Raw Coconut and Persimmon Parfait (and giving gluten a rest) November 8, 2009
Posted by a-k in coconut, dessert, farmer's market, fruit, gluten free, raw, recipe, wellness.16 comments
Well, after VeganMoFo, it feels like I dropped off the planet a bit. For a week, anyway 
This past week has been really stressful, and I’ve been having a hard time making food in general, much less blogging about it. But things are on the upswing (I hope).
Early for me on a day off, I got up to meet my friend Courtney for a late-season trip to the farmer’s market. It’s incredibly small now, mostly empty stalls with a few tables here and there. Things are shifting into holiday mode already with pine bundles and fanciful branches and autumn bouquets. Minnesota’s growing season, while bountiful, is certainly short. However, I still managed to come away with a delicious haul of locally grown brussels sprouts, organic dinosaur kale, and a whole peck of Honeycrisp apples, the latter being only $10 for seconds (I still love the unloved, not-perfect-looking produce). You better believe there’s gonna be some good eats happening with all of that!
While the majority of my produce from the farmer’s market is locally grown, there are times I can’t pass up a good deal at one of the produce reseller’s tables. The Minneapolis Farmer’s Market is a little odd in that it allows non-local produce to be sold, although I’ve been told that they aren’t allowed to sell specific produce that would compete with the local growing season (during corn or tomato season, for example). It’s also pretty obvious that pineapples or bananas just don’t grow up here naturally, nor do cardboard produce boxes bearing various corporate labels “fool” anyone with a bit of common sense, so it’s always obvious where the resellers are located. Today there seemed to be an abundance of persimmons, and though I haven’t used this gorgeous fruit much, it seemed like a good time to try something out.
Hence was born this Raw Coconut and Persimmon Parfait (using a young coconut I got for free from work), which is both fresh and a little tropical enough for the sunny fall days we’ve had this weekend, and just rich enough to be comforting in that autumnal kind of way. After a fairly exhaustive search of my cookbook collection, I found only two recipes that called for persimmons, and both were raw. Neither one fit exactly with what I had on hand in the moment I wanted to create something, so I fused them together a bit, though it’s primarily based on the Star Lotus Persimmon Parfait from Vegan Fusion World Cuisine. If you’re not interested in giving young coconuts a try, you can use non-dairy yogurt or a nut-based cream in place of the coconut cream. If you are, and haven’t ever opened a young coconut before, check out this link which has some step-by-step instructions.
The persimmon layer is sweetened with some dates and flavored with cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and lemon zest, while the coconut cream is as simple as you can get, although you might add some agave nectar if the natural sweetness isn’t enough for you. I made everything in a food processor, but if you have a high-speed blender feel free to use it to make it perfectly smooth and creamy… though while eating it I was feeling way too into the flavors to notice my “cream” had a few smalls bits of coconut meat in it.
Because I don’t (yet?) own everything I could possibly desire for serving food, like parfait glasses, I used a martini glass. There was plenty for one serving plus some leftover, but you might want to increase the persimmon layer amounts slightly if you’re hoping to serve two more amply. Top it with anything you like! The goji berries, cacao nibs, and shredded coconut I pulled out of my cupboards and freezer for a bit of color and crunch.
Raw Coconut and Persimmon Parfaits (serves 1-2)
1/2 lb. persimmons, quartered and peeled
1 tsp lemon zest
5 chopped dates, soaked in water if too dry
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamom
pinch nutmeg
1-2 tablespoons raw almond butter
meat from one young coconut
1/4-1/2 c coconut water, to reach desired consistency
agave nectar, to taste (optional)
shredded coconut, fresh fruit, goji berries, chopped nuts and/or cacao nibs to garnish
Add persimmons, dates, lemon zest, and spices to food processor and process until broken down and fairly smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Add the almond butter and process again until fully incorporated. Place in a small bowl and set aside.
Rinse out food processor bowl and add coconut meat and coconut water, starting with 1/4 cup. Process until smooth, adding additional coconut water to achieve desired consistency (you don’t want it too runny, or you won’t be able to layer your parfait). Taste and add agave nectar if desired.
Layer into parfait, martini, or wine glasses, alternating the persimmon mixture with the coconut cream. Chill in the fridge if desired, or sprinkle straight away with toppings and serve with a spoon.
One thing that’s going to be different around here is that I’m giving up gluten for a month. I’m not going to get into all the details, but it is for health reasons, and I’ll be exploring different ways to satisfy both my sweet and savory tooths without wheat, spelt, kamut, barley, or rye. I feel pretty excited about it actually! I’m particularly excited to test out this recipe for a GF, tofu-free vegan pumpkin pie as part of my Friendsgiving spread. And finding a good recipe for GF bread so I don’t have to spend $6 at the co-op on a frozen loaf that while delicious and wonderfully bread-like is pretty darn expensive. Hooray gluten-free!
VeganMoFo: Raw Apple Crisp and Veggieful Dinner October 9, 2009
Posted by a-k in blog-related bizness, dessert, fruit, raw, recipe, veganmofo, vegetables, zine.19 comments
This morning I got up, went to the dehydrator, and pulled out a tray of Maple Cinnamon Buckwheat Crispies from Raw Food Real World. (No, maple isn’t really raw…ooh, controversy!) Then I sliced some apples, mixed them with a “syrup” out of dates, cinnamon, cardamom, lemon juice and coconut water, and topped them with the Crispies and little bit of chopped walnuts. Voila!
I know it’s crazy, but I had a piece for breakfast, topped with some vanilla cashew cream that I’d made yesterday. It was SO GOOD.
Since I heard we might be getting some snow, and at the very least a frost, this weekend, I’m trying to get the last harvesting out of my puny driveway container garden (we don’t have a yard). One thing I grew this year was some brussels sprouts, and they were on the more successful end of things, though only one stalk in particular was adequately productive.
I knew it was the time to make some Mole-Roasted Cauliflower from my zine*, only using brussels sprouts instead! My friend Jackie just sent me a message saying she loves this recipe, so I’m going to share it here for everyone. These are zesty, flavorful, and delicious… if you’re spice-wary, reduce or omit the cayenne. (Yes, there are still zines available!)
Mole-Roasted Cauliflower (or brussels sprouts)
1 large head cauliflower, broken into florets (or 1 lb.+ brussels sprouts)
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp epazote or oregano
1 tsp sesame seeds
1/8 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp cumin
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
3 tbp canola oil
1-2 tsp lime juice
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
chopped fresh cilantro to garnish
Preheat oven to 425F. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients except cauliflower and cilantro. Add cauliflower and toss well to coat, then place in a single layer in an oven-safe dish. Roast for 25-35 minutes until edges are crispy and browned, and sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve hot.
While the brussels sprouts were roasting, I cooked up some red quinoa that I topped with the last tomatoes from the garden:
And you know how I said in the quiz from yesterday that I was scared to work with mustard greens? Well wouldn’t you know, today I got some in the CSA box, and I decided to go for it. I sauteed some sliced garlic in olive oil, added the chopped mustard greens, and then drizzled the whole shebang in white balsamic, which is sweeter than it’s more common cousin. The mustard-y flavor was subtle and lovely, and the balsamic balanced out the intensity that I’ve always feared. Hooray for trying new greens!
In other news, I’ve been working on the new blog, and it’s tough work! Getting more creative control is hard for me because I get crazy about all the choices I have. I haven’t even begun to tackle reformatting image sizes since I have a larger layout. Woof. One day, though, it will be done. Hope everyone is having a wonderful day, and I’ll see you back here tomorrow!
Veganmofo: A Lovely Sunday October 5, 2009
Posted by a-k in baking, bread, breakfast, fruit, pizza, veganmofo, vegetables, vwav.22 comments
Sunday morning I got up and decided to whip that cornbread into a sweet bread pudding for brekkie. I kind of winged it and in hindsight should have looked at a recipe before diving in to get a more appropriate custard thing going on, but… I also added raisins, pecans, amaranth (because it is AWESOME), cinnamon, and ginger. It was pretty good, but not really worthy of recipe-ing; my ladyfriend said it was “interesting and delicious.” Here is the dishful:
And here is how we ate it, with some cinnamon-cardamom-tossed Haralson apple slices (I’m really loving Haralson apples this year along with, of course, my beloved Honeycrisp):
After a few errands, I went to a couple apple orchards with some friends from work. It was about a 45 minute drive from Minneapolis, which isn’t too bad, really, to the Carpenter Nature Center and the Fischer’s Croix Farm Orchard. They’re right next door to each other in Hastings, MN.
