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4

Feb

2006

Love Chocolate?

Saved in:-   Desserts,Raw Food Recipes


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raw food recipe chocolate torte

 

If you love chocolate and you have someone to love then you could do alot worse than making this chocolate torte on Valentines day. If you haven’t got someone to love then love yourself for a while :) Here is the recipe for the torte that I made for the last Fresh Network Dinner Party, so I can assure you that you’ll make an impression with it!

Cut yourself a slice, curl up on the sofa for a while…

A giant brown slab of chocolatey goodness

Prep time 30 mins
How easy is this recipe? ** (2 stars)

Recipe Scale:

*(1 star) Your gran could make this if she had a Vitamix!

**(2 stars) You need a brain and a little bit of common sense.

***(3 stars) Some knowledge needed but don’t worry, I’ll show you how :)

****(4 stars) You’ve done this before haven’t you?

*****(5 stars) You use your Cuisinart more often than your toothbrush!

 

Crust

1 1/2 cups pecans
1 cup raisins, roughly chopped
3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or seeds from 1 vanilla pod
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon Himalayan salt

 

Filling

2 cups cashew butter
2 cups water
2 cups cacao powder or 1 1/2 cups milled cacao nibs + 1/2 cup carob powder if no cacao powder available
1 1/2 cups grated cacao butter
2 avocados
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or seeds from 2 vanilla pods
1 cup agave nectar

 

Method

- The first thing we need to do is liquidise the cacao butter and coco butter so put them in separate containers and place in a warm dehydrator. If you don’t have a dehydrator then you can do this on a stove (if you haven’t sold it yet!) but you have to be really careful not to let it get too warm. You can also do it in a glass bowl over another bowl of hot water, you know, like your Mum used to do when she made a cake with chocolate!

- Next make sure your cashew butter is out of the fridge as it will be easier to work with at room temp.

 

Crust

- Process all the dry ingredients in a processor, then add coco butter and vanilla extract. Be sure not to over-process nuts as they will release their oil and become ‘sludge’!

- Press all the ingredients into a 9″ springform pan. If you have a different size springform, don’t worry, just use what you have and see how thick the base becomes. For example an 8″ will produce a thicker base, it’s really no problem! :)

 

Filling

- Mix the water, cacao powder and avocados in a blender. In a large bowl add this mixture to the cashew butter and stir well by hand.

If you have a Vita Mix you don’t need to mix by hand, you can do this first step and the next step in the VM but do remember to add the cacao butter last, after everything has been blended.

- Add remaining ingredients – melted cacao butter, vanilla extract and agave to the bowl and mix again.

- When thoroughly mixed, pour the heavenly chocolate mixture on to the base in the springform and then use a spatula to even out the top.

- Lick the bowl.

- Place torte in the fridge over night to set.  It tends to get better every night it’s in the fridge, if it lasts that long without you eating it all!  Seriously though, this will make a very big torte so there’ll be plenty to go round :) You can put it in the freezer for a couple of hours to set if you’re short of time as well.

- Before removing the springform, run a knife around the edge of the torte to separate it from the pan.

- Serve, eat, love.

 

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  • Barefoot Elaina

    I made this cake, and the ginger cashew and strawberry sauces, and BLIMEY This is the most amazing combination, and the most perfect chocolate torte ever! I made it for a dinner party for non-raw friends, and they adored it. I had a friend to stay and we had two pieces each every day until it was finished, and then she wanted the recipe. It has the most perfect balance between rich bitter chocolate and sweetness, a wonderful velvet texture and a satisfying delicious base. Thank you so much Russell, for the finest dessert ever.

  • http://www.therawchef.com Russell James

    Hi Elaina,

    Guess you liked the torte then? :)

    Thanks for taking the time to write. I especially love to hear that these recipes turn on the ‘cooked foodies’ out there. That’s what it’s all about; getting new people in and helping people who most need it.

    Thanks again.

  • http://g2bthin.blogspot.com/ Jen

    When I scrolled down that page and saw the piece of raw cake my mouth opened wide LOL. Ive never seen such a pretty lookin slice of raw cake heaven!! I want to make it!!

  • http://therawchef.blogs.com Russell James

    Thanks Jen! Everyone seems to love that torte!

  • Melissa

    Wow! I made this chocolate torte and I must say – it is to LIVE for! It was a perfect combination of flavours! I’ve been looking through your photo albulm on flickr and have to ask.. How did you make those blueberry pancakes? They look divine!

  • http://www.reiki-light.com Diane

    DIVINE AWESOME AMAZING ENERGIZING

    LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!

    Better than cooked chocolate mousse by far.

  • Kahti

    Hi,
    This is a yummy cake; however, mine has been setting for 7 hours and is still the consistency of thick pudding. What might I have done wrong? It’s not firm enough to cut into a slice.

