Dirt Worm Pudding By: Fed & Fit

Today we have a very special Halloween Guest Post by Cassandra of Fed & Fit! I’m so excited to introduce you guys to Cassy, she’s an amazing Paleo blogger who is incredibly creative, talented and super cute to boot. When I first started Paleo, she was one of the first bloggers I found and I was immediately inspired by two of her recipes: Paleo Thin Mints and Paleo Chicken Pot Pie. I know right. Ridiculous. Her Paleo Dark Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie recipe was also the inspiration for my Paleo Sea Salted Nutella Stuffed Cookies. Now I just want Thin Mints. Look what I go through for you guys. It just has to do with the fact that I’m on Day 23 of the Whole30 and haven’t had chocolate, sugar, or alcohol in more than 3 weeks. Any mention of any of these things and my senses perk up and go into overdrive.

I digress. Anyway seriously Cassy is SO awesome you guys. She’s one of my all time favorite bloggers. She offers step by step instructions and gorgeous pictures for each of her recipes to make it that much easier for you guys. I would do that for you too except for the fact that I’m lazy, don’t have a real camera, and I would die of embarrassment if anyone saw my kitchen mid-cook or the ugly apron I wear.

This recipe is absolutely adorable, delicious, and would be the perfect dish to bring to a Halloween Potluck, like the one I have at work this week, or to make as a fun Halloween treat for the kiddos! So get excited and give Fed & Fit a follow and then make me her Thin Mints.

Hello Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind followers! It’s so nice to meet you. I’m THRILLED that Vanessa asked me to share a recipe here. I think you’re going to love it. Let’s go on a trip down memory lane. Remember a time back before you ever heard of Paleo. Back before gluten-free, GMO, and high fructose corn syrup. Let’s go all the way back to childhood.

What was your favorite Halloween costume? Better yet, what was your favorite Halloween dessert? My favorite costume was a silver lame Hershey’s Kiss crafted by my Mom when I was 3. My favorite dessert, hands down, was dirt worm pudding.

My love for dirt worm pudding is hard to match. Pizza comes close. Since “going Paleo” about 3 years ago, I thought pizza and sugary pudding snacks were a thing of my past. Thankfully, I don’t let go that easily. Healthier, gluten-free, all-natural clean versions of our favorite foods are popping up everywhere. It’s time that sour wiggly worms joined the party.

If you missed out on dirt worm pudding as a kid, I’ll fill you in. Kid-friendly clear cups are filled with chocolate pudding {the mud}, sprinkled with crushed Oreos {the dirt}, and riddled with sour gummy worms. It’s delicious. My Paleo-friendly version of the creepy crawly Halloween favorite is LOADED with fresh fruits,beef gelatin{really good for you}, enriching coconut milk, and antioxidant-rich unsweetened cocoa powder. Better yet? It’s delicious. Really delicious. Like, you won’t believe it’s healthy, delicious.

I hope you have a wonderful, safe, happy, tasty, tricky, and treaty Halloween. Now how do we make this magical dessert? It’s easy. I’ll show you!

We’re going to start with the worms, since they take the longest to set. Pick your favorite fruits. I chose sour apple, sour grape, strawberry, and clementine. You can do 4 flavors, 1 flavor, or 12 flavors …whatever makes you happiest! Note that you’ll only need one batch {one flavor} to make enough gummy worms for the pudding cups in this recipe. The leftovers worms are a bonus.

The other major players in these sour gummy worms {water, lemons, and limes aside} are the beef gelatin and maple syrup. This gelatin is a MUST. You can find ithere

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The maple syrup is optional, but I think it really helps the worms resemble their packaged candy cousins.

You’re going to need quite a few lemons and/or limes. You’ll need at least 1/2 cup of juice for each batch of worms. If you want a slightly tart worm, I recommend using ¼ cup lemon/lime juice and ¼ cup water. If you miss warheads and dream about sour patch kids, A. we’re soul mates and B. use 1/2 cup lemon/lime juice.

For one batch of worms, I recommend you use 1/2 a cup of fresh fruit. This is the making of my sour apple gummies.

For the sour apple, I added in about 1 tablespoon of lime zest.

Then 2 tablespoons of maple syrup. Again, you can adjust the amount of maple syrup according to your taste.

Add 1/2 cup of your lemon/water mixture.

Let’s blend it up! I use my NutriBullet for all small batches. It’s just so darn easy to clean!

Keep it running until it’s nice and smooth.

Does your house smell like Jamba Juice? Mine did. If you’re planning on making two-colored gummy worms, I recommend you blend all your flavors before you add the gelatin. This will ensure that they come together easier.

Add 2 heaping tablespoons of the gelatin to each batch.

