Articles in the recipes Category

Hi, y’all! Glad you enjoyed the looks of my overnight oats made with Nuttzo, which I lovingly named “NuttzOats” – they were even yummier than they look!

And if you caught it, you’ll remember I mentioned that I’d be sharing a fun (green!) recipe later today. Well, I didn’t forget… just got myself into a pickle and actually thought I might have to waste food. I’m NOT one to waste food so it took me a while to regroup and try to figure out how to save these ingredients, but I did it!

Originally, I planned on making a Saint Patrick’s Day version of the raw cheese I’ve seen around the web for a while now. I’ve noticed raw foodies using soaked cashews or macadamia nuts and mixing the nuts with either an orange or a red bell pepper and seasonings (and sometimes even more ingredients) to make a raw cheese sauce.

Well, I thought I’d had a “brainstorm” and would replace the red/orange bell pepper with a green one – for green cheese, in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day!

Yeah, that didn’t work out so well.

I know it isn’t because of the green bell pepper. I tried to make this recipe in the food processor because I didn’t think the blender would do such a great job with the nuts. Maybe I should’ve tried because all I ended up with was a mixture of chunky bell pepper and cashews. I had added sea salt and a pinch of cayenne like a lot of recipes recommended. But it just wasn’t getting creamy like I’d seen across the blogosphere.

What to do?

I let the mixture sit in the food processor while I sorted it out in my head.

Hmmm… To waste, or not to waste. I almost tossed this in to that new “Raw Flops” category I created a while back. But at this point, I figured I’d just try to add a few things and see what happened.

Rewind.

Before I discovered my mixture wasn’t getting smooth (or maybe I didn’t wait long enough?) I started documenting my recipe.

Green Bell Pepper + Soaked Cashews

Chopped

In the Food Processor

After this, I started processing the ingredients and when I realized I wasn’t coming out with the smooth, green cheese I’d envisioned, I forgot to take a photo of the chunky mixture!

Okay, back to where I was with adding ingredients to try to save my concoction…

The full recipe is at the end of this post but basically, I threw in a splash of almond milk, added a little more salt, some freshly ground black pepper, and some minced garlic.

And with a little determination – and perhaps a little luck

this was born:

Raw, Green (Vegan) Chicken(less) Salad!

I gave it this name because when I dared take a tiny taste (I was getting scared, y’all!) it tasted similar to chicken salad! Eeek! My raw flop isn’t a flop after all – it’s a happy accident; a blessing in disguise!

And the photo doesn’t show just how green it was. I love its color.

I had planned on serving the raw (green) cheese with broccoli, celery and cucumber sticks, but after all the hassle – and cleaning up my mess! – I just ate a small bowl of this and called it a night.

Raw, Green (Vegan) Chicken(less) Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 medium bell pepper
• 1 cup (soaked) cashews
• pinch cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste
• minced garlic to taste
• splash almond milk (just for smooth sailing in the food processor)

Directions:

1. Chop bell pepper (or celery).
2. Add (drained) soaked cashews.
3. Toss in cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, garlic, and almond milk.
4. Blend until you get the consistency you enjoy.

Uses:

• Serve with veggies, as a dip.
• Spread on crackers.
• Smear on bread like a real chicken salad sandwich.
• Smear on a tortilla and make a yummy wrap.
• You might even sneak a spoonful straight from the bowl!

Note: Next time I make this, I’ll use celery instead of bell pepper and add onion.

Of course, if I would have intentionally set out to make raw chicken(less) salad, I’d have used celery – not bell pepper – and I’d have added onion (similar to my Raw Tuna Fish-Less Salad). Yum! You know what I’ll be making for quick meals from now on.

AND…

Just so I knew I wasn’t just tired and crazy (LOL!) I had a couple of family members taste my creation. I didn’t tell ‘em what it was. Wanna know their reaction? Of course you do!

I saw big eyes and shocked faces, and heard: “It tastes like chicken salad!”

Bingo! I had saved my ingredients. Phew!

Updated on 3/18/10 to add: I’m getting requests for more!

