RAW Living and Learning

Lately I've been blessed with fresh, green, Florida coconuts from my neighbor's trees. We enjoy drinking the coconut water and also using the coconut meat in our raw, vegan recipes. Several days ago, on Instagram, I posted a smoothie that I made for the children utilizing both the coconut water and the fresh coconut meat. I decided to top it with some homemade, dairy free whipped topping just to surprise them and to make it extra decadent.  In order to make the whipped topping, you must plan ahead because the coconut milk you use must be chilled completely so that you can take the heavy cream off of the separated liquid below it. To do this all you need in one can of full fat coconut milk. Open the can and pour the contents into a glass jar. Refrigerate until it separates and the thick cream is floating on the top. I like to let mine chill over night. Remove the thickened coconut cream and put into a bowl. Then using an immersion blender, whip the cream with 1 tsp of pure c...

Just a quick blog post to share a scrumptious raw vegan breakfast recipe with you. I made this beautiful smoothie bowl in less than five minutes! Everyone has time to make super healthy recipes that properly nourish growing children and full grown adults as well!! With just a few fresh and frozen ingredients, a high speed blender (or food processor), and a touch of creativity, you'll have a crowd pleasing breakfast on the table in no time.  If you'd like to follow me on Instagram to see all of my raw vegan recipes, you can follow me @lowfatrawvegan  Here is my super simple recipe: Disassembled Breakfast Smoothie By rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com 3 large frozen bananas 1 fresh, ripe banana 1 cup fresh orange juice 1 cup frozen blueberries 1 cup frozen raspberries  I blended the above ingredients on "ice cream mode" in my Blendtec blender until thick and creamy. Garnish with sliced fresh bananas, chia seeds, black sesame seeds and fresh raspberries. Or use your creat...

I had some organic Golden Delicious Apples that we're getting a little soft, so I decided to toss them in the Blendtec blender and make some raw applesauce for my breakfast today. It turned out to be spectacular! That's what I adore about raw foods--the taste explosion I experience each and every time I eat this luscious food.  Here is my basic recipe: Raw Applesauce   By Elizabeth  at rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com 5 Organic Golden Delicious apples, rough chop Juice of 1 organic lemon 1/4 or less cup of water  Garnish with cinnamon and ginger In my Blendtec blender I poured the lemon juice and water. Next I added the apples. I processed  it a few seconds on "sauces" mode. Garnished it with ground cinnamon & ginger.  The children tast d it and gave it a big thumbs up!!!!! That makes me happy. +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for my baby lemon, lychee, papaya, and mango trees that I am growing. I sprouted...

One of my little guys requested an Apple Pie Smoothie the other day so that is exactly what I made him! We all have been enjoying my Pumpkin Pie Smoothie recipe and he thought, since I could make up a recipe for that, surely I could make up one for Apple Pie. It was a success!! He was very happy and satisfied. You can use any apple you like for this recipe; he chose Golden Delicious, so that is what I used. Apple Pie Smoothie by Elizabeth @rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com 4 frozen ripe bananas 1 ripe banana Juice of 1/2 a lemon 2 Golden Delicious, organic apples 4 Medjool dates, remove pits 2 Tbsp raw Hemp Hearts 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice 1/4 tsp Allspice Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender. Garnish smoothies with dried mulberries and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Enjoy! +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for the kindness shown to me yesterday. 

As I mentioned the other day, I have been juicing a ton of carrots lately. To be exact, I have been juicing 5 pounds of carrots each morning!  I drink it throughout the morning and I also add some to recipes.  A few days ago I used a little bit of my carrot juice in the smoothie and smoothie bowl recipe that I made for the children and me; It was what I call "Pumpkin Pie Smoothie and Pumpkin Pie In a Bowl." Pumpkin Pie Smoothie/Pumpkin Pie In a Bowl by Elizabeth @rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com 12 oz of fresh pumkin or canned 7 frozen, ripe bananas 5 Medjool dates, remove pits 2 T raw, hemp hearts 1/2 cup fresh carrot juice or water Squeeze of fresh lemon juice 1 Tablespoon of Pumpkin Pie Spice 1 teaspoon of cinnamon Blend all of the ingredients until creamy smooth. I blended mine on "smoothie mode" in my Blendtec Blender. Garnish the smoothies with a sprinkle of cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Enjoy! For the Pumpki...

Today I surprised the children with a new smoothie recipe. I had made some raw almond butter and wanted use it in a smoothie recipe for them. Having found some extremely fresh Medjool dates the other day at the market, I knew they had to be one of the smoothie ingredients as well. Here is what it looked like: And let me just tell you, it tasted like pure bliss!!!!! This is a must try!!! They will be requesting this smoothie again, or so I was told. Here is my recipe:   Raw Cookie Dough Smoothie by Elizabeth @rawlivingandlearning.blogSpot.com   4 fresh Medjool dates, pitted   4 ripe bananas   6 frozen bananas   1/2 C filtered water   2 Tablespoons of raw almond butter   1 teaspoon of vanilla   Blend all of the ingredients in a high speed blender and ENJOY!!!!     +JMJ+ Today I am grateful that my father had a successful surgery and is home recovering.