I really like the Carpenter Nature Center because they practice integrated pest management to avoid using pesticides whenever possible (they’re not certified organic but they practice a lot of sustainable growing), plus they’re quieter and have a nature center with tons of hiking trails. Last year my best friend and I hiked down to the St. Croix River to drink tea and eat apples and sandwiches on a chilly, gray autumn day. We started here and picked some raspberries, which are still in season until the first hard frost:
Next door, the Fischer’s Croix Farm Orchard is more of the traditional family destination, with bunnies, goats and chickens, a tractor pull, a corn maze (pardon me, the Amazing Maize Maze), a pumpkin patch, and the option to pick your own apples. We rode on the tractor pull out to the corn maze where we spent a good 20-30 minutes inside trying to find our way out to the other side – I’m telling you, it was HUGE. (There were a lot of Children of the Corn jokes in there, too.) We emerged in a pumpkin patch, where many had been piled up for easy picking:
We got back, picked up some apples and goodies from their store, drank some fresh cider, and headed back home again. I love apple orchards! They are so lovely and autumnal, and I always seem to get lucky and go on cloudy, brisk days (that’s my favorite kind of fall weather).
After getting home, I started work on some pizza dough for dinner. I used the Vegan With A Vengeance recipe for the first time, and from now on it will be my go-to recipe. It worked out great! The only thing I did differently was use 2/3 whole and 1/3 all-purpose spelt flours; spelt has less gluten so it’s not as stretchy but this was by far the best spelt crust I’ve ever made at home, crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. We went to the YWCA while it was rising, came back home and chopped up a bunch of CSA veggies, harvested basil from our plant to make pesto and voila! a pesto pizza was born unto us. (Please excuse the poor lighting in this picture.)
The only thing that could have made this day any better was if I’d had time to whip up some apple-y concoction for dessert, but I’m pretty content with how it all went.
Cardamom-Orange Coconut Flaxjacks! July 17, 2009
Posted by a-k in ani phyo, breakfast, coconut, fruit, raw, recipe.21 comments
So I promised about 5 days ago that I was going to work on making a more palatable version of Ani Phyo’s Coconut Breakfast Cakes (which some of you have tried and weren’t crazy about), and I finally got around to making “breakfast” for lunch after work today.
So here’s the deal with the original recipe – it was too sweet, too heavy, and too flax-y (even for self-proclaimed flax lovers like Bianca). In addition, the directions weren’t very clear; you’re given the option of using a certain amount of whole flax seeds or another amount of already-ground flax seeds. What isn’t explained is that if you’re using whole, you’re meant to grind them before using them in the recipe, which I’ve heard has led to sweet flax seed mush rather than cakes on more than one occasion, including for a dear friend of mine (who will remained unnamed). So looking at the original ingredients, this is how I worked it out… First, I cut down on the agave nectar. Not only is there too much, that stuff is pricey! Keep some of it for later. Second, I got rid of the coconut oil. In the colder part of the year (which is a lot of it here in Minnesota) I have a hard time keeping my coconut oil as a liquid anyway, and I think that the fats from the flax provide plenty to satisfy. And third, I replaced some of the ground flax with finely ground shredded coconut. This maintains the dry bulk but is less cloying than all flax, and keeps the coconut in the breakfast cake.
Well that’s all great, A-K, you might be saying, but what about the liquid you’re losing by cutting out the oil and reducing the agave? What did you do about that? Well, I’ll tell you – and this one is a double zinger – fresh orange juice! Not only does it make up for the liquid portion, it also adds a lovely fresh flavor. I took that flavor cue even further and added a little ground cardamom. And it was good. Behold the lovely texture:
Not really big on cardamom? Not feeling the o.j. love? Get with a fall theme and use cinnamon and apple or pear juice instead. Any fruit juice and spice combo you like will do! If you haven’t tried Ani’s original recipe, or you have but weren’t that into it, I hope this will help you get some daily omega-3’s with a smile on your face… and without the need for anything fancier than a spice mill, bowl, and stirring implement. (If you use pre-ground flax meal and finely shredded coconut you won’t even need the spice mill! But remember that freshly ground is ideal, and remember to keep your flax seeds fresher longer by storing them in the fridge or freezer.)
Top them with fresh fruit, or a raw “syrup” made from fruit, dates, and some orange juice whizzed up in the blender. I had mine with peaches, blueberries, and date syrup. This recipe doubles, triples, or quadruples easily, if you’re making for more than just yourself. I think this little cake of breakfast love is very nomnomnom!
