PS T's Dreamy Chocolate Sauce & Hagenburger's Dessert Nacho Foodie Bar

Chef:  Timaree Hagenburger, The Nutrition Professor
Makes:  12 oz
Prep Time:  Date & Cashew Soaking (at least 30 minutes) Measuring and blending: 3 minutes
Total Time:  33 minutes

T's Dreamy Chocolate Sauce

INGREDIENTS

• 5 Medjool dates (pits removed, soaked in ¾ c water)
• 1 T cashews (soak with dates)
• 2 T unsweetened cocoa/cacao powder
• ½ c cooked black beans
• ¼ t cinnamon
• ½ t vanilla
• Extra water on hand to add during blending for desired consistency

DIRECTIONS

1. In a high-powered blender (e.g. Vitamix or Blendtec), combine all ingredients, including the soaking water for the dates/cashews, and blend until silky smooth. 
2. Add extra water, a T or so at a time, (up to 5 T total), to achieve the right consistency, (a semi-thick sauce rather than a stiff dip).  

PS Hagenburger's Dessert Nacho Foodie Bar

INGREDIENTS

Chip Options:
Sweet Cinnamon Chips /Pizza Crust

• Whole grain lavash bread
• 1-2 T of almond or soy milk
• ½ t cinnamon
• 2 T coconut sugar or date sugar

Apple Chips

• 2 apples (your choice) cored and thinly sliced (leave peel on)

Pineapple Chips

• 1 small to large pineapple sliced into “chip size” pieces, just thick enough to hold the toppings.

Fruit Toppings

• Fresh fruit, diced small - strawberries, peaches, nectarines, kiwi, mango,
• Fresh or frozen berries -  Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, pomegranate arils
• Banana slices (cut in half or quartered)

Nut Toppings

• Almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts are my favorites!

DIRECTIONS

Sweet Cinnamon Chips/Pizza Crust

1. Preheat oven 375 degrees.
2. Brush with a little almond or soy milk.
3. Dust with cinnamon and coconut/date sugar.
4. Cut into triangles. (Skip this step if making a pizza.)
5. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 5 minutes, just until crispy-don’t let them burn.

Apple Chips

1. Wash apple thoroughly and core.
2. Thinly slice (thick enough to hold toppings)

Pineapple Chips

1. Remove the peeling from the pineapple (you could leave on if you choose; pretty, but not edible)
2. Core pineapple (you can retain the core, if you choose)
3. Thinly slice (thick enough to hold toppings)
4. Slice into “chip size pieces”

Once chips/pizza crust are made top with your choice of fruits and nuts.  ~OR~ create a bar and let guests construct their own.  Serve immediately.  Your guests will love this colorful, healthy and delicious indulgence!

TIPS

1. A fun way to share this yummy sauce with your family and friends, while celebrating some of the incredible summer fruits at local Farmers’ Market, is to set up a Dessert Nacho Foodie Bar!  Let your imagination run wild when you select whole plant based delectable toppings.
2. Store in a squeeze bottle, at the back of the refrigerator.
3. If you don’t have a squeeze bottle, pour some of the sauce into a sandwich sized zip-top bag, removing as much air as possible before sealing.  Then, just cut the very tip of one of the lower corners off (don’t make the hole too big) and use that as a disposable pastry bag!

Timaree Hagenburger, MPH, RD, EP-c, cherishes opportunities to connect her knowledge and passion for food, cooking, physical activity & good health with those who follow her.  Her style is marked by a blend of fun and practicality, as she offers strategies and inspiration for finding pleasure in preparing and partaking in nourishing meals.  Relish in Timaree’s love for whole plant based nutrition on TheNutritionProfessor.com! 

Timaree’s innovative and engaging cookbook, The Foodie Bar Way:  One Meal.  Lots of options.  Everyone’s Happy; provides incredible options to delight everyone.  Available as a Ebook or a full-color, 303 page, printed book, at www.FoodieBars.com.