Desserts Archives - Page 6 of 13 - Eat More Rabbit Food

Lightened Up Date Shake

Living in Southern California my entire life, I grew up going to Palm Springs every Easter with my family. Every trip to palm springs always included a quick stop by the date gardens in Indio to get a date shake. Since you guys know I love “healthifying” comfort foods, today is the day for a Lightened Up Date Shake. Traditional date shakes consist of full fat vanilla ice cream, whole milk, and dates. My recipe still consists of 3 ingredients, but adds up to nearly a fraction of the calories! Plus it’s vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free, paleo, and low-fat!

A traidtional date shake adds up to:
Calories: 626
Fat: 25.3g
Sugar: 77.5g
Fiber: 4.5g
Protein: 13.2g

And my Lightened Up Date Shake totals:
Calories: 330
Fat: 1.25g
Sugar: 57.5g (all natural unrefined sugar)
Fiber: 8g
Protein: 3g

Not all sugars are created equal. Say a candy bar (refined sugar) has the same amount of sugar as a banana (natural sugar). They process through your body completely different. Whole fruit has a lot of fiber, which actually slows down your body’s digestion of glucose, so you don’t get the crazy insulin spike (and crash) that candy causes. That also means your body has more time to use up glucose as fuel before storing it… as fat.

That’s the #1 reason why I love using Medjool Dates as a sweetener in baking and other recipes versus regular table sugar!

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Lightened Up Date Shake
Serves 1

3 Natural Delights Medjool Dates, pitted
1 frozen banana
1/2 cup unsweetened original almond milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Remove pits from dates. Blend blend blend until smooth and creamy!

Tip: To make this more filling as a meal replacement, try adding 1/4 cup of dry rolled oats to the blender!

Huge thank you to Natural Delights for supplying the dates for this recipe!

January 7, 2014 | 15 Comments

Desserts, Raw, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Raw Gingerbread Men

Congratulations to the winner of my #ChotallyAwesome Chobani Giveaway: Kaitlin!
Don’t forget to check your email to claim your prize! xo

Giveaway Winner 12:13:13
Merry Christmas Eve Eve little bunnies!

Is it just me or has this holiday season been crazy? I’ve been working on a lot of graphic design projects and I’ve barely had time to create new recipes, which makes me bummed. But today, that changed! It’s been a way-too-warm 70 degrees here in southern California, and as awesome as it sounds to have beach weather and sunshine, it makes it feel less like Christmas. I literally don’t even want to turn on my oven to bake anything because it’s too hot in my house, haha.

Instead of traditional gingerbread cookies, I created a no bake, raw, vegan, paleo, gluten-free, gingerbread cookie recipe with no grains or refined sugars! How do you like them apples?! I don’t want to toot my own horn, but toot toot, this is probably the healthiest gingerbread recipe you will find! Minimal dishes required. What whatttttt!

Grab your almond milk, turn on Elf, and prepare to be a man-eater. ha. ha .ha.
But seriously, these Medjool men are so scrumptious!

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Raw Gingerbread Men

1 cup + 1/4 cup Natural Delights Medjool dates, pitted
1 cup almonds
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp cloves

Before you begin, REMOVE PITS FROM DATES! Combine all spices and almonds in a food processor and blend until finely chopped. Next add the dates and vanilla extract and blend until well combined. Even if it doesn’t resemble dough, it should stick together when pressing it into a ball. Transfer the ball of dough onto a picee or parchment or wax paper, cover with another sheet of parchment paper, and flatten to 1/4 inch thickness with a rolling pin. Remove the top layer of parchment paper and cut into gingerbread men or various shapes using a cookie cutter. Continue balling up the dough, rolling it out, and cutting into gingerbread men until there is no dough left. Eat right off of the plate, or store in refrigerator until serving!

Note: If you don’t have a cookie cutter, you can also roll them into 1 Tbsp sized balls as Gingerbread bites!

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Have a Merry Merry Christmas my loves!
xo Catherine

December 23, 2013 | 12 Comments

Desserts, Recipes, Vegan

Light Vegan Apple Crumble for One

I hope you guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
I am so very thankful for all of my readers.
You make me so happy and inspire me every single day.
Thank you for allowing me to do what I love for a job.
It’s incredibly rewarding and I love hearing your success stories!

