CINDY A
02-10-2011, 10:44 AM
now that the voting is over I though I would post this!!! Sounds interesting and creative
CHOCOLATE COCONUT CHECKERBOARD
THREE-LAYER CAKE
By Mary Kay Simoni
Makes one 9" cake for approximately 20 - 30 very rich servings.
Base
8 cups dried coconut (truly raw and organic would be best)
4 cups of any combination of soaked, dried and ground nuts, seeds,
(Other suggestions: more coconut, ground flax, hempseeds left over almond pulp, peeled zucchini pulp left over from juicing etc)
2 ½ cups maple syrup
1 ½ cups barely warmed and melted raw coconut oil
5 TBSP non-alcoholic vanilla extract*/or scrape the seeds of five vanilla beans
1 tsp sea salt
Vanilla Half -- Extra Wet Ingredients
3 TBSP barely warmed and melted raw coconut oil
Chocolate Half - Extra Dry Ingredients
2 cups solid dry ingredients -- may be a combination of carrot pulp left over from making carrot juice or any combination ground nuts and seeds, coconut, etc
1 cup dried maple sugar or 1 cup maple syrup plus ¼ cup ground flax
1 cup raw cacao powder
Chocolate Half - Extra Wet Ingredients
4 large handfuls of spinach, chard or other mild greens (optional -- get your greens wherever you can!)
1TBSP spirulina (optional)
½ cup date paste plus 1 cup maple syrup, or 1 ½ cups maple syrup
1½ cups raw cacao powder
*You may make your own non-alcoholic vanilla extract by cutting and discarding the hard ends off five vanilla beans, then cutting the vanilla beans up into small pieces and combine with one cup of water in a high-speed blender. Rinse the canister with a little extra water and add to your jar. This will keep for approximately one week in your refrigerator.
Instructions
Start out by placing eight cups of dried finely shredded coconut into a large mixing bowl. Then use up any almond pulp you have left over, grind any nuts you may have etc. You may even use more coconut, just so it equals twelve cups total. Mix all the rest of the base ingredients in a large mixing bowl thoroughly by hand with a large serving spoon, then divide the mixture into two slightly unequal halves, and remove the smaller half to another large mixing bowl. I have chosen the larger "half" to become the chocolate portion of the cake, but you may choose it to become vanilla, if you want there to be more vanilla in your cake.
Add three TBSP of barely warmed, melted coconut to the mixture you have deemed vanilla. Then, add the rest of the chocolate dry ingredients to the other mixture and stir well. Process all the chocolate wet ingredients in a food processor or blender, then pour into the chocolate batter and again, mix well.
I would then advise you to make some chocolate and vanilla macaroons and place in your dehydrator on 105 degrees F for approximately four hours to test them. Test for dryness, sweetness etc and adjust your batter accordingly. Also test the vanilla and chocolate together, to see how the combination will taste in your cake.
Once you are satisfied, use a checkerboard cake-making kit that can be purchased at a cooking store for approximately $15 US. This consists of a nine-inch cake tin with plastic rings that fit inside of it. Alternate chocolate and vanilla batter in the three rings. Remove the rings, and push down to make sure the different flavors adhere to each other. Place a screened tray from a dehydrator on top, flip over and place the cake onto the drying rack. Make two with chocolate on the outside, and one with vanilla on the outside. Dehydrate overnight at 105 degrees F.
Please note, that this cake can be made without the use of a dehydrator, however the dehydrator will make the three layers easier to handle without falling apart. And if dehydrated, a nice texture is created where the outside will become somewhat crispy, and the inside will remain a little more chewy.
Allow to cool before to room temperature before adding frosting. May be difficult to cut if cooled too much because the coconut oil in it will become hard.
Chocolate Avocado Frosting
1 handful of spinach (optional -- to get more greens!)
1½ cups macadamia nuts or cashews soaked in
1 ½ cups maple syrup for more than an hour
½ cup gently warmed and melted cocoa butter
½ cup gently warmed and melted coconut oil
¾ cup raw cacao powder
2 avocados
2 TBSP non-alcoholic vanilla extract or the scraped seeds of two vanilla beans
½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
Combine all the ingredients into a high-speed blender. Chill slightly before spreading onto cake.
