Chocolate Crumble Pudding

I'm so excited to share this chocolate crumble with you all. It's a copy cat version of a non dairy free dessert that I used to eat as a child.

It's every chocolate lover with dietary restrictions dream come true because it is gluten free, dairy free, vegan and paleo friendly too.

This is a dessert you can eat solo or impress your guests especially those who aren't vegans, gluten free and so fourth even they will enjoy it too.

The chocolate crunch recipe

If you are from the UK then you might remember a dessert called chocolate crunch. It was a type of ganache with a golden crumb topping.

Myself and my brother loved them (he liked the banana crunch) when we were children and would consume it almost every week.

Unfortunately Bird's (the brand) withdrew the crunch range. I've seen countless petitions and fan pages on Facebook requesting that the manufacturer reinstate the product to no avail.

Rather when plead, beg and protest against the withdrawal I decided to make my rendition.

It's made with a few ingredients and very simple to prepare I can promise that you will enjoy it as much as I do too.

Did I mention that it is a favourite vegan treat just like my Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding and Instant Pot Vegan Rice Pudding.

How to mask the strong avocado taste

This was tricky but I managed to tone down that pungent avocado taste that seems to be problematic with many avocado puddings/mousse like I did with my Avocado Chocolate Mousse recipe.

Balancing out the correct ratio of plant based milk to cacao and avocados is very crucial for good results.

While you can never truly escape the taste of avocado, you can certainly make it more subtle with some tweaking.

Ingredients you will need

• Cacao powder: This is the unadulterated version of cacao powder, it's raw and totally gluten free!
• Avocados: You want avocados that are soft and definitely not firm or hard.
• Almond flour: This creates the topping, it has a coarse texture so it works perfectly.
• Coconut sugar: You can use this or any other granulated low GI sweetener.
• Coconut nectar: Again, this can be used or agave, maple etc...
• Dairy free butter: I use Vitalite but Earth Balance works just as well.
• Dates: I added a few dates purely for additional sweetness, but this is optional.
• Plant based milk i.e Almond, cashew etc..: A splash of dairy free milk is needed
• Vanilla: For some flavour!

The steps

• Preheat the oven to 180C/356F/gas mark 4.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
• Prepare the crumble first by placing the almond flour, coconut sugar and dairy free butter in a medium sized bowl. 
• Use the pads of your fingers to breakdown all three ingredients together so it creates a soft crumble. 
• Spread the crumble onto the parchment paper and toast in the oven until golden (this will take several minutes) and mix so the crumbs are even in colour. 
• While the crumble is being toasted, prepare the chocolate pudding by pureeing the avocados, cacao, dates, nectar/syrup, nut milk and vanilla. 
• Once pureed transfer into a bowl(s)/glass(es) of your choice and sprinkle the golden crumble mix on top of the pudding.

Other nut free toppings

If you happen to be afflicted with a nut allergy, then I would suggest using one of the following

• Crackers (GF of course)
• Tapioca starch
• Buckwheat/brown rice flour or another type of GF flour
• Coconut flour

More add ins and variations

• Apple
• Cherry
• Banana
• Vegan white chocolate
• Nuts
• Seeds
• If you want to be really daring you can go one step further by making a chocolate crumble topping by adding 1-2 teaspoon of cacao powder to the topping mixture.
  

  This crumble is the exact same crumble that I used in my Vegan Pumpkin Parfait. 

Notes and tips

• Keep in mind the more ripe the avocados are the stronger the avocado taste.
• You can double the batch if you are serving to a large crowd.
• Serving size is varied I managed to fill a standard sized breakfast bowl with this recipe. However, you can serve in multiple shot glasses or souffle dishes.
• Make sure to use almond flour and not almond meal as the two are not the same. Almond meal is a slightly coarse texture.
• Use a granulated low calorie/glycemic index sugar such as coconut sugar to make the crumble. Syrup/nectar might be too heavy for the crumble.
• Use a high speed blender or food processor to puree the avocados and so fourth.
• Any excess crumble mix can be frozen and used at another time.
• To make this recipe keto friendly use stevia or erythritol 
• Make sure the butter is cold, straight out of the refrigerator and NOT room temperature/melting.

Other desserts to try