A Sweet & Healthy Treat For The New Year

WELLNESS | FEBRUARY 18, 2020

AVEDA x ELYSE KNOWLES

A Sweet & Healthy Treat For The New Year

Balance is important. Elyse shares how
she satisfies her sweet tooth with her
favourite raw dessert.

Almost everyday someone will ask our Aveda Ambassador Elyse Knowles about her daily eating habits and how she manages to find balance in her life thanks to a sweet tooth.

“My day to day eating habits include plenty of healthy, natural foods” says Elyse. “I love to eat organic ingredients as much as possible and buy from local farmers that give me tasty and fresh produce”.

However, we all know balance is important. “I need to be prepared for my sweet tooth,” she says. “I like to prepare a sweet raw treat so I am not persuaded to eat something unhealthy. One of my favourite desserts is a Lemon Curd Cheesecake by my friend ‘A Conscious Collection’. I often make a big batch and leave it in the freezer and pull out a slice when I need a treat. Its also great to take to a friends house, to show that a cheesecake doesn’t have to be unhealthy.”

Lemon Curd Ingredients:

•3 Large free-range eggs

•1 tbs lemon zest

•½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

•¼ cup honey

•4 tbs of coconut oil

•1 vanilla bean or vanilla bean paste.

•1 tbs cacao butter (optional)

Tart Base Ingredients:

•1/2 cup macadamia nuts

•1/2 cup gluten free oats ( I use Bobs Red Mill) or normal oats if you are not intolerant.

•¼ cup almonds

•1 cup pitted dates

•3 tsp rice malt syrup

•pinch of salt.

Method:

1.Grease the bottom and sides of a tart pan with coconut oil and sprinkle a little desiccated coconut over the springboard to prevent tart from sticking.

2.In a food processor or high-speed blender combine all the base ingredients until well combined.

3.Cover the base and sides of a tart pan and press down firmly.

4.Place in the freezer to set.

5.While the base is in the freezer setting… it’s time to make the lemon curd. In a saucepan on low heat – whisk together the eggs, lemon zest and honey.

6.Add the lemon juice, coconut oil, vanilla bean and cacao butter and continue to whisk on medium heat until everything is melted and the mixture starts to thicken. If it’s taking a while to thicken, take away from the heat for a couple of minutes then continue a light whisk until bubbles start to appear and a creamy consistency has formed.

7.Remove from heat and pour in to your prepared tart pan covering all the base mixture as evenly as possible. Place in the fridge to set.

*To make this recipe vegan you can substitute the below items;
3 large free-range eggs: 3 tablespoons of Flaxseeds mixed with 9 tablespoons of water – whisk until it becomes gelatinous
Honey: 4 tablespoons of maple syrup instead