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Royal Peanut Butter Cups

Posted by 2 · July 31, 2010

“There are three Royal Garden Parties held on the lawns of Buckingham Palace in London each year”…

“The Queen and other members of the Royal Family attend”… “Invitations are not transferable”….. ”Due to a limited number of invitations available, the Royal Garden Party may only be attended once” Now imagine my excitement when Elliot and I received this in the mail:

The Queen!! We are meeting the Queen! At! Her! House! The envelope our invite came in was so thick, it literally looked like a rectangular box. Not only was the invitation made of some heavy duty cardboard, but two books of instructions, rules and dress code regulations were also enclosed. I read these very carefully. Throughout the print, “phones turned off, cameras prohibited” was mentioned exactly Five times. This could only mean one thing - there were to be some seriously good photo opportunities! If this really is my “may only be attended once” opportunity, it is almost worth losing an arm and a leg for, not to mention a camera. So Panasonic Lumix in the bag’s secret pocket and off to sip tea with Liz we go.

We did start off on an apprehensive side, even a tad nervous taking photos outside the Palace, while queuing up. Then going through the Palace to the private gardens, all ideas I may have had about a career as a Spy went right out the window. No chance of getting away with anything there. In the garden, it was a totally different story. We began sneakily snapping away, until confidence grew so high that fun activities like press ups in front of the Palace started to emerge and even the Queen and the Duke popped up in our pictures!

Overall it was a beautiful and memorable event. The Queen was the sweetest little host and her catering was worthy of its own Art Gallery. Not much Raw Food in sight, however I think I may have spotted a shaving of a cucumber poking out of the finger sandwiches and a strawberry under all the glaze. Nevertheless it all looked delightfully appetizing and perfectly minuscule.

I too wanted some Raw Food sweeties, that are delightfully appetizing and perfectly minuscule, and since I have been getting some enquiries for recipes, this is one that has come up already four times during last week alone from different people via Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn:

RAW FOOD REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS

I have never been a big fan of peanut butter myself and living in UK, we don’t even have Reese’s products to do a taste experiment. But I am pretty good at calculating a conversion of ‘not so good contents’ into healthy Raw Food ingredients and Google is pretty good at providing me with any product's ingredient list of these ‘not so good contents’.

All I can say is: “Where? Where have you been all my life? Peanut Butter Cups, you have stolen my heart!” Now it’s your turn: (Makes 10 mini cups)

For the cups

10 mini chocolate cases

For the Chocolate

4 Tbsp Cacao Powder

2 Tbsp Cacao Butter, melted

2 Tbsp Coconut Butter/Oil, melted

2 Tbsp Agave

Pinch Salt

For the Peanut filling

2 Tbsp Peanut Butter

1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast

1 tsp Agave

-To melt my butters, I put them in a dehydrator for an hour on 105F, that way I know they will not reach the temperatures when they are no longer Raw and deprived of enzymes. You can do this in a double boiler too. -Add the rest of the chocolate ingredients and stir in well.

-Cover the bottom of each case with the chocolate mix. -Spoon in a roughly formed ball of peanut filling mix. -Cover completely with the rest of the chocolate mix (if the peanut filling is sticking out, press it down to drown under the chocolate). -Place in the fridge for 2 hours. The rest is history... Love this recipe? How about another 21 equally insane healthy indulgences? If you haven't yet got your hands on 'Seduced- Raw Chocolate recipes to get very excited for', you are missing out big time! Mmmmm.

14 comments

Grow Sunflower and Snow Pea Shoots

Posted by 2 · July 21, 2010

I am currently reading Anastasia by Vladimir Megre... again.

If you've read this book, you will understand why I would be reading it for the second time. Also if you've read this book, there are many many other things you will too understand. If you haven't yet read it, please do yourself a favour and make it your next. And do it soon.

[Tideaway at Shoeburyness, Southend-on-Sea]

This is Anastasia on gardening...

