A Lover’s Choice, Two Recipes for Romance
14 February
Happy Valentine’s Day, friends! This sweet occasion is the perfect opportunity for me to bring to you a collaboration with the loveliest, talentedLaura Domingo, the creator of thegorgeous blog, Lau Sundaycooks. Lau Sunday cooksis filled with gorgeous photography, healthy gluten-free recipes coupled with nutritional information. Laura will give you all the details on how we met and together we are featuringtwo delicious desserts or as we like to call it –A Lover’s Choice, Two Recipes for Romance in a very unconventional blogging way. Before I turn it over to Laura, I really need to say if you haven’t seen or followed this beauty on social media, you need to head over to her instagram account and bookmark her website. Long before Laura contactedme what she didn’t know was that I was already fawning over her mouth watering recipes. Then she posted this unbelievable recipe which literally gave me goosebumps so when Laura approached me to be a guest on her blog, I was over the moon. This was a chance for something biggerthan just me being a guest contributor, it was a chance for a sweet collaboration. Without further ado,I am excited to introduce Laura to Garden Heart.
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One of the good things from attendinga workshop (apart from the things you get to learn), is the opportunity to meet new and talented people with the same passion as yours. Sometimes, if you are very lucky, then that person you meet, you get to connect withherin a particular and very special way.I am one of those lucky few !
I met Elli at Aiala’s food photographyworkshopwhich I attended during October last year. Our special bond was born out ofchance and curiosity, both being attracted not only by the same photography, but also from the exactly same thrill and feeling.I can only describe it as magic.
Taking the time to research my new found friend, through Instagram,I discovered Elli’s beautiful work and what a truly rewarding sight that was. Through breathtaking photographs, Ellishows her journey and passion for holistic health and nourishing healing foods.
The heart of the Garden
Elli is a holistic nutritionist in the making and the founder ofGarden Heart, an inspirational blog where she spreads to the world, her knowledge gainedfromher own personal battle toovercome the daily challenges born from an autoimmune disease. Sheguides her followers towards a health and well-being life style throughtasty and seasonal recipes using nutrient-dense foods so necessaryfor our optimal health… having said all of this, now you will understand my reasoning, whyI just had to get in touch with her (being a little bit afraid at the start, to be honest) to ask her to be a special guest on my little and tiny humble blog.
To my surprise and happiness, I felt the luckiest person on the Earth, as 2015 is theYear of Yesfor Elliso shereplied saying that I would be one of her 2015’s Yeses and that she would be delighted to be involved.However, shenot only acceptedtomyproposal but she inviteme to be her blog’s guestas well, allowing us both to contribute to thisbeautiful project, made with lots of love, respect and enthusiast.
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The benefits of the cacao powder
Immediately, it was clear for Elli and I, that the focus for our project should be a healing ingredient.So what better timethanValentine’s Dayto share with youtworecipes made from cocoa powder; a great superfood potent with antioxidants and plenty of benefits.
For the most antioxidants, look for semi-sweet or dark chocolate with at least 70 per cent cocoa solids and the least amount of sugar. Dark chocolate without unhealthy additives, such as sugar, has been shown to lower the risk of cancer and strokes. Chocolate, also, improves immunity, greater longevity and quicker recovery from intense exercise.
So we had to show to you all the advantages and benefits of treating yourself by eating a small quantity of a quality chocolate or… making thesechocolateavocado pudding with pecan brittlefor you and your lover on Valentine’s Day. For this delicious recipe, clickhere.
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Now, the star ingredient comes inthe form of truffles.I’m amazed how Ellicaptures the exceptional purity of the cacao and the beautyof the hibiscus in these photographs. Aren’t they simply pure love?
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Oh my dearest Laura, your photographs, your words melt my heart. I’m ready to dive in and enjoy every bite of your Chocolate Avocado Pudding. For anyone looking for a healthier chocolate mousse to romanticize and devour on this special day, this is it. Get it here.
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For the Chocolate Hibiscus Truffles, I wanted to create an earthy feel to this recipe using Hibiscus and Cacao as the main ingredients and for the complimentary ingredient, I added Carob. If you wish to learn more about the benefits of using Carob in recipes, click here. Carob is perfect for anyone wishing to add a little sweet caramel taste but still keep the treat caffeine-free.
As Laura mentioned, raw cacao is high in antioxidants, it is one of the highest sources of magnesium (tolearn more about the importance of magnesium, click here)and chromium. It is rich in vitamins, minerals, omega 6 fatty acids, amino acids, enzymes, and soluble fiber.
Hibiscus is theplant that inherited the namethe “Botox plant” for the effects it has on skin health. It is known to increase skin elasticity and moisture, improve flexibility and protects the skin from free radical damage (high in natural source of alpha-hydroxy acids). It is so powerful that many beauty products contain this incredible plant to help control acne breakouts and help shrink pores. I love adding the powder to smoothies or raw desserts and the flower to loose tea. Hibiscus helps improve cholesterol, reduce blood pressure, supportsa healthy heart and for anyone with a cold (sip on hibiscus tea with some lemon).
Let’s not lose focus on the skin benefits of cacao as it is widely used in natural beauty products. You can find more on information here.
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I hope you have enjoyed these two recipes. I want to take this opportunity to thank my lovely friend, Laura for joining me to share with you two of our favourite ways to indulge in chocolate.
A Lover's Choice, Two Recipes for Romance
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup coconut nectar
- ¼ cup almond butter
- ½ cup raw walnuts (soaked for at least 4 hours)
- ¼ cup raw cacao
- ¼ cup toasted carob
- dash of himalayan pink salt
- pinch of raw vanilla bean powder
- ¼ cup extra for dusting of each (cacao and hibiscus)
Instructions
- Soak raw walnuts at least 4 hours.
- Add walnuts, coconut oil, maple syrup, coconut nectar, almond butter, cacao, carob, vanilla, pink salt to a food processor.
- Blend ingredients on high until all ingredients are mixed well together and they form a paste.
- Transfer mixture into a bowl. In two separate bowls, one for extra cacao and the other for hibiscus.
- Roll each truffle in the palm of your hand and roll it into the cacao or hibiscus.
- Place truffles once they are all done in freezer for at least 2 hours and enjoy. They last up to 14 days in the freezer.
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Love,
Elli and Laura
