Ocean inspired desserts, exploring ingredients like coconut, tropical fruits and more. Plus there is always room for traditional sweets too.
I didn't set out to make the best easy vegan chocolate pudding recipe. After our travels, to Paris, Japan and Hawaii, I realized that so many cultures have pudding as dessert options. In Paris, there was the richest chocolate mousse; sold at convenience stores; in Japan chestnut pudding was a treat and in Hawaii; the Vietnamese...
Once summer hits, I start to want to cook with fruit, especially peaches and berries. Luckily, we have some great sources for peaches in Southeast Florida. This homemade peach crisp recipe could not be easier. Summer peach season is upon us and this recipe is a great way to use up some of the beautiful...
'Tis pumpkin season, I suppose. A great time to add a new pumpkin recipe to your repertoire. How about a perfectly crumbed pumpkin coffeecake with a sweet and crunchy top? Even in our modern world, we are still loosely tied to our farming past. At least in the United States, Halloween and Thanksgiving, October and...
Since the government shutdown started (35 days ago!), I have been cleaning out my cabinets and making recipes with what I have. The combination of cold weather and empty cabinets has made me miss Hawaii and all the great food. Luckily, I have lots of coconut milk and time to make Hawaiian haupia, or Hawaii's...
Chocolate peanut butter protein balls are a great lunch snack anytime of day. A cross between cookie dough and a power bar--how can you go wrong? We have been packing a few of these in our lunch bags all week for a perfect sweet treat in just the right size. On a personal note, I...
Looking for a great recipe to take to your office party? Your friends baby shower? For any occasion at all, I turn to these brownies. Everyone loves a great brownie and these are no fail. Hi Friends! Missed me? I haven't been posting as much as I would have liked. I have been cooking though--recipe...
Have you noticed I have been absent lately? There was a bit of family drama going on and cooking/writing/blogging just didn't make it to the top of the list of things to do. I am sorry about that. I am back now, mostly because these chocolate chip mochi bars were so good---and I felt the...
This chocolate coconut pudding might be my favorite dessert ever. It was inspired by a craving for Ted's bakery coconut haupia pie on the North Shore of Oahu. My craving caused me to search through the house to make a pie only to find that making a pie crust from on hand ingredients was just...
I am a sucker for quick breads, see pumpkin bread, chocolate fig bread, and now this, the best ever banana bread. There is something about using super ripe produce and making an entirely new creation. Plus, I feel that it is sort of good for you, since you know, fruits and vegggies. Ahem.... Anyhoo.....I seem...
Chocolate fig banana bread is a decadent way to use up leftover bananas for an elevated quick bread recipe. I bought dried figs to serve on our cheese platter for the holidays and then just forgot about them. During some digging through our too deep cabinets, I found them and decided they must be used...
This recipe for chocolate protein energy balls started as a fail. I was trying to make chocolate sea salt Rx bars and it just didn't work out. The mixture was a tad too sticky to cut nicely into bars and I had given up trying. I was at my kitchen counter, pulling the failed chocolate...
Sometimes, you just need a cookie. It helps that these are refined sugar free, flour free and ready in minutes! Ever have one of those days that you just can't seem to get anything done? Like, you have a list a mile long but don't seem to make any progress on it. This was me...
Looking for a sweet treat for your Valentine? These Kahlua Fudge brownies will do the trick. I actually made these at Christmas time and going back through old photos, I realized I never posted the recipe. I had to get on here to do this today because you want to make these brownies! It seems...
Chia pudding to the rescue! It's an absolute lifesaver, especially when you're embarking on another Whole 30 journey and the thought of having eggs for breakfast again is starting to feel monotonous. We all reach a point where we crave something different, like a comforting bowl of oatmeal or a refreshing yogurt parfait. But fear...
It's 2018---time to take care of ourselves! These raw brownies are a great way to start. They are vegan, gluten free, and refined sugar free! Are you just here for the recipes? Well, this is a good one. But before we get to it....... Happy New Year! Hope you had a great time celebrating with...
If you are tempted by the soft sugar cookies at the grocery store, try this recipe instead. This copy-cat recipe of the Lofthouse Sugar Cookies tastes even better than the ones at the store. I hardly ever buy pre-made sweets at the store but I get tempted every holiday season when the stores start rolling...
Trying to redeem my earlier blogging skills with these mini Momofuku Crack Pies---oatmeal and buttery goodness in a bite sized dessert. Seven years ago, I attempted to make the famous Momofuku Crack Pie. I was so proud of my creation that I wanted to share it with the world. I delivered some to neighbors, wrote...
