Asian Coleslaw Crack

Time for a new post cause this is a new repeat meal for our family and I need to have quick access to the recipe.   I first heard about this "addictive" meal on Facebook and was so intrigued with the comments, I had to look into it further.  Many version of it and this is mine.   The name alone is catchy and fun to share as a meal!  Plus it is full of great wintry vegetables like cabbage which we could use more of in our diet.  You can get creative with all that you add to it too.  Please note my "measurements" on the veggies are really just guesses.  Feel free to add more or less.  And for the record, my kids call this one of their favourite meals!!  Totally worth making.

Asian Coleslaw Crack

1 lb ground meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey)
1 small onion - chopped
2 cloves garlic - pressed
1- 2 inch fresh ginger - grated
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
2 - 3 cups cabbage (purple & green is nice)- sliced
2 carrots - shredded
1 red pepper - thinly sliced
1 1/2 cup fresh pineapple - diced
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1/4 Tamari sauce (or soy sauce)
1 Tbsp honey (or apple butter/maple syrup)
dash of hot sauce
1/4 c fresh cilantro - chopped
2 tsp sesame oil *


In a large skillet, brown the meat and crumble to liking.  Add in the onion, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper until fully cooked.  Add in the shredded cabbage, carrots, pepper, pineapple and saute until it is tender.  Finish with the rice vinegar, tamari sauce, and honey.  Add the hot sauce now or allow people to add it to their plates.  Finish with a good sprinkle of fresh cilantro and the drizzle of sesame oil.  (Just look at the different pictures with and without cilantro and one with purple cabbage too!)

The sauce is easy to tweak and adjust.  I will taste it and see what I feel it is missing....like more ginger or perhaps more sweetness.  Please feel free to adjust yours to your liking.

Serve over cooked rice of choice.  Our family preference is brown basmati rice.

Cook Notes:

Sesame Oil - I use this oil to just finish the dish once it is done cooking.  I have learned that this oil is very fragile in it's structure and cannot handle heat without becoming harmful to your body.  Good sesame oil should always be stored in the fridge to avoid it going rancid.

Lemony Sweet-Heart Cookies

This recipe is special to me cause it is fully my own!  Using recipes as inspiration, I used my own calculations and heart that put this together  a Lemony Sweet Heart Cookie which uses maple syrup (excluding icing if you put that on).  I quite like the nutty taste and texture with spelt flour and the way it rolled out.  Of course the heart-shape is most appropriate for this week too.  Hope you enjoy it.

Lemony Sweet-Heart Cookies

1/2 cup butter (softened)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 egg

1 1/2 cup whole spelt flour (or your choice of flour)

1/2  tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

zest of half a lemon (or 4 drops essential lemon oil)

1/4 tsp xanthan gum (needed for spelt flour)

In a large bowl, cream the butter with a hand-mixer.  Add
the maple syrup,  egg and  beat until light and fluffy.  Add in the soda, powder, salt vanilla and lemon zest and mix well.  Then add the flour and mix until blended.   Cover the top of the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate an hour or so.  The dough rolls better if it is slightly chilled.  

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 F.

On a clean surface, lightly sprinkle with flour to keep the dough from sticking.  Remove about 1/2 of the dough to start with.  Sprinkle the top and bottom of the dough with flour and roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch in thickness.  Using a heart-shaped cookie cutter (or a preferred shape of your choice), cut out the cookies and place on a parchment- lined cookie sheet.  Continue to reuse the dough scraps until all the dough is cut up into cookies.

Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake about 6 - 7  minutes or until the edges are just slightly golden.

This makes approx 4 dozen small heart cookies - about 2 inch in size.

If you like an icing glaze, I did this lemon glaze with 1 cup icing sugar, 2 tbsp water, a pinch of turmeric for yellow color, and a 2 drops lemon oil (or zest).  

For a natural sugar icing, you could mix honey with coconut oil (or butter I suppose).  I just don't have time to test it out right now but I will post that once I get to it.  

