RAW Living and Learning

Tonight's dinner was a wonderfully light yet satisfying meal. Spiralized green zucchini noodles loaded with fresh veggies and parsley. I tossed it with a light vinaigrette that everyone enjoyed . Raw Zucchini Noodles with Vinaigrette Here is my recipe : 3 small green zucchini, spiralized into noodles 1/4 of a sweet onion, diced 4 baby Bella mushrooms, diced handful of fresh parsley, chopped 8 grape tomatoes, diced Gently toss the noodles and vegetables together. Drizzle with the following vinaigrette: Elizabeth's Favorite Vinaigrette 1/4 C First Cold Pressed Olive Oil 2 T Rice Vinegar 1 T Dijon mustard 1 T raw honey dash of cumin dash of dried basil 1 small clove garlic pressed 1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger Whisk together in a small bowl or shake well in a glass jar with tight fitting lid. Stores well in refrigerator for 4-5 days. The second version of raw zucchini noodles I enjoyed last week. I made a delicious creamy sauce that I found on The High Raw Nourished Kitch...

Green Mint Sorbet My sweetie wanted a treat the other night so I threw this together for him. I must say it was very, very good. I loved the little specks of green and the mint and slight hint of lemon were just amazing in this recipe. Green Mint Sorbet In a food processor, process the following until creamy and smooth: 1and 1/2 frozen bananas 5 small mint leaves small handful of baby spinach 1 lemon wedge, seeds removed and half of the skin remaining Enjoy! +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for trampolines and bean bags. I got such joy today out of watching my kids play on the trampoline and try so hard to get their bean bags into the toss game. Precious moments that I cherish. 

Swiss Chard I have no idea who to thank for this incredible dressing recipe--I think it might be Kelli??, but this is now our new favorite--at least for my daughter and I that is. I even made it tonight and put it on some red cabbage, raisins, apples, raw soaked walnuts and sweet onion. Fabulous!!  Maple-Balsamic Dijon Vinaigrette 2 T EVOO or oil of choice 1 T balsamic 2 tsp pure maple syrup (this isn't raw) 2 tsp organic Dijon 1 small clove garlic, pressed Whisk well and serve. Swiss Chard Salad 1 bunch of rainbow Swiss chard, thinly sliced 1 organic apple, diced and drizzled with lemon juice 1 handful of organic raisins 1/3 C raw walnuts, soaked overnight sweet onion, finely diced fresh sprouts (to garnish) raw sesame seeds (to garnish) Enjoy this amazing salad tossed with the Maple-Balsamic Dijon Vinaigrette. It is fabulous!! +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for the "Wednesday Farmer's Market" that I went to after finishing up teaching our 6 year old. I got some amaz...

Cheezy Pesto Nori Crackers The first step in this recipe is to soak your raw nuts overnight and soak the seeds for 2 hours.  Drain them well and dry on paper towels. The rest is super easy, just throwing ingredients into the food processor. It helps to lay everything out first. Here are the ingredients needed: 1/2 C raw almonds, soaked over night 1/2 C raw sunflower seeds, soaked 2 hours 1/3 C raw pumpkin seeds, soaked 2 hours 1-2 T fresh lemon juice 1 tsp dried rosemary 6 fresh basil leaves small bunch of fresh parsley 2 small cloves garlic pinch of sea salt 3 drops of wheat free tamari 2 T nutritional yeast 2 sheets of Nori seaweed Process all of the ingredients, EXCEPT the Nori sheets, in a food processor until crumbly but sticks together when pressed between your fingers. If too dry moisten a bit with some water. Lay out the Nori sheets on a Teflex dehydrator tray. Using the back of a spoon, spread the cheezy pesto onto the Nori sheets evenly. Dehydrate for 3-...

Creamy Raw Dilly Dip I was looking for an easy, healthy, yummy raw dip for spreading on collard wraps or just dipping raw veggies. I threw this one together and it was a hit!! Full of flavor with spices and creamy smooth due to the avocado and tahini. Here is the recipe. Enjoy! CREAMY RAW DILLY DIP (SPREAD) 1 small avocado 2 T raw tahini 2-3 T fresh squeezed lemon juice 2 T filtered water 1/4 tsp wheat free tamari 1/4 tsp raw honey 1/4 tsp sea salt 1/4 tsp chili powder 1 tsp chives 1 tsp onion powder or dehydrated onion flakes 1 tsp dill weed (+1 tsp more for garnish) Place all into the food processor and process till creamy. Allow to chill in refrig for 4 hours. Garnish with more dill weed before serving. +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for an unexpected act of pure generosity. We had a short somewhere in our phone lines and the phone and Internet were down. A man came into the house and had to rewire the lines. Four of the five kids were having breakfast and our oldest son had th...

