Bite-Size Chocolate Silk Pies

I try to prepare a whole bunch of food on Sundays in order to make it easier for me to pack my lunches for school each day. I usually wash and cut some vegetables, make some salads, or maybe I'll assemble an easy trail mix. But when I have a particularly difficult week ahead, I might make myself some extra treats. They have to be sweet enough (and chocolatey enough) to be a treat, but also wholesome enough to give me extra energy to handle the rough week's worth of papers, projects, tests, or problem sets. I am a sucker for a raw vegan dessert.

These mini pies make the perfect dessert - they're wholesome, gluten-free, raw, and vegan. It's a delicious special treat for my rough school weeks, and it's not a big deal to eat a half of one or a whole one. Unlike other chocolate silk pies, this is made entirely out of wholesome ingredients. How often is your dessert as healthy as your meal?

Mini Chocolate Silk Pies
(makes 5 mini pies, with some leftover coconut whipped cream)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raisins
• 1/3 cup of cashews, soaked in warm water
• 2 tablespoon of cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup of flax seeds (optional)
• 2 cans coconut milk, refrigerated for at least 24 hours
• liquid sweetener to taste (agave, stevia, maple syrup, etc.)
  
• 1 tablespoon of water
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• optional toppings: cacao nibs, chocolate shavings, mini chocolate chips, chia seeds, etc.

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine the raisins, the cashews, the flax seeds and 1 tablespoon of the cocoa powder. Blend until it forms a gooey dough.
2. Press the dough into a cupcake pan, lining five of the cups to create the pie crusts. Store the cupcake pan in the refrigerator while you make the filling.
3. Open one of the cans of coconut milk. Pour out the liquid and scoop the solid part into a bowl. Add in the other 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, the liquid sweetener and the water. Whip this mixture until it forms a creamy paste. (To see more details about the process of making coconut whipped cream, see my recipe post about it here.)
4. Scoop it into the crusts you made in steps 1-2, being sure to leave a little space at the top for the whipped cream layer. Put the cupcake tray back in the refrigerator so the chocolate filling can congeal a bit more while you make the whipped cream topping.
5. Now open the other can of coconut milk. Again, you can drain out the liquid and scoop out the solid into a bowl. Add in the vanilla extract and liquid sweetener to taste. Whip this mixture until it forms a creamy paste.
6. Top the mini pies with the whipped cream. Sprinkle on toppings, if you'd like.
7. Refrigerate the pies until you serve them. Enjoy!