These rich and moist coconut bars are made of not one, but three different forms of scrumptiously healthy coconut, including shredded coconut, coconut oil and coconut milk in their ingredients list.

I have Shirley at Gluten Free Easily to thank for this recipe as it is based upon her famous gluten free Crustless Coconut Pie. I'm a big fan of Shirley's crustless pie recipes. They're perfect when I'm looking for a quick and easy, yet simply tasty, gluten free dessert.

I find that this this coconut bar recipe tastes a bit like a macaroon bar. If you want to jazz up your coconut bars and get really decadent, try drizzling them with dark chocolate.

Here are some of the health benefits of coconut:

• Naturally gluten free
• Full of heart healthy fats that lower LDL cholesterol
• Anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-parasitic
• Reduces inflammation and promotes healthy absorption of nutrients
• High in minerals such as iron, phosphorus and zinc

It is also thought that eating coconut products speeds up the body's metabolism, helping to prevent obesity.

Finally, Dr. Mary Newport has written an article on the remarkable results she believes she has achieved using coconut oil to remediate her husband's early onset Alzheimer's disease.

In this video Dr. Newport shares intriguing anecdotal evidence on the impact of coconut oil on neurobiological function. Her findings will be of particular interest to those of us who are working on our brain health in dealing with diseases and disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimers, Parkinsons, autism, ADD, etc.

So grab yourself a coconut bar and a cup of delicious dandelion coffee (that's what I'm drinking right now) and settle in to watch the video of Dr. Newport. And be sure to let us know your thoughts in a comment below.

I really enjoy using almond flour --almonds are a superfood and highly nutritious. However, every now and then, someone requests a nut free dessert recipe for some type of gluten free baked good. At other times, folks are looking for an egg free recipe.

There are as many allergies out there as there are colors in the rainbow. This brownie recipe is for all the nut free, egg free, refined sugar free, gluten free, primal vegans in my life. You keep me on my toes! And I love it.

This recipe uses sunflower seed butter, which is actually similar to a nut butter (though nut free). Sunflower seed butter is gluten free, high protein and made from highly nutritious sunflower seeds --you didn't think I was going to use rice flour, did you?! I'm still as grain free as I've ever been since I gave up grains 11 years ago. All of the recipes on this website are gluten and grain free recipes.

These brownies are based on a gluten free brownie recipe that Amy Jelley posted on my facebook page a couple of weeks ago. Thanks Amy! Her recipe used a ½ cup of honey which is a little much for where my blood sugar is at these days; so I decreased the amount of honey and added in some xylitol and stevia. I also increased the fat and made a couple of other minor changes to the recipe along the way.

This is a very fudgey brownie --it won't seem totally cooked through when you pull it from the oven. I took mine out when the edges were just about to burn, that was how I determined it was done.

Now, a word of caution. Do not feed this dessert to your pets. Chocolate and xylitol are highly toxic to animals. Have any of you been feeding my other desserts to your pets? If so, why are you doing this? Please leave a comment and let us know!

During the holidays I'm always looking for yummy treats to eat that won't leave me with a high-carb hangover. This paleo dessert recipe for a moist, gluten free fruitcake fits the bill. Sweetened with one tablespoon of coconut sugar, along with dates, raisins and dried cherries, my Paleo version of this classic treat is great with a cup of tea, Dandelion Root Coffee, or makes a beautifully simple gift to give to friends and neighbors during the holidays.

According to Wikipedia, fruitcake is:

A cake made with chopped candied fruit and/or dried fruit, nuts, and spices, and (optionally) soaked in spirits. A cake that simply has fruit in it as an ingredient can also be colloquially called a fruitcake. In the United Kingdom, certain rich versions may be iced and decorated. Fruitcakes are often served in celebration of weddings and Christmas.

Along with visions of wacky people, the word "fruitcake" can also conjure thoughts of dry, icky cake. I think you'll be pleased to find that this easy Paleo recipe is rich and moist --a Christmas Cake recipe that is versatile enough to use all year round.

I think this might be my first Paleo cake recipe. I could be wrong though. What Paleo grain-free, dairy-free desserts will you be serving this holiday season?

I love making gluten free crusts with almond flour. This gluten free flour is super easy to use, high in heart healthy protein and fats, and of course delicious.

If you wish to experiment and try to make a gluten free pie crust out of this tart crust, feel free. Just be sure to stop back by and let us know how it works.

I am anticipating that I will receive a lot of questions about substituting the egg in this crust recipe; to this I answer: not sure. Again, if you find an adaptation or substitution that works in this gluten free pie crust recipe please let us know how it goes. As for me, I'm very happy with how this turned out as it is a wonderful Paleo tart crust, that will be front and center on my Paleo Thanksgiving menu.

The above is a brand new tart crust recipe. I experimented with it numerous times until I was entirely happy with the outcome. In my tests, I made it with a pecan pie filling. Here are some other filling recipes that you can experiment with:

Chocolate Cream Pie
Mousse Cloud Pie
Chocolate Peanut Tart

What will you fill your tart crust with?

