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Homemade Chai Concentrate (sugar free)

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I recently re-discovered this recipe while I was cleaning out my recipe organizer. A broken down, accordion-style piece of plastic, typically used for receipt organization, that has lived with me for (at least) the past 10 years. Through 3 different countries, countless home moves, and is currently being held together with a series of rubber bands. Every few years I’ll go through all the printed off recipes, random bits of paper with scribbled notes, and torn magazine pages removing anything that I know I’ll never get to or has been replaced with a newer better recipe. At the back, I came upon a note card with a handwritten recipe for a Homemade Chai Concentrate. Which I very clearly remember making on a weekly basis when we briefly lived in Sao Paulo, Brazil. And as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to make it again and post it here! So perfect for these warmer months ahead!

This chai concentrate has all the flavors you’d expect from a good chai blend steeped in black tea. This homemade chai has its fair share of ingredients that I feel are essential for achieving the flavor complexity that is so unique to chai tea. And I promise it’s worth the potential spice purchases, because once you make this you’ll definitely be back for more. I love that you can control the strength of the caffeine, level of sweetness (or lack there of), and as an added bonus, it’s eco-friendly since you’re storing it in a reusable container rather than the single-use packaging you’d get from the store or to-go cups from your favorite coffee/tea spot. And extra eco-points if you use loose leaf black tea! 

paleo friendly (gluten/grain/dairy free), sugar free, keto

If you make this, I’d LOVE to see your creation! Please tag me on Instagram @freshlydafna and use #freshlydafna.

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Homemade Chai Concentrate

Easy and delicious homemade chai with the deep flavor complexity you'd expect from a good chai tea. Make it hot or iced and sweeten as you please! I left this unsweetened so everyone can enjoy it as sweet (or not sweet) as they like!

paleo, keto, vegan

Ingredients

  • 4 1/2 cups water
  • 10 cloves
  • 7 cardamom pods
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 star anise
  • 1 in piece ginger, rinsed and smashed slightly
  • 1 tsp orange zest
  • 1/2 tsp freshly zested nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper freshly ground, if possible
  • 9-10 black tea bags caffeinated or decaffeinated
  • 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. In a medium pot, bring the water to a boil.

  2. Once boiling, add the spices and tea bags and remove pot from the heat. Use less tea bags if you want the concentrate to be weaker.

  3. Let steep for 15-20 minutes. The longer the steep, the stronger the tea.

  4. Pour the contents of the pot over a bowl or large measuring cup topped with a strainer to remove all the tea & aromatics. Then stir the vanilla extract into the concentrate.

  5. Let cool and pour into reusable container before storing in the fridge.

  6. Pour over ice or drink hot by mixing with boiled water, add milk and sweetener as you please!

Recipe Notes

This will keep in the fridge for about 1-2 weeks. 

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Earl Grey Scones with Lemon Honey Glaze (paleo, vegan option)

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Scones are the kind of thing that seem super fancy, but are actually super easy to make! These Early Grey Scones are mixed up in  just one bowl and take only 15 minutes to bake! The scones are flavored with earl grey tea leaves that gives easy depth of flavor with hints of lavender and complemented with a light and bright Honey Lemon Glaze. These are perfect if you’re hosting a nice brunch or if you want a healthy baked breakfast on-the-go!

These scones are paleo friendly (gluten/grain/dairy free), refined sugar free, with simple ingredient. They are pretty low in sugar with just 5 tbsp of coconut sugar in the scones and only 2 tsp of honey in the glaze (for the entire batch)! Making these healthified scones a complete win. The honey is very easily substituted if you want to make these vegan friendly!

If you make these I’d love to see! Share a pic or comment below or tag a photo on instagram @freshlydafna with #freshlydafna

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Earl Grey Scones with Lemon Honey Glaze

paleo, gluten free, grain free, dairy free, vegan-friendly option

These scones are mixed in just one bowl and bake up in just 15 minutes! Have a perfect crisp crust and moist inside with a hint of early grey tea. The scones are lightly sweetened and perfectly complimented with the lemon honey glaze. These little breakfast/brunch delights are easy to make but will have everything enjoying feeling super fancy.

The scones are already vegan, so you can just sub the honey for agave or maple to make these full on vegan friendly.

Course Breakfast

Ingredients

Scones

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cup almond flour
  • 3/4 cup tapioca flour
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 5 tbsp coconut sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 bags early grey tea (make sure it's finely chopped, I used Tazo Tea)
  • zest from 1 lemon
  • 1/4 tsp coarse or kosher salt

Wet Ingredients

  • 6 tbsp coconut oil (solid state, if warm out and oil is in liquid form place in fridge for a mins to firm up)
  • 2/3 cup dairy free milk of choice

Honey Lemon Glaze

  • 3 tbsp coconut butter, melted
  • 2 tbsp + 1 tsp non-dairy milk
  • 2 tsp honey
  • 2 tsp lemon juice

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and prepare baking sheet with parchment paper.

  2. Add all dry ingredients to a medium bowl and mix together with a whisk or fork until all well combined until you get a coarse damp, sand texture.

  3. Next add your milk of choice and stir everything gently with your hands or a plastic spatula and gently mix together until you have a soft, wet dough.

  4. Gather into a large mass and turn out onto cutting board.

  5. Form the dough into a 1 inch tall disc.

  6. Cut the disc into 6 or 8 wedges, place wedges on parchment lined baking sheet, bake for 15 minutes, reduce temp to 350 and bake for 5 more minutes.

