Acorn Squash Muffins GF, BED, SCD & Paleo!

Hey Guys!! I'm still riding the wave from the Fourth of July up our lake home in Wisconsin.
My sister-in-law and I were fedora sisters on the boat!

I'm back in NYC now -- this weekend its supposed to be mid-90s with high humidity. Uugh. So I'm taking a mental vacation back to the Northwoods where it was 70 degrees!

One tradition that has been in my family forever, is that every Fourth of July, everyone brings some sort of baked goods. My mom and aunt are famous for their Monster Cookies! They're amazing - peanut butter, coconut, raisins - they're SO good. (I've Happy Tummy - ified them in my e-cookbook, The Best of GlutenFreeHappyTummy (only $2.99 on Amazon!)) Unfortunately, they're not SCD friendly --  SO this year I decided to make Acorn Squash Muffins! They're Gluten Free, Body Ecology Diet & Specific Carb Diet Friendly and Paleo!

Sorry for the less-then-stellar photos...I baked them at night when the lighting wasn't great so they'd be fresh for everyone in the morning.

I didn't just make these for me. My dad and brother are both "low-carb-ers." They follow the Atkins diet, which is literally the Paleo "caveman diet!" It's funny - we're basically on the same diet -- no grains! (except I don't eat meat and they definitely do:) ) So I made these muffins so they could have a baked good to enjoy too! And let me tell you--they LOVED them!! My pops let me take a pic of his mid bite:)

Here's what you need: (Makes 13 muffins)

3 egg whites
1/4 c coconut milk
5 droppers-full of pure liquid stevia (SCD use 1/4 cup honey)
2 tsp alcohol free pure vanilla extract
2 cups acorn squash
1 cup almond flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prick your acorn squash (I used 2) all over with a fork and microwave them for about 7 minutes, flipping them with an oven mitt half-way through. Carefully take out the squash with an oven mitt and let them cool for several minutes. Then, cut them in half and scoop out the seeds and discard. Scoop the flesh of the squash, and put in the food processor. Process until smooth. Put the flesh into a clean kitchen towel (or several paper towels) and wring out any excess liquid.

In a medium sized bowl, combine your egg whites, stevia, coconut milk, and acorn squash with a wisk. It will be a very wet mixture.

In another small bowl, combine your dry ingredients. Stir together your dry with your wet. It will be a loose batter. Scoop 1/4 cup of the batter into your lined muffin tins.

Bake for 1 hour 35 minutes on the middle rack. I liked mine chilled in the fridge!

Nutrition Information: Serving size 1 muffin
65 Calories
4.1 grams of fat
4.9 g carbohydrates
1.8 g fiber
3.1 g net carbs
3 g protein

These little muffins were SO GOOD!! Oh my gosh, they were such a treat! They taste just like pumpkin bread! They're the perfect sweetness, spicy and warm. And they're moist and chewy!

There's a nutty undertone from the almond flour, which compliments the cinnamon and the earthy sweetness of the squash!

And the menfolk LOVED them. They also loved that each muffin had only 3 net carbs! They enjoyed one every morning with their coffee. I was so glad to be able to offer them something "bready" since that's not part of their everyday diet!

Although - let's be honest....by the end of the vacation, they treated themselves (and their wives) to a Brandy Alexander ice cream drink. Check this out -- have you ever SEEN an ice cream drink that big!?!? The photo doesn't do it justice -- it was served in an extra large margarita glass and was bigger than my head! Yes, you're seeing that correctly - it's piled about 9 inches ABOVE the rim! There were 2 PINTS of ice cream in each drink! They do it big in the Northwoods!

I treated myself that night to vodka with seltzer and muddled lemon and lime:) Haha not quite as decadent:)

I have a SUPER exciting recipe to share with you on Sunday! I can't wait!!! See you then!

Monkey Muffies! GF, V, SCD!

Monkey Muffies? What the heck is that?!

Monkey Muffies!

Well, I don’t know about you, but back in my muffin-eating days (read: gluten-consuming days), if I ever ate a muffin (which was rare), I would only eat the top. It was my favorite – the softest, and most moist (say that 5x fast!) part of the muffin. I would always pawn the rest off on one of my brothers or my dad. :)

so healthy!!

So, a Monkey Muffie is the top of a Banana Muffin! I created that consistency by baking muffin batter on a cookie sheet — no pawning needed! :)

amazing texture!!

Moist, chewy and completely delicious!

And they’re Gluten Free, Sugar Free, and Specific Carb Diet friendly with a Vegan Option!

Here’s what you need: serves 2 (7 little cookies)

1 very ripe banana, sliced
1/2 cup almond flour
1 egg white (Vegan Option: 1 flax/chia egg)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 dropper-full of pure liquid stevia (SCD use 1 tsp honey)
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place your banana slices in a Pyrex (or microwave safe) measuring cup. Microwave the banana for 1 minute on high. (This literally “melts” the banana, allowing smooth and even distribution for your cookies!) Allow it to cool for about 6 minutes (so it doesn’t scramble the egg). Then, combine all the rest of your ingredients together in a bowl. (that easy!)

Scoop 1 Tbsp of the batter on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.I know that seems like a long time, but the banana makes the batter very wet. Makes 7 muffies.

yum x 3!