One-Bowl Kale Salad

I love this new recipe that came from a friend in a quick discussion on what she was making for supper.  I often make this salad without measuring but for the sake of publishing it, I have found these amounts work well, but feel free to eye-ball it if you prefer.   I do find it is important to not make the dressing separate as is traditionally done with salads.  I personally think that the layering effect of the dressing helps create the balance of taste.  PLUS, that would require additional dishes to make it in a separate bowl.  I always prefer fewer dishes and it makes this salad recipe a little unique.

I first started making this salad in late winter/early spring when I could still get kale from my garden and oranges were in season.  As I harvested my new kale from the spring and summer, I had used fresh strawberries, apples, pears and I used those in place of the orange and loved that equally well.  So it is a salad for all seasons really....I am now buying my kale in the grocery store like most Canadians.

One-Bowl Kale Salad

4 cups Kale - finely chopped
1 orange - peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces (or fruit of choice)
2 Tbsp chopped almonds - toasted
1/4 cup fresh cilantro - chopped
1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp maple syrup
salt and pepper to taste.



Wash the kale and chop into thinner strips or pieces.  Place in a medium-sized bowl.
Drizzle the olive oil over the kale and rub or massage the oil into the greens using your hands.  This may cause the kale to look more wilted which is totally ok.
Pour the freshly squeezed lemon juice over the kale and stir to spread the juice around.
Pour the maple syrup over the kale and stir to spread the sweetness =)
Season with salt and pepper and stir again to mix it all in.

If you want to present this salad on a plate, now is the best time to do that.  Pour the kale onto a plate/platter.  Evenly spread on the cilantro, the fruit of choice and finish with the nuts on top. This gives everyone equal access to all the yumminess in the salad.

If you prefer to mix it all in the bowl, add the remaining fruit, nuts, cilantro and stir everything together.
Enjoy!

Chocolate Marble Banana Bread

I found this recipe at a favourite blog of mine chocolate covered Katie but found her directions to be complicated and she had more sugar than I felt was needed.  So here is my version which simplifies the mixing process to keep life simpler and baking more fun.  It is totally delicious, vegan if you follow the specific ingredients, and so worth trying.

Chocolate Marble 
Banana Loaf
2 cups mashed banana (about 5 frozen bananas)*
1/2 cup pure Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Coconut oil - or oil of choice
2 Tbsp Rice milk (or any milk of choice)
1 - 2 tsp Vanilla extract
2 tsp cider vinegar or lemon juice
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups spelt flour (whole or light spelt or any other alternative flour of choice)
*******************
3 Tbsp Cocoa powder
1 Tbsp Rice milk (or milk of choice)
1/4 - 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Prepare a 5 x 9 loaf pan with parchment paper for easy removal of the loaf after.

In a large bowl, mash the bananas until a smooth consistency is obtained.
Then add the syrup, coconut oil, 2 Tbsp rice milk, vanilla and cider vinegar and mix thoroughly.
Add the soda, powder, salt, cinnamon and combine.
Add the spelt flour and gently mix it in.
Pour about half the batter into a smaller bowl and set that aside.
Using the larger bowl with half the batter, mix in the 1 Tbsp rice milk and cocoa and chocolate chips.
Stir until all combined.
Starting the with non-chocolate batter, pour half of that mixture into the loaf pan.  Use a spoon to spread it evenly across the bottom.
Pour the chocolate mixture over top the banana mix.
Finish off with the last portion of banana mix on top of the chocolate.  Use a spoon or knife to swirl the flavours together.

Bake in the oven for 50 minutes or until the centre is firm.  I sometimes turn off the oven after 50 minutes and will leave the loaf in the oven for an additional 10 minutes to finish off the baking more indirectly.

It is really delicious if you can wait for it to cool off before biting in.

