Did you know chocolate and vanilla are fermented foods?
“Nine out of ten people like chocolate. The tenth person always lies. “John Q. Tullius (organic chocolate, of course!).
Walking through a cocoa plantation, the familiar smell of the chocolate aisle does not creep up your nostrils.
Without fermentation, cacao beans yield little or no chocolate flavour.
Ripe vanilla pods have no vanilla aroma, but when curing in the sun and insulated boxes they undergo fermentation, where microbes convert glucovanillin (a sugar) into the aromatic vanillin flavour and glucose.
Chocolate Coconut Gelato
½ vanilla bean, split lengthways, seeds scraped
55 g coconut sugar
375 ml, almond kefir
250 ml coconut milk kefir
325 g chopped coconut flesh
90 g Manuka / raw honey / date syrup
30 g unsweetened cacao powder
2 tablespoons coconut oil
Whisk the vanilla seeds and coconut sugar together to combine well.
Put the vanilla sugar, almond kefir, coconut milk kefir, coconut flesh, honey, cacao powder and coconut oil into food processor and blend until smooth.
Transfer the mixture to an ice cream machine bowl and place in freezer.
When mixture is cold, churn in ice cream machine and freeze.
Alternatively, transfer to a shallow tray and freeze, whisking every 15 minutes until frozen.
Freeze in a covered container.
Makes 1 litre
Yum Balls
2 cups walnuts (pre-soaked in water with added Kefir overnight)
2 1/2 cups soft dates, pitted (soaked in Tibicos (water keifr) / water overnight)
Handful cranberries / goji
1 cup cacao powder
1 tablespoon coconut oil
dash of vanilla
Pinch of Himalayan salt / dash of ‘kraut brine (optional)
Soak dates in water or tibicos (aka water kefir).
Add pre-soaked and well-rinsed walnuts, cacao and brine/ salt to food processor and blend until finely ground.
Add dates and blend until combined.
The mixture should resemble cake crumbs but when pressed will easily stick together.
Place mixture into fun ice cube trays / shape into small balls and roll in coconut.
Pop into the freezer, for at least one hour.
We store in the freezer and are quite yummy even frozen!
Nut free chocolate treats
1 cup soft dates, pitted and roughly chopped and soaked in water or Tibicos
1/2 cup chia gel
1/4 cup cacao powder
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 tablespoon coconut kefir
1/2 cup popped buckwheat (soaked in kefir overnight, rinsed and dried)
1/4 cup goji berries
Dash of vanilla
Combine dates, chia gel, cacao, in a food processor. Mix until well combined.
Add popped buckwheat and goji and coconut kefir and pulse to process. Shape into small shapes or place in moulds.
To prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands, fill a little bowl with some water to wet your fingers.
It will be much easier to shape. Can roll in balls and top with coconut.
Place in the freezer for 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving.
They will stay fresh for at least 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator, or at least 1 month or more in the freezer.
Variation Add a scoop of sauerkraut or grated beetroot, zucchini and carrot, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg and process.
Chocolate fudge
2 cups coconut oil
2 teaspoons of vanilla paste
1/4 – 1/2 cup Manuka / raw honey, date syrup or another sweetener
1/4 cup of cacao powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons coconut milk kefir
Optional: peppermint essential oil, soaked almonds / walnuts / macadamia + cardamom, 1 cup kefir overnight soaked oats or quinoa flakes (makes it more of a brownie), maca powder and other goodies like dried cherries, cranberries, crushed organic candy canes, cayenne, paprika or chili.
Sky is the limit in flavouring fudge.
Cream the coconut oil by rubbing on the side of a bowl with a spoon. You can soften (if required – depending on temperature in your home) by putting the bowl in hot water.
If it melts too much, wait until cool to harden and then mix.
Add rest of the ingredients.
Refrigerate on parchment paper in 20.32 cm (8 x 8 inch) pan.
Ready when hard! Cut into squares, sprinkle with anything your heart desires (goji berry, hemp pollen, coconut, cacao nibs, citrus zest, fresh herbs or edible flowers).
Ju Ju’s slice of heaven
This is a sweet, very concentrated mixture! Not an everyday menu item. Our hot tip is to keep in the freezer and only slice very small portions and serve with plain kefir or coconut yoghurt.
This will help Ju Ju not to eat the whole slice (he he)!
The recipe is very forgiving and can be manipulated into your wildest dreams.
For the base, a handful of soft soaked dates (10 -12). 1 cup of cashews (soaked in kefir for 1-3 hours) 1/3 cup raw cacao powder, dash of goji berries, 3 tablespoons coconut oil, optional dash of shredded coconut.
Blitz in food processor and press into pan, place in freezer whilst preparing filling.
Fruit filling 2 cups of fresh fruit (avocado and lime, mango or berries – raspberries are divine, especially for Valentines Day).
2/3 cup cashews (pre-soaked in kefir) 4 tablespoons coconut, 6 tablespoons honey or date syrup, 1 tablespoon cacao powder.
Blitz and pour over base. Place back in freezer.
Topping 1/3 cup coconut oil 2 tablespoons honey 1/3 cup cacao.
Blitz and pour over filling. Shake the tin slightly to even out.
Return to freezer for about 1 hour or until completely set.
Keep covered.
Once set, place pan in the fridge to soften slightly, cut into slices, decorate if desired and enjoy!
Store ANY remaining bars for up to 1 month in the freezer.
Variation
Caramel filling Blitz 1 1/2 cups soaked soft dates, 1/2 cup coconut milk kefir, 1/2 cup coconut oil.
Salted caramel filling Blitz 1 tablespoon tahini, 2 tablespoons cashew / macadamia butter, 3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted if required.
Dash of vanilla powder ¼ teaspoon fine Himalayan salt.
Sprinkle chocolate topping with fine pink Himalayan salt, for those extra salty taste buds.
Refrigerate salted caramel for approximately 4 hours prior to slicing into small pieces, with a hot knife and store any left- over in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.
• The base makes for a fine treat or a base for raw cheesecake.
We love a base / moulded treats of overnight kefir-soaked macadamias, next day blitz with a handful of goji berries, shredded coconut and fresh mango.
• Any left-over topping can be frozen for a choccy treat with added goji berries or fresh fruit – raspberries, strawberries and figs come to mind! Serve with kefir coconut yoghurt.
Love and bacteria, Xo, Lynnie
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