Alternative Dessert Creams
Shelled hemp seed, lemon and date cream
You can make a delicious delicate cream using just the shelled hemp seed, for a thick cream use 200 ml of liquid, 300 ml will give a more pour-able version. Left in the fridge for an hour it will thicken up even more. It will keep covered in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Both recipes 1 and 2 in this section show how simple alternative creams can be. Once you become familiar with these recipes, you can find many ways of using these principals to thicken and cream dishes using nuts and seeds.
Ingredients
(for about 4 portions)
- 100 grams shelled hemp seed
- 1 lemon - juice/ zest
- 8-10-pitted dates
- 200-300 ml of soya or rice milk~ depending on required consistency
Method
- Soak the dates, just covered with water for about an hour.
- Place them and their liquid together with the soya/rice milk in the blender, pulse until smooth.
- Add the shelled hemp seeds and lemon juice; continue blending until thick and creamy.
- Pour into a suitable bowl, refrigerating until required. It will thicken further by chilling for an hour.
- Can be served in place of cream for any pudding or dessert.
Leftovers:
Will keep overnight in the fridge, is great served on muesli or porridge.
Variations:
Vanilla: Simply add a few drops of vanilla essence. See vanilla in ingredients glossary.
Fresh strawberry or raspberry: Add sufficient strawberries or raspberries to the blender and pulse until smooth.
Ginger and coconut: Roughly chop 2-3 bulbs of whole crystallized ginger. Add with a little of the syrup and 2-3 dessertspoons of coconut cream, to the blender and pulse until smooth.
Cashew, lemon and date cream
You can use other nuts, there are many combinations, almonds are a natural choice. These recipes are designed to show how simple nut and seed creams are, enjoy creating your own recipes.
This recipe uses sunflower seeds to help it thicken, instead of the de-hemp seed.
Ingredients
- 80-100 grams cashews
- 50 grams sunflower seeds
- 1 lemon juice/zest
- 10 pitted dates
- 200-300 ml of soya or rice milk~ depending on required consistency
Method
- Soak the dates, cashews, and sunflower seeds separately, just covered with water for about an hour.
- Place the dates and their liquid in the blender, strain the sunflower seeds and add the soya/ rice milk accordingly i.e. to make a thick or thin cream, pulse until smooth.
- Add the strained nuts and lemon juice.
- Continue blending until thick and creamy.
- Pour into a suitable bowl, refrigerating until required.
Variations:
Vanilla and Almond: Replace the cashews with almonds and add 2-3 drops of vanilla essence. Some Amoretti biscuits crumbled up in the bottom of a glass dish with the cream on top makes a simple, quick dessert.
Pistachio nut and Honey: Lightly toasted pistachios, flavoured with a good drizzle of honey, instead of the dates. Add double the sunflowers to make up for the dates' thickening qualities.
Cashew and Ginger: The whole crystallized ginger in jars is great for desserts. Finely chop and add 2-3 bulbs with a little syrup to the mix. Some shredded mint leaves work well in this one!
back to Dessert recipe list