Jade Anise Tea

This week I tried three new anise/licorice teas from Remedy.  The first one I am not crazy about - it is a bit too bitter for me.




50. Jade Anise
Light, aromatic oolongs with floral buttery freshness is blended with sweet star anise for a licorice hinted taste and aroma that soars together in your cup. A delicate blend of high-mountain oolong, anise seed and star anise.

I can't wait to make these! Chocolate Puddle Cookies

On 101cookbooks...and I don't want to forget about them, so here is the link...

Real Simple - One Month of 400 calorie meals

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/recipe-collections-favorites/healthy-meals/400-calorie-dinners-00000000027141/index.html

Spicy Kale Chips

link to original

Here is a great snack recipe for YOU! these are the kale chips we made in the store (with added spice). You could use less spice if you like a milder flavor.

Spicy Kale Chips (Rochelle Fahlgren)

2 bunches curly Kale (de-stemmed and chopped a little)
1.5 cups cashews (soaked 2-4 hours)
1 yellow or red bell pepper
2.5 Tb nutritional yeast
3 Tb Chipotle
1/2 tsp cayenne
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp sea salt

Blend everything EXCEPT the Kale in a food processor until almost smooth.
Mix the kale and nut mixture together until all the leaves are coated.
Place on dehydrator SCREENS (no need for teflex) and dehydrate overnight at 110.

Eating Raw and Feeling Full

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by Jim Carey
During my radio interview with Kerry Pharr he mentioned going Raw for three days, and then gave up because he was always hungry. I have a solution for that:
A) To make a raw dish that is delicious and satisfying it is necessary to have all five of these flavors in your recipe:

1. Sweet/Pungent (Onion)
2. Sour
3. Salty
4. Spicy
5. Bitter

The ratios will change with the type of dish you are creating. The key to creating great Raw Recipes is learning to balance the five flavors. With time and practice creating Raw Gourmet food will be second nature to you. Here is a great resource for raw recipes: chiDiet.net.

• Excess sour is balanced by sweet. 
• Overly bitter is balanced sour.
• Fats tone down spices, and mellow too much sweetness. 
• Salt brings out flavors. 

A breakdown of the five tastes:

1. Sweet:  banana, dates, mangos, apples, raw honey, stevia extract
2. Sour:  lemon juice, lime juice, raw apple cider vinegar, grapefruit juice.
3. Salty:  Celtic sea salt, Nama shoyu, kelp, dulse, miso, celery.
4. Spicy:  hot pepper, garlic, cayenne pepper. 
5. Bitter:  kale, lettuce, culinary herbs.

B) Quantity. We're used to having small bowls of salad with our meals (at best). When you're a rawbie, what might look like a salad for four is now dinner for one. For active guys in particular, don't hesitate to eat an entire salad bowl for lunch, or a blender or more of green smoothie for breakfast. Supper should be a small meal.
C) Eating on a schedule. Get you body used to eating on time. I eat at 7:30 am, 12:30 pm and 5:30 pm. Within a few days your body will begine producing digestive juices on schedule, digesting your foods more completely, and leaving you alone between meals.
D) Listen to your body, and eat only what it needs. If you're coming off the SAD, this might mean training your body as to what it needs vs. what it wants.
- with thanks to Victoria Boutenko for the "5 Tastes" insights.

Rejuvelac Recipe

from Dr. Ann Wigmore and the Creative Health Institute Kitchen
2 cups soft wheat berries

1. Soak in purified water 8 hrs or overnight.
2. Drain, rinse, then allow to sprout for 2 days, without rinsing.
3. When white sprout tails begin to show, add 6 cups purified water, cover jar with cheesecloth, put in a warm place where it can be exposed to at least 70 degree temp for 2 days.
4. THEN pour off, drink or refriderate, or use "rejuvelac" in a recipe.
5. The leftover seeds can be used one more time, with 4c. purified water, will culture in 1 day. Then seeds can be composted, or thrown to birds.

Caveats - do not drink soak water. Seeds must sprout.

In the Raw - Food Blog

This is a beautiful raw food blog!

Raw gingerbread men recipe

From Karen Knowler, Raw Food Coach in England
http://www.therawfoodcoach.com/products/50_quick_and_easy_recipes.php
It all began with a desire to replace my son's "healthy" (organic, no junk) gingerbread men with truly healthy ones just a couple of days ago. As my mind kicked in to try and figure out how this could be possible and with a little search on the web for traditional gingerbread men recipes, Luke and are were soon equipped with all we needed and raring to go to see what we could create. Fast forward to multiple Gingerbread Men all dehydrated and ready to be gobbled up: Success!
NB: This recipe doesn't have to be dehydrated to taste good or hold itself together, but for the crunch factor, yes, absolutely.
Ingredients
Makes 9 small Men.
* 1 cup of golden flax (linseed)
* 1 cup pecans
* 3 teaspoons powdered ginger
* 2 Tablespoons of dark agave syrup
* 1/8 cup of pure water
Directions
1) Mill the flax seed and pecans together into a fine flour. (This is best done in the Vita-Mix dry jug, or by using a coffee mill; a food processor won't get it fine enough on its own).
2) Pour the "flour" - saving just a little back for step 3 - into a food processor adding the remaining ingredients. Process until a dark sticky ball is created.
3) Remove the ball from the processor and lay it out on a flat surface ready for rolling out. This is where you may need to use the flour you held back from step 2 as it might stick to the surface or rolling pin! So lightly coat the board you are rolling on or the mixture itself in a fine dusting of flour and then roll out into a flat dough.
4) Using gingerbread men-shaped cookie cutters, cut out your men and either leave plain or decorate, according to your preference. Once finished, you can either eat as a "fresh" version which will be juicy and slightly chewy, or you can move to step 5 where you'll need a dehydrator...
5) Lay your men out on your dehydrator tray. No protective sheeting is required as the mixture isn't runny. Depending on how crunchy you want your men (!), dehydrate anything from a few hours to 24 hours. The full 24 hours at 100 degrees F will give you crunchy men, so long as they are no more than 5mm thick when they go in to dry.

