Lucuma is a flavored tropical fruit native to Peru. I’ve not seen the fruit much here in Ireland but have been reading up on its use as a replacement sweetener for baking, Having ordered it some time ago from i-herb, I have been busy trying out some recipes –  as a sugar replacement, it is considered superior to sugar, being an excellent source of  fibre, vitamins and minerals. It has lots of beta-carotene, niacin (B3) and iron. In my opinion, it is also better than agave syrup which I don’t like using due to its fructose composition – actually I would rather use sugar. The Lucuma I used is raw, vegan and organically certified. Tastewise it tastes quite creamy, not floury as you would expect tasting it raw and it also has a reasonable base sweetness but not the obvious sweetness of sugar.

I used it to make these raw chocolate bars and they are delicious and easy to make:-

Raw Chocolate Bars

For the base
200g mixed nuts including brazils, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts
1 tsp pink Himalayan salt, or any other good-quality salt
150g dates, stoned and chopped

For the filling
2 medium sized ripe avocados
80g coconut oil
1 vanilla pods, seeds only or 1 tsp vanilla extract
100gr 70% Dark Chocolate
3 tbsp cocoa
3 heaped tbsp Lucuma powder – If you cant get this, I suggest you use 40gr coconut palm sugar)
Pinch of salt

Line a tin approximately 6 by 10″ with cling film overlapping the edges so you can pull it out.
Blend the nuts and dates until you have a crumby mixture which is a bit sticky.
Press into the base of the tin and put into the fridge to set
For the filling, blend everything together until really smooth – I suggest you blend for at least 5 minutes for a lovely glossy mixture then pour onto the base.
Leave to set in the fridge for a couple of hours and cut into fingers and enjoy.