Instead of working behind the camera like I usually am, earlier this week I was in front of my favourite photographer’s lens working in a beautiful kitchen with a handful of recipes from my book. We were shooting some kitchen scene and outdoor photos to sprinkle in my cookbook. Our landlord was gracious enough to lend us her beautiful kitchen for the day so I was surrounded by gorgeous white cabinets, stainless steel, and a walk-in pantry. I had to pick my jaw off the floor when I walked in. What a dream!
Our wedding photographer, Dave Biesse, happened to be visiting family in Ontario this month and by a stroke of luck he was available to do the shoot at the last minute. Reuniting with him just shy of 5 years since our wedding and engagement shoot was a real treat. Dave is so warm, creative, and fun to work with. Not to mention, that Australian accent can make anyone feel at ease! Dave and Charlotte now live in Australia year-round so we don’t get to catch up nearly enough, but they will always be dear to us.
It’s been pretty chaotic around here, but exciting too. We stayed up into the wee hours of the morning for a couple nights preparing recipes, making lists, packing props, and making last minute grocery stores trips. Some recipes had to be made the morning of the shoot, so I was up super early prepping recipes and praying to the culinary gods that the food would stay fresh! Two packed coolers, 4 containers with props/appliances, a handful of freshly ironed clothing, one packed car, and a few butterflies for good measure.
A couple friends suggested that I hire someone to do my hair and make-up so I wouldn’t have to worry about it during the shoot. It sounded like a good plan, but after getting a trial done last week I ended up looking like I was going to meet the Queen. hah. I didn’t even recognize myself in the mirror. Not ideal. I don’t normally do dark eyes or maroon lipstick and I rarely curl my entire head of hair. Eric looked at me with a bit of horror on his face when he saw the finished look. It was priceless. In the end, I opted to do my own usual hair and make-up and I felt much more comfortable. Maybe it wasn’t super glam, but I felt like myself (on a good day, I suppose) which is all that matters.
I planned on taking lots of behind the scenes shots to show you, but unfortunately I didn’t have many spare moments during the day so I only snapped a couple.
Here is a picture of our landlord’s kitchen. Hello, dream boat!
This is a tiny glimpse of the chaos that took over shortly after we arrived in the AM. The entire family room was packed with our stuff. Each time we did a new shot/angle, we had to move everything around the kitchen and then set up the new recipe. The hardest part was not being able to eat all the food though!
When all was said and done, it felt like the day after a wedding. All this build up and then in the blink of an eye, it was over. Still, it’s nice to get back to everyday life where I’m free to get chocolate stains on my clothing and kale in my teeth.
My Aunt Elizabeth made this raw chocolate fudge for our big family get together last week and it was a huge hit. Us ladies were all begging for the recipe which she adapted from the Company’s Coming Superfoods cookbook. This version below is an adaptation of both the original and Elizabeth’s version, swapping ingredients as I saw fit and cutting down the portion in half since it made so much.
Even though this doesn’t have the texture of traditional fudge (it’s more like raw chocolate and smooth as silk), no one seemed to complain! It softens at room temperature (and melts in your mouth), so serve it straight from the freezer and chill leftovers as soon as possible. If you are a raw food purist and want a completely raw fudge use raw cacao powder and agave in place of the cocoa powder and maple syrup. Either way, it’s downright seductive.
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Seductive Raw Chocolate Walnut Fudge
Yield
24 Small Squares
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Chill time
60
Total time
My Aunt Elizabeth made this raw chocolate fudge for our big family get together last week and it disappeared incredibly fast. Us ladies were all begging for the recipe which she adapted from the Company’s Coming Superfoods cookbook. This version below is an adaptation of both the original and Elizabeth’s version, swapping ingredients as I saw fit and cutting down the portion in half since it made so much. Even though this doesn’t have the texture of traditional fudge (it’s more like raw chocolate), no one seemed to complain. It softens at room temperature (and melts in your mouth!), so serve it straight from the freezer and chill leftovers as soon as possible. If you are a raw food purist and want a completely raw fudge use raw cacao powder and agave in place of the cocoa powder and maple syrup. Either way, it’s downright seductive.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup virgin coconut oil
- 1/4 cup raw almond butter (or nut butter of choice)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder (or raw cacao powder)
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch fine grain sea salt, to taste
- 3/4 cup raw walnuts, roughly chopped
Directions
- With electric beaters, beat together the coconut oil and almond butter.
- Sift in the cocoa powder and beat again until combined.
