Well, apart from opening gifts on Christmas morning !

Calendars are marked, count downs are set  and on December 1st – the pestering requests begin.

I know, I know this recipe is a little more work than I usually like to do as there is some dough chilling and rolling involved ( no pre-baking though ) which is probably one reason that I only make them once a year but hear me when I say, apart from a little exercise in patience they are super, super easy to make and 100% worth it.

Subtly sweet, deliciously buttery, light, crisp pastry stuffed with a jammy, sweet, perfectly spiced fruit filling that truly is incredible!

I like to make a batch on Christmas Eve, ready to enjoy with our little lady, after dinner, while we read the night before Christmas before tucking her in to bed (and my marathon wrapping session begins) and of course we make sure we have enough to leave out for Santa.

Serve them simply as they are, add a dusting of powdered sugar and a nice cold class of milk, a nice cup of tea, coffee, hot chocolate or warm beverage of choice.

Add a dollop of cream, custard and/or ice cream – or a combination of all three, after all, it is Christmas.

Super simple, super delicious, healthy, homemade fruit mince pies.

Gluten Free Dairy Free Grain Free Nut Free Refined Sugar Free Paleo Friendly

Such a fun little family tradition and I would love nothing more than to have you join us.

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Question of the day –

What’s your fave holiday tradition?

Feel free to share recipes, or links to your fave recipes in the comments below or on the Facebook page and please for the love of all that is good in this world when you do make your healthy, homemade fruit mince pies (or any of the recipes you find on this blog of mine) go ahead and snap a pic and share it either on the Facebook page, or tag me on twitter or Instagram. Sharing is caring remember.

Do it, do it You know you want to

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The post Healthy, Homemade Fruit Mince Pies {Gluten Free – Grain Free – Nut Free – Refined Sugar Free – Paleo Friendly} first appeared on Better with Cake.

Because honestly, I don’t think it matters how old we get, who doesn’t love a good chocolate pudding ?!

And this right here, this subtly sweet, velvety smooth, deliciously indulgent, honey spiked chia pudding is everything you love about a good old fashioned pudding cup and so much MORE!

It’s thick, creamy, seriously chocolatey, with a gentle hint of honey and choc full of goodness!

I absolutely love the way the sweetness of honey blends with the richness of that slightly bitter cacao and then you get the crisp, crunch and crackle of those cheeky little cacao nibs.

Seriously, so good!

Not only does it taste like an absolute dream but, it also packs a serious nutritional punch!

It’s rich in antioxidants, packed with protein, high in calcium, fiber, magnesium and those all important omega 3’s!

And thanks to that drizzle of sweet, sweet honey it’s also great for boosting immunity too!

This pudding would make the perfect little, deliciously indulgent, late night dessert but, it’s also light enough to enjoy for breakfast especially if you serve it with an extra dollop of coconut yogurt, a sprinkling of this cranberry and coconut {grain free} granola and a big ol’ vat cup of coffee, of course.

Chocolate pudding for breakfast = winning at life!!!

Those of you who have been following along for a while now may recall that I have some weird, texture issues with straight up chia pudding. Same goes for porridge/oatmeal.  As much as I want to, I just can’t do it which is why I always end up blending it. That way it gets velvety smooth, seriously creamy, light, airy (almost mousse like) and just all kinds of delicious! Texture issues be gone baby!

So, if you don’t have the same texture issues that I do you can go ahead and skip the blending stage. It’s totally up to you, 100% your call. Blending it doesn’t change the flavor of our pudding so go ahead and do what you feel, just promise me you’ll make it, and soon, OK?!

I mean, just look at how pretty it is!!!!

Seriously, you neeeedddddd in on this!

All natural, thick and creamy, subtly sweet, deliciously indulgent, velvety smooth, secretly healthy, seriously chocolatey, honey spiked chia pudding . . .

Make it. Eat it. Love, love, love it.

Chocolate Honeycomb Chia Pudding
{Dairy Free, Refined Sugar Free, Low Carb, Keto & Paleo Friendly
Makes approx 2 serves of all natural, thick and creamy, subtly sweet, deliciously indulgent, velvety smooth, seriously chocolatey, secretly healthy, honey spiked chia pudding

Ingredients –

1/4 cup of coconut yogurt (or Greek style yogurt)

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)

3 Tablespoons of  chia seeds

1 Tablespoon of cacao

1 Tablespoon of coconut butter

1 teaspoon of honey – use The Golden Ratio Honey to keep it vegan friendly

1-2 teaspoons of cacao nibs

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or 4-6 drops of  Vanilla Cream Stevia – I use Sweet Leaf Stevia

A pinch of  salt

Optional add-ins

1-2 teaspoons of bee pollen

1 teaspoon of maca – optional for hormone balance

1-2 scoops of collagen – I   Vital proteins unflavored collagen peptides – Nutra Organics & Further Foods (Use EMS10 – to get 10% off) for protein and gut healing goodness

1/4 teaspoon of raw earth stevia – for extra sweetness

Optional but recommended for serving;

2 teaspoons of dark chocolate  (or cacao nibs), roughly chopped

Coconut yogurt (or yogurt of choice)

Chia seeds

Honeycomb

Method –

1 – Place all pudding ingredients except for cacao nibs & bee pollen, if using, into a small bowl or jug and stir to combine.

