Vegan, Chocolate Flapjacks

No sugar, no dairy, high protein and packed with vitamins…

Preparation time: 10 – 15 minutes

Cooking time: 20-15 minutes

Makes about 20 flapjacks

Ingredients

• 360g oats
• 30g raw cocao powder
• 2 bananas
• 6 tbsp maple syrup
• 6 tbsp cashew, almond or smooth peanut butter (use organic)
• 4 tbsp coconut oil. plus extra for greasing

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan 180°C).
2. In a saucepan, mash the bananas with a fork then add the maple syrup (or honey), nut butter and coconut oil. Allow to simmer until a smooth paste forms.
3. Add the oats and stir well so that they’re fully covered.
4. Grease a baking tray with coconut oil and transfer the flapjack mix into the baking tray, pressing it down firmly with a spatula so that it’s very compact.
5. Bake for 15-20 mins until the top starts to brown.
6. Once it’s cooked, remove the tray from the oven and leave it to fully cool before slicing the flapjacks.
7. Serve with a nice cup of chai tea!

Banana Avocado Smoothie

This is my favourite breakfast smoothie. Great sorce of vitamins, fats and fills you up, keeping you going until lunch time.  2 minute prep and we’re good to go!

(Wanna know more about bananas? click >> here << for more)

(Want more smoothies? How about a Banana and Raspberry or a Raspberry ‘colada’ ? )

 

Who would not want this?!

 

Ingredients (serves 1)

Basics:

• 1 Large frozen banana
• 1/4 of an avocado (or more if you want to!)
• 3/4 Cup of soy / almond / rice milk (you can do coconut milk but this will obviously up the fat content.. and the yummy content)

Optional:

• Vanilla essence (or pods if you can afford to be fancy)
• Sprinking of Oats (RECOMMENDED!)

 

Method

1. Blend it all.

Iced Banana Coffee (Vegan)

 

After a week of 20 something degrees Celsius, the dream is over. It’s raining, not quiet pouring, and Sophie wishes that she was snoring.

Temperamental weather is not something I am impressed with. England is rainy, I get that, it rains, all the time. But trick me with a week of sun, and choruses of  ‘The summers here’, ‘Grab the sun cream’, ‘I’m wearing shorts!’ and ‘There is an alien invasion going on’, okay the last one is another story for another time, and then take it all away and leave me with the dreariness that is Potsdam today.

Enough of my complains, we have been very lucky to have the sun, and even luckier to have had a week of thee babies:

Iced Banana Coffee’s.

 

Ingredients (Serves 2)

• 1-2 Bananas (freezer for 30 minutes)
• 1 of VERY  strong frozen coffee (using granules is fine)
• 2-3 cup of Soy / Rice / Almond milk (Soy yoghurt too if you have some) Oooo and some coconut milk, I’m getting excited now.
• Handfuls of ice (or more frozen banana, or other fruit, chunks!)

Method

1. 1-2 hours before, make 1/2 a cup of VERY  strong coffee, granules is fine, and put in the freezer (I use a wide/long dish to freeze it quicker, cause I am really impatient)
2. Chop the banana into manageable chunks and freeze them for about 30 minutes
3. Whack it all in a blender add all the vegan milk (add some soy yoghurt if you’ve got some!) and blllenndddddd
4. Serve! And make the world jealous.

 

 

Baked Bananas

Still on my vegan hype, I am loving baked fruit topped with Alpro Soya Vanilla Yoghurt. I love the stuff, can’t get enough. I may have to do an entire post on it some time soon!

But anyway, here are some baked bananas, probably the easiest pudding, other than raw fruit, that there is!

 

• Put the bananas in the oven, either in their skins or pealed and halved (either is yummy, skin on prevents juices leaving though)
• Bake for 15 minutes on 180’c
• Remove from oven (peal off skin, if it is on, it should be blackened by now)
• Serve with dairy free yoghurt, ice cream or what ever you want really!

Banana and Raspberry Smoothie

I know, I keep banging on about smoothies, however, I am in some sort of delusion that now Christmas is over, it should be summer. I will be cracking out the shorts and skirts, making plenty of cold dishes and probably start shopping for bikinis.. so excuse all my future summer recipes!

So anyway, here is my delicious breakfast of this morning.

 

Ingredients 

• 1 Banana
• 1 Handfull of Raspberries
• 1 Cup of Soy Milk
• 1/2 a Teaspoon Vanilla Essence (if you can’t afford the real stuff)

Related articles

• Bananas for Bananas (livingthegreendream.wordpress.com)
• Best Ever Banana Smoothie (acquiringtaste.wordpress.com)
• Smoothie Saturday: Banana-Cocoa Soy Smoothie (healthbistro.lifescript.com)
• Banana Berry Smoothie (haveabowlwithanole.wordpress.com)
• Soy, Banana and Yoghurt Smoothie (loafieblog.wordpress.com)
• Peanut Butter Apple Protein Smoothie (jcooksglutenfree.wordpress.com)
• Holiday Berry Smoothie (psnutrition.wordpress.com)

Bananas for Bananas

If you think bananas are just for monkeys, think again. Here are my top recipes for getting bananas into your body without hating bananas after a week, along with some fact that will make you want to munch on them all day long! 

1. Banana Soy Smoothie – High levels of tryptophan = One happy Chappy!

• 1 1/2 bananas, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch rounds, frozen (this is an important step!)
• 1 cup soymilk lite (1%)
• 1 cup ice cube
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2. Banana Fritters – Protects against muscle cramping

• 6 bananas (ripe)
• 2 beaten eggs
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tbsps vegetable oil

Click >> here << to see my apple fritter recipe.

3. Backed Banana – Packed with calcium = Strong bones

• 2 bananas
• 1 juice (lime) (optional)
• 1 tbsp dark rum (optional)
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tbsp dark brown sugar

4. Banana Date Oat Rolls – High levels of B-6 = protection against type 2 diabetes, aid against weight loss, strengthen the nervous system.

• 3 bananas (ripe)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup dates (pitted and chopped)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

5. Honey Nut Banana Muffins – High in potassium and low in salt, (bananas are officially recognized by the FDA as being able to lower blood pressure, and protect against heart attack and stroke)

• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 2/5 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 11/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 11/2 tsps baking powder
• 1 stick unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup mashed bananas (you’ll need 1 large very ripe banana)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup low fat milk (I use soy or almond)

Other facts

• Rich in pectin =  aid digestion and gently chelate toxins and heavy metals from the body
•   Prebiotic = stimulates the growth of friendly bacteria in the bowel. Produce digestive enzymes to assist in absorbing nutrients.
•  High fiber =  normalizing bowel motility.
• Bananas are a natural antacid, providing relief from acid reflux, heartburn and GERD
• Helps prevent kidney cancer, protects the eyes against macular degeneration and builds strong bones by increasing calcium absorption
• High in antioxidants = providing free radicals and protection from chronic disease

Bean Burgers and Pie

Bean burgers are one of my all time favourite makes. Kidney beans with carrots and onions on a be of salad with peppers. YUM!

Christmas Banana and Custard Pie

 

 

 

Glad to say I did not eat this one by myself! I was helped by my friend Chanice as we watched none other than Harry Potter!

This pie was made out of a simple tart pastry and filled with vanilla custard enfused with Christmassy spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Then topped with bananas! Brilliant.