Panna Cotta with Roasted Rhubarb (AIP & Paleo)

I love all produce seasons, but there is something extra special about rhubarb season. Anytime I see rhubarb for sale, I feel like I’ve found a treasure! I’ve been especially thrilled to find local rhubarb at the farmer’s market, and I dream of someday having my own rhubarb patch.

In previous years, I’ve made rhubarb sauce to pair with pork, strawberry rhubarb crumbles, strawberry rhubarb compote, rhubarb cake, and a rhubarb galette, which are all super delicious. But this year, I decided to experiment even further by roasting the rhubarb. I also branched out from my usual flavor parings of rhubarb with strawberry, and pared it with orange and vanilla.

When it comes to something to serve the roasted rhubarb on, I have returned to a favorite: coconut milk panna cotta. I’ve adapted my stand-by panna cotta recipe just slightly, adding a little more gelatin since this is an unmolded version, and sweetening it with orange blossom honey.

So simple to make, very minimal added sweetener, and a good serving of gelatin. But, if panna cotta isn’t your jam, I’ve also served leftover roasted rhubarb on cupcakes and I also suspect it would be fantastic on pancakes or waffles.

One final note: I don’t believe this recipe would work well with frozen rhubarb—I’m fairly certain that freezing the rhubarb would cause it to break down too much to retain it’s shape. But, if you don’t mind if the rhubarb turns more sauce-y, feel free to try frozen rhubarb.

Coconut Milk Panna Cotta 
yields 4 to 6 servings, depending on molds/vessel size

1-13.5 oz can of coconut milk (I use smaller cartons & weigh out 13.5 oz)
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean powder
21 g (1 tablespoon) honey (I used orange blossom honey)
10 g (1 heaping tablespoon) gelatin

1. In a saucepan whisk together the coconut milk, vanilla, and honey. Carefully sprinkle the gelatin over the surface & mix gently. Allow to bloom for 10 minutes. 

2. Heat the saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the gelatin melts & there are no lumps--do not boil! 

3. Portion into small bowls/glasses or molds (I used a silicone muffin pan in these images). Chill in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours (or overnight). 

Roasted Rhubarb
8 oz fresh rhubarb stalks
63 g (3 tablespoons) honey (I used orange blossom honey)
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean powder
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 tablespoons orange juice

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. 
2. Cut the rhubarb stalks on an angle into 1" to 2" pieces. Place the cut pieces into an 8x8 baking dish. 
3. Drizzle the honey over the rhubarb & sprinkle with the vanilla powder and orange zest. Add the orange juice. 
4. Roast in the pre-heated oven for 10 minutes. Stir the rhubarb & roast an additional 10 minutes or until the rhubarb has softened, but is not falling apart. Cool to room temperature before serving. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. The tart flavor of the rhubarb will continue to mellow the longer it sits in the fridge. 

To serve 

1. Unmold the panna cotta, if desired—I ran a small offset spatula around the custards before gently popping them out of the silicone muffin pan I used as a mold—and plate. 
2. Top with a few pieces of rhubarb & a generous spoon full of the rhubarb liquid. 
3. Serve immediately. 

Note: 

• The rhubarb will remain pretty tart, even with the 63 g (3 tablespoons) of honey. If serving this recipe to non-AIP/Paleo people, you may way to up the sweetener by a tablespoon or two in both the roasted rhubarb and in the panna cotta.  

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after an Amazon link is clicked with no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support.

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Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce (AIP & Paleo)

Thanksgiving is only a couple days away, and I’m in full prep mode. But even if you’re waiting until the last minute to make the big Thanksgiving dinner, you can still have easy, delicious cranberry sauce, in a matter of minutes thanks to my favorite appliance, the Instant Pot.

Like the past two years, we are dry brining and butterflying a pastured turkey again, though because I can’t have dairy, we baste ours with a combination of bacon grease, sauvignon blanc wine & homemade turkey stock. I’ve actually chosen to do two birds this year because of the number of family members visiting and I wanted to make sure we’d have leftovers too! I find that cranberry sauce is not only a delicious condiment for the Thanksgiving table, but one that also can help mask the slight “gamey” flavor of a pastured turkey. It’s also delicious spread on sweet potato lefse, as well as on top of homemade 2-ingredient coconut yogurt.