Cook's notes:

Bananas: I personally always use frozen bananas for my baking.  I allow them to ripen on the counter (creating more natural sugars) and freeze them with the peel on.  To use for baking, I put the frozen bananas in a bowl with water for about 20 minutes to thaw them.  Discard that water and peel the bananas  - well it is more like cut the skin and squish out the sweet nectar.  They mash really easy this way and provide a great consistency for muffins and loaves like this.  If you use ripe bananas from your counter, the loaf consistency may change slightly.  You may need to add another 2 + Tbsp of milk to thin the batter a bit more.

Making the old new again

In 2003, my husband and I created a Food and Gardening newsletter to send to our friends at Christmas - (short-lived tradition died when kids came into our life).  As part of the "food" of the newsletter, I added my favorite muffin recipe at the time - Cranberry Pumpkin Streusel Muffins.  The recipe results were very good - the muffins that is.  Many people shared comments on how they enjoyed the recipe and I continued to make the muffins over the next couple of years.
  More recently, I bumped into a friend I had not seen in years and she told me how she makes that recipe every year at this time.  Huh?  Really?   I was truly honoured at the idea of someone making my muffins over a 10 year period.  Then I got curious as to what was in those muffins as I had totally forgotten about that recipe in light of the  food changes in our life.  So I finally dug up that newsletter recipe, spun a few "ingredients" around and with a little more tweaking a second time, they came up pretty well perfect with enjoyable reviews by our guests.
I have made this  without the streusel topping because it is really easier and faster and school-friendly.  This original recipe came from my sister but I have no idea where she got it anymore.  This new version is now mine and I hope you will enjoy it and add it to your muffin collection.

Pumpkin CranApple Muffins

1 cup pumpkin puree
2/3 cup palm/coconut sugar*
2 eggs
1 cup apple (medium-sized) - chopped in small pieces or grated *
1 cup cranberries - cut/chopped to size of choice*
1/2 cup creamy liquid of choice (I use unsweetened coconut or rice milk)
1/4 cup coconut oil - melted (or oil of choice)
1/4 cup apple sauce
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 1/2  tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 3/4 cup spelt flour * - whole or light

375 F for 20 minutes
This recipe makes about 15 muffins which is more than a normal muffin tin. If that is a "pain" for you, distribute the batter over 12 muffins and add baking time in small increments (2 - 3 min) to ensure they bake through.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, sugar, eggs, coconut milk, , apple sauce, oil, cinnamon, soda and salt - pretty much everything but the flour and fruit! Mix well with a whisk.
Mix in the shredded apple and chopped cranberries.
Gently stir in the flour and stir until just combined.

Drop the batter into a muffin pan (your choice if you prefer to use muffin liners).  My scoop measures 3 Tbsp and I can get about 15 - 18 muffins from this depending on how "overflowing" my scoop is.

Bake for 18 - 20 minutes.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the pan.
Enjoy.

Cook's Notes:
Palm Sugar: See Sugar 101 tab at the top of the blog.

Apples: I have done this recipe with both chopped and grated apple.  The difference is chopped apples still appear as small pieces and grated apple just breaks down into the muffin.  Both are equally great so do as you are lead.

Cranberries: I personally prefer smaller bits of cranberries verses a big berry in my muffin.  They can be a little tart in such a large bite.  I cut the cranberries into half and sometimes quarters before adding to the batter.  Fresh or frozen berries can be used in this recipe.

Spelt Flour: I have used whole spelt in this recipe very successfully.  Whole spelt is more "nutritious" for the body as the bran has not been removed offering more fibre and just overall less processing.  Similar in the difference of whole wheat to white flour if you are familiar with that.  You can use light spelt in this recipe as well and chances are the muffins will be fluffier and higher.  If I can get away with whole spelt, I do.  What do you prefer?

If we are being honest, I do enjoy mine with butter and most often have a hard time stopping at just one muffin!

