Epic Halloween Cake! (and contest winner!)

The moment you all have been waiting for is here! I finally made a giant epic cake thingy using 4 pounds of nuts, a crap load of chocolate, and a whole bunch of epicness! Sure it may not look like very much to the naked eye, especially if you bring into consideration that it looks about the size of a regular cake. Bring in the fact that its completely raw and I ate a most of it single handedly, and we have a whole new story.

This cake may be one of my greatest accomplishments yet! Though the pictures arn't exactly what I had desired, it still looked epic and tasted delicious! So pictures aside, i'm proud of this cake of epicness and no one will take that away from me. NO ONE!

Epic Halloween Cake

Cake Ingredients

2 c. Macadamia Nuts

2 c. Brazil Nuts

1/2 c. Flax Seed

1/2 c. Pumpkin Seed

3/4 c. Hemp Seed

2 c. Shredded Coconut

1/2 c. Coconut Oil

3/4 c. Agave

3/4 c. Dates

4 tbsp. Salt

-Blend together your nuts and seeds until it resembles a crumbly flour.

-Add the remaining ingredients and blend until a dough begins to form.

-Set aside.

Raspberry Cream Ingredients

1 c. Raspberries

1/2 c. Cashew Cream*

1/2 c. Agave

-Add everything into your blender and blend until smooth.

-Set aside.

Chocolate Frosting Ingredients

2 c. Raw Cacao Powder

1 c. Coconut Oil

1/2 c. Cashew Cream*

3/4 c. Agave

2 tsp. Salt

-Blend everything together until smooth.

-In round cake pan, begin assembling your cake. Put down a layer of the cake dough so that is covers the bottom and the edges.

-Put down a layer of the chocolate frosting and then a layer of raspberry cream. Then add another layer of dough and repeat. Keep doing this until you are out of raspberry cream, but make sure there is enough frosting to cover the cake's outside.

-Put the remaining dough down as a top layer. Then, coat the cake entirely with the remaining of your frosting. Add coconut shavings if you so desire.

-Put the cake in the freezer for about 10-20 minutes so the icing can set.

-Enjoy!

Yep, i'm proud of this recipe. It took me a while to come up with the recipe, but it was very much well worth it! So many combinations for something like this, though. A raw chocolate hazelnut spread instead of frosting, coconut instead of cashew cream. I guess I just love food in general!

Everyone i've had tried this told me they loved it. My mom said it was the best thing i've made yet and both of my brothers enjoyed a slice. Even my girlfriend, who usually isn't fond of my cooking, told me it tasted excellent. And for the record, i'm the only person even remotely vegan let alone raw who tried it. That should say something! I preferred the chocolate frosting though, while they enjoyed the cake itself a bit more.

Now that my dessert is out of the way, time to announce the winner of my raw dessert contest. And the winner of the Raw Sample Pack from NutsOnline.com iiiiiiiiiiis.....

pureglow*16

She was the only eligible contestant to actually put her own recipe in. She also both liked both myself and Nuts Online on twitter. Not to mention, my obsession with peanut butter may have helped her just a bit.

Congrats Pureglow*16. Be sure to email me your address and phone number at the626drew@gmail.com so i may send your prize right away!

And everyone, don't forget to check out her awesome recipe for Raw Reeses!

Whats your favorite Halloween candy?

-Andrew D. Morrison-

Dessert Roundup

This weekend has been insane! Tests, food, and epic times hanging out with a few friends. Epic people make for an epic time. Also, that contest i'm working on seems to be a bit of a hit, i'm glad to say. Looking forward to the epicness that is raw dessert!

So many awesome recipes have been submitted for my raw dessert contest. The rules were basically to send me a link, recipe, or picture of your favorite raw dessert. Here are my favorites so far:

Pure glow sent me a link to her version of "Reeces" Peanut Butter Cups. With chocolate and peanut butter being my two favorite things in the world and this being my favorite Halloween candy before my vegan times, of course a trip down memory lane always is a plus for me.

Vegan Sweettooth's Raw Brownies were also suggested. I've seen, read, and made a lot of brownie recipes in my life time and they may be my favorite raw recipe for when I don't have much time to make anything. Throw a few simple ingredients into a food processor and blend until its a doughey yumminess. Then freeze for a few minutes to let it set and you're done!

What caught my eye about her brownies, was her pictures. I swear, they look just like the baked kind! That, i've found, is very hard to pull off so kudos to you VST!

Raw On 10 was also chosen as a raw dessert favorite, and I must admit that her caramel apple pie was most impressive. I don't have a dehydrator so I probably won't get a chance to make it, but her recipe looks absolutely amazing! Creativity and good taste clashed in this epic recipe and i intend on trying to make this, even if its not dehydrated. Just look at that! Tell me you don't want some of that gooey apple goodness.

On the lighter side, an awesome pie from Happy Cow was also sent to me. Happy Cow has some pretty awesome raw recipes, and their raw strawberry pie looks delicious and really easy! Sounds like epicness in every slice to me.

Anyways, don't forget to join the Raw Dessert Contest! The winner gets a Raw Sampler Pack from NutsOnline.com! When i announce the winner, i'll also post an epic recipe I came up with for a giant Halloween dessert. It involves lots of chocolate and lots of epicness!

Don't forget to enter my raw dessert contest here!

-Andrew D. Morrison-

Pumpkin Brownies

Pumpkin, chocolate, pumpkin, chocolate, pumpkin chocolate! I can't decide which to choose! So wait...if I can't decide, then why not choose them both?

Last year during Vegan Mofo, I remember seeing a few posts on Pumpkin Swirl Brownies. I even made some when I used my other site and was pretty proud of how they turned out. Now that i'm a raw foodies though, I was very curious of if I could recreate the dish of pure epicness. I do have some newly made raw pumpkin puree in the fridge, so whats stopping me? Its brownie time.

Raw Pumpkin Brownie

(Serves 12)

Brownie Ingredients:

2 c. Pecans

1 c. Pumpkin Seeds

3/4 c. Cacao Powder

4 Dates (pitted)

1/8 tbsp Coconut Oil

1/3c. Honey/Agave

2 tsp. Himalayan Pink Sea Salt

-Grind your pecans and pumpkin seeds into a coffee grinder until they become almost the texture of flour.

-Put your nut/seed flour, the cacao powder, and salt into your food processor. Pulse it a few times until they are well mixed.

-Add in your remaining ingredients and mix them until it forms a crumbly dough. Add a bit more coconut oil or honey if you thing its needed.

-Mold half of your dough into a container and freeze. Set the other half aside.

Pumpkin Filling Ingredients:

Ingredients:

1/2 c. Pumpkin Puree

3 Medjool Dates

2 tbsp. Honey/Agave

-Blend everything together in your food processor or blender.

-Pour the filling over the first brownie layer. Then add the remaining chocolate as a second layer.

-Enjoy!

This turned out excellently, even with the ingredients being as simple as they are. It was a little time consuming making the pumpkin puree, but I guarantee you it was well worth it. Pumpkin-chocolate combinations are kind of different, but I'll be looking forward to finding out other things I can do with the two. Especially with orange and black being perfect halloween colors! MWAHAHAHA!!!!

What are your favorite orange and black things?

-Andrew D. Morrison-

Raw Chocolate Macadamia Nut Mounds

Almond joy and Mounds were almost the definition of my perfect candy as a kid. Chocolate, coconut, and nuts all combined together into a harmonious symphony of sweet bliss upon my tongue. As many know, those three are some of my absolute favorite foods and with the fact that they combine together, things just get better from there.

Well when I lived in Hawaii, almost every store had chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and of course some of them were coated or filled with coconut. I don't need either one of those! Who would even want a commercial peice of crap when you can create something that tastes a hundred times better?!

Raw Chocolate - Macadamia Mounds

Macadamia Dough Ingredients:

1 c. Macadamia Nuts

1/4 c. Almond Butter

1 c. Shredded Coconut

1/4 c. Honey/Agave

1 tbsp. Sea Salt (Himilayan Pink preferably)

-Combine all of your ingredients into a bowl and use a fork or your hands to combine everything.

-Put in the fridge while you prepare the chocolate.

Chocolate Ingredients:

1 c. Cacao Powder

1 c. Cacao/Coconut Oil(softened)

1/2 c. Honey/Agave

3/4 c. Shredded Coconut

-Mix the cacao powder, oil, and honey or agave together in a small bowl.

-Take your macadamia dough and dip them each into the chocolate, coating them.

-Put them back into the freezer for a few minutes, or just until the chocolate hardens.

-Take them out and dip them into the chocolate. Then, dip them into the coconut. Continue this step until all of your coconut and chocolate are used up.

-Freeze for about 5 minutes or until the chocolate hardens.

-Enjoy

I am actually really proud of myself for these. I even took them to school, and the people I see usually eating vending machine crap claimed it as the best candy they've ever had! They tasted rich, chocolatey, and absolutley delicious! I like using macadamia nuts over most others due to the fact that they taste really really good!

They are also one of the most beautifying nuts on the planet. They contain a large quantity of oleic acid in their fats cells which is the absolute best fat for skin. Cacao and coconut also contain these acids in their fat, making this sweet and delicious food incredibly rich in beautifying oils. Just look at any cosmetic products, and you will most likely see cacao or coco (coconut) oil in them for that exact reason.

If you havnt heard through my Twitter account yet, i will be working on a HUGE project for Halloween as a big finally for Vegan Mofo. This is the biggest project i've ever done, and may just be the biggest raw dessert i've ever seen!

Whats your favorite old school candy? Do you have a vegan or raw version of it?

-Andrew D. Morrison-

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Torte (aka. Reeses!)

What better way to start off Vegan Mofo than with a dessert recipe? Something sweet and delicious to start off October and to give you something to snack on as you make your way through the month.

I dislike how all of the dessert recipes show up at the end of the month when you have little time to prepare yourself. All of the attention for Halloween and candy comes when its a bit too late and when things are almost over and done with. So with the taste of a Reeses peanut butter cup, but the creamy and chocolaty melt-in-your mouth feel of a chocolate torte, this halloween candy will satisfy Ladies and gentleman, boys and ghouls...... raw peanut butter torte!

Raw Chocolate - Peanut Butter Torte

Torte Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. Cacao Powder

3/4 c. Pecan Flour

6 tbsp. Coconut oil

6 tbsp. Honey

-Mix all of your dry ingredients together all of your dry ingredients in your food processor. If you don't have pecan flour, just process them in a coffee grinder a few times until they form a flour-like texture.

-Add in the liquid ingredients and mix until it dorms a very wet dough, almost the texture of peanut butter.

-Mold the dough into muffin tins, poking a hole into the top where the cream will go.

-Freeze the muffin pans while you make the cream.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cream Ingredients:

1/4 c. Cacao Powder

6 tbsp. Almond or Peanut Butter

1/4 c. Coconut Oil (melted)

1/4 c. honey

-Mix all of the ingredients in your food processor or a blender until it forms a liquidy cream. Add a few tablespoons of water or extra coconut oil if needed.

-Take your tortes out of the freezer and spoon the cream into the holes you made.

-Freeze for at least 30 minutes or until everything firms up.

-Eat and enjoy!

I had both of my little brothers try them, and they claim it to be excellently similar to Reeses peanut butter cups only chocolatier! My parents liked them as well, my dad saying they were good but not quite the same. Maybe a bit more peanut butter will do the trick but the texture was spot on!

They melt quickly though so be warned! They taste best straight from the freezer. I'll work on getting them a bit longer-lasting just so I can bring them to school and brag around Halloween time about my vegan epicness!

Whats your favorite Halloween candy or treat?

-Andrew D. Morrison-