"Every seed you plant contains within itself an enormous amount of information about the Universe. Nothing made by human hands can compare with this information either in size or accuracy. Through the help of these data the seed knows the exact time, down to the millisecond, when it is to come alive, to grow, what juices it is to take from the Earth, how to make use of the rays of the celestial bodies- the Sun, Moon and stars- what it is to grow into, what fruit to bring forth. These fruits are designed to sustain Man's life. More powerfully and effectively than any manufactured drugs of the present or future, these fruits are capable of counteracting and withstanding any disease of the human body. But to this end the seed must know about the human condition. So that during the maturation process it can satiate its fruit with the right correlation of substances to heal a specific individual of this disease, if indeed he has it or is prone to it.
"In order for the seed of a cucumber, tomato or any other plant grown in one's plot to have such information, the following steps are necessary:
"Before planting, put into your mouth one or more little seeds, hold them in your mouth, under the tongue, for at least nine minutes.
"Then place the seed between the palms of your hands and hold it there for about thirty seconds. During this time it is important that you be standing barefoot on the spot of earth where you will later be planting it.
"Open your hands, and carefully raise the seed which you are holding to your mouth. Then blow on it lightly, warming it with your breath, and the wee little seed will know everything that is within you.
"Then you need to hold it with your hands open for another thirty seconds, presenting the seed to the celestial bodies. And the seed will determine the moment of its awakening. The planets will all help it! And they will give the sprouts the light they need to produce fruit especially for you.
"After that you may plant the seed in the ground. In no case should you water it right off, so as not to wash away the saliva which is now covering it, along with other information about you that the seed will take in. It can be watered three days after planting.
"The planting must be done on days appropriate to each vegetable (people already know this, from the lunar calendar). In the absence of watering, a premature planting is not as harmful as an overdue planting."
According to Anastasia, the seed is thus able to take in information about the person who plants it, and then, during the cultivation of its fruit, it will pick up from the Universe and the Earth the maximum amount of energies needed for a given individual. The weeds should not be disposed of completely, as they have their own appointed function. Some weeds serve to protect the plant from disease while others give supplemental information. During the cultivation time it is vital to communicate with the plant. And it is desirable to approach it and touch it during a full moon at least once during its growth period.
...Anastasia maintains that the fruit cultivated from the seed in this manner, and consumed by the individual who cultivated it, is capable not only of curing him of all diseases of the flesh what so ever, but also of significantly retarding the ageing process, rescuing him from harmful habits, tremendously increasing his mental abilities and giving him a sense of inner peace. The fruit will have the most effective influence when consumed no later than three days after harvesting.
...The fruit of plants grown like this will be distinguished from other plants of the same species not only in taste. If analysed, it will be seen that they are also distinct in terms of the substances they contain.
When planting the seedlings, it is important to soften the dirt in the excavated hole with one's fingers and bare toes, and spit into the hole. responding to my question "Why the feet?" Anastasia explained that through perspiration from one's feet come substances (toxins, no doubt) containing information about bodily diseases. This information is taken in by the seedlings. They transmit it to the fruit, which will thus be enabled to counteract disease. Anastasia recommended walking around the plot barefoot from time to time"

Sprouting is ever so slightly different, because you are working with literally hundreds of seeds all at once and there is a soaking process too, so in this particular case, here is my day by day interpretation and instructions on..

1. HOW TO GROW SNOW PEA SHOOTS
2. HOW TO GROW SUNFLOWER GREENS

[My Organic Peas and Sunflower Seeds from Aconbury Sprouts]

1. The only difference between the sprouts is that Peas need double amount of soaking to Sunflower seeds, so to plant both at the same time (if you are sprouting both), start by soaking the peas at night for 24 hours and then sunflower seeds in the morning for 12 hours.

Anastasia (P.87): ''As the feet perspire, toxins come to the surface, removing internal diseases from the body, and these must be washed away to cleanse the pores... In pouring the remaining water onto the beds, you are giving supplemental information to the microorganisms and plants about your current state of wellbeing.

...Only after receiving this information can our visible and invisible world around you work out and pick up from the Universe and the Earth everything it needs for the normal functioning of your body"

2. Elliot soaks his feet in hot water at night and when it starts to cool down to about 40 degrees C, he would put 1 Cup of Pea Seeds in that water to leave for 24 hours. I repeat the process with 1 Cup of Sunflower Seeds in the morning to leave for 12 hours.

