A friend of mine wanted me to make a raw, gluten-free, dairy-free cake for her co-worker who loves chocolate.  Here’s the recipe I used:

Crust:

raw chocolate cake!

• 1/2 C cacao powder
• 1/2 C carob powder
• 1/2 C ground raw almonds
• 1/3 C agave/honey
• 1/4 C cacao butter
• sea salt to taste

Filling:

• 2 C Cacao powder
• 1 1/2 C agave
• 1 C coconut butter (melt by placing in a warm/hot bowl of water)
• 1 tbsp lucuma powder

1. take all ingredients for the crust and mix in the food processor. Once they are combined, take the filling and push it into a pie/tart pan with your fingers. (the best kinds are the ones that have a removable bottom) Chill in the fridge for an hour or freezer for 30 minutes.

2. Mix the filling ingredients and add on top of the filling. Put back in the fridge or freezer for at least an hour. Viola!

You’ll never know (or anyone else) that this is completely gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free and HEALTHY for you! Cacao is the highest ranked antioxidant in the world!

*Top with raspberries, strawberries and/or nuts and drizzles of cacao! (an easy cacao topping is mixing cacao powder and agave with a spoon until it’s runny)

I love this recipe for raw, vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. They taste like the raw cookie dough we aren’t supposed to love and eat while we’re making “real” cookies… only these are egg-free and completely safe to eat a ton of! Now I’m sharing the recipe with you, for your noshing pleasure.

Recipe for Raw Chocolate Chip Cookies

*2 C nuts (soaked almonds)

*1/2 C dates

*1 tsp vanilla extract

*1/2 tsp sea salt

*1/4 C coconut oil, melted (not in a microwave)

*1/4 C-1/2 C chocolate chips (depending on your love of chocolate)

Directions

1. With a food processor, grind up all above ingredients except the chocolate chips. If you process them for a long time they will taste much more like cookie dough, if you process for less time they will have a nutty consistency which is fun and tasty, too!

2. After processing to desired consistency, drop the chocolate chips into the dough and mix with a spoon. Then pulse 3-4 times to mix it and grind the chips into the mixture.

3. Take a cookie sheet and spread the cookie dough into the pan, using your fingers to press into the corners and flatten into one even, level, layer.

4. Put in the fridge or freezer for 30 minutes to an hour to harden.

5. I then took it out and used heart cookie shape cutters but you can roll them into a ball and leave them that way, use another shape, or take the ball and flatten it into a round “cookie”. sky’s the limit! ENJOY!!!

Makes: 24 slivers of a large pie, or 4 smaller pies with 6 slices
Equipment needed: Food Processor

blending the crust

For the Crust

2 cups raw macadamia nuts OR a blend of almonds, walnuts and pecans
1/2 cup dates, pitted
1/4 cup dried coconut

For the “Cheese”

3 cups chopped cashews, soaked for at least 1 hour

blending the "cheese"

3/4 cup lemon juice (or lime juice-i used limequats for this! so delish)
3/4 cup honey
3/4 cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt (optional)

For raspberry sauce:
1 bag frozen raspberries (or blackberries/strawberries)
1/2 cup dates

DIRECTIONS

To make the crust, process the nuts and dates in the food processor. Sprinkle dried coconut onto the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch springform pan. Press crust onto the coconut. This will prevent it from sticking.

To make the cheese, blend the cashews, lemon, honey, gently warmed coconut oil (do not use microwave), vanilla, sea salt, and 1/2 cup water. Blend until smooth and adjust to taste.

Pour the mixture onto the crust. Remove air bubbles by tapping the pan on a table.

Place in the freezer until firm. Remove the whole cake from the pan while frozen and place on a serving platter. Defrost in the refrigerator. (the more defrosted the better the taste)

To make the raspberry sauce, process raspberries and dates in a food processor until well blended. (Do not use a blender for this or the raspberry seeds will become like sand.)

finished product!

Now that I’m pregnant, I have to get blood taken all the time. I get kinda queasy after wards, and usually need a sugar hit like fruit or juice. My husband came prepared the last time, buying me a Naked smoothie and an Almond Joy. The Almond Joy was good, and made luckily with dark chocolate, but way too sugary with a ton of horrible additives.

This recipe is a healthier version of Almond Joy made with coconut oil, carob, almonds, and agave. You’ll never know it’s dairy-free, sugar-free and gluten-free!!

• 

  ingredients

  1  cup melted extra virgin coconut oil

• 1/4 cup organic raw almond butter
• 3 drops Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme
• 3 drops Liquid Stevia Chocolate
• 4 tablespoons agave
• 1 tablespoon organic vanilla
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3/4 cup roasted carob powder (or chips and melt)
• 1/4 cup organic hemp seeds
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut

To melt coconut oil, place jar under warm/hot water.

In a medium bowl, place melted coconut oil and almond butter. Stir until both are blended. Next, stir/whisk in Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme and Chocolate, agave, and vanilla. Add in cinnamon and stir until it blends evenly. Slowly stir in carob a tablespoon at a time. The mixture should still be slightly runny. Add in almond meal, hemp seeds, and coconut. The mixture will run off the spoon, but very slowly.

