One of the very first foods I gave up when I started eating raw living food, was bread. I learned how the gluten acts like “GLUE” in your gut, sticking to it, fermenting, clogging, and wreaking havoc on my body. Don’t get me wrong, every now and then, if we are out somewhere, and there is good, fresh, wholesome bread, I’ll indulge, but for the most part, I’ve given up the GOOEY GLUTEN, and my stomach could not be happier.

Acid Reflux….GONE GONE GONE!!!! There were nights I used to sleep sitting up to avoid the killer acid reflux BURN. Surprisingly, I don’t miss sandwiches all that much, but it’s getting quite nippy here on the East coast, and my body craves foods that are a little heavier and richer, so I created this lovely onion wrap and it was really satisfying and filling.

When I first tasted the wrap alone, it seemed too strong and had quite a bite, but when I stuffed it with a mild sunflower seed pate and creamy avocado slices, the blend of flavors was fabulous. I’d eliminate the onion from the pate recipe, if you are eating it with this bread, unless you really really like onion!

Directions:

Arame is a species of seaweed or kelp that has a mild, semi-sweet flavor. Arame is common in Japanese cuisine and can be found in salads and marinaded dishes. It comes in a dried form and due to it’s mild flavor, can be reconstituted and added to dishes without impacting the flavor. Just one serving of arame provides over 100 percent of the daily value for iodine and 50 percent of the daily requirements for calcium. Adding arame to one’s diet on a regular basis has been reported to improve overall immune function, and condition of hair skin and nails. Due to it’s high content of lignans, arame has been the focus of several anti-cancer studies.I’ll definitely be adding this to my salads and other dishes.

 Asian Arame Salad

Ingredients for Salad:
1 zucchini (spiralized or sliced thin, lengthwise)
2 carrots, peeled and grated or julienne
1/4 red onion, chopped or spiralize with ribbon blade and chop
1/2 cup green peas
1/2 cup arame, measured dry (soak for 5 min and squeeze to drain)
1 apple (sliced thin, and chopped)
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

Ingredients for Dressing:
2 1/2 Tbsp brown rice vinegar (or your favorite vinegar)
1 Tbsp honey or agave
1 Tbsp cold pressed sesame oil
2 Tbsp nama shoyu (or tamari)
1 1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/8 tsp chili powder (or cayenne – to taste)
1/8 tsp sea salt

Directions:
1. Soak arame for 5 minutes in cool water. Rinse, drain and squeeze out excess moisture.

2. Spiralize zucchini. Shred or julienne carrots, and chop apple and onion.

3. IN a large bowl, mix  the vegetables and arame together..

4. In a small bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients and pour over vegetables. Mix well.

5. Let sit for 15 to 30 minutes.  Mix . Sprinkle with sesame seeds, and serve.

6. OPTION: add chopped broccoli, snap peas, green beans, pear, etc. This would also be good served with SPROUTED QUINOA

Believe it or not, I have no recollection of ever tasting persimmons prior to this, so when W brought them home, I had no idea what to do with them. Persimmons are now at the peak of their season. There are two kinds of persimmons,.Hachiya and Fuyu. Fuyu’s are rounder, firmer, and can be eaten like an apple. Hachiya’s are more acorn shaped and should look like an over ripe tomato when ready to use. You cut open and scoop out the pulp. I used Hachiya persimmons for this recipe. Very tasty. In fact, they reminded me a bit of pumpkin, only better, because I don’t like pumpkin. I’m going to attempt a “Pumpkin” Pie, using Hachiya persimmons. Meanwhile, here’s a quick, delicious and nutritious snack.

NOTE: I learned the hard way: DO NOT USE Hachiya persimmons unless they are literally mushy and ripe or they will NOT be friendly to your tastebuds. I put a sliver of unripe Hachiya on my tongue and had the strangest reaction. My tongue went numb and got all dry, and felt so odd that it scared me. It turns out that the Hachiya persimmons are highly astringent most of their lives, where Fuyus are not,  Never eat Hachiya persimmons fresh off the tree. They must be MUSHY before eaten.

