
Have you ventured into the realm of raw food yet? It might sound like a scary place, but if you take a closer look, you’ll find lasagna made out of zucchini, “cheese” made out of nuts and cold soup galore. It can be a delicious adventure, especially on the sweeter side of things. Raw desserts are a completely guilt-free treat. Not only are most of them gluten- and dairy-free, but they’re packed with fresh ingredients. So if you’re feeling inspired by all that beautiful produce that’s popping up at your local farmers market, check out these 29 amazing recipes and prepare to be blown away.
1. Buster Bar Dessert: With ingredients like avocado, peanut butter and banana, this creamy dessert is sure to wow even the most cynical. (via Damy Health)
2. Mango Cheesecake With Hazelnut Crust and Crumble: This cheesecake calls for frozen mangos so you can make it any time of the year. The hazelnut crust and crumble adds some extra flavor and texture to the coconut and mango filling. (via Flip Flops and Avocados)
3. Salted Chocolate Pecan Pie Brownies: Aside from pre-soaking the dates, the prep time for these divine bars is only 10 minutes. With three decadent layers of salted chocolate, sweet pecan filling and rich chocolate brownie, it’s pure indulgence. (via Damy Health)
4. Berry Tarts: The secret ingredient for that pretty pink color? A pinch of beet powder! Thanks to fresh berries and a coconut pistachio crust, you have a very tasty tart on your hands. (via Olives For Dinner)
5. Chocolate Banana Pie With Coconut Whipped Cream: The raw version of whipped cream usually involves coconut milk, because it’s thick and creamy. Don’t think of it as a downgrade from “real” whipped cream. Coconut adds some amazing depth to your desserts, especially chocolate banana pie. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
6. Single Serving Blueberry Pies: Aside from being a helpful portion-controlled size, little pies are just downright adorable as elegant party desserts or special treats for an after school snack. (via Damy Health)
7. Raspberry Cashew Cake With Cherry Topping: Open wide for a heavenly “cheesecake” made with cashews and a gorgeous chocolate cherry topping. (via Flip Flops and Avocados)
8. Orange Creamsicle Tarts: Light and fresh, Creamsicle tarts are a lovely spring dessert option when made with Greek yogurt and topped with a dollop of coconut whipped cream. (via Damy Health)
9. Double Layer Chocolate Fudge With Cocoa Nibs: This rich fudge is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth with a layer of chocolate ganache and cocoa nibs for extra crunch. (via Gourmande in the Kitchen)
10. Lime Mousse Pie: Containing no artificial sweeteners, colors or chemicals, this all natural pie gets its gorgeous color and smooth texture from creamy avocados. (via Damy Health)
11. Banana Coconut Cashew Cake: Nutty, moist and delicious — this pie will have you hooked with your first bite. (via Flip Flops And Avocados)
12. Lemon Bars With Coconut: Lemon and coconut are a terrific flavor combo. The coconut works as a great natural sweetener for these tasty bars. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
13. Chocolate Cream Caramel Bars: These dangerously addictive little treats are layered with an almond crust, raw caramel and creamy chocolate. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
14. Fig, Cherry, Lavender and Honey Cake: Honey cake says spring like no other dessert. With bits of lavender flowers throughout, not only is it beautiful but healthy. Figs help with blood pressure, and cherries improve sleep quality. (via Ascension Kitchen)
15. Minty Chocolate Cream Bars: The base is an oat date crust, the middle is creamy chocolate and the top is an avocado-mint mixture that makes for one exquisite dessert. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
16. Chocolate Vanilla Sandwich Cookies: It’s fun to recreate familiar treats into raw versions. Who doesn’t get excited about a healthy Oreo or Snickers treat? (via Ascension Kitchen)
17. Chocolate Caramel Tart With Orange and Sea Salt: This dark chocolate tart has a sneaky layer of caramel inside and is topped off with fresh, tangy orange zest. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
18. Strawberry Cheesecake: For a fun mini treat that’s easy to share, try making cheesecake in a muffin tin. (via Lexie’s Kitchen)
19. Chocolate “Creme Brulee” Pudding: You know that classic Jell-O chocolate pudding that we all loved as kids? Well, here is an option that tastes just as good, is ridiculously easy to make and is uber good for you! (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
20. Almond Joy Balls: Just keep repeating, “These are healthy, these are healthy, these are… ” as you stuff mock Almond Joy truffles down your gullet. (via Top with Cinnamon)
21. Raw Snickers Candy Bars: Hello, indulgence! These gooey, chocolatey candy bars will leave you feeling pleased. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
22. Vegan Tiramisu With Vanilla Cream and Coffee Ladyfingers: How is it possible that simple raw ingredients like nuts and fruits can produce a dessert this beautiful and delicious? (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
23. Nanaimo Bar: In case you don’t know, a nanaimo bar has three layers: a chocolate nut crust, a minty custard middle and a fudgy chocolate top. This bar has it all except for that pesky white flour, white sugar and white pudding. (via Wholehearted Eats)
24. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars With Hot Fudge: Finally an amazing raw cookie dough that you can let your kids eat (okay, we know you want it too). Eat it out of the bowl or press it into bars, put it in the freezer and eat it later covered in warm vegan fudge sauce. (via Averie Cooks)
25. Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream Cake: As delicious as it is, dairy is one of the culprits that causes bad skin. So imagine how your face will be glowing when you start enjoying decadent chocolate ice cream cake made only with coconut and cashews. (via Ascension Kitchen)
26. Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting: This cake is moist and spicy and full of all the nutrients you lose when you bake a normal carrot cake. (via Will Bake For Books)
27. Healthy Brownie Bites: Supremely rich and fudgy, you’ll never miss cake pops again after giving this recipe a try. They’re made with cashews, which are softer and creamier than other nuts. Basically, they’re Mother Nature’s butter. (via Averie Cooks)
28. Blueberry Strawberry Banana Ice Cream Cake: Full of fruity spring flavors, this cake is creamy, sweet, fresh, tart and colorful all at once. (via This Rawsome Vegan Life)
29. Chocolate Fudge Fridge Cake: This is a truly death-by-chocolate cake that whips up in a matter of minutes, then sets in the fridge and is made even more delicious with raspberries and almonds. (via Gourmande In The Kitchen)
Do any of these recipes inspire you to get your raw on? Let us know in the comments below!
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures