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Back in september 2009, I climbed the CN Tower in support of the united way. It actually wasn't bad at all, I was just horribly thirsty as you're not allowed any water throughout the whole thing. Anyway, I had a fundraising gift setup where for different amounts of sponsorship, I would give you homemade raw treats made by moi. Anyway, at the $50 level, I offered a homemade gourmet meal. Well, 3 people made that level! Namely, the boy's mom, dad and dad's girlfriend. So last night we had my father-in-law and his girlfriend over.
I made a three course meal, and I must say it was definitely one of the best meals I have prepared to date!
starting course:
salad with chopped cucumbers and mushrooms, dressed in a creamy tomato miso dressing and sprinkled with almond and sunflower parmasan
entree:
zucchini linguine in a sundried tomato marinara sauce with walnut and mushroom "meatballs", sprinkled (liberally in many of our cases...) with almond and sunflower parmasan
I made the "meatballs" at about 1p.m. and dehydrated until 5:45 p.m. to give them more of that "meatball" texture.
I didn't have a chance to photograph since I couldn't find a polite way to do so while they were there. Will take a photo next time I make it, which will be soon because it was amazing!!
dessert:
rich chocolate mousse on a chocolate cookie base, served with sliced strawberries (recipe below)
tip: slice the strawberries before the dinner and mix in a bowl with a touch of water. Mix well and over the course of the dinner, the sugary juices of the fruit will come out making an extra sweet treat without the need of sweetener.
Today's recipe
Base
1/2c almonds
1/2c macadamia nuts
1/2c dates, pitted
1 1/2 Tbsp raw cacao powder
In a food processor, process the nuts. Make sure to process in short burst so that it doesn't turn to butter. You want the nuts very finely ground.
Add the cacao powder and pulse the processor until it's well mixed in.
Add the dates and process (you can keep it on now, it won't turn to butter with all the other ingredients in there) until the dough is well blended. Watch your processor though to ensure that the dough isn't balling up; if it does, break it up with a spoon or spatula.
Take your cookie cutter (I used a heart shape one - so pretty!) and lightly coat it with coconut oil. Press into the cookie cutter a base with the crust of about 1/4".
Rich chocolate mousse
I used Ani Phyo's recipe, which can be found here. But, I used a little bit less agave nectar so it wouldn't be quite so sweet.
2/3c pitted Medjool dates
1/3c agave nectar (the original recipe calls for 1/2c)
1c avocado
2/3c raw cacao powder
In the food processor (you don't need to clean it, just empty completely of crust dough) blend the dates and agave nectar until smooth. Add avocado and blend until smooth. Add cacao powder and blend until smooth.
Spoon the mousse into the cookie cutter and use the spoon to smooth the top. Depending on how deep your cookie cutter is, you may not want to fill it to the top; going for double the height of the crust is a good bet. Make sure you spread the mousse to all sides evenly to keep the shape of the cookie cutter.
Lift the cookie cutter off. It should lift smoothly because of the coconut oil, but if it gets a bit stuck, use the spoon to press the dessert down as you life it off. I recommend re-greasing the cutter after every two (mine got a bit stuck on the third one I made).
Serve with a side of fruit or almond cream and enjoy the deliciously velvet chocolate taste and all the compliments from your guests.
xo
Selene
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