You can use this in replace of maple syrup, honey, or agave in recipes. If you replace this for sugar, just make sure you use a little less of the wet ingredients. You can also use this to replace butter in baking!
These delicious cookies use no refined sugar! I used my homemade date paste instead. Here is the simple recipe: http://kaletothequeen.weebly.com/1/post/2012/07/alternative-sweetener-date-paste.html You can use this in replace of maple syrup, honey, or agave in recipes. If you replace this for sugar, just make sure you use a little less of the wet ingredients. You can also use this to replace butter in baking! This is my beautiful kitty Mercedes wanting a bite out of these amazing cookies.
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Cilantro sprouted sunflower seed spread (I'm going to use this as a tongue twister for my english learner students) 1 cup sunflower seeds (sprouted or soaked) 1 bunch cilantro 3 cloves garlic (more or less depending on how much you love raw garlic) 1/4 cup green onions (I steamed them a little first because I am not a huge fan of raw onions, but LOVE them cooked) juice of one lemon pinch of pink Himalayan sea salt This is really delicious with any vegetable, grain, or cracker. My mom and I were in food ecstasy as we ate it with quinoa, cabbage, mushrooms, and zucchini from our garden. Ingredients 2 bunches kale 3-4 sun-dried tomatoes 1 teaspoon garlic powder Salt to taste Black pepper to taste 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 cup cashew, soaked overnight ¼ cup sunflower seeds, soaked overnight (Soaking benefits and instructions: http://kaletothequeen.weebly.com/3/post/2012/07/soaking.html)** You can also add herbs and spices if you would like. I used some fresh basil and tumeric (amazing anti-inflammatory benefits). Instructions:
My friend Ryan just graduated from NYU and to celebrate, he had a wine and cheese party. I didn't really plan ahead, so these were the cheeses I experimented with the day of the party. They all turned out great even though I didn't have the ideal time to let them dehydrate or set in the fridge. Vegan Brie with mixed berries 1/2 cup water 3 Tbs agar flakes 1/2 C chopped raw cashews soaked in salt water (see page on benefits of soaking) 1/2 C tofu 1/4 C nutritional yeast 1/4 C lemon juice 1-1/2 tsp onion powder 1 tsp Himalayan pink sea salt 1/4 tsp garlic powder any fresh fruit or dried fruit soaked until plump (I used a mix of cranberries, blueberries, and cherries) DIRECTIONS: Combine the water and agar flakes in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often until dissolved. Transfer to a food processor or blender and add the rest of the ingredients; blend until very smooth and add a little more water if needed. Pour half into a mold (I just used a round glass bowl), sprinkle a layer of fruit, and pour the rest on top. Put it in the fridge to set. Vegan Sprouted SunCheese
juice of 1 lemon 2 cloves garlic 1 Tbs cumin
4 Tbs nutritional yeast salt to taste
Make the SunCheese from the recipe above and add: about 8 sundried tomatoes (easier to blend if soaked) 1/2 cup fresh basil 1 Tbs any fresh herb mix Vegan Cheddar Cheese Ball As you can see in the picture, I also made a cheese ball. I wanted it to be more orange so I added a lot of tumeric. Surprisingly it didn't taste too strong! Maybe because the raw garlic took over. I also added a little paprika which gave it some more color and flavor. Then I rolled it in almonds and green onions. Walnuts and blackberries are both important for cardiovascular and circulatory health. They contain large amounts of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients, as well as rare phytonutrients (like quinone juglone in walnuts and ellagic acid in blackberries) that are not common in other foods we eat. These nutrients help with cardiovascular health by decreasing bad LDL cholesterol and maintaining proper blood composition and flexibility in our blood vessel walls. The antioxidants and anti inflammatory nutrients in walnuts and blackberries also help prevent cancer by lowering the risk of chronic oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. Also, the medicinal qualities of blackberries have been used for centuries to help numb pain in the body and reduce high fevers. I could go on about the health benefits, but let’s just get on to this delicious simple recipe! Blackberry Walnut Butter Ingredients: 1 cup Blackberries (I used frozen, but I’m sure fresh would be even better!) 1 cup Walnuts 1. Soak the walnuts overnight in salt water. For instructions and benefits on soaking nuts, beans, grains, and seeds, read this post: Soaking to increase digestion and mineral absorption 2. Blend the walnuts in a high speed blender or food processor until creamy. If your blender is not strong enough to form it into a butter, that's fine. With this recipe it is not necessary because the blackberries add enough moisture to make a smooth consistency. 3. Add the blackberries and puree for another 30 seconds or so until an even consistency is reached. Store the spread in the fridge. I recommend eating it within a couple of days since there are no preservatives and the walnuts might start to get bitter. Using it up won’t be difficult, I practically ate mine out of the food processor. If you make a large batch, you can freeze it in little zip locked bags to use later. This spread is delicious on pancakes, waffles, muffins, scones, bagels, toast, crackers, porridge, or with cheese or plain yogurt. Be creative! Probiotic Tangerine Julius
1 cup coconut milk kefir (or whatever kefir you prefer...almond or rice milk, cow or goat milk) 1 cup fresh tangerine juice (orange juice would also be great) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 8 ice cubes Blend the kefir, juice, and vanilla in a blender. With the blender running add the ice cubes one at a time. To read all about kefir and how easy it is to make, go here: Making Kefir For coconut kefir go here: Coconut Milk Kefir I made pumpkin puree from this giant beautiful pumpkin. I wasn't sure if it would taste good since it was so huge and had been sitting as decoration for a while, but it was sweet and delicious! I just steamed it and put it in the food processor. You can also use a blender or mash it by hand.