In addition to the turkey, lefse, and this cranberry sauce, we’ll also be having my starch-free gravy, mashed white sweet potatoes, sweet potato casserole with tigernuts, roasted brussels sprouts with bacon/balsamic/dried cranberries (adapted from “The Healing Kitchen”), refrigerator pickles, a green bean casserole that I hope to share more about in a future post. And, of course, pie! Paleo pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and an AIP apple galette (adapted from the pear galette in my e-book “Holiday Sweet Treats”. In the name of stress reduction, since stress is one of my biggest autoimmune triggers, I’ll have made everything, except the turkey and gravy, in advance and will only need to re-heat things before we eat.

If you don’t already have an Instant Pot, this cranberry sauce can be made on the stove—just simmer all the ingredients until the cranberries pop & the sauce thickens slightly. And I highly recommend checking Amazon and other retailers to see if the Instant Pot goes on sale on Black Friday or Cyber Monday :)

Have a wonderful holiday. May you all enjoy spending time with friends and family. And may the leftovers be plentiful! :)

Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce (AIP & Paleo) 
yields just shy of one quart jar of sauce

20 ounces frozen cranberries
215 grams (approx 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons) honey (I prefer to use orange blossom honey)
1 tablespoon mandarin orange zest
3/4 cup mandarin orange juice
1/4 cup filtered water
1 cinnamon stick

1. Combine all the ingredients in the stainless steel insert of the Instant Pot. Close and lock the lid, ensuring the vent is set to sealing. 
2. Press {Manual} and reduce the time to 8 minutes.
3. Once the time is up, allow the pressure to release naturally. 
4. Remove the lid, stir, and allow to cool. Pour into a quart jar (or several small jars) and refrigerate until ready to eat. The sauce will thicken as it cools. The flavor continues to develop as it sits in the refrigerator, so plan to make this sauce a few days in advance, if possible. 

Notes:

• I’ve tested this recipe only with frozen cranberries, since I can find them at Whole Foods year-round. But you should be able to substitute fresh cranberries.  
• You may be tempted to reduce the amount of honey in the recipe, but I must warn you, even with 215 grams (over 1/2 a cup), the sauce is still a bit tart! 
• Regular orange zest/juice may be substituted for the mandarin orange zest/juice. 

This post contains affiliate links, meaning Sweet Treats makes a small commission off items purchased 

after an Amazon link is clicked with no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support.

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Roasted Nectarine & Lavender Sorbet (AIP, Paleo, Vegan variation)

Let there be much rejoicing: I finally freed enough space in my freezer to make a frozen dessert! This is quite a feat, since my freezer is usually so full of broth and veggies and meat that I really ought to post a “watch for falling objects” warning on the door handle. Someday, one of my big dreams is to live somewhere that I can have a separate deep freeze.

But alas, even with a small amount of space available in my freezer, I still haven’t been able to fit my ice cream bowl attachment in it. Thankfully, with this no-churn sorbet, I was able to make a delicious frozen dessert without needing my ice cream bowl.

Last year, I never fully enjoyed summer produce, as I had to adopt an AIP + Low FODMAP diet for a few months (and stone fruits are high in FODMAPs). This summer, I’m extra thankful that pesky SIBO seems to be behind me & that I can once again sensibly enjoy summer fruits, like nectarines and peaches and cherries. Organic nectarines were on sale a few weeks ago & I picked up a bunch, knowing we would eat some of them on their own & that I’d perhaps make some sort of frozen treat with them too.

I may have a bit of an obsession with lavender…. We diffuse lavender oil at bedtime, many of my natural beauty and bath products are scented with lavender, and I love the flavor of lavender, especially when combined with stone fruits like peaches or nectarines. A couple of years ago, before I learned dairy and I are not friends, I made a fabulous batch of roasted peach ice cream (not AIP). This sorbet is sort of inspired by that roasted peach ice cream and by my love of peach lavender jam (not AIP).