Cardamon-Orange Coconut Flaxjacks (makes 2 small cakes):
1/4 c plus 1 tbsp whole flax seeds
1/4 c dried (unsweetened) shredded coconut
small pinch sea salt (optional)
pinch ground cardamom
3 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 tbsp agave nectar
Grind flaxseeds to a fine powder in a spice mill or coffee grinder and place in a small bowl. Grind the coconut if it is not already very finely shredded, and add to flax. Stir in the rest of the ingredients until a “dough” is formed. Divide in two and roll each half into a ball, then flatten into a pancake shape. Serve topped with fruit or fresh fruit syrup.
Raw Week: Fruity Crepe and Veggie Dressing June 4, 2009
Posted by a-k in dressings and sauces, fruit, nuts, raw, recipe, salad, vegetables.14 comments
Raw Crepes stuffed with Vanilla Lemon Pine Nut Cream, spiced fruit salad, and date syrup
Today has been a weird day. I had some weird nightmares so I never felt totally rested all day, and on top of it I had my (usually) least favorite shift at work.
However, I had an AMAZING breakfast, as you can probably see! I used the Rawmelette shells to make a fruit crepe. Or is it a fruit taco? I can’t decide. The early morning intense domestic in me decided it needed a little more than just a shell and fruit salad, so I decided on some date syrup (which I’ve wanted to make for a long long time) and some kind of sweet nut cream. In raw food, there are some nuts that don’t need much, if any, soaking in order to be pureed. Pine nuts are one of them, and I had half a cup waiting to be utilized!
I was hesitant at first, since pine nuts have a more distinct flavor, but I’m so glad I took the plunge. The delicate flavor of the pine nuts went so well with the tangy lemon and warm vanilla and it’s just lovely for dipping your finger into! I used this to “glue” the fruit salad to the shell.
Vanilla Lemon Pine Nut Cream
Vanilla Lemon Pine Nut Cream
1/2 c raw pinenuts
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp raw agave nectar
1/2 tsp acidophilus powder (optional, for a tangier flavor)
1/2 vanilla bean scraped (or a splash of vanilla extract)
Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth … It may be quite thick. Pause occasionally if the motor gets too hot and to scrape down the sides as necessary.
I also made some date syrup by soaking 1 1/2 c dates in some warm water for 20 minutes, then draining and blending with 3/4 c water and a couple shakes of cinnamon. If you have an empty squeeze bottle lying around, this is a great way to make use of it and fancy up some desserts (raw or not)! The crepe was spread with pine nut cream, filled with spiced berry fruit salad, and drizzled with date syrup. Yum!
Raw Fruit Crepe Closeup
For lunch I thought a soup would be nice. I’d read a long time ago about “Energy Soup,” which, it turns out, is really just another term for a savory green smoothie. Being quite happy with my sweet green smoothie creations, I thought this would be no problem. Well, I was wrong. I don’t know if it was me being out of garlic, or missing some essential base flavor, or just a bad combination, but this was really acidic and frankly kind of difficult to eat. Because of the carrots it turns more of an olive green color which I tried to ignore by covering it in cilantro and red peppers. I made an energy soup once a while back that was delicious, really and truly delicious, but this sadly wasn’t. Anybody have any good recipes for energy soup?
Curried Energy Soup
When I got home from work with a bunch of free red bell peppers, I knew they had to become part of my dinner. Originally I’d planned to make a red pepper tahini dip to make lettuce roll-ups, but when I blended everything together it ended up too thin for that. What resulted is a creamy, delicious concoction with a hint of spice that I used (liberally) as a salad dressing and fed to my detox friend as a soup. If you find yourself with some extra peppers, make this! It’s so good, and such a lovely bright salmon color. I had it over field greens with sliced snow peas, micro greens, tomatoes, hemp seeds, and a side of rosemary crisps.
