Little Raspberry Lavender Cream Pies

In the summer months when I was a kid, I can remember going to Baker's Square with my Dad to pick out a pie to enjoy after dinner.  We would do so every once in a while if we were having company as my Dad wasn't much of a dessert maker.  I would peer through the glass of the pie case and take in all of the beautiful pies.  Lemon meringue with the airy looking peaks of egg whites, french silk, with its piles of rich whipped cream and little chocolate curls, and my favorite, raspberry cream cheese.  I would beg my Dad for the raspberry cream cheese, as it was my favorite. Sweet, rich, smooth cream cheese on the bottom, topped with perfect, ripe raspberries!  It was heavenly.  My Dad would argue that fresh strawberry was better, as it was his favorite, but in the end we would end up getting the cream cheese.  After all, plain strawberry pie lacked the cream cheese, so therefore it wasn't as good, at least in my mind at the time.  

I now make my own pies instead of  buying them.  So much better that way, and nothing beats the feeling of enjoying a dessert you have lovingly made yourself.  I had been given a bunch of fresh raspberries recently and I thought, what better a way to use them than in a pie!  

But my pies are a little different than the pies of my childhood from baker's square.  This was to be a vegan four inch individual pie, for just me to enjoy.  Instead of pie crust, I opted for a flavorful pecan crust, and in place of the cream cheese, a raw cashew cream laced with lavender.  

It was quite lovely, and I have a feeling that if I were given this little pie as a child, I would have loved it just for its cuteness alone.  It was almost to pretty to eat, but nothing is EVER too pretty to eat in my opinion, especially if you know it is delicious, and it was!  Nothing beats home made pie!

Little Raw Raspberry Lavender Cream Pies
Makes 2


Crust:
1 1/2 cup hazelnuts

1/8 teaspoon sea salt
3 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped

Cream:
3/4 cup raw cashew pieces (preferably soaked overnight)
1/2 cup coconut water

3/4 cup fresh young coconut meat* (or additional soaked cashews if not available)
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and seeds of a vanilla bean (optional)
1/4 cup coconut oil (warmed to liquid)
2 Tbsp dried lavender flowers


2 cups fresh organic raspberries
maple syrup
dried lavender flowers


Spray two 4 inch pans, lined with plastic wrap to make removal easier.  To prepare the crust, process pecans and sea salt in a food processor until the pecans are fine crumbs, then add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers. Firmly press crust into the bottoms of the tart pans, and set aside in the freezer to firm up.

To make cream, drain cashews and blend all ingredients until smooth in a food processor, then stir in lavender and set in the freezer about 30 minutes until a frosting consistency. Spread 2/3 of the cream into the bottoms of the tart shells.  Place remaining cream in a pastry bag and pipe decoratively around the top of the cheesecake. Arrange the raspberries on the top of the tart and drizzle with a little maple syrup if desired and sprinkle with a few lavender flowers.  Store in the fridge.