Nacho Pizza with Peppers

Nacho Cheese:
1 cup raw cashew butter, sunflower seeds or macadamias (soaked)
1/2 large red bell pepper
1/4 cup water
juice of one lemon
2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon tahini, optional
1½ teaspoon sea salt, to taste
1 clove garlic
2 teaspoon onion powder

Blend all ingredients until creamy. Add more water if it is too thick. Check salt and seasonings. Stir in chopped raw pickled jalapeno peppers.

2-4 mini bell peppers, sliced or diced
2 raw onion flatbreads

Spread prepared nacho cheese on onion breads. Top with bell peppers.

Chia Tapioca Pudding

2-3 Tablespoons chia seeds
1/2 cup plain almond milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1-3 Tablespoons agave nectar, to taste
dash salt

Mix all in a bowl or jar with lid. Stir to combine or shake. Let sit minutes 10 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid lumps. You can let sit as long as 30 minutes, stirring frequently. This will result in a softer seed.

Eat plain or top with raisins (soaked are nice,) berries, bananas, a dash of cinnamon or whatever your heart desires!

Raw Peach Salsa

1-2 peaches or nectarines, diced
1-2 tomatoes, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
1 Tablespoon fresh basil, chiffonade
sea salt and pepper to taste

THE MAC Pizza

Adapted from Matthew Kenney's recipe.

Herb Crust:
3/4 cup fax seeds, ground
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried italian seasonings
1 medium yellow squash, roughly chopped
1 cup walnuts, soaked 1 hour and drained
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup onion
2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons agave
juice of one lemon

Process flax. Blend all in Vitamix until smooth(adding a touch of water if needed to turn over.) Spread on Teflex sheet in 1/2 inch thick large circle. Dehydrate for 8 hours. Flip and score with pizza cutter into 6-8 slices of pizza. Dehydrate until mostly dry. These will shrink quite a bit while drying.

Pizza Sauce:
1 tomato, chopped
1 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked 1 hour and drained (reserve liquid)
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
1/4 cup fresh basil
1 teaspoon agave

Place all in Vitamix and process until completely smooth. Add reserved soaking liquid if needed to turn over. This will be thick from the tomato pectin. (Stir water/juice in if it seperates while sitting.)

Macadamia Cheese Spread:
1 cup macadamias
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 Tablespoons onion or shallot
1 garlic clove
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
pinch chipotle powder or cayenne

Blend in Vitamix until creamy and smooth. Add water to get to turn over, if necessary.

Assembly:
2 cups fresh spinach chiffonade
1 tomato, diced
1/2 cup pineapple, minced (optional)
olive oil
salt and pepper

In large bowl or on teflex lined tray, toss spinach, tomato and pineapple with olive oil, salt and pepper. (Keep separate if desired.) Dehydrate 1 hour or until warmed. Spread a layer of mac cheese on crust, followed by tomato sauce. Sprinkle with warmed spinach chiffonade, diced tomato and pineapple. Garnish with fresh basil.

Raspberry Chocolate Tartlette

Cookie Crust:
1/4 cup raw cocoa powder
1 cup oats, powdered in high speed blender
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 T maple syrup (or agave)
2 T agave
2 T unrefined coconut butter (oil)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

Stir all in bowl until well combined. If coconut butter is too stiff to stir, let sit in a warm spot until softened. Spread a thin, even layer in bottom of silicon muffin liners or into a pie plate. Chill until firm.

Raspberry Chocolate Tartlette Ganache:
1/2 cup unrefined coconut butter (oil)
1/2 cup agave (or 1/4 cup maple syrup and 1/4 cup agave)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup fresh raspberries, mashed
1/4 cup raw cocoa powder

Mix all well. Pour over chilled crust. Chill 1 hour or until firm. Garnish with raspberries. Serve chilled.

Spinach Dip Pizza

1 batch Spinach Dip
1 square Raw Onion Flatbread
sliced tomato, optional

Spread the spinach dip evenly on a raw onion flatbread. Top with thinly sliced tomato, if desired.

Spinach Dip Stuffed Mini Peppers

Raw Spinach Dip:
1/4 cup prepared raw macadamia tofu
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
2 cups spinach finely chopped in food processor
4 green onions, minced
1/4 cup chopped water chestnuts or jicima
1/4 cup carrot, minced (optional)
1-2 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
cracker black pepper

Mix tofu and lemon juice by hand. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Check seasoning.

Stuffed Peppers:
mini peppers or small bell peppers, halved
1 recipe raw spinach dip

Gently spoon dip into pepper halves or use as a "chip" to dip into bowl.

You could use raw cashew butter or other nut butter in place of the tofu, but the consistancy and flavor would be greatly affected.

Ugli Fruit

An ugli fruit (pronounced as /ˈʌgli/, or ugly) is a Jamaican tangelo, a citrus fruit created by hybridizing a grapefruit (or pomelo according to some sources) and a tangerine. Wikipedia

I've been seeing these over the past few weeks in stores and have tried a few. They're good, if you like citrus. They're usually pretty sweet and are easy to peel apart.

Garlic-Dill Crackers

I was inspired by my grandmother's seasoned oyster crackers I used to eat as a child. I remember them being very strong in garlic, dill and salt. Sometimes I crave a savory, salty crunch and these hit the spot!

1 cup almonds, finely chopped (I used leftovers from almond milk)
1 cup oats, powdered in dry vitamix container
1/4 cup fresh dill
2 Tablespoons dried dill
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 garlic cloves
1-2 teaspoons sea salt, plus more for garnish
1/2 - 1 cup filtered water
1/4 cup chives, minced

Prepare almonds. Prepare oats. Combine remaining ingredients except chives in vitamix. Starting with 1/2 cup water, process until smooth and well combined. Add water as necessary to turn over and combine. Spread evenly and thinly on teflex dehydrator sheet. Sprinkle with chives and dust with an extra sprinkling of sea salt, if desired. Dehydrate 6-8 hours. Flip onto regular tray and score into desired shapes. Dehydrate 12 hours or until completely crisp.

Throw these on a salad for some crunch!

Speedy Soft Shelled Tacos

Walnut Meat:
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 teaspoon braggs
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Blend all in food processor until meat forms. Check seasoning.

Quick Raw Sour Cream:
3 Tablespoons Raw Tofu
1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Mix in bowl.

1/2 cup lettuce chiffonade
1 tomato, diced
2 green onions, chopped
2 collard leaves

Spread a washed and dried collard leaf on plate. Place half lettuce, followed by half of the walnut meat. Top with half of the tomatoes, green onions and sour cream. repeat with the remaining ingredients.

This is so easy and quick. Most of all it's darn good! I strongly recommend using collard leaves, as opposed to any other green. They really hold up to the large amount of stuffing, and they taste blends right in.

I like to keep the raw tofu on hand, as it's such an easy base for MANY things. If you don't have some in the fridge, here's an alternative method for making sour cream. It's very different from the one above, but I used it many times before discovering the raw tofu. This one it tasty and tangier.

Raw Sour Cream
1 cup coconut meat (½ coconut)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons miso paste
1 cup filtered water
½ cup raw cashew nuts, soaked for 1-2 hours
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

In a blender, blend the coconut, lemon juice, vinegar, miso and ½ cup water until smooth. Add the cashews and more water, a bit at a time until completely smooth. (You may need more than 1 cup water total.) Season with salt to taste. Refrigerate. Keeps 2-3 days.

Quick Garlic-Herb Salad Dressing

1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 clove garlic
2-4 teaspoons fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
black pepper, optional

Blend all in Vitamix until smooth. Store in fridge.

If you don't like the spiciness of raw garlic, substitute garlic powder.

Ani's Raw Sandwich

I made this recipe from Ani's Raw Food Kitchen, with a few adjustments, as always! I cannot follow a recipe to save my life.

Sesame Sunflower Bread
1 cup ground flax seeds
1/3 cup whole flax seeds
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons yellow onion, halved and sliced
1 1/3 cups filtered water
2/3 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup poppy seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Mix all until a dough forms. Spread evenly onto dehydrator tray. Dry for 4 hours;flip and score into desired pieces. Dehydrate another hour before serving, or longer if desired.

