Tag Archives: raw food

by aireater | May 12, 2012

Virtual Vegan Potluck – Raw Appetizer: Pulp cracker with Cashew sauce

Welcome! I have the pleasure of being the host site and the first blog post to start the Virtual Vegan Potluck. What a cool idea and thank you very much Annie for thinking of this. Being the creator of VBU, I totally appreciate building a community. This kind of potluck idea is excellent and I am already excited for next year.

Away we go!

I love easy party finger foods. I’m a fan of: apéritif, hors d’oeuvres, canapés, petit fours, and crudités. Looks like the French really enjoy bite sized foods, non?

I often find I have a lot of left over pulp from juicing. Why not keep the momentum going and not waste?

Pulp crackers:
- 2 cups of pulp
- 1/2 cup ground flax seed meal
- 1/2 to 1 cup of water

Take your pulp and add some ground flax seed meal. Depending on how much pulp you have the ratio should be 1/2 cup flax meal to 2 cups of pulp. Mix the pulp and flax meal in a bowl by hand and add the water in slowly. You might not need all of the water. If you over water, don’t worry, you’re going to dehydrate anyway. Add in some of your favourite spices, I prefer Italian spices and garlic powder. If you’re up to it you can add some cayenne for a kick, but only 1/2 a teaspoon. Too much can ruin a good thing.

Spread out the mix your non stick drying sheets and take a shot glass to cut the crackers out. My mother always made her cookies this way and I love how perfect cookies come out using this method. Who needs to spend on fancy cookie cutters when you have a shot glass. The left over shapes make excellent croutons.

Dehydrate at 115F for 6-8 hours, depends how crispy you want them.

As for the cashew sauce, hopefully you have soaked cashews the night before, but in case you don’t, just soak for at least 2 hours. This really helps with the blending process and also brings the nuts’ enzymes “alive” so to say.

Cashew sauce:
- 1 cup of raw soaked cashews overnight (minimum 2 hours)
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Mix everything in a food processor until you have a consistency you’re happy with and there you have it. Additional options: parsley, dill, cilantro. Perhaps not at the same time, but they do add a nice flavour.

Happy eating!

Please click below to go forward or back to the next blog in the Virtual Vegan Potluck.

45 Comments

Filed under gluten free, Healthy Snacks, Meals, raw, vegan

Tagged as cashew butter, cashew cheese, cashew sauce, Cashew spread, gluten free crackers, gluten free pulp crackers, gluten free raw crackers, juice pulp crackers, pulp crackers, raw appetizer, raw cashew, raw cashew cheese, raw cashew spread, raw eating, raw food, raw food appetizer, Virtual Vegan Potluck, Virtual Vegan Potluck 2012, VVP 2012, what to do with cashews, what to do with left over pulp, what to make with juice pulp

by aireater | May 8, 2012

So, what are you eating re: raw food?

Let me preface this by saying, I am not 100% raw, I just have been adding more raw food into my diet. I’m also not a nutritionist, this is just what I’m doing and I thought I’d share.

That said, I am LOVING the effects of feeling energetic and lively. I can’t say I feel this way eating cooked foods and I almost feel depressed eating something cooked. Mind you, I have a hard time saying no to a serving of Daiya filled lasagne, so there are some cooked foods I enjoy immensely.

I’ve been asked, so what are you eating exactly?

Here’s a run down:

Breakfast smoothie:
1 scoop of Vanilla Sun Warrior
1 1/2 cups Almond Breeze unsweetened vanilla milk
1 cup strawberries
1 tbsp organic natural peanut butter
1 tbsp organic hemp heart
1/2 tbsp organic chia seed (black)
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Snack: Banana

Lunch: Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under gluten free meals, Meals, raw, vegan

Tagged as day in the life of raw vegan, eating like a raw vegan, example of raw vegan meal, raw, raw food, raw food meal, raw vegan eating idea, raw vegan eating sample, raw vegan food, raw vegan meal example, vegan food, vegan meal, what does a raw vegan eat?, what to eat as a raw vegan, what to eat raw food

by aireater | April 11, 2012

Air Eater: Raw food progression

Lately, I’ve been posting more raw food recipes and I must say I really hate the days when I don’t have my green juice. I never in my life would have thought this to be true. I don’t know how I lived without our juicer and I adore the wonderful healthy buzz I get from drinking a green juice.

If I had told my 2009 self, “Hey, you’re going to make the transition from being vegetarian to vegan next year.” I would have laughed in my own face. I couldn’t imagine giving up cheese! Low and behold I didn’t think last year I’d be making a transition to raw food either. One dehydrator, Blendtech and juicer later, I feel I have a fully stocked kitchen and the right equipment to set myself up for success. I also must admit I have the unwavering support of @MathieuLLF, this helps a great deal. Sometimes it’s hard to resist eating a cooked meal when it’s all there ready, but it can be done.

