Paleo Chocolate Turtle Bars with Honey Caramel

This recipe started with a single sweet craving for caramel. I wanted it silky and coating apples as soon as the first days of fall hit. I wanted it chewy, lightly salted, and wrapped in little wax papers. Then, I wanted it gushing out between layers of chocolate. That's when I gave in. 

There is nothing like Halloween to get your sweet tooth going. I used to be a total sucker for those sugary fruit-flavored candies you would fill pillow cases with as a kid, but now I'm more for anything chocolate (which you might already know, just from perusing the dessert section of this site). Visions of chocolate layers is probably what ultimately did me in with that caramel craving.  

A word of warning: this caramel is ooey-gooey. Like, if you plan on taking the whole batch of bars out of the pan at once, make sure you have a plate or napkins handy. That ooey-gooey deliciousness can get a little sticky! But see all of those caramelly drips? They are what make this so sinfully good. Exactly what you'll want to dig into when you sit down to watch a scary movie tonight, or what you'll want to munch on between answering the door for trick-or-treaters.

But they're also not a Halloween exclusive--if you ask me, caramel and chocolate fit well with just about any holiday you name, even if that holiday is I-just-freakin-want-a-treat-right-now day. (Note: they are really good on those days. I know, because I had a few recently.) 

Paleo Chocolate Turtle Bars with Honey Caramel

Published October 31, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 20   |    Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the Crust:
• 2 cups almond flour 
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup butter

For the Caramel:
• 1 can (14 ounce) coconut milk
• 1/2 cup mild flavored honey 
• Pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla 

For the top:
• 1 cup chocolate chips 
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 20 whole pecans 
• 1 teaspoon sea salt or flake sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F and line a 9x9 glass baking dish with parchment paper.
2. Then, make the crust. In a medium mixing bowl, combine dry crust ingredients and whisk to minimize clumps. Then, in a small bowl, melt honey and butter. Pour melted butter and honey into dry mixture and stir with a spatula until a crumbly dough forms. It should stick together when you squeeze it between your pointer finger and thumb. Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared 9x9 pan in an even layer. Then, bake for 8-9 minutes, until fragrant. Set aside to cool.
3. Next, make the caramel. Add coconut milk and honey to a heavy-bottomed sauce pan. Bring to a gentle boil. While the stove heats, pour cold water into a medium side bowl or glass and set near by. Cook caramel at a gentle boil, and stir constantly, until it reaches the soft ball stage. Then, remove from heat, and stir in vanilla, butter and salt. Allow caramel to cool 5 minutes.
4. Once the caramel has cooled for about 5 minutes (careful, it will still be a bit warm), pour 1/2 to 3/4 cup caramel over the crust, and spread into an ever layer. Place in fridge to allow caramel to set further.
5. While caramel sets, make the chocolate topping: heat chocolate chips and butter in the microwave for 30 seconds, and stir, and then heat again for 30 seconds, repeating process until chocolate is smooth and no chips remain (You can also do this in a double boiler). Working quickly, remove caramel bars from fridge, and drizzle chocolate over top (see note below). Spread in an even layer using a spatula. While chocolate is still setting, arrange pecans on top and sprinkle with salt. Return to fridge until chocolate has set (about 10 minutes), and then slice into 20 rectangles to serve.
6. Note: if your caramel is a bit runny, you can place it in the freezer to help it set more before you add the chocolate. When you do add the chocolate, the cold caramel will make it set even quicker, so work in small batches, spreading on part of the chocolate at once.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie Bowl

Exhausted from holding on and worn out from trying hard, I yell "take!" to my belayer. The slack in the rope tightens and I can sit back in my harness. I stare at the rock wall, analyzing it's seams, and it stares back at me, full of tricks and secrets and history. My forearms ache from holding on: my endurance for sport climbing is lacking right now. 

Three feet from me, a spot of golden yellow with a tinge of red catches my eye.

There, in the middle of the rock, a miniature tree grows, it's leaves turning orange with fall. In fact, an entire micro ecosystem sits within the crack in the rock. A tiny but steady stream of water from above trickles across a pile of dead pine needles, and a bug crawls up to see the view from the edge of the crack.

