The Best Is Yet To Come

The recipes keep coming, but some haven't been making it to the blog! Never fear, I am getting my act together and a cook book is imminent! Here are some examples of what's in the works...

Raw Triple Tomato Tart with Dandelion Greens

The best meals, especially when making raw foods, are the ones that come straight from the source. The red tomatoes and dandelion greens in this recipe are straight from our garden. The yellow tomatoes we picked up at a farm stand on our way home from the beach. I have been gorging myself on tomatoes while the season is still upon us, since I know these juicy beauties won't last much longer!

Crust

1 1/2 cups brazil nuts (soaked 30 minutes)
1 cup sundried tomatoes (soaked 30 minutes)
1/2 cup of flax seeds
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coconut aminos
Celtic sea salt to taste

Filling

2 large red tomatoes
1 large yellow tomato
large handful of dandelion greens
small handful of mixed herbs (parsley, oregano, rosemary)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon coconut aminos
nutritional yeast
red pepper flakes
cayenne pepper
pink Himalayan salt to taste

Blend flax seeds in a grinder or small food processor (I used a Magic Bullet). In a larger food processor combine the ground flax seeds, brazil nuts, sundried tomatoes, cumin, coconut aminos, and salt. Once you have a dough-like consistency, use the mixture to line a pie pan (or miniature pie pans). Smooth down to cover the entire surface. Slice your tomatoes and layer over crust. Coarsely chop your dandelion greens and herbs and scatter on top. Drizzle olive oil and coconut aminos over top. Sprinkle nutritional yeast, red pepper flakes, cayenne, and salt on top as desired. (Be generous with the salt, and conservative with the cayenne.) Use a pie slicer to remove pieces, but don't freak out if it crumbles, it tastes better that way anyhow! Enjoy!

Tomato Towers with Lemon-Rosemary Rutabaga "Rice" and Hemp Cream

First day of school and I have no notice of when the bus is supposed to come. Last year it was 6:30 am, so I figured 6:20 am was a safe bet. I go outside on the front porch in my pajamas  with my son and wait. And wait. And wait, until my son tells me he is tired of sitting around like a rotten pineapple (no, I don't know where he comes up with this stuff). By 7:00 am I give up, and go inside to shower so I can take my son to school, which means I have all of ten minutes to prepare a raw vegan lunch for my husband and I.

Luckily we have some beautiful ripe tomatoes picked from our garden yesterday which are perfect, so the rest pretty much just got thrown in a food processor and was done!

Oh, and in case you were wondering his bus is scheduled to come at 7:21 am... which means we get to sleep in!!! Woo hoo!

***Note: If you stack your tomato towers taller than 3 slices high, you run the risk of having your husband (significant other, family member, dinner guest) tell you, "You've lost your mind."

2 large high-quality tomatoes
1/2 rutabaga
1 lemon, juiced
small handful of rosemary
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
1/2 cup hemp seeds
1/2 cup hemp milk
1 teaspoon white truffle oil
Celtic sea salt to taste

In a food processor pulse the rutabaga, lemon juice, rosemary, olive oil, nutritional yeast, and salt to make the "rice". Slice the tomatoes and place a generous spoonful of the "rice" between each layer. Clean food processor and blend the hemp seeds, hemp milk, truffle oil, rosemary, and salt. Dollop on top of the towers. A garnish would also have been nice, but hey, I had ten minutes people!

Raw Cacao Rosewater Cupcakes

Instead of getting right to cooking at dinnertime last night, I decided to play. Mixing flavors and colors and textures, I came up with these little cuties! This recipe made two cupcakes, but they are pretty dense. You could easily make mini cupcakes as well!

Cupcake

1/2 cup of walnuts (soaked roughly 8 hours)
5 dates, pitted
1/2 cup of raisins
1/4 cup of cacao powder
1/4 cup of carob powder
pinch of salt

Frosting

1 avocado
2 tablespoons beet juice (I ran it through a juicer)
1 teaspoon rosewater
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon almond coconut milk
2 tablespoons honey or agave

Mix all cupcake ingredients together in a food processor. Pat into cupcake shape and place in paper cupcake holder. Mix all frosting ingredients in a food processor. Scoop frosting into a plastic sandwich bag and make a tiny cut at the corner. Slowly squeeze the frosting out to make petal-like ruffles for the rose top of the cupcake. You may have to add more beet juice if the color is still too green. Also, taste to see if additional honey or agave is needed, as avocado sized vary. Enjoy!

Raw Apricot BBQ Zucchini Noodles with Jerk Kraut

My cheap spiralizer broke. I felt very sad, but then read on ohsheglows.com that you can use a julienne peeler! It is basically a peeler with teeth so I picked one up in the grocery store for much cheaper than a good quality spiralizer (although I do hope to get one soon!) Anyway, I made this!

