RAW VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Not that these cookies really require an explanation... but I'll give you one anyway. I adapted this recipe from a fabulous vegan cookbook called DIY Nut Milks, Nut Butters & More by the wonderful Melissa King of My Whole Food Life. The book is chock-full of easy, healthy recipes (I think they're pretty much ALL raw too). If you are interested in dipping your toes into the world of nut milks and/or nut butters then this book needs to be in your shelf. If you think you're a champ at this stuff already, I say: you can always learn more. The recipes are largely for nut milks and butters - big surprise, I know - but obviously judging by the recipe I am sharing today, there are chapters on more decadent eats later in the book too. There's a ton of practical information as well. Melissa recommends equipment, techniques, soaking methods and more. Noobs and pros alike will discover useful tips and tricks.

CARROT CAKE CUPCAKES with WHIPPED COCONUT CREAM + CHOCOLATE

WOAH. Let's slow things down for a second to acknowledge that these cupcakes are vegan, gluten-free, and made with whole foods. THANK YOU, EARTH.

They're also made with leftovers. Yup. I bought a bag of carrots from the farmers market last week and juiced them, then I was left with all this beautiful carrot pulp. I didn't wanna just compost it so I thought "Hey! I could make carrot cupcakes!" Then I did that. I know, my stories are always so exciting. The cupcake recipe is pretty basic - mostly carrots, nuts, raisins and spices - but that don't stop some epic flavours from being created. Then I topped 'em off with vegan gold AKA whipped coconut cream. Technically coconut cream is not raw, but I give you a raw cashew cream option since I'm inclusive like that. I swirled the cream with raw chocolate sauce because... raw. chocolate. sauce.

RAW VEGAN CHOCOLATE CAKE

This is it. A simple, quick, and easy recipe for the best raw vegan chocolate cake. I whipped this up for my lover's birthday celebration / family dinner and his whole clan loved it! I wasn't planning on posting it but I figured I may as well. I mean: chocolate. cake. Need I say more? I wanna give you guys every opportunity to create healthy and delicious desserts and meals whenever possible.

If you are new to the whole 'raw vegan dessert' thing, then this cake recipe is perfect for you. This is almost as basic as you can get. Although you can add anything else you want to this dark brown creamy bad boy (ex: ginger, cinnamon, berries), I am keepin' it real and leaving ingredients at a minimum so no one gets confused or overwhelmed. Sure, this recipe could be lower fat and blah blah blah, but my mentality when I create food for non-veg folks (Jack's family) is to wow them with flavour and texture, thus I add a little more coconut oil and maple syrup than I normally would. My palate is very different from someone who doesn't usually eat many plants - let alone whole foods - so I wanna give them something even THEIR taste buds will appreciate! That means making this cake a bit richer than if I were making it for just myself. What is healthy is relative. A pure raw foodist would feel sick if they suddenly ate cooked food; I feel weird when I eat too MUCH cooked food or fat-dense food (nuts, etc.) in a day; my mom feels weird if she eats too much meat. Does that mean that cooked food or nuts are unhealthy? No! It just means that my body has acclimatized to a mostly low-fat raw foods diet with a cooked dinner so if I suddenly eat cooked food all day it's gonna be like "WTF!?" (Where's the fruit!?) If you drank nothing but water for 7 days, then gorged on fruit, you'd feel ill. Does that mean FRUIT is unhealthy? No! It's like the healthiest thing... ever. All it implies is that your body has become sensitive to something because of the diet it has grown accustomed to. So to round this back to my first point: I made this recipe a bit more decadent than usual because of the audience it would be catered to. Nuff said (I think?)

Note: if the ingredients look kinda pricey to you, don't worry! You can use oats instead of walnuts, cocoa powder instead of cacao powder, and almonds instead of cashews. Using almonds instead of cashews will make it a bit less creamy, but still delicious.

RAW VEGAN CHOCOLATE CAKE

Crust: 
1 cup walnuts 
1 1/2 cups dates

Cake:
2 cups cashews
2 tablespoons cacao powder
1 cup water
Juice from 1 lemon
1 cup dates
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

To make the crust: pulse oats or walnuts into powder in a food processor, then add the dates and keep processing until it all starts to stick together. Press into the bottom of a springform cake pan, or adjustable pan (I used an adjustable pan set to about 7 inches). Put in fridge. 

To make the cake: blend everything until smooth, thick and creamy! It should be the consistency of yogurt, kinda. If it's watery; add more dates, coconut oil or nuts. If it's too thick; add more water or maple syrup. Pour onto your crust and let it set overnight or for at least 12 hours (this lets it set and develop flavour). Slice and enjoy! I decorated mine with hemp seeds and pumpkin seeds. 

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