Healthy Vegan Chocolate Custard or Frosting Sugar-Free Oil-Free Gluten-Free
Sinfully rich, silky smooth, intensely chocolaty and very sweet, this is the ultimate plant-based chocolate dessert. With only five ingredients and no heat required, this custard is every vegan chocolate lover's dream come true. But wait, it gets better. This creamy concoction is also good for you and you can use it as a frosting.
Equipment
- High Speed Blender (a food processor or regular blender will work with some patience)
- Cheesecloth (or other thin absorbent lint-free fabric for squeezing tofu)
Ingredients
- 1 10.9 oz package shelf stable silken tofu, firm or extra firm
- ⅔ cup Deglet Noor dates, sliced then measured
- 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 4 tablespoons unsweetened plant milk
Instructions
- It's important to remove as much excess water as possible from the silken tofu in order to maximize flavor and achieve the right level of firmness. You will need cheesecloth or several absorbent lint-free cloths. First drain off the obvious liquid from your tofu as soon as it comes out of the box. After that there are a couple of different ways to proceed with the moisture removal. One way is to wrap it with a couple of cloth napkins or dish towels, place it on a plate and put something heavy on it, like another plate, and leave it like that overnight or for up to 24 hours inside the fridge. This works if you have the time. But keeping in mind that for this recipe the tofu does not need to keep its shape, I prefer to use a cheesecloth, or similar type of fabric, over a mesh strainer to squeeze the liquid out of the tofu. I start by placing my mesh strainer over a bowl. Then I place the cheesecloth over the mesh strainer. The mixing bowl under the strainer is there to catch the excess liquid. I place the tofu over the cheesecloth and begin crumbling it using a spoon or my fingers. Part of the liquid is released right away. Then, to remove as much liquid as possible, I wrap the cheese cloth around the crumbled tofu and gently squeeze. When I feel like I've gotten most of the liquid out of the tofu, I carefully remove the tofu crumbles from the cheese cloth and place them in a small bowl while I gather my other ingredients. The liquid in the bowl is discarded. This excess liquid is not particularly tasty. Part of the moisture you're taking out will be reintroduced in the form of better tasting, nutrient rich, plant milk.
- Place the tofu with liquid removed, dates, cocoa powder, vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of the plant milk in the bowl of a high speed blender (you can use a food processor or regular blender for this step, but it will take longer and your results may not be as smooth). Process until a smooth custard forms, adding extra plant milk, a tiny bit at a time, if you see that the mixture is too dry to come together. The amount of extra plant milk you need (if any) will depend on how much liquid you managed to extract from your silken tofu and the moisture level of the dates you're using. Both these factors can vary quite a bit. Remember that less is more when it comes to adding plant milk. You want your custard to be as thick as possible while also being as smooth as possible.
- Remove mixture from blender and place in an air-tight container. Store in the fridge for up to a week. If you are using this custard as a frosting, chill for at least two hours before spreading. It can be served immediately if using it as a stand-alone dessert, or as a creamy dessert topping.
- This recipe makes approximately 1-1/2 cups of custard. That's enough for four servings that are a little more than 1/3 cup each, a reasonable serving size for something that tastes this rich. If you're using this recipe for frosting, this is the perfect amount for dressing up Red Bean Brownies or to turn Chocolate Banana Muffins into decadent cupcakes, but it won't be enough for a two layer cake or for a single layer cake that's larger than 9 inches. Keep this in mind and double the recipe if you need to.
Tried this recipe? Let me know how it was!