Making Teas

The girls collected and dried mints, lemon balm, herbs and spices from our garden.

They combined them into different flavours such a camomile mint or lemon balm and thyme.

We have a year or two worth of teas now!!

Okanagan Fruit

We ordered a huge amount of fresh yummy goodness from the Okanagan Valley this year.
I love that we don't have to travel and we can get lovely organic fruits to our door.
Unfortunately it came smack dab in the middle of a super busy week of course and I had miles of processing to do.
Not that i'm complaining.
Look at all the yumminess we now have put up for winter.

Mango Popsicles

Yup!
That time of  the year again.
Well according to my kids, now that they can were flip flops and shorts it must be popsicle making time.
I mixed defrosted frozen mangoes and plain yogurt with a splash of oj and a smidge of honey.
They worked beautifully and tasted marvellous.

Amazing Foods

We have been living out of these two cookbooks lately.
If you haven't seen or tried them I highly recommend them.
I feel like a kitchen superstar serving up these recipes.
They are now dog-earred and loved.
Sighs of love in my house.

Book Club- The Help

                                               Tonight was my night to host book club.

It was a great book to be hosting for.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett is wonderful.

There is a movie.
I haven't seen it yet but hear its as good as the book.
A book with this much exposure makes hosting a theme night possible.

I love any excuse for a party, especially when I get to spoil my favourite Peeps!!

I spent the morning baking up a storm.

I got the bourbon ready and  made mint syrup for the mint juleps.

I found all the songs from the soundtrack, (but we ended up staying in the kitchen the whole time and never even listened to it).
Still a good soundtrack though.

For anyone who read the book.....some Chocolate Poop Pie!

Devilled Eggs Finger Sandwiches.

Minnies Caramel Cake....delish!!
And Coca Cola.

Abilene said Crisco was good for so may things, a candle being on of them.
Great for a conversation piece and added just the right touch for ambiance.

Oh and of course, Pecan Pie!!

Shabu Shabu

We had company for dinner tonight.
I was so excited to try out our new induction hot plate.

I cut up a platter of various veggies.
Made 3 dipping sauces.
Simmered a lovely broth for the afternoon.
Bought beef sliced paper thinned from the butchers.
Grabbed some udon noodle from the store, and we were ready to Shabu Shabu!!

We spent almost 2 hours sitting, cooking, eating and visiting.
I highly recommend it!!

K's Pear Smoothie

I have always let the kids in the kitchen.

I remember being booted out when I was young and it always irked me.

I allow them to learn and experiment.

This can, and does, create messes but that too is part of the learning.

Recently the ladies have taken to creating their own special smoothie recipes.

Each one has theirs down pat and re-creates them nightly for snack time.

E's has dairy in it so I haven't tried it but she devours it.

Ironically K has made her in true Raw style even though she claims to hate Raw (unless it is desserts of course).

With her permission I would like to share her smoothie with you.

Try it soon, it is really worth it.

K's Pear Smoothie (in her words)

In a blender add:

1 pear cored and in chunks

1 Tbsp fresh peeled ginger

4 pitted dates

20 cashews

4 leaves of kale

splash of vanilla

smidgen of honey

1 cup ice cubes

Blend and enjoy immediately.

Raw Pum"mmmmm"pkin Pie

As a rule, after a huge turkey dinner with all the favorite fixings, I used to un-do the top button on my pants and start in on a piece of pumpkin pie.
There was no exception to this rule, it was a must.
No Thanksgiving was complete without it.

Today I ventured a try at Raw Pumpkin Pie.
It worked!!

I made a vanilla cashew cream to top it off.
Delicious.
Come on over and have a try.
Better come quick though, the kids love it too.



Next time I would use a different crust instead of the pumpkin /sunflower seed crust I made.
It was not bad but not great.

And a Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

As Requested

(Excuse the same picture)

There are still a few things that I miss eating from a "regular" diet and this was definately one of them, along with ripple chips.

This recipe is a close second to the real thing.

Anni Phyo's Recipe for Raw Apple Crisp

Combine 1 cup raw oats and/or grouts with 1 tsp cinnamon in a food processor until small pieces.

Add 1 cup pitted dates, mix well and place in bowl.

(this is a basic crust that can be used many ways especially if you replace the oats with nuts)

For a filling combine 3-4 apples, 1/4 cups agave syrup and Tbsp vanilla together and process till desired chunks.

Add to crust.

You can layer it or just mix it all together and enjoy.

I found mine tasted better the next day as the oats were softer.

Enjoy!

Zucchini Pastas and Sauces

One thing that I find humorous about raw food recipes are the names.
There seems to be a need to label foods as to what they are "replacing" when in fact they should just be what they are.

