Tropical mango strawberry cheesecake

Here's the recipe for the tropical cheesecake I mentioned in my previous post! Sorry about the photo, it really doesn't do this recipe justice. The mango layer actually has a gorgeous, deep yellow color. I just whipped this cake up 2 hours before the guests arrived and once it was all set and glazed, the guests were already there and I didn't feel right abandoning them just to get a perfect pic :)

The crust:
2 C almonds
1C sun-dried bananas
pinch of salt

Grind the nuts and dates in a food processor fitted with an S-blade. You may add water if the mixture doesn't stick together. Press onto a large tart pan or smaller individual tart molds.

Filling:

1 cups dried mango, soaked

0,5C fresh or canned organic mango (I could only find organic mango canned..)

1,5C macadamia nuts

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1-2 tbs fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup cacao butter
raw, unfiltered honey to taste (exact amount depends on the sweetness of your fruit)

Puree everything smooth except the cocoa butter, grate it in and blend to combine. Spread on top of the crust. I made two batches to get a higher cake (as opposed to a filled pie).

Strawberry glaze:

1C frozen strawberries, thawed

5 tbsp chia

Blend until the chia is gelatinized. I did not measure these out at all, I just took a container of frozen strawberries, thawed them and blended in as much chia as it took to get it to form a gel. There was plenty of left over glaze. Once the chia has set, spread evenly on top of the mango layer. If you have fresh strawberries at hand don't bother with this, just garnish the cake with the chopped berries!

I think most of my guests were used to a white flour+ sugar cake with tons of whipped cream. They all said this certainly was new to them, but then asked for seconds and raved about how delicious it was. I was a bit worried about the perhaps unusual flavor combination (at least to most Finns), but since I am such a mango fan I decided to go ahead with it.. after all, this was my graduation cake! :)

Raw spanish scrambled "eggs"

Hi everyone! We're back from a weekend out of town, celebrating my graduation (BSc), gathering spruce shoots and visiting with family and friends. I'll be back to post about the party, I made an amazing raw tropical mango strawberry cheesecake which was a hit! But for now I decided to post one of my husband's favorite raw breakfasts. 

This recipe is inspired by Ani Phyo's raw scramble. I made it once (added more spices and dash of olive oil), but my husband complained about tasting the almonds. He said it was very good, but the almond flavor bothered him in a savory dish! To please him, I replaced the almonds with brazil nuts. Cashews would be even milder and probably work as well, but I like brazil nuts because they are so packed with minerals such as selenium and zinc. Although not raw, I also added my husband's favorite spice: smoked paprika. I enjoy the spice as well, and as long as it is not unhealthy I tend to choose taste over "100% raw."

Anyway, onto the recipe:

Spanish scramble:
1C dry brazil nuts (soaked and dehydrated always best)
0,5C sunflower seeds (soaked and dehydrated always best)
1tsp turmeric powder
1tsp or more of organic smoked paprika
0,5tsp italian seasoning (or herbs of choice)
1/4 tsp mineral rich salt or to taste
1/2 cup water
dash of your favorite cold-pressed olive oil (optional, but I think it improves flavor and texture)
black pepper

First blend the nuts and seeds and add water to reach a consistency similar to scrambled eggs. If you like, you may leave it a little chunky. Add turmeric to give it the right color and other seasonings to taste.

Add-ins:
tomatoes
1/4C fresh cilantro
spring onion
Marinated and dehydrated mushrooms (1:1:1 ratio of balsamic vinegar+olive oil+honey, salt, pepper, yumyum!)
sweet pepper
raw olives (I just had organic ones)

Chop your add-ins of choice, mix in and enjoy! We like to let it sit a bit to warm it up (we keep our nuts in the fridge) and allow the flavors to mingle. 

The scramble is served on greens, either spinach or romaine leaves work wonderfully. Sometimes I also like to wrap the scramble in a salad leaf!