I halved the ripe nectarines, drizzled them with a tiny bit of honey (though you could totally skip this step to keep the dessert completely free from added sweeteners), and sprinkled them with a little bit of culinary lavender buds before roasting everything in the oven. Roasting helps to concentrate the flavors & also to evaporate some of the water out of the fruit. Probably because of the roasting & the addition of a little coconut milk, when I flaked the dessert with a fork, it did not hold icy shards like granita-type frozen desserts do. Instead, it became more sorbet-like.

Desserts with lavender may sound as though they’d taste like soap or potpourri, but I promise this sorbet has just a hint of lavender flavor. It’s the perfect floral accent to the summer-y flavor of nectarines.

No-Churn Roasted Nectarine & Lavender Sorbet (AIP, Paleo, Vegan variation) 
yields 4 to 6 small servings

Coconut oil, for greasing the baking pan 
5 nectarines, ripe (mine weighed 541 g *with* their pits) 
21 g (1 tablespoon) honey
1/2 teaspoon culinary lavender buds, plus additional for garnish, if desired  
pinch of sea salt  
56 g (1/4 cup) coconut milk 

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease a baking pan (I used a Le Creuset oval gratin dish) with coconut oil. 
2. Cut the nectarines in half & arrange them, cut side up, in the greased baking pan. If the pits are challenging to remove, leave them in until after the baking process. 
3. Drizzle the nectarines with the honey, if desired, and sprinkle with the culinary lavender & sea salt. 
4. Roast for 30 minutes in the preheated oven. 
5. Allow to cool at room temperature and remove the pits. Cover & refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to meld. 
6. Puree the roasted nectarines & lavender with the coconut milk in a food processor or high speed blender. Pour into baking dish (I used a 6-cup pyrex) & freeze, uncovered, until solid.
7. Once the nectarine lavender mixture is solid, flake with a fork. The pieces will not hold in icy shards like granitas do, but can be stirred together to form a sorbet-type texture. 
8. Portion into cups & serve with a few extra lavender buds. Store leftovers, covered, in the freezer & re-flake with a fork before serving. 

Notes:

• The nectarines may be peeled, if desired, but I like the color, texture & extra fiber the skin provides. 
• Peaches (or other stone fruits) may substituted for the nectarines. 
• Honey may be omitted, especially if the nectarines are really ripe. 
• To make the recipe vegan, substitute maple syrup 
• To make the recipe coconut free, use avocado oil for greasing the pan & add water or fruit juice when blending. 
• This recipes can also be turned into popsicles by pouring into a popsicle mold after pureeing. 

note: this post contains affiliate links. 

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Berry Panna Cotta Pie (AIP & Paleo)

Last weekend, we celebrated Independence Day (aka the 4th of July) in the US. The holiday sort of sneaked up on me, after a busier-than-average June, so I did not have time to concoct a new AIP patriotic dessert this year. I planned to make the patriotic panna cotta I posted last year (actually, it’s one of my most favorite, easiest AIP desserts because you really can substitute almost any fruit you like). At the last minute, I had an epiphany to make the panna cotta into a pie by first making an AIP pie crust (I used a recipe from my friend Martine at The Paleo Partridge), then filling the baked/cooled shell with berries & adding the panna cotta custard liquid. 

The results were spectacular! The pie tasted very reminiscent of the fruit tarts I use to make in my pre-AIP/paleo days & are something that I really miss.  I remarked to my husband, as we sampled the pie, that it tasted so “normal.” Martine’s crust was almost like a short bread cookie, very similar to the pate sucree I use to make for all my tarts. The creamy coconut filling wasn’t overwhelmingly coconut-y & pared so well with ripe berries & the almost buttery crust. I had to pinch myself that the dessert was completely AIP!!

Though I hadn’t intended to do a blog post on this pie, the reactions to the image I posted on Instagram were so great that I thought a post would be nice to make the recipe easier to find (and let’s be honest, more pin-able, since I can’t keep track of recipes very well unless I can pin them to Pinterest). I believe this crust/fruit/panna cotta custard combination would work well with fruits other than berries (peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, apples, pears, figs... etc) when berries are no longer in season. If you try another fruit variation, please post a picture on Instagram & tag me (@lauravein) in it!