Yesterday I had a very raw day, Sun Warrior protein shake, salad (homemade sun dried tomatoes, carrots, celery, lemon/garlic dressing and almond bread), then a green juice. That’s it. I wasn’t even hungry to eat anything. I really just feel this is enough. This isn’t a typical day, I am trying to gear up for a juice fast and I wanted to see if I could do it. I hope to be able to go for at least a week, but one day to start.

I know I am getting my nutrients from my shake and the rest of my food. I also use a site/app called My Fitness Pal and I enter in what I’m eating, that way I know what I’m lacking and eat accordingly.

I find preparation is really the key and if I don’t have things done in time, the wait can be hard, especially if you’re in the mood for something particular. I am very lucky to live in Toronto to have access to wonderful raw food restaurants

This kind of mental change has really made me appreciate where I came from and where I’m going. I can only really be excited at what comes next.

6 Comments

Filed under Health, Meals, Rants, raw, vegan

Tagged as green juice, raw food, raw food lifestyle, raw food Toronto, raw food transition, Toronto raw food restaurant, vegan life, vegan transition, vegetarian to vegan, what a vegan is like

by aireater | April 10, 2012

Raw Almond Bread

I made a quick batch of almond milk and then figured I ought to do something with the almond pulp left over. Love that nothing goes to waste with a dehydrator. I found this recipe from Raw Living Food 101 and did not use the Grapeseed Oil, instead I used Sunflower oil. I also did not use 1/3 of a cup, just a little less actually and I wish I had used the full amount. Instead what I made was a bit dry and brittle, but the taste – the taste is what makes up for it. Fantastic!

Here’s the pulp right after straining the almond milk:
I love the shape from my measuring cup. After I just smoothed it out on a dehydrator sheet and scored the mixture, set it to 110F and checked on it after four hours. Then flipped it and put it back for another five hours.

This is what it looked like: Continue reading →

3 Comments

Filed under Gluten free eating, raw, vegan

Tagged as almond pulp, dehydrator recipe, raw, raw almond, raw almond pulp, raw bread, raw crackers, raw eating, raw food, raw food recipe, recipe for raw almond pulp, what to do with almond pulp, what to do with left over almond pulp

by aireater | March 22, 2012

Raw Buckwheat Groat and Psyllium Husk Pizza

Mainly, I’ve been using my tomato bread as a pizza crust, but I came across a recipe by Hannah Mendenhall and the picture blew me away, I said I have to try this. Thus my two weekend long search for Irish Moss, buckwheat groat and psyllium husk, because you know, who has this in their pantry? Apparently I do now and will be keeping as a staple. I mark this recipe as my push into full fledge hippy. It wasn’t bad enough I have two different nut cheeses, fresh young thai coconut water, (and the extra coconut meat in the freezer), plus a few other different items on hand. Now, I have two varieties of Irish Moss and know how to use it!

I digress.

Here’s what I made and you can thank Hannah for creating such a great idea. Believe it or not, the big white ball that looks like a dinner roll is actually the ‘cheese’, the line formed from the mesh bag I had it hanging from. I am surprised that I didn’t need to refrigerate this, but followed the instructions to keep it somewhere warm and as the author did, I left it hanging while sitting on my dehydrator.

I did use a non raw sauce, so I can’t say the whole thing is raw, I was a bit pressed for time and as I have about 8 of these pizza shells I will most likely make a raw sauce to use the next time.

Happy eating!

5 Comments

Filed under gluten free, Gluten free eating, Meals, raw, vegan

Tagged as allergen friendly eating, allergen friendly meals, eating raw food, how to make gluten free pizza, how to make raw food, how to make raw pizza, how to make raw vegan cheese, how to make vegan pizaa, raw food, raw food meals, raw pizza that is thick crusted, thick crust raw pizza, vegan eating, vegan food, vegan meals, vegan pizza

by aireater | March 19, 2012

Raw Stuffed Mushrooms

As summer is coming up, I figured, why not make some fun finger food that can be served at parties and will really impress and delight. Yes, I literally thought this out loud. Good weather can improve a mood and when you’re in a good mood the next logical step is a party – right? Right!

The next time you’re going to such an event why not bring raw stuffed mushrooms, they can be made without a dehydrator, just some prep time before hand.

Lidia Le Francois, raw nuts

Stuffing: Continue reading →

4 Comments

Filed under gluten free, raw, vegan

Tagged as allergen friendly finger food, allergen safe food, appetizer, easy appetizers, easy mushroom caps, finger food, finger food for party, gluten-free, kid friendly finger food, mushroom caps, nut free appetizer, nut free finger food, nut free food, raw eat, raw food, raw mushroom, raw mushroom stuffing, raw vegan, raw vegan appetizer, stuffing mushroom, summer finger food, vegan appetizer, vegan finger food, what to bring to a BBQ, what to bring to a party, what to bring to a raw party, What to bring to a vegan BBQ, what to bring to a vegan party

by aireater | February 23, 2012

Brendan Brazier’s Raw Portobello Patties

I have the “Whole Foods to Thrive” book by Brendan Brazier, creator of Vega and I thought I’d make something different. You can find the recipe on page 247 of the Canadian version. The only changes I made were to add chopped celery and carrot. However, I would recommend, if you’re using a Blendtec or a Vitamix, DO NOT add the walnuts and mushrooms in last as per the instructions. It will not work well and then you’ll have chunks of mushroom in the burger. I highly would suggest doing that step first and then adding everything. The same thing happens when a recipe says to add small nuts at the end, oh no, I chop those first or they don’t get processed at all. Save yourself the hassle.