I like to jump start my morning with GREENS. I made a wonderful energizing green juice today that gave me the start I needed. This juice is very green, no fruit. I wouldn't try it as a beginner juicer but veteran juicers will love it. The undertone of mint was wonderful and it really blended beautifully with the dandelion and parsley. I love the color, again a smile came to my face. :) Green Start Your Morning Juice 1 large organic cucumber, skin on! 6 large dandelion greens Small bunch of parsley, stems included 6-8 small mint leaves Handful of sunflower sprouts (optional) +Run all of your greens through the juicer. Enjoy the raw energy and healing nutrients you are fueling your body with. The dandelion greens give me a sort of natural high. I feel really energized after juicing them or even when I drink them in a green smoothie. I put dandelion greens in the children's green smoothies and they don't detect a thing. I suppose they are so use to greens now, but ...

Mason's Dandy-Cherry Creamy Smoothie We start each meal with our fruit first. I have learned that eating fruits at the end of a meal makes all of the food in your belly ferment in the fruit sugars. Not a pleasing thought! And since we have a few family members that suffer with various IBD issues we really have to be careful with foods . Each day we try to incorporate a green smoothie and a fresh juice made with my juicer; which I love by-the-way. This morning I was low on "supplies" so my 6 year old son and I put together this smoothie. The only green I had left in the fridge was a beautiful bunch of dandelion greens. I had bought them to make an apple dandelion smoothie a few days ago but I had an accident with my new blender. The last blender broke a few weeks ago so I ran out in desperation and just bought a cheap BHG blender from Wallyworld. It actually is really powerful and was working great until I dropped the glass canister in the sink and cracked it. I pho...

Daikon Noodles with Grape Tomatoes and Cilantro I have been wanting to try Daikon noodles for some time now so when I saw the beautiful organic ones at the Farmer's Market I knew now was the time to get busy with the spiralizer. They are super easy to spiralize and they make beautiful noodles. I love the mild taste, almost like a very mild radish but so much more refreshing. I dressed the noodles with some First Cold Pressed Olive Oil, sea salt, fresh ground black pepper and then topped them with some grape tomatoes and cilantro. This made a very satisfying dinner for me, I just loved it! I have one more Daikon left, I am thankful for that. I need to think of another way to prepare this lovely vegetable. Any ideas?? +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for a burst of energy this morning that got me up out of bed and right into a workout routine! Wow, what a surprise. I have been having trouble just remembering to exercise, so when I woke up ready to get to it, I was very happy and grateful....

RAW SALSA HEMP SOUP Looking for a super simple, super fast raw dinner you can throw together is 5 minutes or less after a looong day at work, or a loooong day of chasing 5 kids around???? Boy do I have a tasty recipe for you. I like that you can still give this soup a creamy taste with out using avocado. (Thinking of you Cynthia XOXO) I served mine with a side of romaine topped with radish sprouts, a drizzle of smoked tomato dressing and smothered in Bubbie's kraut. Yummy in my tummy!! Enjoy the raw goodness. RAW SALSA HEMP SOUP 1 very large "Ugly Ripe Tomato", diced 1 small clove of organic garlic 1 T Hemp Seeds 2 stalks of organic celery 1/2 small lemon peeled and diced, remove seeds 1 scallion, sliced for garnish Process all ingredients, minus the scallion, in your food processor. Pour into your favorite soup bowl and top with the scallions. Raw is easy and delicious--no excuses, right?! +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for small attainable goals.

WELCOME BACK: DR. BRIAN CLEMENT, DIRECTOR OF THE HIPPOCRATES HEALTH INSTITUTE IN WEST PALM BEACH, FL I was blessed to be able to meet Dr. Clement and his lovely wife when they came to speak at our Living Foods Group here in SW Florida. This is a description of our meeting as posted on our meetup site : "WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE HEALTHY??? WHY DO WE EAT JUNK?? DR CLEMENT GETS BEHIND THE MOST CURRENT SCIENCE TO EDUCATE US ON WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO! WHY ARE OUR CHILDREN SO SICK?? WHY SO MANY AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES? WHY DOES 1 IN 3 HAVE CANCER????? Dr.Clement will address the half century of work on disease and longevity conducted at the renowned Hippocrates Institute. Cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, MS, ALS, Parkinson’s, fibromyalgia and more can be altered, prevented, and at times conquered with Phyto-chemicals, antioxidants and other nutrients consumed on a diet of organic vegan living food. Hundreds of thousands worldwide share enthusiasm in their greatly improved hea...

