Easy Chocolate Pudding

All I need in this life of sin is a bowl of anything that includes chocolate. 

You know what annoys me about food blogs? When a recipe claims to be easy but has a trillion steps and a trillion more fresh ingredients that need to be chopped. I love to cook and don't mind the extra work, but even I look at some of these recipes and find that language so darn condescending.  It's like me saying this cinnamon roll recipe is easy.  Easy to who?

Anyway...I can say with confidence this chocolate pudding recipe is easy and guess what else? It's pretty darn good, too. 

All you need is 4 ingredients and a blender.

The avocados don't initially give the pudding an overwhelming flavor, but after 24 hours the taste is bitter (likely from the combination of avocado & cocoa powder) and the avocado flavor more pronounced.  

Be sure to update me when you try the recipe and watch me make it below on Youtube. 

If you have some leftovers avocados, a banana, and olive oil around make yourself a facial mask to moisturize your situation. 

Chocolate Pudding

by Brown Vegan

Prep Time: 10

Keywords: dessert vegan

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 5 avocados-peeled & pitted
• 1 cup of raw cacao powder or cocoa powder
• 1 cup of agave syrup
• 1 cup of almond milk (you may want to start with 1/2 cup and increase as needed)

Instructions

Add all ingredients into a blender and mix well. Add a little more almond milk (1 tbsp at a time) if your blender needs help combining the ingredients.

Eat immediately or serve chilled a few hours later.

Best if enjoyed within 24 hours

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Song playing while pitting the avocados...

Pleasure P-You Did Me Wrong

Y'all know there's always a song playing  :-)

Pecan Ice Cream *Dairy-Free*

Even though I ranted a bit the other day about eating out as a vegan, I really do enjoy my plant-based lifestyle.  Overall, I don't feel like I'm making any true sacrifices and I still enjoy a lot of delicious meals and treats.

Case in point.....

I have fond childhood memories of eating pecan ice cream at the Williamsburg Pottery. During the spring and summer months we visited a lot and even though I complained about the heat and the amount of time my mom took to browse the stores, I always knew ice cream was in my near future.

We would sit on a bench outside of a homemade ice cream shop fanning away hungry birds, chatting and licking our cones. Good times!

These days, my own children enjoy gathering around watching the ice cream machine work its magic.  My hope is that our food experiences not only remind them of good times but also set the mark for compassionate eating in their own adult lives.

This ice cream is creamy, delicious and doesn't have a strong coconut flavor.  Even though I haven't tried it yet, a few of my YouTube viewers said using the young Thai coconut water instead of fresh water is just as delicious. Since this ice cream doesn't have the same additives as the store-bought version, it will melt a lot faster.

No worries, though because you'll likely eat all of it as soon as the ice cream maker stops.

Check out the recipe and YouTube video below.

Homemade Pecan Ice Cream

by

Keywords: vegan ice-cream

Ingredients (Serves 5)

• Meat from 1 young Thai coconut
• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for 2 hours
• 1 1/3 cup water
• 2/3 cup maple syrup
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract (alcohol-free works best...I used one with alcohol in the video)
• 1 tbsp lecithin powder or granules
• ¼ cup coconut liquid, melted
• ¾ cup chopped pecans
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

Place the cashews, water, coconut meat, maple syrup, vanilla, lecithin, and salt into a blender and process until smooth.

Add in the coconut oil and blend again.

Chill the mixture for about 40 minutes in the freezer, fold in pecans, and then process according to the ice cream maker instructions.

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Recipe adapted from Going Raw

Do you have fond ice cream memories from your childhood?

Update me if you try the recipe. :-)

Mango Frozen Yogurt-3 Ingredient Treat

I had to get rid of a few mangoes in my fridge, so I figured it was time for a simple naturally sweet treat. :-) 

Mango Frozen Yogurt-3 Ingredients

Mango Frozen Yogurt-3 Ingredients

by Brown Vegan

Prep Time: 5

Keywords: dessert vegan sugar-free

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 3 large mangoes, ripe
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (the one in the carton-not the can) or other plant-based milk
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions

Remove the skin from the mangoes and chop into cubes. Freeze for about an hour.

Place all ingredients into a blender and process until smooth.

Serve immediately or freeze for later.

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Common & MJB "Come Close"

Veganize It! Vegan Pineapple Coffee Cake

Vegan Pineapple Crumb Cake

by Brown Vegan

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 25

Ingredients (serves 5)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup almond milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegan margarine, melted
• 1 (20 oz.) can pineapple chunks in juice, drained

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F. In a bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, milk and vanilla extract; stir until mixture forms a smooth batter. Gently stir in butter.

Spread batter evenly in a baking dish and scatter pineapple chunks evenly over batter.

Bake until pineapple has fallen to bottom of pan and top is puffed and golden brown and springs back slightly when touched in middle, 25 minutes.

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Original recipe

Simple Lemon Creme Cake with Fresh Strawberries

I have a confession to make. I love raw vegan desserts because I can eat them anytime and not feel guilty. Let me clarify...I don't feel guilty about anything I eat. It just makes me feel like a decent mom when I give my kids cake for breakfast.

We woke up this morning and had leftover cake. Guilty as charged. What? I juiced a pineapple for them too. lol

My sister came over this past weekend and I had to make this dessert. She loved it! Woohoo!

I filmed a video about it too. Check it out.

Be sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel here....

 This cake is creamy without the overwhelming flavor of lemon. The strawberries are a perfect touch and the crust is an excellent combination of sweetness and salt.

This recipe is adapted from Ani Phyo's vegan cheesecake recipe. I didn't feel the cake tasted anything like cheesecake, so I changed the name, made a couple of measurement adjustments, and added fresh fruit. This is still Ani's recipe though.

Some tips:

*You can skip the coconut flakes.  It's only used to make lifting the cake out of the serving dish easier.  Another confession? I didn't like coconuts until I became a vegan.

*If you don't have vanilla bean, use 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract instead.

*Use no more than 1/2 cup of lemon juice if you don't want an overwhelming lemon taste.

*You don't have to soak your raw cashews but it will give your cake a more creamy consistency, if you do.

Lemon Creme Cake w/ Strawberries-No Bake

by Brown Vegan

Ingredients

Crust

• 1 ½ cups raw macadamia nuts
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ cup dates, pitted
• ¼ cup coconut flakes (optional)

Filling

• 3 cups raw cashews, soaked for about 3 hours in water
• ½ cup lemon juice
• ¾ cup agave nectar
• ½ cup coconut oil
• 1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup water, as needed

Instructions

To make crust, process macadamia nuts and salt for about 20 seconds in a food processor. Slowly add in dates until mixed well.

Dust the bottom of a dish with coconut flakes and flatten crust on top.

Set aside.

To make filling, add filling ingredients in the food processor (expect water) and mix for about 30 seconds. Slowly add water as needed in the food processor to make a creamy consistency. Pour on crust and freeze for about 2 hours to allow cake to set.

Top with fresh strawberries.

You can also make a strawberry sauce by cutting fresh strawberries into halves, sprinkling on a little sugar and allow to sit covered for about 15 minutes to marinate.

Will keep in the refrigerator for a week.

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Song playing while we unbaked...

Mercy-Kanye West (clean version)