Ok so I have your attention!

I still remember the first time I had a piece of cake for breakfast. I used to run a small raw vegan food stall at the weekly farmers markets and this meant rising long before dawn, setting up in darkness and then being so busy through the morning it could be midday until I realized I was famished.

So, the morning cake eating began…

But don’t be concerned, because what I realized was that raw vegan cakes were basically nothing more or less than a clever combination of healthy organic fruit, nuts, seeds and superfoods, shaped into a cake-like form. If you deconstructed the ingredients and placed them into a bowl or on a plate for example, what you would be looking at wouldn’t be what the average person would consider your regular cake ingredients!

Although I am not advising nor justifying the idea of eating cake for breakfast everyday, I am simply offering a couple of recipes that are healthy and nutritious and can be enjoyed at any time of the day…

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

This was the cake in the aforementioned story—the cake that triggered the idea that dessert for breakfast wasn’t an entirely evil thing at all!

It is a beautiful mixture of fresh carrots, dried fruit, nuts, spices, a dash of sweetener and coconut oil.

Give it a try and trust me, when that alarm bell rings you will be leaping out of bed…

You will need:

• 7 medium carrots
• ½ cup flax seed
• 2 ½ cups brazil nuts
• 1 cup coconut
• 1/8 cup honey
• 1 cup sultanas
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ¾ cup coconut nectar
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts
• ¼ cup goji berries
• 1 teaspoon of coconut oil

Directions

• Grate the carrots and place them in a large bowl.
• Grind the flax seeds in a blender or coffee grinder and add the flax meal to the bowl.
• Place the brazil nuts in a food processor and process until fine crumbs form.
• Add to the food processor the coconut, honey, sultanas, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and coconut nectar and process until the mixture comes together.
• Add everything to the large bowl, along with the chopped walnuts, goji berries and coconut oil and mix well with your hands (I find that doing it by hand releases some of the moisture in the carrots and helps to combine everything nicely!)
• Place the mixture into a spring form tin and refrigerate until firm.

To frost the cake you can top it with this delicious icing:

•  1 cup soaked cashews
• 1/3 cup coconut nectar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• Water as needed

 Directions

• Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until the mixture is smooth and creamy and fully combined—use enough water to make it a spreadable consistency.
• Lather the frosting onto the cake and refrigerate to set.
• Serve the cake in slices topped with fresh walnuts, a sprinkle of pomegranate and a dash of cinnamon.

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Assistant Editor: Sanja Cloete-Jones/Editor: Bryonie Wise

Photo: VegaTeam. Flickr.