Note: for those of you looking for pecan pie filling, please see the recipe in The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook.

Here's a lovely seasonal treat --gluten free apple crisp that's simple and easy to make with very few, and very healthy ingredients. This recipe for Granny Smith Apple Crisp is particularly low carb because I use the low glycemic sweetener xylitol.

Since so many people have written to me to tell me they do not use agave, I thought it would be nice to research a variety of alternative sweeteners and experiment with them. Hence the use of xylitol (a low glycemic sweetener) in this recipe. My children couldn't taste the difference and my doctor highly recommends xylitol for those that can digest it --it is not as easy to digest as agave for some people.

As always, use the ingredients that suit you best, and take the time to experiment with substitutions, as I cannot answer your (or my own) substitution questions without actually testing them in real life in my real kitchen.

As you can see from the note above, this recipe was a major hit with my older son. He left me a note on the dessert that said, "Mom, please do not let ANYONE eat the crisp. I want to eat it. TKS (Thanks)."

Every fall when I begin baking fruit desserts in earnest, I have the same internal dialogue --what is the exact difference between a crumble and a crisp? And every fall, without fail, I pull out my well worn copy of the Joy of Cooking and look this up again. I thought I would share what the good book says with all of you:

"For a crisp, the flour, butter, and sugar are mixed together like pie dough before the liquid is added, and the mixture scattered over the top."

"A crunch is fruit sandwiched between two layers of sweetened, buttered crumbs; it is served cut into squares, like bar cookies , but is more fragile...Crumble is the British name for a crisp or crunch with oatmeal in the topping."

Here are some more healthy gluten free recipes using apples:
-Cinnamon Apple Cake
-Caramel Apples
-Fennel Apple Soup

Gluten free isn't necessarily healthy, especially when it comes to bread.  Here's a gluten free bread recipe, made of high protein ingredients that won't leave you dragging.  I'm loving every slice that comes from this new Paleo diet friendly bread recipe.

This bread is just a bit lighter and fluffier than my other breads.  It has a nice nutty flavor from the flax meal which makes it almost have a kind of "whole wheat" thing going on, and it has a lovely little bit of sweet flavor from the honey (I used honey that my friend Shirley harvested from her bee hives and sent to me as a gift --I treasure it).

I've been working on this gluten free bread recipe for several months and have tested it a couple of dozen times. In fact, every time I create a recipe I test each and every ingredient addition or subtraction. That's why I think it's kinda funny when people leave comments below recipes (or on Facebook, Twitter and in my forums) asking if such and such ingredient substitution will work.

For example, with this recipe, I tested changes as minute as 1 teaspoon baking soda versus 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda. Same with the apple cider vinegar. I tested this recipe with 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar and with 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. I could go on and on. I varied the number of eggs in several batches. I played with numerous ingredient combinations to come up with this recipe.

It's just hard work folks. I wish I had a crystal recipe ball that I could look into to answer all of your substitution questions. I don't. So be adventurous. If you have an idea, test it. Then come back here and let us know if it worked!

This gluten free bread recipe is somewhat similar to my Bread 2.0 recipe. However, this bread does not contain arrowroot and agave so it is a much more Paleo/primal friendly bread recipe. I've also added coconut oil and switched around the amounts of other ingredients.

I like this healthy bread recipe. For now. In a few months I'll probably get bored of it and decide I want to come up with something different, better. Then I'll start tinkering again. Presently though, I'm really enjoying this gluten free bread and I hope you do too.

Special thanks to Amanda who left a comment on my Bread 2.0 recipe that inspired me to get to work on something even tastier and more nutritious.

Because I've been getting quite a lot of requests lately for healthy dessert recipes and because I had a pound of organic prunes that needed to be used up, I decided I would develop a gluten free prune cake recipe.

After a string of successful and not so successful prune cake experiments, I had a different, yet satisfactory result: Chocolate Prune Bars.  All in all these are basically fudgey prune brownies.  Whatever they're called, I like 'em.

In fact, as I drove home from a lunch in Denver this afternoon, I was thinking about eating one of these little Paleo/primal friendly treats.  Prunes or no prunes, a chocolate dessert recipe is a chocolate dessert recipe, and when it's an easy dessert recipe that tastes good too?  Well there's nothing better than that!  I walked in the door grabbed a chocolate prune bar and it was as good as I had recalled.

So here I am sharing it with you all. And don't be afraid of prunes, they're just another dried fruit, and are actually the dried version of European plums.

If you want to make this dessert into a chocolate prune cake, bake it up in a 9-inch cake pan, which should work just fine.  I tried this in one of my test batches, though can't recall how long I baked it for so if you do so please leave a comment for all of us with your baking time.