Hachiya Persimmon

To hasten ripening, put a heart-shaped persimmon in a paper bag along with a banana. The banana releases ethylene, which ripens the persimmon. The Fuyus (which look like light tomatoes) can be enjoyed either crisp or soft and when cut, the cross-section reveals a lovely 8 pointed star. It looks quite beautiful in fruit platters…and the good news is , they maintain their brilliant color.  Both of these offer a lovely color and a flavor that is reminiscent of apricot and mango. Although, when mixed with banana and maple syrup, reminds me more of pumpkin.

Persimmon Pudding
Ingredients:
1 Hachiya persimmon, ripened
1 banana
2 Tbsp Irish moss paste (optional and an amazing ingredient – don’t be afraid!)
2 Tbsp white chia seeds (ground) -dark will darken color, but can be used.
1 drop Medicine Flower Vanilla Extract (or pinch of vanilla bean powder)
1 Tbsp grade B maple syrup (or your fav. sweetener)
1/4 cup water (as needed to blend)
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/16 tsp cinnamon
dash nutmeg

Directions:
1. Hachiya persimmon must be ripe. (is acorn shaped and looks like an over ripe tomato when ready)
2. Cut open and scoop out pulp, removing thin membrane.
3. In blender, mix ingredients. Add water as needed. Should be a thick applesauce consistency.
4. Refrigerate until chilled and serve. Top with dried coconut, chopped nuts, cinnamon, etc.
5. This makes a great “pumpkin” pie filling. Add more Irish moss paste, or chia to thicken as needed.  Spoon into pie crust and top with your favorite pumpkin pie toppings.

Note: I accidentally used ground black chia seeds instead of white, so my pudding came out muddier in color. If you want a brighter, lovely shade, I suggest using ground white chia seeds. A spice/nut grinder works great for this.

I was so  inspired by the flavor of this recipe, I then created this No Pumpkin-Pie using a pecan/date crust! YUMMMMMMMERS! This was made in a 7″ fluted pie tart with removable bottom. ( I doubled the pudding recipe and adjusted the sweetness and spices)

I love creating healthy, raw vegan versions of recipes that are connected to “comfort foods” from my childhood. Potato Latkes were a favorite that mom used to cook up. They always make me feel happy, and  remind me of a connection to family when we all lived nearby and could celebrate together. With my mom just passing recently, I’m revisiting some of her Traditional Recipes, and challenging myself to make a raw version. SUCCESS! While they look a little dry, they are moist, chewy and full of flavor. Once you put the raw applesauce on top, they soften and rehydrate the outside of the pancake.  The onion flavor and texture tingle my taste buds and really remind me of Grammy’s Latkes!

Sweet Potato Angel Hair Pasta

Spiralized Onion

Whisk 2 Tbsp of ground flax and 6 Tbsp water and pour over chopped veggies. Add 1/4 tsp onion powder, salt, pepper, or your favorite spices,  and 6 Tbsp almond meal.

I also added 1 Tbsp of sprouted Quinoa flour, (because I had it in the freezer, but it’s optional).

Form into 9 or 10 patties and dehydrate for several hours at 110 degrees F.

Flip from non-stick dehdyrator tray onto mesh sheets or stainless steel rack, if you have a TSM Dehydrator.  This is my newest dehydrator and I am LOVING it!

In a food processor, I quickly mixed up some applesauce using 3 apples, (peeled and cored), 1 Tbsp Irish moss paste (optional), 1 tsp, lemon juice, 2 tsp ground white chia, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, and pinch of sea salt. I like my applesauce chunky. The chia helped absorb excess moisture.

Top pancakes with a dollop of applesauce and cinnamon and let sit 10 minutes to soften and serve.

Option: warm pancakes in dehydrator prior to serving. These may be stored in freezer and warmed in dehydrator when needed.

