Raw Vegan Chocolate Caramel & Pecan Cake

If there's one downfall I have in life, it's my love of desserts. I love making them and love to eat them!! It doesn't help when I'm trying to eat healthy and still want more than a bowl of fruit and yoghurt. Don't get me wrong I love fruit and yoghurt, but sometimes it doesn't cut it.

Then on Sunday I had a friend over for dinner who has a million and one food allergies. I needed to avoid dairy and raising agents, whilst trying to make something that was healthy, so I didn't feel guilty eating it.

I came across a website with a variety of raw & vegan no bake cakes. I already had pecans in the cupboard, so decided to give the chocolate caramel and pecan cake a go.

I didn't have a right sized spring pan suggested in the recipe so used individual tartlet tins. The ingredients below was enough to make 3 cakes, so I made an extra portion of the recipe to make a 4th cake. I served with vanilla vegan ice-cream. The true test of how good the recipe was, was from my husband and he liked it (with the ice-cream).




Recipe

For the cake

• 1 cup pecans
• 1 cup dates
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons cacao powder

For the caramel

• 3/4 cup dates
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Cinnamon and nutmeg, to taste (I used about 1/2 teaspoon of each)
• 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
• Water, as needed (I used about 1 cup altogether)

Method

Step 1: To make the cake: put the pecans in your food processor and process until they become small crumbs. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until it all begins to stick together. Press into a small spring form pan (approx 6 inches), leave the sides slightly higher than the centre so you can later pour in the caramel. Leave in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

Step 2: To make the caramel: blend all the ingredients until smooth, adding water as needed to get a caramel consistency. Pour into the centre of your cake and spread to the sides so it drizzles down. Top off with pecans or other nuts if you wish.

Recipe sourced from: http://www.onegreenplanet.org/plant-based-recipes/raw-vegan-chocolate-caramel-pecan-cake/