How to Make . . . Sprouted Quinoa

This is my tasty dinner today - a combination of protein-rich sprouted quinoa and a rainbow of nutritional veggies in a simple Asian dressing!

How to sprout quinoa:

• 1/2 cup dry quinoa = 1-1/2 cups sprouted quinoa
• Soak 1/2 cup quinoa in 1/2 cup water for 3-4 hours
• Drain and rinse really well
• Leave quinoa to sprout in a strainer and cover with a towel
• Rinse twice a day for 2 days until you see long tails

Asian Sprouted Quinoa Salad

Yield:  3-4 servings

Salad:
1 cup sprouted quinoa
1 cup thinly sliced purple cabbage, cut in 1" long pieces
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup diced red bell pepper
1 cup snap peas or snow peas, cut in 1" chunks
1/4 cup sliced green onion
Optional:  1 bunch chopped Bok Choy blends nicely into this salad

Dressing:
2 Tbsp Sesame oil (or 2 tsp raw Tahini)
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 Tbsp gluten-free Tamari
2 Tbsp Agave or Honey
1/4 cup slivered raw nuts that have been soaked (almonds or cashews)

• Combine sprouted quinoa, cabbage, carrots, pepper, peas, and green onion in a bowl
• Whisk together the oil, vinegar, Tamari, Agave, and set aside
• Toss the dressing with the salad, sprinkle with the nuts, and serve in a bowl 
• OR fill a cabbage leaf with the tossed salad and serve with raw rye bread spread with coconut oil

 

 

How To Make . . . Quick Zucchini Pasta

When you want a fast lunch to tempt your taste buds, all you need is a fresh zucchini, frozen pesto cubes, and raw crackers!

Making zucchini pasta can be a lot of fun when using a specific machine . . . like a Spirooli or a Spiralizer. And I have found that adults and children really enjoy these machines for making raw pasta. But what if you don't have a machine available?

A very quick and simple way to transform a zucchini into ribbon pasta noodles is to use a Hand Veggie Peeler. These are available in grocery stores, kitchen stores, and you can also find them in the big box stores. The one I use is by Oxo and has a 2" blade, but any type will do as long as it has a long sharp 2-sided blade.



Zucchini Pesto Pasta
1 medium zucchini
2 frozen cubes Pesto, thawed
Nutty parmesan

• Slice both ends off the zucchini and peel off the outer dark green skin using a hand veggie peeler - add these ends and outer skin to the compost
• You can leave the skin on (but only if using an Organic zucchini) - the choice is up to you
• Hold the zucchini in one hand, and with the veggie peeler in the other hand, peel long ribbons from one side of the zucchini 
• Rotate the zucchini (so that you peel all sides) while continuing to peel strips of ribbons
• Stop when you get down to the seeds, leaving the centre core of the zucchini unpeeled - this core can also go into the compost
• Place the zucchini ribbons on a plate and mix in the thawed pesto, sprinkle with a nutty parmesan, and serve with a few raw crackers
• For a yummy lunch and a beautiful presentation, try serving with freshly sliced tomatoes, and lemony crackers!
• Looking for the Cilantro Pesto Recipe? You can find it posted under the Labels column on the right of this page - see Dressings on June 14, 2012. 

How To Make . . . Nut/Seed Mylk

 
If you've been looking for an simple alternative to using Dairy and Animal Products, have you considered making your own mylk from nuts or seeds? If so, then this raw food basic is one that you can easily master!

Why do we soak nuts and seeds before using?

1. Soaking nuts or seeds in purified water makes them more easily digestible.
2. It activates a powerful germination process in the dormant nut or seed converting the carbohydrates to protein.
3. Soaking releases the outer coating of enzyme inhibitors, leaving these toxic inhibitors behind in the soak water which you throw away. 

Nut Mylk
1 cup nuts or seeds (before soaking)
2 cups purified water (to soak seeds in)
4 cups purified water (for blender)
1 tsp to 1 Tbsp Agave syrup (optional sweetener)
1 Medjool date (optional sweetener)

1. Soak nuts or seeds in 2 cups water for 4-6 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse nuts or seeds really well - and throw away the soak water.
2. If you are using a date as a sweetener, make sure to soak it separately from the nuts or seeds - so the date does not absorb the unhealthy toxins from the nut or seed soak water.
3. In a blender, put 4 cups water, the soaked and rinsed nuts or seeds, and Agave or a date as a sweetener, and blend well.
4. Place a nut mylk bag inside a large glass bowl and pour mylk from blender into the nut mylk bag tying the top. Gently squeeze the nut mylk through the bag with your hands into the bowl until there is only nut or seed pulp left in the bag.
5. Pour the nut or seed mylk into a glass bottle with a lid and store in the fridge. Almond mylk will last 4 days; Sesame seed mylk will last 3 days.
6. Try experimenting with other nuts or seeds in this recipe to find your preference!
7. YOU CAN USE THE LEFTOVER PULP! Leftover pulp from nut or seed mylk can be frozen for raw recipes, or dehydrated and processed into flour.

