SUMMER BERRY VANILLA CREAM TARTS

Yeah, desserts are back. Thought I'd left ya, huh? Nope. I was just a little burnt out after writing my first book which focused entirely on raw, vegan, gluten-free desserts... over 100 recipes invented, created and photographed in under 4 months... I needed a break. Plus, as you may have noticed in my previous posts recently; I'm going 80/10/10! This means I am choosing to get almost all my calories (80%) from carbs, and leaving the remaining 20% of my calories to fat and protein. My diet is almost exactly what it was before: giant fruit smoothies all day, then a huge bowl of steamed veggies and rice for dinner, and a raw sweet for dessert! The only change? I'm skipping the desserts, which are usually nut-based, and instead getting those extra calories from more fruit in the day time! However, I  know that nuts are definitely necessary in a healthy diet, as is fat in general, in whole food plant form. So of course my dessert recipes are good for you! But having said that, I am going to focus on lowering the nut and coconut oil content in them, so we can all eat even MORE tarts. Sound good? Good. 

These adorable babies are full of fruity goodness, and they had my girlfriends practically fighting over the last bites. You can make this recipe nut-free very easily, or you can leave the nuts in there if you want. It's all up to you! I heart cashews! (I had to say it, it rhymed). You can also use nut pulp for the crust, if you are often left wondering what to do with that extra stuff after making almond milk. Frugal vegans are happy vegans... happy vegans with delicious healthy tarts. Let's eat. 

P.S. I apologize for these weird-looking photos. I'm still getting used to the photo editor on my MacBook. (YES I GOT A MAC WOOO!)

SUMMER BERRY VANILLA CREAM TARTS

Crust:

1 cup oats, nuts or nut pulp leftover from nut milk

1 1/4 cup dates

Berry cream:

1 cup frozen or fresh berries

Water, as needed

Vanilla cream:

3/4 cup cashews or 3 frozen bananas

1/2 vanilla bean

1 tablespoon coconut nectar

Water, as needed

Note: if you use cashews, you'll have lots of cashew vanilla cream leftover. I ask for 3/4 cup because you need to use at least that much to blend them into a cream in a blender, otherwise you just get cashew crumbs flying around the blades for infinity. 

Make the crust: pulse the oats or nuts into flour in a food processor. Add the dates and process it all until it sticks together. Press into lined tart tins. Put in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Make the cream: for each one, just blend all the ingredients until smooth. Fill your tart crusts with your berry and vanilla creams, and decorate with chia seeds, dried berries, coconut shreds and whatever else you like! x

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CHOCOLATE PUDDING TART WITH COCONUT CREAM & GOJI BERRIES

I've made variations of this pie/tart/thing a few times now (click here and here for past recipes) and every time the result is a winner with the crowd I serve it to. It's one of those desserts where you can expect the plates to be licked clean. Why? It's simple, really. You have a crust that tastes like butter tarts, followed by the most delicious and healthy chocolate pudding you can imagine, covered in whipped coconut cream and topped off with goji berries. This here's a no brainer, folks - make this recipe immediately.

Technically-speaking, the coconut cream isn't 100% raw because as far as I know, there're no raw brands of canned coconut milk (which is what you need to make it). If this doesn't bother you, let's hug and chow down. If you'd rather keep it all raw, use a cashew cream instead (blend cashews, dates, water and vanilla). See? Everybody gets what they want. Happy happy happy people. I originally made this for a friend's birthday but they seem to have celebrated without me (pfffff not hurt at all) SO it's going towards another good cause; my mom's lunch party with all her lady friends. I hope they enjoy it. They loved it. 

CHOCOLATE PUDDING TART WITH COCONUT CREAM & GOJI BERRIES

Crust:
1 cup walnuts
1 cup dates

Chocolate pudding:
1 avocado
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons coconut nectar (or date paste)
2 tablespoons cacao powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of Himalayan salt
1/4 cup nut milk, as needed

Coconut cream:
See this recipe

To make the crust: pulse the walnuts into powder then add the dates until it all begins to stick together. Press into a lined tart tin (mine was about 8 inches) and put in the fridge.

To make the chocolate pudding: blend all the ingredients together in your food processor until smooth and thick... it should taste a-freaking-mazing. Spread evenly into your crust.

Make the coconut cream, spread it on top of the pudding layer, and put back in the fridge overnight. Serve with goji berries, coconut flakes and cacao nibs. Nom.

