Over the past year or two, there has been a huge increase in both the popularity and availability of raw desserts. The concept is simple – ditch refined, modified ingredients and replace with wholesome ones in their original state to change desserts from mouthfuls of empty calories to nutritionally dense sweet treats.
Initially, raw desserts started out as part of the vegan health food scene, with individuals wanting to recreate their favourite desserts that are often loaded with dairy and refined flours and sugars. Now raw treats have become a popular trend, popping up everywhere from regular neighbourhood cafes to health food stores and hipster hangouts. They are often clearly advertised, boasting a (refined) sugar-free, gluten-free and dairy-free dessert that you can enjoy minus the guilt.
Raw foods by definition are unheated or cooked at less than 40 to 45 degrees to maintain higher nutrient values, antioxidant levels and to aid digestion.
The base of the dessert is usually made from a combination of ground nuts and seeds, with a filling created from soaked cashew nuts or some form of nut butter with a blend of coconut oil. They are naturally sweetened with dried fruits such as dates, apricots and prunes, or some form of natural plant-based sweetener in the form of coconut nectar, agave nectar or maple syrup.
Aside from raw cheesecakes, slices and various bliss balls, one of the more mainstream trends is health-ified chocolate bars, made without sugar, gluten or dairy. One of Australia’s first brands that brought raw chocolate into the mainstream is Pana Chocolate, a Melbourne-based company passionate about creating individually packaged, handmade chocolate blocks that taste as good as the real thing. Today, Pana Chocolate has a cult following across the globe.
Pana Chocolate’s founder, Pana Barbounis, is passionate about raw food and believes in using only the highest quality ingredients to produce a rich, decadent chocolate that is both nutritionally beneficial and delicious. “I grew up in a family that was passionate about sharing food and food experiences together, in true European style. Food, to me, is everything. It’s medicine. It’s experience. It’s love – for ourselves, and to share with others,” says Pana.
Pana started his first business at the tender age of 21. Later on, a love of organics and artisanal crafts combined with a friend’s introduction to raw chocolate and led to the beginnings of Pana chocolate. “I just thought this is for me,” he says. After six months of experimenting with ingredients, he’d perfected his recipe for Pana chocolate.
But be warned! A little goes a long way with raw chocolate, and you can feel as if you are indulging with only a few squares. “Once you start to cook and eat raw foods, you really notice a difference in the textures and flavours of what you’re eating,” says Pana.
Each block of Pana is made only with the purest ingredients, with a base of cacao butter, cacao powder, coconut oil and a dash of natural sweetener. The chocolate comes in a range of flavours, with fresh whole ingredients swirled throughout, from goji berries to sour cherries and whole almonds and essential oils.
Following the massive success of their chocolate blocks, Pana Chocolate has jumped on the raw dessert bandwagon and opened up a couple of cafes selling cheesecakes, slices and chocolate, the newest store in Sydney. Pana hopes some of the next stores will be overseas, capitalising on the growing international raw food trend.
Finally, it is possible to have your cake and eat it too!
