Recipes: easy raw desserts
Getting refined sugar out of kids diets (or adults for that matter) is a major challenge. You can have the best of intentions, keeping junk food out of your house completely, but unless your child lives in a glass bubble, they will be continually bombarded with it every time they leave the house. Birthday parties, play dates, class parties, movie theatres, stores…it’s everywhere and it is so enticing. It is packaged so appealingly, it tastes good, and it is completely addictive. Kids are like a bunch of little junkies running around looking for their next fix.
When I first started introducing raw foods to our household, I decided to approach the kids from the sweet side. If nothing else, if I can replace a refined sugar, white flour dessert with a healthy raw one that tastes just as good, I will feel as if I have accomplished something. The battle isn’t won, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Raw desserts are typically made from a variety of fresh and/or dried fruit and nuts. They taste surprisingly rich and decadent. They are satisfying and you can eat them without the guilt associated with your run of the mill white flour concoction. If you have never tasted raw ice cream, you are in for a treat! It tastes so incredibly rich and creamy, it’s difficult to believe there are no dairy products in it. (It’s typically made from a base of cashews).
Following are a couple of very simple desserts to introduce to your family or bring with you to a party so you won’t be tempted to indulge in something that is not quite so healthy.
Recipes:
Almond Butter Balls
These are perfect for an after school snack or when a sugar craving strikes. They are very sweet and rich tasting. One ball will do the trick. Personally I find them a little too sweet for my taste right now, but I used to love them and my 11 year old adores them.
½ cup raw almond butter
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup raisins
½ cup raw honey
Grind the sunflower seeds (can use a coffee grinder) Place in bowl and mix with other ingredients.
Freezer Fudge
Raw Food/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow
I hid these in the freezer and wouldn’t let anyone else touch them when I was trying to give up junk food. I would have 1 or 2 every evening with a cup of mint tea. They will satisfy any sweet craving and I just love the consistency of them. The almond butter is very filling…you only need 1 or 2 small squares.
2 cups raw almond butter
¼ cup raw carob or cacao powder
½ cup plus 2 T. maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. coarse sea salt
Mix everything together. Mold into a pan to place in freezer (cover with wax paper) Remove after an hour or so and cut into small squares. Store in freezer or they will get mushy.
Apple Tart
RAWvolution: Gourmet Living Cuisine
I’m not a fan of adding sweeteners to fruit. Fruit is sweet enough. But I make an exception with this dessert. It’s a fancy way of presenting apples…this is one of my 9 year old’s favorite after school treats. Sometimes I’ll just serve the filling on its own.
Crust:
2 cups raw almonds, ground in food processor
1/3 cup agave nectar
Filling:
2 apples, sliced thinly
2 T agave nectar
½ tsp cinnamon
1 ½ tsp flax seed, ground in food processor
1 ½ tsp fresh lemon juice
¼ cup raisins
Combine almonds and agave nectar; mold into the bottom of a baking dish. Toss the sliced apples with other filling ingredients and place in the baking dish.
Fresh Berries with Chocolate Dipping Sauce
You can never go wrong with this! Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and bananas are all delicious with a little raw chocolate syrup sprinkled over. You can purchase raw chocolate syrup at a health food store or make your own by mixing together raw cacao powder with agave nectar and a little coconut butter. Alter the quantity of each by taste.
As for the raw ice cream, I have not experimented with making my own yet. It just seems too complicated for my lifestyle. Instead, whenever I am in Manhattan, I try to get myself toPure Food and Wine, a very well known raw foods restaurant (I’m salivating right now thinking about their ice cream sundaes). You can also order raw ice cream online or find it in your local health food store. Be forewarned though…it’s quite expensive. The ingredients are mainly raw nuts which cost a lot more than sugar and milk which is why is carries a sticker price of about $7 for a half pint. I guess that’s a good thing or I’d be eating it every day!
Hey Carol – I have that RAWvolution cookbook and made the “cinnamon girls” balls. OMG they were sooo good…sweet and cinnamony! I can’t wait to try these recipes.
Laura
I haven’t tried those yet. Maybe I’ll make them over the weekend. Thanks for the suggestion!
These sound delicious! I’d definitely try a batch of those almond butter balls….!! : )
Can I put crasins instead of raisins and no sunflower seeds because we don’t have any??
Charlotte,
The craisins would probably be good. I’m not too sure how it would taste without the sunflower seeds. Maybe you could substitute with some nuts like almonds or cashews. Let me know how it turns out. I brought a batch of these to my tennis group tonight and they got a thumbs up from everyone.
I don’t know, I think something went wrong.. lol. I tried to make my own raw almond butter with some recipe, but it was just so gooey and weird. I think I’ll have to try one of yours.
Charlotte,
Experimenting on your own is always great and I encourage it! Some of my favorite recipes have been things I’ve thrown together because they were in the house. They don’t always work though, as you have discovered on your own! Try it the way the recipe is written, and then you may want to add/remove things the next time to alter it to your taste. Let me know how it goes.
Aunt Gail and I finally made these the other day and they were delicous!! We subsituted the dried cranberries for the raisins because we both liked those better. Thank you!!
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You can use agave nectar as the other choice to maple syrup or honey. Baking with agave nectar is no different than when using traditional ingredients, but there are some rules you must observe in order to achieve good results. What is your favorite recipe for baking with agave nectar?