dessert Archives - Page 3 of 8 - A Calculated Whisk

Grain-free Cranberry Galette

October 10, 2016 By Becky 10 Comments

Why not end Thanksgiving dinner with a nut-free, grain-free cranberry galette? The cassava flour pie crust is so flaky and buttery, no one will guess it’s gluten free.

My obsession with cassava flour pie crust is still going strong. It all started with this gluten-free quiche lorraine with leeks, and I stayed in the savory realm with this heirloom tomato galette. Now it’s finally time for something on the sweet side: this grain-free cranberry galette with creme fraiche. Cassava flour is remarkably similar to wheat flour in how it behaves in crusts, so making this dough is a lot like making regular pie dough. Don’t worry, though, it’s really easy–it comes together in just a few minutes in the food processor.

Cranberries are often mixed with other fruits in desserts, or only make it to the table in the form of cranberry sauce. I wanted to create a treat that would highlight cranberries on their own in all their ruby-hued glory. Here their tartness is tempered with honey and a sprinkling of raw sugar, and a bit of creme fraiche adds richness and depth to the filling. I like to serve this with even more creme fraiche on top, but it’s also fabulous with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Baked Pumpkin Custards with Maple Mascarpone Whipped Cream

October 1, 2016 By Becky 30 Comments

This post is sponsored by Cost Plus World Market.

These gluten-free baked pumpkin custards with maple mascarpone take just ten minutes to prepare, and are the perfect way to end a fall dinner.

Fall is finally here, and it’s no longer taboo to eat pumpkin spice everything! The first thing I like to whip up when the weather turns is these baked pumpkin custards with maple mascarpone whipped cream. The pumpkin custards are scrumptious, perfectly spiced, and super smooth—like pumpkin pie without the tedious process of making a crust. And the maple mascarpone whipped cream is rich and lightly sweetened, with just enough maple flavor in each bite to remind you that you’re eating something autumnal.

These custards are perfect for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or any special fall occasion, especially when baked in these adorable ceramic pumpkin bakers. To make this treat extra fun, I like to pick up a few different toppings to add even more texture and flavor and let each person mix and match to their heart’s content. Here I used crumbled gluten-free gingersnap cookies (leave them out if you’re avoiding rice flour), crystallized ginger chips, and pumpkin pie almonds, but any seasonal candy or cookie is a great bet. Shaved dark chocolate or chopped pecans would be delicious, too!

Vanilla Bean Cheesecakes with Figs and Raspberries

August 25, 2016 By Becky 8 Comments

These vanilla bean cheesecakes with figs and raspberries require no grains, dairy, eggs, or cooking! They’re the ideal cold sweet treat for the end of summer. Thank you to Rodelle for providing products for this recipe!

I’m back, and I brought mini cheesecakes! Vanilla bean mini cheesecakes made with cashews and topped with fresh figs and raspberries, that is. And you don’t even need to cook or bake anything! These little cheesecakes are so satisfying on a summer evening. The no-bake crust is just sweet enough, with a hint of chocolate and an almondy crunch, and the cheesecake layer is super-smooth and studded with vanilla bean seeds. On top are fresh raspberries and figs sitting like frosted jewels. The combination is so addictive that I know these will vanish from your freezer just as fast as they did from mine!

Here’s how these vanilla bean cheesecakes come together. First, you need to soak your cashews in hot water for an hour and soak the pitted dates in hot water for at least fifteen minutes. (Want to soak all your stuff the same amount of time? A little extra won’t hurt the dates!) Then, you’re going to pulse dates, almonds, and a little bit of cocoa in the food processor to make the crust. The chocolate isn’t a dominant flavor, but gives the crust a little extra something. I don’t like it when my desserts taste too much like dates, and the cocoa also helps mask that flavor a bit. You grease a muffin tin, line the cups with a little parchment paper handle like in the photo below, and pat a dollop of crust right into each cup.

Cardamom Coffee Fudgesicles

July 25, 2016 By Becky 19 Comments

These cardamom coffee fudgesicles are like the perfect iced mocha in creamy popsicle form. The cardamom gives them a uniquely enticing flavor.

I finally got a popsicle mold! I’ve been trying to avoid single-use kitchen gadgets, but I just couldn’t help myself. Since getting the mold about a month ago, I think I’ve made these cardamom coffee fudgesicles five times. I had to make sure the recipe made just the right number of popsicles and had just the right amount of cardamom. Also, they kept getting eaten before I could get them photographed!

By the way, photographing popsicles in the summer is not easy! I didn’t plan ahead, so we didn’t have any ice made to set up a cold plate like this. I decided I’d just go for it and be super quick, but the pops were melting even faster than I expected.

I freaked out a little because I didn’t want to lose all five of the ones I was snapping pictures of, so I stuck four of them back in the freezer and left one out to photograph.

No-Churn Cherry Ice Cream

July 16, 2016 By Becky 11 Comments

This no-churn cherry ice cream is simple, ridiculously easy, and so good! What more could you ask for from a summer dessert? With a dairy-free option that’s vegan and paleo with no added sugar, everyone can indulge.