[Day 1- seeds placed in a dark spot to germinate]

3. Drain off the water to another container to use again.

4. Fill the seed tray (33cm x 22 cm) half full of compost. I place the seed trays with drainage holes over trays without any, so I don't have to worry about over watering.

5. Sprinkle the soaked seeds on top of the compost and spread evenly.

6. Sprinkle with some of the drained water and leave in a dark spot.

[Day 2- watering twice a day]

7. Keep at room temperature for 3 days, watering twice a day, as it is important to keep the seeds, hence the compost moist during germination. Do not over water.

[Day 3- You can clearly see the sprout tails now]

[Day 4- Replaced to a light spot]

8. On the forth day, place the tray in a light place, away from drafts and the lighter, the better.

Tip from Aconbury Sprouts: "You can slow or speed the growth of both the snow peas and sunflower greens by manipulating the temperature. Fresh air and sunshine is what they like best, but in cold weather you will need to keep them indoors on or near a windowsill. In hot weather it is better to protect the plants from direct sunshine."

[Day 5- Green Shoots are now appearing]

9. You may like to manually pick off the black shells from the Sunflower Shoots here, as some shells are really hard and don't snap off on their own, stopping the greens from growing

[Day 6- Sunflower Shoots are much more speedy]

[Day 7- Sunflower Shoots are nearly ready]

[Day 8- Sunflower Shoots are now at optimum nutritional value]

10. After 7-11 days, the plants will be approximately 7-10cm high. This is when they are at their optimum nutritional value, having transformed maximum light energy into chlorophyll, making the leaves a bright green.

11. To harvest, cut a small bundle of shoots with scissors about 1cm above the compost surface.

This is when I start to add my sprouts to salads, smoothies, wraps and general snacking:

SUNFLOWER GREENS ON DAY 9

SNOW PEA SHOOTS ON DAY 11

Buy Anastasia (the book) from here>>

Buy sprouting seeds from here>>

5 comments

Family Three Course Meal (feat. Cannelloni & Banoffee)

Posted by 2 · July 09, 2010

If there is ever a reason to make a Three Course Meal, our only family in the whole of UK is it!

Elliot's sister Alex came to dinner at our house last week with an open mind (as I put it) and 'intrigued and interested' (as she put it) to her first All Raw Experience.

To try something new and different, you do have to be open minded, 'intrigued and interested', but this still didn't change the fact that I spent most of the day preparing something that would not alienate a rookie and did my best to create a meal that would resemble your typical diet.

I can assure you though, if you try the below recipes yourself, it won't even take you a combined 2 hours in prep. I however wasn't going by any recipes and trial and error are big time robbers indeed.

It was such good evening catching up and what a perfect way to get Elliot to eat at the table. And the food was De-li-cious! I certainly thought so, but the real proof is in the pudding... Alex you are the pudding- will you comment? :)

So first we had my Savoury Italian Flaxseed Crackers with Guacamole (Avocado+Lime+Salt+Pepper) and Dejon Cashew Cream Mayonnaise, then we had Raw Cannelloni 'Pasta' and for Desert, it was a scrumptious Banoffee Pie!!

RAW CANNELLONI PASTA

For the sauce
2 Medium Tomatoes, chopped
1 Cup fresh basil leaves
½ Cup Sundried Tomatoes (soaked in warm water 1 hour)
1 lime, juiced
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Garlic powder

-Process the Sundried Tomatoes first, put the water it was soaking in aside
-Add the rest of the ingredients into the Food Processer and pulse it into a sauce
-If the consistency is not runny enough, add the tomato water slowly
-If you prefer a creamy sauce, transfer to a blender

For the cannelloni wrap
1 Large Zucchini
2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Salt

-Use a mandolin to slice the zucchini lengthwise. Alternatively use a knife to make the slices as thin and even as possible
-Lay them out on a plate, brushing each layer with a little Olive Oil and sprinkling with salt
-Leave to marinate for ½ hour- 2 hours, depending on thickness

