Chocolate Zucchini Bread/Muffins (Vegan)

This bread doesn't taste like zucchini bread, in fact, it's hard to tell that there is even zucchini in it. It tastes like a cross between a chocolate chocolate chip muffin, and a brownie. That's just fine by me!! It's nice and moist too, another major positive. We've got zucchini coming out our ears here, so it's nice to make something with zucchini that doesn't TASTE like zucchini.

Makes 12 muffins or 1 large loaf 

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

2 Tbs flaxseed, ground

6 Tbs warm/hot water

8-10 drops vanilla stevia

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup turbinado sugar

1 1/2 cups spelt flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp cinnamon

3 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini (about 1 large zucchini)

3/4 cups shredded red apple (about 1 medium apple)

1/2 cup chopped raw walnuts

1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips (more or less to taste)

Grind flax seed, and combine in a small bowl with warm/hot water and drops of stevia. Stir and allow to sit for 5-10 min at least. 

In a medium-large bowl grate the zucchini and apple. I just used a peeler and peeled it straight into the bowl, trying to make sure they were somewhat thin, and rotating around evenly. But you can easily use a cheese grater.

Combine dry ingredients (except sugar) in a bowl and mix well, then add to zucchini/apple mixture. Mix the 2 around so that all of the zucchini and apple shreds are coated in the flour. 

Now take the same bowl you had your dry ingredients in, and combine sugar, oil, and vanilla. Then add the flax mixture until fully incorporated. 

Combine wet with the flour coated shreds, then add in chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. If you are allergic to walnuts, you can certainly leave them out, or swap them out for pepitas, they would go well in this too.

Can be made into 12 muffins, or a large bread loaf.

Cook at 350 F for 22-25 min if making muffins (or until a tooth pick comes out clean). Cook for 50 min if making the loaf of bread.

Lemon Sugar Cookies (vegan)

This is not my typical recipe, but I had a request from a friend to make lemon sugar cookies. So I made them vegan, and switched out stuff to be better versions of themselves if they were already vegan. However, not as quite as healthy as my usual things.  That said... these are soooooo good! I don't even know what to say about them other than, wow, I'm really glad that I was asked to make them. (I had never tried lemon sugar cookies before) Make sure to actually keep enough dough to cook some cookies, rather than just eating the dough!! They expand out while cooking, so make sure to space them well.

yum!!!

cookies rolled out and additional lemon-sugar over the top

The lemon sugar

finished cooking, they expand for sure!

Makes 36 cookies

1/2 cup turbinado sugar (or coconut sugar OR preferred dry sweetener), ground down to a fine powder
1 1/2 turbinado sugar (or preferred {recommended dry} sweetener), ground down to a fine-med powder
2 large lemons zested
1 cup vegan butter, (I used Earth Balance, soy free kind) or coconut oil at room temperature or slightly melted
2 tbs flax seed, ground
6 tbs warm water
2 tsp lemon extract
1 tbs lemon juice (from the freshly zested lemon)
2 3/4 cup whole spelt flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda

First ground down flax in a coffee grinder then put into a little bowl with the 6 tbs of warm, mix and allow to sit for about 5-10 min.

Next make lemon sugar: Grind 1/2 cup sugar in coffee grinder, blender or food processor to make it a powder. Now add 1 teaspoon lemon zest into whatever you blended the sugar in, and grind/blend again. Pulse until lemon zest is fully mixed into sugar. Pour into a little bowl and get rid of any clumps then set aside.

Now mix flour, salt, cream of tartar and baking soda in a medium bowl. In another bigger bowl, cream butter with the other 1 1/2 cups sugar. Blend in the flax mixture, slowly. Add lemon extract, lemon juice and the rest of the lemon zest. Take the flour mixture and blend in, one cup at a time, making sure it's fully, until all flour is incorporated.

Chill the dough for about an 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls then roll in the lemon sugar. Put the lemon-sugar coated balls onto a greased cookie sheet. Press down with the bottom of a glass or plate until cookie is about 1/3 inch thick. They will expand, so make sure to separate them well. Bake cookies for 9-11 minutes. Let cookie cool on the pan for 5 minutes before taking them off the sheet and putting them on a cooling rack.