Green Salad with Creamy Red Pepper Dressing
Creamy Red Pepper Dressing (or Soup)
2 red bell peppers, chopped
1/2 red chili pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large garlic clove (minced if not using a high speed blender)
2 tbsp chopped onion
1/2 zucchini, chopped
1/4 c raw tahini
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp chopped cilantro, for garnish
Blend all ingredients except cilantro in a food processor or blender until smooth. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
Tomorrow I’m drinking a green smoothie for breakfast, and headed to Ecopolitan for a dinner date with my detox friend Michael. Who knows what lunch will bring? Though I have a hunch it might include avocado…
Raw Week: Tuesday Eats June 3, 2009
Posted by a-k in cookies, dessert, fruit, raw, salad, vegetables.9 comments
Torn Basil Salad with Avocado and Tomatoes
Just a quick post today… I am definitely way more full of energy than I have been in a long time. I admit it could be from a combination of things, but I’d like to think my recent eating habits have something to do with it! At any rate, I think I’m figuring out my “natural bedtime” and it’s earlier than I’m posting this now.
This morning I had the green smoothie I wrote about in the previous post, followed by lots of water. When I got home I ate the second half of my Purple Basil Kale Salad from Ecopolitan and half of a grapefruit. As an early dinner I ate the salad pictured at the top, which I’m calling the “Torn Basil Salad” in honor of Jamie Oliver and a distinct memory I have from an episode of the Naked Chef 5 or 6 years ago where he urged the hand-tearing of basil right over the greens. It also had two tomatoes, half an avocado, a few tablespoons of Juliano’s House Dressing, diced red onions, and field greens from the farmer’s market.
Triple Berry Fruit Salad
As a dinner-dessert I made a big fruit salad (with enough leftovers for breakfast!). I used strawberries, an apple, a peach, one kiwi, blackberries, and blueberries, and tossed them with cinnamon, cardamom, and fresh minced ginger. It was kind of like cheater garam masala, and it was spicy and warming against the refreshing fruit. I meant to add raisins, too, but I’d already been raisin-ing earlier to make these:
Raw Carob Walnut Cookies
I found the recipe from Ani Phyo’s new raw dessert book for these tasty Raw Carob Walnut Cookies while perusing We Like It Raw. When I was a vegetarian, one of the things that really interested me in veganism was vegan desserts – they were so much tastier, and not so cloyingly sweet! Now that I’m vegan, I absolutely adore raw desserts above traditional baked vegan desserts. While these raw cookies don’t have the same taste and texture properties of a baked cookie, they’re quite a lovely mouthful. I know there are a lot of carob haters in this world, but I love carob, and especially raw carob! It’s so nummy!
Tomorrow morning I’m planning a slightly more fancy breakfast a la Rawmelettes, though perhaps as a fruit taco kind of thing with the leftover fruit salad. A little date syrup and some nut cream and I’ll be in absolute heaven!
Also, I’m planning a tutorial post about green smoothies for the near future. After a lot of comments about different combinations and additions, I think it’s high time some green smoothie love gets spread!
Raw Week Update: Rawmelettes! June 2, 2009
Posted by a-k in fruit, raw, recipe, vegetables.22 comments
Banana-coconut-flax shells stuffed with cashew cheese, avocado, carrots, red onion, and cilantro
This wasn’t quite as good as Ecopolitan’s version, but pretty darn near close… this is what I ate there Sunday afternoon, and it seemed too easy NOT to make it at home. All I had was my experience eating it and the menu description for Rawmelettes: two banana-coconut-flaxseed “omelette” shells with macadamia-cashew “cheese”, avocado, carrot and cilantro. So last night I guessed some proportions, put it in the dehydrator for a few hours and voila! It worked! I’m really pretty proud of it, and since I ended up with five shells, I can make it again. Or make fruit tacos. Or just eat them plain. They’re really tasty!
Rawmelette Closeup
Rawmelette Shells (makes 5-6)
2 ripe bananas, peeled and chopped
1 c golden flaxseed, freshly ground
1/2 c shredded coconut
Place the bananas in a food processor and process until no chunks remain (it should have a sauce-like consistency). Add the ground flaxseed and coconut and process to a uniform paste.
Using wet hands, form 5-6 balls of the mixture and place on dehydrator sheets. Flatten with palm and fingers, pushing edges out until you have a fairly thin circle (about 1/8” thick). Dehydrate at 95F for 3-6 hours, or until flexible but no longer wet.
(For the above Rawmelette, fill each shell with 2 tbsp nut cheese, 1/4 avocado, 1/2 carrot, 1 tbsp red onion, and 2 tbsp cilantro. Fold shell gently around fillings and serve.)
[Don't have a dehydrator? I bet this would work in the plain old sunshine, if you have enough of it. (So long as it's not too humid where you are.)]
