Raw food is not the norm for me these days. Back when Logan and I first started seriously dating, I would make ice box pies with cashew cream and lemon zest and vanilla. I recall using honey to sweeten it. Curled up next to my love in bed, AC rattling gently, the sheets tucked up to our chins, we demolished a brownie pan full in one sitting. It was unicorn pie. It didn’t even taste REAL it was so good. But since those early days playing with raw eats and vegan treats, I haven’t messed too much with the raw scene. Sure, I can dig on a salad pretty hard. And I’ll never say no to raw dessert, especially one I don’t have to make myself. But it’s Summer. And I want to eat pie. And turning my oven on right now sounds like an awful life choice. At the time of making this tart, I happened to have half a pan of recently ground chocolate (courtesy of my love), a bowl of fresh-picked blueberries from our yard, and a new bag of mineral-rich, coarse sea salt from J. Q. Dickinson Salt-Works. The chocolate was our best batch yet — nutty, milky, with a hint of red fruit. And the salt is a treat I bought myself after a new friend (Lauren Stonestreet of Elle Effect) recommended it to me. A raw tart seemed like a good way to get all of those things into one food that I could happily stuff into my face. And Logan’s face. 
You’ve had chocolate covered blueberries before, right? And you’ve had salted chocolate. Well, this is their love child. Their raw, vegan, flower-crown sporting love child. If this pie were a person she (yes SHE) would be the hottest hippie chick at Floyd Fest (a Virginia festival that RULES) or a small, less-corporate Bonnaroo (please someone recommend a festival like this to me!). She wouldn’t even have to wear a flower crown and she would still be the MOST badass. It’s all about substance, amiright? So about that salt: The Dickinsons first drilled for brine in the mountains of West Virginia back in 1817, and in 1851 won the title of “Best Salt in the World” at that years World Fair. The seventh generation descendants of the Dickinson Salt-Works legacy have revitalized their family’s company, re-introducing this salt to our world. They harvest the brine from a pre-historic ocean deep beneath the Appalachian mountains, and dry their brine in the sun. It’s organic, naturally harvested, and eco-friendly. Do I feel the coolest sprinkling it on my avocado toast in the morning? YES. 
So in honor of discovering something steeped in history that we can all eat, I’m doing a giveaway today! Nancy, one of the owners of the company, has generously offered to let me give away a 3.5 ounce jar of salt and one of their pretty, salvaged cherry-wood salt cellars hand crafted by Allegheny Treenware. She’s real nice, ya’ll.
- for the crust:
- 70 grams hazelnut flour
- 75 grams almond flour
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- pinch sea salt
- //
- for the filling:
- 1.5 cups dates, soaked overnight and drained
- ¼ cup cashews
- ¼ cup warm water
- seeds of ½ fresh vanilla bean
- 80 grams 70% dark chocolate, melted
- //
- for the topping:
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 30 grams chocolate, melted
- ½ tsp coconut oil or ghee
- ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt (I used J.Q. Dickenson salt)
- In a Cuisinart or blender, combine hazelnut flour, almond flour, coconut oil, maple syrup, and sea salt.
- Blend to combine.
- Remove dough from your blender and form into a ball.
- Press evenly into a tart pan (mine is irregular at 8 inches wide, but you could use two 4.5 inch wide tart pans).
- In a blender, combine drained dates, cashews, warm water, vanilla bean, and melted chocolate and blend until creamy in consistency (it took me about 1 minute, total, stopping to scrape down the sides every 15 seconds or so).
- Spoon out filling over your raw crust.
- Spread evenly.
- Top with blueberries, in no particular arrangement.
- Combine last of the chocolate with coconut oil or ghee, stirring to thoroughly combine.
- Using a small spoonful at a time, spoon melted chocolate over your berry topping (I used two spoonfuls).
- Sprinkle coarse salt over.
- Serve chilled.
I’m not being paid or compensated in any way to promote J.Q. Dickinson salt. All words and opinions are my own.
I love that this uses real chocolate in the filling!! Can’t wait to try it!
yes! so few raw recipes incorporate real chocolate. why? it’s always going to be better! my fiancee and i actually made the chocolate in this pie from raw cocoa beans (we roasted, shelled, ground, liquified the cacao and added sugar to make our own base chocolate). i.e. this was a real labor of love! worth it.
beyond this recipe, I guess I could use the salt on fresh cut french fries or other deep fried goodies.
Sterling! Our salt is amazing on homemade fries! Give it a try and let us know what you think. Also, with all of the beautiful fresh produce in the markets their natural summer flavor is elevated even more by a sprinkling of J.Q.D. Salt.
