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Rich & Raw Chocolate Brownie with Chocolate Icing

Posted on June 16, 2012 by leroy watson

Raw Chocolate Brownie with Chocolate Sauce

This rich slice of brownie goodness just made my DAY!! Thank you to The Rawtarian for the idea! After seemingly forever without any chocolate (it feels like a very long time ago since we did the Willies Cacao and Chocolate tastings – our favourite chocolate in the world!) Lee treated me to this yummy dessert. After all we couldn’t go on a raw diet without experimenting with a broad range of food including LUXURY puddings could we? J Hehehe!

Whilst munching our way through half a slab last night we concluded the only possible drawback is the amount of sugar it contains (from the dates) and fats (from the coconut oil and the nuts…) But then you’re not supposed to eat 1/2 slabs at one sitting!! It is unbelievable to think there is no butter, cream or chocolate in this recipe; it tastes just so rich.

But because it’s all healthy ingredients; it is still no major crime to while the evening away with a delicious huge slab and a tasty cup of sweet vanilla rooibush tea to accompany it! And that’s exactly why I love this recipe – it’s naughty tasting healthy food!! Woo-hoo!

In the bits, we used soaked almonds instead of pecans and it worked out very nicely. We were lucky to have a few coconuts hanging around, so we were privileged to used fresh coconut and shredded it in our coffee grinder. The star of this recipe though is the salt (it is not often you say that!), Halen Mon Tahitian Sea Salt. We’ve been waiting to use this since we tried it in a ‘Dark Chocolate Ricotta’ recipe a few months ago. It really brings out the flavour of the chocolate and adds subtle hint of vanilla.

This recipe makes a great base for other desserts and can also be easily rolled up into dark chocolate truffles.

This is so packed full of energy, with the dates and nuts alone, if you planing on running any marathons in the near future, we highly recommend this for dessert the night before. You will break records!

The Bits

Brownie

1 cup pecans (you can use walnuts/ almonds in a pinch, but pecans are much better)

1 cup dates (stoned)

5 tablespoons raw cacao (cocoa) powder

4 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut (dessicated will do)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/2 teas Halen Mon Tahitian vanilla sea salt (normal sea salt is of course cool too)

Chocolate Icing

1 cup dates (soften in water for 1 hour)

1/4 cup raw cacao (cocoa) powder

1/4 cup cold-pressed coconut oil

3/4 cup water (or a tiny bit more if needed)

Do It

Brownie

Add the nuts to your blender and whizz until broken down, then add dates and blend for a minute, add all other ingredients and continue to whizz away until the mixture turns a lovely shiny dark brown, not too buttery (you should still be able to see bits of nuts). You may need scrape the mixture from the side of the blender to ensure that all is blended nicely.

Press down into a suitably rectangular container (cake tin will do) and press down evenly so the mixture evenly covers the base.

Cover and refrigerate, this mix keeps its shape well and even looks like a brownie!

Chocolate Icing

Could not be easier, soften your dates in the water for an hour before blending. This makes them softer and easier going. Then add all ingredients to the blender and whizz up. Start slowly and build up the speed, blend for a while, until the icing begins the shine and no dates can be seen (roughly 5 minutes). If needed, turn off the blender and scrape the icing down from the sides.

Voila!! A rich icing that would grace any dessert!

Raw Chocolate Brownie

Serve

We keep the chocolate sauce separate, in a sealed container, and spread onto the chunks of brownie when cut. Both the brownie and the sauce keep well in the fridge for a while. Otherwise, this needs no additions, just a few sweet teeth and a nice cuppa!

We Love It!

Deep, rich and velvety. This is a stunning recipe that keeps well and gets better with age (i.e. a couple of days). It is incredibly dense and a little goes a long way, meaning more days of decadent brownie time, which is never a bad thing. The icing is also very versatile and has an almost mousse-like texture that melts in the mouth.

Foodie Fact

To the Aztecs, the cacao bean was the food of the Gods. Raw cacao is bitter ad is normally sweetened, it is the main ingredient of chocolate and boasts many health benefits.

Cacao produces much the same effect as caffeine, yet milder and non-addictive. It stimulates the brain to produce a gentle euphoria via a release of endorphins. It also contains very high levels of antioxidants.

Like much of the research on foods, the science is ever changing and the cacao bean seems to be a contentious topic. The general opinion though is that it’s a superfood and dark chocolate, even when processed, contains many health benefits.

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: brownies, chocolate, dessert, healthy, icing, raw, raw food, recipe, sea salt, vanilla salt, vegan | 21 Comments

Amazing Salts! Halen Mon Sea Salt, Anglesey

Posted on March 27, 2012 by leroy watson

http://www.halenmon.com/

I am still relatively new to the north Wales area and am just getting to know a few like-minded people and producers. I have recently met a few ‘foodies’ up in these hills and they all rave about the local produce, normally mentioning Halen Mon Salt from the Isle of Anglesey. I have rarely seen people so passionate about their seasonings! Heston Blumethal and Barak Obama are converts. I felt compelled to know more.

Halen Mon is definitely our kind of supplier, the business started with a pan of sea water being heated on the Wilson family stove. Now, a few years later, they are suppling top restaurants and chefs around the world.

Having gone off salt for a while, figuring that the food we eat contains enough of it, Halen Mon Salt has made me realise that a pinch of good seasoning can make all the difference. Like anything, quality matters.

Their salt is made with charcoal filtered seawater that has passed through a mussel bed and a sandbank! Sea salt is simply made by heating the water and drying until crystals form. They are then washed in brine to make them shine.

Halen Mon have a fine selection of salts made by a lovely bunch of people. We have been using a selection of them in our cooking. The celery salt adds a distinct flavour to light salad dressings and the Tahitian vanilla salt compliments dark chocolate perfectly (see our ‘Bitter Chocolate Ricotta’ recipe). I have used their ‘Welsh Oak’ smoked salt on roasted vegetables and haloumi and the flavour is delicious.

Our favourite salt recipe at the moment is spiced nuts, using their ‘Sea Salt with Organic Spices’. Mix a few pinches of the salt with hot oil in a frying pan, pour in a selection of your favourite nuts and bake in a medium over until well roasted (15 minutes or so). This salt can also be used to liven up the humble roast potato. Having a range of salt like this in your larder increases your creativity as a cook.

The Halen Mon site has some informative, unbiased info on the pros and cons of salt in your diet (http://www.halenmon.com/faq.aspx). Basically cut out the processed food made in factories and cook your own, with a sprinkle of Halen Mon to bring out the flavour.

Quality sea salt is pure and contains non of the anti-caking agents and other dodgy additives found in normal table salt.

Halen Mon is the finest salt I have tasted. I love using it in dishes with a subtle flavour. Salt is something that we normally just throw into food, every time I use Halen Mon, it reminds me of the importance of each ingredient in a dish.

The Beach House overlooks the Irish sea, which is blue today under bright sunshine, we are very lucky to be using such brilliant produce made from that very water. Without producers like Halen Mon, cooking would be so much duller and our food certainly less tasty.