No Bake Pumpkin Cake

Shit, that rhymes.

I love this time of the year. I love everytime of the year, but this one is special for many reasons, the most important one is pumpkin. I know October is over but pumpkin time is not. Not for me at least. I still gotta make pumpkin soup and give my pumpkin bread another try (accidently added too much cinnamon, oops.)

I've been having crazy cravings this morning. I found myself wanting sweets and chocolate even when I was full. A little piece of this cake and I was more than satisfied. I guess the nuts and fiber from the pumpkin and dates put my cravings at ease.

This cake is full of flavor and the fact that it's cold, just like an ice cream cake makes everything 100 times better. Oh and the strong rich flavor from the chocolate makes my taste buds dance with joy.

I used a very small amount of sweeteners because I stopped consuming refined sugar and started really paying attention to how much sugar I consume since they contain few nutrients and I need as much nutrition as I can get.

Recipe

Ingredients:

Base

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup raw cocoa powder
• 5 sukkari dates or 4 majdoleen dates
• pinch of sea salt
• optional: 2 tbsp- 1/4 cup of agave or maple syrup

Filling

• 2 1/2 cups cashews soaked for 4+ hrs
• 2 tbsp coconut butter manna
• 3 tbsp almond milk
• pinch of sea salt
• 3+ tbsp maple syrup or agave
• vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp raw cocoa powder (layer #2)
• 2 tbsp almond milk (layer #2)
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (layer #3)
• pinch of cinnamon (layer #3)

Chocolate

• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• optional sweetener: maple syrup..etc

Note: I didn't use any sweeteners in the chocolate because I like the bitter taste. If you don't like dark chocolate (I'm talking 80-90%) then I strongly suggest adding about 1 tbsp of maple syrup.

Steps:

Base

1. First process the nuts
2. Add remaining ingredients for the base and process until well combined
3. Press into a 20 cm/8 inch cake tin lined with baking paper. Place in the freezer

Filling

1. Drain cashews and add to the food processor with coconut butter, vanilla extract, honey, 3 tbsp almond milk
2. Process until creamy and smooth
3. Scoop half of the filling into another bowl and add cocoa powder with the remaining 2 tbsp almond milk to the food processor
4. Add the chocolate layer to the cake
5. Clean the food processor then add the rest of the filling with the pumpkin and cinnamon, and process.
6. Add the pumpkin layer to the cake
7. Freeze for 3+ hrs

Chocolate

1. Before serving whisk the cocoa powder with coconut oil and maple syrup if using
2. Make your own design with the chocolate on top of the cake, you'll notice it will cool quickly and it will be easy to remove the chocolate if you mess up you design.

Storing and Serving:

If you kept it in the freezer for 3-4 hrs then serve within 30 mins.

If you kept it for +4 hrs then let the cake in room temperature for about 20 minutes before serving.

I kept half of the cake in the freezer and the other half in the fridge to see how it will be. It didn't melt in the fridge and stayed in shape. The plus for having it in the fridge is that it is ready to eat (perfect for an unplanned dessert). However, it gets a little messy.

Note #2 since this cake is very filling, you can also cut it to small squares. It won't be a 'cake', but it'll still be delicious.

Buen Provecho!