Farmer's Market Collard Wraps "To truly detoxify your lifestyle, think about what you can add in, NOT JUST TAKE OUT." by Terri Trespicio ++++++++++++++++++++++++ I have been making all kinds of great things with my produce from the Farmer's market. I bought some beautiful collard greens, I have never seen such big collard leaves! I also bought a head of nappa cabbage and decided to make a simple slaw. I used carrots, cabbage and some Lemonaise. Rolled up the slaw with some broccoli and clover sprouts and served it with a side of grape tomatoes and cilantro. So simple and so good. +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for clear blue skies, and a six year old little boy who comments on how nice the bright sunshine is. :) 

Papaya Sunset Soup The farmer's market had some sensational organic papaya and I just had to try this magnificent soup. The trend seems to be recipes from Raw Energy this week. I have been having a blast trying all of her recipes. Every single one has been amazing. My goal is to eventually prepare each and every recipe in the book. There is not one that does not intrigue me. Plan ahead when making this soup as it does need to chill at least 2 hours before serving. Did you know that papayas are a good source of digestive enzymes, carotenoids and natural sugars, plus vitamin C, potassium, folic acid, calcium and fiber. I learned all of this by reading the author's nutritional tidbits that she puts on each page. She went on to say that regular consumption of papaya will greatly benefit the condition of hair, skin, and nails. Here is the recipe for Papaya Sunset Soup,   by Stephanie Tourles.  (I called mine Farmer's Market Papaya Soup) 3 medium papayas (I used 1 large organ...

I have been having fun making several recipes from Stephanie Tourles book titled, RAW ENERGY 124 Raw Food Recipes for Energy Bars, Smoothies, and Other Snacks to Supercharge Your Body. How's that for a title?! Last Saturday I went to the Farmer's Market and loaded up on the organic produce so I could make some more recipes from her book. I also have been having a blast with my dehydrator this winter. I said I was going to make some sweet potato chips soon and I decided to use the recipe found in RAW ENERGY. The recipe is for "Sweet Potato Chili Chips". They turned out wonderful! I have four more organic sweet potatoes left from the Farmer's market so I can make another batch. Very happy about that. The recipe calls for 2 large sweet potatoes but I used 4 small ones. I sliced them very thin using my slicer from Pampered Chef and then coated them with EVOO, chili powder, sea salt, and a small amount of wheat free Tamari. I layed them out on the mesh dehydrator s...

Dehydrated Mushroom Burger The next step in my transition last year was to finally break down and buy a dehydrator. I really wanted to be able to dry my raw nuts after having soaked them as directed. And the thought of making raw cookies and raw crackers was very enticing. I am so glad that I made the investment. I purchased the 5-tray Excalibur . I have used it a great deal and couldn't imagine not having one; it makes living this lifestyle a breeze. I can have everything I need on hand and whip up any recipe I desire. There are so many things I have yet to make in the dehydrator that I don't think I'll ever get bored with recipes. I've mentioned before how much I love Lisa's blog, Raw on $10 a Day (or Less!) and here is her mushroom burger recipe. I think it turned out great! The batch I made gave me 4 burgers. I put too many red pepper flakes in so mine were on the spicy side. I ate mine on a bed of organic spinach and then smothered it with slightly dehydrated...

My Breakfast My breakfast today was inspired by the book Raw Energy . I just love reading through my raw and living food recipe books, it is one of my favorite things to do when I have time to myself. A Great Book I had two hours to myself yesterday as I waited for our daughter to complete her Drama Class. I sat out in the fresh air and flipped through two of my raw recipe books daydreaming about all of the meals and snacks I wanted to create. Since I decided to add even more fresh juices into my diet this year I just had to try one this morning from the book mentioned above. It was inspired by Stephanie's "Post-Workout Replenisher" recipe on pg. 131. Her recipe calls for apples, carrots and celery. I chose to throw in a large handful of organic flat leaf parsley. It doesn't make a pretty juice but boy is it delicious. Would You Drink This? The orange of the carrots and the green from the parsley created an ugly brown color. Drink this one slowly, it has quite a bit...