Welcome to my blog about my LOVE for God's Raw Living food. Please join me on my journey towards health and wellness. I truly believe that pure natural raw living food is the doorway to a healthy body, mind, and spirit.
April 15, 2010
I almost forgot to write about today’s recipes. I have been busy all day and I finally got a chance to write about the pudding and syrup. There is only one more part to this recipe, I could’ve done it today, but I decided to wait. Christian tried the pudding and he said it is good, but he liked the syrup from my Dad’s birthday party more. I think that he will like the pudding when it is cold. I am taking this recipe to Marsha’s birthday this weekend to let everyone try a sample.
I am going to write only a short posting because I have studying to do and preparing for my class some more. I have everything ready, but missing a few things.
Pudding Ingredients
cashews
coconut meat
water
agave
coconut oil
vanilla extract
sea salt
cocoa powder
carob powder
Syrup Ingredients
agave
cinnamon
coffee extract
vanilla bean, scraped
sea salt
Both were blended in the Vita-Mix, one at a time. They are in the refrigerator waiting for the party. The macaroons smell like cinnamon. This is going to be a really unique meal for Marsha’s party. I am sure all the women will love it.
I am going to go study. Saturday is the raw food prep class and I am anxious. I can’t wait to meet new people and let them try God’s wonderful food!
“It is more important to know what sort of person has a disease than to know what sort of disease a person has.”-Hippocrates
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 8:19 pm. Add a comment
April 14, 2010
ONLY 100 DAYS LEFT!!!!!
I am so excited that I have made it this far. I am grateful for all the experiences and the journey I am on.
I made macaroons from entertaining in the raw today.
This was a simple recipe to make. I whipped it up before Sabby’s baseball game, so I can study tonight and prepare for my raw food class on Saturday. I am going to bring this to Marsha’s party on Sunday. We are going to celebrate her birthday then, because she got sick and had to cancel her previous date.
Macaroon Ingredients
coconut flakes, ground to powder
cashew flour
flax meal
cinnamon
ancho chile powder
salt
maple syrup
coconut oil
vanilla extract
I mixed all dry ingredients in a bowl and then added wet ingredients. I used my hands to make the macaroons even. I try to use the spatula but it kept bending and sticking to the mixture. My hands always work best with this consistency. They dehydrate for 24-48 hour on a Teflex sheet. I already cut the shapes I wanted. I decided to make the recipe resemble the photo in the book as much as possible. After the 48 hours, I put them on the dehydrator screens.
Everything in excess is opposed to nature. ~Hippocrates
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 4:54 pm. Add a comment
April 13, 2010
Today went by so fast. Jason was off and we were busy getting my new website up and working. We still have a long way to go. I really want it to be more like a website and not so much a blog. This website will still remain here. Yes, I am still LIVING RAWESOME! I hope to always be. I just want another website for my business, L.O.V.E. (Living Organics for Vibrant Energy) Food Prep, and there are more surprises to come, but I really need to figure out how I want to set it up and then it should be up in hopefully within a month. I will see. Now that I will be taking a break from school and just focusing on teaching raw food prep classes and the potlucks, I will have more time to making up recipes and posting them on my site. I will continue to do this project, but I really want to get more creative on my website. So stay tuned!
I made the herb crackers, I have been craving a great cracker, so I am hopeful that these will conquer the gurgling in my belly for something that tastes similar to bread or a cracker. I have never really been one to eat crackers, but through this project, I have learned that I really love the bar-b-que crisps which are similar to crackers, I think they are some of the best I have had. The cumin flatbread was another favorite.
Herb Crackers Ingredients
almond flour
oat flour
sea salt
flax meal
nutritional yeast
fresh oregano
fresh thyme
fresh rosemary
olive oil
water
I mixed all the ingredients in a bowl, then spread the mixture on a Teflex sheet. I used 1 cup of mixture per sheet. I made 1/4 of the recipe. I didn’t have much almond flour so I used what I had and made the measurements accordingly. They will be done dehydrating in 2 days, then I remove them from the Teflex sheet and dehydrate 12 more hours. MMmmm, I will post pics when they are done. Just so you know, I tasted the dough and it was hard to stop, they are going to taste so much better when they are done. I prefer to make things with fresh herbs, what a difference it makes.
