RAW Living and Learning

On Thursday night I was thinking ahead to Friday's breakfast. I was in the mood for chia again and decided to get some seeds soaking. When I woke up I decided to make a Chia pudding. Well, once I had the chia pudding almost finished I changed my mind and turned it into a parfait. All the buzz about parfaits must have gotten me thinking about eating one. Here is my recipe for a Chia Cashew Coconut Kream Parfait: Chia Cashew Coconut Kream Parfait 1/2 C chia seeds , soaked over night in 3/4 C filtered water 1/8 C unsweetened shredded coconut 1/2 C raw cashews , soaked and drained 4 Deglet dates 1 tsp Lucuma powder 1/8 t vanilla pinch of sea salt cinnamon and nutmeg to garnish top I soaked my chia seeds overnight. This ratio of chia to water creates a nice thick chia gel, allowing you to thin, as needed, with more water. Next I processed the cashews, dates, coconut, salt, vanilla and Lucuma. Then I added the chia gel a few spoonfuls at a time; proces...

I learned about soap nuts this evening and wanted to tell you to go check out the give away at animal-friendly eating. I am trying to contact the company also to test their product, and give it a review. Peace and RAW Clean Health!

Squash Pasta with Lemon Sauce I think all of you lucky enough to have gardens overflowing with produce, zucchini and yellow squash in particular, may welcome this recipe. Another way to utilize your stock of squash and zucchini!  Right now I am not fortunate enough to have any, so I resort to purchasing it at the local market.  I made my pasta with a yellow squash and my vegetable peeler, because I don't have my spiralizer yet. :( I added sliced asparagus and chopped red bell pepper, then tossed it all with a very delicious lemon sauce. Lastly I sprinkled it with Dulse and onion powder. It was fantastic. Very light and fresh tasting; a perfect summer dish, in my humble opinion. Here is the recipe: Squash Pasta with Lemon Sauce 1 large yellow squash made into noodles w/ veggie peeler 4 stalks of asparagus, cut on the diagonal into bite size pieces 1/2 of a red bell pepper, chopped Dulse flakes Onion powder Lemon Sauce 1/4 C raw walnu...

I have to post a second post for today because I am excited about another giveaway at Rawfully Tempting . I actually won one this month but missed out on it because we were away for 5 days and I was unable to respond to the e-mail w/ in 48 hours. I was very sad!! I really need this coffee extract because I have been making raw chocolate birthday cakes for the kids (see post for 7/18/10) and like to put coffee in to enhance the flavor of the raw cacao. I don't like using coffee, for obvious raw reasons. She had suggested I use this extract when I posted my recipe, stating that I had added some decaf coffee instead. So there you go...I need this extract. It would be really great to win this giveaway. Check it out for yourself at Rawfully Tempting . Peace and have a great raw night!

For this dish I was inspired by two recipes from The Raw Transformation . The Raw Transformation First I marinated my portobellos for six hours in the following marinade: Marinade 1/2 C first cold pressed EVOO 1/4 C fresh lemon juice 1/2 C filtered water 1 tsp grated ginger 2 cloves garlic, pressed 1 T Tamari Mushrooms Marinating...Gettin H appy :) While the mushrooms were doing their thing I started making my Herbed Nut Cheese. I combined several nuts to utilize each one's unique taste and texture. Combining them made a very tasty and filling cheese. I let the nut cheese set over night in the refrigerator. The next day I stuffed and dehydrated the shrooms.                                                 ...

Chocolate Breakfast Oatmeal   I was introduced to a blog yesterday and I found a recipe for chocolate oatmeal. I decided to adapt her recipe to my tastes and I came up with an amazing Chocolate Breakfast Oatmeal. As I sit here eating it I have to think, "Can I really eat this for breakfast?" It tastes like a wonderful dessert. Like a chocolate oatmeal cookie, but in a bowl. Raw foods are great aren't they? I love that no rules apply when deciding what to eat for each meal. As I have posted before, my favorite thing to eat in the morning is actually salad!! So this is a bit different. If I could figure out how to incorporate some greens into it I would. Actually I just got a great idea. I just "harvested" my brown lentils today; those are going in! Lentils would go great with chocolate. If you don't love brown lentils, leave them out, you'll think it is strange. I love them and they taste great in my bowl. I added 1 heaping tablespoon. I'm think...

Getting back into the normal routine after a trip is always a chore with a large family. It still amazes me how much laundry a family of seven can produce on a short 5 day vacation! But I am digging my way out from underneath this mountain of dirty clothes and trying to get back to normal. Unpacking all of the suitcases is what I dread the most. Then I get to sort through all of the mess and try to make piles of color sorted laundry, the kiddos help with this. I already have done about 5 loads and I think I have 5 more.The older two help me with switching the wet clothes to the dyer and then emptying the dryer and folding. Thank goodness for that!  On the brighter side, I am happy to say that my sprout kitchen is back in full swing. My lentils will be ready to eat today and the broccoli sprouts should be ready in three days. I will plant my sunflower seeds on Thursday or so, after they get their tails on. My adzuki beans are in the sprout bag.  Now that I...