SUN-DRIED TOMATO TART WITH ZUCCHINI HUMMUS

To quote my wise mother: "This one's a keeper." I concur. If you love hummus, tomatoes, and freshness; you're gonna freak out when you bite into this. If summer were a pizza,  it would taste like this tart. If you need to prove to anyone that raw vegan dinners can be delish, serve them this. If I continue with these "If" statements... where will we end up?

After making at least one dessert every day over the summer (not just because I am a glutton, but also because I was writing my raw dessert uncookbook), I am kind of going through withdrawal from the - albeit healthy - sweets. At the same time, I gotta keep making recipes for you guys! So I'm getting back to savoury-type dishes. This recipe was inspired by a tomato tart I saw on Sidesaddle Kitchen. And yes, by the way, Laura Miller IS the ultimate vegan babe / bad ass. I suggest you serve it with raw crackers or something else crunchy, to add another texture. It's also best after being refrigerated overnight; that extra time allows it to develop flavour and thicken up. 

You can find the recipe for this scrumptious baby over at one of my fave healthy food blogs, Ascension Kitchen, where I did it as a guest post for the always-gorgeous Lauren. But first... scroll through all the food porn photography. Wink. 

STRAWBERRY & CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM TART

I am so happy right now. For my countless blessings from the magical universe BUT ALSO - because I have succeeded in creating raw vegan buttercream. Chocolate. Buttercream. I know, I know; but please try to contain the applause.

Honestly, it was accidental. Two nights ago I was making some date syrup to photograph for my cookbook, and then I decided to turn it into a fudgy pudding type thing so I threw in some cacao, coconut oil, maple syrup, cashew butter, and other stuff. It tasted great but I had changed my mind - I wasn't hungry anymore. I put it in the fridge...

The next day my heart was set on creating strawberry chocolate cream tarts using the chocolate mixture I had made the previous night, along with a simple tart crust and fresh strawberries from our garden. Everything was set to go; I finally took out the chocolate mixture and tasted it. Oh. My. God.

It had evolved into chocolate buttercream overnight. Praise the heavens and all that is holy. Obviously it will taste great with anything, especially if that anything is strawberries. Make this ASAP.

strawberry & chocolate buttercream tart

Crust:
1 cup almonds
1 cup dates 

Chocolate buttercream:
1 cup dates
3/4 cup water
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup cacao powder
2 tablespoon cashew butter
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Topping:
Sliced strawberries 
Mint leaves

To make the crust: pulse the almonds into flour in a food processor. Add the dates and process until they stick together. Press into the bottom and up the side of a lined spring form pan or tart molds. 

To make the buttercream: blend all the ingredients until smooth. Refrigerate overnight so it can develop those magical flavours, then spread evenly into your crust. Top off with strawberries and mint. Enjoy the !#$% out of it. 

blueberry tarts for two

Guess who's back! Me. I am basically done all the dirty work for the book ("WOW EMILY YOU ARE SO AMAZING HOW DID YOU CREATE AND PHOTOGRAPH ALMOST 100 RECIPES IN JUST 3 MONTHS!?") Okay I am kidding but in all seriousness I am not ashamed to say that I am proud of myself. This summer has been crazy; mind and body completely devoted to thinking of, creating, photographing and typing up raw vegan dessert recipes. Oh, and always cleaning my messes up. Every. Day. 

Well now I am rambling. Point of this all is: with the hard work for my book (out March 2014) outta the way, I now am free to go back to focusing on my one true love. That'd be you. I miss you! I miss giving you recipes and hearing your feed back! So here is a recipe; and I demand feed back. 

These tarts are super simple to make (what else is new...) and equally delicious (I am officially a broken record). Most of my recipes leave you with several servings and that's all fine and dandy but what if you just want enough for two people? Or, one hungry person? Then you use this recipe. Whip these tarts up in a few minutes and surprise your friend or lover when they walk in the door, fort entrance, or whatever opening you have in your habitat.

Oh, I have more space to write than I thought I did. Okay. What shall I talk about? I got it. Berries and the Divine. In this recipe I used blueberries straight from our front yard, where they bloom in abundance for 3 glorious months each summer. These months give my life meaning: I live for these berries. Anyways, I have had many an epiphany whilst picking blueberries; my mind wanders to a peaceful, still place where the world is simple and I am but a humble human foraging for food. It's cathartic, to be perfectly honest. A few weeks ago while I was snacking on berries from the bushes, I realized that this was the original day job! Our ancestors spent their entire days - when they weren't running from giant cats or pro-creating - simply finding fruits and other edibles, picking them, and later eating them.