A new Pumpkin Pie

Just in time for the Thanksgiving Holiday - a Spelt Crust Pumpkin Pie!   Last week I watched a few minutes of Anna Olson's Baking show and it was about making the perfect pie - which included a very seasonally appropriate, Pumpkin Pie.  It instantly sparked my interest as I got making it with a little skip in my step. A few things caught my interest on this particular recipe.
1.   The crust was made with butter (not shortening) and had lemon juice in it. I don't think I have ever heard of lemon juice in a pie crust.
2.  She made this beautifully creative braid around the crust which beats my efforts of trying to crimp the edges just right.
3.  The pumpkin filling called for fresh ginger... I have only used fresh ginger in my cooking but why not?!
4. She only used 1/2 cup of sugar.  Seemed like so little compared to most recipes so I did not adjust the amount.  

All this plus my undying curiosity as to whether I could make a flaky crust using spelt flour and company coming got me moving pretty quick on this.

The end result was delicious!  The crust was super flaky (with a small hint of something different) and the ginger in the filling was just right.  Likely could have used a bit more ginger than I added but not over powering at all.  It is also mildly sweet so if that is a concern, you could add the traditional 3/4 - 1 cup of sugar for something sweeter.  I would totally make this again and that is why it is going on my blog...so I know where to find my recipe.  If you would like to see Anna's original, click here.

Pumpkin Pie with Spelt Crust

Crust
1 1/2 cup light spelt flour*
1/2 tsp salt
10 Tbsp cold butter cut into cubes
1 large egg yolk
3 Tbsp ice cold water
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Filling

2 cups pumpkin puree

½ cup palm sugar*

3 large eggs

¾ cup unsweetened coconut milk

1 - 1 ½ teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger*

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

⅛ teaspoon ground cloves

⅛ teaspoon salt

I have always done pie dough by hand - using a pastry cutter in a bowl.  You can do that with this recipe as well but this time around, I chose to follow Anna's steps using a food processor.  I found using the processor, I did not make the butter crumb as small as I would have doing it with a pastry cutter and that does help create a flaky crust.

In a small bowl or measure cup, place some water (about 1/4 cup) along with ice cubes to get the water as cold as possible. Set aside until needed in the crust.  This water will be much colder water than just straight from your tap which helps keep the butter firm and then makes a crust flaky.  A little trick I learned from my mom.

Using a food processor, pulse the flour and salt to combine.
Add in the cold, cubed butter and quickly pulse to combine the butter into small, pea-size pieces.  It should look a little lumpy with small butter pieces.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, ice cold water and lemon juice.
Add all the liquid into the flour and pulse until it just barely comes together (it should resemble a crumble dough).
Using a clean work surface, dump out the dough and gently press the dough to create a flat, round disc.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to just under a ¼ inch thick.

Using a 9-inch pie plate (do not grease), line the plate with the pastry ensuring the dough rests easy in the bottom and sides.

Trim the pastry off right to the edge of the pie plate.

Reserve the remaining dough for the braided trim and chill it and the pie shell while preparing the filling.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin puree, palm sugar and eggs together.

Add in the coconut milk, ginger, cinnamon, clove and salt and whisk until well blended.

Pour this into the chilled pie shell.

To create the braid trim, roll out the remaining pie dough into a long rectangle.

Cut the dough into thin strips about 1/3-inch wide (you may need to play with this to see what works best for you - as I had to do as well!). 

Braid three strips together.  You may have to make a few braids to cover the complete edge of the pie.

With any additional leftover dough, you can cut out leaf shapes.  I used a small round circle cutter and cut one circle and then overlaid the cutter to make two leaves of the one circle.



The key was to use a knife to detail in the veins to make them look like leaves.  Lay them over the braid joints in the crust
and then in the middle for the
         pièce de résistance!


Place the pie in the oven for 10 minutes at 400 F, then reduce the oven temperature to 375 F and bake the pie for another 35 to 40 minutes.  The pumpkin filling should be set and a little jiggly in the middle is fine.

Cool the pie to room temperature and either enjoy it like that or chill before serving.  