Have you ever started out making one recipe and ended up with something totally different? Was it edible? Have you had happy accidents in the kitchen? If so, don’t you love ‘em? And what about the raw cheese? Did I just not wait long enough? Does it only work in a Vita-Mix? Chime in, wise ones, chime in!

And I hope you had a fantabulous Saint Patrick’s Day!

Coming Next

• Health Benefits of Blackstrap Molasses – And Why I Drink It
• Tart Cherry Concentrate Health Benefits – And Why I Drink It
• More reviews and giveaways!

Contest Alerts

• Averie, over at Love Veggies & Yoga, is having a raw food book giveaway.
• I’m giving away a jar of Tropical Traditions raw honey.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone!

I have a fun (green!) recipe that you’ll see later today, but first I just had to share my overnight oats with you.

If you’re a regular reader, you may remember a while back when I made Coconut Peanut Butter Honey Overnight Oats. And if you aren’t a regular reader, go check that recipe out!

Overnight oats make a fantabulous breakfast, lunch, or snack. Why?

Because they are:

• easy to prepare ahead of time
• great for busy people who work outside the home
• fun for freelancers, too!
• or even students
• loaded with nutrition – and flavor
• filling
• perfect for rushed mornings
• and more!

I can’t wait to try these cold, creamy, chewy, decadent overnight oats on a hot summer’s morning. I have a feeling this dish will be the perfect breakfast – or snack! – during the scorching summer months.

Check out how beautiful my overnight oats turned out!

So, whether you’re a student and/or are someone who is busy with your job – in or out of the home – overnight oats provide an amazingly yummy meal that not only tastes absolutely fantabulous, but is good for you, too!

And overnight oats can be whipped up any way you like. The ingredient possibilities are endless.

• fruit
• nuts
• seeds
• wheatberries
• nut butters
• chia seeds
• coconut oil
• avocado
• freshly ground flax seeds
• cocoa powder
• stevia
• raw honey
• and more!

Whatever your favorite flavor combos are, try ‘em in overnight oats. And be sure to experiment and try new things, too – it’s so fun!

Preparing Overnight Oats

Mashed Nanner

Raw Honey

7 Grain Flakes

Nuttzo!

Melted Honey

Almond Milk

The Night Before

and like magic….

The Next Morning

Overnight NuttzOATS Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup 7 grain oat flakes (or regular old-fashioned oats)
• 2/3 cup almond milk (or whatever milk you prefer)
• 1 tablespoon Nuttzo
• 1 tablespoon Tropical Traditions Raw Honey (I’m giving away a jar!!!)
• 1 banana, smashed with a fork

Directions:

1. Put all the above ingredients in your bowl (I used the CaliBowl) and stir.
2. Cover with wrap – or a saucer or lid – and refrigerate overnight.
3. Take out of the fridge the next morning and stir.
4. At this point, you can add any additional toppings or ingredients you wish or just enjoy as-is. Delish!

Have you ever tried overnight oats? If not, why not?! They’re fantabulous! And if you are a fan of overnight oats, what’s your favorite combo? Have you ever tried 7 grain flakes? They did really well in overnight oats. And have you tried Nuttzo? It’s sooooooooooo amazing – delicious and nutritious! And if you’re in to online shopping, you can find organic, old-fashioned oats AND Nuttzo in my OpenSky Shop!

Coming Next

• Health Benefits of Blackstrap Molasses – And Why I Drink It
• Tart Cherry Concentrate Health Benefits – And Why I Drink It
• More reviews and giveaways!

Contest Alerts

• Averie, over at Love Veggies & Yoga, is having a raw food book giveaway.
• I’m giving away a jar of Tropical Traditions raw honey.

Hi, y’all!

So glad you’ve enjoyed my story about Living With Rheumatoid Arthritis + Fibromyalgia – your comments and emails have truly blessed my heart!!

And yay for Strawberry Serenity Kombucha. Thanks for your rave reviews of my review.

Don’t worry, the agave post is coming. I just HAD to share my fantabulous lunch with you – it was THAT good!