Berry Panna Cotta Pie 

yields 8 servings, or one 9 inch pie  

1 recipe Sweet & Savory Pie Crust from Eat Heal Thrive 

250 g (approximately 2 cups) berries or other fruit of choice (I used strawberries, blueberries, blackberries & raspberries)

1 recipe of Panna Cotta custard 

1. Make the sweet & savory pie crust according to the directions on Martine’s web site. The only changes I made were to skip piercing the bottom of the crust before baking (I didn’t want the filling to run out later) & to bake it 5 minutes longer because I didn’t want to risk the crust getting soggy from the filling. 
2. While the pie shell is cooling, prepare the berries, cutting them if desired. Place the fruit into the bottom of the cooled shell. 
3. Make the panna cotta custard according to the directions--Omit the vanilla for elimination phase AIP. Set the berry-filled pie shell onto a sheet pan for easier transport, then carefully pour the custard over the fruit. 
4. Allow the pie to chill until the custard is set, approximately 2 hours. Let the pie sit at room temperature at least 10 minutes before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator. The pie is best consumed within 24-36 hours, or else the crust begins to get soggy.

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Paleo Fudge Sauce & AIP Carob Sauce

This year, as a Fathers Day gift to my dad, I “paleo-ified” one of his favorite treats. Next weekend, during a visit to ND, I’ll be making him that treat AND giving him the recipe (watch for that full recipe in a future post).  Most people can follow the 80/20 rule for paleo, meaning paleo is followed 80% of the time & during the remaining 20%, certain indulgences/choices can be made to eat non-paleo foods.  While a person could choose to indulge in a non-paleo, store-bought chocolate sauce, I developed this sauce as a slightly better-for-you option.

Still keep in mind, this paleo fudge sauce is still very much a treat.... Just because the title includes the name “paleo,” doesn’t make it a health food. However, it’s ingredients are a bit more clean than some of the store bought versions.  So far, we’ve eaten the sauce straight from the jar with a spoon (oops), added it to coffee and coconut cream to make a homemade mocha, and drizzled warmed sauce over coconut ice cream.

Though I realized as I’ve been posting some pictures on Instagram of my test batches, perhaps developing an AIP-compliant sauce for those who haven’t yet reintroduced chocolate would also be a good idea. When following AIP, there is no 80/20 rule--following AIP 100% & reintroducing foods one-by-one, very slowly is the only way to succeed. Part of the reason I create AIP treats is specifically so that we don’t have to feel left out during times of celebration when others may be consuming foods we cannot.  Carob doesn’t taste exactly like chocolate, but if you’re someone who cannot eat chocolate, it makes a pretty tasty treat option stirred into coconut milk or drizzled over coconut milk ice cream.

Paleo Fudge Sauce: Paleo, AIP Reintro, Vegan

28 g / 1 oz / (a little less than 6 Tbl) Cacao Powder
160 g / 5.65 oz / heaping 1/2 c Grade B Maple Syrup
85 g / 3 oz / 1/4 c + 2 Tbl Coconut Cream
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
30 g / 2 Tbl Enjoy Lifechocolate chips
1 t Vanilla Extract
14 g / 1 Tbl Coconut Oil

1. Combine the cacao, maple, coconut cream, and sea salt in a small saucepan. 
2. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low & simmer for 3 minutes. Whisk constantly throughout. 
3. Remove from the heat and whisk in the coconut oil & vanilla extract.  
4. Pour into a jar, cool at room temperature & store in the refrigerator. The sauce will become solid in the refrigerator, so reheat as necessary for serving. 

Notes:

• I have created this recipe using the gram weight figures & later converted it to volume for your convenience. However, I have not tested the volumetric measurements, so keep that in mind. I highly recommend getting a Digital Kitchen Scale & weighing ingredients whenever possible. 
• Honey may be substituted for the maple syrup, but such a substitution will make the recipe no longer vegan. 
• I have not tested any other brands of chocolate chips other than Enjoy Life--other brands may be more or less sweet. 

