A few days ago I was in Million Dollar Decorator, Martyn Lawrence Bullard’s incredibly famous kitchen in a house once-owned by Rudolph Valentino, Gloria Swanson and William Faulkner. The history and the privilege of working there is not lost on me.
There I was making one of Bullard’s favorite healthy treats using my hands and a fork. I have made these coconut cacao candies a hundred times and every time, I end up using my hands to incorporate the ingredients and every time, there are more than a few pesky little stubborn balls of coconut butter that don’t get mixed in. It is annoying to say the least and that’s when it dawned on me . . . Uh, Meg, why don’t you try the Masha?! Yeah, it was a “duh moment.”
So today, I used the Masha and I was more than impressed. I was actually dumbfounded and I truly believe that raw foodists everywhere must have this tool for making this classic, staple raw food dessert.
So here’s the recipe and what happened in my kitchen when I used the Masha!
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3 Cups shredded unsweetened coconut
½ Cup Raw Cacao Powder (do not use cocoa)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
¾ Cup coconut butter
1/3 Cup agave nectar
Mix the first five ingredients in a bowl (the dry ingredients). Use the Masha to mix the dry ingredients – I was going to use a whisk because the ingredients were dry and I thought the Masha would send them flying all over the kitchen. Nope.
The Masha does it again!
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Add coconut butter (also called coconut oil) and agave nectar. You can use coconut nectar instead of agave if you prefer.
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Use the Masha in an up and down mashing movement until ingredients are incorporated. And trust me, that does not take long! I mean, I could not believe how well and how fast it blended all of the ingredients together perfectly without any lumps AT ALL!!!
To make them into balls, use a melon baller to keep them at about the same size. Using your hands, roll them into balls.
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Place them on a cookie sheet (I have used a glass Pyrex dish) and put them in the freezer for about a half an hour to set up. You can store them in the refrigerator to keep them from melting but honestly, they are best at room temperature. I will never make this recipe without the Masha again!
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