Simple Baked Maple Egg Custard

This recipe is so simple, I am not sure why we don’t enjoy it more often. With 4 ingredients that we usually have on hand, it is easy to throw together and throw in the oven to help warm up the kitchen on a blustery rainy day. This recipe does make a large batch, feel free to half it and bake in a 8X8 glass dish instead. This custard needs to bake in a water bath, much like a typical creme brule. This helps to give a nice, moist, steady temperature to cook the custard evenly.  A lot of custard recipes on the internet use a longer slower bake, with lower temperatures, but I haven’t had an issue with the higher heat of my recipe.

Simple Baked Maple Egg Custard 

4 cups milk, preferably full fat and non homogenized

8 Large eggs,  preferably pastured

Served with Roasted Pears

½ cup pure organic maple syrup

1 tsp Vanilla powder or 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400F

Break eggs into a medium mixing bowl and whisk well. Whisk in milk, vanilla and maple syrup. Pour into 9X13 glass pan. Set this pan inside a larger 10x15 glass pan.

When oven is preheated, fill a pour-able vessel (I use a glass measuring cup) with very hot tap water.

Carefully place pans into the preheated oven, and fill the outer glass pan with the hot tap water until it reaches just over halfway up the inner glass pan that is holding the custard.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the custard is set in the middle. It should jiggle a bit like jello, and a knife inserted in the middle should come out damp but clean.

Let cool before enjoying. 

Roasted Venison Stew

This is a great recipe to make on a Sunday afternoon. It fills your house with a mouth-watering aroma, and a taste that is wonderfully nostalgic-- comfort food at its finest. The browning/sautéing step deepens the flavours, and is a step that shouldn’t be skipped. The acidity of the wine, along with the long oven roast helps to tenderize the venison.  If you cannot find venison (we usually find it here), you could always substitute bison or beef stewing meat.

Roasted Venison Stew

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 lb venison stew meat, cut into bite sized pieces.

2 tbsp arrowroot starch/flour

2 tsp each dried thyme and rosemary

Salt and pepper to taste

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1 ½ cups chopped onion

4 large carrots, scrubbed and chopped into bite sized pieces

4 stalks celery, chopped

4 yellow potatoes, chopped into 1-2 inch cubes

1 ½ cups red wine

1 946 ml can of organic diced tomatoes (Eden comes in a BPA free can!)

2 cups of bone broth

Turn your oven onto 375F to preheat.

Toss the cut up venison with the arrowroot, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper.

Heat the coconut oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the tossed venison, and brown. Don’t worry about cooking it right thru, it will finish cooking in the oven. You just want to create some nice colour and flavour. When it is nice and browned, remove to a plate and keep warm, leaving the pan on the burner.

Add the onions, and sauté for a few minutes. Add the red wine ½ cup at a time to deglaze the pan. Use a wooden spatula to loosen the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. The wine will reduce during this step, further enhancing the flavour of the stew. When the wine is all added,  stir in the chopped carrots, potatoes and celery, and sauté a few minutes more.  Add the tomatoes, bone broth and the browned venison and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil, put the lid on the Dutch oven, and place into the preheated oven  to roast for 1 ½ hrs. Remove lid and leave it off. Stir well and roast  for another ½ hour.

Remove from oven and serve hot. 

Amazing Grain Free Nut Free Banana Bread

Since going grain free, there are some old staples that have been lacking in our house, or so I was reminded (with all love and affection of course) by my eldest son recently. Upon seeing some really ripe bananas on the counter, he pointed out how long he has gone without banana bread (poor thing J ) I have not made any grain free loaves of any kind as of yet,  so the challenge was on. The resulting loaf was awesome, very moist and banana-ey, and received two thumbs up from the poor banana bread deprived teenager. I had used an entire cup of chocolate chips in the trial run, but I thought the chip to bread ratio was a bit much, so reduced it to ¾ of a cup , and thought the results were much better. (Said teenager however, said that 1 cup was just fine, so use your judgement on the amount of chips to use!)
The first batch I made had some issues with the very bottom sticking in the pan, so I lined the pan the next time with a strip of parchment, and it came out beautifully. 