AIP Carob Syrup

28 g / 4 Tbl Carob Powder
3 oz / 1/4 c Raw Honey
2 Tbl Filtered Water
1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
14 g / 1 Tbl Coconut Oil
1 Tbl Coconut Cream

1. Combine the carob, honey, water, cinnamon, vanilla & sea salt in a small saucepan. 
2. Heat over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture boils. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer 3 minutes, continuing to stir constantly.
3. Remove from the heat and whisk in the coconut oil & coconut cream. 
4. Pour into a small jar, cool at room temperature & store in the refrigerator.

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Blog Birthday & Coconut Macaroons (AIP, Paleo)

I’m feeling in a celebratory mood (and a tish nostalgic). Friday was “Sweet Treats” 5th birthday! So much has happened in the five years I’ve been baking, photographing & writing in this space…. 

When I started “Sweet Treats,” I had recently moved across the country, all by myself to Charleston, SC, and was enrolled in my first semester of pastry school at the Culinary Institute of Charleston. I had already been reading food blogs for several years and I figured that starting my own food blog was a great way to merge my background in graphic design & photography with my other love: baking and pastry. Plus, I kept reading about the “Daring Bakers” challenges on different blogs, and I wanted to participate. My very first Sweet Treats post chronicled my first DB challenge: vols-au-vents. I continued with many DB challenges until ultimately my work schedule made it impossible to complete the projects. Also over the first couple years of posting, I chronicled projects made both as a pastry student and instructor.

(some highlights from the past 5 years of blogging)

I’ve had fun re-reading the “Sweet Treats” archives & looking through old pictures. If you’d asked me in September of 2009 (when I started Sweet Treats the blog) where I thought I’d be in 5 years (2014), I never would have guessed that I’d be where I am today.  Along this journey, life has taken some very different paths than I ever expected....

• Teaching at CIC: Before attending culinary school, I spent some time teaching in a demonstration kitchen . I loved teaching and was thrilled when I was unexpectedly asked to become a pastry chef instructor at CIC after my first year as a student. I taught a variety of different courses & feel very thankful for all I learned in developing much of my own curriculum and from my teaching experiences.  One of the hardest parts of leaving Charleston was leaving my job at CIC--I still miss the classroom!! 
• Meeting Helene Dujardin: One of the very first food blogs I ever read was Helen’s Tartelette. At the time, I had no idea that she lived in Charleston (or that I’d be living in that city one day), but through the wonders of social media & email, we eventually connected and became friends in-real-life!!  She is such a gem (and the best wedding photographer we could have asked for). 
• Meeting Tami Hardeman Boutté: Through working as the kitchen manager for several of Helene’s food photography workshops, I met Tami, who also has become a great friend. If ever you find yourself stranded in the ATL area due to an unexpected snowstorm, I highly recommend getting stranded at Tami’s house :) I’ve since also been fortunate to work as a food styling assistant for her on a commercial job. (and, hopefully for another shoot next month!) 
• Moving to Texas: When I first moved to Charleston, I didn’t know how long I’d be there.... a year? Two years? More? But I certainly didn’t expect to end up in the middle of nowhere Texas, thanks to my husband’s job. The things one does for love :) Everyday of living here is a bit of an adventure, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. 
• Instagram: Let’s be honest, Instagram has become a staple in my life. I may have a bit of an addiction, but the way I see it, Instagram helps me get to know people I never would have found before & helps me keep in touch with friends and family who live far away. And I’m able to share more behind-the-scenes things about my everyday life. Spoiler alert: not every recipe is successful & my entire life most definitely isn’t Pinterest-worthy. 
• Adventures with autoimmune conditions: Shortly after moving to Texas, my health problems began to compound, and I began searching for answers. After many visits to various doctors and a plethora of tests, multiple autoimmune conditions were diagnosed. Subsequently, I’ve made a number of dietary and lifestyle changes that I never anticipated making. Going “gluten-free” was not a choice I made based on a fad--it was a necessity! (as was a year of eating only foods with low acid properties...) I’ve tried conventional medications, some with success, though most included unpleasant side-effects. I’ve also had to come to terms with the fact that there is no quick fix for autoimmunity, or even a 100% cure. In all actuality, I will be dealing with these conditions (in some shape or form) for the rest of my life; there are steps I can take to manage my symptoms, but I still will need to be very self-aware. 
• Paleo & the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP): I never expected to find myself following the Paleo lifestyle. I thought Paleo was silly, and expensive. How could I, a pastry chef, ever expect to give up ALL grains, as well as many other ingredients I considered to be “staples” ?!? As it turns out, the clinical nutritionist/functional medicine doctor I began seeing in April 2014 uncovered a ridiculous amount of food sensitivities, which, coupled with my other autoimmune issues, basically put me not just on a paleo diet, but the even stricter autoimmune protocol of paleo (aka AIP). The results from following AIP, along with supplements & treatments from my doctor, showed dramatic improvement of my symptoms almost immediately. I’m going to be honest, though: AIP is a lot of work & takes a decent amount of planning. It isn’t always fun or easy (and it isn’t always a miracle cure), I think it is the best option for me. While I hope to not have to follow strict AIP forever (I’m already on the reintroduction stage), I do think staying on a paleo-esque diet will be important for the foreseeable future (and that gluten and I will never be friends again).

