Vegan Apple Squash Cake with Earl Grey Date Balls

Base:
2 cups Pecans

1/2 cup ground flax

1 tsp ginger

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp nutmeg

a pinch of sea salt

10 deglet dates

Filling:

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 small organic butternut squash

a pinch of sea salt

1 can of organic coconut milk

1 cup melted coconut oil

Date Balls:

20 dates soaked in hot water with 1 tbsp earl grey tea (loose leaf)

bee pollen

2 tbsp coconut oil

Apple Topping:

1 macintosh apple

1/2 lemon juiced

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp maple syrup

Blend base ingredients in a food processor and press into a springform pan.  Then place in the freezer to chill.  In a high speed blender, mix filling ingredients.  Then pour into the base and place cake back in the freezer while you prepare the toppings.  Thinly slice apples and in a bowl, mix with lemon juice, cinnamon and maple syrup. Then, going back to the food processor, drain dates and blend them with the earl grey tea leaves for the bag. Use a mini ice-cream scoop to make ball shapes and top with bee pollen for nutrition and colour. Place in the freezer to set. Once the filling in the cake is solid enough, top with apple slices and date balls.  Let it set in the fridge overnight and serve next day :)

Grain Free Apple Turnovers via Life Made Full

Just spent the past 1.5h making some gluten free apple turnovers from the recipe I found over at 
Life Made Full: http://lifemadefull.com/grain-free-apple-turnovers-paleo-gluten-free-dairy-free/

They are delicious and a nice change from my ongoing chocolate everything obsession.
Despite begin time consuming, they're worth it for anyone looking for a gluten free option to regular turnovers.


Things to note:

- I ended up using arrowroot flour since I had no tapioca flour along with unbalanced almond flour instead of blanched.  These 2 substitutions didn't seem to affect the recipe in the slightest.

- The filling is slightly sweet.  If you're looking for something to really hit your sweet tooth, you may want to add some extra maple syrup or sprinkle them with confectionary sugar/icing before serving.  For my pallet, they were perfect.

- I beat my egg whites before putting them into the batter.  I don't know if this effected the recipe at but the batter seemed nice so you can add this step if you'd like.

Let me know how yours turn out! :)

Apple Squash Tarts

Crust

• 12 dates
• 150g walnuts
• 100g pecans
• a dash of sea salt
• a dash of cinnamon and ginger
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil

Squash Filling

• 1 cup squash
• 1/2 can coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 4 dates
• 1/4 lemon juiced
• 1/2 cup coconut oil melted

Cinnamon Apple Topping

• 2 small apples (peeled and chopped)
• 1/4 lemon juiced
• 1 tsp coconut sugar
• a dash of cinnamon, clove and allspice 

In a food processor, blend everything together until smooth and then press into muffin tins.  You can line them with liners or saran wrap for easier removal later.  Place them in the freezer.

In a high speed blender, blend filling ingredients until smooth and place equal amounts in the tart shells.  There may be a bit left over you can have as a tasty pudding later.  

Place all the topping ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Then top the tarts and place in the fridge overnight to solidify, or the freezer for an hour or less to speed things up.