How do you feel about the dog days of summer? I may be alone in this, but I like them. I find extreme heat kind of comforting. I like how the air is almost palpable when the temperatures get high, as if it’s a blanket wrapped around you providing a bit of pressure. I made it through two Houston summers with no AC in my car (I still miss that ’89 Buick!) and now I’m relishing my first full hot summer here in the Tennessee Valley.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I don’t also like to indulge in frozen treats when it’s hot out. We’re still living in a very small house, so my beloved ice cream maker is in storage. That means I’ve been turning to my favorite no-churn frozen treats time and time again, and this no-churn cherry ice cream is the one I make the most.

It’s unbelievably simple, and it tastes so good. I actually first made and shared this several years ago, but it was buried in the archives with terrible photos, so I know many of you never got to see it.

I took some time off from this ice cream because I always loved it so much made with coconut milk, and about a year ago I discovered that I’m allergic to coconut. However, recently I’ve been making this ice cream with heavy cream, and while it’s much less paleo it is still delicious. It’s hard to do a true comparison since I can’t taste the two versions side by side, but I think the coconut milk version is even a little better. Go for that unless you’re coconut averse or allergic like me! As a bonus, that means the ice cream is vegan as long as you don’t add any honey.

Cherry Berry Ice Cream Loaf

July 3, 2016 By Becky 4 Comments

This show-stopping ice cream loaf is easy to put together with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and cherries and store-bought ice cream.

Happy Fourth of July! I realize I’m getting this dessert idea out to you at the very last possible minute, but this is so easy and elegant that I just had to share. Plus, it doesn’t have to be patriotic. You can swap in whatever fruits and whatever flavors your prefer and enjoy this ice cream loaf technique all summer long.

Here I used vanilla bean and lemon ice creams. The lemon ice cream is super refreshing, and plays really well with the fresh summer fruit. The blueberries, strawberries, and cherries were so beautiful that I couldn’t bring myself to cook them as I had originally planned, but using raw fruit makes this ice cream cake taste fresh and almost light, plus it cuts down on the prep time.

Grilled Pound Cake with Lemon Curd + Summertime BBQ recipes

June 16, 2016 By Becky 18 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Grilled pound cake with lemon curd and berries is the perfect way to finish off any summer BBQs, and since it’s gluten free and grain free, more people can enjoy!

Summer is finally here, almost officially! I’ve already gotten in my first swim and am loving all the summer produce. I am such a summer person that I even enjoy basking in the heat of days that are 90+ degrees and humid–I find it kind of comforting!

Also, it’s BBQ season. To get ready for all the cookouts that are in store this summer, I teamed up with a few of my favorite bloggers to bring you five delicious paleo-friendly recipes that are perfect for summer BBQs. My contribution is this grilled pound cake with lemon curd and berries.

Grilled pound cake is the ideal way to end any grilling sesh. You bake the pound cake and make the lemon curd ahead of time, so all you have to do when the dessert hour rolls around is quickly grill the pound cake, spoon the lemon curd onto plates, and add a handful of fresh berries. I used local blackberries, but if strawberries are still in season near you, those would be fabulous, too! Later in the summer I’m looking forward to enjoying this with blueberries.

This pound cake recipe is super simple and comes together in one bowl with just one kind of flour–Otto’s Cassava Flour. It’s a grain-free, gluten-free, nut-free flour that makes paleo baking super easy. The cake is lightly sweetened with maple syrup and flavored with vanilla extract. It’s the perfect foil for tart and creamy lemon curd and juicy summer berries!
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Easy Texas Sheet Cake

June 6, 2016 By Becky 20 Comments

When you need grain-free, dairy-free cake for a crowd, this easy Texas sheet cake is here for you! It’s simple to make (no mixed needed!) and impossibly delicious. This post is sponsored by Dream in partnership with Honest Cooking.

This easy Texas sheet cake is perfect for times when you need a cake that serves a lot of people, but is simple and straightforward to make. It’s ideal for feeding folks with dietary restrictions since it’s paleo-friendly and free of gluten, grains, and dairy. And it’s also just the thing for when you suddenly need chocolate cake on a random afternoon and don’t want to wait too long to get your fix. With a chocolate sheet cake, you don’t have to worry about un-molding, stacking, or leveling multiple layers of cake. And since sheet cakes are thin, they cool quickly so you don’t have to wait long to frost them. You can make this whole thing, start to finish, in less than an hour. It’s also just really fun to look at such a vast expanse of cake!

This cake also has the best texture of any paleo-friendly chocolate cake I’ve ever made–it really tastes just like a regular cake! But, like a really good, homemade regular cake–not a store-bought one, of course. I looked to classic, gluten-laden Texas sheet cake recipes for guidance in developing this recipe, and discovered that they are usually made with buttermilk. Buttermilk works together with baking soda to help cakes rise, and also helps create a tender crumb. For this recipe, I made a super simple dairy-free buttermilk replacement using Dream Ultimate Almond Unsweetened Almond Beverage and a little bit of apple cider vinegar.

