Pull Apart Christmas Tree

A keto twist on a pull apart sharing platter, but with a sweet and nutty cinnamon-gingerbread filling, shaped into a Christmas tree to celebrate the festivities. This dough is soft and delicate and it's sprinkled with a keto brown sugar alternative that makes the ‘branches’ seem nearly like decadent churros. Delicious dipped into a thick keto hot chocolate and shared at a celebration event for a healthy treat for the whole family. 

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 40 ml warm water
• 1 tsp psyllium husk
• 1 tsp milled flaxseed
• 105 g almond flour
• 25 g coconut flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ⅛ tsp salt
• ½ tbsp erythritol
• 1 large egg

For the filling:

• 25g dairy free butter, melted
• ½ tbsp cinnamon powder
• 2 tbsp keto brown sugar
• 20g keto hana gingerbread granola, finely chopped

Egg wash:

• 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tsp water
• For the topping:
• 5 g dairy free butter, melted
• 10g keto brown sugar

Optional to serve:

• 35g sugar free, dairy free dark chocolate
• 150ml plant based milk
  

Recipe

1. Preheat the oven to 160C (fan) or 180C. In a small bowl, combine the warm water with the psyllium husk and milled flaxseed. Stir well and set aside to thicken for 5-10 minutes whilst weighing out ingredients. 
   
   
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients for the dough and combine well with a balloon whisk. Crack in the egg and psyllium-flaxseed mixture and mix together with a silicone spatula to form a dough. Divide the dough into 2 larger balls 105-110g and one smaller ball ~25g. 
   
   
3. Cut a large sheet of parchment paper and roll out each ball of pastry ~3mm thick using a rolling pin between the parchment paper. Keep shaping it into a rough triangle with your hands between rolling. Transfer the first triangle to a baking tray lined with more parchment paper. Now repeat this process for the other triangle, ensuring the shape is as similar as possible. 
   
   
4. Roll out the small ball of dough between parchment paper, also 3mm thick and use a star shaped cookie cutter to cut out 2 stars. You can cut more stars with any offcuts to avoid food waste. 
   
   
5. Finely chop the Keto Hana Granola and mix with the keto brown sugar alternative and cinnamon powder. 
   
   
6. Melt 30g butter in a microwave at 5 second intervals or on the stove in a small saucepan over a low heat until just melted. Brush a layer of melted butter over the triangle that’s on the baking tray and then sprinkle evenly with almost all of the cinnamon-sugar-granola mixture. 
   
   
7. Transfer the other triangle on top of the filling and use a knife to cut a tree shape, with a trunk. Aim to cut off as little as possible, only cutting where any edges overlap so as to minimise waste. 
   
   
8. Gently transfer the star to the top of the tree, brush with melted butter (there will be some butter remaining for after it’s baked) and then sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon-sugar-granola mixture. Top with another star. 
   
   
9. Brush the christmas tree with egg wash and bake for ~20-25 minutes until lightly golden. 
   
   
10. Remove from the oven and immediately brush with the remaining melted butter and sprinkle generously with more keto brown sugar alternative. 
    
    
11. Devour immediately - it’s delicious when enjoyed warm. We love to serve this with a chocolate sauce made from 35g sugar free dark chocolate that’s simmered with 150ml plant milk for a healthy take on Churros dipped in thick keto hot chocolate.