Tropical Cheesecake Truffles

Servings: 5
Preparation Time: 10 minutes/chill 60 minutes

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 ounces raw ripe mango
• 1 inch vanilla bean
• 3 ounces dried coconut for rolling

Directions:

Let the cream cheese soften at room temperature.

In a large bowl, mix the mango, vanilla bean, honey, and cream cheese using a whisk or an immersion blender. Place the mixture in the freezer for 5 minutes. This will allow the cream cheese mixture to harden and then let you shape into small balls.

In a soup bowl, place 3 ounces dried coconut. Shape cheese into truffle (ball) shapes, roll in the coconut, and place in individual candy cups or directly on a plate. Chill in the fridge for 60 minutes and enjoy.

Recipe and photo submitted by Galya, RSM, CA.

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Frozen Chocolate, Coconut Fudge

Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup seed or nut butter (I use peanut butter, unsweetened)
• 1/4 cup (generous) cocoa powder
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup (generous) coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 cup raw honey

Directions:

Mix together all ingredients. Pour on a piece of unbleached parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Spread out to about 1/4 inch thick.

Place fudge in freezer. Let set for about 30 minutes.

Break into pieces and serve or put in container back in freezer until you are ready to serve.

Recipe and photo submitted by Tember, Quakertown, PA.

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Gluten-Free Lemon, Coconut Cut-Out Cookies

Servings: 20–40 cookies, depending on size
Preparation Time: 3 hours

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cashews
• 15 Medjool dates, pitted
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated (I used a Microplane to grate it.)
• zest from 1 lemon (I used a Microplane to zest it.)
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup arrowroot starch/flour
• 1 cup amaranth flour or quinoa flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum
• 1 cup finely shredded coconut

Directions:

Grind the cashews into a flour in a blender or a food processor. Add dates, oil, honey, both gingers, lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt and pulse until everything is mixed into a sticky dough.

Sift/stir together flours, starch, baking soda, gum, and coconut. Start adding the flour to the food processor, pulsing to combine. When it is done, the dough will be quite thick and moist but not super sticky. You may notice it seems really oily; that’s okay. Put it in the fridge overnight or at least for three hours.

When ready to bake, remove dough from fridge and let sit 30 minutes. Set the oven to 350 degree F. Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Roll out the dough roughly 1/8 inch thick on a pastry mat. Cut it with cookie cutters and transfer it to the parchment paper.

Bake for 7–10 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the cookies, rotating pans halfway through the baking time if baking more than one pan at time. Keep an eye on the oven and make sure not to overbake them. I baked until the edges just started to turn golden brown (9 minutes). Since they contain cashews and coconut, they will burn easily.

Recipe and photo submitted by Kim, Minneapolis, MN.

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