Green smoothies were my very first introduction into the world of Raw Living Food. I have posted many smoothie recipes on this blog, and while recipes can be helpful, they are only suggestions. Smoothie ingredients can be exchanged, replaced, and even omitted per availability and/or taste. If you are just starting out, or curious how someone else may create smoothies…here is my formula for the Basic Green Smoothie. Sometimes I get creative and add extracts and ingredients you may not have. I encourage you to not be alarmed or intimidated by these ingredients. You have a choice…either get those ingredients that I’ve suggested (because I like them), or make the smoothie without them. Either way, you will learn how to create fabulous and delicious Green Smoothies.

Ingredients: Smoothie Base
There are many You Tube videos on opening young Thai coconuts, so I’m not going to cover that here. The base of my smoothies is either a blend of the young Thai coconut water and meat…

or

Nut Milk – (Usually Almond)
How to Make Nut Milk

Ingredients: Greens
It’s a good idea to alternate your greens to ensure you get the widest array of nutrients. I like to use either kale or dandelion. Kale comes in several different varieties, and I alternate between them. Depending upon where you live, you may have access to purslane and other local greens. I find spinach and chard rather strong and bitter. If you use them, add very small amounts at first, and mix with a milder green

Holding kale at stem, PINCH thumb and forefinger together on each side of stem. Grab the greens and slide up the stem, separating the leaf from the stem. Some people like to juice the stems.

Blend coconut meat and water (or nut milk) with a bunch of greens. Start off with a few leaves and add more as you acquire a taste for them.

Add 1-2 frozen sliced bananas (or any frozen fruit that you enjoy). It thickens the smoothie and keeps the temperature down during blending. A high speed blender is best and does make a significant difference, however, I worked with a regular blender for 2 years before I acquired my VitaMix.  It may take a bit longer, and you may have to stop and start the blender to avoid overheating the ingredients. But you can do it!

This can be the base for any green smoothie. What you do after this, is up to you. Don’t be afraid to get creative.

Suggestions: 
If the banana or other frozen fruit is not sweet enough, try adding a a couple of pitted, chopped medjool dates to the mix.

Chia seeds or ground chia seeds are a wonderful ingredient to add to smoothies. Not only will they delightfully thicken your mixture, but they add fiber, protein and essential fatty acids. Chia is often referred to as “Runner’s Food” because it holds so  much water, that it helps athletes stay hydrated longer during high mileage runs

Chia

Hemp seeds are another wonder food. You can grind them, sprout them, or use them as is. Hemp is a high protein seed containing all 9 essential amino acids, like flax seed, (another great food you can add to smoothies). .  Hemp also contains high amounts of fatty acids and fiber, as well as Vitamin E and trace minerals. I’ts easily digested by most people, and does not tend to cause gas or bloating.

Hemp

For you chocolate lovers, cacao powder is DIVINE! It contains high levels of sulphur and magnesium and is said to increases focus and keep you “happy.” Cacao (raw chocolate) is often associated with LOVE, which is probably why it’s given as gifts on Valentine’s Day. While many people find themselves addicted to chocolate, I have found I can consume raw cacao without the deleterious effects of processed chocolate. It is bitter, like baker’s chocolate and requires a good sweetener. I could not imagine my raw kitchen without cacao powder!!!!

Cacao

As you begin to experiment in the kitchen and develop your own favorite green smoothie recipes, you may want to explore Medicine Flower extracts.There are over 40 flavors available. They are CONCENTRATED, so a few drops goes a LONG way! Take a basic recipe or formula as posted above, and change the flavor extract.

Go from a chocolate smoothie to a mocha smoothie, by adding a few drops of coffee extract (one of my favs). The variety is endless!!! Note: Mention Rawfully Tempting in the “shipping comments” and Medicine Flower will include a Special Bonus Sample with your order. Want to try a new flavor – specify it with your order and they will try to accommodate you. Great Company!

Don’t forget to sign up for the Rawfully Tempting Newsletter.

