Summer Sunrise Cake

Good morning!!  Is there anything better than summer mornings?  The sun is up at 4 am which means I get to wake up to glorious sunshine instead of darkness.  To pay tribute and gratitude to the rising sun, I've made a Summer Sunrise Cake using delicious and local Rainier Cherries!!

This weekend I took a trip to the local farmers market and picked up a literal bounty of summer fruits!  Apricots, strawberries, grapes, lemons, and cherries!!  Looking at these beautiful fruits and the glorious sunrise we had this weekend, it just clicked!  Create a cake using summer fruits that look like the summer sunrise!

 

 

Washington state not only has really long days in the summer but we have Mt. Rainier and Rainier Cherries!!  Mt. Rainier is one of my favorite views here in WA.

 





 

Rainier cherries are sweet, delicious and beautifully colored!  To me, they look just like the sunrise and are as sweet as summer itself.  This cake is just heavenly and its subtle sweetness comes from fruit and a hint of maple syrup!!  Let's get started!

 

 

 

Lemon Coconut Crust Ingredients:

4 tsp. lemon zest (about 2 lemons)

2 Tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed

1 cup raw walnuts or raw almonds

1/2 - 3/4 cup medjool dates, pitted, chopped

1/3 cup shredded coconut

pinch salt

 

Lemon Coconut Crust Method:

To a food processor fitted with the "S-type" blade, add the nuts and process until they are in small pieces.  If you want a really fine crust, then process until you have a powder.  I like little bits of nut in my crust so I process until the nuts are broken into small pieces.  Add the rest of the indredients and process until a dough ball forms.  If your dough is not sticking together, add additional dates.

To a square baking dish lined with plastic wrap, press the crust to the base.  Press it evenly and then cover and place in the freezer while you make the filling.

 

Summer Sunrise Filling Ingredients:

1 cup raw cashews, soaked 5-8 hours, drained, rinsed

1/4 cup coconut butter (optional but it creates a thicker, creamier cake batter)

1 to 1 1/2 cup fruit (I opted for 1 cup strawberries and 1/2 cup cherries)

3/4 cup coconut milk OR coconut cream

2 medjool dates, pitted, chopped

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

additional lemon zest and shredded coconut (optional)

 

Summer Sunrise Filling Method:

Add all ingredients to a food processor fitted with the "S-type" blade or a high speed blender and process until smooth and creamy.  Remove half the filling.  Add the strawberries and blend.  Take your crust from the freezer and pour in the strawberry layer.  Cover and freeze for an hour.  Add the other half of your filling back to the processor or blender and add the cherries.  Process until smooth and then pour on top of your now frozen strawberry layer.  Sprinkle the additional lemon zest and shredded coconut around the rim of the cake.  Cover and freeze for 2 hours.

 

Topping:

1/2 cup strawberries

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

squeeze of lemon

1/2 cup cherries, sliced

 

Blend strawberries, maple syrup and lemon juice in a blender until pureed.

 

To dress the cake:

Remove the cake from the freezer.  Carefully pour the strawberry coulis on the top of the cake and spread evenly.  Then layer your sliced cherries on top and place back in the freezer for 4-6 hours!  Serve right from the freezer and you'll have to wonder if this actually an ice cream cake! Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for visiting Venturing Vegan!  I hope that this Summer Sunrise Cake brings some fun and flavor to your summer days!  Enjoy!

 

 

Our sunsets are pretty epic as well.  This sunset happened while I was writing this blog post.  I had to run and take a picture even though it was hot, humid and raining outside! 

 

 

 







Raw Pear Tart

Life in the Pacific Northwest can be harsh for a California girl. Cold winters, minimalist produce selections, and expensive apples (wait! I can't actually get a Washington apple in Washington? I'm not paying $2 for an imported apple) have dampened the bounty of my heart.  Driving through the country in late Fall, the roads are lined with apple trees just bursting with delicious looking fruit.  Of course, the stores don't carry them.  There is more profit to be had for the powers at be to ship off our beautiful and locally grown fruit and then import sub-par, prematurely picked substitutes.  Fortunately, one of my clients has 10 acres of farmland where she has a veritable orchard of pear trees!  Thanks to my favorite doggy acupuncturist, I've been pretty much assured my fill of local, rich, and juicy pears! 

