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We’ve got a giveaway! See entry rules below.
Have you ever wished that you could visit your past self? What would you tell that person as “Future Me”? Recently I stumbled across a blog post I wrote almost 2 years ago. It was for a recipe with maple syrup, but the words were about what was on my mind at that moment. Reading these lines today makes me feel a tingle, like looking into a window in the past (a quote from this post):
“Alex and I are in a long season of squirm-inducing uncertainty, waiting to be matched with a baby who will be our forever child. There’s no roadmap; we could get the call at literally any time. And it’s the weirdest thing, to be waiting for a baby to fall out of the sky… We wait with a boxed crib in an empty room, and try to distract ourselves from wondering, who this little one will be? Is it true, that a little human will someday inhabit that room, whose piercing cries will remind us of his or her existence in the wee hours of the night? That he or she will have a name, a spirit, a humanity that will be etched indelibly on our hearts?”
Double shiver! How I wish I could have called out as Future Me to assure Past Me that everything would be okay. Yes, Alex and I would go through the incredible heartache of three failed adoptions. But over here as Future Me, I know that it was all worth it. All the pain and waiting and uncertainty was worth it the day we got to meet our baby boy. So YES—there is a human living in that nursery, sometimes with piercing cries in the wee hours of the night. And YES—he has a name and is overflowing with spirit. He’s Larson Ames, and he’s the spunkiest, happiest, busiest, sweetest 9-month-old boy. And now we no longer live our lives holding our breath, at least for the moment. We’re constantly chasing after our little tornado—and wondering how there ever was a world where Larson Ames didn’t exist.
And we’re still making recipes: lots of them! Having a babe around hasn’t slowed us down in the least, and we love creating recipes that work for Larson, too. This blondies recipe is a vegan holiday treat that works for various diets. And it’s our very first truly crowd-sourced recipe! After offering 4 recipe choices in a poll over on Instagram, maple blondies was the winner. In our recipe testing, we found brown sugar is essential to the blondie flavor and texture, so we’ve kept that instead of replacing with maple syrup or another natural sweetener. The traditional egg is replaced with apple sauce, and the butter with coconut oil. Chopped macadamia nuts give the interior some texture, and to bring in the maple flair, the blondies are topped with a drizzle of maple cream.
The maple cream we used is from Roxbury Mountain Maple, a New York-based family business. It’s pure maple syrup that’s boiled until it reduces into a cream. Roxbury is starting to become known for the stuff, and we find the organic creamy spread is very, very good. In this recipe, we’ve used the Dark and Strong maple cream. It’s worth purchasing a jar, for this recipe or just for spreading on toast or dipping fruit. And, it’s perfect for holiday gifts and stocking stuffers! In honor of the holidays, Roxbury is offering a fun giveaway: see below for details. (PS Hear Ben from Roxbury on our podcast a few months ago.)
Giveaway Rules: We’re giving away 1 pint of pure, Grade A dark maple syrup, 1 12-ounce container of maple cream, and 1 large shaker of maple sugar. Up to 2 entries per person, U.S and Canada residents only! Leave a comment on this post relating to any of the themes in the post. For a second entry, follow us on Instagram and leave a comment on the giveaway post. Commenting will close on Wednesday, November 29, 2017 at 6:00 pm, EST. Make sure you provide your email address in the comment form (we promise to keep it confidential!).
About the company: Roxbury Mountain Maple is a family business based in the Catskills of New York that produces all-natural, organic maple syrup and maple cream. Supporting Roxbury Mountain Maple promotes family farms, local community, sustainable farming, forest preservation, and your health. For more about the company, see the Roxbury Mountain Maple website.
Looking for vegan desserts?
More and more readers are asking for vegan desserts! Here are a few of our favorite vegan desserts:
Did you make this recipe?
If you make these maple macadamia vegan blondies, we’d love to hear how they turned out. Leave a comment below or share a picture on Instagram and mention @acouplecooks and @roxburymountainmaple.
- 6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1 cup organic light brown brown sugar
- ½ cup applesauce
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup chopped macadamia nuts
- 2 to 3 tablespoons Roxbury Mountain Maple organic maple cream
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Melt the coconut oil. In a large bowl, mix the warm coconut oil and peanut butter, then stir in the sugar until it melts. Add the applesauce, vanilla and salt (if the coconut oil seizes up and becomes chunky, you can place the bowl in the oven for a moment to remelt it if it is oven safe, or microwave for a few seconds until it is smooth again). Brush a 9 x 9 pan with the remaining coconut oil.
- Add the baking powder and flour and mix it all together until a sticky dough forms. Stir in the macadamia nuts.
- Place the dough in the pan and spread evenly with a spatula (the dough will be very dense). Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.
- In a glass measuring cup, gently heat maple cream in the microwave for about 10 seconds or so until melted, then drizzle it onto the top of the blondies. Refrigerate for a few minutes until hardened, then cut into pieces and serve.
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