Guest Post: Raw Avocado Mousse Cake with a Raisin Seed Crust

This recipe came about partially because I had a craving for chocolate, but also because I had overripe avocados to use.  I was also trying to create a recipe for my parents’ 35th wedding anniversary and since they both insist they need to be healthier yet love chocolate, I decided on a chocolate mousse dessert.  I used to make an amazing chocolate mousse made with silken tofu, which yields a great creamy texture, but my extreme sensitivity to soy means that tofu is no longer an option, so I’ve had to get creative with my chocolate recipes, and more often than not avocados or bananas find their way into my desserts to replace soy or dairy.

For this recipe, I wanted to create a chocolate mousse dessert, but without any added sugars as well.  I have a huge sweet tooth and am terrible at limiting myself to just a tiny taste of dessert, so when I do eat dessert, I like to make sure it is as healthy as possible without sacrificing flavor. This mousse cake tastes very decadent and rich, so it’s an easy one to not overindulge with.

The crust layer can be halved to create a thinner crust, and it can also yield a healthy raw cookie recipe on it’s own.  I loved the generous amount of sweet seeded crust, but for a more traditional mousse cake look, you can opt for a thinner crust or even double the mousse cake portion for a taller cake.

Raw Avocado Mousse Cake with a Raisin Seed Crust

Crust ingredients:

• 2 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 3/4 cup raisins or apple-juice sweetened cranberries*
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 teaspoons coconut oil, not melted

*Note: I used both raisins and apple juice-sweetened cranberries for a nice tartness and more colorful crust

Mousse cake ingredients:

• 2 ripe avocados
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• 6 medjool dates, softened in hot water if necessary
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seed butter
• 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 tablespoons raw honey
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• Optional topping: melted nondairy chocolate chips or cacao nibs

Directions:

For the crust:

1. Combine the seeds, raisins and cinnamon in a food processor; pulse until it becomes a sticky dough, adding a little water if necessary.  Press into the bottom of a parchment-lined 9” cake pan or springform pan.

For the cake:

1. For the mousse cake, puree the avocados, then add in all remaining ingredients, making sure the dates are soft before adding.
2. Once the mousse mixture is smooth and no lumps remain, spread it over the crust and refrigerate overnight.

About Maiah:

Maiah Miller is from Eugene, Oregon where she grew up eating healthy foods and helping her mom bake in the kitchen.  Since being diagnosed with allergies to gluten, soy, dairy and nuts, she has learned to become quite creative in the kitchen, and her dietary restrictions have resulted in a new love and respect for healthy and allergen-free recipes.  Maiah loves to create nutritious desserts that taste incredible, and aren’t laden with oils and sugars that are often used to replace allergens, such as gluten.  As a runner and fitness instructor, Maiah knows the importance of eating well to fuel the body, and has compiled some of her favorite recipes onto her gluten-free cookbook, available on etsy.com. Maiah currently resides in Carlsbad, California with her husband, a captain in the US Marines, and adopted golden-doodles Zeke and Yogi.  Her blog can be viewed at www.maiahmiller.blogspot.com.