  7. If eating the scones right away, make the Honey Lemon Glaze while the scones are baking by mixing everything together in a small bowl, then top those golden scones once they've cooled a bit.

Recipe Notes

These scones are best eaten the day of, shortly after coming out of the oven, but will keep for another day in a sealed container. After that, I recommend storing them in the freezer (without any glaze). 

*To make these scones vegan-friendly, just sub the honey for another liquid sweetener of your choice like agave, maple, or coconut syrup!

 

 

Matcha Cheesecake Bites (vegan & paleo)

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MINI MATCHA CHEESECAKE RECIPE + BENEFITS OF MATCHA

I have never been a coffee drinker. I often wish I was though because of it’s prevalence in our culture and all the amazing health benefits. But, as I often remind myself (after stealing sips from my guy’s especially pretty looking cups of coffee in hopes that maybe this time I’ll like it), it’s just not for me. But that’s fine because I truly love teas. And tea too boasts tons of healthy attributes. I love the endless tea varieties, from the complex and unusual to the standard and traditional teas. There is however an unrivaled, ultimate queen of teas: matcha. I love it the plain, traditional way, the modern matcha latte all blended up adaptogens, in smoothies, and basically anywhere I can try to sneak it in. Case in point, these Matcha Cheesecake Bites. They are vegan and paleo and supped up by the addition of nutrient packed matcha powder.

What is Matcha?

Matcha is a green tea but more powerful because unlike all other teas the leaf is ground to a fine powder, which is then ingested while drinking. This essentially means that you get all of the nutrients available from the leaf rather than what you would get just from steeping the leaf like when using tea bags or loose leaf blends. One cup of matcha is the equivalent of drinking 10 cups of regular brewed green tea.

Health Benefits of Matcha

– Super high in antioxidants and polyphenols.

– Supports a healthy metabolism and ability to burn fat for energy.

– Has caffeine which helps with energy and focus but is less likely to give people the jitters who may experience this with other caffeinated beverages.

– High amounts of antioxidants reduces inflammation.

– Contains chlorophyll which is a powerful detoxifier and can help with the elimination of heavy metals.

– All the above attributes of matcha like high antioxidants, chlorophyll, polyphenols can lower blood pressure and can be anti-aging.

Sounds Magical, Any Negatives?

Yes. While matcha has some amazing health benefits it is extremely important to buy good quality and responsibly sourced varieties. Lower quality matcha powders tend to contain high amounts of lead. I recommend buying only organically grown matcha and brands that are imported from Japan. I recently tried Soar Organics Matcha and found the quality to be very good.* It meets my above criteria.

Ways to Use Matcha:

Traditionally it is blended with a matcha wisk. Here is a good how-to video. For more modern matcha latte ideas check out my instagram! I drink a blended matcha with lots of healthy goodies every morning and am quite literally obsessed and post the recipes frequently.

It’s also great in smoothies!

But, here’s a way more creative dessert recipe with matcha!

These are an amazing healthy treat that were devoured in only 2 days after I made them. They are low in sugar, high in healthy fats, vegan, and paleo. Plus they are spiked with matcha tea making them an extra healthy dessert.

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Matcha Cheesecake Bites

vegan, paleo, raw, gluten free, grain free, low sugar, no refined sugar, high fat

These mini cheesecakes are the epitome of a healthy treat. They are easy to make, will keep well in the freezer and taste amazing. They are vegan, paleo, raw, gluten free, grain free, and relatively low in sugars! Plus they are spiked with matcha powder adding a touch of pizzazz but a ton of health benefits. 

freshlydafna.com

Ingredients

Crust

  • 3/4 cup raw almonds
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 3 tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 tbsp coconut nectar

Cheesecake Layers

  • 2 cup raw cashews soaked overnight
  • 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk shaken
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil melted & cooled
  • 1/4 cup coconut nectar
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice freshly squeezed
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 1 1/2 tsp matcha powder organic strongly encouraged

Instructions

  1. Soak the cashews in filtered water overnight or for at least 4 hours

  2. Make the crust by adding all the ingredients to a food processor or high powered mixer and blend in short bursts until a sticky dough forms. 

  3. Line a muffin tin with 12 muffin liners. Equally distribute the dough into the base of the muffin liners and press down firmly to form a solid crust. Place in freezer while making the cheesecake layer. Wipe down the inside of the food processor/blender.

  4. Drain the cashews into a mesh strainer and rinse well. 

  5. Add all the cheesecake layer ingredients (except the matcha powder) into the food processor/blender and blend for about 2 minutes or until a soft and super creamy texture forms. Taste and adjust to your preference by adding more lemon or coconut nectar.

  6. Pour 1/2 of the cheesecake mixer into a bowl. Then evenly distribute into the muffin liners over the crust, smoothing out the surface with a spoon or rubber spatula. Let firm in freezer for about 10 minutes.

  7. Meanwhile, add the matcha powder to the cheesecake mix and blend until evenly distributed. After the first layer has chilled a bit, evenly distribute the matcha mix over the white cheesecake layer, again smoothing out the surface. 

  8. Return to freezer to let set completely. About 2 hours. Then place in lidded container and store in freezer until ready to eat. When ready to consume remove from freezer and let temper at room temperature for about 10-20  minutes. 

Recipe Notes

If you make this recipe I'd love to see your creation! Please either post a comment or picture on this page or if you're posting on Instagram please tag @freshlydafna and use #freshlydafna

*Disclaimer: I did receive a free sample of Soar Organics Matcha Powder but am not in any way affiliated with the company and in no way compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and unsolicited.