How to Make . . . Chia Crackers

Chia Crackers
Yield:  1 small tray crackers

1/2 cup Chia seeds, dry
pinch Himalayan salt
1 cup water

• The seed to water ratio is 1 part Chia seeds to 2 parts water - It can easily be doubled to 1 cup Chia to 2 cups water - or tripled
• Mix Chia, salt and water together in a glass container
• Let stand for 1/2 hour to 1 hour until it thickens into a heavy gel
• Spread mixture onto 1 mesh dehydrator tray covered with a Paraflexx sheet
• Dehydrate for 3 hours at 105˚ F
• Flip crackers over to other side, and remove the Paraflexx sheet
• With a firm spatula, score 6 lines across and 6 lines down to make 36 crackers
• Return to dehydrator at 105˚ F for another 2-3 hours
• Since Chia crackers are neutral tasting, they partner well with Almond Butter, spicy dips, or even cheeze spreads

What are Chia Seeds?

Top:  Seeds Soaking
Bottom:  Ready to go in Dehydrator

• Chia seeds are small ovals with a diameter of about one millimeter, mottle-coloured with brown, gray, black and white
• Chia seeds typically contain 20% protein, 34% oil, 25% dietary fiber (mostly soluble with high molecular weight), and significant levels of antioxidants (chlorogenic and caffeic acids, myricetin, quercetin, and kaempferol flavonols)
• Soluble fibre binds with fatty acids and prolongs stomach emptying time so that sugar is released and absorbed more slowly
• The oil from chia seeds contains a very high concentration of omega-3 fatty acid — approximately 64%
• Chia seeds contain no gluten and trace levels of sodium
• Chia seeds when mixed with water create a mucilaginous gel that helps heal the stomach lining 
• There are no known toxic components of Chia!

How to Make . . . a Raw Food Platter

Putting together raw dishes can be fun! Even though this one looks and smells amazing, it isn't all that complicated. These are the steps I took to make my lunch today - a Sweet n' Sour Platter over Veggie Rice (and the recipe will definitely be included in the My Daily Eats e-book).

VEGGIE RICE
Veggie rice is made in a food processor by simply placing chopped root vegetables in the food processor, adding seasonings, and processing lightly just until it resembles rice (overprocessing will make it wet and mushy).

Experiment with as many different kinds of root vegetables that you can find. Butternut squash, cauliflower, daikon radish, parsnips and carrots are but a few of what is available. 


MARINATING VEGGIES

Luckily I had a partial casserole of marinated veggies all ready in the fridge. But normally I make up a casserole of mixed veggies once a week, add a simple marinade, and dehydrate for a few hours. Using an 8" square glass casserole provides me with a few meals - or 1-2 meals for a family!

A marinade can be as simple or complicated as you want it to be - some people just use olive oil and salt, others use more ingredients - here's your chance to let those creative juices flow!


ADDING THE SAUCE
There was leftover Sweet n' Sour Sauce from yesterday's meal, so all I had to do was mix spoonfuls of the sauce into the marinated veggies. If you have a favourite sauce, this is the place to use it.

Ensuring all the veggies have a good coating makes for a really tasty dish.


COMPLETING THE DISH

Finally the veggie rice was spooned in the centre of a lovely plate (beautiful presentation seems to amplify taste). The sauce coated veggies were ladled over top of the rice, and I made sure to leave some rice showing around the sides of the plate.

For the final touch, I drizzled spoonfuls of the sauce over the platter of rice and veggies and served the dish with chopsticks. Taking a moment to appreciate this feast for the senses somehow made it all the sweeter!

How to Make . . . Dehydrated Cherries

Cherries are in season for such a short time - but we can make the best of this ripe, delicious harvest by setting aside a portion to freeze or dehydrate - that is if you don't eat them all as soon as you get home! 

During the first batch, when I pitted fresh cherries some precious cherry juice was wasted. The second batch worked much better with frozen cherries, which aside from giving me red thumbs, is really very simple! So you can start with fresh or frozen cherries, the choice is yours.

To remove the pits from the cherries without losing most of the juice, I freeze cherries in small batches and let them thaw a tiny bit before I remove the pits by hand (I must get a cherry pitter).

