Raw Double Layer Chocolate Fudge with Cacao Nibs

A few weeks ago I was invited to a picnic and decided to take along some raw fudge. I finished making it and then realised that I thought was a bit of cocoa powder in the cocoa oil was actually mould after I tasted it. I'm not one to give up on a recipe though so I decided to make it again for another gathering.

This is crazy rich, so cut into tiny bits. But everyone seemed to enjoy it. I'm warning you though its not a cheap recipe to make but quite easy with a food processor. Also is maple sugar not raw???

Raw Double Layer Chocolate Fudge with Cacao Nibs by Gourmante in the kitchen

Ingredients
2 cups/ 224g raw organic cashews
2 cups/ 240g unsweetened organic shredded coconut
240g (about10 large) very soft medjool dates, pitted
1 cup/ 100g raw organic cacao powder
½ cup/ 120ml organic maple syrup
Pinch of fine sea salt
1/2 cup/120ml organic maple syrup
1/4 cup/60g extra virgin unrefined coconut oil
1/2 cup/50g raw organic cacao powder
Pinch of fine sea salt
¼ cup/30g of raw cacao nibs for topping (I used only a small sprinkle)
Instructions
1. Place cashews in the bowl of food processor and grind until very finely ground (be careful to not
over process the nuts into butter)
2. Add the shredded coconut and process until well combined and fine in texture. Add the pitted dates
and process until a soft paste forms. Add the cacao powder process again.
3. Finally add the maple syrup and a pinch of salt and process to combine until a creamy texture is
achieved scraping down the sides as needed.
4. Press firmly into a parchment lined square or rectangular pan or mold.
5. Place in fridge while making the ganache topping.
6. In the food processor, blend together maple syrup and coconut oil until well combined.
7. Add in cacao powder and a pinch of salt and process until smooth scraping down the sides as
needed.
8. Pour over fudge base and spread out evenly over the top. Sprinkle with cacao nibs and return pan
to fridge to set and firm for at least one hour.
9. Cut into squares and serve the fudge cold. Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge

I failed at getting a picture but here is a picture afterwards: Go check out the original post for pictures. Its  quite pretty in its original state.

Green Smoothies and Hemp Truffles

About a fortnight ago when we got our first taste of spring , I felt inspired and energised to be healthier. While the weather quickly went back to being miserable with only a few good days inbetween. I've kept up some good habits. I'm still eating some junk particularly at the potluck yesterday but I feel that at least I start the days on a good start by having a green smoothie for breakfast. I started out with:

Classic Green Smoothie from Oh She Glows:

Yield: 1 serving/2 cups
Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk, or milk of choice
• 1 ripe banana, preferably peeled + frozen
• 2 handfuls organic spinach or 1 handful kale
• 1 tbsp chia seeds OR 1 tbsp ground flax
• 1 tbsp nut butter, optional
• 1-3 ice cubes
• protein powder of choice, optional

Directions: Starting with the liquid, add in 1 cup of milk of your choice. Now add in the chia or flax and nut butter. Next, add in the spinach followed by the banana on top. Blend until smooth. Add in your ice cubes and blend some more. Serves 1- about 2 cups.

This was great, I skipped the ice and the protein powder. You can't taste the baby spinach at all, so its a great way to start. It didn't quite fill me up.  But I've found that if I increase almond milk to about 1&1/4 cup and increase the seeds or nut butter slightly then I'm right to lunch time.

I've slowly been making more adaptions using frozen bluberries, cherries, raspberries and using kale and boy choy (yes sounds gross but again can't taste it), I've also used hemp seeds too.

I'm not a morning person at all, so I put it in my klean canteen bottle and drink it on the way to work. Be warned if you do this to rinse it out straight away. I once left my bottle dirty until I got home which was a big mistake-smell wise. I do need to floss at work now though unless I start getting up earlier and having it at home.

I recently bought some hemp seeds which are supposadly good for you. I'm always suck a sucker for the latest 'superfood'.  This US study suggests a range of benefits like high in omega 3 and 6, and may lower cholestrol and blood pressure. They are actually legal to eat everywhere except for australia and new zealand. So they are sold as a skincare product in some larger health food stores. See below:

I'm also been making a few different versions of these raw truffles so if I do get hungry before lunch I eat a couple. This is my favourite, its slightly sweet and Toby who hates these sort of raw snacks loves these (and not just for the high protein).

Hemp Truffles adapted from the raw project

• 1 cups shelled hemp seeds
• 1/2 cup chia seeds
• 2 tbsp. almond butter
• 1 cup pitted dates
• 1/8 cup cacao powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup

Place hemp seeds, chia seeds, almond butter, cacao powder, and salt into a food processor and process until well blended. While processing, feed in pitted dates and process until the mixture is well blended and clumping. Add in vanilla and maple syrup. Roll mixture into small, quarter-sized balls and enjoy. Makes about 15 balls.

