Dear Spring,
How I’ve longed for you! For your delicate and sweet morning light, your temperamental winds, your wise and patient blossoms! But, most of all, how I’ve longed for the freshness of your fruit and greens, for the flowers underneath my balcony, for the sweet buds in the trees! I can’t help but celebrate you in the most delicate way I know: with a light cake, full of promises and enthusiasm. The type of cake that you can eat without any regret, because it is made with pure and simple ingredients that don’t know how to hide.
Raw cakes are incredibly easy to make. One could argue that they’re nothing but frozen baby food in a springform pan, but one couldn’t be more mistaken. Sure, anyone can puree fruit in a blender, but there’s more to it than that. Ingredients must be chosen wisely, they must sit well with each other and combine into a firm yet creamy texture. I don’t have a high speed blender and I suffer for it, but that doesn’t mean I give up: I mix and mix until I get the best results I can – after all, a little crunch never hurt anybody.
To celebrate my newfound lust for life, I decided to go for a berry-walnut-almond mixture. The crust incorporated some coconut flakes too, but it was mostly about walnuts and – guess what – dehydrated plums and dates. I can’t stress enough how important it is to have high quality dried fruit for this type of cakes: a rich, soft pulp is what you’re looking for in every occasion. I decided not to hydrate the walnuts used since they were quite fresh and willing to subside into a homogenous paste.
Ingredients
- 150 g walnuts
- 75 g dried plums
- 75 g dried soft dates
- 5 tbs cocoa butter
- 3 tbs coconut flakes
- 2 heaped tsp cocoa powder
- pinch of salt
- couple of tbs water, if needed
- 300 g walnuts
- 50 g almonds
- 10 tbs cocoa butter
- juice of two large lemons
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
- optional - 1 tbs bitter almond extract
- 2-3 handfuls strawberries/other berries
- water as needed to make a thick cream
- pinch of salt
- fresh strawberries, almond flakes and spring flowers
Instructions
- In a food processor grind the walnuts until they turn into flour. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix to form a thick paste.
- Place the mixture in a 30cm springform pan (or one 15 cm and one 10 cm) and use your hands to press and level it to form a uniform crust. Put the pan in the fridge while preparing the cream.
- In the same processor, mix all the ingredients for the cream together until you get a thick, yet a runny paste. Mine wasn't too smooth because my processor is not so powerful, but it was still very tasty. Add water if necessary, spoon by spoon, and taste for sweetness.
- Pour the cream over the crust and freeze overnight. A few hours before serving take the cake out of the freezer, sprinkle with almond flakes and fruit and let thaw in the fridge.
We had this cake after a heavy Sunday meal, which included pasta and bruschetti and a lot of other good but heavy stuff. It was the perfect ending to that meal, so light and refreshing that we almost didn’t even feel we had dessert. It won everyone over, and not just because it looked perfect, but because of its tangy-sweet taste and delicate consistency. The contrast between the chocolaty crust and the lemony cream was just perfect – what a treat! Plus, it was gluten-free AND vegan, so what’s not to love?
Love and raw strawberry cakes!
Hi Andie! I love the idea of raw cooking. I have to be honest.. I haven’t done much research in this area, but what a great recipe to start with! This looks delicious, and I love the recipe ingredients. The colors are gorgeous and the photos definitely make me want to try this soon!
Hei Laurie and thank you for your kind words! I don’t cook too much raw food either, but when I do it must absolutely be delicious :) You’ll see, it’s not difficult at all and it actually saves a lot of time in the kitchen. I’m so happy you stopped by because this is how I discovered your beautiful and inspired blog!
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