A sweet birthday and a sweet pie

Today is my birthday! Woo 22! I've never been a huge fan of birthdays I took it pretty easy for most of the day, which was a nice contrast to most birthdays, which tend to be filled with high expectations and too many activities for one's good. I started off the day with some restorative yoga and watercolored a card to send send to my dad for father's day. Then I just texted or spoke on the phone to all the people who are really important to me, which reminded me of all the amazing people I have in my life. I think because I didn't try to make a big deal out of the day, it ended up being one of the best birthdays I've had in a while.

Flowers my amazing mama sent me. Note the "Ms. Farth" on the card ha

I made a semi-raw pumpkin pie for my birthday cake (I know, but I really wanted to cook on the day of my birthday). Two other people cooked a delicious dinner for everyone. Here's what our table scape looked like:

INGREDIENTS::


Raisin-Walnut Crust:
3 Cups almond flour (almonds pulverized in a food processor)
2 cups walnuts (add these at the end so some remain whole)
2 cups raisins 
1/2 cup maple syrup
3 Tbsp coconut oil
1-4 Tbsp water (for blending, depending on how )


Pumpkin Chia Filling:
6 Cups canned pumpkin puree
2/3 Cup unsweetened almond milk
1 Cup pure maple syrup
6 Tbsp chia seeds
4 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
8 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice


Maple Whip:

3 Cans coconut milk (chilled in the fridge for at least one hour)
1/3 Maple syrup


Topping:
1/2 Cup Vegan chocolate chips

Whisk all the filling ingredients together in a bowl until smooth. Set in fridge to chill.


If making your own almond flour, place almonds in a food processor one cup at a time until ground to a powder. Add raisins and walnuts and pulse to combine. Add oil and drizzle maple syrup until a dough is formed. Add water if it seems too dry. 

Place dough into a pan and press down into edges to form a crust with your fingers. I greased the pan and my hands with coconut oil to prevent sticking. Place the crust in the freezer for a half hour.

Pour pudding into the crust. Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler and drizzle over the pie. Allow to chill for at least an hour before serving

To make the coconut maple whip cream, place the cans of coconut milk in the fridge and chill for an hour. Once chilled, remove the cans and scoop out only the solidified coconut milk, leave the liquid in the can and use for a smoothie or just drink it straight! 
Add maple syrup and whip with a hand mixture until it resembles whipped cream.

The pie wasn't the only sweet thing I enjoyed on my bday. After dinner, I was  blindfolded and lead up the stairs. Then I sat down in a chair and was lifted and spun around hava-nagila style before being placed down on the ground. All the musicians in the house played music and everyone else came around and whispered nice things in my ear. I felt so disoriented not only because I had no clue what was going on, but because I never expected anyone (let alone a group of people I've only known for a week and change) to surprise me with something so sweet and thoughtful. It was a truly magical day.