2 – Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, (or overnight). Make sure you go and give it a little stir every now and again to remove any lumps and just to make sure those cheeky little chia seeds haven’t settled at the bottom of the bowl.

3 – Once your pudding is nice and thick, place the mixture into your food processor or blender and process until smooth and creamy. If you don’t have texture issues like me you can skip this step and simply stir and serve as is.

Taste and adjust sweetness if necessary, you could adding a little extra honey or  stevia/vanilla if you like your pudding on the sweeter side.

4 – Pour your pudding mixture into cute little cups or bowls , stir through cacao nibs and bee pollen, and place it back in the fridge for at least 30 minutes chill and re-set before serving (it gets a little warm and the consistency thins out with the friction created while blending).

6 – To serve, top with coconut yogurt (or yogurt of choice),if using, sprinkle with chocolate (or cacao nibs) and some extra cheeky chia seeds and bee pollen if desired.

Enjoy xoxo

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Question of the day –

Are you a fellow chia pudding lover? What’s your favorite flavor combination?

Feel free to share recipes, or links to your fave recipes in the comments below or on the Facebook page and please for the love of all that is good in this world when you do make your creamy, dreamy, chocolate pudding (or any of the recipes you find on this blog of mine) go ahead and snap a pic and share it either on the Facebook page, or tag me on twitter or Instagram. Sharing is caring remember.

Do it, do it You know you want to

__________________________________________

The post Chocolate Honeycomb Chia Pudding {Dairy Free – Refined Sugar Free – Low Carb – Keto – Paleo} first appeared on Better with Cake.

Chocolate. Golden spiced. Banana bread.

Can you say yummmmmmmm?!

Please tell me that I’m not the only one who finds it incredibly satisfying to transform those sad, sorry looking, manky over-ripe bananas into something so glorious and delicious like banana bread?!

Kind of makes me feel like a bit of a magician!

I mean, how can something so unappetizing and just gross looking be transformed into something so divine?!

Honestly I have no idea how it happens I just know that it does and this latest creation, well let’s just say it’s truly does taste all kinds of magical!

You guys, this glorious little loaf is everything you love about good ol’ fashioned banana bread taken next level with a sprinkling of heart and belly warming spices – think cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamon, ginger & cloves + pinch of turmeric –  because I’m very much obsessed and want to put that glorious golden dust on and in anything and everything I can get my hands on.

The spices alone make this loaf next level delicious – It almost has a gingerbread type taste to it which of course makes my heart (and belly) all kinds of happy because Christmas is my favorite!

But, we don’t stop there!

Next, we add just a touch of cacao, you know, for those all important antioxidants of course and well, why not?!

I’m pretty sure we can all agree that chocolate in any way, shape or form just makes everything better , right?!

The sweetness of those bananas combined with that golden spice blend and the slight richness of the cacao just marries so perfectly together.

It really is a little slice of heaven right here on earth!

I mean, would you just look at that crumb?!

And those toppings!!!!!!

Crispy, crunchy nuts and seeds, toasted coconut flakes and tart, chewy cranberries . . .

Yes, yes, just yes!

Honestly, I don’t know what more there is to say . . .

Made with no refined flours or sugars, using just a handful of ingredients that I bet you have on had already and comes together in one bowl (or if you’re lazy like me, your trusty ol’ blender) in less than 5 minutes!

Sugar free – Gluten free – Dairy free – Grain free – Keto – Paleo & Vegan friendly but most importantly it’s next level delicious and you need it in your life because, yummmmmmm

All natural, quick and easy, deliciously nourishing, hearty, healthy, super moist, perfectly spiced, chocolate infused banana bread . . .

Make it. Eat it. Love, love, love it!

Chocolate Golden Spiced Banana Bread
{Gluten Free – Grain Free – Refined Sugar Free – Keto & Paleo Friendly}

Ingredients –

2  over ripe bananas
3 eggs – vegan friends sub flax/chia egg or your fave egg placers
4 Tablespoons of cashew butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 Tablespoon of honey or maple syrup
1/2 cup of coconut flour
2 Tablespoons of cacao
1 teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon each of ginger, nutmeg, cardamom & cloves
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Optional add-ins ;

1 teaspoon of maca – for hormone balance

2 scoops of collagen – for extra protein and gut healing goodness

For the topping –

1/2 cup of paleo hero primal muesli or

2 Tablespoon of cashews

2 Tablespoon of almonds

2 Tablespoon of macadamia nuts

2 Tablespoon of coconut flakes

2 Tablespoon of dried cranberries

Method –

1 – Pre-heat oven to 175’C/350/F

2 – Grease/line a loaf pan and set aside.

3 – Place all ingredients (apart from the toppings) into a food processor or blender and process until smooth and well combined. You could also just mash/stir in a bowl if you prefer

4 – Pour into your prepared loaf pan

5 – Sprinkle with toppings

6 – Bake for 30-40 minutes until a tooth pick has just a few moist crumbs attached when inserted into the centre.

7 – Slice and Devour.

The post Chocolate Golden Spiced Banana Bread {Gluten Free – Grain Free – Refined Sugar Free – Keto & Paleo Friendly} first appeared on Better with Cake.