Coconut Panna Cotta on Passion Fruit Coulis w/Tropical Fruit & Mango Sorbet

This is a very simple but elegant dessert with some really nice tropical flavours. The coconut is quite rich so you want to serve it with something a little acidic like the passion fruit to balance the cream and the sweetness. A scoop of mango sorbet is a little extra treat to go along with all this tropical goodness.
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Coconut Panna Cotta on Passion Fruit Coulis w/Tropical Fruit & Mango Sorbet

Serves: 6

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon powdered gelatin
1 (15-ounce) can coconut cream (recommended: Coco Loco)
1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
2 cups chilled heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
Assorted tropical fruits: kiwi, mango, and passion fruit. peeled and cut into small dice, strawberries in small wedges for garnish (about 1 1/2 cups total)
Directions
Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over 3 tablespoons of cool water in a small bowl. Set aside to soften.

In a medium saucepan, heat the coconut cream and coconut milk over medium heat until the sides begin to bubble. Lower the heat and whisk in the softened gelatin, stirring to make sure it is completely dissolved.

Fill a large bowl with cold water. Strain the coconut mixture into a bowl that will fit easily into the bowl of water. Set into the bowl of water to cool, stirring every few minutes with a rubber spatula until the mixture starts to thicken. If the mixture starts to set, remove it immediately.

Remove the bowl of coconut mixture from the bowl of water. Empty out the water and wipe the bowl dry. In the dry bowl, stir the cream and confectioners' sugar together until the sugar is dissolved. Stir into the coconut mixture. Divide the coconut mixture evenly among 6 (7 to 8-ounce) custard cups or ramekins. Chill until firm, at least 4 hours.

To serve, run a knife around the inside edge of the molds and invert each panna cotta onto a serving plate. Spoon some of the diced fruit over each, allowing the fruit to spill onto the plate.

Passion fruit Coulis

6 passion fruit
¾ cup tangerine or orange juice
3 Tbs. sugar

Cut passion fruit in half, and scoop pulp and seeds into saucepan. Add tangerine juice, sugar and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, and simmer 5 to 6
minutes, or until slightly thickened. Strain out seeds, and cool.

Mango Sorbet

Ingredients:
2 large, ripe mangoes (2 pounds, 1 kg)
2/3 cup (130 g) sugar
2/3 cup (160 ml) water
4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more to taste
1 tablespoon dark rum, plus more to taste
Pinch of salt

Directions:
Peel the mangoes and cut the flesh away from the pit. Cut the flesh into chunks and put them in a blender with the sugar, water, lime juice, rum, and salt. Squeeze the mango pits hard over the blender to extract as much of the pulp and juice as possible. Puree the mixture until smooth. Taste, then add more lime juice or rum if desired. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Fresh Herb and Nut Crusted Halibut

Here's a delicious recipe that you can share with the family on this Easter Weekend.
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Fresh Herb Crusted Halibut

Makes: 4 Portions

Ingredients:
1-1/2 lb. Halibut filet (about 4-4oz portions, about 1 inch thick)
1 C toasted and finely chopped hazelnuts (I used my mini-food processor)
2 Tbsp Fresh Parsley chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Rosemary chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme chopped
1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. sea salt
Grated orange zest (from about 1/2 orange)
Egg Mixture:
1 tsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp soya milk
2 egg whites
Orange Slices (For Garnish)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease baking dish with olive oil. In a medium shallow bowl, beat egg whites with almond mild. Blend toasted hazelnuts in a food processor and add herbs, salt, pepper, and orange zest. Mix well. Place halibut filets in egg mixture, one at a time, and then press into hazelnut mixture. Really press the nuts all over the halibut filets, and then place in baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes. Halibut will be slightly opaque in center.

Garnish with orange slices. We served this with a side of steamed asparagus and a green salad. Give it a try...It's a recipe keeper!

Soft & Crunchy Pistachio Macaroon Granola Bars

You know, there’s granola bars and then there’s healthier granola bars. These are not that.
The healthy ones, that is. Think dessert granola bars. Isn’t that fun!?
But does it even really matter? Because while it’s been at least 15 years, I still want my stupid granola bars to taste like those delicious, Quaker Chewy versions that could be found in everyone's school lunches back in the day.
Ugh. They are darn good. And isn’t there a s’mores version? And a million other wonderful flavours? That’s what I’m going for.
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Soft & Crunchy Pistachio Macaroon Granola Bars

Makes: 12 bars

Ingredients:
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup salted pistachios, chopped
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons vanilla bean paste

Chocolate Drizzle:
3/4 cup chocolate chips
2 tablespoons coconut oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 9x13 inch dish with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, flour, pistachios, almond flour, coconut, brown sugar and baking soda. Stir well to mix.