Cook's Notes:
Light Spelt Flour - Whole vs light Spelt flour is similar to the difference between baking with whole wheat and white flour.  Whole is definitely a heavier flour (and healthier with the whole bran included) which means baked products are not as light and fluffy and perhaps less flaky in a pie dough.  I am not sure how the whole spelt would work in this pie dough recipe but feel free to try it if you are adventurous.  For a guaranteed success, I would suggest the light spelt flour.

Palm Sugar -  See Sugar 101 tab at the top of the blog.

Fresh Ginger - Fresh ginger should be firm, light colored skin and fragrant.  To peel the ginger before grating, I suggest using the edge of a spoon to take just the very top layer of skin off.  It comes off in a very thin layer leaving the most of your ginger for grating.  Of course, some chose to just grate the peel in as well.  Try to use a microplane grater which makes a paste-like grate for no lumps in your pie filling.

Nature's Perfect Cake

This is the most simple cake idea ever - wish I had thought of it.  

No Gluten.  

No Sugar.  

No eggs.  

No dairy.  

Vegan.  

Raw.  

Organic if you choose.  

  

Turn your WATERMELON into a cake!!!  

Presentation is definitely the key to pulling this off - even on kids.  

I have used watermelon for dessert but cut it up in slices in a bowl and it was just watermelon.  

When you turn your watermelon into a cake shape (preferably a double-layer cake height), 
add some fruit "candies" and suddenly - You are eating a cake.  Really.   

Be creative.  Use whatever fruit you have to decorate and present it as a cake.  I had strawberries sliced up, blueberries, apple triangles and mint leaves.  The color of additional fruit really is important and vital for appeal and transfiguration.  Serve it up on a platter or cake stand, add the candles, sing and slice it like a cake.  Perfect for the world of food trends and diets and allergies.

A few suggestions:
Watermelon shape:  Try to buy the longest, more oblong shaped watermelon you can buy.  If long enough, cut off the curved ends so you can have a cake entirely flat and round-shaped.  You can see I had to use part of my curved end which made it a bit more dome-shaped but it did not alter the experience for us who enjoyed it..
Fruit "Candies": Don't use bananas unless the cake is eaten immediately.  Even with apples, make sure the variety does not brown quickly or use some lemon juice on them to keep them from browning.  Try grape halves, cantaloupe/honeydew balls or possibly use small cookie cutter shapes (ie stars, hearts, circles/rings) to cut larger surface fruit.

Warmth for winter

Here is a quick and easy dish to make that is a guaranteed hit (except for perhaps the picky non-bean eater).  It is easy to double or triple for large groups to feed, great to make ahead and freeze or bring to someone who needs a meal. 

The recipe originated from an actual meatball recipe from my mother in-law, but I just never had the interest in making meatballs as it seemed like a lot of work.  So I changed the meat and sugars and found this version very enjoyable and fast to make.  If you are one who prefers the meatballs, feel free to go that route - it uses the same ingredients.  If you like prefer quicker, and equally pleasing, give this lazy sauce version a try.

Hawaiian Meat Sauce with Rice

1 lb ground beef * 
3/4 cup onion (sm-med sized) - finely chopped
1 clove of garlic - minced
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

1 cup ketchup - Jenn's Naturally-sweet Ketchup
1 1/2 tbsp dried mustard *
2 tbsp white vinegar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup or apple butter or honey
1 - 19 oz can Red or White Kidney beans - rinsed thoroughly
1 - 19oz can Navy beans - rinsed thoroughly
1 - 14 oz can Pineapple (crushed or tidbits) - with juice

1 1/2 cup uncooked rice of choice - cooked according to directions

In a large skillet, brown the beef over medium-high heat and create a small crumb for the meat. Before the beef is fully cooked, add in the onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is fully browned. Drain unnecessary juices if you have any. This step can be done ahead of time and once the meat is cooled, frozen for use at a later time. (If you prefer to make meatballs, combine the beef, onion, garlic, salt and pepper and form into balls.  Bake at 400 F for about 10 minutes.)