These scrumptious muffins are awesome this time of  year. They can be frozen and popped in the dehydrator to warm as needed. The mixture can also be made into a lovely cranberry nut bread and served with a drizzle of raw honey.

Cranberry Nut Muffins
1/2 cup sunflower seeds (soaked 2 to 4 hours)
3 Tbsp ground chia
2 Tbsp ground flax
pinch of sea salt
1 apple, chopped
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (divided
1/4 cup raisins (divided)
1/2 cup, chopped walnuts 
1/4 cup maple syrup or agave
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract(3 drops Medicine Flower vanilla extract)
1/2 cup sprouted oat flour (or use almond flour)
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup water, if needed to blend.

In a food processor, mix ingredients with half the cranberries and raisins, until you have a well blended batter.  Add remaining raisins, and cranberries, and pulse process to leave chunks in batter. Add chopped walnuts and mix together. Taste for sweetness.

Option 1 - On top of a non-stick dehydrator sheet, or parchment paper, spoon about 3 Tbsp of batter into a round cookie cutter mold and press into the shape. Slide cookie cutter up, and use a dull knife to re-shape muffin, forming a little mound on top. Muffins should be about 1 to 1.5 inches high. Sprinkle with cinnamon and date sugar (optional).


Option 2 – See pic to left: press plastic wrap into a mini-muffin tin. Dehydrate for several hours. Release muffin by pulling out plastic wrap. Flip muffin and continue to dehydrate as below.


Option 3 - Spoon into mini muffin cups and freeze several hours. Scoop out muffin, shape, and pop into silicone or paper muffin cups. Follow dehydration directions below. 

Option 4 - Create a bread: Spread mixture onto a non-stick dehydrator sheet about 1/4 inch thick. Dehydrate at 145 degrees F for 1.5 hours. Dehydrate at 110 degrees. After a few hours, flip over onto mesh dehydrator sheet and continue to dehydrate until firm on outside and chewy on the inside. 

Dehydrate at 115 degrees F for 1 to 2 hours. Flip muffins over. Dehydrate several hours at 115 degrees. Flip again and dehydrate until done.

Using a toothpick, poke about 5 holes into muffin top and sides. Continue to dehydrate another 8-10 hours at 110 degrees, (depending upon how thick), flipping muffins over every few hours. Poke more holes on bottom if needed. A shortcut would be to cut  muffin in half and dehydrate.

Serve as is, or drizzle with honey, cashew cream cheese, or fruit “syrup.” To quicken the dehydration process, you can slice muffins in half.

Lovely little cups of decadent creamy mousse that are sure to please  your palate. This recipe could easily be used as a base to create a variety of flavors. Eliminate the nut butter, change the extract flavors, and create magnificent little cups of mousse in mint chocolate, chocolate raspberry, almond fudge, heavenly hazelnut, etc. The varieties are endless.  Check out Medicine Flower extracts in over 40 flavors and expand your culinary “palette.”

“Peanut Butter” Mousse Cups
Ingredients
For the Crust:
1/2 cup almonds, soaked overnight and dehydrated
6 medjool dates, pitted and chopped
1/2 Tbs cacao powder
pinch of vanilla bean powder (or 1 drop Vanilla Medicine Flower extract)

Grated Cacao Butter

For the Mousse Filling:

1/4 cup cacao butter, grated with microplane
1 tsp melted coconut oil
1/2 cup cashews, soaked 3-4 hours
1/2 cup water (add more as needed to blend)
2 Tbs  of Irish moss paste,(or ground chia)
6 Tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp *sunflower lecithin (Optional – emulsifies)
3 Tbs almond butter (or your favorite nut butter)
3 Tbs cacao powder
pinch vanilla bean powder (or 1 drop Medicine Flower Vanilla
2 drops Medicine Flower Peanut Extract (optional)

2 drops Medicine Flower Dark Chocolate Extract, (optional)
pinch sea salt
1/2 Tbsp psylliulm husk powder, (optional – if needed to thicken)

Directions

For the Crust:

1. In a food processor, mix ingredients until it starts to ball up.
2. Lightly grease bottom of 6-8 individual fluted tart or mini cheesecake pans (removable bottoms preferred) with coconut oil.
3. Press crust, firmly into bottom of each cup, pressing up 1/4 inch or so along sides and set aside.

