Indulgences

One of the joys of being a teacher is enjoying a well deserved vacation.  I feel so lucky to have the entire week of Thanksgiving off and I decided after mailing off my report cards that I was really going to indulge during my fall break.  Many of us plan on indulging on Thanksgiving and that usually refers to eating heaps of delicious food.  While enjoying food unique to this season certainly is part of my plan for the week, I have other indulgences in mind that I hope will bring balance.  I plan to indulge in a long run on a weekday, when I would usually be too busy to run more than five miles. I will delight in being able to run when it is light out, instead of having to sneak in my run during the predawn hours before work.  I am aiming to take a yoga class during the hours I would normally be working at least once this week.  I'm going to treat myself to some extra sleep each morning. Instead of making my usual gluten-free oat bran cereal, I'm treating myself to these delicious and mostly nutritious pumpkin bars for breakfast this week.

Bars:

2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree 
1/4 cup honey, warmed

½ cup brown sugar
1/2 cup coconut oil, warmed
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup almond flour

1/3 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1 t cinnamon, ¾ t ginger, ½ tsp allspice, ¼ tsp ground cloves, a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

Frosting:
1/2 cup coconut oil, softened
4 tsp  maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract

 Preheat the oven to 350-degrees. Combine the eggs, pumpkin puree, honey, sugar,  coconut oil, and vanilla and mix using a  hand mixer).

In a separate bowl, stir together the almond flour, coconut flour, corn starch, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and baking powder.  Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture a little at a time until combined.

Pour the mixture into a square 8×8″ pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the center is set. Remove and cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, beat the coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla extract together until light & fluffy. Refrigerate until ready to use and soften before spreading on the bars.

I am thankful for having this time off to indulge myself and the people I love.