<3 Nancy you are the sweetest. Thank you for being so involved in this giveaway! It's been a great process. I'm a J. Q. Dickinson salt girl for life, now!
Sterling, this salt on french fries (with some homemade ketchup) is probably the best comfort food I could imagine. <3
This “hippy love child” looks SO yummy, and your photographs, oh boy, are so wonderful 🙂
I love everything about this pie, and better, I don’t need to crank up the oven to make this delicious looking pie 🙂
Thank you for sharing 🙂
Pang! Thank you for your sweet words. And thank you for being so stoked on my posts across platforms! You really are a sweet heart. Wish I could send you a slice of this pie!
Love your pics and recipes!
Thanks so much Sue! <3
OH. MY. This looks so so amazing. And demolishing an entire pan of brownies in bed sounds even more amazing. Gah. I don’t know, I guess if I won that salt I would HAVE to put it on top of some kind of luscious raw dessert–a raw key lime pie or cheesecake, mayhap? 🙂
Raw key lime pie or cheesecake both sounds brilliant and delicious and sooooo good in right now in this Southern heat. Salt it up!
yummm. blueberries + chocolate is always a fave.
yes, girl. yes. it’s surprising to me how few people have had bloobs & chocolate together. it’s a revelation!
can we still be friends if i tell you that in our household we don’t do fruit + chocolate? bananas are a maaaaybe. my dear sweet husband who can eat anything does not like the combo of fruit + chocolate. he’s so wonderful and delightful that i overlooked this tragic flaw. however, we do enjoy the occasional raw desserts and this would be lovely topped with whipped coconut cream, and i would sneak in a few berries on my plate.
haha, we can still be friends. i think whipped coconut cream sounds like a perfect substitution (or addition). i might try that incarnation of this dessert myself! whipped coconut cream is one of the best things in life.
This tart looks and sounds absolutely amazing. I am also ridiculously excited for your chocolate to debut. You’re living one of my dream lives. As far as music festivals go, have you heard of Grassroots? It’s up near Ithaca in upstate NY. I was there once .. it’s a good time. Fun music, great food, dancing, hula-hooping, etc.
oh and ps I would probably sprinkle the salt on avocado toast as well ….. or tartines with ricotta, fruit and honey …. 🙂
thanks, sara! and i’ve never heard of Grassroots — I’ll have to check it out! My fiancee tells me Ithaca is wonderful. Actually, the guy who designed the walking mall there designed the walking mall in Charlottesville (and Boulder). Similar vibe. And salt on tartines w ricotta fruit and honey sounds like my ideal lunch today. <3 <3
It’d be perfect on preztels. YUM
oh, GIRL! pretzels + this salt = divine.
Ooh, this would be so yummy with raspberries or blueberries, YUM!
yum looks amazing. love that it’s a raw tart! thanks for the inspiration!
I would use it on grilled veggies and French fries both
I will salt my tomatoes…cause salty tomatoes are where.it’s.at.
Zosia, you know what’s up *salts tomatoes on a chevre avocado tomato sandwich*
I ordered a case of the small jars of the JQD Salt and have given away about 1/2 of the bottles so far to good friends and family, along with the small card describing the ‘backstory’ of the salt, and my relationship to my Cousin-in-law, Nancy. Everyone I gave the salt to has written to say thanks, they love it. I’ll soon be getting more salt, and if the birds leave us enough blueberries on our plants, I my even try this recipe ! Peter Bruns
Peter! So nice to hear from you. I am totally a JQD Salt evangelist!!! I love that little backstory card, too. I had it sitting on my mantle for a minute, as if it was a postcard from a good friend. And I’ve been having the same issue with my blueberry plants, ha! I was golden when they first started popping up, but our feathered friends have caught on and are going in on those berry bushes full force. I hope you get to try the recipe! Nancy made it and told me it was a hit!
Is it possible to fall in love with a tart? I didn’t think so. But these pictures just changed my mind.
<3 <3 <3 i can confirm it is indeed possible to fall in love w/ a tart (or at least to get really obsessed and infatuated).
I want to sprinkle this salt all over some dark chocolate! It’s one of my favorite combinations. Or maybe I can try to make some salted caramel covered in dark chocolate… mmm…
ohooooo this salt + chocolate is heavenly. salted caramel + dark chocolate… I can’t EVEN. so good. <3 thanks for commenting sonja!
I would probably make something like this with the salt. Yum! Thanks for sharing!
happy to share! thanks for the comment!