In a saucepan, combine the butter, coconut oil, honey and vanilla bean paste. Heat over low heat until the butter and oil melts, stirring the mixture together. Pour the butter mixture over the dry ingredients, stirring well until the entire thing is moistened. You don't want any dry oat parts. Press the mixture in the greased dish and smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Bake for 18 minutes, or until the top is slightly golden and the bars are set. Allow to cool completely before slicing into bars. You can drizzle the chocolate on top before or after cutting - you can also dip them.

Chocolate Drizzle:
Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave or a double boiler on the stovetop, stirring to fully melt the chocolate. Stir in the coconut oil and continue to mix until it's melted. Drizzle the chocolate over top or dip the bars in the chocolate.

Summerlicious Grilled Peach Basil Ice Cream

With summer almost here, I found it appropriate to make a delicious, fun ice cream including the use of the BBQ. Peach ice cream is always good and refreshing, but I thought it would be fun to add some fresh basil to make it a little different. It was very refreshing.
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Summerlicious Grilled Peach Basil Ice Cream
Ingredients (1 quart)
For the peaches
4-5 peaches (firm to ripe)
1 tablespoon vodka or kirsch (optional, but recommended)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
For the ice cream
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
pinch of sea salt
fresh basil leaves
5 egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions:
For the peaches:
1.Heat a pot of water until boiling. Score each peach with an "x" and blanch in boiling water for 30 seconds, then plunge into a bowl of ice water. Once peaches have cooled, rub off the skins. Cut in half, and remove pits.
2.Heat grill to medium and grill peaches for a couple minutes per side. Chop or puree depending on the consistency of ice cream you desire (or do a combo of both). Place peaches and any accumulated juices in a container and stir in vodka or kirsch and 1 tablespoon sugar. Place in refrigerator.

For the ice cream:
1.Combine 1 cup of the cream, milk, sugar, salt and basil in a small sauce pan. Heat until very warm, but not boiling. Remove from heat, cover and allow to sit for 15-20 minutes. Discard basil. Return pan to stove and heat again.
2.While basil is steeping, prepare an ice bath. Fill a large bowl with water and ice. Place a smaller bowl inside and pour in other cup of cream.
3.To make the custard, whisk egg yolks in a separate bowl and add about a 1/2 cup of the warm cream mixture into the eggs while continually whisking. This will help "temper" them so they don't scramble. Return egg mixture to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
4.Strain custard into chilled bowl with the cream and add vanilla extract. Stir until mixture has cooled down considerably. Refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight.
5.Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. Towards the end of the process (when ice cream is 2-5 mintues from being finished), add in the peaches and continue freezing. Enjoy immediately if you prefer a "soft serve" consistency, or freeze for an additional couple hours for more traditional ice cream consistency. Garnish with additional basil and peaches and serve.

"Everything" Cauliflower Biscuits

Growing up the “everything” bagel was my go-to sandwich bread. A toasted egg everything or a whole wheat everything… so I thought I would bring you an alternative that is beyond good! When these rolls were baking in the oven my whole apartment smelled like those glorious everything bagels I love so much. Cheers to another delicious and healthy alternative!
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"Everything" Cauliflower Biscuits

Yields 4

Ingredients:
1 head cauliflower, riced
2 tbsp almond flour
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 tbsp corn meal
2 eggs
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt

"Everything" Topping:
1/2 tsp poppy seeds
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp dried minced garlic
1 tbsp dried minced onion
1/2 tsp sea salt

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400
In a food processor, or using a hand grater, pulse/grate cauliflower until rice consistency
In a bowl combine eggs, cauliflower rice, almond flour, coconut flour, corn meal, garlic powder, and salt
In a separate bowl combine "everything" topping ingredients
Lay parchment paper on a baking sheet
Make 4 even sized balls and lay onto parchment paper
Sprinkle "everything" topping and slightly press them into the top
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until bread-like consistency (it might be longer depending on the size you make)

Optional: Broil on high for 3-5 minutes after baking
Optional: For extra crisp, remove from baking sheet and do the broiling step with the buns directly on the oven rack
Remove from baking sheet and let cool directly on a cooling rack
Serve with your favorite sandwich ingredients

Notes:
Please note: Cauliflower sizes vary. If yours is big, and it seems like it needs a little extra to make them firm, add an additional egg and tbsp of flour