Chia Seed Pudding

The gelatinous quality of chia seeds aids in drawing toxins out of your system. Chia seeds are also a good source of protein and omega 3. Amongst the many vitamins and minerals they contain, they have large amounts of potassium, iron, and calcium.

Ingredients
1/3 cup chia seeds 

1 cups unsweetened almond milk (or any other non-dairy milk)
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 Tbs maple syrup

Optional Variation: for chocolate pudding, add 1 Tbs cocoa powder

Optional topping:  golden raisins, figs, apricots, dates, unsweetened coconut flakes, goji berries, chopped nuts, or fresh fruit.

Method
Mix chia seeds, almond milk and vanilla. Stir well. Refrigerate overnight. When ready to eat, garnish with preferred toppings.

Click here for your Home Made Almond Milk Recipe

Halva (Sesame Sweet Treats)

Halva is made from Tahini, Sesame paste, a high source of calcium.

2 1/4 cups almond meal* 

3/4 cup tahini

1/4 cup honey

1 Tbs vanilla essence

1 Tbs cocoa powder

Mix everything together except cocoa powder. Divide into 2 equal parts and mix one half with cocoa powder. shape the plain half into a square and press the cocoa half as a second layer over the plain base. Together, the mold should be about 3/4 inch thick. 

Refrigerate for a few hours before serving. 

Note: Instead of using almond meal, grind 1.5 cups of almonds in the food processor.

* Almond meal is available at a lowest cost at Trader Joe's.

Related Recipes:
Tahini Recipes
Tahini Sauce

Coconut Maple Scones

Whole-Grain and Naturally Sweetened

Pumpkin Pie

Truth be told, I’m not a big fan of pumpkin pie. BUT I really enjoyed the filling in this one! It has a sweet finish without being too sweet. I wondered how others would receive it since it had less sugar than most pies. When taking it to a Thanksgiving meal, everyone loved it and there wasn’t a crumb left in the dish!

The Crust:
3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats, finely ground

2 teaspoons raw coconut crystals (this is evaporated coconut tree sap. You can also try date sugar or pure maple sugar)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold organic* butter, cut into small pieces
2- 3 Tbs very cold water

Grind the oat in a coffee grinder until they become flour. Combine flour, ground oats, sweetener and salt in medium bowl. Cut in butter using two knives until the mixture is crumbly (I use my fingers although your not suppose to as the heat of the hands will make the dough less flakey.) Sprinkle with water; mixing until the mixture holds together.

Shape the dough into ball; place on lightly floured sheet of wax paper. Top with additional piece of wax paper; roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Don’t be surprised if the dough is a little tougher to roll.

Remove top sheet of wax paper and invert dough into 9-inch pie plate; slowly peel away wax paper. Trim excess crust. Turn edge under; crimp as desired.
Cover by placing it in a plastic bag and store it in the fridge while you prepare the filling.


The Filling:
The filling is tailored from Alice Water’s Joy of Cooking.

1 15oz can pumpkin puree
1 Tbs organic* butter, softened
1 cup organic* heavy cream
2 teaspoons flour
3 eggs
1/3 cup raw coconut crystals
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of fresh-ground black pepper

In a small saucepan whisk together 1/4 cup the cream with the flour. Heat the mixture over a low heat until it fully heats and thickens. Slowly whisk in the rest of the cream. Continue whisking until the mixture returns to a boil. Remove from the heat.

Mix the pumpkin purée, butter and eggs together in a medium bowl. In another bowl combine the sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, salt and pepper. Stir the sugar and spice mixture and the thickened cream into the pumpkin mixture.

Pour into the pie shell. Using a brush or your finger, dip into the remaining egg that tends to pool in the leftover eggshells and thinly coat the edges of the pie crust.
Bake for 45 minutes at 375, until the center is almost set. Let cool completely on a rack before cutting.

* Buying Organic Dairy Products: 
People often ask me what's "most important" to purchase organic if working with a budget. My answer is animal products. The dairy and meat industry has become unhealthfully contaminated with synthetic hormones, antibiotics, and harmful pesticides. Antibiotic overuse is a major public health problem and hormones are powerful that even trace amounts can cause dramatic changes in living beings. These agricultural methods have been implemented for the sake of profit at the expense of our health and the health of our planet.

Related Article: Truth or Dairy?

Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Cookies

(make one dozen)

3/4 cup pureed butternut squash (fresh or canned)

1/3 cup maple syrup (preferably grade B)

4 Tbs peanut butter (all natural, unsalted)

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup quick cooking oats

1/2 cup chocolate chips (preferably grain sweetened)

Preheat oven to 350.

mix ingredients together adding one at a time, following the order in which they are listed above.

bake for 20 minutes.

Summer Coolers

The heat of summer can have us reaching for the cold and creamy... commonly in the form of ice cream.

To satisfy the craving in other ways, keep cold apple sauce or your favorite yogurt in the refrigerator. Often a serving of these moist cooling foods will meet your needs. For a cooling crunch, freeze fresh blueberries and eat them right out of the freezer. This is also the perfect time to get creative with smoothies.

Blueberry Smoothie

recipe from: Ani's Raw Food Kitchen

3 cups of water

2 cups blueberries

1/2 cup cashews

1/2 pitted dates

1 Tbls. pure vanilla extract

In a blender, blend 2 cups of water with berries, nuts, dates and vanilla until smooth. Add last cup of water and blend again.