Amazing Grain Free Nut Free Banana Bread

4 eggs, preferably pastured

3 small bananas or 2 large ones

¼ cup coconut oil, softened  

½ cup Coconut flour
1/4 cup chickpea flour

2 tbsp arrowroot flour

1/3 cup coconut sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup plain kefir or yogurt, preferably full fat

Pinch of salt

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¾-1 cup chocolate chips (Enjoy Life are great)

Butter or coconut oil butter ghee spray to grease pan, plus a piece of parchment if desired.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Grease a loaf pan well with butter or the coconut oil butter ghee spray (add a layer of parchment if desired)

With an immersion or stick blender blend all of the ingredients together until very well blended. Scrape sides to incorporate everything well. Stir in chocolate chips and let batter stand for 5 minutes to thicken up.  Scrape into prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Loosen edges with knife, remove from pan and cool on wire rack before cutting.

Quick Tuna and Tomato Sauce

I threw this sauce together one night this week when my pre-planned dinner fell thru due to a lack of kale in the garden. I picked some to go in a big pot of soup  and realized that there was not near as much left as I previously thought, so the creamed kale and eggs plan had to be back-burnered for the time being. A quick inventory of my cupboard revealed these ingredients, and in less than 15 minutes, we were eating this tasty meal. I didn't even take any pictures (gasp!) during the cooking,  not really expecting it to be as tasty as it was. Luckily the leftovers that I packed for lunch willingly posed for a picture J  It is well worth sharing, and much healthier (and cheaper!) than take out. This fed 4 of us for dinner, and there was enough left for 2 lunches. Frugal, healthy and tasty, give it a try!

Quick Tuna and Tomato Sauce

1 cup thinly sliced onions

2 tbsp butter

1 796ml can diced tomatoes (look for BPA free cans, like Eden)

1 184g can flaked tuna (ethically caught)

2 tsp dried basil

Salt and pepper to taste

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“noodles” of choice ( We had ours over spiraled zucchini noodles, the boys had their favourite gluten free pasta.)

Heat butter in a large cast iron pan over medium high heat. When it starts to bubble, add the onions and sauté until they start to soften, and almost start to brown, about 5-6 minutes. Add the basil, tuna and tomatoes, stir to combine. Bring to a boil and let simmer until your noodles of choice are ready.  Season with salt and pepper and serve with your “noodles”.   Top with grated cheese if desired.

Grain Free Crockpot Chocolate Fudge Pudding Cake

With the colder weather , as I have said before, I crave comfort foods. But my dietary needs and taste buds have changed so much in the past few years, those typical good old comfort foods just don’t fit anymore. So when I really get a craving for something, like this pudding cake I remember from my childhood, I reinvent it to suit the way we eat now. It is still definitely a treat, but one that you can indulge in without “most” of the guilt!

This cake is made in the Crockpot or slow cooker (I use my smaller 3 quart one, if you only have a large one, this recipe could easily be doubled, the leftovers are great!), and is typical of an old fashioned pudding cake, where you make the batter, and (gasp!!) ...pour a bunch of water on top of it...seriously! It then magically creates a moist fudgy pudding en-robed cake that cooks merrily away on its own while you throw together a nice healthy supper to balance it all out. It is best served at room temperature or chilled, IF you can wait long enough to let it cool! The pictures do not do it justice, it is just not photogenic.  But, what it lacks in beauty, it makes up for in flavour! (It also goes really well with a scoop of your favourite vanilla ice cream...just in-case you were wondering :)

You want a nice thick batter--if it appears
too thin, add another Tbsp or two of
coconut flour.

Grain Free Crockpot Chocolate Fudge Pudding Cake

Cake batter:

3 eggs

2 tbsp chickpea flour

1/3- ½ cup coconut flour (start with the 1/3 and add more if needed)

2 tbsp arrowroot powder

¾ tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp coconut sugar

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup of milk (use a non-dairy alternative if you wish!)

