Salted Caramel Squares

I’ve been following an Instagram account for a while, it’s an Australian restaurant/cafe (@cocomamajuices) that posts photos of perfectly layered raw, vegan desserts. They’re flawlessly uniform, beautifully decorated and so delicious looking that I could probably be convinced to fly to Australia just to get one but for the sake of my wallet, here’s my attempt at recreating them:

Salted Caramel Bars

1.5 cups dates

1/2 cup cashew butter

3 tbsp + 2 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup almond meal

1 cup dark chocolate

flaky salt

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Soak dates in hot water for at least 10 minutes

In a food processor, pulse dates, cashew butter, 3 tbsp coconut oil and salt until a paste forms. Add almond meal and pulse to combine.

Transfer to a parchment lined loaf pan. Pack the mixture in evenly and smooth down top. Place in fridge for at least an hour and up to 1 day.

In a small saucepan bring a couple cups of water to a simmer. Place dark chocolate and remaining 2 tbsp coconut oil in a heat-proof bowl and set overtop of the saucepan to gently melt, whisking to combine, then drizzle the mixture overtop of caramel layer. Place back in the fridge for an hour or more to set.

Before serving allow the bars to sit at room temp for about 10 minutes to soften the chocolate slightly. To serve, use a warm knife (run the blade under hot water, then dry) to slice into squares and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.