WHUT.  Christmas is less than a week away, and the year is done-zo in less than two!  How are you feeling?  Are you getting holiday stress?  I had myself a panic moment a few days ago when Aubrie asked me why there are still no presents under our tree.  I mumbled something about not wanting them to poke around the presents and wreck the wrapping like last year, instead of the truth, which is I was procrastinating the mundane task of wrapping them up.  On the actual gift-buying side, I had 90% of gifts purchased by early December but the last 10% is by no coincidence, the most difficult.  People like my dad, dad-in-law, etc are impossible to buy for.  So I'm still working on that last 10% ... kiiiinda cutting it close, I reckon.  Socks?  Again?

This season, Vitamix came up with this Winter Spice Seasoning of cinnamon sticks, crystallized ginger, cardamom, pink peppercorns, cloves, dried orange peel, salt and brown sugar (tip:  sub coconut sugar for Paleo / refined sugar free version!) blended into a fragrant seasoning of warmth and WINTER MAGIC. 

Vitamix and theFeedfeed partnered up to sponsor this post so that I can bring you this recipe I created using that heavenly seasoning mix.  Can you smell it in your mind's eye...eerrr, nose?  I want to put it in everything, both sweet and savory!

I'm giddy with excitement this time of the year when holiday season is in full ramp-up mode!  It's my favorite.  I love that the season is about giving to others.  While I don't condone frivolous over-consumption (which is admittedly a huge downside associated with the holidays), I really enjoy putting careful thought into the gifts that I am giving to the special people in my life.  There's a dizzying joy and smug satisfaction when I just know I've found the perfect gift for someone. 

I'm still giving myself pats on the back for the Aesop hydrating cream for my mom / sister, and the fold-able (brilliant!) vegetable spiralizer for my brother-in-law last year.  We won't talk about the socks I gifted my dad tho - he's a hard one to buy for!

This one is my favorite twist on banana muffins.  I am a die-hard fan of the distinctive flavor of black sesame seeds.  In these muffins, I especially love how its earthy nuttiness balances the sweetness of the bananas.  A liberal sprinkling of extra black sesame seeds and coarse sugar give the muffins delightfully crunchy tops, making them extra special.

The girls showered me with their praises when they tasted this loaf.  And since I thrive off flattery and compliments (heehee), I made a second loaf immediately for next morning's breakfast which was greeted with the same gleeful enthusiasm.  

Stroke stroke stroke.  My ego.  

Never you mind that the judging panel was comprised of a 6 year old and a 3 year old.  I decided I would definitely share this recipe on the blog with you so you too can have your ego stroked.  Or at the very least, have your breakfast sorted.

I'll concede that as far as food trends go these days, you're much more likely to see a chia pudding appear on your Instagram feed than a tapioca pudding! You might even say the latter is a little old-school. But to me, this MANGO TAPIOCA PUDDING has a special nostalgia and holds a supreme ranking as far as desserts that delighted me as a child. And as an adult :)

These CHEWY SALTED CHOCOLATE PECAN NO-BAKE BARS are the answer to your cravings for something salty-sweet, chewy, nutty and chocolate-y......buuut still kinda healthy and definitely not tooth-achingly sweet.  They’re perfect for stashing in the freezer for a quick treat. Enjoy a square (or three)!

Sometimes a classic flavor combo just beckons.  Like this CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH STRAWBERRY MASCARPONE BUTTERCREAM.  Classic chocolate cake with a simple American style buttercream made more luxurious with the additions of mascarpone cheese and homemade strawberry puree (or really good strawberry jam).

Due to popular demand, I'm putting up this recipe which is an oldie I found through the Food Network website and have made it again and again.  These days we are limiting gluten and refined sugars but I make exceptions when I'm baking for others or just as an occasional treat.  Believe me I don't go wasting that 'quota' just on anything.  I have to tell you, these shortbread cookies are well worth it.  

If you love a little pucker with your sweet with a little tropical twist, you'll go mad for this tart!

Vanilla cake with a plush, soft and tight crumb (that is “not too sweet”) with Swiss Meringue buttercream, honeycomb toffee crunchies and unicorn sugar cookies.