I’ve been a bundle of energy today! I bought a new dresser and moved it inside by myself, then got to work cleaning and rearranging furniture and organizing little messes that had piled up before my girlfriend’s current absence. I could have kept going, but I stopped myself and made a big salad for lunch which I ate outside in the gorgeous sunshine listening to the radio:
Veggie Salad with Mango Dressing, Kiwi, and Hemp Seeds
This was a bit of a what’s-in-the-fridge concoction. It had napa cabbage, snow peas, radishes, orange bell peppers, cilantro, kiwi, hemp seeds, and a dressing made from mango, lime juice, salt, and chili pepper flakes. I realized halfway through that the reason it tasted a little too “sharp” was that there wasn’t any garlic, onions, or ginger in it! I added some leftover house dressing and that helped a bit, though next time I’m going to remember to add at least one of those to any future impromptu dressings!
Dinner was a purple kale salad and “peanut butter chocolate” mousse pie from Ecopolitan, because I was watching a movie with a friend and had been so busy doing stuff around the house I hadn’t thought about what I was going to have for dinner. Delicious! And so filling I’ve got leftovers for lunch at work tomorrow.
Green Smoothie!
I didn’t have one today because of the fancier breakfast I made, but tomorrow morning I’ll have a pretty fantastic quart of green smoothie. This one has a whole head of romaine in it! And some basil and pineapple mint (yes, pineapple mint!) and kiwi and pineapple and ginger. I read somewhere once that you should aim for two heads of romaine per day as your greens intake… I assume you can switch that up with other greens, but it seems hard to get that kind of volume without making green smoothies or eating salads at every meal. I’ve certainly surpassed my greens quota today, and I’m excited to get a good start to my work morning tomorrow.
Fruit salad topped with cinnamon and cardamom
I’m also excited to make another fruit salad tomorrow. This is what I had last night for dessert: a peach, kiwi, blood orange, strawberries, apple, and blackberries, dusted with cinnamon and cardamom. The peaches were so sweet and delicious that I didn’t miss any date syrup, although I am really into the spices with fruit now. I will have a more berry-heavy salad tomorrow as I’ve got so much in the fridge waiting to be used. Yum!
Raw Week! June 1, 2009
Posted by a-k in farmer's market, fruit, raw, vegetables.13 comments
Topped with cashew cheese, marinara, basil, mushrooms, bell peppers and tomatoes
Do you ever have those times where you can distinctly remember lying on the couch cracking up watching the Kids in the Hall, or sleeping in on your day off, and yet feel like you have had no free time outside of work? I think I’ve been feeling a little overwhelmed lately with wanting to do so many projects I end up a bit hopeless and unproductive. Especially with the blog. I’m hoping to make that up starting today, because this week I’m eating all raw with a friend of mine, and there will be lovely pictures of lovely fruit and vegetable concoctions that I’m eating on a daily basis.
I started the week of raw with a 24-hour water fast to help clean out my system a little. I’ve never done one before, and despite having to work with food (cookies at that!), I didn’t feel very hungry the whole day. That is, until we started making dinner. I tried a raw cracker we’d gotten at the co-op. And then I “tried” just about everything we chopped as we got to work on a salad the size of a mixing bowl, and a raw pizza for two.
Back when I made a raw pizza for the first time, I made a couple extra crusts that I threw in the freezer for the future. To be honest I’d kinda forgotten about them, but they sure came in handy when we wanted to make a special treat kinda dinner. After loading up on produce at the co-op, we got to work making the Exquisite Marinara from Juliano’s book, I winged some cashew cheese, and we also whipped up half a batch of Juliano’s House Dressing. We decided to top the pizza with fresh basil, crimini mushrooms, red bell peppers, and tomatoes, then dehydrated it while we cleaned and started on the salad. So good! My friend, who has eaten raw food before but never on a consistent basis, was so delighted with the marinara and the finished pizza, and kept raving about the House Dressing (olive oil, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, and salt). After dinner we split a cherimoya for dessert – yum!
Jicama jicama jicama!
I didn’t used to like jicama. Back in high school, I got a fruit salad during some sort of fair and I was excited about biting into what I thought was an apple. But it wasn’t an apple, it was bland and crunchy in comparison, and I thought I’d never eat jicama again! But then I was leafing through Alissa Cohen’s book and there was a recipe for jicama fries that I made, and a mango-jicama salad tester recipe for Terry’s upcoming Latina cookbook.