Ani's Sun Burgers
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/4 onion, chopped
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon oregano
1 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup flax seeds, ground
1/2 cup water

Place all in food processor and mix well until dough forms. Form 4-6 balls into burger patties. Eat as is, or if desired, dehydrate 2-4 hours until outside is dry.

Serve with raw catsup, mustard, lettuce, sliced tomato,raw nut cheese spread, raw pickles or other desired toppings.

I had made these a couple months back and put them in the freezer. I recommend placing wax paper between each slice or burger, so they can be individually removed as needed. The breads were soft, so I toasted them in the toaster on the lowest setting. This crisped up the outside, but the inside was still moist and raw. Yum! I originally dehydrated the burgers, so they were also softer, but I enjoyed them this way.

Oatmeal Breakfast Smoothie

1 cup oats (gluten free)
2 apples, chopped
2-6 Tablespoons agave
1-2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla, optional
Water, as desired

Powder the oats in a dry blender container. Add remaining ingredients. Taste for sweetness. (This will depend on the type of apple you use, as well as your personal preference for sweetness.) Add water for the desired consistency; thick or thin.

Soaking My Nuts & Moss; Almond Milk

I was having a grand "cooking" day yesterday, so had jars of nuts, seeds and even some irish moss going. This first photo is (L to R) irish moss, sesame seeds, almonds, macadamias.

My first jars were walnuts, almonds and macadamias. They are so pretty! I'm making some good stuff! I made some wonderful almond milk out of the almonds, and then made crackers with them.

Almond Milk
1 cup raw almonds, soaked 4 hours
2 cups filtered water
½ cup agave nectar, optional
Pinch of sea salt
1 t vanilla extract, optional (for vanilla almond milk)

Process nuts and water in blender until smooth. Strain through nut bag or multiple layers of cheesecloth, reserving the milk. Wring out the cloth. Rinse out blender cup, and place reserved milk along with remaining ingredients. Combine. Taste for sweetness.

Raw Mango Salsa

1 cucumber, diced
2 mangoes, diced
1/4 red onion, minced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 red jalapeno, minced
juice of one lime
sea salt to taste

Stir "Fried" Veggie Salad

Serve these veggies with your favorite dressing, soy sauce or my Northern Sauce (from Mongolian Veggies:)

4 Tablespoons bragg's (or nama shoyu)
2 Tablespoons almond butter
1 Tablespoon agave nectar, or more to taste
1 teaspoon raw apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon raw coconut water vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup virgin canola oil
1 Tablespoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
hot sauce, to taste

Mix all well. Pour over:

1 carrot, sliced
1 cup red cabbage, sliced
3 ribs celery, sliced
2 green onions, diced

Raw Parmesan

1 cup pine nuts, soaked and drained
1 cup water
1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 tablespoon sea salt

Blend all in Vitamix until smooth. Pour into teflex sheets and dehydrate until completely crisp and dry. 24 hours or so. Store in sealed container in the fridge.

Spaghetti with Sauce and Parmesan

Marinara:
1 cup sun dried tomatoes
4 Roma-style fresh tomatoes
12 cherry tomatoes
4-6 cloves fresh garlic
1 Tbsp nama shoyu (soy sauce)
1/2 onion
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp raw agave nectar (or maple syrup)
juice of one lemon
4 Tbsp fresh basil
2 Tbsp mixed italian seasonings (rosemary, thyme, oregano, etc)

Puree in high speed blender. Pour desired amount over kelp noodles (or favorite raw noodle.) Sprinkle with prepared raw parmesan.

Fruit Salad; Yummy yummy!

Don't forget to enjoy the simplest of raw foods; fruit salad! Mix your favorite fruits or handy ones. Serve plain, with a drizzle of agave, or with herbs such as mint or basil. If you're looking to add a little extra sustainance or calories, stir in or dip with nut butter of choice.

Raw Nori Roll Up #2

1 cup raw sauerkraut
3-4 sheets nori

Place kraut at one side of nori sheet. Roll up. Repeat with remain ingredients. Serve with wasabi paste.

