Desserts & Sweets

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies (Ever)

by Sophia & Michael
Chocolate chip cookies and a bar of chocolate

We often point out how much Mike loves ice cream, but fact of the matter is that he’s a true cookie monster too. And another fact is that if you pair an ice cream lover and cookie monster with someone who’s kind of into sweets but maybe not a total devotee, you’ll quickly have two ice cream lovers and two cookie monsters. That is, if the first one possesses the skills to make fantastic homemade ice cream and bake the most delicious cookies. You all know where this is going. He got me.

Read more

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Granola Bars

by Sophia & Michael
Granola bar squares on a wooden table with a knife.

Simpler, cheaper and now even vegan friendly – here’s an updated version of our original Granola Bars recipe. Granola bars fall into that category of money saving tips related to making things yourself vs. buying already made – purchasing prepackaged bars gets expensive quickly. Here, the ingredients for the whole batch cost about as much as one store-bought bar. That’s a good deal, wouldn’t you say? We love having some of these in the freezer for impromptu adventures or quick snacks when blood sugar levels are on the decline, and suggest you give the recipe a go. Super simple to make, very yummy to eat. Good luck!

Read more

Easy Vegan Blueberry Cake

by Sophia & Michael
Cake made with blueberries with a dusting of powdered sugar.

With the help of some pantry ingredients and frozen berries, you can whip up a delicious and quite decadent (vegan) blueberry cake in a jiffy. The ingredient list is eco-friendly from top to bottom and the outcome is guaranteed to satisfy all longings for summer, we promise.

Relying on frozen berries is key here, unless you live in a place where they’re in season currently. Using fresh ones imported from far away isn’t a smart environmental move in any way – and they’re typically way too tasteless and expensive for our taste anyway. No thawing is needed either – you just stir them right into the batter straight from the freezer, and about an hour later, your super moist cake will be ready for indulging. And this is one of those cakes that only gets better day two and three, so making it in advance is a good idea!

Read more

Black Bean Chocolate Truffles

by Sophia & Michael

För recept på svenska, klicka här: Chokladtryffel på svarta bönor

Mike often jokes about how I like to sneak in legumes (peas, lentils, beans) into whatever weʼre eating and I shouldnʼt even attempt to claim thatʼs not true. I love legumes and think theyʼre awesome. (I would even go as far as to saying the world would be a better place if people ate more of them, but Iʼll keep that to myself.) Imagine my joy when I realized you can bake with them, too. Weʼve made a bunch of recipes for legume-based sweet treats since then (such as these Black Bean Brownies, Lemon Blondie Bars, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Blondies, Chocolate Dipped Chickpea Peanut Butter Energy Balls), and now itʼs time for a new one.

Read more

Mama Birgitta’s Hazelnut Cookies

by Sophia & Michael

För recept på svenska, klicka här: Mamma Birgittas hasselnötskakor

Mike and I think the “everything in moderation” food approach is quite genius. No, we shouldn’t eat cookies for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. But it certainly can’t hurt to have one every so often. We don’t think sugar, in moderation, can do significant damage to our bodies. Nor do we think flour belongs to that category either. In other words, cookies can safely be a part of any balanced diet – and especially if you also make sure to move around every now and then. We eat cookies happily, and Mike does in fact go by the nickname “the cookie monster” in the family. We often enjoy making sweets that are more wholesome and nutrient-dense (such as these Black Bean Brownies, for example), but sometimes, it’s nice to just let go a little. Have the cookies you just loved as a kid and just embrace that. Yes, it’s all butter and sugar and flour… but that’s okey too, sometimes. Do you agree? We’re real people too, who can also down an entire cookie jar in one sitting if need be.

Read more

Spiced Vegan Apple Cake

by Sophia & Michael

För recept på svenska, klicka här: Saftig vegansk äppelkaka

Fall equals many things: mushroom foraging, lit candles, crackling fires, gorgeous foliage, frost covered fields, warming soups – and apple desserts, of course. Now is THE time to take care of all the fruit out there. Preserve what needs to be preserved (by baking and making jam, butter, sauce etc.) and store what can be stored (this requires a cool, slightly humid place, such as a root cellar or unheated basement). If you happen to know what variety of apples you’re dealing with, it’ll be much easier to know whether they should be eaten and/or preserved immediately, or if they can be stored. So-called “winter apples” are still picked in the fall, but they will last – provided they’re stored in an appropriate manner – until the end of the winter. 

Read more

Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread

by Sophia & Michael

För recept på svenska, klicka här: Zucchinibröd med choklad

Yes, yes, we’re going crazy with zucchini recipes here – but hey, the season is actually coming to an end soon! We said bye-bye to a bunch of zucchini plants a few weeks back and started spinach in that spot instead, but have kept a few for an extension to the summer. And while the production rate has dropped significantly compared to July and August, we’re still getting a few fruits every week. This keeps us more than satisfied, and it probably goes without saying that we’re pretty excited for the fall crops to ripen now, after a long summer of endless amounts of crispy cucumbers, said zucchini, chard etc. But before we welcome root veggie galore and go nuts for kale salads again, just one more way of using up the summer squash masses: zucchini bread.

Read more

Plum Sorbet

by Sophia & Michael

För recept på svenska, klicka här: Plommonsorbet

While prime ice cream season might be fading away with the arrival of crispy fall weather, some of the best sorbets can actually be made with what nature has in store right now. Apples make wonderful sorbets, in case you’ve never tried that, and plums do too. We’re working with the latter here, and can’t recommend it enough. Plus, many of us (well, not us this year – so thank you neighbors) have more plums than we can possibly eat, making sorbet both an unusual and practical application, since it’ll last for a long time in the freezer. You can actually also just freeze halved and pitted plums just as they are, and then make this sorbet at a later date. We have done that, and it works great. Oh, and if you use purple or red-ish plums, you can also count on a beautiful color, adding a touch of flair to any dinner party dessert.

Read more