cuckoo for coconuts=)

 

mmm...coconut waterrr...=)

 

my eyes are always peeled for coconuts at the local produce places i frequent. young coconuts are going for $2.99 at whole foods - not bad for a large glass of coconut water and meat for a tasty dessert!

"one groovy coconut" was just a dollar at a local produce junction - (not up to organic standards, but close-by, and once in awhile houses rare gems like groovy coconuts, mannn!)

don from the sunny raw kitchen and raw freedom community taught us how to open a coconut in a civilized manner during his stay.

here is john flaunting his coconuts.

"john, this is a family-friendly blog!"

truthfully, i'm the one who told him to do that. i'm like a 13 year-old girl at times...=)

but i'm also as mature as a coconut (?), making my family homemade milks and desserts.=)

 

mmm, coconut milk...

 

mmm, coconut cream parfaittt...=)

 

mmm...coconut creammm...

Coconut Cream

(adapted from Sweet Gratitude's Coconut Meringue)

3/4 C coconut milk*

2/3 C coconut meat from one young coconut

2/3 C cashews, soaked about 2 hours

2 T agave

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice

1/8 tsp salt

blend all in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy, then add:

1 T lecithin

2 T coconut oil or coconut butter

resume blending until fully incorporated. set in fridge until firm, ideally overnight. 

*coconut milk can be made by mixing one part fresh or dried coconut to three parts water. 

coconut cream tastes amazing with granola and pairs so smoothly with chocolate cream. 

mmm...leftovers...=)

Chocolate Cream

adapted from Heathy's Chocolate Nutless Creme

(serves 1-2)

one ripe large avocado

1/4 C agave

2 T water

1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch salt

1 T coconut oil, melted

5 heaping T cacao powder

in a high speed blender, blend first five ingredients well. add remaining ingredients, and continue to blend until smooth. chill for a few hours before serving. 

john describes the above like SAD chocolate pudding with whipped cream, but better!=)

~*~

biggles enjoys raw desserts as much as we do (though her favorite is a simple dab of coconut oil).

 

 city-vegan's blueberry cheezecake ice creammmeow!=)

ZZZzzzZZZZZzzzzzZZZZZZZ...

who could leave the house in this blustery weather with entertainment like this at their fingertips?!

=)

the happy raw kitchen's cinnamon roll soft-serve

once again, the ever-amazing evergreen blew me away with her latest - cinnamon roll soft-serve! raw ice cream in the shape of a cinnamon roll, with all the fixins' ?!? pure genius if you ask me!

the bananas were in the food processor less than two hours after reading this post (talk about being inspired!). my cinnamon roll soft-serve didn't turn out as pretty as hers, but it was GOOD! i'm talkin' yum-yum sounds,  lick-the-plate-clean good! in fact, i will be making it again very soon.

(maybe even tonight!=)

 with whipped cream for the frosted effect

a very big thank you to evergreen and all my other blogging buddies for bringing such yumminess into my life!

=)

happy tuesday!

today marks three wonderful years shared with my butternut.=)

 here we are looking our spiffiest at a friend's wedding in '07

this morning john pointed out that it is also national pancake day. i knew what he was getting at...

instead i brought him a bowl of apple buckwheat granola with almond milk. he said he loved it.=)

apple buckwheat granola

1 chopped apple

4 dates, pitted and soaked

1 T soak water (reserved from dates)

1 T maple syrup

1 T agave nectar

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 C raw buckwheat groats, soaked

1/2 C raw almonds, soaked, then roughly chopped

1/2 C raw sunflower seeds, soaked

1 C shredded coconut

1/2 tsp salt

1/2-1 tsp cinnamon, to taste

handful of raisins

process first 6 ingredients in a high speed blender until a paste is formed. place remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl. add date paste and mix thoroughly. spread onto 2 teflex trays and dehydrate at 115° until dry.

~*~

for dinner we had quinoa veggie sushi with raw nori and salad with sweet lime cilantro dressing.

at home we've been pretty high raw, occasionally eating cooked quinoa.

eating out with family is another story. (working on it... =)

below are asian-style veggies we had again with jicama rice and ginger marinade.  this veggie medley is delicious! mushrooms are a must, as they add the "meatiness" i sometimes miss in my meals.=)

 

it's a pleasure to prepare dinner when it's this bright and colorful!

