Miso caramel slice

If you're in need of a bit of a nutritional reset, Kelsi Boocock's Healthy Kelsi cookbook provides some mighty fine inspiration in the form of "simple vibrant, plant-based food". Here we get taster of some of her wholesome fare.

Ingredients

Base

1 cup	oats
1 cup	desiccated coconut
10	fresh medjool dates, pitted
1 Tbsp	vanilla extract
2 Tbsp	melted coconut oil
1 cup	buckwheat

Caramel

14	fresh medjool dates, pitted
½ cup	boiling water
1 Tbsp	miso paste
2 cups	cashews, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes
2 Tbsp	almond butter
¼ cup	maple syrup

Topping

100g	dark chocolate
1 Tbsp	coconut oil

Directions

1. For the base: Line a 20 x 30 cm slice tin with baking paper. Blend the oats, desiccated coconut, dates, vanilla and coconut oil in a food processor until fully blended. Add buckwheat and pulse until combined (don't blend too much as you want the buckwheat to retain some crunch).
2. Press base into lined tin, flattening with a spatula or your fingers. Place in freezer to set while making the caramel.
3. To make the caramel: Add dates and water to a pot over high heat and cook until all the water has evaporated. Place cooked dates in blender, along with miso paste, cashews, almond butter and maple syrup and blend until smooth. Pour over the base and place back in freezer.
4. To make the topping: Melt chocolate and coconut oil in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of boiling water. Once melted, pour over slice and place back in freezer for at least 2 hours. Slice into squares with a hot knife.

Edited extract from Healthy Kelsi: Simple, vibrant plant-based food by Kelsi Boocock, photography and recipes by Kelsi Boocock, published by Bateman Books, RRP$39.99. Check your local bookstore for possible click and collect options (outside of Auckland) and also Fishpond and Mighty Ape for online and contactless delivery.