The past 5 years have certainly had their roller coaster moments of high highs and low lows, but I’m choosing to celebrate them with an AIP-friendly coconut macaroon recipe. These macaroons are free from dairy, eggs, gluten/grains, and refined sugar, but they’re not free from delicious taste. In fact, I do have to hold myself back from eating too many.....

As I’ve jumped head first into the autoimmune protocol and watched my life change dramatically in the past months, I’ve also been thinking a lot about this space. How on earth does a pastry chef with a dessert blog adapt her subject matter to fit within paleo/aip and not completely alienate her readers? I keep returning to two principles 1) staying true to myself and 2) helping others. Here are some of my thoughts as I look to the future:

• I have to keep my health in check. One of the major healing components of AIP is low-sugar consumption, even if that sugar is from natural or unrefined sources. It simply is detrimental for me to make sweets as often as I have in the past. They should be an occasional treat, not a regular thing. 
• While I might not be eating sweets as often as I did in the past, I am eating some really fantastic foods that not only taste great but make me feel better too. I plan on posting more of these every-day “staples” and savory foods, although I won’t lose the sweets entirely. I often post pictures of what I’m eating on Instagram, partially to remember what I’ve eaten and partially to show people that although   AIP can be a bit daunting at first (and honestly sort of a lonely journey) & one of my goals moving forward is to take my experiences & recipes to help inspire people to live a more healthful lifestyle (though note that everyone is different, so my dietary choices might not be the best choices for you). 

Whew! I feel like I’ve written a novel :) I do want to thank you, my readers, for sticking with me on this journey. It hasn’t been what I would have predicted, but I can’t wait to see where it leads! I’m grateful for your company along these adventures. Please let me know if there are any topics or recipes you’d like to see me cover.  And even if you’re not following AIP, I still encourage you to make these fantastic macaroons. They couldn’t be easier or more delicious.

Coconut Macaroons (egg-free, paleo, AIP)

adapted from Elana’s Pantry & Against All Grain

Yields approximately 18 cookies

120 g (1 1/2 c) Shredded, Unsweetened Coconut

7 g (1 Tbl) Organic Coconut Flour

pinch Sea Salt

26 g (2 Tbl) Organic Coconut Oil, room temperature

85 g (1/4 c) Organic Honey (or sub maple syrup to make vegan) 

1 Tbl Vanilla Extract (optional for AIP) 

• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper & set aside. Note: I used my toaster oven & a quarter sheet baking pan.

• Pulse the shredded coconut, coconut flour and sea salt in a food processor until combined. 

• Add the oil, honey & vanilla extract & pulse until well mixed. 

• Use a 1 Tbl cookie scoop to portion mounds of dough onto the prepared baking pan. Pack the dough into the scoop to ensure all macaroons are the same size. 

