Raw Spiced Fruit Cakes with Cacao Butter Icing (gf, v)

This raw, vegan reimagining of a steamed pudding puts all those familiar flavours into a nutritious dessert.

CAKES

75 grams dried dates

100 grams dried apricots, chopped

100 grams dried figs, chopped

1½ cups ground almonds (almond meal)

¾ cup walnut pieces ¾ cup raw hazelnuts

1½ teaspoons each ground ginger and cinnamon

¼ teaspoon each ground nutmeg and mixed spice zest 1 lemon and 1 orange

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons ground psyllium husks

3 tablespoons chia seeds

1/4 cup melted extra virgin coconut oil

RAW WHITE CHOCOLATE ICING

100 grams raw cacao butter 2 tablespoons maple syrup ¼ cup full-fat coconut cream

TO SERVE

freeze-dried plums Line 6 x ½ cup capacity dariole moulds (or small ramekins) with clingfilm.

CAKES: Soak the dates in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain well and add to a food processor along with all the remaining cake ingredients. Blitz until the mixture is coarsely chopped and sticky. Press the mixture evenly into the dariole moulds and place in the freezer to firm up.

RAW WHITE CHOCOLATE ICING: Place the cacao butter in a small saucepan over a low heat; remove as soon as it becomes liquid. Whisk in the maple syrup and coconut cream (using a blender or stick blender is even better). Allow to cool until nearly room temperature before re-whisking. Pour into a small cup to make dipping easier.

Remove the cakes from the freezer, and then from the moulds. Dip halfway into the icing. Allow the excess to drip off for a couple of seconds before returning to the freezer to set for 2 minutes. Remove from the freezer again, re-whisk the icing and re-dip the cakes. Return to the freezer to set. Repeat this step if you’d like a thicker topping.

Once the topping is set, the cakes can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Remove from the fridge 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with freeze-dried plums to serve. MAKES 6 SMALL CAKES