almond butter pie

apparently i only blog well in the dreary winter months...  i hope that you have been enjoying your summer as much as i have:) 

im so sorry for keeping this diamond from you for so long

words cannot even describe how incredible this pie is! its hard to believe that this pie is raw, or even to believe that its not from a famous bakery.  the crust is deep and chocolatey, reminiscent of brownies with an added crunch that has you searching for oreos in the recipe. the filling is smooth with a little tang to offset its dreamy sweetness.  i promise you, this pie will not last long in your house!

ALMOND BUTTER PIE

crust:

1 1/2 c walnuts

1 1/2 c pecans

1/2 c dates

1/2 c cocoa

2 tsp honey

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tbs cacao nibs

*grind walnuts and pecans in food processor until fine and crumbly. add in all other ingredients except cacao nibs. process until a dough starts to form.

*press crust in the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. scatter cacao nibs on top of crust and lightly press them down.

*place crust in freezer.

filling:

1 12 oz jar almond butter

3/4 c honey

3/4 c fresh orange juice

3/4 c cultured coconut cream (i blended equal parts dried coconut with water until smooth. then i strained it and poured it into a glass jar. i added a probiotic capsule and let the jar sit covered at room temp for 24 hours. this adds a boost of nutritional density to the pie, but if this is too much work for you just use coconut milk)

1/4 c cacao butter, melted

1 mashed banana

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

3/4 tsp sea salt 

*using your mixer blend the almond butter until smooth. gradually add in the rest of the ingredients and continue to mix until incorporated.

*pour filling on top of crust. let set in the freezer for at least 3 hours before serving. decorate with almonds, pecans, bananas, cacao nibs and chocolate sauce (coconut oil, honey and cocoa). store in the freezer.

*enjoy!

i have some news that i never thought i would be able to share with you....i have finally won the war against my sweet tooth! weve had many battles over the years and sometimes i won, but most of the time i didnt.  ive had a passionate love for desserts for as long as i can remember. my problems with my obsession really multiplied in high school when my health issues made their first appearance.  because i have a past with candida, for the last seven years or so ive experienced such violent cravings for sweets and dense foods, that i knew it was something that came from deep within my previously compromised intestinal flora and not just my preference for flavors.  although i have been on a healthy eating path for more than five years now, i never truly felt satisfied after a meal until after i ate my dessert.  ive made healthy desserts to keep around the house for this purpose but i always knew it would be the next step in my health journey for the voices of unnecessary sweets to finally be silenced.

at the beginning of summer i shared with you my new found love of fermented foods.  i knew i was going to get involved in a great relationship with these beautiful little microorganisms, but i never would have thought they were the secret weapon i had been needing my whole life!  eating fermented foods regularly for two months was all it took for my body to finally balance out, getting the sugar craving bacteria in my gut to finally surrender!!! during the course of those two months i slowly started to notice that when i ate something sweet it wasnt satisfying me like it used to...almost to an emotional level.  i was more and more excited each time this happened.  by the end of the second month i realized that through out my normal day, i didnt eat anything sweet and i never even thought about it! for a second i just thought it was a coincidence as i waited for all my chocolate thoughts to wave over my body. but it never happened! and i put the connection together of how powerful fermenting your own foods really is to your body. my journey of fermentations has been three months and this last month i have had absolutely no cravings for sweets! not to say i havent enjoyed a few with moderation....i made gluten/dairy/sugar free cupcakes for an event last week and was able to eat just ONE and feel completely satisfied.  my entire life previous to this recent experience i would have had cravings for those cupcakes that consumed my entire mind and wouldnt subsist until i ate at least three of them.  sitting in the car on the way home from the event, with the last two cupcakes in my lap and not having a single thought of wanting to eat them was nothing short of miraculous for me!!!!

gosh this might sound strange, but im holding back tears writing this.  some people have never had addictions to food and they may not understand how powerful they really are.  this problem area has been such a big part of my life, that to finally overcome it is a milestone that i will remember for a life time.  of course i will continue to create healthy desserts because i love to, but i now know without a doubt that i will always be in control of the foods that i desire to put in my mouth...not an imbalance that has no right being in my god given body built for perfection!

if you havent started already, get on the fermented foods train! if you already have...how has it positively affected you?  for more info and great recipes on fermented foods check out wild fermentation or nourishing traditions.