• Bake for 10 minutes (rotating the pan after 5 minutes), or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the pan at least 10 minutes. Store any leftovers in an airtight container. Macaroons may lose their crispness over time, depending on the humidity. 

This post contains affiliate links. Thanks for supporting Sweet Treats. 

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Zucchini Bread (Paleo & Nut-free)

At the end of summer each year, it seems as though zucchini recipes & zucchini things are everywhere as people are trying to either savor one of the flavors of summer, or they’re trying to figure out how to use up the crazy amount of zucchini their garden produced. We’ve eaten a fair amount of zucchini this summer, but most all of it was purchased from a store. Someday, it’ll be nice to grow our own & join the group of people with overloads of zucchini.

Most of our zucchini consumption has been savory: Sautéed with shallots & bacon, roasted in the oven, sliced into stir-fry/hash, grated raw on salads & the ever amazing zucchini noodles (aka “zoodles”)... I did make this zucchini bread a couple of times after successfully reintroducing whole eggs. Even the non-paleo people remarked that they enjoyed it, though it isn’t as sweet as most zucchini bread recipes.  One night back in ND, I served it more like a pound cake than a quick bread, by topping slices with a little coconut whipped cream and an extra drizzle of local honey.

Often times, paleo baked goods rely heavily on the use of almond flour & other nut flours. One of the things I like about this particular recipe is that it uses coconut flour instead of almond flour. For me, and many other people who are in the reintroduction stages of the autoimmune protocol (aka AIP and/or autoimmune paleo), keeping my nut consumption on a limited level helps me to feel the best. Coconut flour is still a bit of a mystery to me, because it acts so different than regular wheat flours & other gluten free flours. This zucchini bread isn’t quite as tall as others may be, and the coconut flour does give it more of a spongy texture, but nevertheless, it is very, very tasty!  

I even have to be a little careful about how often I make this recipe. It’s taken a lot of conscious effort (and time) to subdue my sweet tooth and the part of me that craves treats... Lately, eating a couple bites of fruit is enough to satisfy me (and I’ve even been working to reduce my fruit consumption, because even excess sugars from fruit are not good for me). When I have this zucchini bread around, I find myself constantly eating tiny slices of it! I should be continuing in the mindset that sweets, even ones made with safe-to-me, paleo compliant ingredients, are still to be enjoyed sparingly.  Pairing some of the leftover zucchini bread with chicken sausages & a homemade paleo-ified bulletproof pumpkin spice latte was a special treat. 

Zucchini Bread (Paleo & Nut-free) 
adapted from Small Footprint Family

Note: this recipe is *close* to AIP, but still includes eggs (which I have successfully reintroduced in small quantities). If you’re following strict AIP, you could try the gelatin egg replacer (see this post); however, I have not tested that substitution yet....  

1 Zucchini, grated (around 5.7 oz)
56 g / 1/2 c Coconut Flour (I use Bob's Red Mill Organic Coconut Flour)
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
2 Tbl Cinnamon
4 large pastured eggs, room temperature
64 g / 3 Tbl Raw Honey
13 g (1 Tbl) Coconut Oil, room temperature, plus additional for the pan
1 ripe banana, mashed

1. Using the large openings on a box grater, grate the zucchini into a bowl. Allow to sit while measuring the rest of the ingredients. 
2. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper & brush the paper with coconut oil. Set aside. 
3. In a small bowl, mix together the coconut flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. 
4. In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk the eggs, honey & coconut oil. Mix in the mashed banana. Add the dry ingredients & whisk thoroughly until there aren’t any lumps. 
5. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the grated zucchini (I do this by dividing the zucchini into a couple handfuls & squeeze it as hard as I can) & add it to the batter. Pour into the prepared loaf pan & bake for 45 to 50 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean). 
6. Cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove, using the parchment liner to assist. 
7. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container at room temperature. Slice just before serving. This zucchini bread is not extremely sweet, so you may wish to serve it with an extra drizzle of honey, if you’re not following a low sugar diet. 

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