Spoon into mini cupcake trays lined with paper liners. Pour in mixture half way. Chill in freezer for 15 minutes. When the candies are set, pop out and store in a freezer safe container. Keep frozen!

CHERRY JUBILATION

A raw vegan dessert truffle with cherries, chocolate and Brazil nuts.

• 1/3 cup  coconut cream butter (Artisana is a great brand)
  
• 1/2 cup powdered carob
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp agave
• 2 tsp Stevia Plus powder
• 2 droppers dark chocolate Stevia liquid
• 1 cup fresh, pitted organic cherries
• 1 1/2 cup organic Brazil nuts
• ½ cup unsweetened carob chips
• 15 cherries, pitted and halved

Purée all ingredients in food processor except carob chips. When dough is formed, pull out blade and stir in chips. Form into balls and scoop into paper mini cupcake liners. Top each one with a cherry half.

Freeze for 15 minutes and they’re ready to serve. Store in refrigerator. Tops of cherries will get frostbite if kept in the freezer over 15 minutes.

Yield: 30

For Thanksgiving this year, I will be making a raw, vegan pumpkin pie… here’s the recipe I’ll use!

Raw Pumpkin Pie Recipe

If you canʼt get your hands on a fresh pumpkin you can use  butternut squash or sweet potato.

Raw Pumpkin Pie Crust

• 1 Cup raw almonds, 1 Cup raw pecans (both soaked)
• 1/2 cup soaked 1 hour medjool dates, pitted
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• Dash of sea salt
• date soaking water if necessary

Blend the crust ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor. Process the nuts first, allowing them to get mealy. Slowly add in the dates, water, vanilla and cinnamon until the ingredients form a dough like consistency. The dough will form into a “ball” in the food processor.  Take the ball and whatever else is left over and evenly distribute in the bottom of a pie plate.

Raw Pumpkin Pie Filling

• 2 cups shredded pumpkin, butternut squash, or sweet potato flesh (or Organic Pumpkin Pie in a can if you’re lazy)
• 1/4 C raisins, soaked 1 hour
• 1 cup dates, soaked 1 hour
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. freshly diced ginger
• 1 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 tsp. coconut oil or 1 tbsp butter
• Dash of vanilla
• 1 persimmon (optional: you can leave this out if you don’t find them)
• 1/4 cup almond milk or date water when needed to blend

If you donʼt feel like shredding the pumpkin by hand, simply cube and place in a high speed blender or food processor until itʼs nicely chopped. (or get it in a can, make sure it’s organic)

Then add the rest of the ingredients and blend until nice and smooth. You might need to add more liquid to get it to blend well.

Pour into crust, then chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.

Almond Or Cashew “Whipped Cream”

• 1 cup almonds or cashews
• ¾ cup water
• 1 Tablespoon maple syrup (optional)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla (optional)

For the smoothest consistency, use cashews or peeled almonds. Because of their alkaline nature, almonds help keep your blood at a neutral pH. And if you buy them raw, they’ll germinate when you soak them. Note for raw friends: Cashews are heated after being picked, even those labeled “raw”.

Soak 1 cup of almonds or cashews in 2 cups of water. If you’re in a very warm climate, soak them in your refrigerator. After 8-12 hours, discard the soaking water and rinse the nuts. In a blender, place the nuts and enough fresh water to allow the blender to operate. Blend, gradually adding enough water to achieve a smooth consistency. Makes 1 ½ – 1 ¾ cups.

Have an incredible day… but remember, EVERYDAY we can find reasons to be thankful, we don’t need a day to be told it’s okay!

My husband is from Israel. Kids in Israel used to take pods straight from a tree and chew on them for the sweetness. For years he searched for this mystery “haroov” from his childhood.

Low and behold, it turns out it was carob from a carob tree!

We love this sweet raw, vegan, carob truffle. Made with hemp butter, agave and rolled in coconut, we’re sure you’ll love it, too!

fudge- it ball truffles

• 3/4 cup organic raw, unsalted tahini
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 2 tablespoons light agave nectar
• 1 teaspoon organic vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 packets or 2 teaspoons Stevia Plus Powder
• 1/2 cup raw carob powder
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
  

In a medium mixing bowl, place tahini, almond milk, agave, vanilla, and cinnamon.  With a flat spatula, mix until smooth.  Add stevia powder and mix until powder is distributed evenly.  Using a tablespoon at a time, add carob powder to mixture.  Using spatula, work carob powder into mixture with a folding and pressing action against the bowl.  Continue this process until all the carob powder is used.

The batter will look and feel shiny and hard like a fudge.  If the batter is too sticky to roll, add a bit more carob to get the texture of a non-sticky fudge.

Scoop out a tablespoon of the fudge batter and roll into a ball.  Roll ball in unsweetened coconut and serve in mini-cupcake papers.

Yield: 24ish truffles.