~*~

raw pizza has been devoured savored a lot here lately. it never fails to satisfy, and the preparation is super quick and easy. the hardest part for me is keeping herb pizza crusts stocked in the freezer!

 

pizza topping:

sliced fennel
button mushrooms
chopped tomato
cilantro or basil

marinate in equal parts olive oil and tamari. (add a splash of agave and chopped garlic for extra zing! =)

the cheeze is carmella's adaptation of kristen suzanne's cheezy nacho sauce (my new favorite nut cheeze!)

~*~

pink lady apples were on sale at my local whole foods for $1.29 a pound (a great deal around here for organic apples). we've been enjoying the pink ladies in granola, smoothies, and chopped up with walnuts, dried cranberries, maple syrup and cinnamon.

to me, pink ladies are the prettiest of the apples. (with too much sun or when i'm embarassed, i become a pink lady! =)

~*~

since the amazing evergreen posted her raw rendition of cherry garcia soft serve, i have been dreaming of a raw chocolate chip cookie dough.

 

the recipe is gena's banana soft serve with chunks of chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chips, and heathy's chocolate sauce. the cookies were warmed in the dehydrator for a few hours before serving. i'm excited to create more raw ice creams!

speaking of... hihorosie is hosting an automatic ice cream maker giveaway! be sure to enter!
=)

still got chocolate on the brain...

tonight i whipped up my adaptation of Raw Goddess Heathy's Nutless Chocolate Creme from her Just Desserts ebook, topped with blackberries and Carmella's Whipped Cream. so good!

 

then i remembered i had chocolate chips in the freezer!

 

even better!

Chocolate Dream

(edited) 

adapted from Heathy's Chocolate Nutless Creme

(serves 2)

one ripe large avocado

1/4 C. agave

2 Tbsp water

1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch salt

1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

5 heaping Tbsp cacao powder

in a high speed blender, blend first five ingredients well. add remaining ingredients, and continue to blend until smooth. chill for a few hours before serving.

tastes delicious plain, or topped with bananas or berries!

Whipped Cream

(1/3 of Carmella's recipe)

1/3 C. cashews

1/3 C. coconut milk (you can blend 1 part dried coconut flakes to 3 parts water)

1 T agave

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

2 T+2 tsp coconut butter/ melted

1 tsp non-gmo soy lecithin*

*lecithin is derived from soybeans and acts as an emulsifier. look for lecithin (preferably non-GMO), in granules or powdered form, at your local health food store. if using granules, make sure to grind them up in a high speed blender of coffee grinder.

blend all ingredients except lecithin until smooth. add lecithin and blend until thoroughly mixed. set in fridge for about 1 hr.

enjoy! 

♥

xo

happy v-day!

still mastering the art of chocolatery...

(yes, choc-la-tree. it's got a nice ring to it, doesn't it?=)

for valentine's day i made johnny boy his favorite - rawlmond joys and peanut butter cups. 

♥

my chocolates always taste scrumptious, but sometimes look sad. 

 

this reminds me of a "gift" a dog might leave you. =)

making chocolates is easy. making chocolates look pretty, is not.

the teacher in me wanted to post these pictures. i'm big into celebrating small accomplishments. baby steps. like praising a child's story, though most words are misspelled. (as opposed to my former principal, who asked me to take a paper down from the wall because it had a few misspellings. we're talking first grade here! of course i left it right where it was. and i eventually left that school right where it was. =)

so i'm posting this to praise my efforts in creating raw, animal-friendly chocolates for my loved ones, and to inspire you to celebrate your small accomplishments. =)

and when life hands you funky chocolate....

make chocolate chips!

♥

wishing you a sweet and chocolatey day!
xoxo
♥

Fruits and Veggies F(e)ast Conclusion + lots of yummy food!

i've got some catching up to do! our wireless router has been giving us troubles, so i haven't been able to use the laptop. another snowstorm came, and john, biggles and i have been in the house for what feels like weeks! of course i'm enjoying it, the homebody that i am! lots of time to play in the kitchen and with my sweetie pies keeps me happy. =)

mrs. bigglesworth writes, "thanks for all the kind words!" in response to her compliments. =)

we made it almost 5 days on our fruits and veggies f(e)ast. after a trip to whole foods, i caved and savored the tastiest handful of cashews ever! though tough at times, the f(e)ast was very refreshing and i'm so glad we went through with it. the experience was an opportunity to reevaluate and reconnect with our food choices. we watched Food, Inc. again, and i thought a lot about elvis and the veal calves on Peaceable Kingdom. i want to remember those animals every time the thought to choose dairy crosses my mind.

