On Sunday evenings I make dessert for my family. My kids do not eat very much sugar and my golden rule is if goes into their mouths, it has to have some sort of nutrition. Raw desserts are my favorite way to “un”-cook yummy treats because there is no white sugar and usually contains nuts, avocado, fruits (natural sweeteners).
Sunday night’s dessert was a chocolate pudding. Because the base for this pudding is avocado and dates, I know my family gets nearly 20 essential nutrients from the avocado alone, including fiber, vitamin E, B and folic acid — and it contains good fats. Dates provide iron, copper and potassium, among other things.
The avocado makes it wonderfully creamy and the dates make it perfectly sweet. I made it a little more fun and shaved some raw chocolate on top of the pudding. For decoration I put a raspberry on top and afterward realized it was delicious when combined with the chocolate. Next time, I will make a raspberry flavored chocolate pudding.
2 fresh dates, pitted and soaked for 1 hour in 1/2 cup water
1/2 large and ripe avocado
1 tsp raw coconut butter
1/2 tbs maple syrup
1/2 vanilla bean, spilt open and seeds used
1 tsp mesquite powder (optional)
1/2 tbs cocoa powder
Shaved chocolate (optional)
Place the soaked dates and water in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add coconut butter, maple syrup, vanilla bean, cocoa powder, mesquite if using and avocado and process until very creamy, scrape down sides once. Pour into portion cups or serving bowl. Shave chocolate on top and decorate with fruit to make it extra special.
