These chocolate hazelnut bars are sinfully chocolatey and crunchy, with a filling as luscious as a cheesecake. Raw, vegan, paleo, gluten-free & perfect for Passover.
See other Passover dishes At the Immigrant's Table.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. And throughout it all, there were chocolate hazelnut bars.
Passover #1
I am surrounded by the din of children screaming. Kind, usually polite kids are running around the swamp-coloured room hopped up on sugar and excitement, their unnaturally distorted features illuminated by the sharp light of fluorescent lamps. Adults constantly interrupt their conversations to pick up an infant, calm down a crying toddler or swaddle a baby.
As I sit there, chewing on a salad that is in itself worthy of being a conversation a piece but, in the midst of this din, is all but forgotten, my mind drifts to one simple conclusion: if there is a hell, this must be what if feels like.
It is my first Passover night this year.
In a gathering intended to facilitate avid discussion and illuminated insight, we spent our time avoiding difficult questions and refusing to see the personal bondages that hold us back.
Surrounded by other immigrants for whom these are the first years living away from home, I expected the meaning of Passover to be particularly acute. Instead, I watched adults eating pasta and pounding back beers in an effort to forget, for at least a moment, the ennui of everyday life.
When another guest brought a mile-high tiramisu cake to the table, its top crowned with curls of cream whose trains cascaded down the sides like waterfalls, I turned to my neighbour and asked in wonderment: "They made a kosher-for-Passover tiramisu cake?" (to be kosher for Passover, foods must be unleavened and otherwise free of wheat, except in the form of matza).
The response was a hearty laughter, picked up by nearly everyone at the table. Apparently, I was naive to assume that one's personal choices to keep kosher would be respected in communal dishes - even the potato gratin had bread crumbs covering its golden top, I was later informed.
As I tuck into the gluten-free, vegan, paleo chocolate hazelnut bars that I had worked so hard to keep free of any allergens, in respect of other guests' diets, I feel the familiar sting of tears threatening to come up my nose.
They are met with oohs and ahhs by those who care to try them, to abandon the familiar comfort of what is, by all evidence, a delicious tiramisu cake... But it barely registers.
We never even crack open the Haggadah.
****
Passover #2
I am seated at the end of a long table, lit by the soft glow of standing paper lamps. All around me people are singing, breaking their teeth through unfamiliar words in an ancient language.
Wine is everywhere: in our cups, on our plates and under the tablecloths.
My stomach is growling with hunger and my feet throb, swollen from hours spent chopping, stirring and measuring food for two dinners.
Yet my face is locked in an ear-splitting, honest, radiant smile that is emanating from the pits of my soul: this is everything that Passover is about.
Life, love, sadness and laughter. Discussion and introspection. Disagreement and befuddlement. Interaction.
It is all here, shared among 20 people who don't even speak the same three languages. Who have not all been through a significant move, or an earth-shattering loss, or life-altering passion. People who are all so different and some of whom don't even like each other very much.
Yet at this moment, we couldn't be closer or have more in common. Perhaps it is because we chose, for two hours, to put our hunger and want and weariness aside and come together in song, and talk, and yes - even prayer.
Or perhaps it is because it's the end of a Saturday, and none of us have kids to hug, or share our joy, or steal our precious free moments.
But I like to think it's because we choose to feel like this.
The appearance of chocolate hazelnut bars
When I bring out the gluten-free, vegan, paleo chocolate hazelnut bars that I had worked so hard to keep free of any allergens, in respect of other guests' diets, I feel the familiar sting of tears threatening to come up my nose. But this time, the reason is entirely different.
The bars are eaten faster than we can boil tea, met with oohs and ahhs from grateful friends. And as a tall blond Russian man takes out his guitar and the dark-haired curly Romanian girl sitting two seats down requests to hear an Israeli song she remembers from her childhood, while the neighbours begin to bang on our ceiling, my mind drifts to one simple conclusion: some experiences cut across cultures.
Chocolate hazelnut bars (gluten-free, grain-free, vegan, raw, paleo), or a tale of two Passovers
Ingredients
For base:
- 1 cup almonds
- ½ cup desiccated coconut
- ⅓ cup Medjool dates
- 2 TBs coconut oil
- 4 ounces unsweetened dark chocolate
- Pinch of sea salt
For filling:
- 2 cups cashews soaked
- 1 ounce unsweetened dark chocolate
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 2 TB maple syrup or 2-3 dates the dates will change the texture to being a little softer
- 2 TBs coconut oil
- Non-dairy milk as needed (coconut milk is best)
- Pinch of salt
For topping:
- 1 ounce unsweetened dark chocolate optional, makes the chocolate hazelnut bars not raw
- 1 TB coconut oil optional, makes the chocolate hazelnut bars not raw
- Hazelnuts peeled, toasted and chopped
Instructions
- Soak and cashews in a bowl for at least one hour. Drain thoroughly.