 I love these type of recipes, if you have any similar recipes please let me know.

They both may look gross but taste great!

Raw Vegan Chocolate Brownie Bites

This is another successful recipe from the always cheerful Hannah from wayfaring chocolate. For some reason regular dried dates make me bloated and feel but medjool dates are fine. I got a big box of medjool dates from costo. These are so simple as long as you have a food processor. Whilst they are not as good regular brownies they do a great job of satisfying sweet craving and do have a lovely caramel flavour. I did cheat and use regular chocolate chips though! I'm loving recipes like this and the protein bites are the moment, if you know of similar recipes please point me in the right direction.


I apologise for this picture, it was taken with my phone when I didn't have my camera.

Raw Vegan Chocolate Brownies Bites from Wayfaring Chocolate:

Makes 15 – 20, depending on the size you roll them.

    3/4 cup walnuts or pecans (I used pecans)
    1/4 cup almonds or cashews (I used cashews)
    1 cup Medjool dates, pitted
    1 tsp vanilla extract
    Pinch salt
    2 tb cacao powder
    2 tb raw cacao nibs (or chocolate chips)

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the nuts until finely chopped.

Add in the dates, vanilla, salt, and cacao powder, and pulse until everything is incorporated and the mixture sticks together when pressed between your fingers. (Depending on how soft your dates are, you may need to throw in a few more to get to this stage.

Tip in the cacao nibs, and pulse briefly to combine.

Roll into balls and store in the fridge or freezer, or share with family and friends and eat all in one go.

Raw Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberries

This is so easy quick healthy and tasty. The chocolate is a little less intense than regular dark chocolate so it doesn't overpower the flavour of the strawberries. These lasted a few days in our fridge.

Dark chocolate covered strawberries from Better Raw (will try the white chocolate next time )

1 punnet of strawberries, washed and dried.

Dark Chocolate (we had a lot of chocolate left so feel free to halve this recipe)
1 Cup Cacao Butter, melted
1 Cup Cacao Power
1/3 Cup Agave
Pinch Salt

Add cacao powder to the melted cacao butter and stir until no more lumps remain. Add the agave and salt and stir well. Dip strawberries one at a time, holding onto tails and rotating your hand slightly to create even coverage

Place each strawberry on a non stick tray and place in the fridge until chocolate sets.

Massaged Kale Avocado Salad

I had felt inspired this week by meeting the charismatic, sweet and enthusiastic raw chef Lisa from Vegan Culinary Crusade. We had a few meals together and I watched her give a talk on the healing power of plant foods. While I knew a lot of the info and references such as the china study. I still learnt a lot about new research into the benefits of vegan diet, and the horrible health consequences of eating dairy and animal protein. Both the talk and general conversations with her had me reflecting on all sorts of things, like my current diet.

It's coming up to my 10 year anniversary of being vegan in a few months. I started out as a pretty healthy vegan but as more and more processed vegan foods become available, they started to become part of my regular diet. I really have become a bit of  junk food vegan. I get how it happens, I guess I want to show myself and others that you don't need to miss out on fried foods, creamy ice creams, decadent cakes etc. But we really are doing a bit of a disservice to ourselves. If we are eating large amounts of sugar, fat, oil etc we can still end up with some of the diseases of affluence. Not only can it make us unwell but also gives veganism a bad name since if a vegan gets sick, veganism always gets blamed.

I took Lisa to radical grocery and she got the last bunch of kale and told me about the salad she was going to make for dinner. I was intrigued about it as she explained that by massaging the kale with certain ingredients it becomes wilted almost like it has been cooked. With the hot heather returning to Melbourne today, I couldn't resist giving it a try. I know kale salads are big on overseas vegan blogs but kale is still a pretty rare ingredient here and I think in the past I overlooked these recipes as I wasn't interested in what I thought to be boring and bland salads.

I massaged the kale as I watched project runway and was so amazed at the change in texture and size, it decreased by almost half. If you are looking for kale in Melbourne you can sometimes find it at radical grocery, and fruit peddlers. I have also been told that it is available at  psarkos in Thornby and LaManna Direct in Essendon.

Anyway, the salad was great, the avocado adds a bit of creaminess, the massaging takes away the bitterness of the kale, the capsicum provides a tiny bit of sweetness. Its also quick and doesn't require turning on the oven/stove on hot days. I'm certainly going to make this again and am going to experiment with other massaged kale salads. Do you have any fav kale salad recipes?

