This recipe is from the new cookbook Ani's Raw Food Desserts: 85 Easy, Delectable Sweets and Treats by Ani Phyo (Da Capo Lifelong Books). The book also has two other cupcake recipes, for lemon pudding filled coconut cupcakes and carrot cake cupcakes with kream cheeze frosting (her spelling).
The book's introduction talks about what raw food is and why it's good for you. You can read more about the author on her website.
I myself am not a raw food (only) person but, as a baking newbie (yes, I am a cupcake blogger but a baking newbie), I like the seeming simplicity of a recipe like this. I even have agave nectar at home waiting for me to use it! Plus with it starting to get hot here in New York, I'm less inclined to want to use my oven. So maybe I'll actually get around to making these.
Chocolate Crunch Cupcakes with Molten Mint Frosting
MAKES 6 CUPCAKES
These beautiful chocolate cupcakes have crunch from cacao nibs and are topped with
a sweet mint frosting. They’re full of walnuts for vitamin E and dates for potassium, iron, and fiber.
It all prevents sugar spikes, crashes, and mood swings, keeping us happy and feeling sexy.
FROSTING
3⁄4 cup cashews
1⁄2 cup liquid coconut oil
11⁄2 tablespoons firmly packed mint
leaves, or 1 tablespoon dried mint, or
21⁄2 teaspoons mint extract
3 tablespoons agave syrup
2 tablespoons filtered water
1⁄4 teaspoon spirulina (optional), for
color
CUPCAKES
21⁄4 cups dry walnuts
1⁄3 cup cacao or carob powder
1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
1⁄3 cup cacao nibs
1 cup pitted Medjool dates
To make the frosting, place the cashews in the Personal Blender with the grinder lid and 2-cup container or the food processor and grind into a fine powder. Scoop into a bowl. Combine the coconut oil and mint in the blender and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the cashew powder, agave syrup, water, and spirulina (if using) and blend until smooth. Place the frosting in the freezer to chill and thicken.
To make the cupcakes, combine the walnuts, cacao powder, and salt in the food processor and process into small uniform bits. Make sure to avoid overprocessing into a butter. Add the cacao nibs and pulse to mix. Scoop into a bowl. Add the dates to the food processor andprocess into small pieces. Return the walnut mixture to the processor and pulse to mix. The mixture should have a crumbly, sticky texture.
Place 6 cupcake liners in a muffin pan. Use a 1⁄3-cup measuring cup or scooper to scoop about 1⁄3 cup of the crumble into each liner. Use your fingertips to gently press the crumble mixture into each cup to bind into a solid piece. Place the muffin pan in the fridge or freezer and chill for 1 hour, or until the cakes are firm.
To serve, test by removing a cupcake from the pan: If it’s solid and doesn’t crumble apart, it’s ready to be frosted. The colder the frosting, the firmer it will be. Frost each cupcake and enjoy immediately.
Frosted cupcakes will keep for a week in the fridge. Unfrosted cupcakes will keep for several weeks in the fridge or freezer, and the frosting alone will keep for a week in fridge.
FROSTING SUGGESTION:
Scoop chilled frosting into a cake decorating bag with a decorative tip and have fun decorating the cupcakes.
The book's introduction talks about what raw food is and why it's good for you. You can read more about the author on her website.
I myself am not a raw food (only) person but, as a baking newbie (yes, I am a cupcake blogger but a baking newbie), I like the seeming simplicity of a recipe like this. I even have agave nectar at home waiting for me to use it! Plus with it starting to get hot here in New York, I'm less inclined to want to use my oven. So maybe I'll actually get around to making these.
Chocolate Crunch Cupcakes with Molten Mint Frosting
MAKES 6 CUPCAKES
These beautiful chocolate cupcakes have crunch from cacao nibs and are topped with
a sweet mint frosting. They’re full of walnuts for vitamin E and dates for potassium, iron, and fiber.
It all prevents sugar spikes, crashes, and mood swings, keeping us happy and feeling sexy.
FROSTING
3⁄4 cup cashews
1⁄2 cup liquid coconut oil
11⁄2 tablespoons firmly packed mint
leaves, or 1 tablespoon dried mint, or
21⁄2 teaspoons mint extract
3 tablespoons agave syrup
2 tablespoons filtered water
1⁄4 teaspoon spirulina (optional), for
color
CUPCAKES
21⁄4 cups dry walnuts
1⁄3 cup cacao or carob powder
1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
1⁄3 cup cacao nibs
1 cup pitted Medjool dates
To make the frosting, place the cashews in the Personal Blender with the grinder lid and 2-cup container or the food processor and grind into a fine powder. Scoop into a bowl. Combine the coconut oil and mint in the blender and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the cashew powder, agave syrup, water, and spirulina (if using) and blend until smooth. Place the frosting in the freezer to chill and thicken.
To make the cupcakes, combine the walnuts, cacao powder, and salt in the food processor and process into small uniform bits. Make sure to avoid overprocessing into a butter. Add the cacao nibs and pulse to mix. Scoop into a bowl. Add the dates to the food processor andprocess into small pieces. Return the walnut mixture to the processor and pulse to mix. The mixture should have a crumbly, sticky texture.
Place 6 cupcake liners in a muffin pan. Use a 1⁄3-cup measuring cup or scooper to scoop about 1⁄3 cup of the crumble into each liner. Use your fingertips to gently press the crumble mixture into each cup to bind into a solid piece. Place the muffin pan in the fridge or freezer and chill for 1 hour, or until the cakes are firm.
To serve, test by removing a cupcake from the pan: If it’s solid and doesn’t crumble apart, it’s ready to be frosted. The colder the frosting, the firmer it will be. Frost each cupcake and enjoy immediately.
Frosted cupcakes will keep for a week in the fridge. Unfrosted cupcakes will keep for several weeks in the fridge or freezer, and the frosting alone will keep for a week in fridge.
FROSTING SUGGESTION:
Scoop chilled frosting into a cake decorating bag with a decorative tip and have fun decorating the cupcakes.
Comments
Your blog is such a great read :D