“There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray, love, remember; and there is pansies, that’s for thoughts.”~William Shakespeare
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 9:05 pm. Add a comment
April 12, 2010
By Christian’s vote, I made this chowder. He waited all night to try this meal. Not to my surprise he didn’t like it. The only recipes that he ever really likes are the dessert recipes. He said it was too sweet.
Jason thought it was “pretty good”, not compared to last night’s recipe.
This was easy to make and it worked out perfect for my schedule. I was ready to settle down for the night and watch the movie I received in the mail, inGREEDients.
Chowder Ingredients
yellow corn
coconut meat
cashew milk
sea salt
black pepper
ancho chili powder
olive oil
agave
coconut water
tarragon
I blended all ingredients in the Vita-Mix until smooth. I served it in a bowl for my family to enjoy.
Off to relax I go, I have to wake up early tomorrow, school for the kids and me.
This really made me wake up today and get back on board with God. I have been slipping the last few weeks. Hebrews 3:7-11 7So, as the Holy Spirit says:
“Today, if you hear his voice,
8do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
9where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
10That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.’
11So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’ “
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 9:25 pm. Add a comment
April 11, 2010
Before I say these are the best recipe I have made yet from this whole project, I will have to think about it. But I can tell you this…THEY ARE DELICIOUS! I had to stop myself from eating them. They are addicting and hard to wrap up because I really just wanted to eat them all (just so you know I quartered the recipe). I chose not to eat them all because I wouldn’t have any for the picture and I wouldn’t have any for Jason. I HAD to share these little pieces of paradise. They are really the most amazing yet. At this time in my life, I have been avoiding agave and sugary foods, so these are perfect for me. The wraps are kind of a pain to make but well worth it. The reason I say they are a pain is because cutting them was rather difficult because they are so delicate, and most of them tore a bit, but I could use all of them. The hardest part about this recipe is either wrapping the “beggar’s purse” or not eating every last one of them. I think the latter is the most difficult.
I think the next time I make these I will make the squares a little bigger. They were hard to form into the purses, but while I was making them, I just put the filling on and rolled them up. This was faster prep for eating. The presentation makes it an alluring appetizer, but keep in mind that they can be eaten as the main entrée, because they are filling, but light, they didn’t weigh me down. An absolutely perfect meal for me.
I didn’t try the sauce, but really I didn’t even need it. The filling was so tasty, the flavors just melt in your mouth. It is my opinion that if you have this book, MAKE THIS RECIPE!!! Matthew Kenney, you are sent by God:)
Sesame-Cashew Filling Ingredients
cashews
nama shoyu
sesame oil
tahini
lime juice
ginger
Processed all ingredients in the food processor for a chunky consistency.
Sauce Ingredients
nama shoyu
raw agave
lime juice
sesame oil
chili flakes
All ingredients were combined in a bowl and whisked until well combined.
Assembly
spinach
sesame oil
ginger
sea salt
chili powder
sesame seeds
cashew-sesame filling
carrots
scallions
celery
chives
Making the “beggar’s purse” was rather difficult for me. The sides were falling down and then the chive wouldn’t tie. I will master these one day. They are too good to not make again. They are so adorable, they would be perfect for company, especially for your family or friends that are afraid to try raw food. I can’t say enough about these.
They are over the top!
“The question is not what you look at but what you see”~Thoreau
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 10:25 pm. 1 comment
April 10, 2010
Happy Birthday Marsha!!
I decided to make the wrappers for both complete recipes (tricolor sesame-cashew dumplings and jiaozi three ways). They are the same ingredients but are made by different colors from beets, carrots, spinach and plain coconut. I have 4 different colors, and they turned out so beautiful. I had so much fun in the kitchen today. I felt like I was coloring Easter Eggs. Jason previously opened up the Thai coconuts and took out the meat and stored it in the bowl. This made this food prep so much easier than opening up the coconuts today. That is such a tedious chore, unless he breaks them in half. When I just cut the tops off and try scooping out the flesh, it is a pain. I am never able to get the coconut completely cleaned out, either. So Thank you, Jason for helping me:).
I had my work station set up so neatly. First I made beet, carrot and spinach juice. I did the beet first. I didn’t use a juicer, I used the Vita-Mix and 1/4 cup water. I then strained the juice through a strainer. This worked so much easier than the juicer. I hate clean-up, and with the blender I was able to clean up quickly, just a quick rinse then it was done and on to the next color. I did carrots and water, then spinach and water.