The recipe says it makes 4 burgers, yeah, if you’re Fred Flintstone, I ended up making about 12. Mind you, I did some smaller ones, but there’s no way this recipe could make only four; I’d like to see that.

So, as you can see, they’re not the most appealing burgers and the white small parts are the portobello mushrooms I chopped up after I realized they were not being diced in the blender. The recipe does say to use a food processor, but I figured I did spend a large amount of money on this blender it should do the trick. They are quite good though, and I followed the instructions exactly and they turned out still a bit chewy/soft, I really enjoy the texture.

Here’s how I dressed it up: Continue reading →

Raw Zucchini chips

I never really liked zucchini much before incorporating more raw food into my diet. Before I used to think: it’s bland, it doesn’t taste like a potato, it’s just boring. These days I go out of my way to buy zucchini to either eat raw as ‘pasta’, or to make zucchini chips. The first time I made these, I ate them so fast I didn’t get a photo.

I made them again and this time decided to take a picture first. Here goes:

Ingredients: Continue reading →

6 Comments

Filed under gluten free, Healthy Snacks, raw, vegan

Tagged as dehydrator recipe, eating raw food, food from dehydrator, healthy easy raw snack, how to make raw snack, how to make raw zucchini chips, raw food, raw food snacks, raw healthy snack, using dehydrator

by aireater | February 2, 2012

Raw Collard Wrap

Being on this raw kick has me being inventive and looking for inspiration where I can find it. During our visit to Belmonte Raw, we had a fantastic collard wrap and I just loved it. Carol you are the master of these things! I think I need to get bigger wrap leaves as I really couldn’t close mine, perhaps I over loaded it, but either way I managed to eat it.

So here’s what I did:

1 Collard leaf
1 tbsp macadamia nut cheese (or any “cheese” really)
1/2 red pepper
1/4 cup tomatoes sliced
1/4 cup red cabbage

Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under Gluten free eating, Meals, raw, vegan

Tagged as collard green wrap, easy raw food meal, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten-free, home made collard green wrap, how to eat raw foods, how to make a collard wrap, raw, raw eating, raw food, raw food eating, raw food meal, raw wrap, recipe for collard wrap, recipe for raw food, vegan, vegan wrap, what to eat raw

by aireater | January 24, 2012

Raw Tomato Bread

Now that I have a dehydrator, I am in raw food heaven and I have been looking up recipes and trying fun things. I am going to try every bread that I can. I used a recipe from Choosing Raw.

Raw Tomato Bread (raw, vegan, gluten and soy free)

Makes 8 large pieces

5 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes
3/4 cup flax meal
1 tbsp tamari or nama shoyu (substitute sea salt to taste if you’re allergic to soy)
1 tsp oregano (dried)
2 tsps basil (dried) – I used fresh
1 clove garlic
Black pepper to taste
1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Now, the directions say to blend everything except the sunflower seeds, however, if you do this the mixture will just liquify and the seeds added in the end won’t be chopped at all. I chopped the seeds first and then added them at the end already in powder form. Maybe the seeds are supposed to be whole, or if you’re using a high power blender it will pulverize things; however I am not happy with my Vitamix right now and I opted to use my food processor instead, thus the pre-chopping the seeds.

As per the recipe instructions: Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 8 hours. Flip the bread, score it into 8 pieces on the wet side, and dehydrate for another 4-6 hours, till totally dry.

I just made it into full sheets and scored as I felt like it. I also made sure to lay out the “dough” rather thick, you’ll see 1/4″ in a lot of recipes, that measurement is seriously important, unless you like paper thin crackers. I really enjoyed how thick the bread came out, mine was a bit different than the original author’s. It’s all personal preference anyway, I just want to be able to bite into something versus having it feel like it will break. Maybe it won’t, I’m not experienced enough to be able to say just yet.

Continue reading →

4 Comments

Filed under Gluten free eating, Meals, raw, vegan

Tagged as allergen free food, bread using dehydrator, eating raw, gluten free bread, how to make raw dehydrated tomato bread, living food, raw, raw bread, raw food, raw food sandwich, raw food uncooking, raw meals, raw tomato bread, raw vegan, sun dried tomato dehydrator, tasty tomato bread, tomato bread, tomato bread recipe, uncooking vegan food

Tag Archives: raw food

Virtual Vegan Potluck – Raw Appetizer: Pulp cracker with Cashew sauce

So, what are you eating re: raw food?

Air Eater: Raw food progression

Raw Almond Bread

Raw Buckwheat Groat and Psyllium Husk Pizza

Raw Stuffed Mushrooms

Brendan Brazier’s Raw Portobello Patties

Raw Zucchini chips

Raw Collard Wrap

Raw Tomato Bread

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