    Thanks!
    Kahti

    From Russell: Sounds like you used too much water. It may have been that your cahsew butter was more watery than the brand I used, so cut the water down by half or more next time. What you can do is try to put the recipe together without any water at all and if it’s able to blend don’t add any more. If it doesn’t blend just add water 1/4c at a time until it does.

    Freeze the one you currently have, cut it with a knife dipped in hot water and serve it just as it’s thawing out, but not so much that it melts.

  • http://lazynui.multiply.com Nui

    Hi,

    I made it! It was unbelievable tasty. To be honest, I didn’t think it would be this great ;) I didn’t know that raw stuff could be so fantastic. Will try some other recipes soon :)

  • alla

    Hi,

    I just made the cake and it’s good. the only thing it’s a bit grainy. It doesn’t look like your picture. I guess it’s because I don’t have a vitamix. Also the cashew ginger sauce came out grainy as well and the color is not white like the picture of your cake.
    but it still tastes good. I will make this again when I purchase a vitamix. I also made your raw Lasagna and that is unbelievable I make it all the time now for my husbands birthday and special get togethers, everyone loves it.

    From Russell: The Vita-Mix will certainly sort out that issue. You’ll find both those mixtures much creamier.

  • Mair

    Well – I am in the middle of making this amazing torte…have yet to add the two sauces. But I wanted to say that I have taken a half of the torte and cut it into small squares (like 1″ square) and frozen them. They are so delicious that way – like small explosions of deep chocolate gelato. Just one is all I need for that after dinner chocolate fix. Thanks!

  • Judith

    Please, I read somewhere, in your text, that there is a some product instead of nuts to put in chocolate torte.
    I can’t find it back, and I forgot the name of the product.
    Can you please write me what it is again and how to use it, and where to get it.
    Or where I find it back, what I read. Thanks a lot.

    With many regards.

    Judith

    From Russell: Check out http://www.NewsFromTheKitchenArchives.com for all my eZine archives and then click on issue 19 for that information.

  • Judith

    Hi Russel,

    Thank you for your answer, I found it back in issue 19. I will try it ounce with and without nuts.

    Please my other question, where can I get caco butter in Germany or in Belgium?

    I like to follow once a claas by you, for that I try to learn now a better englisch, to understand everthink.

    Thank you for your nice, and interesting idears and help.

    Judith

  • Shannon

    Hi Russell. I just learned about Raw foods from a vegetarian friend of mine and I came across your recipes. Everything looks so good and I love the pictures. I’d like to try this recipe first, but I’m allergic to pecans and walnuts. Can I substitute almonds or cashews?

    Thanks :)

    From Russell: Yes, almonds and especially cashews will work great.

  • natarsha

    Hi just made the above chocolate torte recipe with a friend and it is truly divine, we shared it with friends and every single crumb vanished.
    Thank you for a truly inspiration and delicious ricipe.
    I was trilled to receive a raw curry recipe a few issues ago as it is one food group i miss most of all,
    thank you and please keep coming up with great ideas.
    Natarsha

  • Max

    I made this cake today. It is just delicious. I hope I will be able to fall asleep, me and my wife had some around 8 pm. I used to live in Brooklyn and I knew a small cafe in NYC that was preparing raw food. I was always wondering how were they preparing the cakes like that, now I know. Thank you.
    I couldn’t find in health food stores around me cacao butter, my friend suggested using coconut oil/butter, it worked perfectly. Next time I will use cacao butter I wonder if the taste will be significantly different.

  • Margushia

    Is possible to substitute the cocoa and cashew butter with something different? I couldn’t find any of them in the healthy stores where I live :(

  • http://www.therawchef.com Russell James

    If you like the taste of carob, you could use that instead of cacao, and instead of cashew butter, you could use a mixture of cashews and water.

    1 cup cashews, soaked for 20 minutes, and then 1/2 to 3/4 cups water.

    You’ll also easily be able to find those ingredients online.

  • Margushia

    And the cocoa butter? May I use coconut oil? I will try with the cashews and coconut oil as Max did and we’ll see :)

  • http://www.therawchef.com Russell James

    Yes, but the coconut oil is not as firm as cacao butter, so you’ll need to definitely keep it in the fridge until serving.  Event then it will be softer.

    With all those changes it will be a very different tasting recipe.

  • Margushia

    I looked for it on the internet so I’ll wait until the cocoa butter arrives and then will try to make this wonderful chocolate torte.Thx

  • http://www.therawchef.com Russell James

    Great! Let me know how it goes.

  • Skash1956

    Hi Russell – So if using the maple syrup and/or yacon syrup would you use the same amount of either of these as you would use of agave? Thanks ahead of time for the response. 

  • http://www.therawchef.com Russell James

    If you’re using maple or yacon, I would start with 1/2 to 3/4 of the amount, seeing as they’re stronger favours.

    If it’s not quite sweet enough but the flavour of the sweetener is getting too much, I would add some coconut palm sugar or xylitol.