Mexican Sweet Heat Chocolate Pie

Recipe by: Maureen Kilgore
Featured on Tuesdays with Thomas on 10/20/21

Sweet Heat Crust Ingredients:

• 2 cups old fashioned oats
• 6 Medjool dates
• 2 tablespoons Sweet Heat Balsamic
• 2 tablespoons water
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 ½ teaspoon pepitas, optional

Pie Crust Directions:

1. Soak dates in balsamic and water for a few minutes.
2. Add oats, dates, liquid from dates, and cinnamon to a food processor. Process until very well incorporated.
3. Add pepitas, if using, and pulse to break them up and incorporate into the mixture. Press mix into pie pan.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, then cool completely, for about an hour. This step can be skipped if desired.

Chocolate Pie Filling Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked Japanese sweet potatoes
• 5 Deglet dates
• ¼ cup Sweet Heat Balsamic
• 1 ¾ – 2 cups plant milk, depending on the moisture of your sweet potatoes
• ½ cup cacao or cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• dash of nutmeg
• dash of chipotle chili pepper or cayenne, optional

Chocolate Pie Filling Directions:

1. Add all to a high speed blender and blend until very smooth.
2. Pour into prepared pie crust.
3. Optional addition: Dust with cinnamon and/or 1 teaspoon finely chopped pepitas
4. Chill pie for 4 hours.

Other options:

1. Layer the crust mixture and the filling mixture in a glass bowl or in individual smaller bowls to make a parfait.
2. Add additional plant milk to the filling and pour into popsicle molds. After freezing, you can roll the frozen popsicles in the crust mixture, if desired, and refreeze.