- Cover a bar pan or a tall-sided baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, grind all crust ingredients together until mixture holds together well and you can form it into shapes. Press evenly into your prepared baking pan.
- Add all filling ingredients to food processor and process until mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes. If mixture is too runny, add more coconut oil, one tablespoon at a time. If mixture is too hard, add non-dairy milk, one tablespoon at a time. Taste for sweetness and add more maple syrup or dates, as desired. Pour filling into baking pan. Chill in freezer.
- Place a small bowl inside a saucepan filled halfway with water. Add remaining chocolate and coconut oil to bowl, and cook on very low heat until fully melted.
- Remove bars from freezer. Drizzle bar mixture with melted chocolate and sprinkle chopped hazelnut pieces. Press on the hazelnut pieces very lightly so they don't just fall off the bars when they set.
- Chill in freezer for at least 1 hour. Cut into squares, and serve chilled - bars can be kept in the fridge.
SFine says
Beautifully written. I really feel the mood, your descriptions are very poetic. And those bars are worth dying for!
kseniaprints says
Thanks so much!!!!1 I am glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Gayle says
I also had two very different seders this year. Not much to tell per se, but I understand where you're coming from. Anyone would be crazy not to ooh and aah over these pesadik bars, observant or not!
kseniaprints says
Thank you, Gayle! Yeah, at least I definitely got an experience out of this 🙂
Kimberly/TheLittlePlantation says
Beautiful, BEAUTIFUL writing and beautiful BEAUTIFUL cake.
Thank you.
kseniaprints says
So glad you like it, Kimberly! Let me know if you give them a try.
Natalia says
Such a lovely cake. I like the ingredients and feel like I would make it for this we . Thanks for the recipe, Ksenija, and for the beautiful post <3
kseniaprints says
Thank you, Natalia! I hope you'll give this a try 🙂
Elena says
Your bars look absolutely delicious! And your Passover story is so poetically written, as always! Happy Passover, dear Ksenia!
kseniaprints says
Happiest of Passovers to you as well, Elena!
Berta says
Beautifully written story, as always! 🙂 and I may or may not be jealous of everyone who got to try those delicious bars!! 😉
kseniaprints says
Thank you Berta - and no need to be jealous, you can be one of the lucky tasters of these bars with just 15 minutes of work! They're THAT easy.
Berta says
Well, now that you've pointed out how quick they are, this recipe is definetely going into my bookmarks :))
Eliyahu says
Well, next time you don't have to come. No one forced you.
It seems being rude is the thing. All participants did agree in advance on the nature of the event.
It is you who don't respect other people choices.
kseniaprints says
Dear Eliyahu (whoever you might be),
You're absolutely right – no one forced me to come. To be perfectly honest, I was not entirely aware of the nature of the event – all I was told was that this was going to be a seder with Israelis, so I had a particular image in mind based on my previous experiences. I meant no disrespect towards yours or anyone else's choices with this post; it was just meant to be a poetic retelling of my experiences, and I fully admit that I have taken some poetic license and exaggerated some of my feelings for the sake of literary impact.
As this is a personal blog that I consider to be a safe space, I allow myself to be honest - and maybe a bit polemic. Again, I meant no disrespect and I apologize if I've hurt your feelings.
Ksenia
Alexandra says
Gorgeous, Ksenia! I don't keep Kosher but I'd be happy to have these year-round regardless of my religious beliefs, haha 🙂
kseniaprints says
I know! These bars are so delicious that I see myself enjoying them year-round. Let me know if you decide to give them a try!
Gena says
I wish this lovely cake had been on my radar for one of the two seders I made dessert for this year! What an awesome, all-diets welcome treat, Ksenia 🙂
kseniaprints says
There's always next year, Gena! Let me know if you do give it a try 🙂
Cindy @ Hungry Love Cook says
What a beautiful story Ksenia. I'm glad your 2nd Passover dinner was everything it was supposed to be and your bars were more than appreciated. Stories like this make recipes that much more personal. Thank you so much for sharing.
kseniaprints says
I think it's going through both experiences that really made me feel where I belong. Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Cindy!
Liora (Allthingsloveli) says
I so loved reading about your seders- It made me think that we're lucky we get to celebrate two nights! These bars look so delicious, and fit my year round diet perfectly- i love the combination of chocolate with hazelnuts.
kseniaprints says
Thank you for visiting, Liora! This was actually my first time celebrating two seders, and I have to say I see the benefit - you truly get a do-over! It was definitely welcome this year. And the bars are indeed mostly allergen-free - sadly, those with nut allergies won't be able to enjoy them...