Thank you so much for being patient with me the past few weeks! A lot has been going on recently.
Now that the cat’s out of the bag, I can finally tell you guys why I have been so MIA!
I’ve been traveling a ton meeting with RFFMBT brand sponsors,
buttttt the big news is: my sister got engaged!
And of course amidst the chaos along came Thanksgiving and tons of family events!

This was seriously the cutest proposal in the world! I’ve had to keep my mouth closed for a month and it has been the hardest thing in the world! Patrick had asked my dad for his blessing, and then told my mom and I that he wanted to propose. Patrick actually asked me to be a part of the proposal which was so sweet! My sister is a photographer, and since photography is obviously very important to her, Patrick asked if I would hide and capture the proposal on camera (um duhhh this is every girl’s dream!). Of course I was all over it! I ended up hiding in a bush at the beach for 3 hours in the rain while Jess was “photographing” the beach and sunset until they made their way to the proposal sight where Patrick had written “Jessica will you marry me?” in shells and rocks! Both families were waiting at our house with champagne when they got back! It was too cute and I am soooooo happy that I was a part of it! My sister was beyond surprised, she had NO clue it was happening : ).

Of course for me, this means bridesmaid bootcamp! I’m ready to get those arms and shoulders toned for the wedding! I’m patiently waiting for the fiancés to set a date!

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Greetings from my hobbit hole!

Since the holidays are here and dessert is essential at every gathering in my family, I have been inventing some new healthy single serving sweets for you guys. This recipe is the ultimate quick and easy dessert. Serve with nostalgia and the warm cozy feeling of fall!

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Light Vegan Apple Crumble
Serves 1

For the Apple Filling
1 medium fuji or gala apple
2 Tbsp almond milk
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt

For the crumble
1/4 up rolled oats
1 Tbsp whole wheat flour
1/2 Tbsp maple syrup or 1 packet stevia
1 tbsp Earth Balance Buttery Spread with Olive Oil or coconut oil

Optional: Top with 1 cup of Chobani 0% Vanilla Greek Yogurt as a light & healthy ice cream replacement.

Chop apple into small pieces and combine with almond milk, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Microwave for 4-5 minutes until apple becomes soft. In a separate bowl, combine oats, flour, maple syrup, and earth balance. microwave for 1 minute and stir. Place cooked apples in a bowl and top with the crumble mixture.

The Rabbit Food Pyramid Breakdown
Produce: apple
Whole Grain: rolled oats & whole wheat flour
Protein: Greek yogurt
Plant Based Fat: Earth Balance Buttery Spread
Free Extras: salt, cinnamon, nutmeg

December 2, 2013 | 18 Comments

Contests & Giveaways, Desserts, Recipes, Reviews, Vegan, Vegetarian

Healthy Halloween: Reese’s Redo + MaraNatha Giveaway (CLOSED)

This past weekend I took to my Facebook page to ask what your favorite Halloween candy is. Not just because I couldn’t stop thinking about candy, but because I wanted to do a Healthy Halloween recipe for you guys! Winning by a landslide was your favorite chocolate pb treat, Reese’s!

Today I have vegan-ified those little chocolate cups of heaven and traded in the peanut butter for nutritious MaraNatha Maple Almond Butter!

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Warning: This product is highly addictive! I literally ate spoonfuls of this straight out of the jar! As a product that is completely raw with no preservatives, no additives, and no artificial flavors or colors I have to give this 5 stars. It’s smooth yet still has that authentic gritty almond texture mixed in and spreads nicely. The taste is absolutely on par. You get a hint of the maple without it being too overpowering or too sweet. The “no stir” addition makes it soooo easy to use, especially when you keep it in the refrigerator. No more chunks of hardened almond butter stuck in the bottom of the jar!