2 Tbsp coconut oil

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp vanilla

_____

Topping:

1 tsp organic instant coffee powder (optional, but deepens the chocolate flavour!)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

½ cup coconut sugar

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grease pan

2 cups boiling water

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Butter/coconut oil or coconut oil butter ghee spray to grease the crockpot

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together all of the batter ingredients with an immersion blender until well combined. Scrape sides as needed.  (it should be nice and thick, add more coconut flour if needed to thicken it up) Spoon batter into the bottom of your greased crockpot, and smooth slightly.

Mix the topping ingredients together in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly across the top of the batter.

Gently pour the boiling water into the crockpot, completely covering the batter. Cover with the lid, and turn on to high. Cook for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Remove lid and let cool at least to room temperature before serving. The “pudding” part of the cake will thicken up the longer it sits. 

spread batter in greased pot

 sprinkle with coconut sugar-cocoa mixture

now, pour on the boiling water (!!!!) cover and cook!

the results? not pretty, but tasty!

Grass Fed Meat Loaf with Feta and Cranberries

This meat loaf will fill your kitchen with a wonderful nostalgic aroma, it is comfort food at its finest. Moms meatloaf, but with a few modern twists. The extra step of sautéing the veggies is well worthwhile-- if you are in a rush you could potentially skip this step, but I wouldn't! 

Adding the cranberry sauce to the typical ketchup topping (especially if you make them both yourself!) creates a dish worthy of company, and the feta adds a subtle creaminess that blends well with the rest of the flavours. 

Grass Fed Meat Loaf with Feta and Cranberries

1 tbsp coconut oil

3 onions (mine were smallish, you want a generous cup when chopped)

2 stalks celery

2 cloves of garlic

1 tsp each dried rosemary and thyme

2 lbs grass fed ground beef

3 eggs

1/3 cup coconut flour

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

¾ cup crumbled feta cheese

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½ cup cranberry sauce (recipe here)

¼ cup organic ketchup (see below for recipe if you want to make your own!)

Preheat oven to 375F

Finely dice onions and celery, and sauté in a cast iron pan over medium heat with the coconut oil for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, rosemary and thyme, and continue to sauté until everything is fragrant and just starting to brown. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Combine the rest of your ingredients EXCEPT the cranberry sauce and ketchup in a large mixing bowl. Mix well to combine. Add the sautéed vegetables and mix till evenly distributed.

Grease a 9X13 glass baking dish, and shape the mixture into a nice even oval shape.

Mix together the cranberry sauce and the ketchup, and coat the meatloaf with the mixture, ensuring you cover the entire loaf.

Bake in preheated oven until the internal temperature reaches at least 165F, approx 45-50 minutes.

Serve hot.

Homemade Ketchup

A homemade option for that ever so popular brand that starts with H J

1 can organic tomato paste

¼  cup raw apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp coconut sugar

1 clove of garlic, pressed or finely chopped

1/8 tsp allspice

1 tsp salt

2 tsp molasses

1 cup water

Mix all ingredients in a small pot, bring to a boil and simmer for about 8 minutes.  Cool before using. Store in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze in small jars that you can thaw one at a time. 

Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry Sauce

Approx 4 cups fresh or frozen organic cranberries,

½ -¾ cup coconut sugar (depending on how sweet you want it, I like mine more on the tart side)

1 cup water (or sub organic orange juice for your liquid)

Rinse cranberries and add them to a medium saucepan with the water and coconut sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes  until the cranberries start to burst. Remove from heat and cool before using or freezing.


Used most recently to top these muffins, and to top an awesome meatloaf with feta that will be posted soon :)

Grain Free Chocolate Brazil Nut Muffins with a Cranberry Swirl

I love cranberries. So much that when I make a batch for the holidays, I like to make extra and freeze it in small jam jars, to pull out whenever a craving strikes. They are just too darn tasty to be relegated to the holiday season! I pulled a jar out earlier in the week and used some to top a meatloaf recipe that will be posted soon ( I will link here when I get it posted) . I wanted to make a muffin with chocolate and Brazil nuts, but knew they would need some sort of brightness to balance the flavours. Cranberry sauce to the rescue!  It added just the right amount of tartness to the muffin without overwhelming. I think these would be an awesome Christmas morning brunch muffin too!

Grain Free Chocolate Brazil Nut Muffins with a Cranberry Swirl

4 eggs, preferably pastured

1/3 cup coconut flour

2 T Sunflower Seed Flour

2 Tbsp Chickpea Flour

2 Tbsp Arrowroot flour

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

Generous pinch of Himalayan sea salt

¼ cup coconut sugar (or other sweetener of choice)

½ cup kefir or yogurt

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½ cup raw Brazil nuts, chopped

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Approx ½ cup premade cranberry sauce (see recipe here)

Preheat oven to 375F.

Place all ingredients EXCEPT the Brazil nuts and cranberry sauce into a medium mixing bowl, and mix well with an immersion blender , scraping down the sides as necessary.  With a spatula, mix in the chopped Brazil nuts (I chopped mine in my handy little chopper, you want to see some larger chunks to add a nice texture to the muffin) and stir well until combined.

Divide evenly between 12 muffin cups, either greased or lined.

Top with approx. 2 tsp of cranberry sauce (be generous!), and swirl in with a butter knife or the end of your measuring spoon.

Bake in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove to a wire rack and cool for as long as you can before gobbling them up!

Grain Free PBJ Bars

I created these bars on the weekend when I decided to try a new flavour of the grab-and-go-type bars that have become a staple in our freezer. I intended to make a chocolate and brazil nut combination, but someone found my stash of brazil nuts in the fridge, and that combination quickly went out the window. So while cupboard/fridge surfing for inspiration, I found a lonely jar of crunchy peanut butter.  (my guys all like the smooth kind, and I inadvertently came home with a jar of crunchy not too long ago, and there it has sat ever since…I had to take pity on it and use it!) The jar of raspberry jam sitting beside it completed the inspiration, and these babies were born. Grain free protein packed goodness  that is now stored in my freezer for a tasty on the go treat ( I roughly calculated the protein of each bar to be about 8 grams). I am sure you could swap the peanut butter for any other nut butter you wish if peanut allergies are an issue.

Grain Free PBJ Bars

½ cup almond flour

½ cup coconut flour

2 tbsp chick pea flour

¾ tsp baking soda

¾ tsp Himalayan or Celtic sea salt 

1/3 cup coconut sugar

½ cup natural organic peanut butter (mine was chunky)

4 eggs, preferably pastured

2/3 cup plain yogurt (I used a full fat one)

1 tsp vanilla

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½ cup raspberry jam, preferably fruit juice sweetened  (or flavour of choice)

Preheat oven to 375F and grease a 8x8 glass baking pan with St. Francis Coconut Oil Butter Ghee Cooking Spray or butter, or line with parchment paper. Set aside.

Place all ingredients EXCEPT the raspberry jam into a medium to large mixing bowl, and blend well with an immersion blender until well combined, scraping down the sides if necessary.

Scrape batter into prepared  pan. Drop the reserved jam by teaspoon-full’s evenly across the top of the batter, and run a knife thru the batter and jam in a zigzag pattern to swirl the jam into the top of the batter.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool in pan before cutting.

I cut mine in half diagonally, turn the pan ¼ turn and then cut again 6 times evenly, creating 12 rectangular bars.

At this point you can store the bars in a container in the fridge for a few days, or , as we do, wrap in parchment or plastic wrap individually and store in the freezer for a quick snack or lunch box treat. 

Grain Free Coconut Flour Carrot Cake, and a New Product Review!

This post is a recipe re-make of sorts, and my very first product review, all at the same time! A few weeks back, at the Fall CHFA show (Health Food Trade Show) one of my favourite Demo-reps-turned-sales-rep Deb introduced me to the VP of St. Francis Herb Farm. This company, from Eastern Ontario, has an amazing product line up, I have been a fan for years. Deb mentioned my blog to him and he ended up giving me a bottle of their new Coconut Oil & Butter Ghee Cooking Sprays to try out. I had already been ogling it, being a fan of their Butter Ghee and Coconut Oil Butter Ghee already, this spray caught my eye right away. Having given up the aerosol oil sprays years ago, I have been using the old school method of greasing pans, using a gob of butter and a paper towel, or my silicone basting brush with decent results, albeit messy! But, I have missed the tidy convenience of the spray, and I was thrilled to test drive this virtuous and healthy spray. Butter Ghee and Coconut Oil have amazing health benefits, and this product combines them in a super convenient spray with no unhealthy aerosols or propellants, a definite bonus!
I have been promising to make my hubbie a carrot cake, and it was the perfect test run for the Coconut Oil and Butter Ghee Spray. I am pleased to say it did not disappoint! The carrot cakes popped right out of the pan after a quick run around with a knife, with alot less fuss and muss than the paper towel/butter method. (I did line my pans with a piece of parchment on the bottom, a bit of extra insurance that I would have used with plain old butter as well!) I am impressed and look forward to trying many more things with this spray!

For the hubbie-promised carrot cake, I used my tried and true Grain Free Coconut Flour Carrot Cake Muffin recipe, and simply doubled it. I baked it in two greased and lined 8 inch round pans, for 50 minutes at 375F. (note the increased temp and time from the muffin recipe!) For the icing, I used 2 tubs of Western plain creme cheese, and added 2 tbsp of Cocovie Vanilla Coconut Jam, and 2 Tbsp of coconut sugar, blended well in my stand mixer. The cake was amazing, to say the least, a definite keeper!

The first slice, just waiting for a fork!

Ready to bake!

Chunky Butternut Squash Soup With Bacon And Kale

With fall settling in to Southern Ontario, the days are rapidly changing from salad days to soup days. Hearty stick to your ribs kind of soups that comfort , nourish and warm you to the core. This is a perfect recipe for a fall lunch or dinner, I hope you enjoy it!

The squash could be roasted in advance to save a bit of time, making this an easy soup to get on the dinner table fast. 

Chunky Butternut Squash Soup With Bacon And Kale

1 large butternut squash

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 cup finely diced bacon

2 onions, peeled and chopped (a very generous cup full!)

1 bunch kale, tough stems removed, and chopped

1 tsp dried oregano

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp turmeric

1 clove garlic

1 tsp salt

7 cups bone broth (I used chicken)

Preheat oven to 375F

Cut squash into manageable chunks, peel and remove the seeds. Cut into 1 ½ inch chunks, toss with coconut oil, and roast in a large pan in preheated oven for 60 minutes. The squash should be softened and just starting to brown slightly. Remove from oven and set aside. 

Sauté the bacon in a heavy bottomed large pot, stirring often until just cooked thru, approx 4-5 minutes. Add the diced onions and cook until the onions start to soften, another 4-5 minutes. Add the Kale and the spices, and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.

Add the pre-roasted squash to the pot and lightly mash to break up the chunks slightly. This helps add some body to the soup.

Add 1 cup of the bone broth to the pot, and stir, scraping  to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, and serve. 

Grain Free Dairy Free Pumpkin Bars

I think fall is my favourite season of the year. Don’t get me wrong, spring is amazing with all the new growth, and gardening and such. Summer has its moments too, with the hot lazy sunny days, and warm nights spent sitting on the patio. Winter has….lets see, um, snow… and ice… and cold… nope, not really a winter fan! But fall, now fall has it all, with the slight chill in the air, the beautiful fall colours in full splendor, and all the amazing fall produce, apples and  squashes and pumpkins, oh my!! We have these gorgeous little organic pie pumpkins at work right now, and this recipe highlights their flavour beautifully.  I am not generally a raisin fan, but the soaking method I use infuses them with a nice vanilla flavour and plumps them up nicely—no chewy raisins here! (if you would rather chewy raisins, you can skip this step all-together if you wish)

Grain Free Dairy Free Pumpkin Bars

½ cup raisins (I used Thomson Seedless, but feel free to pick what you like!)

½ cup boiling water (enough to cover raisins)

2 tsp vanilla

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4 eggs

1 cup pureed roasted pumpkin (see below for cooking methods or use organic canned pumpkin, NOT pie filling!)

2 tbsp coconut oil

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp vanilla

½ cup coconut flour

3 tbsp chickpea flour

2 Tbsp arrowroot flour

2 tbsp ground Chia seeds

1/3 cup coconut sugar

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

1/3 tsp freshly ground nutmeg (or ½ tsp dried)

1 tsp baking soda 

pinch of salt

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½ cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 375F.

