This cake is so delicious, there really are no words to describe it except… HOLY MOLY YUM! I got the idea to make this cake because I bought a huge bag of passion fruit and thought that it was the perfect opportunity to make a dessert from my favourite fruit of all time.
When I set out to make this cake it was going to be just a passion fruit favoured cake but then I was inspired to add lemon, which was a good choice because lemon and passion fruit work really well together.
This recipe is raw as well as being gluten-free, dairy free and refined sugar-free. It is perfect for a celebration or special occasion, everyone will absolutely love it.
Raw Passion Fruit & Lemon Cake
Prep time
Total time
Author: Caralee - Real Food Pledge
Serves: 12
Ingredients
- BASE
- ½ cup almonds
- 1 cup cashew
- 1 ½ cups dried dates
- 1 lemon, juice & rind
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sprinkle of salt
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- TOPPING
- 2 cups raw cashews, soaked
- ½ cup coconut cream
- 8 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- ⅔ cup passion fruit pulp
- 2 lemons, juice & rind
- 6 tablespoon natural maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sprinkle salt
- 3 passion fruit for topping
Instructions
- To make the base place the almonds and cashew nuts in the food processor and whizz until they are a fine crumble.
- Slowly add the dried dates until they are broken down into a fine crumble.
- Grate the rind of the lemon into the mixture and add the lemon juice, coconut oil, vanilla extract, pinch of salt and shredded coconut. Mix until combined.
- Line a cake pan with baking paper and press the lemon base into the bottom of a cake pan.
- Place in the fridge to set while you make the topping.
- To make the topping, drain the cashew nuts and place in the food processor. Whizz until they are really smooth.
- Add the coconut cream and coconut oil and keep processing getting the mixture is as smooth as possible.
- Add the lemon rind and juice of the two, passion fruit pulp (I added the seeds and they got whizzed up very finely), maple syrup, vanilla extract and pinch of salt.
- Process the topping until very smooth. You may need to stop several time and scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl.
- Once the topping is the desired consistency, pour on top of the base and place in the freezer to cool for a couple of hours.
- It can be stored in the freezer until 45 minutes before serving or you can keep it chilled in the fridge.
- Garnish with the pulp of the three remaining passion fruit.

Hi,
Going to give this one a go for my mum’s Birthday – looks so yummy! Is it ok to use tinned passionfruit if they’re not in season? What size was the cake pan you used?
Thanks!!
Hi Lana. Thanks for stopping by. This is such a great cake for a birthday especially if the recipient is a passion fruit lover! Of course you can use canned passion fruit. Fresh is always best but it is not always possible so go for the next best option. I used a normal sized cake tin not sure of exact size but any tin you use will be lovely. The smaller the cake pan the higher the cake will be. xx
Great, thanks 🙂
Sounds delicious! Could i use honey instead of maple syrup?
Thanks
Hi Sarah. Yes of course, you can use any sweetner you choose. 🙂 xx
Hi Sarah. Yes of course, you can use any sweetener you choose. 🙂 xx
Hi, just wondering what sort of cashews you used in the base? You specify raw for the topping but have no specifications for the base. Should they be raw as well, or roasted unsalted? Thanks
Raw Cashews for the base as well.