There's nothing better than having warm, apple pie in the summer with some refreshing ice cream! I found a great recipe from pinterest, which I'll post below. I highly recommend this recipe - I followed it exactly, and everyone in my family devoured it in seconds (I'm NOT exaggerating here but then again my family LOVES food).

Recipe adapted from: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Apple-Pie-by-Grandma-Ople/

Ingredients:

• 2 batches of pie crust (you can either make this yourself or get store bought, I got store bought)
• 7-8 small granny smith apples, peeled, sliced, and cored
• 1 stick butter
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 heaping tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp vanilla

5 Amazingly Simple Cake Decorating Ideas - Kitchen Conundrums with Thomas Josheph

Fudgy Avocado Brownies

So, I know this may sound weird - the idea of making brownies with avocados. But, think about this.

According to authoritynutrition.com, Avocados are full of nutrients.

 Avocados are very nutritious and contain a wide variety of nutrients, including 20 different vitamins and minerals.

Here are some of the most abundant nutrients, in a single 3.5 ounce (100 gram) serving (3):

Vitamin K: 26% of the RDA.
Folate: 20% of the RDA.
Vitamin C: 17% of the RDA.
Potassium: 14% of the RDA.
Vitamin B5: 14% of the RDA.
Vitamin B6: 13% of the RDA.
Vitamin E: 10% of the RDA.
Then it contains small amounts of Magnesium, Manganese, Copper, Iron, Zinc, Phosphorous, Vitamin A, B1 (Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin) and B3 (Niacin).
This is coming with 160 calories, 2 grams of protein and 15 grams of healthy fats. Although it contains 9 grams of carbs, 7 of those are fiber so there are only 2 “net” carbs, making this a low-carb friendly plant food.

So, when I stumbled upon a brownie recipe with avocados being one of the chief ingredients, it certainly caught my attention. I for one love avocados, but even so, I've never made brownies before using them.

But nevertheless, I tried it.

And I just want to say that I love them! The dark chocolate does create a VERY chocolate-y flavor, along with the cocoa. I also added sweet and low along with the sugar-free maple syrup, for a sweeter flavor. All in all, I love this recipe, and I'll definitely be using it again!

Kudos to Elizabeth's recipe on her Frugal Mom eh blog!

FUDGY AVOCADO BROWNIES WITH AVOCADO FROSTING

Ingredients:

300 g dark chocolate (chopped or chips)
2 tbsp Coconut oil
2-4 hass avocados, pitted and peeled
1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup less 1 Tbsp. coconut flour

For the Avocado Frosting:

One medium sized hass avocado, pitted and peeled
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3 Tbsp maple syrup

Healthy + Flourless Chocolate Chip Cookies!

So today I tried making a batch of these, except I ran into a couple issues. 

One, I couldn't find oat flour at my grocery store, so I went ahead and used Almond flour. 

Two, I just realized I didn't use the cinnamon, and I also used sugar-free maple syrup to enhance the taste. 

Three, I wasn't sure if they meant just regular salt, but I went ahead and used sea salt. 

And lastly, I added two egg whites for protein. All in all, this recipe is great - it results in very yummy cookies that are very healthy. I'm usually not a fan of dark chocolate, but I liked the rich taste of it with the overall cookie. I'll definitely be using this recipe again! 

I got this recipe from Chelsea's blog Chelsea's Messy Apron. And here's the recipe:

BEST EVER HEALTHY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

 

SAVE PRINT

PREP TIME

10 mins

COOK TIME

10 mins

TOTAL TIME

20 mins

 

Serves: 18 cookies

INGREDIENTS

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 and 1/2 cups oat flour (regular oats blended)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• Optional: coarse sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Take regular old fashioned oats or quick oats and blend them until they resemble a flour or powder in a blender or food processor.
2. Combine the vanilla extract, large egg, and brown sugar in a bowl. Melt the coconut oil and let it cool slightly before adding to the bowl. Beat everything together until just combined.
3. Stir in the oat flour (measured after blending NOT before), baking soda, cinnamon (scale this amount to taste preferences), and salt.
4. Stir until just combined and then fold in the dark chocolate chips.
5. Chill the dough for at least one hour.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
7. Using a cookie scoop (and pack these in the scoop very tightly or they may crumble), scoop out balls of the dough onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Press a few more chocolate chips in the tops if desired.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.
9. Remove and allow to stay on the baking sheet for another 2 minutes before removing to a wire cooling rack.
10. Enjoy!

Quick Tips:

1. Any substitutions NOT recommended. Although some "tried and true" substitutions may work in other recipes, I do not guarantee they work in this recipe. Especially substituting out the coconut oil (it is needed for stability in this recipe)
2. Scoop out the dough with a cookie scoop to avoid the coconut oil coming back to room temperature after the chilling. Don't have a cookie scoop? Use your hands, but then re-chill the dough for 15-30 minutes after the balls are rolled.
3. Pack in the cookies TIGHT in the cookie scoop (or your hands) to avoid crumbly cookies.
4. It is recommended you check your baking soda and make sure it is not expired. Old baking soda will cause an off taste in these cookies and may make them very flat.
5. Measure the ingredients exactly. As with most baked goods, loosely measuring may result in cookies that do not work out.
6. If your cookies are turning out a little dryer than you would like, check the following things: are you packing in the oat flour too tightly? Don't pack in the oat flour and perhaps try spooning and leveling the flour into the cup measurers. Are you measuring the coconut oil when solid? Make sure to measure it in a liquid form. What kind of egg are you using? The recipe calls for a large egg, not medium. I use and highly recommend organic eggs. They are always a little larger than "regular" large eggs and have a yellower yolk which tends to add more flavor and moistness to these cookies.
7. Allow the cookies to cool completely or they tend to be crumbly. They are DELICIOUS right out of the oven, but a bit crumbly until they have cooled all the way.

Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies

So I tried out this recipe yesterday because my sweet tooth has been rather active after helping my dad make chocolate chip cookies on Sunday. My all time favorite cookies are peanut butter, and these will most definitely satisfy anyone's sweet tooth - plus they're actually pretty tasty! I added a bit more peanut butter, though, and my dough came out a bit moist, so putting coconut flour on your fork really helps it not stick for the criss-crossing. Oh, and mine did not raise in the oven, so be mindful that the size you form them will most likely stay while baking!

Anyway, I got the recipe Laura Hickman's blog, which you can find here !

Here's the recipe:

Best Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookie

 

Author:

Laura Hickman

Recipe type:Dessert

Cuisine:American

Serves:24 cookies

Prep time:10 mins

Cook time:15 mins

Total time:25 mins

Print

 

Crispy, dense and satisfying, a low carb peanut butter cookie. Subtract the fiber and they are almost 2 carbs each.

Ingredients

• ½ cup coconut flour
• 1 cup granulated Splenda
• 1 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy, you choose)
• 3 eggs
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Prepare baking sheet with baking parchment or cooking spray.
3. Mix all ingredient in mixer until well combined and dough has formed.
4. Using a tablespoon measure, make balls of dough and place balls on pan. (They don't need to be far apart, they don’t puff up.)
5. Flatten cookies slightly making a crisscross mark on cookie with a fork.
6. Bake for 15-17 minutes till edges are golden brown.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 cookie Calories: 69 Fat: 5.0 Carbohydrates: 4.6 Sodium: 60 Fiber: 2.8 Protein: 2.9

Pumpkin Cookies

These are the PERFECT fall treats. So yummy yet not rich (in my opinion) in pumpkin flavor. If you prefer rich flavoring for that, I suggest using more nutmeg and cinnamon than the recipe calls for. Anyhow, here's how they came out for me:

Source: http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2014/10/melt-in-your-mouth-pumpkin-cookies.html

Yield: 4 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 15-ounce can pumpkin
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 
  
Cream Cheese Frosting:


• 1/2 cup butter, slightly softened
• 1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 lb powdered sugar (about 3 3/4 cups)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ground cinnamon sprinkled on top (optional)
• 
  

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, beat 2 cups butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla; beat until combined. Beat in pumpkin. Add the flour slowly until combined. Dough will be very wet.
2. Drop dough by the tablespoon onto parchment lined sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until tops are set. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.
3. For the frosting: Beat all of the ingredients until soft and whipped. Frost cooled cookies and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Read more at http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2014/10/melt-in-your-mouth-pumpkin-cookies.html#rXHbmZzcDagO7sdX.99

Red Velvet Cupcakes

This is also another recipe from Medi Weight, my dietary clinic. These turned out to be incredibly taste, especially the frosting, which shocked the hell out of me! It was thick and creamy, and...tasted just like original frosting. But keep in mind, this is NO SUGAR ;)

Source: http://www.mediweightlossclinics.com/patients/resources/nutritional/796/

Here are some of my own pictures:

Not my picture:

Preparation

Prep Time:	5 minutes
Cook Time:	20 minutes
Serves:	24
Serving Size:	1 mini cupcake

Ingredients

• 2 scoop(s) Red Velvet Premium Protein
• ½ cup Bob's Red Mill® Almond Meal/Flour
• ½ cup Splenda® granulated
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 2 oz plain, nonfat Greek yogurt
• ¾ cup unsweetened almond milk
• 2 large eggs
• 4 oz light cream cheese
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp Splenda®

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F, and prepare cupcake tin with liners or nonstick spray.
2. Add dry ingredients to large bowl and mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, mix yogurt, eggs, and almond milk, and then add to dry ingredients, mixing well.
4. Pour batter into cupcake tin and bake 20 minutes or until cooked through.
5. For the frosting, powder the Splenda® (or stevia) by pulsing in a food processor. Add cream cheese and vanilla extract and pulse to combine.
6. Cool cupcakes completely before frosting.

Additional Notes

Store frosted cupcakes in refrigerator.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1 mini cupcake
Calories   44	Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 3g	5%

	Saturated Fat 1g	5%
	Monounsaturated Fat 0g
	Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
	Trans Fat 0g

Cholesterol 24mg	8%
Sodium 72mg	3%
Potassium 11mg	0%
Total Carbohydrate 2g	1%

	Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
	Sugars 1g

Protein 3g

6%

Vitamin A	2%	Vitamin C	0%
Calcium	2%	Iron	6%

* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your values may change depending on your calorie needs.