In my previous post, I wrote about my family's (temporary) grain-free and dairy-free diet. Since then, we had our follow up visit with the naturopath and received an 'okay' to consume rice, oats and quinoa in small amounts.  I won't pretend to understand naturopathy at all. I don't. As a fairly science-based household (my husband is an intellectual property lawyer with a specialty in biotechnology and medical devices, while I worked nearly a decade at a global pharmaceutical company in a Finance capacity), this venture into alternative medicine is a giant leap of faith.  A leap we had not choice but to take since traditional medicine failed to help my daughter beyond full-body topical steroid cream applications to treat her eczema and absolutely nada to diagnose or treat her mild but persistent, daily stomach aches.  

Being prescribed a grain-free diet by my daughter's naturopath just before the holidays is like getting sick right before vacation ... or scoring free drink tickets only to get bar rail liquor ... or finding a hole in your sock the moment you take off your shoes at someone's house ... or dripping yellow mustard on your brand new sneakers (that stuff's like dye and never completely comes off!) ... or getting an unexpected visit from Auntie Flo when you're totally unprepared OK THAT IS GOING TOO FAR.  

This cake was a huge hit at a family gathering over the weekend. I'm finicky when it comes to chocolate + fruit combinations in a cake (as in, I don't always love it), but I have to say this cake was reaaally scrumptious. Uber moist chocolate-y sponge cakes are layered with a simple vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream and gently poached sweet cherries, blanketed in dark chocolate ganache and topped with fudge-y brownies (update: I went for fresh cherries and chocolate curls on top on the version in the updated images). It is decadent without being overly sweet or heavy. This is one of the best cakes I've ever made!

Okay Fall, you win.  I guess you're coming whether I'm ready or not.

But I win too, because Fall means apples and pumpkins and pumpkin pie spice in everything.  In this case, there is pumpkin pie spice in both the egg mixture for the french toast and the apple compote (like I said, pumpkin pie spice in errrrthing).  This french toast is served with a scoop of luscious apple compote and a good drizzle of warm salted caramel over top because apple + caramel are the original bff's.  How Fall vibe-y is that?  

I guess Fall isn't so bad.

This is a healthy, dairy-free take on the nostalgic flavor combination of sweetly acidic orange juice and creamy vanilla.  These may seem like an odd marriage of flavors for those who didn't grow up getting creamsicle popsicles from the corner store but they play so well with each other - like pb&j or chocolate & strawberries!  I really like it, can you tell? 

So when vogue.com asked me to contribute my recipe for this healthy creamsicle smoothie for a feature on their site, I gleefully agreed! You can read my wee feature here. No big deal ;) 

This is a gold star muffin recipe! I adore this recipe because it begins with walnuts and rolled oats ground into a coarse flour which gives the muffins substance, keeping you full longer because of the healthy oils in the walnuts and the heartiness of the oats. Buckwheat flour is used which happens to make this gluten-free. Muffins have a bad rap as the evil breakfast food loaded with hidden fat and sugar, but it doesn't have to!  I hope you like this one.

This to me is a quintessential summer dessert that celebrates summer's bounty of berries and fruits!  I love all the components: a lightly-sweetened creamy custard offset with sweet tart fruits inside an almond tart crust that I absolutely adore because (1) it uses almond flour in addition to all-purpose flour which adds a lovely nuttiness not to mention a little nutrition boost from almond's heart-healthy properties if you are looking for any justification to eat these (you're welcome) and (2) it is a press-in dough which means you simply push it into the tart pans with your fingers.  No rolling.  No mess.  Easy peasy!  

I just discovered this dreamy flavor combination of blueberry + lavender + honey and I want to share!  I made two blueberry pies this past weekend and honey lavender ice cream to top it. I had been searching for recipes and ideas to use the dried culinary lavender my in-laws brought back for me from their trip to Provence.  Can I tell you, my eyes literally rolled to the back of my head when I tasted the ice cream.  As if that wasn't ecstasy enough, add it to a warm slice of blueberry pie...bliss.

Golden french toasts, crunchy oat crumble, warm peaches spiked with maple syrup and bourbon and a luscious fried egg. I call this a perfect weekend indulgence!