I sent Shelby an innocent birthday text (back on May 28th).  It went something like this….what’s your favorite kind of cake? She threw me for a loop with her response.

Initially I had no reason to believe that Vegan Hemp Seed Carrot Cake wasn’t exactly what she wanted. My Mom-in-action-mode took me to this recipe.  Which I printed, acquired ingredients for, and assumed the holding position.  But then later that day it was revealed the spawn of Chocoholic might prefer… a chocolate cake.

Curve ball two…spawn of Chocoholic recently identified an adversity to dairy. Thankfully I’ve been called to dairy free chocolate love on another occasion.  Have you seen our Dairy Free Chocolate Truffles <3

I made the love of my life the perfect birthday cake.  We got so caught up with our awesome kid and young life and birthday joy that I never posted her almost dairy free macadamia crusted chocolate torte.  Be watching for it next year on or about May 28th.

Flash forward to a few days before Christmas.  I was going through my treasured to-be-made-recipes folder and found the recipe that I printed back on May 28th.  It was thyme to make and present vegan hemp seed carrot cake delivered in the form of Carrot Cake Energy Bites.

I honestly think these were one of Shelby’s favorite Christmas presents (her new hi-tech juicer a close second).

The fact that I actually fell for her original request and that they turned out to be delicious bites of healthy, homemade love made them extra special.  Carrot Cake Energy Bites are stored in the freezer making them a quick on the go snack.

Print

Carrot Cake Energy Bites

Author lightly adapted from Blissful Basil

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups pitted sun ripened dates
• 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
• 1/2 cup raw chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
• 2 Tbl. hemp seeds
• 1 Tbl. milled flax seed
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to a food processor or Vitamix.
• Pulse until the mixture is well combined, yet with texture; about 10 times. The mixture should be sticky enough to form into balls.
• Form into 15 balls. Store in the freezer.

The post Carrot Cake Energy Bites appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

When making Healthy Choices, one of the first things I add to our weekly dinner rotation is Jenny-O All Natural Turkey Tenderloins.  This versatile white meat is actually slightly lower in fat and calories than boneless skinless chicken breasts.  And their mild flavor lends itself to recipe creativity.  Like this flavor packed colorful Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin.

While Winter Thyme brings Spice Exploration to the pages of Lemony Thyme, it also brings less than desirable lighting for food photography.  However, because I loved this dish so much I see nothing but beautiful flavor here.  The stuffing began with a base of cinnamon infused couscous.  To that I added sautéed onion and garlic that was seasoned with cumin and coriander.

Next came the aromatics: the nutty sweet flavors of dried pitted dates and shelled pistachios combined with the tart pop from fresh orange pieces and pomegranate seeds.  I also added about a 1/4 cup of fresh chopped cilantro leaves.  Flavor wow!!  I have actually pictured this Moroccan Stuffing to share as a separate recipe.  It’s amazing.

I’m a sucker for stuffing with anything.  It is after all one of my favorite food groups.  So I butterflied the tenderloins, pounded them to an even thickness (about 3/4-inch), then stuffed them with this glorious Moroccan influenced filling.

A little butcher’s twine helps keep everything in place.  I lightly browned the stuffed tenderloins in an oven-proof skillet, then basted them with a wonderful spiced honey glaze before transferring them to the oven to bake.  Pour yourself a glass of wine and set your timer for 30 minutes, give them another basting with the glaze, set your timer for 10 minutes and check for doneness.  Recommended temperature is 165 degrees.  We remove ours just before and let them rest for 10 minutes while coming up to temp.  Slice and serve.

We reheated one of the Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloins by wrapping it in foil and placing it in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.  It was just as delicious as when we first served this dish.  Enjoy!

Print

Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 24- ounce pkg. Jennie-O All Natural Turkey Tenderloins pounded to 3/4-inch thickness.
• 1/2 cup couscous
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 Tbl. olive oil divided
• 1 onion fine diced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 tsp. coriander
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 6 dried pitted dates chopped
• 1/2 cup pistachios chopped
• 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
• 1/4 cup orange pieces chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

For the glaze…

• 1 Tbl. honey
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• salt & pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Butterfly turkey tenderloins and pound to even thickness, about 3/4-inch. Reserve.
• Combine 3/4 cup water with 1 cinnamon stick in a small saucepan. Bring water to boil, stir in couscous and cover. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick, drizzle with 1 Tbl. olive oil and fluff with fork.
• Meanwhile, in an oven-proof skillet sauté onion in a tsp. of olive oil over medium heat until just tender; add in minced garlic, coriander and cumin; cook another minute.
• Add onion mixture along with dates, pistachios, pomegranate, orange pieces, and cilantro to couscous. Allow to cool slightly before stuffing tenderloins.
• Cut 3 pieces of 12-inch butcher’s twine for each tenderloin. Lay butterflied tenderloin on top of strings. Split couscous between each tenderloin. Tie snuggly with twine. Add remainder of olive oil to skillet and brown tenderloins on all sides.
• Combine glaze ingredients and baste browned tenderloins. Transfer tenderloins to oven and bake for 30 minutes. Baste again, then bake an additional 10 minutes or until done. 165 degrees is the recommended temperature. Rest 5 – 10 minutes before slicing.

The post Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin appeared first on Lemony Thyme.