Raw Vegan Burfi

This is one of my favourite desserts and is almost always in my freezer. I call it a "Burfi" as it reminds me of the sweets I have eaten from India, though these are a bit healthier and vegan. Since reducing my white sugar and milk intake, I have been experimenting with different ingredients I love and come up with this recipe that I make and keep in my freezer. It lasts for months in the freezer, in my experience, and can be eaten straight from the freezer. I find it satiates my sweet tooth, with only a small slice. It is delicious and hope that you enjoy it too. This recipe can easily be adapted to your taste. You can increase the nuts and decrease the date past, add new ingredients etc. use my recipe below as a starting point.

Ingredients:

2 cups of Nuts: Cashews and or Almonds.

I say and or as using just Cashews or just Almonds or a mix of the two are all delicious. If you are using Almonds they the almonds need to be soaked in water over night, atleast 8hours. Once soaked washed them. The almonds don't need to be peeled, I don't peel mine.

Cashews don't need to be soaked.

1 cup of Dates:

Need to be soaked in water overnight too.

1/4-1cup Cacao beans: optional and to taste.

1-2tsp Cinnamon: optional and to taste.

Method:

1. Take one cup of dates, top up with water and soak overnight.

2. Take 1-2 cups of almonds and top up with water and soak over night.

3. Take the soaked almond and wash with water.

4. Take the soaked dates(stones removed) and their water and pour into a high speed blender, I use a VitaMix. Blitz the dates and their water into a smooth paste. If needed add a few table spoons of water to get a smooth thick paste.

5. Add the nuts slowly little by little to the date paste mixture and continue to blitz until the nuts and the dates form a smooth paste.

6. If you like cacao and or cinnamon, add to taste to the nut and date paste and blitz. If not skip this point.

7. Pour the mixture into a dish suitable for the freezer, evenly spread it and then pop it in the freezer for 3-6hours to set.

8. Once set you can slice in to pieces and eat straight from the freezer.

NB that if you leave it out it will melt.

9. I love cacao so tend to add a fair bit to the mixture. To make it crunchy, you can keep some nuts out of the blender and chop them up and mix them in with a spoon at the end just before putting the mixture into the freezer. Adding cacao nibs at the end also adds texture and is also delicious for the cacao lovers out there, like me :)

I hope you enjoy this frozen burfi, as much as I do. Let me know how you make it your own. What twist you put on them?