We had a long day around the house today, and a super special treat was definitely needed!
My oldest daughter hopped in the kitchen with me and helped me create these amazing delights!
Enjoy!
PS Notice the baby fingers photo bombing, trying to steal my almond butter cups!
Raw, Organic, Almond Butter Bliss
Recipe Type: Dessert
Cuisine: Raw Vegan
Author: Gina Law, CHHC
Ingredients
For the Filling:
1 C Almonds
1/4C Melted Coconut Oil
2 Tbsp Sweetener of choice (If you are using stevia, about 5 drops should work well, but start at 3 and add a drop or two at a time, tasting as you go so you don't get that "stevia flavor"
1/8 tsp Salt
For the Chocolate:
1/2C melted Coconut Oil
1/2C melted Cacao Paste
7 drops clear liquid stevia
dash salt
Instructions
Food process the almonds until they become smooth and creamy.
Then add the rest of the filling ingredients and process until combined.
Pour into a bowl and let harden a bit in the freezer while you are preparing the chocolate.
Mix all of the Chocolate ingredients in a warm pan.
Depending on size of your mold (Mine are fairly small), pour a 1/4 tsp of chocolate into each of the molds, and then place the molds into the freezer until chocolate is slightly firm, you can take it out periodically and swirl the chocolate around in the mold to let it harden in the sides in order to cover the entire cup in chocolate.
Once firm, place about 1 tsp of the almond butter mixture into each mold. Flatten just below the top of the mold. Then pour chocolate into the mold to fill each one.
As my son just informed me, spring has officially been here for four hours. And yes, they've actually been as glorious as I was hoping for. It is just about 5 o'clock, the sun is shining, fluffy white clouds are scattered in the sky and it is 53 degrees out. We spent a wonderful day with friends exploring at a labyrinth, setting intentions and releasing them into the new season.
Spring is a time for detox and cleansing. Are you feeling it yet? I'm itching to purge the house, scrub the floors, drink green juice, dive into a cleanse.
I'm sure that you've noticed that an influx on sickness happens in the spring and in the fall. These are the seasons that encourage our bodies to release toxins. While our immune system is busy working to release the junk in our bodies, it manifests in the colds that we tend to associate with this time of the year. If we do a bit of work to aid in the detoxification, do a cleanse, bring more alkalinizing food into our diet, drink green juice, exercise, rest, up our water intake, we cut back on the time that our body needs to detox and repair through inflammation, runny noses, diarrhea, and vomiting. Think about it, these are all ways to get the nastiness out. What are you willing to do to help your body spring clean? Head on over to my Facebook page and let me know what you are committing to do for your body this spring.
Our Spring Offerings at the labyrinth.
This afternoon I needed a power boost, I knew protein, spirulina and maca were my combo. I've strayed away quite a bitfrom using much for sweeteners in my smoothies. Sometimes, however, you just have to do it. I'm having a hard time adding spirulina back into my diet, I know it is so good for me, high in digestible protein, and so many micronutrients and great for the spring detox, so I cheated a bit, but got a full tablespoon down with the love of some local honey and a banana. Surprisingly, it was really enjoyable, so I thought I'd share. Let me know what you think.
We are beginning the ascension in to the time of the year that our bodies are slowly beginning to crave raw and detoxing foods once again. We feel our bodies asking less for refined foods and carbs and more for greens, and fresh veggies.