 

One day after a dropping off a weeks supply of raw, vegan VV meals, I found two large buckets of pears with a little sign that said, "Take all you want!"  Digging through buckets of fruits, searching for the most perfect specimen brought memories of flea markets and fruit vendors in Brisbane where all produce was displayed in boxes on a dirt floor.  Is there anything as satisfying as buying fruit from a dirt floored local market?  Maybe.  Picking fruit ripe from the tree or produce fresh from your kitchen garden scores pretty high on my happiness charts.  With all of these locally sourced gems, what is one to do with the abundance of pears?  Make pie! It breaks my heart to think about baking or cooking fresh fruits.  The sweetness of fruit is a sensory treat in of itself and the confetti of nutrients, antioxidants, and vitamins are just a pretty awesome bonus.  With perfection being in the raw, why bother to heat these perfect little packages and damages the goods?  In my humble opinion, fruit is best served and enjoyed in the raw.  Therefore, here is my version of the most delicious unbaked pear pie you will ever taste.  Enjoy the process, enjoy the ride, and please be grateful for the privilege that is a perfectly ripe pear on the taste buds.

Let's begin with the crust:
Ingredients

• 3 cups raw cashews
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup medjool dates, pitted  (if your dates are dry, soak in water for 30 minutes to an hour)
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt

Method:

1. To a food processor fitted with the "S-type" blade, add the cashews, salt, and vanilla.  Process into a powder. 
2. Roughly chop the dates and add them to the food processor slowly while it is running.
3. When the mixture forms a dough that sticks together (test by pinching a piece between two fingers and see if it holds together).  If it sticks together than it is ready, if not, add another date and process again.
4. Take a pie pan and line with plastic wrap.  Press dough into the pan to form a pie crust.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 3 hours.  While it cools, make the filling.
5. Once the crust is cool, it will be firm enough to remove and still maintain its shape.  Gently remove and discard plastic wrap. 

 

For the filling:

• 3 ripe pears, cored and sliced thin
• 1/2 cup medjool dates, pitted, chopped
• 1 tbsp. coconut oil, melted
• 1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 organic orange, seeded and peeled
 

Method for filling:

1. To a blender, add the orange, dates, vanilla, and coconut oil.  Blend well until smooth.
2. Gently add sliced pears to a large bowl.  Cover with orange sauce and mix until all slices are covered.

Take pie crust and lay the pear slices in facing the same direction.  Wrap around in a circular pattern until all the pears are in the crust.  Take one or two pieces of pear to lay in the center.  Garnish with shredded coconut, optional.

 

 

This pie will keep for a few days covered in the refrigerator.  Enjoy!

 

 



Lemon Zing Balls

These tart little treats lasted less than 1 hour in my kitchen!  They are so easy to grab and pop into your mouth that they will disappear faster than you can make them!  The scent of fresh lemon zest and the flavors of lemon and honey will entice all ages to grab a little sweet treat.  Plus, knowing how I roll, they are good for you!  Lemon Zing Balls are a good source of vitamins B, C, and E, calcium, potassium, and iron.  These protein full, fiber full delights are a guilt free indulgence!  Enjoy!

Makes 22 balls
Ingredients
4 tsp lemon zest (about 2 lemons worth)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup raw walnut meal (grind raw walnuts in a seed/coffee grinder to make the meal)
1/2 cup raw sesame seed meal (as with the walnuts, just grind raw sesame seeds to make the meal)
2 tbsp raw honey
1/3 cup shredded coconut (organic, unsweetened works best)
1 pinch of sea salt or Himalayan salt

1.  Zest the lemons before juicing.  (When using the skin of a fruit, make sure to buy organic unwaxed fruit and wash really well before zesting).
2.  In a medium bowl, add the lemon zest, walnut meal, sesame meal, raw honey, salt, and juice of 1 lemon.  To juice lemon, roll first on the counter to release the juice.  Slice in half, remove seeds, and squeeze over bowl.
3.  Mix to form a well incorporated dough.  Prepare a separate plate or bowl of the shredded coconut for coating.  Place an additional plate by your mix bowl to place the balls before coating. *
4.  Pinch off a small piece of dough about 1 1/2 inch worth (1 tablespoon worth) and roll into a ball.  Place the ball on your empty plate.  Repeat until the dough is gone.
5.  Wash and dry hands well.  Take each ball and roll in shredded coconut.  Place finished balls on a plate or tray and place covered in the fridge for 24 hours.  Will keep in a sealed container for 1 week in fridge or up to 2 months in freezer.
* Each ball should be pre-rolled before coating in coconut shreds.  This will help immensely in preventing your hands from becoming a sticky mess.  Coating in coconut with clean hands and balls ready will make this process clean and simple.

✌ YUM