Caramel Chocolate Chip Blondies | sugar-free, vegan, gluten-free, keto, paleo, egg free, dairy free, low carb

Basically, if you can imagine the taste of a gooey chocolate chip cookie but stuffed with rich caramel, you’ve got a caramel chocolate chip blondie. Pure gold! These babies are so simple to make and require only 8 ingredients!

These healthy blondies are sugar free, dairy free, gluten free, vegan, egg free, low carb, diabetic friendly, keto and paleo! When I started learning how to bake healthier desserts, I never imagined that they would be THIS GOOD! They honestly taste just like real desserts.

Ingredients

For the caramel:

1 16oz can full-fat coconut milk

½ cup granulated monkfruit for sugar-free (or coconut sugar for refined sugar-free)

¼ tsp sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

optional: mix with ⅛ tsp cocoa powder with a little water and then add to the caramel to give it more of a brown caramel color)

For the blondies:

2 cups almond flour, spooned & leveled

¼ tsp sea salt

2 tsp baking powder

¼ cup almond butter

2 Tbsp avocado oil (or coconut oil)

½ cup granulated monkfruit for sugar-free (or coconut sugar for refined sugar-free)

2 tsp vanilla extract

2-4 Tbsp water

½ cup chocolate chips (I use vegan & sugar-free chocolate chips)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven the 350°F.

2. Add all of the ingredients for the caramel to a large saucepan and turn on the stove to medium-high heat. Mix the ingredients together well and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for about 15-20 minutes, stirring periodically, until the mixture turns to a caramel consistency. Once it has reached a caramel consistency, take the pan off of the heat and let it cool slightly.

3. While the caramel is boiling, add the almond flour, baking powder and sea salt to a small bowl and mix together.

4. In a separate medium sized bowl, add the avocado oil and the almond butter together and mix well. If they are not mixing together, heat up and melt them slightly to get them to combine together. Next add the granulated monkfruit, vanilla extract and 4 Tbsp of water and mix well. Add the almond flour mixture to the wet mixture and combine. It should be the consistency of thick cookie dough. Last, add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.

5. Add about half of the dough to a 8”x8” baking dish and press into the bottom to make sure the entire bottom of the dish is covered. Next, poor the caramel on top of the dough in the pan and make sure its evenly spread on the pan. Last, crumble the remaining dough evenly on top of the caramel. Add more chocolate chips if you want and press the dough and chocolate chips gently onto the caramel.

6. Place baking dish into the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. When the top slightly starts to turn golden, remove the dish from the oven. Let these cool completely in the fridge before cutting and serving. Once cooled, enjoy!

Vegan Keto Vanilla Ice Cream | sugar free, dairy free, low carb, gluten free

I use to be intimidated by making homemade ice cream because I thought it was super complicated, but it’s honestly so easy! This sugar free vanilla ice cream is creamy, rich and so smooth! It’s extremely simple to make and it’s perfect for on top of desserts, for ice cream sundaes or for eating by itself! It’s also dairy free, gluten free and low carb! Plus, you can be confident that you’re only using clean ingredients and not consuming any chemicals or additives that most store-bought ice cream has. If you’re trying to eat healthier but you miss your ice cream, this is the perfect recipe for you!

Vegan Keto Vanilla Ice Cream
8 servings

For those who are curious, click here for the ice cream maker I use! I was hesitant about buying an ice cream maker at first because I thought it would be difficult/confusing to use and I wondered if I would use it enough, but let me reassure you that it’s extremely easy to use and I use it multiple times per week. It’s one of my favorite purchases I’ve ever made!

Ingredients:

• 2 (14oz) cans full-fat coconut milk

• 1/2 cup soaked raw cashews

• 1/2 cup granulated monkfruit (or other sweetener of choice)

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 vanilla bean, sliced and scraped (or vanilla bean paste or vanilla bean powder)

• Pinch of sea salt

Directions:

1. Make sure your ice cream machine bowl has been in the freezer at least overnight. Also, place your cashews in water to soak overnight. If you forget to soak your cashews, simply boil them in some water until soft and then drain and let cool. 

2. Pour 1 can of coconut milk and the soaked cashews into a blender and blend until creamy. Add the remaining ingredients and blend just for a few pulses until combined. 

3. Assemble your ice cream maker and turn it on. While running, pour the ice cream mixture into the ice cream maker bowl. Let it churn until the ice cream is frozen enough to stop moving. The time it takes will depend on your ice cream maker. Mine typically takes about 25 minutes.

