Flourless blondies

*** Dairy free, Soya free, Egg free and Gluten free ***

Ingredients

1 can of chickpeas (400g)

125g/half cup of peanut butter/any nut butter

3 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp flavourless oil

1 tsp baking powder

Half tsp baking soda

Pinch of salt

100g/half cup chocolate chips

Method

Preheat oven to 180C/355F. Line a 8 inch square tin.
Drain the chickpeas. Set aquafad aside for use in other recipes.
Put chickpeas and all ingredients, except chocolate, in food processor and put on at medium/high for 10 minutes. (Mixture will be thick and sticky)
Fold in half the chocolate.
Spread mix in tin.
Sprinkle remaining chocolate across top of mixture.
Bake for 20/25 minutes. It should be soft but golden brown on top.
Leave in tin to cool down.
Cut in squares – should make about 9 blondies.

Alternative

Add half cup of chocolate nuts
Add 2 tbsp cocoa powder
Add 1 tbsp chocolate spread

Aquafaba – liquid from the tinned chickpeas

The aquafaba can be used as an egg replacement. It makes really good meringues.

Meringues

Peanut butter porridge fingers

***Dairy free, egg free and gluten free***

Ingredients

1 banana

2 tbsp peanut butter (or any nut butter)

1 tbsp milled flaxseed

50ml warm water

50g flour (any flour)

50g millet flakes (or any other breakfast flakes)

2 tsp corn flour

2 tsp cinnamon

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
Mix the milled flaxseed with the water. Whisk with fork. Set a side for at least 10 minutes.
Mash the banana and add all other ingredients. Mix well.
Put in lined tin and bake for 15/18 minutes. It should start going golden brown but not hard.

Alternatives

Add half a cup of raisins/dried fruit
Add 2 tbsp of maple syrup/honey/golden syrup
Add a grated apple
2 tsp nutmeg instead of cinnamon
Half a cup of dairy free chocolate chips

Sweet potato chocolate loaf

*** Dairy free, egg free, gluten free and no added sugar ***

Ingredients

150g sweet potato (peeled and chopped)

1 apple (peel and cored)

1 carrot (chopped)

100g nut butter (alternatively vegan butter can be used)

200g plain flour (any flour will work)

30g cocoa powder

Method

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius
Boil the sweet potato, apple and carrot until very soft. Drain of most of the water, leaving about a tablespoon of water in the saucepan. Add the nut butter and mash well until smooth (I find it’s easier to use a hand blender to get it smooth).
Add the flour and cocoa powder and mix until completely combined. Any additional ingredients will be added at this stage. Add a little water if it’s too dry.
Put in a loaf tin
Bake in oven for 45/50 minutes.

Alternatives

Add 1 tablespoon of golden syrup/maple syrup/honey.
Add 50g chopped nuts
Add a large tablespoon of chocolate spread
Add 50g chocolate chips
Add 50g raisins or dried fruit
Add one grated apple/carrot
Replace the 50g cocoa with an extra 50g flour.

Cashew squares

*** Dairy free, soya free, egg free, gluten free and no added sugar ***

For the based:

100g Cup of Dates
100g of Cashews

For the cashew topping:

100g of Dates
100g of Cashew Butter
2 tablespoons Coconut Oil, Melted
Pinch of salt

For the chocolate topping:

100g dark dairy and soya free chocolate
1 tablespoon of coconut oil

*** Method ***

Soak all the dates in hot water for about 5 minutes.
Put the cashew nuts in the blender and blend until to get to a flour like consistency.
Fully drain the dates and add half to the blender. Blend until all the dates are broken down and the mixture comes together.
Press the mixture down in a lined baking tray and place in fridge while you make topping.
To make the topping, blend the rest of the dates until as smooth as possible.
Add in the cashew butter and melted coconut oil.
Spread the topping on the base and place in freezer for at least 2 hours.
Melt the chocolate and coconut oil for on top.
Spread the chocolate across the top. Since the cashew topping is frozen, the chocolate will harden very quickly, even as you spread it.
Put it back in freezer to allow chocolate to fully set.
Cut in squares.
They can be stored in either the fridge or freezer and remove as required.