Gluten Free and Dairy Free Desserts: Salted Caramel Cookie Trifle

Want to indulge this holiday season with some guilt-free decadence? Looking for gluten free and dairy free desserts that check all the boxes for healthier alternatives? A little something to impress your guests?

Then dive into this luscious Salted Caramel Trifle. Not all gluten-free desserts are easy on the stomach, but you will find your gut rejoicing in the lack of artificial ingredients, and the exquisite taste. Creamy layers meet velvety caramel, with a bit of crunch from toasted pecans and our salted caramel pecan cookies. This wonderful holiday treat is a symphony of flavors and textures that will impress your friends and loved ones.

Now then, let's talk health benefits. Your average gluten-free Thanksgiving or Christmas desserts will feature lots of refined sugar and other ingredients that you probably should avoid. And during the holidays especially, it can be easy to get a sugar overload, which will cause various negative effects to your body. For example, too much refined sugar causes inflammation. And not just momentary, or acute!

Consuming too much sugar causes your blood sugar to spike, making your body produce more insulin, and this can trigger inflammatory pathways in the body. Excessive sugar intake is linked to chronic inflammation, a state where your body is constantly inflamed. Plus you are looking at other health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and even certain cancers. Luckily there are trusted gluten-free brands out there like Plantiful Kitchen who make products that use only wholesome, natural ingredients

And speaking of products that are perfect for gluten-free holiday recipes, did you know our salted caramel pecan cookies featured here are not just refined sugar free, but are made with all-natural, plant-based ingredients? These cookies are not just delicious, they are a testament that healthier alternatives can be just as amazing. They are definitely the main star of this recipe, and a great way to share the joy of the season with your family.

Ingredients:

• 4 salted caramel pecan cookies

• 1 cup cashews (soaked in water for 8 hours)

• 1 small can (160 ml) coconut cream

• 5 tbsp maple syrup

• Pinch of salt

• 5 tsp vanilla extract

• Toasted pecans

Caramel Sauce:

• ¾ cups coconut sugar

• 1 cup coconut cream (hard part only)

• ¼ tsp vanilla

• ⅛ tsp salt

• ¼ tbsp tapioca starch

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Once up to temp, toast your pecans for 10 minutes. Set aside for topping.

2. Make the caramel sauce. Melt down the coconut sugar with a splash of water until boiling and starting to caramelize. Add the coconut cream, vanilla, and salt. Bring the mixture back to a boil, then add the tapioca starch. Simmer 5-10 minutes until sauce thickens. Set aside to cool.

3. Make the cheesecake filling. In a high speed blender, blend the soaked cashews, coconut cream, maple syrup, salt, and vanilla until smooth and creamy.

4. Assemble the trifle. Split between two 8oz whiskey glasses (you can use smaller glasses for individual portions). Use a ring cutter to cut the salted caramel cookies to fit in the glass. If you don’t have a ring cutter, you can crumble the cookies into the bottom of the glass.

5. Top with a thin layer of the caramel sauce (about 1- 1.5 tbsp). Pour some cheesecake filling over the top until filling half the glass, and sprinkle with pecans. Fill up the rest of the glass by repeating this process: salted caramel cookie, caramel sauce, then cheesecake filling. Top with cookie crumbles and pecans.

6. Refrigerate for 8 hours. Serve and enjoy!

PS: this makes more caramel sauce than needed. Store any leftovers in your fridge for up to 4 weeks and use as needed