A friend once said to me that she would be more inclined to enjoy what I am serving her if I just said it was a salad.

So instead of zucchini pasta with such and such sauce served with garlic bread I should just say it is a zucchini salad with a creamy cashew pesto dressing served with a herbed garlic flax seed cracker.

Touche!

Here is a recipe for a Zucchini Salad (or maybe Zucchini Pasta with Alfredo Sauce)

First you need one of those fancy spirolli machines that can make noodles form anything, zucchini, beets or carrots.

I personally do not have the space and so I just use a hand held julienne slicer and am quite content with that for now since I don't make pasta every day, hardly every week even.

1 medium zucchini is enough for 1 nice sized serving.

You make the Alfredo Sauce by blending 1 1/4 cups soaked cashews (about 4 hours and rinsed), 3/4 cups water, 1 tsp agave syrup, 1/3 cup lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp miso (preferably light).

Blend till smooth and this will keep for 3-4 days.

Alfredo Sauce can be used for a raw lasagna as well.

Liberally mix in some Alfredo Sauce till you get the "noodles" well coated.

To the mix I sometimes as a dollop of Pesto Sauce ( if using raw ingredients any recipe will do as they are raw anyways) or a Marinara Sauce for extra goodness.

Blend 1 1/2 cups roma tomatoes, 1 pitted date, 1/3 cup olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp basil and 1/2 tsp rosemary.

Blend until almost smooth and store in the fridge for up to 2 days.

On top I toss in some diced tomatoes, maybe some fresh garlic and basil and of course a thick coating of Rawmasean Cheese.

Blend together 1/2 cup cashews (dry) ground into a powder with 1/2 tsp minced garlic, 1/4 tsp salt and 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast.

Believe me this is so worth buying some yeast if you do not have it in your pantry already.

Happy eating.

Requests for Some Recipes

I believe in Raw foods for so many reasons.
The best reason of all is just how wonderful I feel.

In order to toot it's merits I feel sharing knowledge is key.

Please try one of these following easy recipes and incorporate them into your diet, even just one at a time, to get comfortable and a sense for how easy it is to transition to raw.

I am sharing what works for me and ideas that can be used in so many ways.

One of the most important thing for me to find a substitue for was milk or yogurt because I used them daily.
I had to find comfortable replacments to make the transition easier and now I couldn't imagine it any other way.
The simplest version of milk was to use almonds but you can use any nut or seed or combo of to make a milk.
Playing around with all the different flavours can be fun.
Almond Milk for me is the most versatile.
I also use this to make a raw yogurt from but that is another post.

Soak 1 cup of raw almonds overnight.
Rinse and blend together with 6 pitted dates (about 1/2 cup), a splash of vanilla (or for real yummy flavour use 1 vanilla bean), a pinch of salt and about 5 cups of water depending on how thick you like your milk.
I like mine thicker for berries and my cereal.
Will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge.

For chocolate milk add 1-2 tbsp of cocoa and a splash of agave syrup.
For a milk resembling eggnog add a dash of nutmeg.
The possibilities are endless.
I do not strain my milk and I like the grittiness and extra fibre but you can try that as well but it is one more step I am comfortable in leaving out.

Fruity Leather/ Roll ups

For a quick fruit leather I blend 4 apples (cores removed), a banana and a splash of lemon juice together till pureed and pour onto dehydrator sheets.

Usually it takes about 10 hours so either do this first thing in the morning or at the days end.

Of course all ingredients and dehydrators are not the same so times can really vary.

Just keep checking.

I sometimes add raisins or dates, some cinnamon or berries and each time the flavour changes.

Tamari Almonds

Using about 2 cups of dry almonds I mix about 1/4 cup of Bragg's sauce, 1-2 tbsp onion powder and a pinch of salt and soak for about an hour.

Lay them out flat on a dehydrator tray and dry for 12-16 hours.

These will be crunchy and add a great touch to a Kelp Noodle Pad Thai.

Kale Chips

There is no end to how these can be flavoured.
I have come up with a beautiful salt and vinegar version that I have just about perfected.(another post again)

For a quick starter idea blend 6 cups or so of garden fresh kale with 2 Tbsp olive oil, a tsp of agave syrup and 1 Tbsp salt.
I cut the stem out so it makes for easier eating but that is simply my preference.
You can adjust and play with the flavours to make them sweet, savoury or tart and tangy.

People gobble these up and although I have tonnes in the garden I cannot seem to keep ahead and save any for the off season.

Cashew Cream Tarts with Blueberries and Chocolate drizzle.
This has many parts but doesn't take long to make and assemble.

For the base/crust I use 2 variations.

One is a coconut crust but in this photo I used an almond and date crust.