We know that "eating a rainbow" and dark leafy greens is all good for us in theory, but WHY? You are creating an alkaline environment within your body when you eat a diet rich in whole foods, heavy on greens and other vegetables. Processed foods, refined sugars, meat and flours are all very acid in our system, creating a perfect environment for bacteria, yeast, candida and viruses to thrive. Alkaline minerals in our bodies neutralize acidic conditions caused by the environment. Dark green, leafy vegetables help to replenish our alkaline mineral stores and filter out pollutants. An alkaline diet should have adequate protein in it to make the kidneys functional. Without good kidney functionality, acids pile up in the system, even if every ingredient in the diet is alkalizing, because some acid is always produced and that acid needs to be excreted by the kidneys. If there is inadequate dietary protein, the kidneys cannot function to excrete acids. Viruses can actually change and mutate to escape our immune defenses when we don't have adequate levels of antioxidants and phyto-nutrients in our tissue. They mutate and damage our body because we are immuno-deficient. Micronutrients are essential in keeping the immune system strong. When our antioxidants and micronutrients are low, viruses can actually mutate to escape the defenses of our immune system. Phytonutrients (phyto~plant), minerals, vitamins are all micronutrients. Vegetables and fruit come in all different colors, each offering us different micronutrients.
Dr. Joel Fuhrman asks, "What nutrient is the most dangerous to be low in?" The answer? The one you are low in!
You need to have an adequate level of all nutrients for a healthy immune system. To maximize immune function, eat a variety of greens and other veggies in a rainbow of colors. Learning to incorporate dark leafy greens into the diet is essential to establishing a healthy body and immune system. Greens help build your internal rainforest and strengthen the blood and respiratory system. When you nourish yourself with greens and other veggies, you may naturally crowd out the foods that make you sick.
Do yourself a favor. Listen to those cravings coming in as the weather warms. Eat a rainbow every day!
Cultures and Ferments go back to the earliest civilizations. Every "culture" has their own cultured foods. Wine, sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, relish, mead, kefir, beers, kvass and the list goes on.
Originally a mode of preservation, the process of fermenting your food cultivates an irreplaceable ingredient of a healthy diet, probiotics.
Probiotics are the good bacteria, supporting and protecting our body from disease and illness. According to Donna Gates in "The Body Ecology Diet", probiotics "are essential to a wide range of bodily functions. They help white blood cells fight disease, control putrefactive bacteria in the intestines, provide important nutrients for building the blood, assist digestion, protect the intestinal mucosa, prevent diarrhea and constipation, and contribute to bowel elimination. They also manufacture important B vitamins and are the most abundant source of vitamin B-12."
Taking care to include a source of cultured food in your diet on a daily basis will arm your immune system against the everyday bombardment of bacteria and viruses that we are exposed to. I personally, feel stronger and have superior digestion when I am consistent with consuming fermented foods. There is such wide variety of ferments that something can be found for everyone's tastes. You can find fermented foods at your local health food store, or you can make them yourself. If you do decide to purchase your ferments, be sure that they are in the refridgerated section of the store, and state that they are not pasteurized and that they contain live cultured enzymes. A few of my favorite brands are "Real Pickles", which carry an assortment of cultured vegetables, "InnerEco" brand coconut kefir, and "GT" Kombucha. There are many resources for doing it yourself. My teachers have been Sandor Katz, Donna Gates and Sally Fallon, all authors of wonderful books.
There are two main schools of thought when it comes to fermenting foods. Wild fermentation, as is taught by Sandor Katz, and culturing, described by Donna Gates. Essentially, wild fermentation collects wild bacteria from the air as each type of bacteria is attracted to a certain food. Whether you are fermenting cabbage, sugar or honey, they have their own bacteria and yeast that are attracted to them. Keep your equipment clean and sterilized, and there is no need to worry about harmful bacteria being introduced. Donna Gates brings a closed culture style to the table, adding the preferred probiotics to the food and sealing it in a closed container to allow the cultures to proliferate in a controlled environment.
Whichever is best for you is your own choosing, I will show you both methods. I recommend trying out both and going with whichever compliments your body. Our four fermented staples are cultured veggies, coconut kefir, coconut yogurt and kombucha. This will be a three part series starting with...
Cultured Vegetables
One of the most popular forms of cultured veggies is sauerkraut. In our home we keep a large batch in the fridge at all times. The whole family enjoys homemade cultured veggies mixed with fresh ground tahini, a little salad dressing, as a side dish to help digest a protein such as eggs, or straight up, in a bowl, with a pair of chopsticks. This week we harvested a delicious garlic kraut. Every month we pick a new variety of veggies to ferment. This week we plan to bottle up a big bowl of radishes from the garden.