Lemon Olive Oil Cookies

May 23, 2016 By Becky 30 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

These lemon olive oil cookies come together quickly and are free of gluten, grains, and dairy. The olive oil won’t assert its flavor in the finished cookies, but helps produce a tender, delicate crumb.

It’s Monday, but these lemon olive oil cookies can help ease the pain. They’re bright, chewy, and irresistible. They’re delicious right out of the oven or the next morning, when they fit right in at breakfast by masquerading as extra-tasty mini scones. They’re good with or without the glaze; you can make them with Meyer or regular lemons. The only way to go wrong with these cookies would be to not make them at all.

This is one of those cookie recipes where you basically just stir all the ingredients together in a bowl. You can even use a fork. The hardest part by far is zesting and juicing the lemons, and I find that fun. The smell of the lemon oils released from the peel is reward enough for me. (Wait, I take that back. I actually also need there to be cookies. Cookies are the best reward!)

When I make these without the glaze, I roll the balls of dough in a little raw sugar before baking them to give the outsides a little extra texture. If you’re planning to glaze them, you can skip that step.

Mocha Cream Paleo Truffles

May 10, 2016 By Becky 20 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Mocha cream paleo truffles are an ideal no-bake dessert for the warmer months. And since they’re vegan, too, more of your friends can enjoy them!

I’ve been sick for the past few days and haven’t been able to stomach much other than these paleo truffles. I think it’s because I’ve been eating them frozen and they’re made with such wholesome ingredients–no dairy or anything like that to throw a wrench into things. My appetite has been really low and I haven’t even craved my morning coffee like I usually do, but a couple of these chilled truffles gives me a little bit of the caffeine boost I’d otherwise be missing out on.

These are also fabulous when you’re feeling great. In fact, the mocha cream filling is so good on its own that I didn’t even dip the first batch into chocolate. I dreamed up this filling a couple of weeks ago and it tasted even better than I’d hoped. Basically it’s cashews whirred to creamy perfection with some coffee (both brewed coffee and finely ground espresso powder), cocoa (I absolutely love this fair-trade, Dutch-processed cocoa and use it in all my recipes), maple syrup for sweetness, and a little bit of salt and vanilla because all desserts need those two flavor-boosters. Sometimes cashew-based desserts taste too much like cashews to me but these don’t at all–the flavor is pure mocha.

Maple syrup pairs especially well with mocha. The dark undertones of its sweetness blend in with the coffee and chocolate so you don’t detect the maple flavor; you just wonder what other mysterious taste is in there that deepens and complements the mocha taste so well (see also this no-churn mocha ice cream made with homemade maple-sweetened condensed milk).

Anyway, after I made the first batch of this filling and scooped it into balls, I stuck it into the freezer to firm up so I could dip the truffles into melted chocolate later. That was on a Sunday afternoon and things got so busy with preparing for the work week that I didn’t get to it, so I thought I’d do it some evening that week after work. I told Ben he could try one or two of the naked truffles to see how he liked the filling, but not to eat them all because I was going to coat them in chocolate later.

Grain-free Carrot Cake

March 21, 2016 By Becky 21 Comments

This grain-free carrot cake gets wonderful flavor from hazelnut flour, lemon zest, and just the right balance of spices. It’s perfect for Easter, birthdays, or an impromptu spring celebration.

Carrot cake–how do you feel about it? I’ve changed my tune over the past few years. As a kid, I thought carrot cake was a huge disappointment. I’d take a few bites if it was the only cake available, but just because even carrot cake was better than no cake whatsoever. As I grew older, I came to appreciate carrot cake as a vehicle for cream cheese frosting, which I do like, despite finding most store-bought versions way too sweet.

When Ben and I first started dating, I was flabbergasted to hear that carrot cake was his FAVORITE kind of cake. Because I love him so much, I started experimenting with homemade carrot cake and was gradually won over. This grain-free carrot cake is good enough to often get stuck in my head like a song, with the memory of its flavor playing over and over until I give in and bake it again. I won’t say carrot cake is now my number one cake, but it might actually be one of my top three. I like how the carrots keep the cake from drying out, and how the subtly spiced cake contrasts with the subtly tangy frosting.

Olive Oil Blondies

March 10, 2016 By Becky 18 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

These olive oil blondies are irresistibly chewy in the middle and crunchy around the edges. No one will guess that they’re gluten free, grain free, dairy free, and paleo friendly!

Here they are: quintessential and perfect blondies (olive oil blondies, no less!), which happen to be free of gluten, grains, and dairy. I don’t mean to brag, but I think I really nailed it with these: no one will know they’re grain free or that they’re made with olive oil. They’re also super easy to whip up with just one bowl and one fork. No melting, no creaming, and no mixer required.

When I was little and still the world’s pickiest eater, I loved to go to Annabelle’s, a long-gone café in my hometown of Wellesley, Massachusetts, for dinner. I always got macaroni and cheese and a blondie. My nostalgia for that meal runs so deep that thinking about it still makes me really sad, despite the fact that Annabelle’s has been closed since 1994.