Raspberry, Chocolate & Mint Cake

FOR THE SOAKED CASHEWS: In a large bowl, soak the cashew nuts in water overnight. The next day, drain the cashews and set them aside until needed.

FOR THE ALMOND & CACAO CRUST: Get an 21 cm spring-form cake pan ready to have on hand. Ideally, the spring-form pan should be at least 9 cm deep, allowing you to create fairly thick layers of different coloured cashew cream. To make the removing of the cake from the spring-form pan easier, it’s best to line the pan with either baking/greaseproof paper or acetate paper (commonly used for making chocolate decoration or patisserie).

In a large bowl, mix together all the crust ingredients until you get a homogeneous mixture that holds together well when you press it together. It shouldn't be too sticky. If the crust mixture feels too sticky/wet, add more ground almonds. If it's too crumbly, add more coconut oil or maple syrup.

Press the crust into the spring-form pan, forming an even layer at the bottom. Freeze for at least 15 minutes or until firm.

FOR THE RASPBERRY CASHEW CREAM: First, make the raspberry reduction: In a saucepan, cook the raspberries on medium-high heat until they have released their juice and part of the liquid has evaporated. Pass the raspberry mixture through a sieve to remove the seeds and skin. Return the raspberry juice to the saucepan and cook further until it has decreased in volume to about 1/3 cup. Allow to cool.

In a high-speed blender or food processor, blend the soaked cashews until smooth.

Add the rest of the raspberry cashew cream ingredients (including the raspberry reduction), and blend until combined and smooth. At this point, you can adjust the sweetness and tartness by adding more maple syrup and/or lemon juice. You can make the pink colour more intense by adding some beetroot powder or ground freeze-dried raspberries. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a lid or cling film until needed.

FOR THE MINT CASHEW CREAM: In a high-speed blender or food processor, blend the soaked cashews and mint leaves until smooth.

Add the rest of the mint cashew cream ingredients and blend until combined and smooth. At this point, you can adjust the sweetness and tartness by adding more maple syrup and/or lemon juice. You can make the mint flavour more intense by adding a few drops of peppermint oil/extract. Similarly, you can make the green colour more vibrant by adding some spirulina powder. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a lid or cling film until needed.

ASSEMBLING THE LAYERS: Transfer the raspberry and cashew creams in alternating layers into the spring-form pan, smoothing out the top to form an even layer each time. For extra well-defined layers, freeze the cake after each cashew cream addition.

NOTE: If you want to decorate the top of the cake with piped swirls of cashew cream, make sure to set some aside for this purpose. Just place it in an air tight container into the fridge until needed.

Freeze the cake for at least 8 hours or preferably overnight, giving it time to firm up.

FOR THE CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE: Combine all cacao drizzle ingredients in a saucepan, and heat them on medium-low heat until the Pure Cacao Melts have melted and you get a smooth, glossy mixture. Allow to cool slightly (until warm).

ASSEMBLING THE CAKE: Remove the cake from the springform pan. You may need to gently warm the sides of the tin with your hands to help release the spring-form pan sides.

Drizzle the cake with the chocolate drizzle, allowing it to drip down the sides. It will firm up on contact with the cold cake, but retain most of its shine.

Pipe swirls of cashew cream on top of the cake, and decorate with sprigs of mint and edible flowers of choice.

SERVING: Allow the cake to thaw for at least 15 minutes at room temperature (after you’ve taken it out of the freezer) before cutting it with a hot knife (that is, a knife you've dipped into hot water beforehand). Cutting it sooner or with a cold knife makes it much more difficult.

ENJOY!!

STORAGE: The cacao, raspberry & mint vegan cake keeps well in a closed container or wrapped in cling film in the freezer for 2-3 weeks. It is recommended that you pre-cut the cake before freezing it for storage – that way, you won't have to thaw the whole cake to cut a slice.

RECIPE NOTES: Note 1: You can get coconut cream by putting coconut milk (the type from a can, with a high coconut content and without too many stabilisers/preservatives) into the fridge for a few hours – without shaking. The coconut milk will separate into coconut cream (that you'll need in this recipe) and coconut water (which is great in smoothies).