This gave me such a sense of oneness within and of the world. Truly, we have hardly changed a bit since our early days of hunting and gathering. What has changed is our surroundings, but that is virtually all. I enjoy participating in this majestic and intrinsically-connected universe and it's very much a reassuring feeling knowing that I am the same as those who came before me, and those who are yet to come. We are all the same. In our DNA, in our desires, in our perceived duties, there's hardly a difference among us when you get right down to our foundations. I am the blueberry and the blueberry is I.

Enough with the hippie talk, though. I know you just want dessert.

blueberry tarts for two:

crust:

1/2 cup almonds

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 tablespoon maple syrup 

filling:

1 cup blueberries

2 tablespoons coconut powder (dried coconut process into powder) 

To make the crust: process the almonds into powder in a food processor. Add the the coconut oil and maple syrup and process until it all sticks together in a ball. Press into two single-serving lined tart tins. Put in the fridge for 30-60 minutes or until solid. Fill with blueberries and sprinkle with coconut powder. 

a day in the life + i miss you!

Greetings, my lovelies. First off, you better be drooling right now. Yes, I am cruel because I cannot give you the recipe for the food pornography you see here. But in a way I am still kind for showing these GIFs... right!? Okay, I am sorry if you hate me now. But I still love you! And I miss you. Every time I make a new recipe for the upcoming raw desserts cookbook, I am UBER tempted to post it. I must be strong and look to my inner wolf spirit (they're strong right?) to find the strength not to post.

What you see temptingly pictured is a {raw and vegan, naturally} oreo tart with vanilla cream and chocolate ganache. Below me - or my words, rather - are some post-photography shots of my set-up and tear-down. I figure since I am not able to share my recipes right now, I may as well give you guys some insight into what a normal photo shoot looks like! It is not particularly exciting, to be frank... Of course my name is Emily, not Frank, so maybe it IS exciting. Who knows? My wolf spirit, most likely.

just the bare fruit tarts

Get it? Just the bare fruit... just the bare truth... Haha? These are all fruit, all the time. the crust is nut-free, made from only dried dates, raisins and figs. The filling is banana cream and obviously the topping is simply sliced strawberries and kiwi. I added chia to the banana cream because chia is a rock star (or should I say... RAW star? Eh? Eh!? Alright fine, I won't). 

So if you are allergic to nuts or just don't like their fat content, this is the recipe for you! Plus it's super easy and since it includes fruit, it's also tons of colourful fun. I recommend getting organic strawberries - they are way tastier, and much better for the planet (and your own body). A documentary I watched recently reminded me of the importance of buying organic produce. It's called Queen of the Sun, and it discusses how honey bee populations are shrinking drastically largely due to the lack of organic plants they can use. Give it a watch! It's excellent and intriguing. 

Anyways. Fruit tarts. 

These are absolutely bursting with colour, flavour and life. I ate two of them all by myself while photographing  I've got a tough life, what can I say? Go ahead and use whatever fresh fruits you have, and top off with little goodies like cacao, goji berries, or coconut flakes. They are best enjoyed in the sunshine, with your friends family, and animal buddies.

Better yet - grow your OWN strawberries! I am hoping we get a better crop from our bushes this year, last summer we got a bunch of new strawberry bushes, so they take a while to get used to growing fruit. I am also looking forward to my goji berries to coming back! They are such a treat. Basically - fruit is the best thing ever, and I get to be surrounded by it when summer comes, thus I am extremely excited for summer. I am also extremely excited about all the GIFs I have been making.

berry fruit tarts with chia seeds: makes 3 tarts

Crust:
1/4 cup dates
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup dried figs

Filling: 
1-2 bananas
2 tablespoon chia seeds (optional) 

Topping:
3/4 cup chopped strawberries
3/4 cup chopped kiwi
Whatever else you want

To make the crust: put all the ingredients in your food processor and pulse until everything is in small pieces that stick together - don't process to much or it will get too sticky. Press into three lined tart tins. Put in the fridge. 

To make the filling: mush the banana with fork and then add the chia seeds. 

Assembly: take the crusts gently out of the tins. Spread the banana chia mix into the crusts and then top off with the fruit. Gobble.