I've never seen myself as a particularly outgoing or even social creature really. It's not that I'm overly shy or anything, it's more of an active choice I've made to keep a smaller circle of close friends rather than being surrounded by a whole bunch of people whom I barely know at all. (Of course some people manage to have six hundred besties at once but needless to say, I'm not one of them. How do they even?) But thanks to Instagram I've had the opportunity to connect with and befriend so many amazing, inspiring and crazy talented girls from all over the world! How this little story relates to the raw caramel slice? Well this recipe would have never seen the light of day had it not been for one of these Instagram girls and her #twistmytreat competition.

 Who she is? Well the one and only EatLikeEloise of course! This slice was 100% inspired by hers and guess what? If you want in on this fabulous competition where you can win Loving Earth chocolates, all you have to do is reinvent or put a twist on Eloise's caramel slice! I'd do anything for chocolate hehe. Also, this is positively the best competition I've ever participated in. Look at that oozy caramel. Just look at it and tell me you don't agree.

One more thing before we get to the recipe: it looks longer and more complicated than it actually is! Mostly because I've included two different ways to make the chocolate layer. I was way too eager to get to taste this to bother making my own chocolate but if you want to keep this recipe raw, I highly recommend you spend those extra five minutes on this!

Base:

- 7 dates (around 80 g)

- 1/4 cup oat flour (30 g)

- 1 tbsp tahini (20 g)

Caramel layer:

- 10 fresh/soft dates (110 g)

- 2 heaped tbsp all natural peanut butter

- 2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk

- 1 tbsp lucuma powder

Chocolate layer raw version:

- 1 tbsp melted coconut oil or cacao butter

- 1 tbsp cacao powder

- 1 tbsp liquid sweetener of choice

Chocolate layer non-raw version:

- 2 oz. (56 g) vegan dark chocolate (preferably refined sugar-free)

How to:

1. Blend all the ingredients for the base in a food processor until you're left with a ball of raw 'cookie' dough. Add more oat flour if the dough is too sticky and more dates or tahini if it's too dry. (This depends a lot on how moist the dates are!)
2. Press it out into a small rectangle to about 1/4-inch or 5 mm thickness on a non-stick baking sheet. Set aside.
3. Peel and pit the dates for the caramel layer. This is easier if they have been soaked in hot water for at least 10 minutes or if you're using really soft ones. 
4. Place all the ingredients for the caramel layer in a small bowl and blend with a hand blender until smooth. (This step could be done using a food processor but I prefer the hand blender.)
5. Spoon the caramel on top of the base and level it with a spatula. Place in the freezer to set for at least one hour.
Raw version: 
6. When the caramel and base have set, make your own raw chocolate by mixing equal quantities coconut oil, cacao powder and sweetener in a bowl until combined. Wait until it's not super runny, then spread an even chocolate layer on top of the caramel. This will hopefully set immediately as the caramel is frozen so go ahead and cut as many slices as you want before placing them in an airtight container to store in the freezer or fridge if you prefer a gooey caramel.
Non-raw version:
6. If you're a lazy ass like me, then melt your (store-bought) chocolate over a hot water bath and spread it out on top of the frozen caramel base. It can be a bit trickier to cut neat squares this way (as is shown by the cracks on mine) but they're just as delicious, I promise. Store in the fridge for gooey caramel and the freezer if you want it solid.

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I know I haven't been updating much as of late, but school has just started and is really keeping me busy as well as keeping me from blogging. I thought it'd be nice to get away from the schoolwork though (i. e. desperately looking for distractions) so yesterday I made a batch of -believe it or not- rawnola! Yup, you heard it right, this rawnola is in fact RAW, meaning it's packed with nutrients and vitamins otherwise lost when you bake your granola, meaning it's the perfect "healthier" alternative to your regular "ALL NATURAL SUPER-GOOD-FOR-YOU GRANOLA" (pff, they put so much crap in breakfast cereal nowadays I wouldn't know where to begin). If you really can't live without that extra crunchiness you get from baking the granola, I suggest you go check out this post instead. There I've shared my favourite granola recipe, one that is actually healthy for real, gluten-free AND refined sugar free. Either way you're in for a treat. Here we go.

Spiced Up Rawnola 

50g (1/2 cup) raw oats (most oats have been steamed for longer shelf life, the fully raw ones are almost impossible to find though, so any oats you have will work just fine for this recipe)

140g (about 1 cup packed) pitted medjool dates

40g (2 big) dried figs

20g (3 tbsp) whole flax seeds

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Or any spices/superfood powders you have at home!

Optional: A handful of shredded coconut/chopped nuts/cacao nibs

1. Place all ingredients except for the flax seeds (this is very important that you don't, flaxseed oil goes rancid very quickly!) and pulse until you have a chunky mixture that holds together in smaller clumps, like real granola does. Transfer to a jar or bowl, stir in the flax seeds (or incorporate them using your hands) and store in the fridge or freezer.

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