my tastes--I'm also planning to try it with cashew butter, yum!--then I'll let you all in on the secrets of making these sweet (but completely unsweetened) chocolate cups. ;)

Dairy-Free Mocha Latte

I'm working from home this morning and with the sudden onset of dreary weather (the past few days have been in the 80's and bright, but this morning it was a chill 57 and grey out), I was in the mood for something warm and comforting. "Coffee?" I thought, "No... Maybe tea? No. Maybe, later." I sighed, I wanted something but I wasn't sure what. So I tidied up my breakfast dishes and started to make my way downstairs to my office.