The best guilt-free dessert of almost-ever
By Teralee Trommeshauser
I know I said my next post was going to be some reviews, but I haven’t quite had time to pull that one together, with all my fitness classes up and on the go now, and my experimentation in the kitchen being semi-out of control. The review post will come up soon, hopefully in the next week, but just to keep you interested, here’s some sneak peak information on what I’ll be covering.
I’ll be giving you an easy way to include wholesome, antioxidant-rich, organic blueberries into your diet all year round. And no, they aren’t frozen or dried, and the nutritional value hasn’t been compromised in any way! I’ll also be posting some exercises for lifting, shaping, and sculpting your bee-hind, and spilling the beans on my new favorite underwear. Yes, underwear. What does that have to do with food or fitness, you may be wondering? You’ll have to stay tuned to find out, but let’s just say if they weren’t so amazing, they wouldn’t be finding their way onto my blog (or my butt, for that matter). So all you girls, keep you eyes on the blog, you definitely wont want to miss this.
So just another note before I get at the main part of the blog here. I’m hoping to create some consistency around here, updating a few times a week, and having certain days dedicated to certain topics, like Workout Wednesdays, and Foodie Fridays, or something like that (perhaps less cheesy. If you can give me less cheese, please do. I was hoping for Recipe-something, but no day of the week starts with the letter R. And creating a new day entirely for the purpose of posting on my blog might be a bit selfish, and cause a bit of confusion). If you have any suggestions or comments, send them my way or post them in the comment box below.
Okay, so now what we’ve all been waiting for! I have experimented in the kitchen a lot in the past couple years, creating a lot of amazing desserts, mostly healthy and some unhealthy, but this particular one definitely makes it up pretty high on the list of Favorite Dessert Recipes. Maybe even in the top five, and that’s saying a lot. And there isn’t even chocolate in it! I know! What the hell, right?!
But don’t run off quite yet, you choco-holics, this recipe should satisfy your sweet tooth for now, and within the next week or so I’ll have some deeply satisfying, and completely guilt-free, chocolate recipes up just for you (and if you can’t wait until then, check out the no-bake energy brownie recipe posted on Natural Edge’s Facebook page).
Do you remember my last blog post, with the apple crisp recipe? This is an adaption of that. Actually it’s more like the apple crisp ran off with some cherries, and they had babies and then gave the babies steroids. THAT is what this recipe is like. More or less.
Mini Apple Tarts with Maple Cherry Sauce and Pecan Crumble
Don’t be put off by the amount of steps. This recipe is far from complicated, and is actually quite simple to make.
Tart Crusts:
2 Cups Raw Almonds
1 Cup Raw Pecans (or walnuts, or whatever nut you want)
½ Cup Dried, Unsweetened Coconut
½ Cup Dates (soaked for an hour or two if quite dry)
¼ tsp Sea Salt
Coconut oil
Process the nuts, coconut, and salt, in your food processor until ground to a fine meal. Add the dates, one at a time, while running the machine, until combined.
Grease your mini tart pans with coconut oil, I like to put a baggie over my hand, scoop out some oil, and rub it onto the pan (keeps my hands from getting dirty!).
Press your crust mixture firmly into the pans. Alternatively, you could make one large tart and use a full-sized pie or tart pan.
Place in dehydrator at 110° for anywhere between 6-24 hours, until dry and crisp (I only say 24 hours because I forgot about mine in the dehydrator until the next day, but they turned out great. Six hours should be fine though). If you don’t have a dehydrator, place in a low temperature oven until dry and crisp (I would imagine this wouldn’t take very long, so keep an eye on it. Post your method below to give people better guidelines for using the oven!).
Maple Cherry Sauce
½ Cup Pure Maple Syrup (you could also sub honey, or agave)
½ Cup Dried Cherries, soaked for 20-30 minutes
1 ½ Tbsp Lemon Juice
Dash of Cinnamon
Drain cherries, discarding the water, and place all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.
Apple Filling
4-5 Apples (I used organic Granny Smith), peeled and cored, thinly sliced, and chopped
1 Cup Dried Cherries
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp Nutmeg (optional)
I use one of those apple peeler-corer devices. I love it, and highly recommend you get your hands on one.
Mix everything together in a large bowl, and then mix the cherry sauce in with the apples. Attempt to refrain from eating all the filling.
Pecan Crumble Topping
1 Cup Pecans
1/3 Cup Dates
Dash of Cinnamon
Pinch of Salt
1 Tbsp coconut oil
Process everything in your food processor until combined and crumbly. Try not to over-process.
Once your tart shells are finished, divide the apple filling among all your tarts, and top with pecan crumble.
Dehydrate at 110° for 2-3 hours (or longer if you wish), or place in a low temperature oven, until heated.
I highly recommend eating this with a scoop of homemade, cashew-based, vanilla bean ice cream (trust me it’s better than any other ice cream you’ve ever had – my ever-skeptical mom said that herself). If you want that recipe too, let me know.
And there you have it – A deliciously satisfying, and completely guilt-free dessert. I even made one in a heart-shaped spring-form pan for my boyfriend. I’m so nice I might even let him eat it.
Teralee Trommeshauer lives in Castlegar, BC, and is a health, food, and fitness enthusiast currently working on her Holistic Nutrition and FItness Education certifications. This column originally appeared in her blog, Real Life, Real Health.