1 zuchinni
1/2 cup of dried apricots
1/2 a medium sized tomato
 2 tablespoons coconut aminos
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon chili pepper
1 teaspoon chipotle pepper
2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
1/3 cup of water
Celtic sea salt to taste
1/2 cup of jerk sauerkraut (follow my sauerkraut recipe included with the Krautflleckerl recipe, but leave out the caraway seeds and put jerk seasoning instead)

Cut the ends off the zuchinni. Spiralize or peel with a julienne peeler and set in a bowl lined with paper towels (to catch excess liquid). In a food processor, mix dried apricots, tomato, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, chili pepper, chipotle pepper, nutritional yeast, water, and salt until smooth. In a large bowl mix zuchinni, sauce, and jerk sauerkraut. Enjoy!

A New Chapter in the History of Peasant Food

The term peasant food refers to food that was easily affordable by the lower class. Peasant food does not limit itself to one culture or period in time. In the simplest sense peasant food was food made from the leftovers of what the elite were consuming.

In recent years there has been some romanticizing of the peasant diet... of warm stews and bread and beans. What is left out of this fantasy is that many of these soups were made with beaks, tails, and entrails. And those soft, crusty bread rolls were often made from the chaff, stalks, sawdust, grass, and even tree bark which were separated when the real grains were collected. A popular peasant dish in Europe was (and still is) headcheese, which is not an actual dairy cheese, but a jellied terrine of pig or cow head. In Florence a dish called lampredotto is made from a cow's fourth stomach. Pottage was a British stew in the Middle Ages made from whatever was available. In good days this may have been pleasant enough, but in the harsh of winter I would rather not even guess at the ingredients. Soul food in the United States has its roots in peasant food. Many West African foods such as okra and rice got mixed with leftover plantation food of the European slave owners. A common food of this culture was chitterlings made from pork small intestines.

So what might current peasant food be? Well, it would be whatever food is made from the waste of the elite. The modern day elite are the large corporations, big businesses, and factory farms. What cut of meat is your hot dog made of? Processed cheese is made from waste products of the dairy industry and often is made with rennet, which is derived from the stomach of calves. Not to mention additives, artificial flavorings, saturated oils, and other chemicals which are added to many processed foods merely because they are cheap and readily available.

The truth is that even some of the worst peasant foods in history still may have better nutrition than what has been made acceptable in the Standard American Diet. The difference is that we don't have to live this way- we only think we do. You are not a slave because of your lack of wealth. You are a slave if you believe or accept the lies which have been handed to you. I know you are tired after a long day of work, as I am, but you can make real food, by yourself, with fresh fruits and vegetables. It doesn't have to take any longer than it would to throw a frozen pizza in the oven or wait to be seated at Applebee's. You are not a peasant, you deserve better.

Pina Colada Smoothie

When you want to be some place tropical... but realize you are actually in a DC suburb...

1 banana
1/3 of a pineapple
1 1/2 cups of coconut water
1 1/2 cups of coconut almond milk
2 tablespoons honey or agave
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth (will be more on the liquidy side). May also go well with some ice cubes blended up for more of a daiquiri type feel.

Raw Peach Cobbler

My yummy dessert from last night would have been perfect if I had some coconut whipped cream or frozen banana whip to compliment it! It was still pretty good without it. If you don't have dried mulberries on hand you can just double the amount of walnuts instead!

2 peaches
1/2 cup of walnuts (soaked for 8 hours)
1/2 cup of dried mulberries
5 dates, pitted
1 tablespoon honey or agave
1 teaspoon cinnamon
dash of Celtic sea salt
1 tablespoon maple syrup (drizzle)
dash of pumpkin pie spice

Slice peaches and put in bowl. In a food processor combine walnuts, mulberries, dates, honey (or agave), cinnamon, and salt until crumbly. Mix into bowl with peaches. Drizzle with maple syrup and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice.

Raw Szechuan Green Beans with Turmeric Parsnip "Rice"

Here is a quick lunch for when you want raw food and haven't soaked, sprouted, or fermented anything. Saffron might also be a fun addition to the rice, but I didn't have any. You could also try fresh turmeric!

"Rice"

3 medium-sized parnsips
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
2 teaspoons of turmeric
Celtic sea salt to taste

Cut ends off of parsnips. Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse into a fine grain-like texture.

Szechuan Green Beans

 2 to 3 large handfuls of green beans
2 medium-sized tomatoes
1 tablespoon dulse flakes
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon coconut aminos
2 teaspoons chili pepper
dash of cayenne pepper
sprinkle of red pepper flakes
Celtic sea salt to taste


Cut ends and any bad spots off of green beans. Put the remainder of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse into a chunky sauce. In a bowl or container, cover green beans with sauce and allow to sit refrigerated for a few hours to soften the green beans slightly.

Raw Boardwalk "French Fries"

I've been meaning to enjoy this one before summer is over! Only 5 ingredients and hardly any work! I wish I was on the beach enjoying these right now!

1/2 a jicama root
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
dash of chili pepper
Celtic sea salt to taste

Peel jicama and cut into frie-like strips. Mix with all other ingredients. Serve.

