Pizza, Pizza, Pizza, Oh Yeah and Dessert!

Everyone loves pizza these days. I feel like every time I’m on social media, I see all these memes about people who love to eat pizza. So this week I decided to write about pizza because I personally love it so much. Since going Gluten Free, finding good pizza has been a huge struggle.  Not all pizzerias carry Gluten Free pizza or if they do the pizza is not good. Gluten Free pizza can taste like cardboard or a soggy cracker and I’m not joking. I even wrote a post about a Gluten Free pizza place a few years ago and I thought that pizza was delicious but I’ve found an even better pizza place. Last year while my parents were visiting me in Philly, my mom was looking online for a good Gluten Free restaurant and she found the Tomato Bistro in Manayunk. At first we ate upstairs for the longest time because it was nicer and had a few more options than the Couch Tomato Café downstairs, like Gluten Free sliders. One Saturday we were going to dine upstairs but they had a party going on so we ate downstairs instead and our taste buds exploded with great delight. The pizza was the best tasting pizza I have ever tasted. It had the right amount of sauce and cheese and the crust was nice and crispy (made fresh from a secret recipe), just how I like it. Not only do they have Gluten Free pizza but they have gluten free soups and salads with Gluten free dressings too. Every time my parents visit we get pizza there. My dad is not Gluten Free but he still likes the pizza from this place! I give this restaurant a 5 out of 5 stars because the pizza is fabulous! They also have a rewards program. I have gone so much, my next pizza is free! 

Some people have been asking for low carb desserts, so here is one I really like. I call them Vegan Chocolate Crunch Bars with peanut butter drizzle! They are low carb, vegan, soy free, no bake and even Gluten Free. These are probably one of my favorite chocolate desserts because they are tasty and easy to make!

Ingredients

• ½ cup of coconut oil
• ½ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 5 tablespoons liquid sweetener (maple syrup, agave, honey, etc.) or to taste
• pinch of fine grain sea salt
• 1-teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup of crisp cereal (more cups if you want them to have less chocolate on them)

Peanut Butter Drizzle

• 2 tablespoons of all natural peanut butter (or any nut/seed
  
  butter of choice)
• 1.5-2 tablespoons of coconut oil, as needed to thin out
• 1 teaspoon of liquid sweetener
  

Directions

1. For the crunch bar: line a 9X5 inch loaf pan with two pieces of parchment paper, going each way.
2. In a pot over low heat, gently melt the coconut oil and then whisk in the rest of the crunch bar ingredients (except the rice crisp) to taste.
3.  Once mixture is smooth remove from heat and sir in the rice crisp cereal.
4. Pour mixture into prepared pan, smooth out and then freeze for 10-15 minutes, or until the chocolate is solid.
5. For the Peanut Butter Drizzle
6. 1Melt coconut oil and then whisk in the peanut butter and liquid sweetener
7. Adjust to taste if desired and scoop into a plastic bag and drizzle the PB mixture on the bars. (you could also drizzle with a spoon).
8. Return bars to freezer until PB drizzle is solid, about 5 minutes.
   
   
9. Serve right from the freezer. Bars will melt slightly at room temperature so do not keep out too long.
10. Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer.

These crunch bars are a great healthy dessert, but be careful, if you are like me don’t eat the whole batch!! They are that good! So make these bars for a mid afternoon snack or dessert after dinner and enjoy! Please continue to follow my Gluten Free Path!