Next I drain the pitted defrosting cherries, in a colander over a bowl, which allows the cherries to release their lovely juice as they defrost. By storing the cherry juice in a glass jar with a lid in the refrigerator, I now have fresh cherry juice ready to be used in recipes, or poured over a fruit salad! 

Simply spread the cherries (now separated from pits and juice) onto a paraflexx sheet on a dehydrator tray - with the skin side down to preserve remaining juice. Dehydrate at 105 degrees F for 12 hours and remove paraflexx sheet, leaving cherries to finish drying on the mesh tray liner. Dehydrate another 12 hours until dry. They should not be crispy, and look like raisins with a bit of moisture remaining.

The dehydrated cherries can now be stored in a glass jar with a lid. I keep mine in the refrigerator - ready when I need them! Imagine how the flavours in your recipes will pop by adding dehydrated cherries! Yummy!

Raw Enchilada Sandwiches

It was so quick and easy to make my delicious lunch today! The trick is to prepare a few raw dishes once or twice a week that can be stored in the fridge. Then when you come home hungry, all you have to do is put the dishes together for a quick nutritious meal. Some of the things taught In my Dehydrator Essentials Class were how to make enchiladas in 4-inch or 6-inch sizes, marinated veggies and raw mayo.

Enchilada shells are so versatile - here is a different way for you to try!

• #1 - Lay a mini enchilada shell flat
• Place a couple of spoonfuls of marinated veggies down the centre of each shell
• Drizzle some raw mayo over the veggies
• #2 - Top this mixture with some home grown sprouts
• Fold enchilada shell in half to fit in the palm of your hand
• #3 - Enjoy this quick and easy meal - taco style! 

How to Make . . . EZ Date Paste

This Holiday Season I hope you are enjoying family, friends, and taking time for yourself to unwind, relax, and regain your balance! For myself, I spent a joyful Christmas with my daughter and her two sons, and was really happy to connect with my son and relatives in Ontario (we could have talked for hours). So now I am getting back into my itty bitty kitchen to create new raw recipes for the booklet I am working on. YES, I DID SAY I AM WORKING ON A BOOKLET.....yesterday I made a Chocolate Pumpkin Pie that was divine, and today I am creating Gingerbread Cookies - what fun!

So with all the holiday desserts being enjoyed at this time of year, I wanted to give you another choice to soothe that sweet tooth. Even though there is a lot of info on the negative effects of sugar, there are alternatives - especially for us raw foodies! So how about taking control over what you eat and making your own from scratch?

Top right picture shows how the Date Paste will look in the blender when you quickly mix it up at home. My blender, a Vitamix, whips this into a smooth, thick and creamy paste, but a regular blender will also do the trick.

Three of the best varieties of dates for raw food prep are medjool, khadrawi and honey dates. (Date sugar, made from dates only, is heated in the process and not considered a raw food.) I use medjool dates and love them even as a snack when in a hurry.

Maybe you are wondering what you can use the EZ Date Paste for? You can use it as a replacement for anything that calls for a liquid sweetener, like agave, honey, yacon syrup, stevia, date sugar, maple syrup, brown rice syrup, etc. But since Date Paste will be less sweet than other sweeteners, you will want to keep taste testing to find your sweetness level.

EZ Date Paste
1 cup Medjool dates, with pits removed
3/4 to 1 cup water
pinch of sea salt (Optional)
splash of lemon juice to preserve (Optional)

• Combine ingredients in your blender
• Blend until a smooth paste-like consistency
• Pour into a glass jar with a lid and store in fridge for up to 2 weeks
• I used 3/4 cup water for 1 cup of date paste
• Less sweet than agave so use 50% more (if recipe calls for 1 Tbsp agave, use 1-1/2 Tbsp date paste)

How to Make . . . Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Wow - just came home to the full bodied smell of dehydrating tomatoes! Not only does raw food have the amazing tastes and textures that I love, but my home is filled with mouth-watering, stimulating aromas when the dehydrator is used! As you can see, my mason jars are getting filled with nutritious, meaty tasting sun-dried tomatoes!

Maybe in some past life I was a Daschnik (people who work and communicate with the earth and its plants - from the Anastasia books), or maybe I just really appreciate simple, natural whole food, because I experience such joy when working with the vital life force in these foods! 

My mandoline is a pleasure to use. I just put it on the thickest setting to slice tomatoes and it helps me go through a box of tomatoes really fast. Tomato slices are placed in a single layer on the mesh of my Excalibur dehydrator tray (for very juicy tomatoes you can put on Paraflexx sheet first.) Dehydrate at 105 degrees F for 12 hours or more, turn slices over, and dehydrate another 12 hours or so until done to your liking! A quick and easy way to make the most of your tomato harvest - PRESERVATIVES and COOKING NOT REQUIRED!