As I mentioned before, there are two basic routes with fermenting. The first, traditional, ferment is wild fermenting. Our friend, Franky Giglio, from Three Lily Farm has a few recipes on his family farm blog. Instead of making my own video, I asked Franky if it was ok to share. He does a wonderful job explaining the process.
After the family spent some serious time on a hot and humid Fourth of July weeding the garden, we needed a serious reward, and I was happy to oblige.
Frosty Electrolyte Mango Soda
2 oranges, juiced
The meat of one mango
1/4-1/2 C coconut water kefir
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp MSM powder (optional)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tray ice
There are loads of videos online on how to open a young coconut. I figured I would put together a simple picture showing the tricks that I use every week while making my coconut kefir*.
If you are interested in a printable version, let me know and I'm happy to email you the pdf version.
To make this dish with speed and agility, it is time to pull out your food processor. For the raw food chef, this machine turns a lot of cutting and dicing into a simple push of the button.
Sea Treat Pate
Ingredients:
1 red onion
1 C snow peas, tops removed
1 1/2C sunflower seeds, soaked 2 hrs
3 garlic cloves
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4-1/2C water, just enough to make a creamy consistency
1/2C soaked Dulse (10 min)
1 tsp lemon zest
1/2C soaked Arame (10 min)
Process separately and then place in a medium sized bowl.
1 red onion, pulsed in food processor
1 C snow peas, pulsed in food processor
Process Together and then add to above veggies:
3 garlic cloves
1 1/2C sunflower seeds, soaked 2 hrs
2 tbsp lemon
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4-1/2C water, just enough to make a creamy consistency
At the very end, pulse in 1/2 c soaked dulse (a 10 min soak should do)
Finally Mix in Arame and lemon zest, stir well and enjoy!
Unfortunately, it's not good for me and my constitution. There are lots of good substitutes, but really when it gets down to it you need something full bodied, warm and deeply satisfying.
In comes my reishi, chaga latte.
Tree mushroom are an amazing medicine. I'm going to keep my explanation short, as you could literally write a book on them (and there are plenty of books regarding the subject) I suggest looking in it further if this entices you. What I will tell you are the basics. They are immunomodulators. What does this mean exactly? They strengthen your immune system. Over time it will build, however I feel the effects in the beginning myself. Please don't get this confused with immune stimulators. Herbs in the echinacea family, for example, are immune stimulants. These are great if you feel a sickness coming on, however overstimulating your immune system is not healthy if it is not fighting against an oncoming cold or flu. You will overtax and burn it out. Also, good to note, these immunostimulators should not be taken if you have an autoimmune disorder. In this case your system is already overstimulated and attacking itself. This is where immunomodulators come into play. If your immune system is low it will bring it up, if it is high it will bring it down. Reishi, "The Mushroom of Immortality" and Chaga, "King of Medicinal Mushrooms", are two of my very favorite mushrooms. When I am consistently consuming them I feel stronger, healthier and tend to ward off sickness easier.
Tree mushrooms are very woody and cannot be eaten as a ground mushroom. They are best used in tea, soups and powders. When making a tea from a medicinal mushroom you need to decoct it. Which is cooking at a slow simmer for about 2 hours (other herbs that require decoction can generally be simmered for 45 minutes). Strain the herb, and if you'd like, take the strained herb and tincture it to further pull out medicinal qualities, such as immunomodulating polysaccharides. For this recipe, all that you need is the tea. I make a large pot of tea and use it for the family over the course of the next few days. Mushrooms go a long way for the price and as far as bang for your buck, here it is.