Add the ketchup, vinegar, mustard to the skillet and mix well.  Add in all the remaining sauce ingredients to the meat in the skillet (you may choose to decrease the amount of beans if it seems like too much for your liking).  Heat the mixture on med-high heat until the sauce begins to boil and then turn down the heat to simmer for about 30 minutes.  Add water as needed if the sauce looks too dry.  Serve over cooked rice and a side of something "green" is always nice!

Cook's Notes:
Ground Beef - I have gotten into the habit of browning about 3 - 4 lbs of beef at a time in my skillet.  I add in the onion, garlic and salt and pepper.  I allow the beef to cool down and then store it in a zip-lock bag and put it in the freezer until needed.  When I need a meal, I can then make any dish I so desire - chili, hawaiian meat sauce, tacos, soup etc.  And the beef breaks apart easily for taking out the amounts I want.  You could also store the beef in separate bags with 1 lb in each bag.  Whatever you prefer! 

This pic shows how I actually have packed up the meal for future use or to give away.

Dried Mustard - Is dry mustard different from prepared mustard??  My google searches do say that you can replace dry mustard with prepared mustard.  1 tsp dry mustard = 1 Tbsp prepared mustard.  So for this recipe,, you would need 4.5 Tbsp prepared mustard.  I have not tried it but figured someone might be out there and not have dried mustard.

Joy Tarts

I have many things I should be doing right now like laundry, cleaning, making meals, but something in me needs to be creative and expressive...so blog it is.  I have been meaning to blog this recipe for some time and now seems the perfect day and space.  Joy Tarts! 

This recipe was first discovered from a favorite blog I follow but made as larger Mounds Candy Bar . The Canadian equivalent to the US Mounds is "Almond JOY" and as I do love those bars, I knew I had to try this recipe.   Although there are so few ingredients in it that there is not much really to change, I did make a faster chocolate mix that keeps this more simple and faster.   And in a smaller form, I find them perfect for the Christmas season to decorate a plate to share with others. 

Although it is a short, simple word of three letters, Joy is not so simple to define.  For me, the word really does make me smile, it is not defined as happiness, and it stirs something  life-giving deep within me.  However you might define it, my hope is that by making these and sharing with others, they will extend life and a sense of Joy.

Joy Tarts
(makes 36 mini tarts)

1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut (medium shred)
1/2 cup coconut oil * (virgin organic and cold-pressed coconut oil is my preference)
1/4 cup liquid honey  (prefer raw honey)
1 tsp almond extract

36 whole almonds - toasted
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1- 2 Tbsp coconut oil
* See Cook's notes below

On very low heat, melt the coconut oil and honey as desired.  Coconut oil is firm and white colored at room temperature but will melt and turn clear on a warm summer day or just in the palm of your hand.  I would recommend using a slightly warm oven (with the coconut oil in a glass bowl), or a low heat on a stove top to liquefy the coconut oil.  No cooking is necessary and strongly discouraged to keep the nutritional value high as high as possible in the oil and honey.

 Add the extract and coconut and stir to combine.  It may appear as if there is not enough liquid but it does work.

Using a mini muffin pan, scoop about 1 - 2 tsp of coconut mixture into each cup.  Again, it will not look like much is there but it is plenty when you bite into them.  You may want to press down with your spoon on the tops of the tart to smooth out the surface.  Chill the tarts in a freezer for about 20 minutes.

While that is chilling, toast the whole almonds.  I put my nuts in a toaster oven and just heat them on a low heat for a couple of minutes - stirring in between.  If you don't have one, use a small skillet on the oven top (with medium heat) and stir the almonds until lightly fragrant and toasted.  Set aside to cool.

Then melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a double-boiler or using the microwave if you prefer.

Remove the coconut tarts from the freezer.  Pour a small amount of melted chocolate on each tart and top with a whole almond.