I had oatmeal for (a late) breakfast and so I wasn’t the least bit hungry ‘till around 2 p.m. or so. What to do? Make a smoothie and have an apple slathered with Nuttzo!

There were some leftover berries in the fridge and I was craving hemp protein, too. (Recipe follows!!) 

I threw in some other goodies and created this beauty: 

Berry Blackstrap Smoothie

Inspired by my Blueberry-Blackstrap Bomb

In my new tumbler!

In the blender

   Plus an apple slathered in Nuttzo = YUM!!!

Enjoyed ever so much…

While I write that AGAVE post!!!

Berry Blackstrap Smoothie Recipe

Inspired by my Blueberry-Blackstrap Bomb

• 1/2 cup herbal tea (whatever you like; I used a nettle/mullein/peace blend)
• 1/4 cup blackstrap molasses water (2 tablespoons blackstrap molasses + 1 cup of water = blackstrap water)
• about a cup of leftover berries
• 1 whole avocado (see avocado’s health benefits here)
• 3 tablespoons hemp powder
• 1 tablespoon tart cherry concentrate
• 2 tablespoons freshly ground flax seeds
• teeny amount of stevia to taste
• 4 ice cubes

 

Directions: Toss everything into your blender and blend away. Pour in a glass and enjoy! This made enough to fill the tumbler twice – but I only drank one tumbler full. I shared the rest with a family member who was eye-balling it. LOL

Do you have days when all you want is a yummy smoothie and fruit slathered in nut butter? Is your appetite always ravenous or non-existent – or does it vary from day-to-day? What’s your favorite smoothie recipe or ingredient? What’s your favorite fruit to slather nut butter on? And have you tried Nuttzo? A full review is coming soon but the ingredients in this stuff is amazing: Valencia Peanuts, Cashews, Almonds, Hazelnuts, Brazil Nuts, Sunflower Seeds, and Flax Seeds – and it’s crunchy and SUPER DELISH! It’s also now available in my OpenSky Shop!!!! Eeeeekkk!

Contest Alerts

• Averie, over at Love Veggies & Yoga, is having a raw food book giveaway.
• I’m giving away a jar of Tropical Traditions raw honey.

Coming Next

• Agave: Why I Was Hesitant to Use It, And Won’t Be Using It Anymore
• Health Benefits of Blackstrap Molasses – And Why I Drink It
• More reviews and giveaways!

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

Hi, y’all!

I’m thrilled you enjoyed my last post. Making that chocolate banana avocado pudding was super fun – but eating it was even better!

I actually made another recipe yesterday before I made the chocolate pudding. As you can tell from the title of this post, I made “Happy Hemp Honey Holes” and it was off the top of my head! LOL

I’ve been wanting to come up with a super fun recipe using….

the raw, wild, unprocessed honey Tropical Traditions sent me.

Raw honey is solid.

Add 1/4 cup of freshly ground flax.

Check out the organic coconut flour!

In goes two tablespoons of the coconut flour.

Melt a tablespoon of raw honey…

Add the melted raw honey.

A tablespoon of Tropical Traditions coconut cream concentrate…

a tablespoon of hemp protein powder

After the hemp powder, the dough was too dry, so I added a tablespoon of peanut butter (didn’t have any almond butter).

Lots better!

Mix it all up (I stirred it by hand) and form the dough into a ball.

It was a little too moist, so I sprinkled coconut flour on my hands and played with the dough a little – that worked!

Then, I pulled small sections off and made six balls (aka holes).

I love the “sheen” from the honey and coconut cream concentrate. They look too moist, but they weren’t. They were perfect!

Up close…

The nutty flavors of the flax and hemp were a nice touch. The peanut butter flavor was really good. I was a little worried when I was experimenting on this because I wasn’t sure it would turn out edible – but it was actually yumilicicous!

And… the recipe:

Happy Hemp Honey Holes

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup freshly ground flax
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 1 tablespoon coconut cream concentrate
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon hemp powder

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix them (I just stirred with a spoon).
2. Pull small pieces of dough off.
3. Roll dough into little balls (aka holes).
4. Pop in the fridge, freezer, or even dehydrator if you like – I just popped one in my mouth right away!