Now I love jicama! Alissa’s recipe for fries was good, but didn’t satisfy the salty craving I associate with fries (because it doesn’t have any salt). They don’t taste like “real” french fries either, but they don’t really have to since they’re so delicious on their own. I’ve been working on my own version ever since, and this batch was almost right, except I was out of onion and garlic powder somehow, so they lacked a little savory depth. I believe that having a lot of tasty snacks on hand is key to not losing your mind and going out for junk food while you’re trying to stick with raw, so I’m going to try this again later this week.
Spicy Jicama Fries: topped with a little almond parmesan and parsley
Another benefit to raw foods is that I usually make too much of something for one meal or one recipe… like marinara sauce and cashew cheese. So I spiralized some zucchini and turned it into pasta for tonight’s dinner, along with a big salad. Actually, the salad was bigger than shown in this picture (it wouldn’t all fit on my plate!). I went to the farmer’s market today and picked up some local field greens – light and soft and lovely.
Zucchini Marinara and Yummy Salad
Now I’m thinking about dessert… Earlier today I ran into a friend near Minneapolis’ raw restaurant (how convenient!) and we had lunch together. I tried the Rawmelette, which was fantastic, and it came with a side of fruit salad that was so simple and so delicious! I think it had date syrup and cinnamon and raisins along with the fresh fruit, and I’m going to work on replicating that at home with some of the overflowing sweet produce I have.
I’m afraid to promise, but I’m hoping to blog daily about what I’m eating. But as you can probably tell by the randomness and excitement this post contains, I’ve got a lot of energy! So I think I can make it happen…
Chia Pudding February 18, 2009
Posted by a-k in fruit, pudding, raw, recipe.29 comments
Chia Pudding with mangos and blueberries
Remember Chia Pets? Actually, they’re still going quite strong, aren’t they? (That Chia Obama is, uh, really something else.)
I’ve recently learned that not only can you decorate some terra cotta with wet chia seeds and watch it grow, but you can soak them in water or milk, add a few spices and sweeteners, and eat them as a pudding, too! (In Mexico, chia seeds are often mixed with water or juice to make a drink called chia fresca.) Chia are super-tiny little seeds with neutral flavor that are generally considered a “dietary supplement” but have a few food applications as well.
Chia has the ability to hold many times its weight in water, and as it soaks it becomes gelatinous … in the case of some homemade almond milk, I think it’s very much like tapioca pudding. Only unlike tapioca, chia are extremely high in omega-3 fatty acids (in fact, the highest-known vegetable source of omega-3s!) and a 1-oz. serving contains about 4g of protein. And you don’t have to cook chia seeds to hydrate them, making them raw-friendly. Hurray!
While I bought my seeds at the co-op in bulk, I’ve seen canisters of them in a few grocery stores around town. You only need 1/4 c for this recipe, so a little goes a long way (should the canister seem rather expensive, that is).
The longer you soak the chia seeds, the softer they become. I found them perfectly edible after about 20 minutes of soaking, but they do have a bit of a “crunch” to them. Leaving them overnight in the refrigerator made them wonderfully soft and the almond milk almost thick enough to stand a spoon up in! Of course, if you’ve never been a big fan of tapioca pudding, you probably won’t like this. But if you are, this makes a really lovely alternative. Experiment with different spices and fruits!
Chia Pudding (serves 1-2):
1/4 whole chia seeds
1 c almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
1 banana (optional – if your milk is unsweetened)
2-3 dates, pitted (optional – if your milk is unsweetened)
a few dashes cinnamon
a pinch of salt
chopped fresh fruit to top (optional)
Place the chia seeds in a bowl or covered container. If using the banana and/or dates, blend them in a food processor or blender with the milk, cinnamon, and salt. Pour this mixture over the chia seeds and stir well. Let it soak on the counter for at least 10 minutes until thickened, or cover and soak in the fridge overnight. Stir again before serving, and top with fresh fruit and another dash of cinnamon or spices.
A Whole Lotta Raw January 9, 2009
Posted by a-k in coconut, dessert, drinks, fruit, raw, recipe, salad, smoothie, soup, vegetables.16 comments
Coconut Rainbow Salad
You wouldn’t believe it was -2F this morning and we might be getting 4 inches of snow tomorrow, would you? I can’t hardly believe it either, which is apparently why I’m pretending it’s summer with colorful food!