Return the tarts to the freezer for another 15 - 20 minutes.  Once they are solid, they pop out of the pan pretty easy using a butter knife or nylon tool suitable for your mini muffin pan.

Best to store the tarts in the freezer.  I enjoy them best while they are served cold - even right from the freezer!

Cook's Notes:
Coconut Oil
This oil is definitely a healthy one found in health stores and health food section of major grocery stores.    Like most things, you get what you pay for with coconut oil.  I would suggest finding something virgin, organic and cold-pressed for the most nutritional value.  If you are not a fan of the coconut flavour (you likely won't be making these then) you can buy cheaper options as they often taste like nothing but they won't have the same nutritional value. 
Of the examples pictured, the Nutiva is (found at the Bulk Barn) is and is great overall option at a fair price.  The black container (bought at Zehrs) has no coconut flavour and was cheaper.  The left-side option was the best flavour and most expensive too.  Choose what works best for your needs and budget. 

The beauty of coconut oil is it is solid at room temp but will melt on a warm summer day or with the warmth of your hand. In this recipe, it helps the tart to stay solid and firm providing they do not get too warm.
In addition to using it in cooking/baking (in place of butter or oil), coconut oil is overall a wonderful oil to use for any skin irritations, dry skin, dry lips - either applied topically or eaten by the spoonful. When your jar is running low, be sure to save the little bits left for your skin needs.

Pumpkin Coconut Loaf

A couple of years ago, my neighbour called me asking to borrow some coconut milk for a pumpkin loaf she wanted to make.  Coconut milk and pumpkin?  Yummy!  So after looking at the recipe as found on-line, I was even more intrigued as it also had no eggs in it either making it dairy-free and vegan!  That is not common in yummy baked goods!  So to make it family-friendly for us, I did swap out the flours and sugars and oils and the loaf is absolutely delicious  (as I am sure it is in the original recipe as well)!  So moist.  So yummy.  So PUMPKIN-PERFECT for fall!  You really must try it.

Pumpkin Coconut Loaf

1 3/4 cup Spelt flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg (optional)
1 cup pumpkin puree *
1/4 cup oil (safflower, coconut, or oil of choice)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup coconut milk or non-dairy milk *
3/4 cup palm sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)*

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Grease a 4"x8" loaf pan or line it with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, coconut, and nutmeg if using).
In a smaller bowl, combine the pumpkin, oil/applesauce, coconut milk, and palm sugar (or whatever sweetener being used).  Mix well.  Pour this liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and stir gently until all is combined.  Pour into a prepared loaf pan (either lined with parchment or greased as required to easily remove the loaf).

Bake for 1 hour.  The original recipe says to bake for 1 hour and 15minutes but I found 1 hour was perfect.  Allow the loaf to cool for 5 - 10 minutes in the pan and then remove it and allow to cool on a cooling rack.  Enjoy!

This recipe is easily doubled to create two loaves if you prefer - one for yourself and one to give away!


Cook's Notes:
Pumpkin Puree
Canned pumpkin puree is fairly common and easy to buy and use for this recipe but you could also bake a fresh pumpkin and make your own pureed filling.  If looking for canned pumpkin, be sure to use Pumpkin Puree.  Pumpkin pie filling, the other canned pumpkin in the store,  has sugar and added spices you don't need in this recipe so you don't want to buy this for the recipe.

Coconut Milk
This milk is found in either cans or in tetra packs usually with other non-dairy milks.  Either is fine.  I have moved to buying the larger tetra pack coconut milk as I use it much more frequently in my foods. Leftovers coconut milk can be stored in the fridge for a few days and used in Thai foods or soups, or the extra frozen and thawed for later use.  If you don't have coconut milk, you could use another source of milk (dairy or non-dairy) in equal amounts.

Walnuts
I love nuts in any food I make, however, I do not like how it makes a loaf more difficult to slice.  So your choice.  I also like the "school-friendly" option without them.