CHOCOLATE COCONUT CHECKERBOARD
THREE-LAYER CAKE
By Mary Kay Simoni
Makes one 9" cake for approximately 20 - 30 very rich servings.
Base
8 cups dried coconut (truly raw and organic would be best)
4 cups of any combination of soaked, dried and ground nuts, seeds,
(Other suggestions: more coconut, ground flax, hempseeds left over almond pulp, peeled zucchini pulp left over from juicing etc)
2 ½ cups maple syrup
1 ½ cups barely warmed and melted raw coconut oil
5 TBSP non-alcoholic vanilla extract*/or scrape the seeds of five vanilla beans
1 tsp sea salt
Vanilla Half -- Extra Wet Ingredients
3 TBSP barely warmed and melted raw coconut oil
Chocolate Half - Extra Dry Ingredients
2 cups solid dry ingredients -- may be a combination of carrot pulp left over from making carrot juice or any combination ground nuts and seeds, coconut, etc
1 cup dried maple sugar or 1 cup maple syrup plus ¼ cup ground flax
1 cup raw cacao powder
Chocolate Half - Extra Wet Ingredients
4 large handfuls of spinach, chard or other mild greens (optional -- get your greens wherever you can!)
1TBSP spirulina (optional)
½ cup date paste plus 1 cup maple syrup, or 1 ½ cups maple syrup
1½ cups raw cacao powder
*You may make your own non-alcoholic vanilla extract by cutting and discarding the hard ends off five vanilla beans, then cutting the vanilla beans up into small pieces and combine with one cup of water in a high-speed blender. Rinse the canister with a little extra water and add to your jar. This will keep for approximately one week in your refrigerator.
Instructions
Start out by placing eight cups of dried finely shredded coconut into a large mixing bowl. Then use up any almond pulp you have left over, grind any nuts you may have etc. You may even use more coconut, just so it equals twelve cups total. Mix all the rest of the base ingredients in a large mixing bowl thoroughly by hand with a large serving spoon, then divide the mixture into two slightly unequal halves, and remove the smaller half to another large mixing bowl. I have chosen the larger "half" to become the chocolate portion of the cake, but you may choose it to become vanilla, if you want there to be more vanilla in your cake.
Add three TBSP of barely warmed, melted coconut to the mixture you have deemed vanilla. Then, add the rest of the chocolate dry ingredients to the other mixture and stir well. Process all the chocolate wet ingredients in a food processor or blender, then pour into the chocolate batter and again, mix well.
I would then advise you to make some chocolate and vanilla macaroons and place in your dehydrator on 105 degrees F for approximately four hours to test them. Test for dryness, sweetness etc and adjust your batter accordingly. Also test the vanilla and chocolate together, to see how the combination will taste in your cake.
Once you are satisfied, use a checkerboard cake-making kit that can be purchased at a cooking store for approximately $15 US. This consists of a nine-inch cake tin with plastic rings that fit inside of it. Alternate chocolate and vanilla batter in the three rings. Remove the rings, and push down to make sure the different flavors adhere to each other. Place a screened tray from a dehydrator on top, flip over and place the cake onto the drying rack. Make two with chocolate on the outside, and one with vanilla on the outside. Dehydrate overnight at 105 degrees F.
Please note, that this cake can be made without the use of a dehydrator, however the dehydrator will make the three layers easier to handle without falling apart. And if dehydrated, a nice texture is created where the outside will become somewhat crispy, and the inside will remain a little more chewy.
Allow to cool before to room temperature before adding frosting. May be difficult to cut if cooled too much because the coconut oil in it will become hard.
Chocolate Avocado Frosting
1 handful of spinach (optional -- to get more greens!)
1½ cups macadamia nuts or cashews soaked in
1 ½ cups maple syrup for more than an hour
½ cup gently warmed and melted cocoa butter
½ cup gently warmed and melted coconut oil
¾ cup raw cacao powder
2 avocados
2 TBSP non-alcoholic vanilla extract or the scraped seeds of two vanilla beans
½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
Combine all the ingredients into a high-speed blender. Chill slightly before spreading onto cake.