Tahini Carob Fudge

Today was one of those perfect Saturdays. I naturally woke up early and ready to start the day. And! this is the first day I'm bringing back decaf coffee, so I got to sip on the delectably bitter taste of those richly roasted beans. And I did so by the fire, as the sun came up, reading a book... Pure happiness. I also got to spend most of the afternoon cooking up a storm and getting creative, getting ready for a Mardi-Gras party (to which I'll be bringing my own food 😞) and for the big game tomorrow.

I started by slicing and baking beets, sweet potatoes, jicama and bananas for home made chips. more on that tomorrow for the Superbowl. After making a mess of the kitchen, I ran off to my hair cut for the first time in a year. I know, an entire year.  To celebrate i got a double 'decaf' espresso at a coffee shop near the salon for the walk home. At least that's what i ordered.I'm not entirely convinced it was decaf because I was cracked out for the next 8 hours. No bueno. Either I'm super intensely sensitive to the little amount of caffeine left in decaf, or that was the real deal.

Anyways, to accompany the deliciousness of coffee and to follow in the indulgent mood of the day, I tried this fudge recipe from My Darling Lemon Thyme that I've been dying to try since I saw it. She was right that these really do need to be served immediately! Otherwise, they melt into a pile of goo.  I tried to walk a few squares to my friend down the street, we are talking 1 block, and by the time I got there they just looked like leftover frosting in a piping bag. Couldn't give that to someone.

But, they are absolutely delicious and nutritious. I love the idea of tahini instead of nut butters, dairy or grain. I tried making the tahini myself and ended up with sesame seed flour. I think my problem was soaking them and not letting them dry. The oils didn't release.   So I had to buy some tahini for this mix but i plan to practice some more and make the tahini from scratch next time, possibly by roasting the seeds first. Now I have some unexpected home made sesame seed flour, which will be great for some no bake cookies in place of oats. I mixed it up a little. Since I'm not eating cocoa I substituted with carob and coconut. This is a delicious treat to enjoy with your morning coffee and not even feel that bad about it, because calcium and protein.

Adapted from: My Darling Lemon Thyme's Raw Chocolate Fudge with Cocao nibs + Sea salt