Dessert turned healthy

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awakenedfood

Desserts

turned healthy Processed sugar-free, gluten-free, dairy-free‌ your favourite, most indulgent desserts transformed into healthy treats!

By Neha Jamani.

Raw vegan blueberry cheesecake. Recipe page 38. www.awakeningsme.com

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awakenedfood

Vegan Black Bean Brownies

Like a rich, moist and delicious chocolate cake, it’s hard to believe the main ingredient in these vegan brownies is black beans.

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Ingredients

2 Tablespoons chia seeds, ground ¾ cup warm water 1 can (15oz) black beans, drained and rinsed 1 cup dates, pitted ½ cup almond meal 1/3 cup raw cacao powder ¼ cup coconut oil 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Pinch of sea salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 175C degrees.

Combine ground chia seeds and warm water in a bowl, stir and set aside for 10 minutes.

In a food processor add all the ingredients, including the chia mix. Process until as smooth as possible, scraping down the sides and bottom occasionally, about 3 minutes. The batter will be thicker than a usual cake batter. Pour the batter in a lightly greased muffin pan and bake for 30 minutes. The top of the brownies will be firm and the edges will start to pull away slightly from the sides.

Let the brownies completely cool, before gently removing them from the muffin tin. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Carrot Date Cake

This gluten and dairy-free cake is great with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon.

Ingredients

3 eggs ¾ cup rice flour ½ cup almond meal 1 teaspoon baking powder ¾ teaspoon cinnamon powder ¼ cup coconut oil ¼ cup date honey 2 medium carrots, grated 6 dates, chopped

Directions

Preheat the oven to 175 C. Line the baking pan with a sheet with

parchment and grease sides with oil.

In a medium sized bowl whisk eggs until fluffy by hand or an electric beater and set aside.

Mix rice flour, almond meal, cinnamon and baking powder in a large bowl.

Add coconut oil, date honey, grated carrots and chopped dates to the eggs.

With a spatula, gently fold the egg mixture to flour.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 22- 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Lightly dust the cake with some cinnamon powder and drizzle some date honey, enjoy at room temperature. cont. overleaf cont. overleaf

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awakenedfood cont. from pg37

Salted Caramel and Choc Slice A treat for sweet-teeth, the salt and the caramel are a divine combination.

Ingredients

Crust: ½ cup walnuts ½ cup pecans 1 cup rolled oats 3 Tablespoons maple syrup 3Tablespoons coconut oil, melted ¼ teaspoon sea salt Caramel Layer: 1 ½ cup dates, pitted 1 cup hot water ½ cup coconut cream ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ½ teaspoon sea salt Chocolate Topping: 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted ¼ cup raw cacao powder 2 Tablespoons date honey

Directions

Crust: Place oats in food processor and process until fine, 1-2 mins. Add walnuts and pecans and process into meal.

Add the maple syrup, coconut oil and salt and process continuously until mixture starts to come together, about 1 minute. Press evenly into a 9-inch glass pie plate. Set aside in freezer while you make the filling.

Caramel Layer: Soak dates in hot water for 15 minutes for soften. Drain the soaking liquid. In a food processor add soaked dates, coconut cream, vanilla, and salt. Process until smooth, scrapping the sides as you go. Spread the caramel mixture over the crust and place in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes.

Chocolate Topping: Whisk the topping ingredients in a bowl. Remove the tray containing the base and caramel from the freezer and delicately spread the chocolate topping over the caramel. Use a spatula to make the top as smooth and level as possible.

Store in the refrigerator, well covered for 3 hours before slicing and serving, preferably overnight.

Raw Vegan Blueberry Cheesecake

This one’s for those special occasions! Just because you don’t eat dairy and gluten, doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate and indulge.

Ingredients

Blend the almond meal and dates in a food processor until a sticky mix forms.

Press into the base of a cake tin and place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Cheesecake filling: 2 ½ cups of cashew ¼ cup of maple syrup or raw agave ½ cup coconut oil 2 Tablespoons lemon juice ½ teaspoon vanilla extract Pinch of salt

Cheesecake filling: Soak the cashews in water for 4-8 hours. Drain, rinse and put them in a blender with the other filling ingredients. Blend until creamy.

Take the base layer out of the freezer; put filling mix over it and place back into the freezer for 4-6 hours.

Base: 1 cup almond meal 1 cup dates, pitted

Blueberry sauce: 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries 2 Tablespoon maple syrup 1 Tablespoon coconut oil

Directions Base:

Blueberry Sauce: Blend all the sauce ingredients for a minute. Remove the cheesecake from the freezer, pour the blueberry sauce over it and let it cool for an hour in the refrigerator.

www.awakeningsme.com

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Neha Jamani A therapeutic and holistic chef, Neha is founder of Dubaibased The Sacred Kitchen. A graduate of Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts in California. www.thesacredkitchen.org

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