For the filling
½ Cup Almonds (soaked overnight)
½ Cup Pecans (soaked 1 hour)
½ Cup Sunflower Seeds (soaked 1 hour)
½ Cup Pumpkin Seeds (soaked 1 hour)
2 Tbsp Tamari soy sauce
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Nutmeg
½ tsp Cinnamon

-Put all the ingredients in a Food Processer with an S Blade
-Process for about 2 minutes or until the nuts are very finely chopped
-Take some of the nut mixture and squeeze with your hands into tubes (these can be as thin or as thick and as long or as short as you like your cannelloni. I was running out of time so I made large ones for everyone to have one each
-Depending on the length of your cannelloni filling, you will need 2-3 slices of zucchini, overlap them on a work bench with the ends facing you
-Place the filling near your end and roll carefully

-Serve Cannelloni on top of the Sauce with your favourite Salad

RAW BANOFFEE PIE

For the crust
1 Cup Almonds (soaked overnight)
1 Cup Pecans (soaked 1 hour)
1.5 Cups Dates

-Use the Food Processer with an S Blade to chop up all the ingredients well
-Line 8 cupcake tins with cling wrap, so when set, you can pull the pies out with ease
-Scoop 8 equal amounts into of crust mixture into each tin and press down

For the Filling
½ Cup Cashews (soaked one hour)
2 Young Coconuts
2 bananas
3 Tbsp Agave Nectar
3 Tbsp Coconut Oil

-First blend the cashews with ½ cup coconut water to a smooth and creamy consistency (drink the rest of the nutritious water or keep in the fridge for another recipe)
-Scoop all the meat out of both coconuts and add to the blender
-Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend to a cream (if you don’t have a high powered blender, it will be best in 2 stages- food processer, then the blender
-Place in the freezer for 5 hours or overnight

For the Chocolate Topping
1 ripe Avocado
2 Tbsp Cacao Powder
2 Tbsp Mesquite Meal
3 Tbsp Agave Nectar

-Use a food processer to process everything together (if the blades don’t cover the ingredients, you can manually mix everything with a fork by mashing the avocado first)
-Add to the pies just before serving

The key here is to freeze this desert first and thaw it in the fridge for 2 hours before serving. If served frozen, it will be too hard and if left at room temperature or even in the fridge for too long, it will fall apart

So good. And so much... Better Raw

9 comments

Tags:
Deserts
Meals

Shakespeare's Fruit Salad

Posted by 2 · June 30, 2010

Meet Shakespeare.

Shakespeare is a tortoise, but genuinely believes he is a dog. He sniffs everything, digs holes in the garden and bites everything at least once.

He also possesses that puppy dog trick, when staring into your eyes for long enough, he can make you give in to anything. If you hold him on your palm looking into his eyes and rotate it side to side, his neck will do all the work and he’d always win the staring completion- just ask Elliot, it’s their favourite game.

He spends his days in what is an absolute disgrace of a human garden, but an absolute paradise of an Amazon for him, so I can't bring myself to weed out his snacks.

He spends his nights (and cold winter days) in a purpose built Tortoise Mansion with an upstairs dining room, a corner jacuzzi, a master bedroom and a whole collection of 'pebble' cushions.

Shakes is possibly the funniest, cutest, most adorable little man I've ever met, my wee little seratonine generator. But he can be naughty too, just watch him perform a brave stunt...

Here's another video of him dealing with obsticles, that also happen to be my toes...

The best thing about the little guy is that he is a Raw Vegan too!!!! Infact his diet is so healthy, he is my ongoing inspiration. He loves his wild edibles, watercress, rocket, collards and romaine, and especially all kinds of juicy creamy fruits. He can get very picky though, but this fruit salad is his all time favourite...

SHAKESPEARE'S FRUIT SALAD

Made out of only Bananas, Apples, Pears and Melon, this is the easiest thing to make.

It may not be the most presentable salad though, so I decided to change that and carved a melon to create two bowls:

-Cut into 2 halves-Deseed

-Scoop out with a spoon or carve out the melon meat with a knife to use for the salad

-Carve the spiky teeth

-Pile in your chopped fruit

What I have in the jar, Shakespeare would probably not approve of, but it is totally divine..