These little Monkey Muffies were heavenly! They were bite-sized, yet packed with goodness! They weren’t overly sweet — juuust right:) You could definitely taste the banana, but with the cinnamon and vanilla, it was the perfect delicate flavor with the nutty almond flour!

delicate banana and cinnamon flavor!

And they were so chewy and soft!! The outside was golden brown and slightly crisp, while the inside was just wonderfully pillowy and soft! And super moist from the banana too!

The texture was much like the top a muffin! I’d call them a hybrid of a cookie and muffin:) Delightful!

I may or may not have eaten all of these cute little muffies:)

“Hey! What about me!? I’m cute and little too!” – Roxy :)

Next time you need a sweet treat, give these a go – they’re wonderfully healthy and utterly delicious!

And for a quick NYC update, today was a busy day – unpacking, stocking the fridge with groceries, handy man stuff (assembling furniture that arrived while I was gone) and seeing friends!! And just a side not that I didn’t mention is that my dad is with me!! He’s dropping me off and making sure I’m all settled in the new apartment…how lucky of a gal am I?

union square greenmarket!

More Gotham adventures in store tomorrow!

love these streets

What’s your favorite type of muffin or cookie?

Until tomorrow!

SF Almond Pillow Cookies!! GF, SF, BED!

Today, I made a delicious discovery in the world of sugar-free, grain-free baking.

super stuffed!

Almond. Pillow. Cookies.

SOOOO delicious! Light as air, fluffy, sweet, and delicate! And they’re Body Ecology Diet approved!!!

delicious little muffins!

Aaaand, if that’s not enough, you can use the same batter to make mini muffins, or soft cannolis, which i did:)

vegan Cashew Coconut Cream!

The cookies are not vegan, as I used egg whites — and I don’t think a chia/flax egg would work as a substitution. However, the Cashew Coconut Cream that I filled the cannoli and stuffed the cookies with is!

cannoliiiii!!!!!!

Here’s the batter:

2 egg whites, whipped to stiff peaks
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
3/4 cup almond flour
2 “dropper-fulls” of pure liquid stevia — about 40-45 drops (BED use alcohol free)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (BED use alcohol free)
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 325. In a stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat your egg whites, stevia, cream of tartar and vanilla until you get stiff peaks – on high for 8 minutes.

Now, a funny thing happens when you whip egg whites with stevia. It’s like the egg whites become “bubbly.” They fluff up and look like your usual huge mass of stiff peaks, but when you go to stir in your almond flour, they instantlydeflate, as though they were just tiny bubbles. But that’s ok! They’ll still puff up in the oven!

So now that you have a mixer bowl full of fluffy egg whites, sift in your almond flour and salt. Then, fold it in. The whites will instantly deflate, and you’ll be left with a small amount of batter, but just hang in there…you’re doing it right!

fresh from the oven!

For cannolis:
Cut 8 small-ish squares of parchment paper. Place about 2 Tbsp of batter on the parchment. Then, place another pice of parchment paper on top, and spread out the batter until it is fairly thin. Leave the top paper on! Then, carefully roll the “parchment sandwich” into a cylinder, and bake seam-side-down for 10 minutes. Let cool, and then carefully peel the parchment papers off. Fill with the Cashew Coconut Cream — recipe below.

For cookies:
Spoon your batter into a ziplock baggie, squeeze it down to one corner, and then snip off that corner. You’ve just created a make-shift pastry bag! Now, pipe little circles onto a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. About 1 Tbsp worth. Bake for 10 minutes.

pillowy little cookies!

For muffins:
Line your mini muffin tins with paper liners. Then, with the same make-shift piping bag as above, fill the muffin tins 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 15 minutes. I placed an almond on top before baking:)

in their fashion liners:)

Cashew Almond Cream:
1/3 cup of raw cashews
5 Tbsp coconut milk (I used light)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (BED use alcohol free)
2 “dropper-fulls” of pure liquid stevia – about 40-45 drops (BED use alcohol free)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

For the cream, blend the ingredients in your food processor. You’ll need to scrape the sides once or twice. Process until smooth and creamy!

I put this cream in my make-shift piping bag, and filled my cannoli with it, as well as make super-stuffed cookie pillow sandwiches!

This is the same cream that I used for myCashew Custard in Cinnamon Crunch Bowls!

Cashew Custard in Cinnamon Crunch Bowls!

These cookies were so delicious! They were SO light and delicate — like pillows! And they were just the perfect sweetness, with a hint of almond and vanilla. They went beautifully with the decadent cashew cream.

yum!!!!

And the muffins! My goodness! They were so amazing — they were like cupcakes! Light  and fluffy, with a sweet, delicate flavor.

so cute:)

Finally, the cannoli was wonderful. I put one in the freezer and had it for a bedtime dessert :D It was fabulous! Like an ice cream sandwich!

And since it’s the same batter, you can make all three at once:) I made 3 cannoli, 2 muffins, and 3 cookie sandwiches. All devoured by the 3 of us in one day!

It was a great day to say the least:)

What’s your favorite type of cookie?

See ya tomorrow!

I got to use two of my favorite appliances for these cookies. My food processor, and my stand mixer! They're such quality tools and I use them nearly every day.  Here's the ones I use: