Happy *almost* Halloween! I primarily made these themed no-bake vegan pumpkin pie bites just because I wanted an orange vehicle to drizzle spooky black sesame tahini all over in honor of Halloween. This black sesame tahini should be the food mascot of October 31st - what other non-burnt food gets that black naturally? I'll be dining on a sweet potato black sesame tahini bowl on Monday just to be extra festive.
When Halloween is on a Monday, when do you all celebrate? Are you more of a "I take the kids through the neighborhood on Monday evening" or "Saturday night at the bars" or "I turn the lights off and pretend I'm not home" kind of person?
Tonight is our big dress-up affair for Lucas's company Halloween party. We'll be going as Owen & Claire from Jurassic World with Zoella as a chubby dinosaur - a Zoellasaur. We'll stuff her belly with pillows to make the borrowed homemade costume fit nice and snug.
Now that we've got the family costume thing settled, how do you take a baby trick-or-treating to show off her awesome costume without actually asking for candy? Because that would be poor form right? Two adults using their baby to beg their neighbors for candy. Like in theory "don't bring a bucket" sounds like the obvious plan, but then imagine for a second how that transaction goes,
Me: Trick or treat!
Them: Aww - what a cute dinosaur!
Me: Thanks!
THEN WHAT? Options: 1. Make awkward eye contact and linger just a little too long because you don't know how to end the transaction without candy and thanks, 2. Turn and quickly walk away, or..... 3. Offer a hug?
Or is the answer you that you just don't take the baby trick-or-treating and instead overload Facebook with baby dinosaur pictures? <-- probably this, right? I'm too awkward for trick-or-treating.
Back to these vegan pumpkin pie bites. They are way more than just a vehicle for tahini. Thanks to a soaked cashew cream filling adapted from Alanna's vegan coconut cream tart and Kayley's raw cheesecakes, these pumpkin bites are gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar-free. Even still they're ultra creamy, spiced like fall, and packed with sweet pumpkin goodness.
Black sesame and pumpkin make a unique and addicting duo - slightly sweet and spiced pumpkin with sweet nutty sesame. I fell in love with this pair in my black sesame pumpkin mochi cake from last year. Their Halloween hue is just the icing on the cake...errr...pie bites? Check out Shelly's smoky pumpkin & black sesame seed hummus for another rendition.
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Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 pitted medjool dates
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1½ cups whole raw almonds
- ½ cup black sesame seeds
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1¾ cups raw cashews, soaked in boiling water for 1-2 hours
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin puree
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
- 1 whole vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- pinch of sea salt
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons cool water
- ½ cup coconut oil
- 1 cup black sesame seeds, lightly toasted and cooled
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup powdered sugar, sifted
INSTRUCTIONS
- Line an 8x8 square baking pan with a sling of parchment paper.
- Prepare the crust. Add the dates, maple syrup, almonds, sesame seeds, and salt to a high speed blender or food processor and pulse until it begins to clump. Pour the filling into the prepared baking pan and use your fingertips to press down the crust into an even layer. Use a small glass to roll it smooth, if desired. Chill crust while you prepare the filling.
- Drain and rinse the soaked cashews and add them to the blender with pumpkin purée, maple syrup, ground chia seeds, vanilla bean seeds, and spices.
- With the blender on low, slowly add the cool water, increasing the speed as you pour. Blend on high for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed, until the filling is velvety smooth.
- Pour in the coconut oil and blend on low just to combine. Pour the filling over the chilled crust, smoothing out the top as needed.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until firm.
- Meanwhile prepare the black sesame tahini. Pulse the black sesame seeds for 20 seconds in a high speed blender or food processor (you will need a small jar for the blender or else you'll need to double the recipe).
- Add the coconut oil, and salt and process until completely smooth, about 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Fold in the powdered sugar and transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip (or a ziploc bag with the tip cut off!). Chill for 20 minutes to firm up.
- Once the pumpkin pie bites have chilled, slice them into 16-20 squares. To make slicing easier, just before you serve it, place them in the freezer for 20 minutes. Slice with a warm knife, wiping it down after each cut. Drizzle with black sesame tahini and serve chilled within 2 days (after 2 days, the crust starts to get soggy).
Tori//Gringalicious -
This looks and sounds so delish! I could totally eat a whole tray!
Sarah Menanix -
Thank you so much!! <3
Alanna -
Haha, I'm definitely a "pretend I'm not home" kinda gal. ;-) But I would take Catamus trick or treating if it meant a bucketful of these sublime pie bites!!! So delicious. You've got me hooked on the pumpkin black sesame combo.
Sarah Menanix -
Hahaha - I think it's a good thing you don't pass out treats because putting these pumpkin pie bars into trick or treat bags would be suuuper messy;) But bring catamus here and I'll give you some, k?
Nicole -
How did you know I was looking for a GF vegan pumpkin dessert for this weekend?? And no bake is perfect, since we're still seeing highs in the upper 80s ... About your Zoellasaur, take her to a Halloween festival! There's a nice kids parade down Piedmont Ave. in Oakland, ending at Mountain View Cemetery. http://piedmontavenue.org/
Sarah Menanix -
Great idea! We WERE going to go to one, but then....it was pouring rain on the weekend, so we just put her in her costume on Halloween and took her to a couple neighbors' houses to say rawr:) Xoxox!
traci | VanillaAndBean -
OMG... too cute. A chubby dinosaur? But stay home, Sarah... Agreed. I'd feel awkward too. Besides, you'll be able to celebrate with the cats too! Did THEY get costumes? Cashews are total magic, Sarah and a perfect addition to these delicious no bake bars. The black ses seed is genius and a fabulous application!! Love!! (I'll be home with the lights out ;) )
Sarah Menanix -
Okay, this is really funny. I wrote this line, but deleted it because I thought I was rambling too much; The cats will be their regular witch and pumpkin costumes that are purely for my own amusement because they're indoor cats and we have no plans for Halloween guests. Hahaha. Unless you want to come? :)
Joyce @ Sun Diego Eats -
i can't believe it turns out so naturally black!!! i have a weird thing where i love discovering ingredients that create perfect natural food dyes. adding this to the list :)
Sarah Menanix -
YES! Me too!!!
Karen @ The Food Charlatan -
Zoellasaur!!! I need to see pictures!! Yeah we never took our kids out before they were old enough to walk on their own. My mom thought I was committing a crime by not taking them. But I agree, awkward hug? Or how do we get out of this?? haha. LOVE these pumpkin pie bites, SO BLACK!!
Sarah Menanix -
Hahah I think it's probably just fine that you waited until they could walk:) Next year you'll take Baby V with you though and it'll be SO CUTE! <3
IVA @ culinary postcards -
I absolutely love this idea! Black sesame gives such a cool twist to the dessert.
Sarah Menanix -
Thanks!
Veronica -
Abuela would like to see lot's of photos on Facebook of little Zoellasaures, Owen and Claire! Pleassse! Your dessert looks amazing! So perfect!
Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness -
You know I LOVE these! ;) I am all about anything pumpkin and I am SRSLY digging that black sesame addition!
Bethany @ Athletic Avocado -
These little pumpkin pie bites look incredible! I'm not a candy person, but I LOVE all things pumpkin during fall!
Jennifer Farley -
I love the medjool dates in the crust and the raw cashew in the filling. This is my kind of dessert, though I don't make it for the blog very often since my audience doesn't seem to dig it. SO GOOD, though.
Sarah Menanix -
Thank you!! You should just make it for yourself and not share and eat it all (while watching election coverage, duh).
Carla -
Sarah. You OFFER A HUG! Obviously.
Deryn @ Running on Real Food -
Interesting! I love the sesame and pumpkin combo! Your fam costume sounds adorable. I can't wait to try these...and basically everything is a vehicle for tahini so these are right up my alley.
Brian -
I believe in the 80/20 rule. you know, where 80 of all reward comes from 20 of the effort? Well, I believe your blog is that 20. I've added you to the list of sites that I frequent. Thank you for the in depth and detailed blog posts. Not many people are willing to do that anymore.