Pumpkin Flaxseed Pudding 1 cup dairy free milk 1/2 cup ground flaxseeds 2 cups pureed pumpkin 1-3 Tablespoon agave, honey, or date paste (here are instructions for simple Date Paste) 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg Blend all ingredients together in a blender or mix it by hand. Spiced Coconut Kefir 1 1/4 cup cold homemade coconut kefir (instructions here: Coconut Milk Kefir) 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 1/8 teaspoon ginger 1/8 teaspoon ground clove Just stir all of the ingredients together. You can also add sweetener to the kefir, but I liked the tart contrast with the sweet pudding. I said to use cold kefir because it is a lot thicker like greek yogurt. If your kefir is too thin for your liking, you can always put it through a cheese cloth. To assemble, I spooned some of the pumpkin pudding into the bottom of a clear jar (a tall dessert glass would look much nicer!) then poured some spiced coconut kefir, then spooned some more pudding, and then a little coconut kefir with some pumpkin seeds. actually I put a little extra pumpkin puree on top, which is why the top layer looks different in the picture, but it definitely doesn't need it. I had just already started eating it before I took a picture and so I spooned on some extra pumpkin puree to fill the glass and make it look pretty again. If you eat dairy, then milk kefir would also be very good in this recipe. Serves 4-5 There are lots of persimmon trees on random streets and trails around the island. Most of the time the birds eat the sweet fruit or it drops to the ground for the bugs to feast on. The fruit is usually too high for me to pick, but I try my best to reach the ones of the lower branches. Persimmons are incredible!!! They are really sweet so I like to enjoy them with something creamy or tart (like nuts or kefir)
I know it's November, but I don't have control over the heat in my room so it feels as hot as summer. Today I felt like something fruity and cold so this is what I came up with. Very refreshing!!! Creamy Persimmon Blueberry Swirl Soup with Coconut Cream Blueberry Brazil Nut Swirl 2 cups of blueberries ¼ cup brazil nuts ½ cup pitted dates ½ cup orange juice Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth. Creamy Persimmon Cashew Swirl 4 large persimmons 1 cup soaked cashews 1/4 cup water ½ teaspoon cinnamon Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor until creamy. Pour the two different soups into a soup bowl at the same time to create a swirl of blue and orange. I added some coconut kefir (recipe below) on the top to add a tart flavor and then sprinkled some chopped almonds and blueberries. Mmmm...delicious and nutritious. Coconut kefir 1 cup coconut milk 2 teaspoon kefir grains Stir in a far or cup covered with a towel and let it sit for 12 to 24 hours. When it reaches the perfect amount of tartness that you enjoy, strain out the kefir grains.
Hmmm...sounds interesting, but I think I'll have Chocolate Persimmon Kefir instead. Second fermented kefir increases the nutrients and actually tastes a lot better! If you don't like the sour taste of plain kefir, second fermenting actually mellows out the flavor. It increases the B vitamins and makes the calcium and magnesium easier to absorb. Your body can immediately use the nutrients because they are rich in enzymes.
Second Fermented Chocolate Persimmon Kefir 1 cup kefir (Instructions here) 2 Tablespoons raw cacao powder 1 persimmon chopped up Blend the ingredients in a blender and pour into an airtight jar or bottle. Let it sit at room temperature for about 6 hours and enjoy! The sweet persimmons are amazing with the tart kefir and bitter chocolate. Have a Happy Halloween with this healthy treat! |
Chelsea Rose
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