One of my favourite parts of my job is learning! I make a point of regularly volunteering for my friend Andrea Potter's cooking classes. Andrea is a professionally trained chef, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and was the head chef at Radha Yoga and Eatery before she launched her own business Rooted Nutrition.

I had the pleasure to assist Andrea with her Valentine's Day Cooking Class at Radha Eatery and everything was incredibly delicious. I was delighted that she chose to make a Raw Chocolate Ganache Tart. I have never made one before and was excited to add this delicious delicacy to my repertoire of raw chocolate recipes. While I wouldn't say this tart everyday fare, it is fairly easy to make and uses ingredients from my Everyday Pantry Shopping List. This means Raw Chocolate Ganache is convenient if you have your basic and versatile staples on hand.

Andrea was kind enough to allow me to share her recipe with you. The Raw Chocolate Ganache recipe will soon be featured in the Vancouver Sun along with other items on her Valentine's Day Vegan menu like Lentil Shepard's Pie, Miso Gravy, Roasted Marinated Mediterranean Veggies, Polenta and Baked Apple Turnovers. Luck for you, you get a sneak preview :-)

Andrea's Raw Chocolate Ganache Cake

Crust:
2 cups nuts (pecans, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, dried coconut)
3/4 cup dates (you can replace some of this with raisins which are less $$ but don't taste as good, use half and half for the best of both worlds)

Julie's Tip: The type of nut/seed you use will influence the flavour. The more affordable options are shredded coconut, pumpkin and sunflower seeds. Unfortunately these will not give you the best flavour. Dang! The next best most affordable options are cashews or almonds (depending on where you buy). I would start by sprinkling dried coconut on the bottom of the pie pan, organic shredded coconut is affordable and goes very nicely with raw organic chocolate:-) I would start by adding about 1 to 1/2 cups of almonds to my food processor - more $$ but tasty. Then I would use approx 1/2 cup of affordable ground flax seeds that also  give you your omega-3s. By themselves flax does not add much flavour and tastes earth, but when combined with another nut like almonds, the flavour is hidden and can add nutritious affordable bulk to your raw crusts. Then I would add a bit of orange rind. Orange really really LOVES chocolate and is one of the more affordable organic fruits, so I make a point of making this ingredient an everyday staple.

Method

(1) Use soaked and dehydrated nuts (for optional digestion), or soak raw nuts for 30 minutes to maintain crunch and get rid of some of the enzyme inhibitors.
(2) Drain, rinse and place in food processor until finely ground.
(3) Add dried fruit and pulse until mixture is crumbly.
(4) Press crust into the bottom of the pan evenly. You can build up the sides with hemp seeds or shredded coconut.

Filling:
1 cup raw cashews, soaked for a least an hour in plenty of water
1/2 cup raw cacao powder
2 cups soaked dates*
2 tbsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup coconut oil melted (you can replace with cacao butter, I think this would taste better but is more $$ and not on my Everyday Pantry Shopping List...although I usually have some in my fridge ;-)

*Andrea's recipe actually uses 1 cup dates and 1 cup of Agave Syrup. For those of us who do not like Agave, Andrea suggests replacing with 1 cup of dates. The texture will be more chewy though. It's up to you!

Method

(1) Drain and rinse cashews
(2) In a blender, combine all ingredients except for coconut oil, until smooth.
(3) Slowly add coconut oil as it blends.
(4) When mixture is smooth, poor onto crust.
(5) Refrigerate or freeze until set (about 2 hours)

Andrea's Notes: Serve cold. The tart freezes well. To serve, thaw in fridge for a few hours, although it is also delicious frozen, as an ice kream type cake!)

Garnish: We topped off the cake with "date caramel", basically just dates and water blended together and fresh mint leaves for presentation.

Thank you Andrea!

Bon Appetit!