Use equal parts nuts and dates, so you can imagine the possibilities.

For this on I used 1 cup almonds and 1 cups dates with 1/2 tsp salt.

Blend in a food processor till well blended, but not powdered, and press into bottom of a pan.

Or you can take the time to line a cupcake tin with wax paper and press into each "cup".

Put tart/pie crust into the fridge to stiffen up while working on the remaining parts.

The cashew creme is delicious simply as a topping for berries and fruit, or in a parfait.

In this recipe I use 1 cup cashews, 1/2 cup coconut oil, 1/2 cup water and a splash of vanilla.

Blend until smooth and fill in the tart shells.

The remainder (if any) can be kept for 3-4 days in the fridge for a great touch to ice creams and crepes.

Any fruit or berry can be used to garnish the tops, in this case I choose blueberries.

Take as many as you think you'll need and toss in some agave syrup.

With a sprinkle of cinnamon stir all together and add to the top of your tart.

For the garnish you can sprinkle on some cocoa nibs of a dusting of cocoa powder.

I really like to use a chocolate sauce.
Place 1/2 cup cocoa powder, 3/4 cup agave syrup and 4 tsp olive oil and blend till smooth.

This is so delicious and can be used in so many ways.

It will keep for 2 weeks in the fridge but I believe that it is impossible; it could never happen

around here with my kids.

Sorry for the lengthy post but I hope you will enjoy a new recipe and let me know how they work out for you.

I can assure you these have all been tried, tested and true in my kitchen and if I can do it with our hectic schedule I believe anybody can do it.

Happy Un-Cooking!!!!

On The Menu for Today

Such a busy day in the kitchen but still managed to have 2 play dates, and an afternoon at the beach.

I spy in the dehydrator today....
Cheezy Pleezy Kale Chips

Chocolate Gogi Rawnola

Banana Spears with Cinnamon

If your garden is growing as much as mine then maybe you are having the annual dilemma of what to do with all those zucchini.

How about...

Zucchini Alfredo

Zucchini Homous (with herbed flax crackers)

Here is one of the beautiful zucchini plants, this one is called Ambassador.

Today's yield.

(I should have put something beside them as a size reference I guess.)

Zucchini Nut Bread

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Zucchini Crusted Pesto Pizza (which the kids devour)

Zucchini Pie.......Zucchini Lasagna........Zucchini Gumbo........................................................................

I feel like Forest Gump of the garden.

Nail Polish, Skirts and Granola....Sounds Like a Bad Musical

What would you think if you heard your 3 year old yelling from the bathroom unprovoked, "Don't worry mom, It's nothing you need to worry about!!!"

So as I was running towards the bathroom I had visions of what could be but I wasn't prepared for the nail polish.....and brand new bottle that I thought I had put up, or maybe I did put up but apparently not Up enough......ALL over.

Her hands, toes and some of her nails were a gorgeous sparkly pink.

SO was the floor, counter, toilet , sink with finger prints and drops all over her.

But she was so proud of herself for being a big girl.

What can I do?

But the clincher....I only had a small little bit left in the nail polish remover bottle.

Kid?..or bathroom?....Clean off the kid?...or clean up the bathroom?...
This photo just doesn't quite tell the story.

Today was a gloomy day outside but full of energy inside.

We tackled many projects and had a generally awesome day.

I have been waiting for such a day to create these marvelously simple skirts from some old small hand embroidered table clothes we found at a garage sale.

They turned out beautifully.

The girls love them because they twirl, a major prerequisite for E.

K loves hers so much it made it to the coveted "what I am wearing to school" spot for tomorrow.

Point for mommy today.

Those seem hard to come by lately.

We made some delicious granola bars this afternoon and since they were super quick and super yummy I thought I would share the recipe that I adapted from an old recipe I had found years ago.

Grease a 9-inch pan with butter and set aside. Oven on at 350 "F.

In a large bowl combine 1 cup coconut, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/2 cup dried cherries, 1/2 cup craisins and set aside.

On a baking sheet combine 2 cups old fashion oats, 1 cup slivered almond, 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, 1/2 cup oat bran, 1/4 cup flax seeds and 1/4 cup sesame seeds.

Bake the mixture for 5-10 minutes until toasted and fragrant.

Once cooked add to the coconut and dried fruit mixture.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat melt 2 Tbsps butter and add 1 cup packed brown sugar, 1/2 cup honey, 1 tsp vanilla and 1 tsp cinnamon.

Bring mixture to a boil and then pour into coconut and oatmeal mixture.

Stir until combined and then press firmly into greased pan.

Let sit until cooled and cut into bars. Store covered for up to 5 days.

Yummy and pretty healthy.