raw - vegan - chocolate - birthday cake

last year i made borris a raw vegan birthday cake. he loved it. loved it. well at least he spoke about it for a few weeks and then 6 months later couldn't recall it. :) but it was the start of a new tradition. last years was way too sweet for me, so this year i toned it down a bit.

the base is made by blending in the food processor, medijool dates, flax and sesame seeds, rolled quinoa, hazelnut and pecans, then pressed into the bottom of a loose bottom tart pan. put in fridge or freezer to set.

 

the main body of the cake was made in the blender (my food processor is a mini one or i would have used that) in there are cashews, more dates, banana, vanilla bean, maple syrup, coconut oil, coconut shreds, goldenberries, goji berries, hazelnuts, pecans and water.

 

then i divided the mixture up and put cacao powder in one of them. then i layered the 2 mixes on the base and because it is raw, no baking. just pop it in the freezer. in this case overnight to set.

the next day on borris' actual birthday we had dinner together and then i finished off the cake.

 

some toppings, shredded coconut, goji berries, chocolate covered goji berries

 

you can see the layers of chocolate and vanilla once it is out the the tart shell.

 

then i drizzled some melted chocolate over the cake and sprinkled the toppings on top of the melted chocolate.

 

borris on his birthday with the cake.

 

ready to enjoy, a slice of raw, vegan chocolate birthday cake. best part is that it keeps in the freezer for a while. this years cake was better than last years, not as sweet. i think the use of more cashews and nuts in the base of the cake helped with that, and less dates, more banana.

the cake was inspired by this recipe.