Easy Mediterranean Diet Desserts for special occasions!
The Mediterranean Diet is all about moderation, which means dessert is (thankfully) still on the table!
It is not uncommon for Mediterranean diet desserts to simply be a piece of fresh fruit, it’s not to say cakes and pastries are not eaten; rather, they are saved for special celebrations and gatherings.
Note: If you follow our Mediterranean meal plans on the LK FITNESS app and you have one of these, make sure to cut on other calories during the day, if your aim is to lose weight.
1) Greek Yogurt Bark with Berries
This is a simple dessert the whole family will love! It’s made with frozen full-fat Greek yogurt that has been lightly sweetened with maple syrup and mixed with fresh berries and mini chocolate chips. It can be kept in your freezer for up to 3 months for a grab-and-go healthy dessert.
Serving size:
Serves bite sizes
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups plain Greek yogurt full fat
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup fresh strawberries thinly sliced
- ¼ cup mini chocolate chips
Ingredients
- Line a small, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl stir the yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla. Blend until all incorporated.
- Spread the yogurt mixture evenly on the prepared baking sheet and place the blueberries and strawberries around the sheet.
- Sprinkle with chocolate chips.
- Place in the freezer for at least 3 hours. Cut or break into pieces and enjoy!
- To cut -let the bark defrost a little bit – makes it easier.
- Tip: Store bark in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
2) Double Chocolate Strawberry Coconut Brownies
We love these strawberry chocolate coconut brownies for a special treat – Valentine’s Day, a birthday, or any special occasion!
Serving size:
Serves 16 Squares
Ingredients
Brownie
- ½ cup (120g) almond butter
- ¾ cup (150g) sugar
- 1 ⅓ cups (228g) semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Topping
- 1 cup (170g) semi sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
- 10 strawberries hulled and quartered
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F), line a 23 x 23cm pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray and set aside.
Brownie
- Add chocolate chips to a large glass bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove stir. Microwave for an additional 1 minute.
- Stir in almond butter, cocoa powder and sugar until smooth.
- Stir in vanilla extract, salt and eggs until completely blended.
- Pour into prepared pan and smooth batter until evenly distributed
- Bake for 22-25 minutes or until brownies are set in the center, taking care not to over bake.
- Remove from the oven and set aside.
Topping
- In a medium glass bowl, add chocolate chips and coconut oil. Microwave for 1 minutes , stir and microwave for an additional minute. Remove and stir until smooth.
- Pour over brownie and use back of spoon to smooth to the edges
- Sprinkle strawberries evenly over the top, followed by coconut.
- Set brownies in freezer to set chocolate for 15 minutes or in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Cut into squares and enjoy!
- Tip: Store in the refrigerator covered for up to one week.
3) Fruit Crostata
This peach and blueberry crostata is one of our all-time favorite summer desserts from Ina Garten. This is such a fantastic way to use up any extra blueberries or peaches you have on-hand during the summer.
Serving size:
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated or superfine sugar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ pound 2 sticks cold unsalted butter, diced
- 6 tablespoons 3 ounces ice water
For the Filling (makes 1 crostata)
- 450g firm ripe peaches peeled
- 225g firm ripe black plums unpeeled
- 225g pint fresh blueberries
- 1 tablespoon plus ¼ cup all-purpose flour divided
- 1 tablespoon plus ¼ cup granulated sugar divided
- ¼ teaspoon grated orange zest
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons ½ stick cold unsalted butter, diced
Instructions
- For the pastry: Place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse a few times to combine.
- Add the butter and toss quickly (and carefully!) with your fingers to coat each cube of butter with the flour.
- Pulse 12 to 15 times, or until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water all at once through the feed tube. Keep hitting the pulse button to combine, but stop the machine just before the dough comes together.
- Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board, roll it into a ball, cut in half, and form into 2 flat disks.
- Wrap the disks in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. If you only need 1 disk of dough The other disk of dough can be frozen.
- Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll the pastry into an 28 cm circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer it to the baking sheet.
- For the filling: Cut the peaches and plums in wedges and place them in a bowl with the blueberries. Toss them with 1 tablespoon of the flour, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, the orange zest, and the orange juice. Place the mixed fruit on the dough circle, leaving a 3.8cm border.
- Combine the ¼ cup flour, the ¼ cup sugar, and the salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade.
- Add the butter and pulse until the mixture is crumbly.
- Pour into a bowl and rub it with your fingers until it starts to hold together.
- Sprinkle evenly over the fruit.
- Gently fold the border of the pastry over the fruit, pleating it to make an edge.
- Bake the crostata for 20 to 25 minutes, until the crust is golden and the fruit is tender.
- Let the crostata cool for 5 minutes, then use 2 large spatulas to transfer it to a wire rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Source: Recipe from FitFoodieFinds.com
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