Carrot Cake Muffins - Gluten Free & Vegan

I've decided that carrot cake is evil - I can eat so much of it without batting an eyelid... it's incredibly deadly for me. I'm unsure why I love it so - it maybe the moistness of the cake, the fruitiness, the nuttiness, the high sugar and fat content, or simply the cream cheese frosting that adorns them. Lucky enough, I've limited my dairy intake (due to allergies), so any piece of carrot cake that calls me when I'm in PCC will have to sit on the hips and thighs of someone else.

Tofu and Vegetable Yellow Coconut Curry

I've been meaning to post this entry for a long time… but I keep forgetting! It’s a delicious vegan dish (when omitting the fish sauce), which I make when we have a meat-less dinner. You really won’t miss the meat in this recipe.

The curry is well flavored and very mild. I’d compare it almost to a korma. The addition of the creaminess from the coconut milk makes this dish ultra-dreamy. Serve this over freshly cooked rice.

Soy-Free Vegan Whipped Cream

I’ve never been a big fan of whipped cream, but I do miss it on occasion.

I’ve longed to find a dairy-free whipped “cream” that tasted good, but I daren’t try any. The store bought cream alternatives are usually jammed packed with nasties. I don’t want to replace the poison I want to avoid (milk/cream) and replace it with another poison.

Salmon & Bak Choi in a Green Coconut Curry

We eat oily fish about 1-2 times a week. With salmon being so accessible in the Pacific North West, it’s no surprise that it features heavily in our diet. This is one of our favorite salmon dishes.

The curry has the hotness from the spices, which is tamed by the thick and creamy coconut milk. The salmon is poached and the bak choi is lightly blanched, so it’s all pretty healthy. It's a really good week-day dinner.

Sweet Potato & Eggplant Green Coconut Curry

This is one of those vegetarian dinners that are scheduled in once or twice a week for us.

It’s highly nutritious, delicious and simple. The spiciness of the green curry is tamed by the sweetness from the sweet potato (yams) and the creaminess of the coconut milk.

Coconut Butter

Coconuts and coconut oil have had its fair share of bad press in the last few decades. It’s still a common misconception that the saturated fat in coconut oil raises cholesterol.

There are no scientific studies which have been published, that indicate the consumption of coconut oil increases blood cholesterol or leads to heart disease. There have however, been numerous reports [1-6] that have shown that coconut oil cannot be held responsible for the development of coronary heart disease. Other studies have pin-pointed populations that regularly consume coconuts, such as Polynesia and Sri Lanka and show that “dietary coconut oil does not lead to high serum cholesterol nor to high coronary heart disease mortality or morbidity" [7-9].