In this recipe I've added Maca for its hormone balancing qualities, cacao for antioxidant and as a delivery system for the medicine (Cacao helps to deliver nutrients into your blood. Take it with medicine verses low quality milk and refined sugar to optimize the medicinal benefits). Coconut oil and butter for the multitude of coconut oil as well as slowing the release of the latte into my system and making it into more of a meal (Don't be afraid of fats as we need these for proper brain function and believe it or not, in order to lose weight!) A sprinkling of cinnamon helps balance your blood sugar.
One of my favorite memories of my time in Patagonia, AZ, was when I would sit in the shade with my Cafe Sisters on a hot Arizona day, and sip on a tall glass of Matcha Milkshake. It was always wonderful, and by midway through our drink we would all have smiles spreading from ear to ear. If you can get your hands on some of the scrumptious DoMatcha brand Matcha, I can't recommend it enough.
For those of you new to the concept of Matcha, Matcha is a powdered green tea originating in China by Zen Buddhists, and brought to Japan in the year 1191 where it continued to be important within the Zen monasteries. Matcha is prepared in a different manner than traditional green tea. Weeks before the plant is harvested, the plant is placed under shade, removing it from direct sunlight and forcing the it to take up more nutrients and minerals from the soil, resulting in the formation of amino acids. The finest buds are hand-picked, laid flat to dry and then ground into a fine powder. When consuming Matcha, the powder is added directly to the drink, where all of the nutrients are taken into the body, verses steeping the leaves and discarding the leaf. The resulting product leading to a blissful, peaceful, awakened state.
Traditionally, Matcha is consumed in a ceremony, however, living in the west, and not being exposed to the sacredness of this tea, I learned to drink Matcha as a blissful, summertime drink. All of my ladies have their own rendition of the drink, I will provide you with my favorite recipe, but please, the fun is in experimenting and finding the combination that most tickles YOUR taste buds.
And if my Cafe Sisters are reading this, I love you and can't wait for our next Matcha break!!!
Matcha Milkshake
Tools:
Blender
Ingredients:
2C Nutmilk
6 dates, pitted
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
3/4 tsp matcha powder (or substitute in cacao, lucuma, mesquite or other superfood powder of choice)
twist of himalayan pink salt
1 tray ice cubes
Blend nutmilk, dates, vanilla, matcha and salt until smooth.
Add ice and continue blending.
Pour into two pint glasses and share with someone you love.
Or... What to do with that leftover nut pulp! I've been asked so many times, what do I do with the leftover pulp when I'm through making almond milk?? It's so pricey, and there is so much of it that goes to waste.
We like to get creative. A lot of times it ends up being turned into cookies. This is the recipe that I threw together this morning.
I started with the pulp of 3 cups of soaked almonds (I used this to make a full carafe, 64oz of milk) In the blender, I mixed with the pulp: 1-10oz bag of strawberries 1/2C maple Syrup A dash of cinnamon 1-2 twists of Himalayan Sea Salt 1 Tbsp vanilla extract Blend well.
I poured this into a bowl and then added: 1/2 - 3/4 C ground chia seeds. You can do this in your high powered blender if you rinse and then thoroughly dry it first, otherwise you can use a coffee grinder. Mix thoroughly.
If you let it set for 15-20 minutes the chia will firm up the batter and make scooping easier. I used a cookie scoop and placed the balls on a solid dehydrator tray and dehydrated until firm (several hours) and then transfered to a mesh sheet where I finished drying.
All three kids have been gobbling them up. Its a great snacky-snack for in between meals, when you want them to have something nutritious. The hardest part has been having them NOT eat all of the cookies before they are finished dehydrating!
This is one of my quick and easy solutions to almond pulp. Get creative! Its easy! Be sure to let me know what you come up with that you can't keep your fingers off of!
My next three entries are in rebuttal to Frank Ferendo's Superfood Debate: Parts One and Two
www.reasonablyraw.blogspot.com
After reading these two blogs, it was necessary to defend products that I believe in.