Next, I used one cup of coconut meat per 1/4 cup colored liquid. I blended it in the Vita-Mix then poured it out on one Teflex Sheet per color. The colors are so vivid!
Beet Wrappers were first. I poured out the mixture onto the Teflex sheets. The colors are so bright before dehydration.
Beet Wrappers mixture spread out
Carrot Wrappers
Spinach Wrappers
Plain Coconut Wrappers
They were easy to spread out, even though they don’t look completely even, they came out clean looking and rather easy to take off the sheets. They are delicate so I removed them very slow. I have made these before for other recipes, and I ripped them because I removed them too fast. So I went slow and steady this time.
These are the wraps after dehydration. Some were still wet when they came out, so I had to put them in the dehydrator for longer.
I cleaned the edges of each color, then cut them into squares so they are ready to use when I make the fillings. You can refrigerate them in a plastic bag, but when you are ready to use them, they [wrappers] should sit on the counter top to reach room temperature.
Wrappers Ingredients
Young coconut meat
beets, carrots, or spinach juice
*water if you do it in the blender
sea salt
Blend all ingredients in a Vita-Mix until smooth. Spread mixture in a thin even layer over a Teflex sheet and dehydrate 3 hours. Trim edges and cut into 9 squares. Store in plastic wrap in the refrigerator until ready to use. Allow them to come to room temperature prior to use.
1 John 4:8 (New International Version) Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 11:25 pm. 2 comments
April 9, 2010
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!
Today is my father’s birthday and my kids, my Dad and I went bowling for a couple of hours. I won both games. I have to say that the bumpers were up so I think that I probably would’ve come in 3rd place on the first game. The last game I bowled a 155. Not bad for me. It was fun though. I love hanging out with my Dad, he seriously is my hero.
I made the banana ice cream and jam today so I could complete this meal. I invited my father and the rest of the family over to enjoy this dessert for his birthday.
Banana Ice Cream Ingredients
1 cup cashews, soaked 1-2 hours
1/2 cup coconut meat
1/2 cup agave
1 1/4 cups water
2 fresh bananas
1 t lemon juice
1/4 vanilla bean, scraped
pinch of sea salt
1/2 cup coconut oil
Blend all ingredients in Vita-mix until very smooth. Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s directions.
Jam Ingredients
1 pint raspberries
1/4 cup irish moss
1/4 cup agave
1 T lemon zest
Blend all ingredients in a food processor, chill for 3 hours.
These are crépes before and after they were made.
I used a little less than a 1/4 cup measuring tool. I was able to make 18 little crépes.
Piles of mixture, before I spread it out flat.
Spread Thin
After dehydration
They were perfect! They worked!!! Absolutely perfect! So grateful.
After I got the crépes out I made the banana ice cream.
My mother, father, sister, niece and my crew were all here tonight! They all enjoyed the dessert. We sang Happy Birthday to my Dad and then they all ate. I was beaming. I love when they try my goodies and like them. Life is sweet!
The Final Product!
Assembly
Fill the crepes with mint custard and jam. Scoop banana “ice cream” to the side and pour chocolate sauce on top. INJOY!
Thanks Everyone for coming over tonight. Love you DAD, Happy Birthday!
The older I get, the smarter my father seems to get. ~Tim Russert
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 10:17 pm. Add a comment
April 8, 2010
I made cacao crépes today! Need I say more?? The scent is all through the house after a few hours of them dehydrating. We went on a few errands and we came home to the lovely smell of chocolate wafting through the house. My mouth was watering while making these, I really just wanted to try the dough. I miss my sugar:( but I know that my blood sugar is more stable eating like this, meaning avoiding fruits, bread and agave at this time. It just sets me up to crave sugar all day. I think these could be made with no agave, though. I followed the directions so I didn’t make them without it, but maybe I will.
I was so fortunate today, I was able to buy an entire box of young coconuts. My hubby was nice enough to open 6 of them while I napped. I was so tired, I haven’t been sleeping well. I think it is the change of my diet. So I napped for 2 hours, and then woke up and made the cacao crépes. I have about 6 cups of young coconut meat that I will be using to make the wraps for several recipes. I will store them and then use them as needed. I know they don’t last very long so I will be doing some elaborate recipes in the next few weeks. I am more excited today about the project. I just felt overwhelmed by how much I still have to do to try to complete both books. If I don’t in 365 days, I guess that is okay, I have made a recipe a day and sometimes more. I will not put pressure on myself. I am doing this as a fun project and I will continue it:).