Today I am inspired by Raw on $10 a day or Less . Here is her amazing recipe. I have my chia soaking right now and will be enjoying this wonderful and healthful breakfast in just about twenty minutes. Here is my Chia http://astore.amazon.com/rawlivandlea-20/detail/B001CJOMZC  Can't wait to try her recipe!! Click on this link to see her recipe and photos: http://rawon10.blogspot.com/ "Breakfast Ch-ch-chocolate Chia (From Raw on $10 a Day or Less) serves 2 ~ $1.46 per serving 2 oz chia seeds ($1.56) 2 tablespoons cocoa or cacao powder ($.40) 2 tablespoons agave or sweetener ($.20) dash salt 10 oz water 2 tablespoons crushed walnuts ($.25) 2 tablespoons raisins ($.10) chocolate sauce ($.40) Put the chia seeds, cacao powder, sweetener and salt in a bowl and cover with the water. Let sit for 15-30 minutes until the chia seeds have gelled . Stir really well, breaking up any lumps, and top with walnuts, raisins and chocolate sauce. The chocola...

We just returned form a trip to Orlando, our third in the past 10 months. Fun for the kids and I, but somewhat of "work" for the hubby. He was in classes all day getting his continuing ed credits for Optometry. The good thing about continuing ed is we get to go to really great hotels. Several of the meetings have been at The Breakers. That is by far our favorite location. This year it was held at The Hilton Orlando. It is a fairly new hotel and we enjoyed it very much. It had the most amazing pool for the children. I actually had all 5 kids in the pool all by myself for most of the day. My husband would come down on his longer breaks from class and hang out with us, but for the most part I was doing it alone. It worked great, I was surprised. I didn't think I could keep track of the 3 little ones alone. Thank goodness for arm floats!! They did so well. Mason, our 6 year old, did fine swimming around without any help, so I mostly had to keep a close eye on the 1 and 3 y...

Ugly Ripe Tomatoes Yes, there really are tomatoes called, "ugly ripe tomatoes". I don't know if you get them up north but down here in Florida they are very popular. I actually took the children on a homeschool field trip to a local large farm company that grows them. The expert at the farm says they are the best tasting of all the Florida tomatoes, and we agree! They are meaty and juicy and full of flavor. If you ever see them in your market, give them a try! I decided to make them the star of my lunch on Tuesday. I topped them with my Thick and Creamy Raw Ranch dressing. I served them with a side of sunflower sprouts and broccoli stems I had leftover from another recipe. I love broccoli stems. They have a sweetness about them and are so tender. They make great dipping sticks for raw dips too. Today I simply ate them with fresh lemon juiced squeezed on top. Man were they good that way. Sometimes simple is best. Ugly Ripe Tomato Plate 1 large ugly ripe tomato, sliced i...

Monday morning I woke up feeling the need for greens!! Upon awakening I had a cup of wheat grass and a little while later my Klamath Blue Green Algae. The wheat grass I drank was a powder from http://www.bestorganicwheatgrass.com/ . I signed up for free samples on their website. It is a great product. The taste is fine. It is not bad or good, it just IS. I get more of a grain taste from it than a grassy one. It is just unexplainable, but it is not bad at all. I drink it right down in about 5 seconds. No after taste at all! It is best to always take it on an empty stomach for proper absorption. It is assimilated into the bloodstream in about 20 minutes. The company states ten reasons why they love wheatgrass. Ten Reasons Why We Love Wheatgrass A Complete Food. Easy Pha-max wheatgrass is the ONLY wheatgrass that includes the roots containing anti-cancer agents. One serving provides 17 kinds of amino acids, 13 vitamins, 10 minerals, fiber, chlorophyll and over 100 types...

Jicama Cilantro Salad It is HOT down here in SW Florida and I can't think of a more refreshing salad than this. It was so fresh and so light, making it the perfect dish for a hot humid day. I had it for lunch the other day and then enjoyed it as a side with dinner. I had some leftover jicama and cilantro and decided to throw this together. Here is the simple recipe: Jicama Cilantro Salad 1 small jicama or 1/2 of a large jicama cut into small cubes juice from 1 large lime or 2 small limes handful of fresh chopped cilantro pinch of sea salt Toss all of the ingredients together and enjoy the simple goodness. ~JMJ~Today I am grateful for the fact that God is good, very good. He times everything perfectly, as He is perfect. We had an unexpected "gift", so to speak, come at just the right time to cover an unexpected, very large, expense. God is good, He will provide for all that we need. Trust and keep the faith. Peace and Raw Health!

Raw Cacao Birthday Cake Our son, Eric Jr., turned four yesterday. We took our five children to a movie in 3-D, came home for dinner, gifts and raw cake!!!! Here is a photo of the youngest three in their 3-D glasses. Eric Jr. is on the left, Mason in the middle and Aidan on the right. The older two refused to pose.    All five children  really enjoyed the flick. But I think they liked the raw cake even better. Here is a photo of Eric Jr. before he blew out his candles. He did not want his picture taken, he just wanted to dig into that cake. He was asking me all day when he could have some. Too funny! I will NOT smile while you all sing! Watch the expression change. Blowing out the candles...gonna get a bite soon. Now look at this expression, pure happiness....raw cacao happiness!! "My fork is stuck." "Oh, I got it out, back to the cake." I used two recipes for inspiration. One was from Rawfully Tempting  and the other from the book, ...