For some reason, eating (mostly) raw is really easy and exciting for me this time around. Which is strange considering last time it was June and not eating cooked food seemed more pleasant than it would in early January. I feel really excited about the food and have been un-cooking more spontaneously by feel and inspiration largely, which is how I usually approach food. I’m actually a bit sad to start having to cook again once my ladyfriend returns! Not that I can’t still eat a lot of raw, but dinner is likely to become a cooked affair once more.
The Vita-Mix is really changing a lot of this for me. I am seriously still using it at least twice a day! Making whole juices and shakes in addition to the smoothies is a great way to use up over-bought produce, and tastes so good! Here is a Fig and Grape Cleansing Shake from Raw Food Real World that I made once before, though it was fluffy and smooth this time around!
Fig and Grape Cleansing Shake
I also have been reading this book called Detox Your World that was written by Shazzie, a UK raw foodist. I made a couple recipes from the back of the book, the first one being a Melonmelon shake (just cantaloupe and lemon zest):
Melonmelon Shake
Isn’t that color gorgeous? It kinda matches this Squash and Kumquat Soup from the same book… I think there were some ingredients in strange amounts (1 tbsp of coconut meat and a cup of almond milk) but overall it was a very satisfying soup that I ate for lunch at work a couple days in a row:
Squash and Kumquat Soup from Detox Your World
Shazzie was a bit of an inspiration for my second attempt at a raw cheesecake, and my first attempt at a nut-free cheesecake. Well, I tell a slight lie: there are nuts in the crust, but sometimes I am a little freaked out by a nut crust topped with more nuts! So this has frozen bananas as the base of the “cheese” and it’s also got blueberries, kumquats, vanilla, cardamom, and a little coconut oil in it. I froze it for a couple hours and topped it with a blueberry-cashew cream (I stopped being freaked out by the nuts I guess) and fresh fruit. Not bad for a first try, but being made from bananas it’s just not as creamy as other cheesecakes (but that’s sometimes a good thing!). Here it is, in all its purple and orange glory:
Raw Blueberry Kumquat Cheesecake
One of the best things about my job, despite the problems I have with it, is access to free organic produce that the store can’t sell. Sometimes it’s too far gone, but usually you get perfectly ripe and ready-to-use treasures. I’ve restocked my smoothie banana supply this week for free, for example, and scored three half-pints of fresh blueberries. Also for some reason, there have been tons and tons of bell peppers – and not just the nasty green kind! I love red and yellow and orange bell peppers, but usually only buy one at a time, occasionally, because they’re so pricey. But I’ve amassed about 7 or 8 this week that have gone into various soups and things, and into a delicious salad that was a combination of almost every kind of produce I had in my fridge today.
While it takes inspiration from Thai food, I can’t really call it a curry, and because of how many delicious and colorful ingredients I used I am calling it Coconut Rainbow Salad. It’s basically a bunch of julienned vegetables covered in coconut-pineapple-chili sauce and garnished with cilantro, scallions, basil, bananas, and blueberries. And it is delicious! The fruit might sound odd, but I was a lovely contrast to the crunchy, spiced vegetables. I am posting the recipe for anyone who is interested, and I think the ingredients could be played around with and even made non-raw if that’s how you roll (rice noodles for the daikon, say, and canned coconut milk instead of fresh).
Coconut Rainbow Salad
Coconut Rainbow Salad (serves 2-4):
For the sauce:
Meat from one Thai young coconut (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 c fresh coconut water
1/2 c fresh or frozen pineapple chunks
1 knob fresh ginger (about 1 tbsp)
1/4-1/2 red chili flakes, or to taste
Julienned vegetables:
1 1/2 c green cabbaged, julienned
1 1/2 c fresh spinach, julienned
1 lg or 2 sm bell peppers, julienned
1 daikon radish, peeled into noodles or spiralized
2 carrots, julienned
To garnish:
4 scallions, sliced
1/2 bunch (or to taste) fresh cilantro, chopped
6-7 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
1 banana, sliced
handful of blueberries
Place all sauce ingredients in Vita-Mix or blender and process until smooth (if you do not have a high-speed blender, you may wish to grate or mince the ginger first). Set aside.
Combine all vegetables in a large mixing bowl to mix evenly. Arrange on serving plates and pour the sauce over the vegetables. Garnish with the scallions, cilantro, basil, bananas and blueberries and serve immediately.