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Here is why my Reese’s Redo is a part of Healthy Halloween!
Learn why this sweet treat isn’t just delicious, but nutritious too:

5 Fast Facts About Almonds:

contains calcium, zinc, magnesium, and iron
packed with protein
loaded with fiber
contains many important B-complex groups of vitamins
filled with heart-healthy monounsaturated fat

5 Fast Facts About Coconut Oil:

super high in lauric acid
rich in antioxidants
contains natural microbial and anti-bacterial agents
improves metabolism
can help improve cholesterol

5 Fast Facts About Maple Syrup:

contains manganese and zinc
high levels of antioxidants
helps with inflammation
1/4 cup contains more calcium as the same amount of milk
1/4 cup contains more potassium than a banana

5 Fast Facts About Raw Cacao Powder:

contains over 300 compounds including protein, copper, calcium, magnesium, zinc and iron
super high in anti-oxidants
contains 4 different neuro-transmitters that act as anti-depressants
contains essential fatty acids
can help to lower blood pressure

Make sure to read all the way through the post for your chance to win some MaraNatha goodies to make your own Vegan Reese’s Almond Butter Cups!

Vegan-Reese's-1 mix the chocolate

Vegan-Reese's pour evenly

Vegan-Reese's-2 freeze for 15 minutes

Vegan-Reese's-3
Vegan-Reese's-4 drop 1/2 Tbsp of MaraNatha Raw No Stir Maple Almond Butter in each chocolate cup

Vegan-Reese's-5 cover and fill to the rim with remaining chocolate

Vegan-Reese's-6 freeze for 15 minues

Vegan-Reese's-9 enjoy!

Vegan Almond Butter Cups
Makes 12

1/2 cup Maranatha Coconut Butter
1/2 cup raw cacao powder
2 Tbsp grade b pure maple syrup
3 oz of Maranatha Raw No Stir Maple Almond Butter
12 mini cupcake liners

Line a mini cupcake tin with mini cupcake liners. Melt coconut butter/oil and combine with the raw cacao, and maple syrup in a medium size bowl and stir until well combined. Divide the chocolate liquid in half and reserve one half for the “top layer” of the almond butter cups. Pour the chocolate evenly in each liner and freeze for at least 15 minutes or until hardened. Remove the tin from the freezer. Drop 1/2 tablespoon of Maranatha Maple Almond Butter at a time on top of each frozen/hardened chocolate cup. After almond butter has been dropped into each cup, pour the remaining half of the chocolate until filled to the top and almond butter is covered. Carefully place them into the freezer (to expedite the process) for at least 15 minutes or until hardened. Keep almond butter cups in the refrigerator until served because they will melt and lose their shape at room temperature if the coconut butter/oil begins to melt.

It’s your chance to win some goodies from MaraNatha!
One lucky RFFMBT reader will win 1 jar of MaraNatha Coconut Butter, 1 jar of MaraNatha No Stir Raw Maple Almond Butter, 1 jar of MaraNatha No Stir Coconut Almond Butter (brand spanking new product!)!

For your chance to win:
1. Comment on this post telling me your favorite way to eat almond/nut butter.

2. Instagram a photo of how you enjoy almond or nut butter with the handles @RabbitFoodForMyBunnyTeeth @MaraNatha and hashtag #RFFMBTmaranatha
– Leave a separate comment with the URL to your Instagram photo.

This means you can earn up to two entries!
Giveaway ends on Thursday, October 24th at 11:59pm PST.
Winner will be announced on Friday, October 25th! Must use a valid email address when entering. Open to U.S. residents only.

October 22, 2013 | 115 Comments

Desserts, Recipes, Treats, Vegan

Healthy Vegan Cookie Dough Blizzard

I LOVE ice cream, frozen yogurt, but most of all, Dairy Queen’s Cookie Dough Blizzard. When it comes to fast-food soft serves, Dairy Queen’s Blizzard totally trumps their competition. If you aren’t familiar with DQ Blizzards, they’re ultra thick soft serve shakes with various toppings bended in. They’re so thick that when you flip the cup over, nothing comes out!

Although they’re mouth watering good, I have to admit that I feel kind of crappy from the extreme sugar rush upon eating one. Since creating my Healthy Frosty, I have been daydreaming about a healthy healthy Blizzard. Below I have included the calorie count for large DQ blizzards, so you can see how crazy it is!

Nutrition Facts for DQ Blizzards: