The Mediterranean diet has a very no-frills rule – every dish should include natural and wholesome foods. This means having plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and olive oil. Consuming moderate amounts of fish, poultry, and dairy are encouraged, so are limited quantities of red meat and processed food. Desserts should be a part of a balanced diet, and making desserts that align with the Mediterranean diet is not difficult. All you need to do is ensure that you use natural sweeteners and nutrient-dense ingredients. Here are some sugar free sweets recipes to get you started:
Baked Apples with Cinnamon
Ingredients:
- 6-7 medium apples
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 133 g coconut sugar
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon powder
- 3 tsp freshly grated ginger
- Pinch of nutmeg
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 tbsp water
- Pinch of sea salt
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 176 C. For baking the apples, we will use a 9x13 inch baking dish.
- Peel, core, quarter and then thinly slice the apples.
- Place them in the baking dish along with lemon juice, coconut sugar, cinnamon powder, ginger, nutmeg, cornstarch, water and sea salt. You can also use apple juice instead of water.
- Loosely cover the dish with foil and place it in the oven for 45 minutes.
- Remove the foil after 45 minutes and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.
- The apples should be soft but also caramelized.
- Serve the baked apples with a side of some ice cream or vanilla bean Greek yogurt.
Frangipane Tart
Ingredients:
- For the date jam: 200 g dates
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
For the tart crust:
- 480 g mix of almond and cashews
- 240 g dates
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
For the filling:
- 60 ml coconut oil
- 64 g almond butter
- 3 eggs
- 200 g almond meal
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- Fresh figs and flaked almonds for garnish
Instructions:
- First make the date jam by putting the dates and booking them in hot water.
- Once the dates are mushy, and have reached room temperature, add them to a food processor with vanilla extract. Blend until smooth. The recipe requires about 2 to 3 tablespoons of jam. You can store and use the rest to have with toast or even ice cream.
- Start by making the base. First, preheat the oven to 180 C.
- In a clean food processor, put the nuts in the food processor and then them into a powder form.
- Then add the vanilla extract followed by one date at a time into the processor and blend.
- You should get a crumbly pastry dough, which you can press into a pie tin. Set aside.
- Start by cracking the eggs in a bowl, then mixing coconut sugar along with almond butter. Mix well.
- Add almond meal, coconut sugar, orange zest, coconut salt, and sugar.
- Assemble the tart by spreading the date jam on the pie crust, then add the frangipane filling. Smoothen with a spatula.
- Add chopped fresh figs on top, followed by flaked almonds.
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
- Allow the tart to come to room temperature before slicing it and serving.
Chickpea Blondies
Ingredients:
- 124 g oat flour
- 96 g almond flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 300 ml maple syrup
- 82 g cooked chickpeas
- 125 g almond butter
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 120 g chocolate chips
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 190 C.
- Whisk together the oat flour, salt, almond flour, and baking powder in a large bowl.
- Then add maple syrup, cooked chickpeas, almond butter, and vanilla extract in a food processor and blend well. You should get a smooth paste.
- Add this paste to the flours and mix until well combined.
- Finally, fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
- Pour it into a greased 8x8 inch cake tin.
- Bake in the oven for about 25 to 28 minutes.
- Cool the blondies before slicing them into squares.