Now on with the recipe….Please note**I cut this recipe into a quarter of the measurements.
Crépes Ingredients
1 cup flax meal
1 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup coconut meat
1/2 cacao powder
1 T lemon juice
2 cups water
1/2 T maple syrup
1 T agave
1 t salt
Blend all ingredients in a Vita-Mix. Spread thinly into 4-5 inch rounds on the dehydrator Teflex Sheets. It fits about 9 per tray. Dehydrate for 5 hours.
Mine are still in the dehydrator. I will post pics tomorrow.
Goodnight!
“This most beautiful system [The Universe] could only proceed from the dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being.”~Isaac Newton
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 10:17 pm. 1 comment
April 7, 2010
My new computer desk is all set up! I love my new workstation. Maybe I will be more inspired to write more on my blog or post more recipes. I have been rather lazy the last few days. I feel like making the food, but not really blogging. It may be a switch of diet, too much exercise, or just enjoying my time with my kids while they are on Spring Break. I think it’s really just wanting a bit of a change. This project has been somewhat weighing on my emotions now, I have tried all the recipes that I really wanted to try. I picked out the recipes that I really wanted to make in the beginning, now that I am getting near the end, I feel like it is a chore for me to choose the recipe of the day. I tried to write down all the recipes that I haven’t done yet in the book Entertaining in the Raw. I should’ve written a list of the recipes I have done. I found out today that I am really not as far as I would like to be in this book. The major problem that I am having with my decision making is lack of ingredients. It is difficult getting the ingredients locally. I need to buy a whole case of Thai coconuts and many other ingredients so I can work on some more elaborate recipes. Thai coconuts are hard to find around here, so I am going to call tomorrow and order a case. If I have to, I will make all the wraps and just refrigerate them until I am ready to use them. The other ingredients that I need to find are orange blossom water, rosewater, and irish moss to name a few. Like I have said before, I don’t like ordering online.
Gosh, I am going to quit complaining and just get to the recipe. Sorry, everyone. I know I am fortunate to have made it this far making a recipe a day. I must say it is quite accomplishment for me. I am grateful for all I have learned and will learn.
Today’s recipes:
Mint Custard Ingredients
2 cups cashews, soaked 4-6 hours
1 cup coconut meat
1 T vanilla extract
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup agave
1/4 cup coconut oil
3/4 t peppermint oil
Blend ingredients in Vita-Mix until smooth. Place in quart containers and freeze. It says to run in a Pacojet, freeze, and then run again. A Pacojet is a sophisticated ice cream maker, but more than that. It whips up fresh ingredients into the best mousses, sorbets, or ice creams. In Europe, they use them for making soups, sauces, pates and more. I think I will just freeze it, I don’t have a Pacojet. The cost of one will not fit my project budget. If you would like to purchase one, I heard they are truly amazing and are great to have, if you have a restaurant or $4,000.00 to spare.
Sauce Ingredients
2 1/2 cups raw agave
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup carob powder
1/2 t vanilla
1/4 t salt
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 1/4 cups coconut oil
Blend ingredients in Vita-Mix until smooth.
I will finish this recipe tomorrow and I am going to let my sister and parents try it. I still have so many desserts in the freezer. I need to give them away, I am running out of room. I still have the mochi, I am honestly too embarrassed to serve it, but I don’t want to throw them out.
I am off to shower and watch a movie with my hubby. I cleaned, exercised and read most of the day. I love having my kids home. Tomorrow is school, then hopefully a kayaking trip.
Oh my gosh, on the way home tonight, there was baby alligator crossing the street. We got it on video. It was the coolest thing I saw all day. I am so glad we didn’t run it over. I had a feeling it was a snake or something that looked like a reptile. This time of year, you never know what you will see.
“Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold, the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul.” – Democritus (460?-370? BC)
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 9:16 pm. Add a comment
April 6, 2010
This meal took longer than most. I usually do one part of the recipe when it is a multiple step recipe like this, but I decided that since I only have close to 100 days left, I will try to get in as many recipes as possible. Looking at the recipe was very intimidating. I have looked at this recipe several times and said “nope, I am not doing that”. Tonight was the night. I literally had to read the recipe 5 times before I was convinced to make it. Once I realized it wasn’t too much to do in one night I decided to do it.
