Raw Strawberry Vanilla Tiramisu

Raw biscuits made with sprouted buckwheat flour and coconut, dried in the dehydrator then cut into ladyfingers, layered with two coconut creams — one vanilla, one strawberry — and held together with a strawberry coulis. A dusting of cocoa on top, as tradition dictates for tiramisu, and the assembly is complete. The recipe is long but genuinely not technical: most of the time is spent in the dehydrator, between eighteen and twenty hours for the biscuits, then in the freezer to set. Enough for a 15 cm tiramisu.

Ingredients

Ladyfinger Dough

• 1½ cups sprouted buckwheat flour, sprouted rolled oats, or ground sprouted quinoa
• 150 ml ground flaxseed
• 1¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons finely shredded coconut
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 180 ml young coconut flesh
• 180 ml soft, pitted Medjool dates (soaked 30 minutes then drained if dry)
• 80 ml raw coconut nectar
• 270 ml raw coconut milk

The Creams

• 4 cups young coconut flesh
• 250 ml coconut water
• 80 ml coconut nectar or agave syrup
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• The seeds of one vanilla pod, or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon coconut butter, melted
• 1 cup fresh strawberries

The Coulis and Finishing Touch

• 1 cup strawberries
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 1½ cups sliced strawberries
• Cocoa powder, for the final dusting

Preparation

The Ladyfingers

1. Whisk together the flour, ground flaxseed, shredded coconut and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
2. In a food processor, blend the dates, vanilla, almond extract, coconut flesh, coconut milk and nectar until fairly smooth.
3. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ones and mix with a wooden spoon until you get a smooth dough. It will be firm: add a little coconut milk if it's too stiff to spread.
4. Spread the dough on a dehydrator sheet into a rectangle about 2.5 cm thick, and score it into strips about 2.5 cm wide, in two rows.
5. Dry for 18 to 20 hours, until the dough is dry but still slightly soft, then cut into ladyfingers.

The Creams

1. Blend all the cream ingredients except the coconut butter in a food processor until smooth.
2. With the motor running, add the coconut butter and let it run for one more minute.
3. Divide the mixture between two bowls. Put one bowl back in the processor, add the strawberries and blend until you get a smooth, pink cream.
4. Chill both creams in the fridge.

The Coulis

1. Blend the strawberries, lemon juice, vanilla and salt until smooth. Set aside.

Assembly

1. Arrange half of the ladyfingers in the bottom of a 15 cm springform pan, trimming them to cover the base; it doesn't need to be perfect.
2. Drizzle with half of the strawberry coulis.
3. Spread the vanilla cream, then a layer of sliced strawberries.
4. Repeat with the remaining ladyfingers, the rest of the coulis, the strawberry cream and the remaining strawberries.
5. Freeze until fully set, then unmould and let it come back up in the fridge before serving.
6. Finish with a dusting of cocoa powder just before serving.

Tip

The water content of young coconut flesh varies a lot from one coconut to another: it's what determines how firm the ladyfinger dough and the creams turn out. Adjust the coconut milk in the dough, and don't hesitate to leave the creams in the freezer a little longer if they stay too soft.

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