I made a little one with red cabbage and rolled it. Then prepared one with white cabbage and rolled the first inside of the second.

Raw Nori Roll Up #1

1 tomato, sliced
1 avocado, sliced
4 sheets nori

Place a strip of tomato and avocado on one side of a nori sheet. Roll up. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Serve with Braggs or other soy sauce.

Corn and Spinach Salad

Use your favorite raw dressing or try this sour honey mustard:
2 teaspoons mustard
2 teaspoon honey or agave, or to taste
1-2 teaspoons vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
sea salt and pepper to taste

Blend well. Check seasoning. Pour over:

3 ears raw corn, stripped of kernels
2 large handfuls spinach
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 cucumber sliced

Raw Creamed Cabbage and Carrots

1/2 red cabbage, sliced
2-3 carrots, shredded
2 teaspoons vinegar, or to taste
1/4 cup macadamias, soaked and drained
sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, optional
1/2 teaspoons cumin, optional

Place macadamias in high speed blender and blend until smooth, adding water if necessary. Add all but cabbage and carrots in a bowl to form a sauce. Check seasoning. Thin with water if necessary. Toss with veggies. Serve room temp or chilled.

Raw Dill Spiced Creamed Cucumbers

1 cucumber, sliced
2 teaspoons vinegar, or to taste
1/4 cup cashews, soaked and drained
sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, optional
2 tablespoons fresh dill, minced

Place cashews in high speed blender and blend until smooth, adding water if necessary. Add all but cucumbers in a bowl to form a sauce. Check seasoning. Thin with water if necessary. Toss with cucumbers. Serve room temp or chilled.

Vanilla Pudding with Fruit

Toss a couple scoops of preparedRaw Vanilla Ice Cream in a blender or food processor. Blend until creamy and smooth. Top with your favorite fruit, such as sliced bananas and strawberries.

Sesame Asian Toss Up

2 teaspoons braggs
1/4 cup virgin sesame oil
1-3 teaspoons red chili flakes, to taste
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
2 tablespoons almond butter or tahini, optional

Mix well. Pour over:

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup mung bean sprouts
1/2 cup pea pods

Sturdy Thai Salad

Inspired from Matthew Kenneys Everyday Raw.

1/2 cup virgin sesame oil
1/2 cup braggs or nama shoyu
1/4 olive oil, optional
juice of one lime
2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave
1-3 teaspoons red chili flakes
dash curry powder, to taste
1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste

Blend all well. Pour over:

2 cups romain or other mixed greens
1/2 cup finely diced pineapple
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes (or sundried)
1 avocado, diced
1/2 orange pepper, diced
1/4 cup dried coconut (or 1/2 cup young coconut meat, sliced in strips)
1/4 cup macadamias or cashews

Raw Sauerkraut

4 tablespoons raw vinegar
1/2 green cabbage, chopped
1/2 red cabbage, chopped
water to cover
2 tablespoons sea salt

Stuff green cabbage in a mason jar. Pound it in with a wooden stick to release some juices. Add 2 tablespoons and 1 tablespoon salt. Cover with water.

Repeat with red cabbage in a another container. Let sit in refriderator for a week, turning daily. To serve, mix green and red gently. Add sea salt to taste.

I was inspired by the Raw Fermented Sauerkraut recipe at goneraw.com, but was too lazy to let it ferment properly.

Raw Macadamia Alfredo with Chipotle Sprinkle

1/2 cup macadamias or pine nuts, soaked 2 hours and drained (or combo)
1/2 cup filtered water
1 garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon onion powder or fresh onion
sea salt, to taste
nutritional yeast, to taste
chipotle powdered, to taste (optional)
1 package raw kelp noodles

Blend all except noodles in high speed blender. (Add extra water if too thick; add a handful of kelp noodles if too thin.) Process until desired texture is achieved. Pour over remaining kelp noodles. Sprinkle with powdered chipotle, if desired.