At the young age of fourteen, my father decided it would be a good idea to expose me to John Robbin’s Video of “Diet for a New America”.For any of you who have ever read the book, or worse, seen the movie, you can imagine the horror I felt.I’ll never forget the nausea as I tore into a piece of steak later that weekend.That was that, for the last eighteen years the thought of eating an animal has completely revolted me.
For many years I ate a pastatarian diet, which also consisted of bagels, pizza and coffee.As I progressed through my college years I began to learn about “health food”.I ate tofu, whole wheat, stir-fry, soy substitutes, and veggie burgers.My now husband and I experimented quite a bit with a vegan diet, but really, we were far from healthy.
When my oldest daughter was born we knew that we couldn’t raise her on these foods.Through Ruth Yaron’s “Super Baby Food” and Cynthia Lair’s “Feeding the Whole Family” we began to learn the value of a whole foods diet.We switched to brown rice, steamed vegetables, beans, lentils and homemade bread.We felt much healthier than we had for the years we survived on a processed vegetarian diet.We were learning the flavors of real food and the art of food preparation.
Four years ago I started learning the amazing benefits of a raw food diet. I became serious about it when I learned I had a health issue that required medical attention.One month later that issue was almost completely resolved and I was feeling better than I ever had in my entire life.I feasted on many varieties of greens, veggies, fruits, nuts and seeds.What an amazing summer!I was so full of energy and was at the top of my game.
Then came the fall.Living in New England, winter is when the weather gets colder and signals the time for heavier foods.Our bodies need warmth, grounding and the raw food was making my body cold, and a bit spacey.I transitioned to a cooked foods diet.I inevitably began again with wheat, cooked oils and dairy.These were substances that my body had already proven to me to be sub-optimal.I pushed through the winter, and in the spring we started the transition to a new level of health.
Each year the cycle was the same.Spring brought a new level of health, leading into an amazing living food summer. This was followed by a fall and winter that would leave much to be desired.
A raw foods diet is a detoxifying diet.It is an amazing tool that can do WONDERS for our health.The lightness, freedom and strength that accompanies living food is beyond anything that can be described.The speed in which this live food can heal dis-ease is astonishing.
Our bodies need to follow the seasons in their own right.They need a cycle of detoxifying, building and maintaining.Spring has an abundance of wild and cultivated greens and liver cleansing herbs.Summer brings its bounty of fruit, carrying vibrancy to every cell in our being.Fall is a time of rebuilding, grounding the lightness of summer for the hibernation of winter.In New England, we see this with our winter squash, roots, and autumn olives.They are crops that root us in the earth and supply us with our stores for the winter.Winter is a time for maintaining our connection to the earth and of feasting on stored grains and legumes.
The challenge that I face is that consuming starchy vegetables, legumes and grains on a daily basis keeps my body, mind and spirit feeling sluggish and puts my body in hibernation mode. Winter for me needs to be home-centered, nesting with my family.However, like many folks in this current paradigm, I cannot spend my winters following the rhythms of the sun.I am awake well after the last glimpse of sunlight and in the morning I wake while the stars are still bright in the sky.I am a mother of three wonderful and energetic children and need to be a bit on my toes during those winter months.
This winter I made new discoveries.I explored new passions.These connections made for winter months in which I felt a strength I had yet to experience.I stayed grounded and focused and accomplished more than I ever imagined.
It's been awhile since we've been able to enjoy such a beautifully white winter. So many Rhode Island cold, wet, freezing winters have graced us in recent years. Every flake of snow that falls puts a smile on my face. Another blanket laid upon our existing covers. The kids enjoy every moment. I believe this could almost be more enjoyable to them then the blustery days of summer. The knock at the sliding glass door when they just about had enough. The rosy cheeks and snow drenched hair poking out beneath their hats. Another adventure.
The moments when the house is silent.
Someday I believe we will be blessed with a wood stove, but for now every time I hear the heat click on, my two oldest scramble for the warmest vents in the house (the back room and the bathroom), shut the doors to contain the warmth and pull up a child-sized chair. Their slippers come off and those tiny toes caress the warm metal grates. And there they will remain, quiet and peaceful, for the duration that the warm air blows.
