Raw Pumpkin Roulade

Roulade = fancy word for roll. ;-)

I saw a picture of a roulade in a magazine last week & had to give it a RAW whirl! I made up the cake recipe (& tasted, of course!) as I went along. I think it turned out pretty good...& was yummy! :-)

Pumpkin Cake:
1 1/2 C warm water
24 dates (about 2 C), pitted, soaked in the warm water for at least 10 minutes (reserve soak water)
4 C pumpkin or squash, chopped (I used a Hubbard squash this time)
1 C ground flax seeds
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp Himalayan or Celtic sea salt
1/4 C honey
1/4 C coconut oil
1 C almond pulp (from making almond milk)

Ideally, you will need a high-speed blender (VitaMix) and a food processor fitted with the ‘S’ blade to make the cake.

Blend the date soak water & 1 C of the pumpkin until smooth. Slowly add remainder of the pumpkin & blend until smooth. Add the flax, spices & salt & blend quickly until smooth (flax will immediately start setting up & can slow down the blender). Place mixture in the food processor.

Add dates & process until fairly smooth. With food processor running, slowly drizzle in honey & melted coconut oil & process until smooth. Scrape down sides of bowl & add almond pulp; process until smooth.

Spread onto one lined dehydrator tray. Dehydrate at 140 degrees for one hour. Reduce temperature to 115 degrees & dehydrate for an additional 3 hours. Flip onto screened dehydrator tray & peel away liner. Dehydrate at 115 degrees for an additional 1-2 hours.

These pictures were taken after the cake was dry - you can trim the edges but I left them 'artisan' style. :-)

Fermented Cream Cheeze Filling:

2 C cashews, soaked, rinsed & drained
1 C water
1 tsp probiotic powder (Acidophilus works well)
Meat of 1 young thai coconut
1/2 C coconut sugar, blended to a fine powder
1/4 C coconut oil, melted

Soak cashews in water for 4-6 hours; rinse & drain. Blend soaked cashews & water in high-speed blender (VitaMix) until creamy. You may need to (cautiously!) use a spatula with the blender lid removed to assist blending the top of the mixture & avoid trapping an air bubble, which sometimes occurs when blending a thick mixture. Add probiotic powder & blend lightly, just until incorporated.

Spoon mixture into a cloth-lined colander covered with another wet cloth. Place in a warm location (e.g., on top of or next to the dehydrator) overnight (8-12 hours, or more). After this time, the cheeze will be slightly sour smelling and fluffy – this means it has fermented & is ready to use. Spoon cashew cheeze into a bowl & set aside

Blend coconut meat with coconut sugar until smooth. With blender running on low, slowly drizzle in melted coconut oil. At this point I lightly blended HALF of the cashew cheeze to this mixture & reserved the other half of the cheeze because I wanted two different layers of filling. If you like, you can blend all of the cashew cheeze in for just one layer of filling. Either way, chill the mixture with the oil until slightly firm but still spreadable - I used the ice cream freezer but you could also chill it in the fridge for about an hour.

Butter Pecan Creme:

3/4 C pecans - soaked, rinsed & drained
1/2 C warm water
6 dates, pitted & soaked (reserve soak water)
2 Tbs maple syrup
1/4 tsp Himalayan or Celtic sea salt
1 tsp vanilla extract (or 1/4 tsp vanilla powder)

Blend all ingredients except 1/4 C chopped pecans until creamy.

To Assemble:

Spread filling (either one layer or two) onto 3/4 of cake; dot with semi-soft dehydrated cranberries* & chopped pecans if desired; roll up into a spiral. Chill in the refrigerator if not serving right away. Garnish with additional semi-dehydrated cranberries & pecans. Slice into rounds & serve with a dollop of Butter Pecan Creme.

*Note: I think dehydrated cranberries are a bit too chewy for this filling. For semi-soft cranberries, you may either rehydrate dehydrated cranberries by soaking them in warm water for about 10 minutes OR cut fresh cranberries in half, sweeten with apple juice & dehydrate for 24-36 hours.

This is my first layer...