4. Once the ice cream stops moving, it should be like soft serve consistency. Turn off the ice cream maker and scoop out all of the ice cream into a sealed container. Place in the freezer to firm up for about 2 hours. If you leave it longer than two hours, it will get firm, so just make sure to set it out on the counter to unthaw for about 20 minutes before eating.

5. Serve and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts per serving (two scoops):
calories: 140kcals 
net carbs: 4g
sugar: 2g
fat: 14g
protein: 2g

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Blondies | sugar free, dairy free, gluten free, low carb & keto

Anything that has chocolate and peanut butter is my idea of the dream dessert! Am I right?! This easy recipe for my healthy Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Blondies is going to have you hooked! They are perfectly moist and gooey on the inside but are thick like a brownie. They are sugar free, dairy free, gluten free, low carb & keto!

Servings: 16 large blondies
Difficulty Level: Easy

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 20-25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Dry:
• 3/4 cup almond flour (spooned and leveled)
• 3/4 cup granulated monkfruit (or coconut sugar for refined sugar-free)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Wet:
• 1 cup natural peanut butter
• 1/4 cup monkfruit maple syrup (or pure maple syrup for refined sugar-free)
• 1 Tbsp almond milk (or other milk of choice)
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Add-in:
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (I use Lily’s sugar-free & dairy-free chocolate chips)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. In a large bowl, beat together the maple syrup, nut milk, vanilla extract and eggs. Add in the granulated monk fruit and beat until well combined. Next beat in the almond flour, baking soda and sea salt.

4. Add the peanut butter to the bowl and stir in by hand using a spoon. Do not use an electric beater to mix in the peanut butter because this will make the oil to separate from the peanut butter. Add in the chocolate chips and stir by hand.

5. Add the mixture to an 8”x 8” baking dish. Spread out evenly into the pan. Sprinkle more chocolate chips on top if you would like!

6. Place the pan into the preheated oven and bake for 25-35 minutes. Don’t let the edges get too brown. The middle will still be gooey and soft but will firm up when it cools. Remove from the oven and let cool. If you want to speed up the cooling process (because you can’t wait, like me haha) you can set the slightly cooled pan into the fridge or freezer on top of a hot pad. Once cooled completely, cut into squares and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts per large blondie:
calories: 97kcals 
net carbs: 2g
sugar: 0g
fat: 8g
protein: 4g

Also, I was going to let you guys know that I’m going to be doing the 21-day No Sugar Added challenge that Lily’s Sweets (a.k.a. my favorite chocolate brand!) is doing starting on January 21st! Click here to sign up!

Sea Salt Almond Butter Cups | sugar-free, dairy free, gluten free, low carb, keto, vegan, paleo

These sea salt almond butter cups are the perfect, easy treat! They only take five minutes to make plus they’re Vegan, sugar-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, Keto, Paleo and low carb! Be prepared because after one bite, you’re going to want to eat these everyday!

Instructions:

1. Melt some chocolate chips (I use Lily’s sugar-free/vegan chocolate chips) with a little coconut oil in a pan on low until fully melted.

2. Using muffin liners or tiny bowls/ramekins, fill the bottoms with enough chocolate to cover. Put in the freezer to harden slightly while making the filling.

3. In a bowl, add a big scoop of almond butter as well as a little scoop of almond flour (just enough to make it thick like cookie dough), some stevia to taste (or sweetener of choice), a dash of sea salt, and it’s optional but you can also add some vanilla extract or a little coffee flavor (that’s my favorite option). Mix all of these ingredients together well. 

4. Add a scoop of the filling on top of each of the chocolate covered liners or ramekins. Smooth the filling out flat then stick 3-4 whole almonds on top. Then cover with the remaining melted chocolate and sprinkle with a little sea salt. 

5. Place in the freezer to harder up then pop out and enjoy!

Soft & Chewy Thumbprint Sugar Cookies filled with Cream "Cheese" Frosting | Sugar-free, Keto, Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Low Carb, Paleo

These thumbprint sugar cookies are perfectly soft and chewy and are filled with a delicious dairy-free cream “cheese” frosting! I gave one of them to my husband to try and he said asked for the whole plate haha! They’re super easy to make and they’re also sugar free, gluten free, dairy free, low carb, Keto & Paleo! Enjoy!

