Allergen Cooking · Dessert · Gluten-Free · Plant Based Diet

No Bake Sunflower Pumpkin Tartlets

I had a moment at the gym, on Tuesday, where I felt like one of “those” moms. When I drop the boys off at the gym daycare, if I don’t recognize the workers, I tell them about Alistaire’s allergies. Basically I tell them if he looks off, is red, hives or anything to come get me immediately. I stress that he HAS to have an Epi-Pen at minimum, Benadryl. Normally the ladies are great – and understanding. Tuesday? I swear the lady wasn’t even listening and I could feel her internal eye rolling. Sigh. And that is so frustrating, because then I get really down on them and repeat it. Then I know I am “that” mom. I am sure when I went out to work out, they snickered at my having “white woman” imaginary issues. But…considering he has had a mild reaction there before, I take it seriously – as I should.

And it leaves me feeling slightly deflated over Halloween, knowing he can’t go trick or treating with Walker. He isn’t old enough to know to not touch the candy. Maybe next year? I don’t know. I’ll take Walker out this evening and hope Alistaire doesn’t feel too down 🙁

B

Which leads to another gripe…food companies hiding behind “proprietary” trade secrets. I recently had a coupon show u- for a free 4 pack of Del Monte fruit cups. When I opened the first cup, all I could smell was almonds, so I didn’t let Alistaire near it. After contacting the company this is what I got back:

“October 29, 2013

Dear Sarah,

Thanks for visiting our Del Monte website and for your email.

While our recipes are proprietary we can’t say exactly what the natural flavors are; however, we can assure you there are no peanuts or tree nuts in the plant or in the product. There is also no almond extract in this product. Also, any concerns regarding cross-contamination from peanut ingredients are eliminated.”

OK, so I asked around “what has an almond scent/flavor that is naturally sourced?” Apricot pits. Ya know….how about you just fess up? I mean, jeez, the cherries are red cause they are soaked in carmine 😛 Why is it companies have to fess up on coloring (carmine ain’t vegan of course!) but not where flavors come from? Anyhow, Del Monte isn’t on my high list currently of “great companies to work with when you have allergies“.

What it does drive home is two things: Deal only with food companies who are open when asked questions and keep making him food from scratch! And that leads to baby tartlets just for him. Something he can eat – and enjoy. Before the allergies and his eating, I so loved raw and semi-raw desserts made with nut crusts. Not anymore…been a long time since we had any. But guess what? Sunflower seeds work perfectly here. Enjoy! Share! And don’t worry for at least a few minutes. and have a happy and safe Halloween tonight 🙂

tarts1

No Bake Sunflower Pumpkin Tartlets

Crust –

  • 1 cup toasted sunflower seeds (nut/peanut free)
  • ¼ Unsweetened Flaked Coconut
  • 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
  • 1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
  • ¼ tsp fine sea salt

Filling –

  • 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
  • ¾ cup Medjool dates, pitted and halved
  • ¼ cup Whole Grain Ricemilk, Unsweetened
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp ground ginger
  • Pinch ground cloves
  • ¼ cup coconut oil, melted

Directions:

Line 8 cups of a 12 cup muffin tin with premium cupcake liners (no-stick foil inside by Wilton or Reynold’s), set aside.

Add sunflower seeds and coconut to a mini food chopper, process until finely ground, shaking as needed. Add in maple syrup, coconut oil and salt, pulse a few times to blend. Divide equally into liners. Press down firmly with kunckles to form a dense crust. Refrigerate while you prepare filling.

Add pumpkin through cloves to a high-speed blender (such as a Vitamix), process until smooth, tamping as needed. Pour in oil, run on high until smooth and creamy. Divide between cups, smoothing tops into a swirl.

Refrigerate overnight before serving. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.

Makes 8 tartlets.

2 thoughts on “No Bake Sunflower Pumpkin Tartlets

  1. Wow. Really scary stuff. People just don’t understand. And sometimes they don’t care enough to try understanding. I was “that” mom today too – Knox started a brand new daycare today. Had to go over EVERYTHING involved in his care. Talk about anxiety. At least they paid attention to me though. Trick or treating is sticky for us too (although not nearly to same degree as you) because Knox can’t have gluten (he’s “lucky” in that it’s celiac and not a life threatening allergy). He can’t eat three quarters of what he got. And then there is the whole he-doesn’t-really-eat-food thing. For me, Halloween is now about community and fun. Dressing our kid up in a cute fuzzy costume and having fun with friends watching our toddlers bumble around on neighbor’s doorsteps. I don’t know what it will bring in the future, how we may have to evolve our idea of Halloween to keep up with his needs and emotional development.

    1. Exactly! I think this was the year for Walker – he got it 🙂 And had oodles of fun just being with mama alone. So it was good – and Alistaire hung out with Daddy.

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