Cabbage Carrot Slaw

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This recipe was discovered on the Whole Foods website. We loved the colors and the flavors, so we wanted to share it with our readers.

Serves 6

Garnish this bright coleslaw with toasted sesame seeds or chopped roasted peanuts. Or, toss it with shredded roasted chicken and serve it as the main course.

Ingredients

1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
4 cups finely shredded green and red cabbage
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup thinly sliced green onions
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a large bowl, whisk together vinegar, sugar, garlic, cumin, oregano and mustard just until sugar is dissolved. Add cabbage, carrots, green onions, salt and pepper and toss gently to combine. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

Nutrition

Per serving (about 4oz/116g-wt.): 50 calories (0 from fat), 0g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 230mg sodium, 12g total carbohydrate (3g dietary fiber, 7g sugar), 1g protein

Healthy Banana Split

link to original post
Want a deliciously different dessert? Something that is fun for you to eat but also an excellent recipe for when you have friends and family over? Let’s take your raw dessert experience to the next level. Try this Raw Banana Split and after one bite, your tastebuds will be begging for more.
Ingredients:

• 1 Banana (fresh or frozen)
• ½ C Organic Frozen Cherries
• 2 T Coconut Crème
• 1 T Chia Seeds
• 1 T Honey/Agave Nectar
• ½ T Vanilla Powder
• 1 T Sundried Coconut
• 1 T Wild Jungle Peanuts or Mac Nuts
• 1 T Bee Pollen (optional depending on your dietary choices)

Equipment:
High-powered blender
Directions:
1. Slice banana in half long ways and place open on a plate.
2. In a high-powered blender, blend the cherries, Vanilla Coconut Crème, chia seeds, honey and vanilla powder.  Pour over banana.
3. Top with sundried coconut, chopped nuts and bee pollen.
This is a fast and easy desert that is a big hit with kids and unexpected company.  And it is great comfort food when you have a craving for something sweet.

Red Cabbage Raw Slaw

link to original post

This recipe is sure to wow your taste buds! It’s great as a main course dish, a small plate, side dish or appetizer (so versatile and soooo delicious). The servings below are for 2 people so double up for more.
Ingredients:

• 5-6 cups shredded red cabbage
• 1/2 cup of shredded carrots
• 1/2 cucumber, chopped (and peeled if not organic)
• 1/4 cup or 1 handful sliced raw almonds
• 1 tablespoon raw agave (or blue agave) nectar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2-3 tbsp raw tahini (if you are not 100% raw, use a spicy hummus of choice)
• Seasonings: Celtic salt, pepper, cayenne, cilantro

Directions:
1. Chop up red cabbage into small long pieces and place into bowl
2. Measure out 1/2 cup of shredded carrots and place into the same bowl
3. Add 1 tbs raw agave nectar and 1 tbs olive oil to coat ingredients
4. Mix well
5. Add in 2-3 tablespoons raw tahini or spicy hummus of your choice
6. Add in a pinch of celtic salt, a dash of pepper, cilantro and cayenne to taste
7. Mix ingredients well
8. Slice up your cucumbers and lay them out on your plate in a half circle
9. Pour mixed ingredients onto your plate, slightly overlapping the cucumbers
10. Top your meal by sprinkling sliced raw almonds

BONUS: If you want to get fancy, for presentation purposes, you can drizzle a little raw tahini across your cucumbers when you serve them on a plate
Something about the crunch of the almonds, carrots and red cabbage, mixed with the spices and the sweetness of the agave nectar along with the cooling effects of the cucumber just makes a party in your mouth! Enjoy!

Granola

Try this granola either with milk, on yogurt, or by itself as a snack.

3 cups rolled oats 1 cup unsweetened coconut 1/2 cup pecans 1/3 cup sunflower seeds 3 Tbs. oil 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey 1/2 cup vanilla extract 1/4 tsp. cinnamon (optional) 3/4 cup chopped apricots (or other dried fruit)

Yield: approximately 5 cups

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 2. Mix the oats, coconut, pecans and sunflower seeds together in a large bowl. 3. Spread the oat mixture onto 2 large pans or baking sheets with edges. Place in oven to toast for 15 minutes till it begins to get golden brown. 4. While oats are toasting, combine oil, maple syrup (or honey), and vanilla in a large bowl. (Cinnamon may be added to this mix.) 5. Remove pans from oven and add mixture to other ingredients, in the large bowl. Mix until the oats are evenly coated. 7. Spread the granola mix onto the two pans and place back in oven to roast for another 20 minutes. Stir every 5 to 10 minutes so it browns evenly. 8. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Add the chopped apricots. Mix. 9. Store in an airtight container or jar.

Baked Oats and Fruit

http://www.laptoplunches.com/newsletters/2010/FebruaryNewsletter_2010.html

This recipe is a variation on an Apple Crisp, without the fat and sugars included in many recipes.

5 medium apples, peeled, cored and sliced 2 cups sliced pears 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries 1/3 cup dried cranberries (or raisins) 1-1/2 cups rolled oats 3/4 cup chopped walnuts 3/4 cup fruit juice (apple, pear etc.) 1/2 tsp. cinnamon	Yield: 6 one cup servings
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Slice apples and pears. 3. Mix all ingredients in large bowl. Stir well. 4. Grease a 13"x 9"x 2" pan and fill it with the mixture. 5. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. 6. Serve hot or cold, for breakfast, snack or dessert.