Kale Avocado Salad  from Vegan Culinary Crusade

1 bunch of kale
1 Tbsp of olive oil
1/2 Lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 (or 2) Avocado/s
1/2 red pepper (I used a whole one), juliened
2 spring onions, chopped

1. Tear up the leaves from a bunch of kale into bite sized pieces and place in a large bowl
2. Add olive oil, sea salt and lemon.
3. Massage everything together for a couple of minutes (the kale should change texture to become almost wilted)
4. Peel and pit an avocado/s. Mash the avocado flesh into the kale, to coat the leaves.
5. Top with red pepper and spring onion.

Serves 4 (as side)

I'm labelling this as raw, as you just need to sub the olive oil.

Almost Raw Blueberry Cheesecake

I've been doing pretty well with the reduced sugar resolution by trying to focus more on fruit and occasionally eating desserts like this. But its only 10 days in, so will see how I go.

The original recipe was called bluberry cardamon cheesecake and asked for lots of cardamon but I was worried I was going to overdo it so the cardamon ended up being so subtle that you couldn't really notice it.

Bluberry Cheesecake by Sweetly Raw.

Crust:

1 cup walnuts (I used almonds)

2/3 cup pitted, packed dates

Grind both ingredients together in a food processor.

Add 1 teaspoon of water if the mixture is too crumbly.

Press the crust into pan/s of choice. I used a pie plate but think mini ones would be cuter. Set aside.

Filling:

3 cups blueberries

1 1/2 cups cashews

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom (can use much more for strong flavour)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

3-4 tablespoons melted cacao butter

In a blender, combine all but the cacao butter, until completely smooth and creamy. 

Add the butter and blend again to incorporate. 

Pour the mixture over the crust(s)

Chill in the fridge or freezer until firm.

I loved this recipe, it makes such a rich dessert that you don't need to eat much. I love the colour too. It does make quite a lot so feel free to halve the recipe unless you are sharing. I think its pretty similar to yongs's blueberry cheesecake although perhaps not quite as solid in texture on top.

 

We shared some with our friend Eve while she taught us mahjong and still had lots leftover for the next 3 days. Mahjong is hard and I currently suck at it, although I did win one round with this hand with lots of help from Eve:

Raw Brownies With Avocado Icing- Vegan Mofo Day 29

We are going away this weekend and I just discovered that we won't have wifi so am posting this in advance, but guess I won't be able to catch up all of your lovely blogs until I get back. Anyway this is the one of the desserts I am taking. I chose this one because I could make it last weekend and keep it in the freezer which is perfect and because I had to blog in advance I had to have small taste test of course.

I did find the bottom of it it be a bit crumbling as shown in the picture but aside from that this recipe is great. I used a mixture of walnuts and macadamia nuts because I ran out. When I was making the icing I thought you could taste the avocado but once its together I don't think you would ever guess. It's quite rich, so you only need small squares!

Raw Brownies with Avocado Icing from Wayfaring Chocolate

Adapted from Motherhood, marriage and other rides. Makes 12.

• 1 cup (110g) walnuts
• 1 cup (150g) medjool dates, pitted
• 1/3 cup (30g) cocoa powder (raw, if that’s how you roll)
• 1 avocado
• 40ml leatherwood honey or agave nectar
• 30ml cocoa powder
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• dash salt
• dash cinnamon (I sprinkled it on top)

1. Combine walnuts, dates, and the 1/3 cup of cocoa powder in a food processor and process until the mixture, according to the original recipe, “looks like potting soil” really doesn't look brownie type at all but don't worry! Pat this into an 20cm x 20cm (8inch x 8inch) pan.

2. With a blender or handmixer blend the avocado, honey or agave, second lot of cocoa, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon until smooth. Like Hannah I used a food processor too.

3. Spread the icing over the brownie base, then put in the freezer for about an hour to set. No matter how long the brownies stay in the freezer, they never become rock-hard.

Raw Cherry Bombs- Vegan Mofo Day 26

 This week friends Lidia and Lachie had us over for dinner and I agreed to bring desserts. I know Lidia is into healthy food, so decided to make another raw dessert. This was perfect as we had everything already and it was pretty quick and easy. I was a bit disappointed initially that the filling wasn't sweet enough, so I rolled the balls in coconut sugar. I'm obsessed with that stuff and also don't know what else to do with it, any suggestions?

But after a few bites, I started to enjoy them, they have quite a strong coconut flavour from the oil and both Lachie and Lidia enjoyed them. Toby said he enjoyed them more than the cake pops but I'm not so sure. I wanted to make these into cake pops but it didn't work due to the cherry in the middle, also the mixture falls apart quite easily so stick to small bites.