Enjoy!

Delivery Love

I love to see the delivery truck pull up. Who doesn’t?!

Here’s the latest products for review – all from Tropical Traditions! (Thank you, www.tropicaltraditions.com!)

Coconut Water Vinegar

Coconut Cream Concentrate

Coconut Flour

As you can tell from today’s recipe, I got busy sampling these ingredients right away! And you can expect in-depth reviews of each of the Tropical Traditions products mentioned today – coming to a computer screen near you!

Have you tried any of the products I mentioned today? Have you tried making raw donut holes or balls? Do you enjoy being creative in the kitchen, or would you rather be doing something else? Chime in, fantabulous people, chime in!

OpenSky Alert!

I love freshly ground flax SO much, I’m selling whole flax seeds so you can grind your own. That’s right: You can buy organic flax seed in my OpenSky shop – for only $7.49 per pound!!!

Shipping info:

“We will ship orders anywhere within the United States and Canada. At this time, we do not ship to other locations. When your order ships, you will receive a shipment notification via email that will include your tracking number.” – OpenSky

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

Hi, y’all! Hope your day was fantabulous! Mine was: I made chocolate avocado pudding today!

I’m going to share the recipe, but first I wanted to play catch-up …

So glad you’re loving my Rainbow Chard + Butter Bean Soup. Let me tell you, it was even more delicious than it looks in the photos!

And I’m excited over all the buzz about my post on the health benefits of flax seeds – and why I love ‘em!

And I love that you’re all so excited over Glass Dharma’s eco-friendly straws. I really enjoyed reviewing them and hosting a giveaway, too!

I know, I know, you want to get to the chocolate avocado pudding!

Last time I made it (read all about it here), I used agave as an ingredient, but as I mentioned before, I’ve cut agave from my diet (I’m almost finished with the explanation post, promise!).

And ended up with this…

A Twitter follower inspired today’s recipe when she asked for a chocolate avocado recipe and I sent her to my version – then had to tell her I don’t use agave anymore. “What would you use now?” She asked.

Enter: Tropical Traditions Canadian, Raw, Wild, Unprocessed Honey!

You’ll be seeing an in-depth review of this SWEET, raw honey in just a day or so – plus something special for y’all!!!

Do you know that avocado is chock-full of nutrition and health benefits?

Check it out:

• vitamin K
• dietary fiber
• potassium
• folate
• vitamin B6
• vitamin C
• copper

Health benefits:

• promotes heart health
• promotes overall health
• increases absorption of carotenoids from vegetables
• combats oral cancer
• and more!

Wow.

And did you know I used to detest avocado? I wouldn’t eat it for YEARS. Never ate it as a kid. Didn’t eat it most of my adult life. I’d say I never tasted an avocado until about 5 or so years ago. Seriously! Can you believe it? And now I could eat ‘em every single day. Yum!

I love how when we start incorporating healthier foods into our diets, our body literally CRAVES them – LOVE it!

Fun Fact!

“The avocado is colloquially known as the Alligator Pear, reflecting its shape and the leather-like appearance of its skin. Avocado is derived from the Aztec word “ahuacatl”.”—WH Foods

Forgot to snap a photo of the frozen nanner that was in the blender but this is what it looks like all blended up…

And it comes out looking like this:

My goodness gracious, it was DELISH!!! I was SO happy with this!

And now, what you’ve wanted since the beginning of this post  – the recipe!

Chocolate Banana Avocado Pudding with Raw Honey

(serves one)

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon raw honey, melted (I used Tropical Traditions)
• 1 banana, frozen
• 1/2 avocado (it was a big one)
• 1 tablespoon certified organic cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons almond milk

Directions:

Toss all ingredients in to your blender or food processer and blend all the ingredients together ‘till they’re creamy and smooth. Enjoy immediately!

