RAW Carrot Chewies

These are SO delicious, I make them weekly! Great snack with a nice protein punch!

I absolutely LOVE peanut butter. We were playing a couples game one New Years and it was on how well you know your spouse. One questions was what is your spouses' favorite food. Yep, my husband guessed that one right: PEANUT BUTTER! Now mind you, I get the natural kind with no added oils, sugars, preservatives, etc. Found one that I like at Costco, ingredients: peanuts, sea salt, that's it!

Here is a great article on the health benefits of peanuts:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=101

Great website with lots of info on the world's healthies food & how to prepare it. Have that guy's book too!

1/4 cup low-fat granola

1 Tbsp honey or maple syrup

1/4 cup carrots, finely shredded

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup raisins

1 Tbp wheat germ

3/4 cup natural peanut butter

~in smal bowl, combine all ingredients

~form into small balls

tip: after adding the PB to the mix I popped it into the microwave for 15 sec to softned the PB making it easier to stir everything together & it worked great!



'Better than Peanut Butter & Jelly' by Wendy Muldawer & Marty Mattare

I was trying to debate if I should raise Audriana (and future kiddos) vegetarian. Finished reading another book 'Disease-Proof Your Child' by Joel Fuhrman which really stressed a plant-based diet, and the ill-effects of meat & dairy. That got the wheels turning because he backed his data with scientific research; I did a library search on how to raise vegetarian children and this book came up. It is a cookbook with quick, easy & nutritious vegetairan recipes that children will like (and the whole family for that matter). This is the 1998 versions, there is an updated edition (2006) but my library did not have it. I really liked this book and the beauty of it is that the older version is under $1 (minus S&H) on Amazon :) 

Raw Brownies with Coconut Ice Cream

Another inspiration from my Raw Movement :)

Brownies from Jennifer Cornbleet's Raw Food Made Easy

(recipe copied directly from her website)
Yield: 8 brownies, 4 servingsThese are truly one-bowl brownies--you'll never have to wait more than 5 minutes again when that chocolate craving strikes.1 1/2 cups raw walnuts, unsoaked
dash salt
8 pitted medjool dates, unsoaked
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa or carob powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons water
1/4 cup dried cherries
Place the walnuts in a food processor fitted with the S-blade and process until coarsely chopped. Remove 1/4 cup of the walnuts and set aside. Add the salt to the remaining walnuts and process until finely ground. Add the dates and process until the mixture begins to stick together. Add the cocoa powder and vanilla and process until evenly distributed. Add the water, dried cherries, and reserved walnuts, and process briefly, just to mix.
Pack the mixture firmly into a square container. Stored in a sealed container, Brownies will keep for up to one week in the refrigerator or one month in the freezer.

*You need to like dark chocolate to like these brownies....but they are delicious because I LOVE dark chocolate!!

I made the coconut ice cream by putting a banana in the freezer,letting it thaw for a few min, and then throwing it into the food processor with unsweetened shredded coconut. Viola fat-free ice-cream in a zilch. Plus it adds some sweetness to the brownies, perfect combination!

My adventures in Raw Almond Milk

I have been reading up on raw food, and wanted to try making Almond Milk, have tried different brands of commercial almond milk and was curious to see what the home-made version tasted like. It is a little bit of a process but super easy, here it goes:

1 cup raw almonds, soaked in water 8-12hrs
Drain almonds, in food processor add 2-3 cups filtered water and blend till creamy and uniform.

Using a cheese cloth strain the mixture over a large bowl or pitcher, allow to strain till milk runs clear.

So after my milk finished straining, I looked at the remains of almonds called "almond pulp" and had to find a recipe to actually make something out of it. Throwing it away seemed like such a waste! And behold, after doing a Google search there are many things you can use this almond pulp...in smoothies, in banana bread batter, but I decided to try to make granola out of it. So I spread the almond pulp over a baking sheet and toasted it in the oven on 350F for about 15 min to dry it out. Mixed in whatever I had handy in my pantry: rolled oats, cranberries, and sunflower seeds (next time I will put shredded coconut and dried pineapples), and lots of honey and cinnamon. I put it back into the oven for another 30-40min until golden and dried out. The result....a great nutty granola....who knew??

Dessert in the RAW

RAW GINGER COOKIES

Recently have been exposed to the RAW FOOD movement, as I like to call it. One can be as hard core as they want to be and only eat raw food, or incorporate it here and there. Nothing is cooked over 110F, no sugar, no salt, no preservatives...just everything in the raw, unprocessed. Sounds boring, but if you google this stuff, the food realy looks delicious! The way they can mesh ingredients and flavors, is fascinating. Although I do not think I will purchase a dehydrator and eat 100% raw, but their way of making dessert appeal to me: no cream, no butter, no sugar....none of the bad stuff that is usually in dessert. So I took it upon myself to purchase Raw for Dessert by Jennifer Combleet and attempt to make every dessert from this book (over the next year of course), because they are so healthy, and a perfect snack or after-dinner sweetness to satisfy those cravings. Basically all the ingredients consist of nuts, dried or fresh fruit, coconuts, avocados...if you do need to sweeten something you use agave syrup (made from the agave cactus) or raw honey. Raw food is much more nutritious because all the original vitamins/minerals are still intact, you body digests it better, and helps with weight management as well!

Raw Ginger Cookies (pictured above)

1 cup raw almonds

1/4 cup raw walnuts

2 T, whole cane sugar (i used stevia)

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

pinch salt

pinch ground nutmeg

8 pitted medjool dates

1/4 cup raisins

Directions:

Place 1/2 c. of almonds in a food processor fitted with the S blade and process until finely ground. Set aside in a small mixing bow.

Put the remaining 1/2 cup almonds and all the walnuts, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, sat, and nutmeg in the food processor and process until, coarsely chopped. Add the dates and process until the mixture begins to stick together. Don't over process; chunks of almonds and walnuts should still be visible. Add the raisins and pulse briefly, just until mixed.

Remove the cookie dough from the food processor and place it in a medium mixing bowl. Scoop about 1 tablespoon of the dough into your hand and squeeze it firmly until it sticks together. Roll it into 1-inch ball and flatten it slightly to make a cookie. repeat until all the dough has been used. Roll each cookie in the ground almonds and place on a plate. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.

Store in a seal container, will keep 1 month in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer!

STRAWBERRY SOUP

Strawberry Soup

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled

1/4 cup plus 1 tsp light agave syrup

1/4 cup raw cashews, soaked about 1-2 hours (makes them creamier when blended)

1 tsp lemon juice

Thinly slice 3 of the strawberries. Place them in a small bowl with 1 tsp. of the agave syrup and toss gently to combine. Set aside in the refrigerator.

Place the remaining strawberries, agave syrup, raw soaked cashes and lemon in blender. Process until smooth. Chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve in shallow soup plates or shot glasses, garnished with the reserved strawberry slices.

Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator, will keep for 24 hrs.

Recipes from Raw for Dessert: Jennifer Cornbleet