Raw Cherry Bombs from Bakery Manis

1 cup Brazil nuts 1 cup cashews
1 Tbsp coconut oil
2 tsp non-alcohol vanilla extract
1 tsp + 2 tsp agave, divided
pinch sea salt
½ cup dried cherries
1/3 cup raw cacao butter, chopped
1/3 cup raw cacao powder

1. Grind the Brazil nuts cashews in the processor until sandy textured. Add in coconut oil, vanilla, 1 tsp agave, and salt.  Blend until smooth like a nut butter; add a few dashes of oil if it seems dry.
2. Scrape from the bowl and shape into nickel-sized (1cm) balls. Squish a dried cherry into each ball.  Freeze for half hour.
3. Chop the cacao butter carefully and add to a large glass bowl.
4. Boil a saucepan of water, and place the bowl over the hot water until cacao butter melts completel.
5. Gently stir in the cacao powder and 2 tsp agave and whisk until smooth. Let cool.
6. Line a plate or baking sheet with waxed or parchment paper. Dip each nut-cherry ball gently into the chocolate, covering entirely.  Freeze to set the chocolate, about 20 minutes. Store in the fridge.

 

Raw Cacao Fudge Cake Pops-Vegan Mofo Day 22

Johanna very kindly invited us to dinner this week and I offered to make something for dessert. I have been on a bit of a health kick this week after getting sick so wanted to make something healthy but also hoped that I might manage to make something that that her cute daughter Sylvia would like. It was apparent from her recent posts that she tends to enjoy all sorts of desserts as long as they are on sticks, which helped to narrow down what to make. I'm not a big fan of raw mains but love raw desserts too so I chose this recipe.

Cacao Fudge Cake Pops from barefoot and frolicking

Yields approximately 20 cake pops

Cake Pop Filling
2 cups walnuts
½ cup dates, soaked
½ tsp maca powder (I skipped it)
3 tsp powdered goji berries
¼ cup maple syrup
seeds of 1 vanilla bean (I used vanilla essence)
3 tbsp buckwheat flour  (I used coconut flour and shredded coconut)

Dark Cacao Chocolate
2/3 cup melted cacao butter
1 cup cacao powder
2 tbsp dark agave syrup (I used light agave)
1 tsp vanilla
dash of lucuma powder

Preparation:
To make the Cacao Fudge Cake Pop filling, grind goji berries in a coffee grinder until a powder-like consistency. I just used a food processor which kind of worked. Set aside. Process the walnuts until they are a fine and crumbly consistency. Add in the dates, maca, goji powder, maple syrup, vanilla, and process until mixture is soft and dense. Add in the 3 tbsp of flour if the mixture is too wet (this may change depending on the individual preparation of the recipe). You might also find yourself patting the mixture with a cloth to remove some of the excess oil from the walnuts.

Chill mixture in a large bowl in the freezer for at least thirty minutes. Roll mixture into small balls and set aside on a sheet of parchment paper. Chill mixture in the fridge/freezer for another twenty minutes or so, and then place pop sticks in each round mixture.

To make the Dark Cacao Chocolate, melt the cacao butter in a medium-sized mixing bowl over a pot filled with warm water.  Using a sifter, sift the cacao powder in a small mixing bowl and set aside. Once the cacao butter is melted, mix in the maple syrup, vanilla, cacao powder. Whisk until the overall mixture is a smooth, liquid consistency.

Dip each cake pop in the melted chocolate mixture, swirling to remove excess chocolate. Dip cake pops in desired toppings, I used coconut sugar.

I had a few issues, for some reason the mixture was still to wet, so I added in shredded coconut and coconut flour which didn't help that much so I ended up using more walnuts which then changed the flavour and made it quite oily. So I had to remove lots of the oil with lots of paper towels. I also then added more goji berries and more maple syrup. I also ran out of chocolate quite quickly, so am not sure what I did wrong there. They certainly look much lighter in  than hers too. But I thought taste wise they were petty good and I got a big 'yum' from Sylvia. Toddlers can be the most difficult critics so I was pleased with myself. I also ate quite a few with out the chocolate and they are still quite delicious.

PS, I got the sticks from cake deco in the city thanks to a reply on twitter from eatnik.

Agave Cinnamon Almond Balls

These are so easy and quick to make, took me about 5 minutes in total. Plus they are healthy, raw, contain only 3 ingredients and are alkaline diet friendly. More on the alkaline thing later. I think quick recipes deserve quick blog posts.

This is based on the raw almond honey and cinnamon balls from Gone Raw.

As the author suggested, you could coat it coconut or something else. The cinnamon flavour is strong, so if you don't love it I would suggest using something else.

Makes 10 tiny balls

Ingredients: 

a few handful of almonds
about 2 tablespoons of agave ( I think you could possibly use a bit less)
cinnamon for coating

Preparation: 

Crush the almonds in a food processor, add agave to make it into thick paste. Pour cinnamon in a little plate, take a bit of almond mixture, roll it into a ball, and coat it with cinnamon.