Orange Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with Hazelnut Caramel Topping
Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. And I might have gone a little over the top here but boy, is it awesome! And the holidays are coming up so it’s time to have some fun. You are never going to hear me tell you to have a raw dessert for breakfast but every once in a while, it’s fun to indulge a bit. Why would you serve chocolate cake when you can serve this?
Hazelnuts, cacao and orange, oh my! The crazy thing is that this beautiful torte is relatively easy to throw together and will keep well so you can make it ahead of time if you are entertaining. The chocolate layer is an orange-cacao ganache studded with hazelnuts and the top layer is a orange caramel studded with hazelnuts! It is orange-chocolate-hazelnut heaven.
As we enter into the holiday season, it’s fun to have some extra special recipes in your repertoire and this one will fit the bill perfectly.
Orange Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with Hazelnut Caramel Topping
serves 8-10
Crust
- 1 cup hazelnuts
- 3 dates, roughly chopped (soft)
- 1 tablespoon water (as needed)
- Place hazelnuts in food processor and pulse until nuts are finely chopped.
- Add the dates and water. Pulse until well combined and crust sticks together.
- Pat into the bottom of a nine-inch spring form pan
Ganache Layer
- 1 cup cacao powder
- 1 cup organic maple syrup (not raw)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon Organic Orange Flavor
- 3 tablespoons orange zest
- Pinch Himalayan salt
- Whisk together cacao powder, maple syrup and coconut oil until smooth (set aside a little for the top).
- Stir in, by hand, hazelnuts, orange essence, orange zest, and salt.
- Pour over crust and refrigerate at least 30 minutes but not over an hour (if it get’s to hard, the topping won’t stick).
Caramel Layer
- 1 cup coconut butter, softened (this is not coconut oil)
- 3/4 cup organic maple syrup
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1 cup hazelnuts, chopped
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- Whisk together coconut butter, maple syrup and orange juice until smooth.
- Stir in hazelnuts and orange zest.
- Refrigerate for 20 minutes, stir, refrigerate again for another 20 minutes, stir and then pat onto top of ganache layer. Alternatively, you can just pour it over the ganache layer with out the refrigeration steps. The refrigeration will introduce some texture.
- Top with ganache you set aside (you may have to re-warm it) and orange zest. Refrigerate at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Lisa wrote on December 26, 2013
I made this torte for dessert for our Christmas eve dinner (served along side “regular” apple pie, cookies, etc.). It was a nice alternative and my family liked it. A little sliver goes a long way as it is very dense and rich. The torte was fun/easy to make and I recommend it.
Susannah wrote on December 17, 2013
….and, I concur with all the above comments. Your recipes are fab, your photos edible, and the end result, of this recipe, absolutely scrummy. Mine never look quite so good, but the taste – yum!! Thank you so much Susan, you’re a treasure, and oh so generous.
Susannah
Mami wrote on December 14, 2013
Thankyou for this recipe! Just finished making it and between-licks gave me a very promising outlook. Will bring it to a dinner party tomorrow night. Can’t wait!
karalyn wrote on November 29, 2013
Made this for Thanksgiving and it was and is amazing!
Susan wrote on November 29, 2013
So wonderful to hear, Karalyn!
Karina wrote on November 28, 2013
I love it and can’t wait to make it! Just… Hazelnuts are reaaally expensive in my country, do you think I could use a mix of hazelnuts, almonds, pecans and/or cashews?? Suggestions?
Thank you!!
Linda Johns wrote on November 25, 2013
I have cooked a new recipe from Rawmazing since October 2014 when my husband and I began our new journey. I love the pictures and detailed instructions. Thank you for your cooking experiments and success of your recipes. We love them and can’t wait to make the Orange Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with Hazelnut Caramel Topping. Happy Thanksgiving.
Shannon Murray wrote on November 23, 2013
Wow! This looks like the perfect recipe for Thanksgiving dessert! My extended (meat and potatoes) family will flip out over the deliciousness and I won’t tell them it’s RAW until afterwards 🙂 This Tort will be the talk of the night! Thanks Susan!
Susie-Q wrote on November 20, 2013
Looks amazing!! Good job!!