- Pour in the maple syrup, vanilla, and salt and beat until smooth.
- Stir in the walnuts.
- Line a loaf pan with a piece of parchment paper. Scoop the chocolate mixture into the pan and spread out until even. I took another handful of walnuts, broke them up, and sprinkled over the top of the fudge for extra crunch and good looks.
- Freeze for about 1 hour, or until solid. Slice into small squares and prepare to be seduced.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)Note: I added a tablespoon of raw cacao nibs into my batch, but next time I will leave them out as I thought they were too crunchy in this fudge.
Oh my goodness Ange, that second-last photo of the fudge looks amazing!! And wow – that kitchen is something of my dreams! Thanks for giving us a little behind the scenes glimpse. I agree with you on the hair thing – whenever I decide to get it put up by someone else, I pretty much always wish I’d not bothered and just done it myself! I think the way you do yours is gorgeous and so natural, so I can’t wait to see the shots for the book!
Oh. my. god. YUM!
I will be making these this week for sure. I’ll have to give away most of the batch because there is no way I’ll be able to just eat a reasonable portion!
I feel for your hectic long days of prep, shopping and shots! I am a food stylist assistant in Toronto, so I can relate! I spent 7 hours yesterday just shopping for six products! :)
ahhh crazy! It’s amazing how much work it is.
Do you think this would work with walnut butter or is it too gooey? Love the recipe!
It might work, however they might turn out a bit more “greasy” since walnut butter tends to be so slick.
This is definitely dreamy. Yum!
A photoshoot- how swanky! Can’t wait for the cookbook, and to make this fudge!
Mmmm…I love fudge! I’ve never made my own before, but it sounds super easy! I really need to try it!
Making this, delicious! That kitchen is breathtaking.
This is just wrong. Why do you make me drool so early on a Thursday morning? ;) I’m fresh out of coconut oil or this would be happening right now. Mmm! Going to sub in toasted pecans since I’m allergic to walnuts.
Wow – that is super exciting. Thanks for sharing the behind the scene details of your cookbook. I can’t believe how much work it all is. Can’t wait for the book
Oh. My. Goodness….that kitchen!! You are so right. That is like, A DREAM!! I hope the photo shoot went well! I actually did a bridal photo shoot for a friend and we shot down in Burlington, so I HAD to get my make-up done the way they wanted and it was SO dark for me. I was afraid Nia was going to cry when she saw me, but luckily she didn’t! haha
Mmm, to this fudge. Thank for you having simple recipes lately that even I can tackle! haha
These last two recipes came at exactly the right moment! I think chocolate is the answer/cure-all for everything!! Can’t wait to make them!
On another note, I remember reading one of your posts where you were talking about organic cosmetics. Would you be kind enough to share the name of the line you were talking about? Thanks
OMG – I want this like right now!! Looks amazing!!
I’ve been kinda obsessed with almond butter fudge lately!
What a kitchen! These photos are beautiful. Can’t wait for your cookbook!
Yum! Making this ASAP!
I took longer making breakfast this morning for my kids so I could make this. We just had some and it is divine. One child wanted more and I said later after we have done some jobs. He immediately went off and found some jobs to do!
I love your recipes, thank you so much for them. I live in Spain and I do buy coconut oil for my skin but it is really expensive, only available from a health food shop, and I can’t imagine using it in any great quantity in cooking. It costs me more than 17 euros for 500ml. This is a tough call but can you think of any substitute that I could use that does not mean I have to mortgage the house?
Hey Chris, That’s a tough one – the coconut oil is used in this recipe because it solidifies the fudge as it hardens when chilled. I don’t know of another substitute, but if I think of anything I will let you know!
Could you use red palm oil in place of coconut oil? I was just about to make this and I’m a quarter cup short on coconut oil.. I have red palm which solidifies like coconut oil so I was thinking of using that…
I ended up using red palm oil as I only had about half of the amount of coconut oil left.. it came out amazing!! :)
Awesome! I’m so glad to hear the substitution worked out well, Bethany!
Hello Chris,
are there no Asian food stores in Spain? That`s where I buy my coconut oil (I live in Germany), and it`s like 3 or 4 euros for 500 ml.
We order ours via Amazon b/c we live in a rural area in the US. Just a thought.
These looks amazing and incredibly fudge-y. And that kitchen is dreamy. I hope one day I can make a mess in a kitchen like that :)
That kitchen looks almost as yummy as the brownies. Great photos, thanks for this recipe.