Servings: 24 cookies
Difficulty Level: Easy

Preparation time: 40 minutes (includes chilling)
Baking time: 8-12 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Cookies:
3/4 cup coconut oil, softened
3/4 cup golden monkfruit (or coconut sugar for refined sugar-free)
1 large egg, room temperature
1 + 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
2 + 3/4 cups almond flour (spooned and leveled)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp seat salt (I use Himalayan sea salt)

Frosting:
1 1/4 cup powdered monkfruit (or 1 cup granulated monkfruit blended into powder)
1 8oz container dairy-free cream cheese
5 Tbsp coconut oil, solid
3/4 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp sea salt, to taste (I use Himalayan sea salt) 

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the softened coconut oil and monkfruit for about two minutes until fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla and almond extract for another minute.

3. In a medium bowl, mix the almond flour, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt together. Gradually add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture in the large bowl while beating. Combine well.

4. Place the dough in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes.

5. While the dough is chilling, use another bowl to cream together the frosting ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Place in the fridge to chill. See notes if you don’t have a food processor*

6. Once the dough has chilled, use a small cookie scooper to scoop the dough onto a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper. Scoop eight cookies per baking sheet. Roll each scoop into a round ball using your hands, place the dough back onto the pan and press an indent into the middle of the cookies using your thumb. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 8-10 minutes. 

7. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool completely. Once the cookies have cooled, fill the indents with cream “cheese” frosting and enjoy!

Notes:
* Using a food processor will result in the creamiest frosting, but if you do not have one you can can use an electric mixer. To avoid clumping, make sure the cream cheese is room temperature and beat it together with the powdered monkfruit until combined. Then add the coconut oil (melted, since you’re using an electric mixer), almond extract and sea salt. It will be runny, so you will need to let it chill in the fridge longer than if you using the food processor.

Nutrition Facts per cookie:
calories: 115 kcals 
net carbs: 1g
sugar: 1g
fat: 11g
protein: 3g

Soft Gingerbread Cookies with Cream "Cheese" Frosting | Sugar-free, Keto, Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Low Carb, Paleo

These frosted soft gingerbread cookies are the perfect thing to get you in the mood for the holidays! They are so delicious that you would never know they are gluten-free, dairy-free and sugar-free. Made with all natural ingredients and no artificial sweeteners, you can eat as many as you want! They are low carb, diabetic friendly, Paleo and Keto diet approved!

Servings: 35 cookies
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 10-12 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Cookies:
3/4 cup coconut oil, softened
1 cup golden monkfruit (sub with coconut sugar for non-sugar free)
1/4 cup monkfruit maple syrup (sub with honey or pure maple syrup for refined sugar-free)
1 large egg, room temperature
3 cups almond flour
3 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or 3/4 tsp cinnamon + 1/4 tsp ground cloves)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt (I use Himalayan sea salt)
3 tsp coffee extract (this is optional but it adds the dark color and a rich flavor)

Frosting:
1 1/4 cup powdered monkfruit (sub with 1 cup granulated monkfruit blended into powder)
1 8oz container dairy-free cream cheese (or regular cream cheese for non-dairy free)
5 Tbsp coconut oil, solid
3/4 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp sea salt, to taste (I use Himalayan sea salt)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the softened coconut oil and sugar for about two minutes until fluffy. Beat in the egg and maple syrup for another minute.

3. In a medium bowl, mix the almond flour, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and sea salt together. Gradually add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture in the large bowl while beating. Combine well.

4. Place the dough in the fridge to chill for about 15 minutes. Don’t skip this step or the cookies will spread too much during baking.

5. While the dough is chilling, use another bowl to cream together the frosting ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Place in the fridge to chill. See notes if you don’t have a food processor*

6. Once the dough has chilled, use a small cookie scooper to scoop the dough onto a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper. If you left the dough in the fridge for too long and it firmed up too much, let it sit out at room temperature for a few minutes. Scoop eight cookies per baking sheet. Roll each scoop into a round ball using your hands and flatten just slightly. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 10-12 minutes. 

7. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool (they will be very soft). Once the cookies have cooled, frost them generously and enjoy!

Notes:
* Using a food processor will result in the creamiest frosting, but if you do not have one you can can use an electric mixer. To avoid clumping, make sure the cream cheese is room temperature and beat it together with the powdered monkfruit until combined. Then add the coconut oil (melted, since you’re using an electric mixer), almond extract and sea salt. It will be runny, so you will need to let it chill in the fridge longer than if you using the food processor.

Nutrition Facts per cookie:
calories: 130kcals
net carbs: 1g
sugar: 0g
fat: 10g
protein: 2g