I imagine a bird visiting that spot a year ago. He drops a seed, and flies off. And then I imagine that seed getting just enough water to sprout--and a bit more, enough that the sprout grows into a tree right there, on the side of a rock face. It's no larger than 1 foot tall, but it clings on to the side of the rock with might and patience. It doesn't have a belayer; it can't call "take."

There is a breeze and I am reminded of the task at hand. I climb on while that baby tree just stays there, clinging for life. Imagine the view from it's home! 

This pumpkin smoothie bowl is the breakfast to eat when the leaves are crunching underfoot and the air is crisp but still not too cold. It's spiced with fresh ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, and is super creamy. Top it with toasted pecans, and for an extra special treat add a dollop of whipped cream (coconut cream for dairy free!). 

In the ingredient list you’ll find an outlier (cauliflower) and if you’ve never put cauliflower in a smoothie, this might make you run and hide. BUT I promise you: once that cauliflower is all blended in, you will not taste it. What you will taste: pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger. Toasted pecans if you choose to put them on top (please do!). And it will be a thick, creamy smoothie. That texture? That’s because of the cauliflower, which at this point you’ve forgotten is in there.

Try it!

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie Bowl

Published October 12, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 2   |    Total Time: 10 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/3 cup cottage cheese (or plain greek yogurt, or non-dairy yogurt)
• 1/2 cup milk of choice
• 2 frozen bananas, sliced 
• 1 cup frozen cauliflower florets
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus more for serving
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of ground cloves 
• Optional: 1 scoop vanilla or unflavored protein powder
• Dollop of whipped cream (or coconut cream for dairy-free)
• 2 tablespoons raisins
• 2 tablespoons toasted pecans

Directions:

1. Add pumpkin, cottage cheese, milk, bananas, cauliflower, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and protein powder to blender. Puree until no chunks remain. Pour smoothie into two serving bowls.
2. Top with a dollop of whipped cream, raisins, pecans, and a sprinkle of extra nutmeg. Enjoy!

Lady Grey Tea Dark Chocolate Truffles

The afternoon feels long and slow today. My desk by the window is letting a warm (slightly too warm) light in, despite a howling wind on the other side. I'm not one to let sleep go by the wayside, so despite a full nights rest, I'm feeling rather drowsy. 

I reach for a bag of tea, and heat up some water. It's too late for coffee, but tea and a truffle will wake me up a bit (that's the hope, at least). I grab a truffle, and take a bite. 

With the chocolate still in my mouth, I take a swig of tea, and let its warmth melt the truffle in my mouth. It is rich, but there are light notes of flowers and bergamot. This is probably the perfect time to enjoy a truffle: a moment when you have nothing to think about other than what it tastes like. 

I've made these truffles twice this month and am going to keep making them. They appeal perfectly to my inner chocoholic but are simple, and easy to put together... just watch below! They're the perfect last minute Valentine's Day gift (that's today!!) or indulgence for your every day (that's tomorrow!)

Happy day to everyone! 

P.S., I'm still super new to this video thing! What do you guys think? Do you like seeing Foraged Dish recipes in video form? Any tips or suggestions? 

Lady Grey Tea Dark Chocolate Truffles

Paleo, Primal, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

Lady grey tea lends a faint but floral note to these truffles.

Yields: 16   |    Total Time: 60 active minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup cream
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons loose leaf lady grey tea
• 1/16 teaspoon salt
• 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate bar chopped, or chips
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder

Directions:

1. Heat cream over medium heat while stirring continuously until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat, add tea and stir. Allow to sit for 5 minutes.
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine chocolate, salt, butter, and vanilla. Strain cream through a fine-mesh sieve into the mixing bowl. Allow the warm cream to warm the chocolate by letting it sit for 5 minutes.
3. Use a spatula to stir the mixture until it is smooth. If needed, heat the mixture in the microwave at 10 second intervals to melt the chocolate further. After stirring for about 10 minutes, you should get a thick, glossy ganache. Scrape mixture into a tupperware and place, covered, in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
4. After chilling, the ganache should become firm, but remain somewhat malleable. Use a spoon and your hands to roll the ganache into spheres.
5. Pour cocoa powder in a bowl or deep plate and toss each truffle in cocoa. Serve immediately or store in an air-tight container in the fridge.