we feel really good, and we'd like to continue to eat the foods that make our bodies feel aligned and well. green smoothies will continue to be consumed daily, and i'd like to make sure fruits and veggies make up a large majority of our diet.

i was really itchin' to get in the kitchen, especially since the f(e)ast gave me time to organize my recipes and come up with a meal plan system that i think will work for me.

for dinner on day 5 i made asian-style veggies with ginger sauce over jicama rice. it was DELICIOUS. very light but nourishing.

Asian-Style Veggies

choice of :
mushrooms
bok choi
yellow and red bell pepper
zucchini
broccoli
snow peas
mung bean sprouts

chop veggies and marinate in equal parts olive oil and tamari. to serve slightly warm, dehydrate a few hours at 115°F.

Jicama Rice

1 jicama, peeled and chopped
a handful of cilantro

in a food processor, pulse both ingredients until jicama resembles rice. that's all! =) 

Ginger Sauce
by Carmella 

1/4 cup sesame or cold pressed olive oil
2 tbs lemon or lime juice
2 tbs tamari
2 tbs grated ginger
1 soft dates
1 garlic clove
3/4-1 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you like your food)

blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender.

you can also serve the asian-style veggies and ginger marinade over zucchini pasta or brown rice vermichelli.

kelli's notes:
next time i would add more mushrooms, as i really enjoyed the "meatiness" they added to the dish. i used just one tablespoon each of the lemon juice, tamari, and ginger for the ginger sauce.

~*~

that night i whipped up some flax crackers to eat with my "tuna" the next day. (if you haven't noticed, i'm very excited to be "eating" again! =)

Oh My this is a Tuna!
posted at the Raw Freedom Community Forum by ocean

1 Cup Sunflower Seeds (soaked)
1 Cup Raw Walnuts (soaked)
1/8 Cup fresh squeezed Lemon juice
1/2 Tsp. Garlic (minced)
1/2 Tsp. Kelp flakes
2 Tbs. Nama Shoyu (i used tamari)

In FP blend seeds, nuts, lemon juice, garlic, kelp and Nama Shoyu. Transfer to bowl and add:

1 pickle chopped (Bubbies pickle)
1 Tsp. Ume Plum vinegar (i used apple cider vinegar)
1 Tsp. Herbamare seasoning (didn't have)
3 Tbs. Bubbies pickle juice
1 Tbs. fresh Dill Weed (chopped)
1/4 Cup Onion (chopped)
1/4 Cup chopped Celery
1/8 Cup Parsley (chopped)

~*~

i had a much needed d-day on what would have been day 6 and dehydrated herb pizza crusts, Raw Food Real World's soft corn tortillas, ani phyo's black sesame sunflower seed bread, nori snacks, and potato chips.

on what would have been day 7 i made ani phyo's sun burgers and catsup with the sesame sunflower bread. bad move. my system was not ready for the onslaught of nuts and flax, and after eating half of the sun burger, my body naturally did a "flush". though terribly gross and painful at the time, i felt much better after, and learned some very valuable lessons: take it slow, and don't overdue it with the nuts!

don't think we'll be making this one again. 

since i felt well enough to enjoy some dessert later (yippee!) we made gena's amazing banana soft serve with almond butter and heathy's chocolate sauce from her Just Desserts ebook. (yes, there were nuts, but just a little! =) if you haven't tried this "ice cream" yet, you must! all that is needed are frozen bananas and a food processor.

~*~

happy birthday to me! 

today is my 29th birthday. it was an awesome day! the weather was chilly, but super sunny with snow all over the ground, giving my backyard the feel of a ski resort. sun poured in through our windows as we enjoyed a citrusy-mexican meal, reminding us of summer. the best of both seasons in one day! oh yes, and john did all the dishes! =)

Raw Tacos

serves 4-6

(adapted from Joz's Fajita's)

2 portobello mushrooms or 6 button mushrooms, sliced

1 red or yellow bell pepper, sliced

1 zucchini, sliced

1 yellow squash, sliced
handful chopped cilantro

1/4 C. tamari*

1/4 C. olive oil*

1 Tbsp chili powder

pinch of cayenne pepper

in a large bowl, mix all ingredients. you can allow the vegetables to marinate all day, or place in dehydrator at 115°F for a few hours. serve when veggies look "cooked".