Cashew Cream with Passionfruit

1 Cup Cashews
1 Cup Water

-You can half the amount if your blender is small and the ingredients cover the blade
-Blend to a creamy consistency
-Pour over salad with the passionfruit

TANYA'S BERRY SHARING SALAD

This is not exactly Shakespeare's first choice, but it is mine, so I decided to add this salad in too...

You can also do this will any other kind of fruit, but berries are by far my favourite, so what I used are Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries and 1 apple for the base

-Chop the apple in half to make a steady base
-Threat the berries onto wooden skewers

-Spike skewers into the apple

The dipping sauce can be any of your own choice, but what I put in mine was

1 soft Avocado

3 Tbsp Agave Nectar

2 Tbsp Cacao Powder

2 Tbsp water

-Blend

ALISSA'S WELCOME HOME SALAD

This is the fruit salad my sister made for mum and dad when they got back to Canada after visiting me here in London

Pineapple
Blackberries
Mango
Pomegranite
Chopsticks and a vase

-Carve the pineapple into flowers

-Dice mangoes into strips for the leaves

-Peel the pomegranite and transfer all the seeds into glass vase

-Thread everything onto chopsticks, leaving berries until last

2 comments

Tags:
Fruit
Salads

Stuffed Collards with Raw Mayo and Salsa

Posted by 2 · June 24, 2010

I can’t remember if I always have been or if it is something I’ve learned to enjoy, but either way I am very much a morning person and just love getting up early(ish) and being really productive(ish).

This Saturday was no different, accept maybe for the fact that I pretty much flew out of bed even before the alarm. My very first Royal Ascot Racecourse experience and I wasn’t about to jeopardise the luxury of time to enjoy the most fabulous dress up procedure.

I had to stop myself from skipping on the way to the station, as I walked there linking arms with the most handsome man. Even those not attending seemed to know the races were on, wishing us to have a lovely day. I felt like a million dollars.

That price tag feeling managed to decrease by a few thousand when we arrived in Ascot and saw some truly spectacular outfits, hats and fascinators and I instantaneously began to plan for next year’s event!

But for now we enjoyed an amazing day with a beautiful picnic to which one of my contributions was “Stuffed Collards and Raw Mayo”. The below picture is actually from previous night’s dinner, which I made for Elliot. Since there was so much left over, the collards seemed like a perfect picnic idea and they went, well, like hot cakes...

STUFFED COLLARDS WITH RAW MAYO AND SALSA

A really delicious and simple recipe for any occasion. All you will need is a food processer and a blender..

For the Stuffing
1 head chopped cauliflower
1 Cup Sunflower seeds
1/2 Cup Quinoa (sprouted 12-24 hours)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/4 Cup Raisins (soaked 1 hour)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cinnamon

-To sprout Quinoa, simply wash it and soak in water for 12-24 hours. Then drain water
-Process all ingredients in a food processor fitted with an S blade, till it’s finely diced and resembles rice

For the Wraps
8 Collard leaves (aka british greens in the supermarket)

-To assemble the wraps, cut each collard leaf in half and remove the thickest part of the stem. Place 2-3 tbsp rice mixture about one inch from the bottom of the leaf
-Roll the wrap up (similar to sushi or burritos) and place it on a serving platter with the seam side down (I just had these rolled up in a tupperware container, ready to grab and dip into the Mayo, but for dinner I sliced each roll on an angle, as pictured above)

For Raw Mayonnaise
1/2 cup cashew nuts (soaked in water for 1 hour)
1/2 cup water
3 Tbsp Olive oil
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika

-Put all the ingredients except the oil in a blender. Blend on the lowest speed. This may take a few minutes, as the nuts break down and become creamy
-Gradually - one drop at a time - add the oil until the mixture starts to thicken. Continue blending until thickened and smooth

For the Salsa
(I didn't include this with the picnic, as salsa can get a little messy, but it is a beautiful dinner addition)
1 Cup Cheery Tomatoes
1 Avocado
1/4 red onion
1/2 Red pepper, deseeded and minced
1/2 Cup chopped fresh coriander
1 lime, juiced
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne

-Chop all veges into small pieces
-Mix all ingredients in a bowl

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RAW FOOD REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS