Thinly sliced apples combined with one of my favorite healthy secret ingredients make these Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls not only delicious, but tipping the scale on the healthy side too!

Sometimes it’s good to be thankful for the little things. Like neighbors with apple trees.

Of course, neighbors with apple trees who like to share is even better.

The thing about a neighbor’s apple tree is that it gives you a much better idea of what organic really means. Yes, these apples don’t look like the glossy ones you find in supermarkets. But you know what they say? Looks can be deceiving. That is absolutely the case with these apples.

“They’re somewhere between a Gala and a Jonathan.”

“What?” I replied with my typical slightly raised eyebrow which I hope makes me look inquisitive. It’s my favorite cover for the standard, underlying condition that I usually feel – confused.

“When I moved here, the guy told me the apples from this tree taste like something between a Gala and a Jonathan apple.”

“Oh,” I said, a big smile spreading across my face. I don’t really care if they taste like a muttly mix of this or that, I’m just glad to have some fresh, organic apples. I decide not to tell her that. “Thank you so much!”

“Well, help yourself if you’d like more. There’s more than we can eat.” She must have sensed the hesitancy ebbing from my being because she continued, “Seriously, help yourself to more anytime you like!”

I envision her looking out the kitchen window and seeing me shimmying up her tree to grab an apple at six in the morning. I suffer from a serious case of bad timing so I could definitely see a scenario like this one playing out. I cringe.

I give her a big smile and say “Thanks!” I walk away with my big bag of backyard apples like I must have just won the lottery.

Life can be so good sometimes!

And I vowed to make some tasty sweets with those apples, and the first item on my list? Cinnamon Rolls! Yes, I know they don’t traditionally have apples in them, but that was something I intended to change.

For the recipe: Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls with Coconut Cream Drizzle

Source: namelymarly.com

When I posted about my experiments with Tartine's sourdough bread, I recieved a lot of questions about discarding the starter, since that technique calls for so much of the starter to be tossed every day. I found a way to utilize it in these simple, fluffy pancakes - it's absolutely perfect for them. I make them vegan, but you can certainly add eggs to your batter if you prefer it that way. These pancakes are best when cooked on a cast iron pan - I own a tiny 5-inch one and it works wonderfully here. The coconut creme is easy and delicious as well, but I invite you to experiment with your own favorite pancake toppings.

For the recipe: Sprouted Spelt Pancakes with Coconut Creme

Source: g0lubka.blogspot.ca

I made use of my donut pan again! Yay! This time, the batter came out to be more than just the 6 that the pan has room for so I might have made them very full when putting the batter in… in turn, the outcome was a donut on one end but a muffin top, kind of, on the other end. Haha, who cares, it’s fun. The flavor was delicious and my dad loved these! He asked me why I didn’t bring more home when I went to visit them on Sunday. He said he could have eaten a whole bunch and more.. as long as he had milk (I don’t know what his obsession is with eating pastries or baked goods with milk. It’s like, he must have milk with it. Strange man haha).

My mom loved that these were’t overly sweet and that they had a subtle cinnamon flavor. I kind of expected them to turn out even more cinnamony, but my parents ensured that the cinnamon flavor was perfect – not overbearing with just the right amount of pow. I guess it’s just me, I am known for dumping a whole bunch of cinnamon into everything I eat though… that’s my obsession I guess. I just love the flavor though. Plus I love the fact that cinnamon helps balance out blood sugar, so I don’t feel as bad eating more sweeter foods. You already know how big of a yogurt obsessed freak I am. Sadly, there is quite a bit of natural occurring sugars in yogurt. Sigh.

For the recipe: Apple Protein Donuts

Source: sensualappealblog.com

I come from a long line of dessert lovers. When I was growing up, my family ate dessert every night after dinner, and my parents still end each day with a bowl of ice cream (though my mother opts for an artificially sweetened one now). It’s a hard habit to break and one I’m afraid I’ve passed down to my daughter. But our typical dessert isn’t ice cream or even Soy Dream but fruit, plain and simple. Of course, if sugary vegan goodies are around, we’ll jump on them like a pack of starving dogs, which is why I try to keep them out of the house entirely.

Keeping the sugary stuff out of the house has been even more important since I resolved at the beginning of the year to cut out sugar and flour and increase the amount of vegetables I eat. If you’ve been following my KISSS plan, you know that I outlawed not just refined sugar but also dried fruit, such as dates. I’m going to say something that may be heresy to most proponents of unprocessed vegan diets, but I believe that dates, date sugar, and date syrup, especially in the large amounts that some recipes use, are only slightly less unhealthy than white sugar. Sure, dates contain vitamins and minerals and some fiber, but they are still a very concentrated form of sugar. If you’re like me and trying to eliminate your sweet tooth, moving from white sugar to date sugar isn’t going to stop your cravings.

For the recipe: Chocolate Chia Pudding

Source: blog.fatfreevegan.com

Two waffle recipes over the course of one month might seem excessive - ok, it is excessive - but this recipe is not like the other. Because this recipe is for one waffle. Just one. And I wanted so badly to call this the single lady waffle then realized it might be offensive to Thom considering this is my go-to waffle recipe and I am not a single lady. I am, however, a single lady at breakfast time because I can't remember the last morning we ate first breakfast together. Which is a shame because I really enjoy first breakfast. A lot more than second breakfast, which is usually a mug of stale coffee and a few scoops of peanut butter drizzled over an apple or banana. Are you following along? So far: first breakfast > second breakfast and, if you're single, this recipe is for you. But if you're not single, this recipe might still be for you. Like, maybe you have a significant other who sleeps in two hours past breakfast time? Yep, this waffle's for you. And if he tries telling you that this recipe technically makes enough waffles for two breakfasts, just remind him who wakes up at 6AM to go to the gym. Who spends an hour running and competing over the only good set of 35 pound dumbbells with a bunch of meatheads. Remind him who walks all the way home in the cold (COMMITMENT) with a bottomless pit for a stomach, while he's still sleeping like a baby. So he wouldn't know the first thing about eating a proper breakfast because babies don't eat that much.

For the recipe: Buckwheat Waffles with Blueberry Maple Syrup

Source: ohladycakes.com

Winner of Food Network’s Cupcake Wars, Chloe Coscarelli shares this decadent recipe from her latest cookbook Chloe’s Vegan Desserts.

Tiramisu pancakes are perfect to make for dessert or a decadent breakfast. They are the most impressive pancakes on the planet: fluffy golden pancakes with a hint of espresso and rum, dotted with melted chocolate chips, and topped with a dollop of cool coconut whipped cream.

For the recipe: Tiramisu Pancakes

Source: chatelaine.com

Holy cow. If you like chocolate, you'll love this. It's like a mega awesome super chocolate party in your mouth which this results in an excellent, ethereal sense of well being. Don't worry if it sounds too intense - I know you can handle it. You're stronger than you think. Like an ant lifting 100 times your body weight. I will change the subject now because I feel this getting weird.

For the recipe: Chewy Chocolate Quinoa Cookies

Source: includingcake.com