Choc Banana Granola Bites

These beautiful energy and nutrient-dense bites are a great snack when you're travelling, on the road or at work, and make perfect lunchbox fillers for kids. The banana binds them together surprisingly well and gives them a lovely chewy texture, while the cacao nibs add a bit of crunch and chocolate flavour. Buckwheat flakes also give a lovely soft texture and together with the cacao nibs, as well as the nuts and seeds, provide an excellent source of magnesium.

This recipe is a slight variation of Kumquat's Blueberry Coconut Pecan Breakfast Cookies, which is a variation of Anja's Food 4 Thought Banana Pecan Granola Bars - that's the beauty of this recipe, it's easy to adjust to suit your needs!

If you or your kids have a nut allergy, replace the nuts with seeds (such as sunflower seeds). To make it gluten free, replace the oats completely with buckwheat flakes (this also makes it suited to those following the paleo diet). Use apple puree instead of banana for a different flavour (rhubarb would be nice too), or replace the cacao nibs for dried cranberries or figs. Date paste is my preferred choice of sweetener, however if you don't have it use raw honey. The options are endless; get creative!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole rolled oats
• 1/2 cup rolled buckwheat
• 1 cup coconut flakes
• 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped almonds
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cacao nibs
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch sea salt
• 1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence
• 1-2 tablespoons date paste (to taste)
• 2-3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (about 7 tablespoons)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 C. Line two oven trays with baking paper and rub over with a little coconut oil. 
2. Combine the oats, buckwheat, coconut flakes, seeds, almonds, cacao nibs, cinnamon and sea salt together in a large bowl.
3. Gently melt the coconut oil on low heat and whisk in the date paste, vanilla and bananas. Add to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
4. Press a heaped tablespoonful into a round cookie cutter on the lined baking tray. Repeat with remaining mixture (should make 15-20).
5. Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes until golden. Cool.
6. Eat as is, or top with a drizzle of melted dark chocolate* and fresh sliced strawberries. 

*I simply melted 4 tablespoons of coconut oil and whisked in 30g of raw cacao powder with a tablespoon of coconut syrup and a drop of vanilla. Spoon into chocolate moulds (or ice cube moulds) and freeze for a few minutes and voila! You'll have delicious and healthy dark chocolates!

Coconut Pancakes

This recipe is the result of a bit of kitchen experimentation, with a few failures along the way! I'm pretty happy with the results, as were my keen 'guinea pig' housemates!

These are gluten free, dairy free (if you wish), grain free (good for those following the paleo diet), high in protein and light and fluffy yet super filling. They are also super easy and quick to prepare, so make a great lazy weekend breakfast. If you have kids, get them to help with the mixing and plopping the batter into the frypan!

This recipe makes enough for three to four people, as it is suprisingly filling.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
• 2 teaspoons coconut palm sugar (or raw honey)
• Pinch of sea salt
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 1 large mashed banana
• 3 free range eggs
• 1/2 cup milk (this can be dairy, soy, almond or rice)
• Organic cold pressed coconut oil (for frying)

To serve:

• Pitted sour cherries
• Coyo
• Handful of raw almonds, roughly chopped

Method:

1. Toast almonds in a frypan on medium heat. Move frequently, so as not to burn. When lightly browned and fragrant, remove from heat and allow to cool.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, lemon rind, cinnamon, salt and sugar together in a large bowl (if using honey use in next step).
3. In another bowl, beat the eggs well with a fork. Beat in mashed banana, milk and honey (if using). Add to flour mix and stir well until combined.
4. Heat a tablespoon of coconut oil in a large frypan on medium/high heat. When hot, add heaped tablespoonfuls of the batter, ensuring the oil sufficiently surrounds each (this gives the pancakes a lovely crisp texture and ensures they don't burn before they are cooked).
5. Fry until bubbles form and they lose their glossy sheen (don't flip early - they tend to take a little longer than normal pancakes). Flip and cook through.
6. Add extra oil between batches as they tend to soak some whilst cooking.
7. Serve pancakes in a stack topped with a dollop of coconut yoghurt, a spoonful or two of pitted sour cherries and a sprinkle of the toasted almonds.

Enjoy! xT