Dearest friends,
I have very exciting news…
FUDGE CAN BE HEALTHY!!! OK, well maybe not “healthy” per se, but definitely healthier than that crap made with stale chocolate chips, yucky condensed milk and butter made from the milk of sullen cows that have never seen the light of day.
I revived this recipe a couple of weeks ago when Darryl and I went to a games night with friends and had no idea what to bring for a snack. It was Darryl’s idea to make this fudge that we created based on two recipes from my raw vegan un-cookbooks.
The good news is that this fudge is vegan, free of refined white sugar and made with whole food ingredients. The bad news is that it is high in fat and contains cacao and agave nectar, which are controversial ingredients in the raw vegan universe. You might want to try substituting carob if you’re not a fan of cacao, and maple syrup if you’re not a fan of agave (I use maple syrup).
Sooooo….. Step one is to make the fudge, and step two is to make the chocolate sauce that you spread on top.
Little Fudge Cakes
Inspired by a recipe from the book Naked Chocolate, by Shazzie & David Wolfe
• 3 tablespoons of tahini
• 2.5 cups of almonds
• 2 tablespoons of agave nectar, yacon syrup or maple syrup
• 5 medjool dates, pitted
• 1 heaping tablespoon of cacao powder
• 2 tablespoons of unsweetened shredded coconut
• 3 tablespoons of coconut oil
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Pinch of cinnamon
Grind 2 cups of the almonds into a flour using a coffee bean grinder or the Vita-Mix dry jug. Chop the dates. Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until it sticks together but still has chunky bits in it.
Line a baking tin or glass container with cling wrap and press the mixture into the bottom (the cling wrap makes it easier to remove the fudge from the tin). Place in freezer while you whip up the chocolate frosting!
Chocolate Frosting
Inspired by a recipe from the book The Art of Raw Living Food by Doreen Virtue and Jenny Ross
• 1 cup cacao powder
• .5 tsp vanilla extract
• .5 cup coconut oil
• .5 tsp cinnamon
• .5 cup agave nectar or maple syrup
• .5 tsp sea salt
Blend all ingredients in a high-powered blender (my Vita-Mix is one of my most prized posessions) using the plunger to make sure everything is well combined. Spread onto the fudge cakes and sprinkle with shredded coconut or chopped nuts.
Place the fudge in the freezer to harden for 20 – 30 minutes. Grab the edges of the cling wrap and lift the fudge out of the pan and cut into squares.
Can anyone say “YUM”????? If you try this recipe, please let me know how it goes and leave a comment below! 🙂
Yum! I’m going to try this little gem.