Raw Broccolini and Celery Divan

My mother used to make me broccoli divan when I was a little girl, since everyone was eating chicken divan. It is a definite comfort and oddly enough my husband has the same nostalgic feelings towards it. Since we are no longer eating dairy and trying to eat more raw, I put a new spin on it! Enjoy!

1 bunch of broccolini
2 stalks of celery
1 or 2 large button mushrooms
1/2 cup of sunflower seeds (soaked)
1/2 cup of hemp milk
1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon stone ground mustard
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon of flax seeds
1 teaspoons cumin
12 almonds (soaked)
small sprinkling of chopped rosemary
dash of white pepper
Celtic sea salt to taste

Chop the broccolini and celery and place in a bowl of water with salt (about a teaspoon) and juice from 1/2 a lemon. Place in the fridge and allow to soak for about an hour. In a food processor combine the sunflower seeds, hemp milk, nutritional yeast, mustard, turmeric, salt, and the remainder of the lemon juice. Blend until smooth. After an hour, drain the broccolini/ celery and transfer into a new bowl. Chop the mushroom and add to bowl. Pour the sauce onto the vegetable mixture. In a small food processor or grinder mix flax seeds, cumin, white pepper, almonds, rosemary, and salt. These will be little "bread crumb" flavor clusters that you can scatter around the top.

Raw "Crab Cakes" with Dill- Hemp Sauce

I am being a tease again! Sorry guys, this one is too good and waiting to be written up in my cook book! The good news is when I get inspired to cook like this, it reminds me to get in gear on this cook book! What I have in mind will be about embracing many different diets, focusing on health, while bringing together family and friends. There is enough unrest in this world... dinner time should be peaceful.

Jerk Tomato, Corn, and Avocado Salad with Coconut-Ginger Black Rice

This one can be raw, if instead of making black rice you made turnip "rice", or parsnip "rice", or cauliflower "couscous" instead. Anyway, this was my first time ever using jerk seasoning, and I think it was love at first taste! This recipe would probably also go well with some mango.

Jerk Tomato, Corn, and Avocado Salad

2 ears of sweet corn
1 large tomato
2 avocados
1/4 cup of homemade red kraut (optional)
1 large handful of cilantro and parsley
1 tablespoon jerk seasoning
1 lemon, juiced
2 teaspoons coconut aminos
pink Himalayan salt to taste

Coconut- Ginger Black Rice

2 cups cooked black rice
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 inch cube of ginger, grated
1 teaspoon dried coconut flakes (optional)

Raw Beet Walnut Sun-dried Tomato Burgers

So, my inquisitive blog readers, do you want to know what happened to my body this week? Tuesday I woke up feeling nauseated and mildly feverish, so I took the day off. Yesterday I felt just fine and went through the entire day at work until I noticed that I had broken out in hives all around the center of my chest and through to the base of my spine. Luckily, they only lasted a day and are already gone. I have read that this can happen during detoxing, as your skin is the biggest filtration system for releasing toxins. I could play a guessing game all day long as to which toxins are coming out of my body... chemicals I was exposed to in art school, hair dye I administered several times in the same week, alcohol and Red Bull from crazy nights in my twenties, antibiotics I was consistently prescribed to rid myself of boils, or just the Standard American Diet. But whatever it was, I am happy it is gone. I feel like eating mostly raw has helped this process, so I here is today's lunch creation!

For the Burger Patties:  

1 large beet or 2 small beets
1/3 cup of walnuts (soaked roughly 4 hours, drained)
1/3 cup of sun-dried tomatoes (soaked until soft, drained)
3 dates, pitted
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of paprika
1 teaspoon or corriander
pinch of white pepper
Celtic sea salt to taste

Place all ingredients in a food processor and plus until thoroughly blended. Scoop out a handful of the mixture and pat into a patty shape. Leave in fridge on a paper towel or cloth to drain excess liquid until ready to eat.

Additional Fixin's:

1 paleo wrap or large collard leaf (for wrapper)
1 medium tomato, sliced
1 homemade pickle, sliced
romaine lettuce leaves
stone ground mustard 

The Hard Truth

I have a lot of friends these days ask what I have been doing with my diet. I have received some comments that I look thinner. I have lost weight, but that isn't really my ultimate goal. My goal is to feel better. I want to be comfortable in my own skin. I have been improving on this everyday, and do have advice to give when asked, but there is one thing that gets hard to say...

You will never be healthy if you are abusing your body with substances. American socializing seems to revolve around massive consumption of mood altering vices. Alcohol, cigarettes, and recreational drug use will stunt your body from ever becoming healthy. That is a cold, hard truth. If you are drinking every night with your girlfriends it doesn't really matter that you did that one-week juice cleanse. If you are smoking, your exercise is kind of a waste of time. And if you are a heroin addict then it really doesn't matter that you are vegan.

I am not saying this to come across as harsh or judgmental. The obvious reality is that if you want to take care of your body, you need to take care of your body. There are no instant quick fixes. Love is work, and sometimes loving yourself is the hardest work.