Will keep for 3 days in fridge

Mango Smoothie

recipe from: Ani's Raw Food Kitchen

3 cups of water

2 mangoes, peeled & cubed

1/4 cup almonds

1/2 cup pitted dates

1 Tbls. pure vanilla extract

In a blender, blend 2 cups of water with mango, nuts, dates and vanilla until smooth. Add last cup of water and blend again.

Will keep for 3 days in fridge.

Creamy Coconut Pudding

recipe from: Ani's Raw Food Kitchen

2 cups cashews

1.5 cups water

1/4 cup pitted dates

1/2 cup shredded dried coconut

Blend water and cashews until smooth. Add coconut and dates and blend again until smooth.

Will keep for 3 days in fridge.

Banana Ice Cream

4 ripe large bananas

2 Tbls. pure vanilla extract

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Peel & cut bananas into chunks. Spread chunks on a plate and freeze for 1 hour. Place in food processor/ blender with vanilla and cinnamon. At first, process in "burst mode" until bananas soften and then process continuously until creamy smooth.

Top with either chopped walnuts, tahini paste, or maple syrup.

Serve immediately.

Variations: add cacao powder and agave nectar, add berries, or add spirulina.


Chunky Monkey variation:
2 frozen bananas 
1 tsp vanilla extract
Handful of walnuts
1 tsp cocoa nibs (or 4-5 squares of dark chocolate.) 


Blend in blender until creamy. Voila! Ice cream on a hot day.

Raw Chocolate Truffles

These truffles are always a hit at parties!! Sometimes I'll have one in the middle of the day and call it an "energy snack"... yum!

½ cup cocoa powder (preferably raw)
1 cup cashews
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 Tbs agave
2 Tbs maple syrup
1/3 cup cocoa nibs

Grind the cashews as fine as possible in a food processor. Add all other ingredients except the cocoa nibs and blend together.

Roll the mixture into balls. Spread the cocoa nibs on a plate and roll each ball in the nibs, making sure to coat it well.

Tips: The smaller the cocoa nibs are, the better. If you have a coffee grinder, grind your nibs down before rolling the balls in them.


Variations: You can substitute the nibs for ground cocoa, ground nuts such as walnuts or cashews, or coconut flakes.

Raw Chocolate Pudding
Click Here for Recipe

Store Bought Chocolate Truffles For Valentine's Day (or any day!)
Don't want to make your own? Check out UliManna or Gnosis

Seasonal Pumpkin Oat Energy Balls

my solution to leftover pumpkin.... 

Balls:

2/3 cup pumpkin puree (canned or fresh)
2 Tbs maple syrup
2 Tbs dry roasted almond butter
1/4 cup apple sauce
2 cups quick cooking oats
1/3 cup pepita seeds (pumpkin seeds)
1/3 cup walnuts

Coating:
1/4 cup quick cooking oats
1/4 cup pepita seeds

For Balls: Mix pumpkin, maple, almond butter and apple sauce. Add in oats, nuts and seeds. Roll into two dozen balls.

For coating: In a coffee grinder, grind oats and pepita seeds into a flour. Pour the mixture onto a plate and roll each ball in the flour until covered.

Variation: Roll balls in shredded coconut instead of oat and pepita mixture.

Pumpkin-Oat Power Bar
Press the ball mixture into a 8x8 baking dish and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Once cooled, cut into squares.

Summer Cleanser and Sweet Treat Recipes

Post Party Liver Flush

Overdid it at a party last night? Start your day with the following recipe on an empty stomach:

1-2 lemons squeezed

1 Tbs cold pressed extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced (may substitute with ginger)

4 ounces of warm water

Blend and drink. 

After drinking, wait a short while and then enjoy a cup of herbal tea of fennel seeds, fenugreek or peppermint. You can eat breakfast half an hour after the tea. 

'Chunky Monkey' Ice Cream (serves 2)

4 bananas

2 tsp vanilla

handful of walnut peaces

4-5 pieces of dark chocolate squares (or preferably 1 Tbs of raw coco nibs)

optional: 1 Tbs maple syrup.

Preparation: peel and cut bananas into chunks, spreading chunks on a plate (or parchment paper) and freezing with some space between each piece. (Once frozen, they can be piled in a container in the freezer.) 

Blend the frozen bananas until creamy with the vanilla. Add in the nuts and chocolate. Top with sweetener if needed. 

Variations: Blend with cocoa powder/ Blend with cinnamon/ Switch nuts and chocolate for berries.

Mango Pudding (serves 2)

3 ripe mangos

1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup berries + extra to top

Mix in food processor (add enough coconut to make mixture thick). Place in small cups, sprinkle berries and/or coconut flakes on top. Refrigerate for 20 minutes and serve. 

Pumpkin "Cheesecake"

One of my favorites during the holiday season is pumpkin cheesecake. I now enjoy this healthier delicious version with no cream cheese, refined sugar or flour.   

Crust: 

1 3/4 cups almond meal (from Trader Joe's or grind your own almonds in food processor)

1/2 cup raw almond butter

1/2 cup dates

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

Filling:

2 cups Greek yogurt (Fage brand works best and whole milk works best)

1/2 cup pumpkin puree (fresh or canned)

1/3 cup agave nectar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of nutmeg

Chop dates with almond meal in food processor. (If the dates are too tough and dry, add 1 tbs of hot water). Add almond butter and maple and pulse in processor until its all mixed in.

Press into a pie dish and bake at 375 for 10 minutes, until it starts too brown. Let it cool.

Meanwhile mix all the filling ingredients in a bowl until consistency is smooth. Once the crust has cooled down, pour the filling in. Refrigerate and let it set for a few hours.