For the Mousse Filling:

1. Melt cacao butter and coconut oil. Place ingredient in a medium metal bowl over a small metal bowl filled with hot water. Set aside.
2. In blender, mix nuts, water, Irish moss paste and maple syrup until creamy.
3. Add nut butter, cacao powder, flavored extracts, salt, and continue to blend. (Add sunflower lecithin, if using)
4. Spoon melted ingredients into blender and mix. The mixture should be quite thick and creamy, but blendable. Add psyllium husk powder if needed to thicken, and blend until creamy. Will get firmer when chilled.
5. Taste for sweetness and adjust as needed.
6. Spoon mixture into individual cups. Top with leftover crust mixture and grated cacao paste. You can add shredded coconut, chopped nuts, cacao nibs, etc.
7. Refrigerate for several hours.
8. Remove from cups.

1. Drizzle with your favorite chocolate syrup or serve as is.

Mention “Rawfully Tempting” in the Shipping Comments, and Medicine Flower will send a Special Bonus Sample with your purchase. Want to try a new flavor or product? Let them know, and they will try to accommodate you. Remember, these extracts are extremely concentrated and a 2-3 drops is equal to a teaspoon of other liquid flavor extracts.

“Raw sunflower seed lecithin contains a high level of choline, which breaks up cholesterol in the body and it is vital for the proper functioning of the brain. Unlike soy lecithin, sunflower lecithin is 100% raw! Sunflower lecithin is useful in maintaining normal cholesterol levels as part of a low cholesterol diet and is also a rich source of phosphatidylcholine for the prevention of gallstones. The high levels of choline are necessary for healthy liver and brain function. Sunflower lecithin is great when added to smoothies, soups and sauces. It also is very useful as a thickening agent.”

The Apple Tart I prepared last week, was the best tasting raw apple pie I’ve had to date, however, I wanted to tweak the recipe and make it really special for Thanksgiving. This Cranberry Apple Tart is absolutely delicious! Even your non-raw family and friends will love it.

The color of this dessert is vibrant and alive thanks to the beautiful fresh cranberries! Due to the cranberry tartness, it does require quite a bit more sweetener, so keep that in mind – but it is, after all, a HOLIDAY treat! Check out this Rawfully Tempting dessert.

All About Irish Moss Paste - it’s so simple to make. Once you do it, you’ll realized how awesome it is to have on hand from time to time.

Cranberry – Apple Tart

Garnish
2 Tbs walnuts, halved or chopped for garnish
1/2 apple, very thinly sliced (dipped in lemon juice) (optional)
1 dash cinnamon
1 Tbs date sugar (or your favorite powder sweetener)

Crust Preparation
In food processor, process nuts. Add dates and salt,  and process. Add shredded coconut and continue to process. Use spatula to scrape from sides and process until mixture starts to ball up and sticks together.

Coat a 9 inch removable bottom  (fluted tart pan, or pie plate) with a bit of coconut oil and press crust mixture into pan and up along sides.


Filling Preparation

In food processor,. mix 2 cups apples and 1/2 cup cranberries along with Irish moss paste until applesauce consistency. Add 1 1/2 cups apples and 1/4 cup cranberries. Pulse to very fine chunks.

Transfer mixture to a bowl and stir in remaining ingredients. (1 1/2 cups thinly sliced and chopped apples, cinnamon, vanilla, lime, honey, nutmeg, date sugar, raisins, walnuts, sea salt). Spoon mixture into crust.

Garnish with very thin slices of apples dipped in lemon juice. Sprinkle with cinnamon and date sugar or top with walnuts and whole cranberries (for color). Refrigerate several hours to set.


Serve as is.