First I made the Pickled Ginger. This only took a few minutes to cut up the ginger and pour the ingredients into the mason jar.
Pickled Ginger Ingredients
ginger
raw apple cider vinegar
raw agave
beet juice (optional)
Next, I made the rice and then the mushrooms so they could dehydrate for the a few hours.
Sushi Rice Ingredients
jicama
pine nuts
sea salt
rice wine vinegar
raw agave
I processed jicama and pine nuts in a food processor until a rice like consistency was achieved. I dried the mixture between two paper towels so I could remove excess moisture. In a bowl, I added agave, vinegar, salt to the jicama and mixed well, then I placed it on a teflex sheet and put it in the dehydrator for 2 hours.
*The color of the “rice” changed drastically, it was white when I put it in then it came out really yellow in some parts and almost orange on the rest of it. The yellow was crispier than the orange tinted “rice”.
This recipe called for portobello, enoki, and shiitake, but I only had shiitake, so I used those for both the inside-out elephant roll and the nigiri recipes. The mushrooms were marinated in nama shoyu and sesame oil for the elephant rolls. The mushrooms for the nigiri were also marinated in nama shoyu and sesame oil. These went into the dehydrator for 40 minutes.
While the mushrooms were dehydrating, I made the chipotle mayo.
Mayo Ingredients
mac nuts
chipotle chile, soaked
soak water
extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt to taste
All ingredients were blended until smooth.
I took a break from the kitchen and then 2 hours later, I prepared the nori and nigiri.
I made the inside-out elephant roll first.
Elephant Roll Ingredients
portobello mushroom (I used shiitake)
nama shoyu
cold-pressed sesame oil
untoasted nori
sushi “rice”
chipotle mayo
baby spinach
red bell pepper
whole scallion
1/2 avocado, peeled for decoration
The rice went on to the nori first then spinach, pepper, scallion and marinated mushrooms, I put the mayo on last. I rolled the sushi tightly with the assistance of my helper (my hubby, he is the best sushi roller ever).
Next was the banana-banana.
Banana-Banana Ingredients
umeboshi plum paste
wasabi powder
untoasted nori
sushi “rice”
banana
watercress
cilantro
green papaya(I omitted)
enoki mushrooms (but I used shiitake)
I mixed the plum paste and wasabi together and then smoothed it on the nori. Then added the rest of the ingredients and rolled it very tightly for the banana-banana roll.
I finally made the last part of this recipe, the nigiri. I placed about 2 T sushi “rice” in the palm of my hand and closed my hand in a fist shape to form the rice. I placed 2 on the corner of the plate. I added mango on top with mushrooms and a bit of parsley to add some color. I then cut the nori rolls and placed them on the plate, then added pickled ginger with dab of plum wasabi paste.
This recipe was fun to make. It allowed me to be creative while decorating the plate with the cocktail starter. I didn’t follow the directions on the layout of the meal, but I like to be somewhat different. Again, the meal actually looked more beautiful than you can see in the photo. I am working on getting a camera. I think there is more to it than the camera. I need a stage setup too. I am looking into it. I hope to one day make the pics look like the pictures in the raw food books and magazines.
Jason really loved the meal, he even ate more than what I gave him. This would be great to take to the next potluck. I may take it, but there are so many recipes to be made before the next potluck, I am not sure what I will take. It makes me happy when he likes my food. I just stand by him in awe just staring at him waiting for his reaction. I am like a kid waiting for someone to open a present that I got him. So much of my love is put into the food preparation. It is an expression of my appreciation and love to him and others.
I am ready to take a break from the computer. This was a rather long entry for me.
I finished The Shack today and now I am reading the No Grain Diet by Dr. Mercola. I love it so far. I love books on Nutrition. I have 5 books that I need to read, plus I need to study for my test in 2 weeks on the Urinary System, after that test, I will have one more test then I will take a break for the summer.
I have my class next week, so I need to write the menu. That is the fun part. I can’t wait to see everyone that is signed up for the class.
“Mack, if anything matters then everything matters. Because you are important, everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes; with every kindness and service, seen or unseen, my purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again” (235)~Sarayu from The Shack
Posted 15 years, 5 months ago at 10:09 pm. Add a comment
Living Rawesome 