One of my little guys wanted some homemade Sorbet today. He requested pineapple to be exact. So I whipped up this easy recipe in my Blendtec blender and he was very pleased. Three ingredients and some ice is all you'll need for this tasty recipe. Pineapple Sorbet (vegan, sugar free, gluten free) By rawlivingandlearning.blogspot.com Yields 1serving 1 cup of frozen pineapple   1/4 cup of fresh coconut milk   1/2 of a frozen banana   1/3 cup of ice cubes   Allow frozen fruit to sit at room temp. For about 5-8 minutes to slightly soften. Then blend all of the ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor until the consistency of sorbet. Enjoy!   And on a side note, Blendtec has improved their already awesome warranty so be sure and click on my ad over on the right side of my blog to check out these wonderful blenders!! +JMJ+ Today I am grateful for the very kind produce manager who supplied me with a case full of ...

Yesterday on Instagram I posted a picture of my Saucy Tomatoes and promised I'd share my recipe on the blog. The sauce is so simple, only 3 ingredients and 2 "spices". The key to this wonderful recipe is the tomatoes. You want to select big, juicy, ripe tomatoes. Fat Boy tomatoes or Ugly Ripe Tomatoes are a good choice; Beefsteak Tomatoes would be nice as well. Saucy Tomatoes by Elizabeth @rawlivingandlearning.BlogSpot.com   1 ripe Haas avocado juice of 1 lime 4 sundried tomatoes (sulfite free) 1/2 Tablespoon of dill 1/2 Teaspoon of dried onion flakes   In a high speed blender, or small food processor, blend until creamy and thick. Add drops of water slowly if sauce initially is too thick. Slice your tomatoes into rounds and top with some sauce. Garnish with sprouts and basil. Makes enough sauce for 6 large tomato rounds. Enjoy!!!       I thought I'd share some beautiful photos from our trip up to the mountains this past May. I'...

Today I felt like making the kids raw banana ice kream with some chocolate and strawberry sauce on top! Why not, right??!! A few weeks ago I stocked up on extra bananas, allowed them to get fully ripe, and then froze 2 big bags full; that way we have a stash of frozen naners on hand to make ice kream any time we want!. This ice kream can be made using a high speed blender, food processor,or a YoNanas maker. I have done all three over the years. To start you'll want to soak some dates in water. (reserve the soak water) This will be the sweetener for the sauces. Prepare your sauces before blending the ice kream. (recipes below) The strawberry sauce was pretty basic, just fresh organic strawberries and the dates. The chocolate sauce was made using raw cacao, dates and vanilla. Sorry for the blurry pic. Next step is to place the frozen bananas into your blender or food processor, adding a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Allow the bananas to soften just a bit at room temp. I usually ...

Who would ever think you could put kale in a pudding recipe?? That is one of the many things I adore about raw foods--the unexpected. I have learned to create recipes with ingredients I never imagined could "go together". I have explored new tastes, textures and aromas that have opened my senses to a whole new world. Everyday I learn something new and exciting. I am so grateful and I feel so blessed by this lifestyle.  Today I was experimenting with the children's leftover smoothie and decided to make a thick, creamy pudding. The two ingredients that are crucial to its texture are avocado and chia seeds. The green component, merely for its powerful nutrients, is KALE. Don't let the green color scare you. Children think it is really cool especially if you call it 'green slime'. I ate kale for the first time in my life, over 4 years ago when I discovered raw, living foods. Here is my recipe: Mango Banana Pudding by Elizabeth @rawlivingandlearning.blogsp...

Happy Birthday to Me Oh yes, I finally have a high speed blender!!!!  My wonderful husband got it for me for my birthday. Happy birthday to me :) The first thing I made with it was an orange sorbet for the family. We ate it so fast I forgot to get a pic of the finished product, oops! Into the blender went: 3 large oranges 1/2 C organic green grapes 2 Cups of ice Blend on the "ice cream" function and presto, fresh living sorbet. It was wonderful! Since then I have been whipping up the green smoothies in 15 seconds flat. I am so happy to finally have the power I have waited for for 13 long months. We have burned up 3 conventional blenders since the start of my raw food journey but I still have my travel (Tribest) blender for trips. Take a look at what I found hanging out on the backyard fence.   Tomato Sphinx Moth  It turned into a great science study for the children. We got out all of our moth and butterfly field guides and determined it was a Tomato ...