As the Thanksgiving holiday draws near and I celebrate the 1 year anniversary of my mom’s passing, I’m remembering my most favorite traditional dishes that she used to make for our family. In addition to her Cranberry Jello Mold and Sweet Potato Casserole, Mom’s Noodle Kugel was my absolute favorite! Loaded with eggs, egg noodles, butter, sugar and topped with corn flakes, I opted to create a raw version of this family dish, using healthy ingredients. Now you can enjoy this dish guilt free.

There are hundreds o of Noodle Pudding recipes. Some families make a dairy version with cottage cheese. My mom did not use cheese in her kugel, so this is what I’m used to. You could probably add a light cashew cream to the mixture to duplicate a creamier consistency, if that is what you are used to.

I didn’t measure the ingredients for this, but here’s a list of ingredients I used.

Soak soak and soak your kelp noodles in lemon water for several hours. The longer you soak, the softer the noodles become. Using kitchen sheers, cut your noodles into smaller pieces about 3 inches long.

Whisk together ground flax seed and orange juice and massage into noodles. This acts as a binder like egg would.

Add chopped apples, chopped pineapple, chopped walnuts, goji berries, zest of orange, cinnamon, sweetener, sea salt, and almond flour. Massage it all together and let sit for 30 minutes.

Place in strainer over a bowl and drain excess liquid from mixture.Save this liquid to flavor crackers, breads, etc.

Form the mixture into a loaf or individual patties, and place on a non-stick dehydrator sheet. Dehydrate at 115 degrees F for a couple of hours.

Carefully flip loaf over onto another non-stick sheet and continue to dehydrate for several hours. (Place another tray with non-stick sheet over loaf. Flip over and remove prior shelf and peel off non-stick sheet.

Cut into 2 inch squares – (you may need kitchen sheers to clip noodles apart). Separate to leave space between the squares, and dehydrate another 2 hours or until the consistency you like. I like it crunchy on the outside edges and moist inside. This may only keep a couple of days. You can wrap and store in freezer.

This looks very dry in the photo, but it’s still very soft and moist on the inside.

 

A hint of white chocolate, delicately placed between  layers of a light cranberry mousse.  If you don’t have Irish moss paste, you can try increasing the amount of ground chia, but the consistency may not be as silky. Another option would be to use young Thai coconut water and meat in place of the filtered water. MMM..

Note: the white chocolate mixture hardens and forms a lovely thin shell.. 


White Chocolate – Cranberry Mousse Parfait
1/4 cup cashews (soaked 2 hours)
1 cup cranberries ( frozen or fresh)
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup Irish moss paste
2 Tbs ground chia, white
3 Tbs agave (or honey)
1/2 tsp sunflower lecithin
1 1/2 Tbs lime juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (or 2 drops Medicine Flower Vanilla Extract)
pinch sea salt
2 Tbs melted cacao butter
1 tsp melted coconut oil
1 tsp agave or maple syrup
2 drops *Medicine Flower White Chocolate Extract

Preparation
Blend cashews, cranberries and water until creamy. Add Irish moss paste and blend.

Add and blend ground chia, agave, lecithin, lime juice, vanilla extract, and salt. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Place metal bowl over another smaller metal bowl filled with hot water and melt coconut oil and cacao butter.  Stir in agave and white chocolate flavored extract.  (If it hardens, place over warm water again  to melt)

Fill 4 parfait glasses 1/3 of the way with cranberry mixture. Gently spoon about 2 tsp of white chocolate mixture over mousse and use a toothpick to swirl the top of the chocolate into the cranberry mousse. Refrigerate for 15 minutes or so.

Spoon in another 1/3 of cranberry mousse and top with white chocolate. Refrigerate 15 min. Top with white chocolate and gently swirl.  Refrigerate for several hours and serve.

*Mention Rawfully Tempting in the Shipping Comments and Medicine Flowerwill include a Special Bonus Sample with your order. Want to try a new flavor or product? Let them know and they will try to accommodate you.