Orange and Chocolate Tart
A three-layer raw tart: a cacao-nib nut crust, a rich chocolate layer, a caramel-sweet vanilla-mesquite layer, and a bright, sunny orange layer on top.
Yield: One 8-inch tart, 12 slices · Active: 1 hour · Total: 6 hours, mostly setting (or overnight) · Best in North America in winter, when oranges are at their sweetest · Best eaten: early afternoon
Ingredients
Crust
1 cup nuts of choice (almonds, hazelnuts, or a mix)
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 cup Medjool dates, pitted
3 tbsp cacao nibs
Pinch of Baja Gold sea salt
Chocolate layer
1¼ cups cashews, soaked
½ cup full-fat coconut cream
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
4 tbsp maple syrup
4 tbsp raw cacao powder
Pinch of Baja Gold sea salt
Vanilla-mesquite layer
1¼ cups cashews, soaked
½ cup full-fat coconut cream
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
4 tbsp maple syrup
1–2 tbsp mesquite powder
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean)
1–2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch of Baja Gold sea salt
Orange layer
1¼ cups cashews, soaked
½ cup fresh orange juice
¼ cup full-fat coconut cream
3 tbsp coconut oil or cacao butter, melted (cacao butter sets a little firmer)
3 tbsp maple syrup
1–2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2–3 drops food-grade orange oil (or 1 tsp finely grated orange zest)
Pinch of ground turmeric, for color
Pinch of Baja Gold sea salt
Garnish: long curls of fresh orange zest
Soaking the cashews: Soak all 3¾ cups of cashews together for at least 4 hours (or 1 hour in hot water), then drain and divide them among the three layers.
Method
Make the crust. Line the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan with parchment. Pulse the crust ingredients in a food processor until they're cohesive and slightly sticky. Press firmly and evenly into the pan, and freeze 20 minutes.
Make the chocolate layer. Blend all the chocolate-layer ingredients in a high-speed blender until completely smooth. Pour it over the crust, smooth the top, and freeze 1 hour.
Make the vanilla-mesquite layer. Blend all the vanilla-layer ingredients until smooth. Taste, adding more mesquite for a deeper caramel flavor. Pour it over the chocolate layer, smooth the top, and freeze 1 hour.
Make the orange layer. Blend all the orange-layer ingredients until smooth and brightly colored, adding the orange oil a drop at a time and tasting as you go. Pour it over the vanilla layer, smooth the top, and freeze at least 4 hours, or overnight.
Garnish and serve. Top with curls of fresh orange zest. Slice with a sharp knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between cuts, and let the slices sit 15 minutes before serving.
Storage: Frozen up to 2 months, or refrigerated up to 5 days. Thaw slices 15 minutes before serving.
A note on orange oil: Use only oil labeled food-grade, and add it a drop at a time. It's very potent, and brands vary in strength.
A note on "raw": Every cashew sold has been heat-treated to remove the caustic oil in its shell, and U.S. almonds are pasteurized by law, so "raw" here means no-bake.
Serving Ideas
Winter citrus: fresh orange or blood orange segments and a few pomegranate arils alongside each slice
Crunch: a sprinkle of crushed hazelnuts or cacao nibs
With granola: crumble my Sunshine Granola, with its orange and lemon zest, over the top
For a gathering: a dollop of whipped coconut cream or whipped raw cream
Nourishment Notes
Orange and chocolate is one of the most enduring flavor pairings in European confectionery, beloved since cacao arrived in Europe in the 16th century. It works so well because orange's bright, aromatic notes, from compounds like limonene and citral, cut through chocolate's deep bitterness and lift it.
Mesquite powder, in the middle layer, is little known outside the cooking of the American Southwest and Mexico. It's the ground pod of the mesquite tree, with a sweet, nutty, caramel-like flavor, and Indigenous peoples of the Southwest, Mexico, and South America (where it's called algarrobo) have eaten it as a sweetener and flour for thousands of years. In raw desserts, it adds a depth that vanilla alone can't reach. Think dark butterscotch or maple sugar, with a hint of caramelized banana.
Orange oil is the secret that sets this tart apart from a typical orange dessert. Cold-pressed from orange peel, it holds the same aromatic compounds as fresh zest, but in a concentrated form that disperses evenly through creamy fillings. A few drops give an unmistakable, vivid orange flavor that juice or zest alone can't match.
Cashews and nuts — magnesium, copper, zinc, and vitamin E.
Medjool dates — potassium, magnesium, and fiber, with natural caramel sweetness.
Raw cacao and cacao nibs — magnesium, iron, flavanols, and theobromine.
Mesquite — fiber, calcium, and potassium, with a naturally low-glycemic sweetness.
Oranges — vitamin C, hesperidin, and d-limonene, especially in the zest and oil.
Coconut cream and coconut oil — lauric acid, a medium-chain fat.
For your cycle: The cacao's magnesium makes this a comforting luteal-phase treat, and the bright orange brings vitamin C, especially welcome in the darker winter months.
Sourcing
Nuts — organic: unpasteurized Spanish almonds, like Terrasoul's, or organic hazelnuts
Cashews — organic (every cashew sold has been heat-treated, even "raw" ones)
Shredded coconut — organic, unsweetened, and sulfite-free
Medjool dates — organic, soft, and plump
Raw cacao powder and cacao nibs — organic, and ideally tested for heavy metals
Mesquite powder — organic, from wild-harvested pods
Coconut cream — organic and full-fat, made with just coconut and water, with no guar gum (Native Forest Simple comes in BPA-free cans)
Coconut oil and cacao butter — organic, virgin, and unrefined coconut oil; organic raw cacao butter
Oranges and lemons — organic (you're using the zest)
Orange oil — organic and food-grade, cold-pressed
Maple syrup — organic Grade A dark
Vanilla — organic pure vanilla extract or whole vanilla beans
Turmeric — organic and non-irradiated
Baja Gold sea salt
— Anna aka Food Marshall