Place raisins and vanilla in a heat proof bowl or glass measuring cup. Cover with boiling water and let stand for at least 10 minutes. Set aside.

Measure the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the pecans into a large mixing bowl. Using an immersion blender, mix all the ingredients together well, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary.

Drain the vanilla water from the raisins (save for another use if you have one!)

Add the drained raisins and the pecans to the batter and mix with a wooden spoon to distribute evenly.

Scrape into a greased or parchment lined 9x13 glass baking pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool before cutting into desired sized bars or squares.

Pumpkin cooking methods:

Crockpot method: My favourite method for a pumpkin of this size could not be easier! Wash off the outside of the pumpkin, and place it  WHOLE into your Crockpot.  DO NOT cut in half, scoop out the seeds, or anything. Just plunk it in. 

Turn the Crockpot on low, and cover with lid. Cook for 6-8 hrs on low or until the pumpkin is soft through.   Remove from crockpot and let cool before cutting in half. Scoop out seeds and set aside if you wish to roast them. Scoop the pumpkin away from the skin, and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Use as desired.

This method works well with smaller squashes too. I often do this before I go out the door to work in the morning, and come home to a perfectly roasted squash!

Oven Roasting Method: Cut pumpkin in half, scoop out seeds and roast, cut side down on a baking sheet for 60-90 minutes, or until soft thru (this will depend on the thickness of your pumpkin).  Cool, scoop and puree as above.

Oven Roasted Tomato, Onion and Garlic Sauce

This post  is pretty typical of how I create a lot of my recipes. If I have a plethora of something to use up, I usually throw something together to use up whatever that plethora may be. This time of year there is always an excess in the garden just begging to be used. Tomatoes were the needy ingredient of the day, and with the fruit fly invasion that has been plaguing my kitchen, time was of the essence! The ingredients won’t have exact measurements, but I will try and give a general idea of how much to use. The tomatoes were not any specific kind, I used some of every type in our garden, from the “tiny tim” cherries to the larger red ones that have no name, (I think there was even one green zebra!) So, not your typical sauce tomatoes, but any should work just fine!

This sauce is pretty fuss free, no peeling/blanching/straining required, just some time to roast in the oven, a perfect way to warm up the kitchen on a cool fall morning. The roasted onions add a nice body to the sauce, no need to boil it down for thickness. This is an awesome technique for peeling garlic that you have to try. I will warn you it is loud, but when you are peeling multiple cloves, it is a real time saver! All in all, an easy sauce with great roasted flavour.

Served over zucchini noodles, with
meatballs and a grain free biscuit.

Oven Roasted Tomato, Onion and Garlic Sauce

Tomatoes, (when chopped up, mine made a nice single layer on two cookie sheets)

Garlic (approx 8-9 cloves)

Onions (12 smallish onions, or 3-4 regular sized yellow cooking onions)

Coconut oil, melted (enough to give a drizzle to both pans)

Salt to taste

1 tsp Coconut sugar (optional, but rounds out the flavour)

Preheat oven to 425F, and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. 

these are what I consider a "smallish" onion

Chop your tomatoes (the tiny cherry tomatoes I left whole) into smaller chunks (see picture below for clarification).

Peel and chop your onions into similar sized chunks, add to the pans.

Peel your garlic (awesome way to peel a whole head of garlic here! It really works!!), cut cloves in half and add to the pans.

Drizzle each pan with some melted coconut oil, if I had to guess I would say there was about 1 ½ tbsp used on each pan.

Sprinkle with a bit of sea salt, and roast for about 1 ½ hrs in preheated oven. Check every so often, you want to remove them when the veggies are starting to brown and release their juices.

Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before proceeding.

Lifting the parchment carefully, transfer the contents of both pans into a large mixing bowl. Using an immersion blender puree the sauce until it is nice and smooth.  (if you don’t like the seeds, you can strain it at this point, I generally don’t) Add the coconut sugar if desired, and re-season with salt to taste.

Serve immediately or store in mason jars in the fridge for 3-4 days, or in the freezer for 6-8 months, (just remember to leave room for expansion if freezing)

Mine made approx 7 cups of sauce.