How does a family who focuses on raw food stay warm and happy during a New England winter? Well besides amazing green-fruit smoothies, superb super foods and to live for home-made chocolates. Have you ever tried an irish moss mousse? We've been taking this super nutritious sea vegetable and creating the most out-of-this-world desserts. Any occasion is an occasion for celebration. Recently we had some great friends over for dessert. I decided this was a perfect excuse to treat ourselves to something a little decadent. Strawberry mousse with a coconut meringue, chocolate covered strawberries and a splash of chocolate love hearts. Who needs dinner? Life's short, eat more dessert! All raw, mostly organic and filled with love. A bit of heaven in every bite! I highly recommend Sweet Gratitude: A New World of Raw Desserts this book brought to us our irish moss Ah HA! moment. This amazing book is refining the simple pleasures that we delight in sharing with our loved ones.
It's full swing autumn, here in New England. Possibly my favorite time, the crisp air, the changing leaves, preparing for hibernation, and autumn olives.
If you've never tasted the tart-sweetness of an autumn olive, it is time you did. Autumn olives, also known as autumn berries, are extremely abundant this time of the year. Not only delicious, these berries are purveyors of vitamins A, C and E, flavonoids, essential fatty acids and are loaded with lycopene. They are a truely local superfood. And my husband views it as such, squirreling it away for us (but making sure to leave enough for the birds and some for the plant). My husband and I have grand plans on preserving the harvest: freezing, concentrating, drying, blending, tincturing. What a wonderful medicine to aid us on our winter adventures.
The shrub is easy to identify. My daughter points out the silvery shimmer of their under-leaf as we make our way through town. "Mom, autumn olives!" She'll yell as we are driving down the road, taking note as to where we'll be able to harvest this year's goodies. My four year old picks the gold-speckeled, red berry out of a line up including autumun olive, poke berry and the deadly night shade berry, positive that he has picked the only edible fruit of the three. My children can identify a growing number of edible and medicinal plants at this point, but by far their favorite is their precious (and, unfortunately for the environmentalist in me, wildly invasive) autumn olive. Lucky for us we have more than we can handle, only a few steps away, giving us and our bird friends a convenient way to dine together for a few cherished weeks of the year.
For more information on the autumn olive, check out this link:
Lying in bed thursday morning my mind wandered to the upcoming birthday party that we were cohosting with friends. My oldest daughter's sixth birthday is coming up next week and my friend's son was turning five that very day. We decided it would be fun to work together on a party.
Dessert is a big occassion in our family. We are pretty much what you might consider foodies, food snobs, or just plain food obsessed. Whatever you call us, we love our food, especially raw food, but most importantly raw desserts. A party is our excuse to pull out all the stops. We love raw cookbooks, we have loads of them and literally sit around as a family studying recipes. We like to get ideas from them, but we LOVE to create our own. And so do the kids. I cuddled up with my daughter and together we began mentally creating her birthday cake.
The cake was delicious with individual
mini cupcake holders filled with a raw, chocolate, coconut cookie, all pushed together and frosted with a vanilla, coconut, cashew cream and covered a with pink chocolate flower and a chocolate birthday inscription, all raw, mostly organic.
The tastiest part of the whole experience was the fact that the cake was the brainchild of my daughter and I, created by the two of us along with my son and savored by the family right down to the very last lick off of our cupcake wrappers.
People have been asking me a lot how I get my kids to eat raw food. We make it exciting, we put our passion into it, and we make it a family event.
Oh, but the coolest part of the day? I went outside to check on the kids later that afternoon, Emelia says "Look ma!" and procedes to effortlessly ride her two wheeled bike, all on her own. Neither my husband nor I had any idea. Kids are amazing!
this book brought to us our irish moss Ah HA! moment. This amazing book is refining the simple pleasures that we delight in sharing with our loved ones.
