Vanilla Bread Pudding with Rum Sauce - NO eggs, dairy, soy, or refined sugar

Bread pudding is one of those dairy-filled foods I tend to miss. Presented with a stale portion of Italian bread (which I'm sure could easily be swapped out for healthier/gluten-free bread), I started searching for recipes online to see if I could make bread pudding without dairy or soy, and preferably without eggs. I found this, which looked good... but then I realized I wanted a flavor more reminiscent of my childhood, so I went with the spices listed here, complete with a version of the rum sauce.



Bread pudding

2 1/2 cups cubed stale bread
1 single serve box of raisins (optional)
1 to 1 1/2 cups So Delicious Sugar Free Vanilla Coconut Milk
(if you don't mind the sugar, I suspect the Creamer would be amazing)
1/2 cup + 2 TBSP vanilla agave (or sweetener of choice)
1 1/2 TBSP rice flour (or arrowroot)
2 TBSP coconut oil or coconut butter
1 TBSP vanilla
1 TBSP cinnamon + ½ tsp nutmeg, OR ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice + 1/2 TBSP cinnamon
1-2 TBSP coconut rum

Use a mixing bowl for your cubed bread. On the stove top or in the microwave, melt the 2 Tbsps coconut oil/butter with 2 Tbsps agave and some rum, and drizzle the mixture over the bread. Mix to distribute evenly, then set aside.

Mix the milk with the rest of the agave, the spices, and the rice flour or arrowroot. Taste and add more agave if necessary. Pour over the bread, add the raisins, mix well, and let sit for at least 10 minutes. Pre-heat oven to 325. Pour mixture into ramekins or small baking dish, and bake for 30-35 minutes. Serve with Rum Sauce (below, optional) or agave.

Rum Sauce

1/2 cup coconut syrup
1/4 cup coconut rum
1 TBSP coconut oil or butter

Combine and heat in microwave in 15-second increments (stirring in between to make sure the oil/butter is melted) for a quick, flavorful pudding topping.

Microwave Mini Apple Cake

I read about microwavable single-serve cakes the other day at The Non-Dairy Queen, and I've been trying different variations ever since. It's been quite a while since I thought a dessert attempt was worth blogging about, but there's a lot to be said for creating a quick, healthy dessert with no leftovers! I checked out the other recipes she referenced, but found hers to be easiest to follow, and re-portion (I wanted a smaller treat). Recently, it occurred to me that I could really change the flavors if I wanted something fruity, and the single-serve apple cake was born.

Microwave Mini Apple Cake

1 egg OR 1 TBSP flax meal mixed with 3 TBSP warm water
2 TBSP flour (any kind, I've tried rice flour and coconut flour, and the original post has many more)
2 TBSP quick oats
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp apple pie spice (optional, pumpkin pie spice would also work)
2 TBSP applesauce (optional, or just use more juice)
2 TBSP apple butter
2 TBSP apple juice (more if necessary)
2 TBSP dried diced apples (I cut up some apple rings, but I'm considering Bob's Red Mill Diced Dried Apples for future use)
1-2 TBSP agave (or sweetener of choice)

Because I'm really lazy and don't want to wash anything extra, I start with the flax egg at the bottom of a mug, and mix the rest of the ingredients in. Your final product should have a paste-like consistency. Microwave the mug on high for 1 1/2-2 minutes, and enjoy!


I also tried my hand at a pumpkin variation, with Trader Joe's pumpkin butter, So Delicious vanilla coconut yogurt, and So Delicious vanilla coconut milk. Now I have some diced mango coming in, and mango juice/mango butter at home - I'm looking forward to some mango cake! I'm also considering some form of carrot cake, which I've always wanted to make....

Note that another reason I ended up halving the original cake recipe was that my mugs didn't seem big enough, but if you have some nice giant mugs feel free to double the portions above, as well as the cooking time.

We all scream for...

Last post, I made a note to buy So Delicious Coconut Vanilla ice cream to keep at home, having thoroughly enjoyed the Coconut Vanilla ice cream at Stogo. Well, I bought it, and for the most part, it was pretty good - except that I detected an odd aftertaste. I can't identify what it is, but I also taste it when I eat the So Delicious yogurts. I even brought up the subject on the So Delicious Facebook page, but no one else seems to have this problem. Luckily, I've never noticed it in the milk, creamer, or kefir - all of which are amazing. But it interfered with my enjoyment of the ice cream. So when I was back at the health food store, I decided to try the Rice Dream ice cream that was on sale. Now, I realize that most people have tried this already, and this is why there's a market for the coconut milk products. And I was prepared for a thinner texture, but not at all for the chalky taste. Sigh... so I guess the search continues.

NYC's East Village - Dietary Restriction Heaven

NYC is a wonderful, vibrant place with innumerable food options - and as a general rule, I've tried to explore as many as possible... the spicier and more foreign, the better! But sometimes I wish I could enjoy some of those classic American foods: macaroni and cheese, ice cream - dairy central. Enter the East Village. Generally the territory of the young and hip, it's also (consequently) where you can find foods and merchandise that might ordinarily serve more of a niche market.

I had done some research, and been pleasantly surprised to find that S'MAC was advertising "Vegan and Reduced Lactose Mac & Cheese." Intrigued, but dreading the possibility of soy, I clicked through. A coconut milk base, they said! That settled it, I was going in. And while I was in the neighborhood, I wanted to leave with some non-dairy ice cream courtesy of Stogo, just a few blocks away. According to their site, there were several soy flavors, but also some made with hemp, and some made with coconut milk.

Once at S'MAC, the girl at the counter clarified that truly vegan mac & cheese would not have any cheese at all. "But you have goat cheese?" They did. OK then, vegan base, goat cheese, and some add-ins. It was fantastic - my only regret was not having gone for a larger size.

Later in the evening, I wandered into Stogo, noting that only in NY would there be 2 other ice cream vendors around the corner (one was an artisanal ice cream truck). I was disappointed to find that there was no Maple Walnut Hemp ice cream, but the Mango sorbet and the Coconut Vanilla were amazing. Mental note: time to buy So Delicious Coconut Vanilla ice cream to keep in the freezer at home.

Quick and easy coconut dessert

I've been craving dessert that I can just pull out of the freezer and maybe defrost a bit.... and everything has dairy or soy. Yes, of course I could head to a health food store - but I was feeling creative. I wanted a quickie coconut pudding/custard - and I was sure I could achieve it without too many ingredients. Plus, I had just discovered the Filipino version of dulce de leche - they call it coconut jam, and it's made of coconut milk and sugar. I needed an excuse to use it as a topping!

A couple of notes - first, the final texture is pretty chunky for a pudding or custard, so purists may be disappointed. Second, I purchased my desiccated coconut at the same Asian supermarket where I found the coconut jam - I'm not sure American markets have it as finely shredded.

Quick and easy coconut "pudding" -

1 can coconut milk
1/2 cup finely shredded/desiccated coconut
1/2 cup honey/agave/sweetener of choice, to taste
1/4 cup Filipino coconut jam (matamis na bao) to use as topping

Blend the coconut milk with the next two ingredients, pouring the shredded coconut in bit by bit until you achieve desired thickness. Once you're satisfied with the taste and texture of your mixture, you can decide how you want to freeze/store it. I poured mine into small covered bowls, so I could defrost as needed. And of course, the coconut jam - I used a knife to swirl it across the top of each bowl.