You can stir to combine or blend. I prefer blending. That way I’m not worried about globs of unmixed gelatin hanging out in my worms.

Line a baking sheet, pan, or dish with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Multi-colored worms are really easy if you want to give those a try! Let the mixture gel for a minute or two {making it less runny}, tilt your pan to one side and pour one flavor in. Next, lay the pan flat and pour the other flavor on the other side. Smooth the mixture out with the back of a spoon and let it set in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

When the two hours are up, it should have the consistency of a giant gummy. Isn’t that so neat?! Resist biting the giant gummy. …I take that back. You want a bite? Take a bite! It’s Halloween and we’re kids again!
Pull the gummy out of the pan by the plastic wrap handles and lay it down on a cutting board or parchment paper.

Using a small, sharp knife cut squiggly lines to make your worms. Store in the refrigerator again until you’re ready to plate.

Now let’s make some Paleo pudding cups! These are the major players: bananas, maple syrup, coconut milk, unsweetened cocoa powder, and vanilla. Gelatin makes another appearance here too.

I recommend you use ripe bananas for this pudding. They’re easier to work with and have a better flavor. You’ll need 2 packed cups of bananas – 5 bananas makes about 2 cups.

Put your bananas in the blender!

Add 2, 14-oz cans of full-fat coconut milk.

Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Then 6 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and 4 tablespoons of gelatin.

Blend it up!

Pour it into 8 different cups, leaving about 1” of room at the top. Place them in the refrigerator for at least one hour to chill and set.

Last, but not least, we’re going to make the cookie dirt. Preheat your oven to 350 F then measure out 2 cups of almond flour.

You’ll need 4-oz of fat for this crumble. I opted for Kerrygold’s grass-fed butter. Extra virgin coconut oil will work too.

Add it to the flour.

Add in 1/3 cup of unsweetened cocoa.

Using a potato masher or fork, mash it all together so that the butter is evenly combined.

Add in 1/3 cup of maple syrup and mix again.

On a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spread the mixture out.

Next, sprinkle the dough with kosher, Himalayan pink, or sea salt. This will make for a delicious, almost savory dirt to offset the sweet pudding and sour worms.

Bake it at 350 F for 10 minutes, or until fragrant. Don’t let it burn. Pull it out of the oven and let it cool slightly. Break up the giant cookie with a fork then place back in the oven for another 3-5 minutes.

Break it up with the fork again then you’re done with the dirt!

Ready to assemble?

I know you’re ready to dive into these pudding cups but you must be patient. It’s going to get even better.

First, put 3-4 worms in each cup. Spoon in a generous sprinkle of the dirt then finish with a few more worms and …TA-DA! You’re done!

Aren’t they cute? Here’s the summarized recipe:

Paleo Dirt Worm Pudding
*Makes 8 Servings
Time: 30 minutes active, 2 hours setting

Strawberry Gummy Worms
Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh strawberries
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons gelatin

Sour Grape Gummy Worms
Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh black grapes
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons gelatin

Sour Apple Gummy Worms
Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh green apple
1 tablespoon lime zest
1/2 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons gelatin

Clementine Gummy Worms
Ingredients:
1/4 cup skinned clementines
1/2 cup clementine juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon clementine zest
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons gelatin

Paleo Pudding Cups
Ingredients:
2 cups ripe banana, packed {from about 5 bananas}
2, 14-oz cans full-fat coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
4 tablespoons gelatin

Paleo Chocolate Cookie “Dirt”
Ingredients:
2 cups almond flour
4 ounces grass-fed butter {coconut oil works too}
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Gummy Worms
Directions:
1. Blend all the ingredients together and then pour into a plastic wrap or parchment paper-lined baking sheet, dish, or pan.

2. Let it set in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours or until firm.

3. With a small, sharp knife, cut the gummies into worms with wavy lines. Store in the refrigerator.

Paleo Pudding Cups
Directions:
1. Blend all ingredients together and then pour into 8 individual cups.

2. Let them cool and set in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours or until pudding/moose-like.

Paleo Chocolate Cookie “Dirt”
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients then stir in maple syrup.

3. Spread the batter out on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt and bake at 350 F for 10 minutes, or until fragrant. Be careful that it doesn’t burn.

4. Let it cool then break up the cookie with a fork. Bake for an additional 3-5 minutes, let cool, then break up into pieces again.

Dirt Worm Pudding Cups
Directions:
1. Place 3-4 worms in each cup, top with dirt, and finish with more worms. Enjoy!

SO did you guys die of cute overload and saliva depletion from drooling or what?! I told you Cassy was great! Follow Fed & Fit on the interwebs, you won’t regret it!

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