Plain old pinhead oatmeal cookies don't get the credit they deserve. They are passed over for their better looking cousin, chocolate chip and their brother, oatmeal raisin gets all the attention. I think this needs to change. Why don't we look past all the glitter and glitz that these other cookies possess and look at...
Every year, just after Thanksgiving, we look forward to cranberry bliss bars showing up at Starbucks. They are one of Aaron's favorites, loaded with cranberries, white chocolate, candied ginger, and cream cheese frosting. When I first started my previous blog (in 2009), I tried to make these as one of my first recipes. I encourage...
These giant oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are a great way to get your holiday baking started. I bake them year-round but make extra batches during the holidays. Happy National Cookie Day! Maybe it should be National Cookie Month---it seems that is all we are making, eating and thinking about over here. These giant oatmeal chocolate chip...
I had such high hopes for this Halloween. I was planning to make multiple festive cookies, a savory dish, and a few fun cocktails. I had big decorations planned and a great and easy costume. But, I am not sure what happened and now Halloween is tomorrow and the only fun treat I made was...
I am obsessed with cashew butter and have been using it in lots of recipes lately. Did you see my granola with cashew butter and chocolate? It is so good! I made a big batch of cashew butter to make the granola but then had cashew butter leftover. I thought since the holidays are fast...
I am not currently a full time vegan but tend to make lots of vegan recipes. I like every recipe that I test and put on this site but these five layer cookie bars, I LOVE. I have been so excited to share this recipe with you because these are AMAZING. I mean, just...
I bought a special pan just to make doughnuts at home and I finally used it to make these baked pumpkin doughnuts (or donuts!?). This was a spontaneous creation that was triggered when I was looking through my cabinets for my Halloween placemats and I found my doughnut pan. In the same moment, I...
It is really hard for me to say if I prefer this version of chocolate chip pumpkin bread or the other version I made last week. I made both on the same day and one loaf was finished off a lot faster than the other. Any guesses which one that might be? I used the...
For those of you in more Northern climates, this time of year likely means big, comfy sweaters, boots, soups, and sitting by the fire. In Florida, this time of year still means slippers (flip-flops), shorts and beach days. Right now, we are celebrating because the temperature didn't get much above 80 degrees yesterday. We can...
Happy Fall! I am so excited to jump into fall with all of the holidays and baking. I am still trying to stay healthy though and not go overboard with lots of treats. I think everyone has their favorite Starbucks item that they wait patiently for each year. Aaron loves the cranberry bliss bars that...
Every morning in Hawaii, Auntie Cathy left a pan of butter mochi out on the counter for us to enjoy. Some days, it was cocoa mochi, some days it was blueberry mochi but my favorite was the regular butter mochi. If you haven't tried butter mochi, you are missing out. Traditional mochi is a Japanese...
This recipe for nut butter banana muffins makes me think of fall. Thanks to modern shipping we have bananas in our kitchen year-round, but it isn't until the fall that I start thinking of making muffins. I think it has something to do with school starting and wanting to have quick and easy to grab snacks for...
Paleo Carrot Cake Recipe to Celebrate Easter and Spring Easter is kind of a weird holiday for me because I don't really remember Easter holiday traditions growing up. I remember hiding eggs, destroying hard-boiled eggs by throwing them at trees, and hanging out at a park along the river in Centralia, Washington. I don't remember...
Usually at this time of year, we are sitting with the in-laws in their log cabin in snowy Vermont. Not this year. Instead we decided to stay back and run the business. Lots of people come to Sarasota in the winter for sunny weather and time out on the water and they all want...
This past week, we decided to bail out of an East coast surf contest that Sawyer was supposed to compete in to just stay home and get some house projects crossed off our list. Sawyer wasn't too bummed because there actually ended up being a little surf on our coast so he did get a...
It's kind of funny to me that I have re-started my website, with the intentions of posting about healthier eats from our Surfer's Kitchen, yet, I continually keep posting about cookies, brownies and other delicious desserts. Well, please forgive me. I love dessert and I especially love cookies. Plus, it is the holidays and baking...
This recipe for chess squares is super easy Southern dessert that everyone loves. The ingredients are common and the prep is simple. Make these to impress your friends and family. Years ago, I made these Chess Squares on my old site (FortyCakes.com) after finding the recipe on Kevin and Amanda.com. The original recipe may come from...
A pound cake with a tangy, spring-like flavor...thanks to fresh grapefruit from my tree!
My friend gave me a gift the other day. A bunch of lemons from her tree. AND....she decided to take my kids to the movies on a weekend day, which meant free time for me. I had no plans--and all of the sudden--I had no kids either. What to do with my day? While most...