Optional stir ins:
sun dried tomato or fresh
olives
carrot shavings
chopped bell pepper
chopped broccoli
chopped cauliflower
chopped mushrooms
peas
nutmeg sprinkle
basil chiffinade
spinach chiffinade
squeeze of lemon juice

Raw Chocolate Cacoa Sauce

1 cup raw cacoa beans, powdered in high speed blender
1 - 1 1/2 cups agave nectar
1/2 cup raw cacoa butter
salt to taste

Powder cacoa beans in high speed blender (or coffee grinder) and set aside. Add agave and cacoa butter and blend until butter has melted. (5 minutes or more) Add cacoa powder and blend until mixed. Check seasoning and add salt.

Keeps at room temperature, but will harden. To soften, place in dehydrator for a few hours. Alternatively, in a bowl within a bowl of warm water, stirring until all sauce is warmed.

Add a touch a vanilla extract for a vanilla-chocolate sauce. Add a touch of peppermint extract for a chocolate-mint sauce.

Raw Banana Split; Pineapple, Strawberry & Chocolate Sauce

1-2 bananas, split lengthwise
1/2 cup strawberries
1/2 cup pineapple
4-8 Tablespoons raw agave nectar, divided
1/2 cup raw cacoa sauce, warmed in dehydrator
raw vanilla ice cream

Place strawberries and 2 tablespoons agave in food processor. Taste for sweetness, and add up to 2 tablespoons more if desired. Set aside. Repeat with pineapple and remaining agave. Place split banana in bottom of bowl. Top with 1-3 scoops of raw ice cream. Top with strawberry sauce, pineapple sauce and warmed raw cacoa sauce. Add a fresh cherry on top if desired!

Apple Stuffed Tomatoes with Sweet Mustard Marinade

granny smith apple, julienned
carrot, julienned or shaved into long strips
cucumber, julienned
jicima, julienned
2-4 beefsteak tomatoes
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon honey (or agave)
salt and pepper to taste

Mix mustard and honey together in bowl. Check seasonings. Add all remaining ingredients except for tomatoes and toss to coat. Cut off stem tops of tomatoes. Hollow them out with a spoon, discarding innards (or use elsewhere.) Spoon mixture into the tomatoes and serve room temp or chilled.

The Horned Melon

I saw this at the Duluth Cub Foods, and picked one up. I like to try new fruits and veggies whenever I can get my hands on them. This one was great for the novelty, but I have to admit, I can't see myself eating it frequently. It was pretty boring in flavor, but the texture was interesting.

From Wikipedia: The horned melon (Cucumis metuliferus), also called African horned cucumber or melon, jelly melon, hedged gourd, melano, or kiwano, is an annual vine in the cucumber and melon family. It is grown for its fruit, which looks like an oval melon with horn-like spines. The fruit of this plant is edible, but it is used as often for decoration as for food. Though the horned melon is native to Africa, it is now grown in California and New Zealand as well.

In Zimbabwe, this cucumber is called 'gaka' or 'gakachika' and it is primarily used as a fruit-snack, salad and rarely for decoration. It is eaten young, mature green or when ripe - bright yellow/orange (eaten at any stage of its development). It grows naturally in the fields and also in the bush. However, some people leave some to rot in the fields for next summer seeds/plants. Its taste has been compared to a combination of cucumber and zucchini[1] or a combination of banana, cucumber and lemon.[2] Some eat the peeling as well. It has a replica that does not have horns, but looks and tastes similar. The seeds are covered in a gelatin-like substance.

Fresh Radish Dip in Lettuce Boats

3-4 raw radishes
1-2 garlic cloves
1/2 cup cashew butter (or macadamia)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Finely chop radishes and garlic cloves in food processor. Add cashew butter and salt and mix until combined. Scoop in to lettuce boat. Top with desired optional ingredients.

Optional:
sliced tomato
lettuce leaves
grated carrot
sprouts
minced red onion

This could be served as a veggie dip, or as a dressing (add a little water to thin.) You could add a little nutritional yeast to the radish dip for a cheesier flavor.
I would love to eat this as a sandwich between two slices of raw onion bread, arugula lettuce leaves, brandywine tomato slice, grated carrot and sprouts. Yum!