NGREDIENTS
"Ladyfingers" Layer Ingredients:
3 cup walnuts (not soaked)
2 cups medjool dates, pre-soaked (see notes above)
¼ cup strong coffee
⅛ tsp raw ground vanilla bean
pinch of salt
Chocolate Mousse Layer Ingredients:
1½ - 2 cups medjool dates, pre-soaked (see notes above)
Cream from 2 cans of full fat coconut milk (see notes above.
Note: for a raw version, use 1½ cups raw coconut cream)
1½ cups walnuts, pre-soaked
½ cup very strong coffee
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
¼ cup cocoa powder {use raw cacao powder for raw version}
½ tsp raw ground vanilla
pinch of salt
½ cup coconut water (or regular water. I used reserved
coconut water from one of the cans in the previous step)
2 tbsp agar agar flakes
Vanilla Cream Layer Ingredients:
1 cup cashews, pre-soaked (see notes above)
¼ cup coconut oil
½ cup coconut water or water (I used reserved coconut water
from one of the cans in the previous step).
5 tbsp maple syrup
⅛ tsp raw ground vanilla bean
Topping:
A bit of extra cocoa/raw cacao powder for dusting + optional
cacao nibs for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
Place walnuts in a food processor and process until mixture
is fine and crumbly. Add in all remaining "ladyfingers" layer
ingredients and process until the mixture is more or less smooth. Transfer
contents into a 9" springform pan and press base layer down evenly. Place
the pan in the freezer while working on the next step.
Place all chocolate mousse layer ingredients, except for
coconut water and agar-agar (last two ingredients) in your blender and blend
until mixture is smooth (a good blender like a Vitamix works best). Set aside.
Place coconut water and agar agar in a small saucepan and
warm on medium-low heat until the agar-agar flakes are dissolved, stirring
occasionally. Do not overcook, and do not allow the mixture to come to a boil.
Just heat until the flakes just dissolve. Add this agar-agar mixture to the
blender with the chocolate mousse ingredients and blend through to incorporate
the two mixtures together. Pour into the springform pan over the base layer and
place back in the freezer for about an hour to chill and harden.
Prepare the vanilla cream layer by placing all the
ingredients into a clean blender and blend until the mixture is smooth. Set
aside at room temperature. Once the chocolate mousse layer has been chilled for
about an hour, pour the vanilla cream layer into the pan over the chocolate
mousse. Return cake to the freezer for at least 2-3 more hours.
Once the cake has chilled in the freezer for a total of 4
hours, remove the side of the pan and transfer cake onto a serving plate. Dust
the cake with some cocoa powder. I used some cacao nibs as well for garnish.
Now that the cake is ready, transfer it into the fridge and keep it
refrigerated. You can serve right away as a chilled cake, but it's much more
amazing after thawing out a little in the fridge as it actually becomes
mousse-like. Alternatively, you can keep it frozen for longer storage.