*in my opinion it's best to start with about 2 tablespoons each of tamari and olive oil. mix well to coat all veggies, then add more if needed.

we made our taco's in Raw Food Real World's Soft Corn Tortillas, then topped with Nacho Cheeze (Carmella's adaptation of Kristen Suzanne's Cheesy Nacho Sauce) and Holy Guacamole!, my adaptation of Carmella's Guacamole Supreme . so fulfilling and flavorful, and one of our favorite raw meals thus far!

Carmella's Guacamole Supreme

2 ripe avocados
1⁄2 cup diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp. lime or lemon juice
1⁄4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbsp. finely chopped green onion, rinsed
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. cumin
1⁄4 tsp. cayenne (or mince in fresh, hot chilies with seeds removed)
1⁄2 tsp. celtic salt
mash all ingredients in a bowl with fork or potato masher, folding in the tomato last.

kelli's notes:
i use 1/4 tsp. onion powder in place of the green onion and just a pinch of cayenne.

Carmella's Nacho Cheeze

Adapted from Kristen Suzanne's Cheezy Hemp Nacho Sauce

1 1/4 cup cashews, soaked
1/2 cup yellow bell pepper
1/4 cup red bell pepper
1/4 cup water
1 medium carrot
2 garlic cloves
2 tbs nutritional yeast
1 tbs lemon juice
2 tsp lime juice
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp chipotle powder or cayenne (use less if you prefer it not too spicy)
2 tsp taco seasoning

Blend all ingredients in high speed blender until smooth.

kelli's notes: 

this cheeze sauce is AMAZING!!! i had to halve the ingredients to fit them in my magic bullet, as the recipe yields plenty of sauce!

Sweet Lime Cilantro Dressing

(makes about 1/3 cup)

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp agave
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1/4 C. cilantro
1 garlic clove
pinch cayenne
pinch salt
pinch cumin

blend all ingredients until smooth.

~*~

that's all for now! enjoy your weekend, and have a lovely valentine's day, mi amours! 

xoxo

Fruits and Veggies F(e)ast Day 4

hippiemom's citrus and cinnamon elixir 

Day 4

still going, but really wanting something dry and crunchy!

• yogi's healthy fasting tea
• green smoothie: spring mix, braeburn apple, banana, blueberries, lemon
• banana
• blueberries
• veggies with mashed avocada
• hippiemom's citrus and cinnamon elixir
• smoothie: braeburn apple, banana, celery, fresh squeezed oj, cinnamon = YUM!
• more blueberries
• more veggies with mashed avocado

~*~

mrs. bigglesworth likes to come out with me while i take photos of our treats. here's our old lady-baby chillin' on the step, observing the white mess that has temporarily ruined her playground.

 

  

"outta the way, it's frikkin freezin' out here!"

 

Fruits and Veggies F(e)ast Day 3

when john and i were planning the f(e)ast, we agreed that it would be best to keep ourselves busy so we wouldn't think about food too much. this weekend we thought we'd take trips to the art museum, barnes and noble, and to spend time with our nieces and nephews...

...then the snow came. 

2 feet again! second time this winter! but this time it left pretty skies for us to enjoy while we shoveled our way out.

 

 

there's a lot of time to think about food when you're snowed in and watching movies. i wanted popcorn, raw cheez-its, philly soft pretzels, garlic bread, and pizza (of course). but i wasn't fantasizing about cheese pizza - i was thinking of tomato pies and raw pizza, which is a big step in the right direction for me! =)

i've also been craving oh my this is tuna and nori snacks (can't wait to make both!), so i munched on a few raw nori sheets throughout day 3.

Day 3

• yogi's healthy fasting tea
• smoothie: banana, braeburn apple, kale, goji berries, lemon
• veggies with mashed avocado
• juice: beet, celery, kale, carrot, blueberries, lemon, ginger
• decaf green tea
• raw nori sheet
• salad: spring mix, avocado, tomato, cucumber
• mango
• orange
• salad wrapped in a nori sheet
• blueberries

 

we've been making juice using the ol' hamilton beach blender and a nut milk bag. see, you don't need a fancy juicer or $400 blender to eat raw!

  

(but this doesn't mean i wouldn't like a blendtec or vitamix... i'm just sayin' =)