Yoghurt Lemon Mousse Cake with a Sweet and Crunchy Nut Crust

Returning home from a wonderful holiday would under normal circumstances feel a little sad and I would miss the sun, freedom and lovely days spend by the sea listening to the soothing waves. But for the first time in my life I have returned to all of those things right here in my own little life, in my beloved city and my own apartment. The weather is amazing, we have blue skies and wonderful temperatures almost every day. And I live near the beach (I can actually see the ocean from my living room) so Jonas and I have been relaxing at the beach some days bringing a little lunch picnic, yay! This results in a felling of a continued holiday right here in my own home and seriously who can ask for more..

Well there is more. As I have mentioned previously I graduated as bachelor in nutrition and health in the beginning of this year and since I crave even more nutrition knowledge and further education I applied for the master program in Human Nutrition at Copenhagen University. Since there is a limited admittance and it is a popular master education I have been anxious about not getting in. But the day after I returned from Greece I received a lovely letter with a huge welcome to Copenhagen University from the beginning of September 2014, YAY!!!
Those of you who have been following for a while know that something like this needs a hell of a (food) celebration, and still being all summery and high on holiday feelings I wanted to create a little something very much inspired by the flavours of Crete.

I still have a crush on these raw-kinda-crusts. Yes, only kinda raw since I like to roast my nuts to increase flavour and aroma. Since these crusts are a little dense and filled with flavour and sweetness I personally prefer a light, fresh and creamy filling to create balance. And being inspired by Crete and having yet another never ending crush on lemons (who does not LOVE lemons) I wanted to make an airy and fresh lemon mousse. When I was a child ‘citron fromage’ (lemon fromage – made out of whipped cream, egg, sugar and lemons) was my favourite dessert. I wanted to create something similar but with a little more healthiness involved and a bit of extra Crete vibes. So I have added a generous amount of Greek yoghurt to the mousse and sweetened it with sukrin gold (a granulated natural sweetener made from sukrin and stevia) – you can easily use coconut sugar as well. It ended up being perfect and we have enjoyed it at the beach and as a little dinner dessert, and I have even considered it as a brunch dessert. It is easily made, does not require baking and keeps well in the fridge.
So here you go – a fresh and creamy summer dessert to celebrate all the little (and grand) things that makes life so wonderful and worth living!

Yoghurt Lemon Mousse Cake
Serves 8-10

Crust
200 g brazil nuts (or nuts of your choice)
60 g roasted coconut flakes
1 Tbsp coconut oil
15 medium dates, pitted
1/2 tsp ground vanilla
A generous pinch of sea salt

Yoghurt lemon mousse
2 cups Greek yoghurt (500 ml)
4/5 cup heavy cream (200 ml)
3 sheets of gelatine
1/5 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp organic lemon zest
6 Tbsp sukrin gold, coconut sugar, honey or sweetener of your choice

Directions
Preheat the oven to 150 °C /300 °F. Roast the brazil nuts for 10-15 min until slightly golden. In a food processor blend dates with coconut oil, vanilla and salt. Add the brazil nuts and pulse until coarsely chopped. At last add the coconut and pulse until everything is mixed together and you have a fairly rough texture (you can see how I prefer mine in the pictures). Use a 22 cm (8 inch) spring-form cake pan. Fasten a piece of parchment paper between the ring and then bottom of the spring form. Use your hands to firmly press the crust out in the pan until it covers the whole bottom. Place it in he freezer.

Start by soaking gelatine in cold water. In a bowl combine greek yoghurt, lemon zest and sweetener and mix it well together. Warm up the lemon juice in a little pot. Squeeze the now gooey gelatine free from water and add it to the pot and stir until dissolved. Mix the warm lemon/gelatine juice with a little of the yoghurt and afterwards mix it into all of the yoghurt in the bowl – this little extra step with make sure that the gelatine does not shock and make small gelly clumps.
Whip the heavy cream in to a light and fluffy foam and gently fold it into the yoghurt mix. Remove the crust from the freezer and pour the lemon mousse on top of it, gently smoothing out the surface. Now place it in the fridge for at least 4 hours until completely chilled and set.