DESSERT!

I made up a really REALLY good recipe today!  My brother mentioned key lime pie and I got really obsessed.
Because I am a recent Chia initiate I thought I might try using a similar recipe to the coconut mango dessert that I made the other day.

Raw Vegan Key Lime Pie

For the filling:

Juice of 6 key limes (the little ones)
zest of 3 key limes
Juice of 1 medium lemon
5 Tbs raw honey (or to taste)
1/4 c. coconut cream
add coconut milk to bring the liquid amout to 1 1/2 cups
6 Tbs. dry chia seeds
5 Tbs. shredded coconut.

Whisk all ingredients together and let sit on counter for 30 mins.  Whisk again and put in fridge for a couple of hours.

For the crust:

In the food processor put:

1 c. pecans
1/4 c. unsweetened coconut
6 or 7 dates (depending on size)

Blast it on high until it makes a crumbly, sticky consistency.  If it is not quite sticky enough, you can add a sprinkle of water and zip it up.  Pat the mixture evenly into a medium baking pan.  If it is wet you can put it into a 100 degree oven for a bit to dry out.

When it is completely cool you can dump the filling straight on top or blend the filling first to make a smoother consistency.  Top with whipped coconut cream or sprinkled coconut.

NOM!  NOM!  NOM!

A Soft Week

Dear readers, this has been a very interesting first week of rawness.  I offered myself a great deal of flexibility this week as far as being 100% raw.  Budgetary constraints before payday and temptation from the lovely things that I cooked for supper led to a certain lack of commitment.

I am not going to be bothered by this, however, as I allowed myself to be more loose this week.  Now that I am acclimatized I am ready to be more committed to being strictly raw in the coming week.

I have never been overly keen on making salad, but I am coming up with some delicious and unusual combinations.  For example:

-Spinach, pear, broccoli, raisins and pecans with "caesar" dressing
-fennel, marinated mushroom, spinach, with flax and chia cracker crumble (more on that in a minute)

I have learned to work with a few new ingredients.  Chia seeds, for example, are a very popular thing at the moment and I tend to roll my eyes a bit at faddish stuff.  Still, for a raw diet they are a neat thing to work with.  They can also be insanely sticky.  If ever you plan to make raw crackers BE SURE TO USE PARCHMENT PAPER ON THE BAKING SHEET!

Here is a very nice link that I found in my explorations.  I made Coconut Mango Chia Pudding last night.  YUM!  But don't eat too much because it fills you up like crazy, and makes a hasty exit the following morning.

http://greatist.com/eat/chia-seed-pudding-recipes

Some things that I noticed this week in my physical adaptation to eating so much raw were expected and some were not.  First, I had a raging headache for the first day and a half of the process.  Being no stranger to cleanses I recognize this as being a symptom of the Candida (or yeast) dying off.  I was also a complete grouch over the first couple of days which was also expected as I got used to eating less calories at the beginning.

My guts have taken a little time adapting to the roughage passing through.  I discovered that raw cruciferous veg (such as broccoli and cabbage) give me a very hard time with bloating and gas, as well as having a dampening effect on my already beleaguered thyroid.  So I am supposed to ferment them... not sure whether that appeals to me.  I am not a huge fan of kimchi or saurkraut.  But maybe I will make a small batch in the interest of gastro-intestinal health. I shall let you know how that goes.

Wicked good dressing

Before I forget I need to share this recipe for my Caesar/Ranch dressing.  Totally raw, vegan, healthy and delicious!

First I need to explain that I am not really a condiments girl- give me a slice of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil any day over creamy dressings.  But this is so darn good as a dressing and a dip that I had to share.

Raw Vegan Caesar Dressing

In a blender combine:

1/2 c. warm water
4 Tbs. tahini
2 Tbs. sunflower seed butter
3 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
1 clove of garlic, peeled
1/4 c. olive oil
pinch of salt

Just zip it all together until it is nice and creamy and use it as you will.  Apparently romaine lettuce has a decent amount of protein!  Who would have thought?  If you leave it in the fridge for a day, the mixture firms up and makes a delicious dip.

Feel free to substitute the vinegar for lemon and play around with the seasonings.  What kind of tasty variations can you come up with?

Adventures in the Raw: five years later...

It has been several years since I first went on a major weight loss campaign.  The baby whose weight I was trying to lose in my previous entries has just turned five and, as there are no more babies on whom to blame my excess flab, I decided it was time to try another intense regimen to achieve the body that I want.

This time I am going RAW!  I am trying one solid month of exclusively raw food to see how it works for me.  If all goes well I may continue the trend.  If it all tanks and fails after a couple of weeks, I will have benefited at least some from that amount of time.

The idea is to go raw, but I am not interested in going vegan at the same time.  I tried that once before and it didn't suit me.  Still, carpaccio is not really on my radar.  Sashimi and Ceviche, here we come!

I officially started my regimen (I don't like the word "diet") yesterday and I did really well with a fine bowl of grated beetroot and carrot with parsley and crumbled pecans dressed with lemon juice. (recipe below)

I had a lunch of leftover rice casserole because it was there and REALLY belly flopped with the pizza for dinner (courtesy of my dear brother- I didn't want to seem ungrateful).

Today I started anew with a soaked millet and blueberry smoothie.  It didn't taste bad and it filled me right up but the texture reminded me of drinking wet sand.  Blah.

I am doing what I can with what is in my cupboards at the moment.  I have made a comprehensive shopping list for tomorrow and I will be able to make all kinds of lovely things which I would be delighted to share with you!

A Grate Breakfast

good for one really hungry person or 2 as a side

2 medium carrots, unpeeled

1 medium beetroot, peeled

1/4 c. chopped parsley

a handful of crumbled pecans

juice of 1/2 lemon

Using the fine shred, grate your roots.  Chop the parsley and toss in with the pecans and lemon juice.  Let sit for a few minutes and enjoy.