Now, a brief commentary on the ingredients in this recipe.  You will notice that rather than agave, I have chosen coconut sugar as the sweetener for this recipe (if you do want to make it with agave, feel free, however I'm not sure how much it would need, or if it would actually work as I haven't tried it myself).  I also used coconut oil (of which I am a huge fan) rather than my staple grapeseed oil (feel free to experiment with your oil of choice).

Finally, a little bit about prunes, or "dried plums" as they are often now referred to.  Prunes are a very tasty and healthy food, full of unique phytonutrient antioxidants, potassium and soluble fiber.  So don't be shy, grab yourself some prunes, or try to hide them in this deliciously chocolatey dessert and fool your children, big and small.

More healthy recipes with prunes:
-Chocolate Prune Truffles
-Fruit Pudding
-Roasted Chicken with Olives and Prunes

What are your feelings when it comes to prunes?  Like? Dislike? Or don't care?  Leave a comment below with your prune history.

I originally posted this date sweetened, gluten free muffin recipe the year before last in my Great Agave Debate post.  Because it was part of something so much bigger, it kinda got lost in the mix.  I'm re-posting it because I think it's an easy, super tasty, healthy recipe that will please both agave lovers and haters alike.

For more information on agave, please check out my Great Agave Debate post and all of the amazing reader comments and debate that follow it.  Meantime, everyone, enjoy these purely fruit sweetened coconut flour based muffins!

I loved Joy the Baker's awesome post on coconut flour; her accompanying recipe for Coconut Waffles looks obscenely good (I can't wait to make it myself).  If you haven't been to her site, be sure to check it out.  Joy is an amazing writer with true wit and an outrageously good sense of humor.  Her recipes are pretty darn great too!

You may notice that some of the ingredients in this foot balm, such as coconut oil and olive oil are food. I was taught during my Ayurvedic training, that the skin is the largest organ of absorption in the human body. Therefore, I make sure that anything I put on my skin is healthy enough for me to eat.

I found the base for this recipe in the February issue of Living Without magazine --their recipe was for a body butter. I changed it quite a bit, adapting various ingredients and adding essential oils. My boys and I enjoy rubbing this on each others feet at bedtime. It also makes a wonderfully thoughtful Christmas gift. Customize with your own "flavors" and enjoy!

DIY Foot BalmNote: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.
¼ cup shea butter
2 tablespoons coconut flour coconut oil
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ ounce piece of beeswax, grated
10 drops essential oil of vanilla
10 drops essential oil of peppermint

1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over very low heat, stir until melted
2. Remove from heat and stir to combine, then add essential oils
3. Pour mixture into a clean 4 ounce mason jar
4. Massage a small amount into your feet at bedtime to moisturize
5. Or give as a gift to friends and family

Today I'm giving away an Elana's Pantry recycled cotton tote bag from Eco Bags along with the Foot Balm featured and photographed above. To win, leave a comment discussing your favorite homemade Christmas gift. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere. The contest will end at midnight on December 15th, 2010.

Update: this giveaway is now over and the winner was Ada!

Thanks everyone for your cupcake suggestions.  The idea for these gluten free Coconut Key Lime Cupcakes came from comments left by sas and laura in my Jelly Donut Cupcake post --the post that launched my own personal month of cupcakes.

These gluten free cupcakes were a real winner with my children.  Whenever I get out the icing bag, they go bonkers and yesterday was no different.  I had to hold them back when they arrived home from school, so that I could get a couple of these cupcakes frosted the way I wanted for a quick photo shoot.  Once I put down the icing bag, my younger son set to work on icing the rest of the batch.  He did a great job and had a good time while my older son ate them.  Cupcake fun was had by all.

Coconut Cupcakes with Key Lime IcingNote: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.
3 eggs
½ cup coconut oil
½ cup agave nectar
½ cup coconut flour
½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1. In a small bowl blend eggs, coconut oil and agave nectar with a hand blender
2. Pulse in coconut flour, salt, baking soda and shredded coconut
3. Allow batter to sit and thicken just a bit
4. Line a cupcake tin with paper lined
5. Spoon ¼ cup cupcake batter into each cupcake liner
6. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes
7. Remove cupcakes from oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes
8. Frost with Key Lime Icing and serve

Makes about 10 cupcakes

The winner of last weeks Friday Freebie is @HealthyDelish! She won a copy of Food Not Lawns by Heather Coburn Flores.

These cupcakes are the perfect Mother's Day dessert.  For more Mother's Day recipes, see my post from last year which includes a full gluten free brunch menu.  You can also check out my video below for how to make mini-blueberry muffins, which we'll be making for Mother's Day this year.  You can also find some yummy gluten free brunch recipes in my book, The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook --we'll be making either the Salmon Leek Tart or the Savory Vegetable Quiche from there.

Lastly, to celebrate Mothers Day Honeyville is giving 10% off your entire order through Tuesday, May 11 until 7:00pm (MST). Enter the coupon code "MOTHER" during checkout to apply the discount.