Your Turn

Have you tried experimenting with avocado chocolate pudding yet? How does your version differ from mine? Does avocado gross you out? Or do you live for its creamy, decadent texture? And can you believe how many nutrients can be packed into chocolate pudding – when you make a healthier version?! What’s your favorite way to eat avocado? What’s your go-to chocolate dessert recipe?

Oh, and be sure to stop back by soon – I also got happy with hemp in the kitchen and whipped up something off the top of my head! And it was GOOD.

OpenSky Alert!

I love freshly ground flax SO much, I’m selling whole flax seeds so you can grind your own. That’s right: You can buy organic flax seed in my OpenSky shop – for only $7.49 per pound!!!

Shipping info:

“We will ship orders anywhere within the United States and Canada. At this time, we do not ship to other locations. When your order ships, you will receive a shipment notification via email that will include your tracking number.” – OpenSky

Reference:

WH Foods: Avocado

Note: For my raw purist readers, this soup isn’t raw. As I’ve mentioned before (numerous times), I’m currently very high raw, but am not 100% raw at this time.

I live for fresh, raw juices and smoothies and veggies and fruit, nuts and seeds – but sometimes a gal just needs a bowl of yummy, herbalicious, flavorful (hot) soup on a cold winter’s day.

Enter: Rainbow Chard + Butter Bean Soup

This recipe was inspired by “The Clean Eating Mama” blog, from her recent post: White Bean and Kale Soup (Thank you, Tasha!)

Rainbow Chard + Butter Bean Soup

Ingredients:

• 6 cups water
• 1 can cream of celery soup
• 2 cans butter beans
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• bunch of frozen Rainbow Chard (that was from my garden)
• about 1  -  2 cups of certified organic whole wheat couscous
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil (I used Tropical Traditions Certified Organic Virgin Coconut Oil)
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon basil
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• sprinkle of paprika
• garlic salt to taste (I used Himala Salt Certified Organic brand.)
• freshly ground flax (for sprinkling on top)

Directions:

1. Add the beans, tomatoes, rainbow chard, frozen peas, and cream of celery soup to your pot.
2. Pour in 6 cups water (or broth – I didn’t have any).
3. Add herbs, onion, garlic (or garlic salt like me).
4. Add the coconut oil.
5. Turn heat to medium.
6. Once the frozen veggies are tender and the soup has really heated up, add the couscous.
7. Cover with a lid.
8. Simmer for half an hour or so.
9. Sprinkle with freshly ground flax and enjoy!

Ooooooohhh, yeah!

Kale is one of my all-time favorite veggies, so I’m definitely going to make this soup again when I have the ingredients Tasha used in her version.

OpenSky Alert!

I love freshly ground flax SO much, I’m selling whole flax seeds so you can grind your own. That’s right: You can buy organic flax seed in my OpenSky shop – for only $7.49 per pound!!!

Shipping info:

“We will ship orders anywhere within the United States and Canada. At this time, we do not ship to other locations. When your order ships, you will receive a shipment notification via email that will include your tracking number.” – OpenSky

Contest Alert

HiHoRosie’s Place is giving away an ice cream maker.

And don’t forget to enter my latest contest for a $30 gift certificate from Glass Dharma!

Your Turn

What about you? Are you a “soup person” or do you detest soup? Do you love making a big pot of soup and savoring it day after day, or do you just get a craving for it once in a while and either buy soup from a restaurant so you won’t have leftovers, or eat it out of a can or at someone else’s house?

Raw foodie (purists): Do you splurge on hot soup once in a while during the colder months, or do you stick to raw soups only?

All of you, chime in – I adore reading your thoughts!!

And… I’m planning on posting about raw soup in an upcoming – so stay tuned! Plus, the delivery man has been kind to me and I’m going to give you a sneak peek at what he brought!

Last night just before I fell asleep, I had a brainstorm for this fantabulous recipe. I seriously had to grab a notebook and write it down! I was super excited to get busy experimenting today. I had no idea how (or if!) it would even turn out – but it DID! And it’s SO delish! And I’m so excited to share it with you!!!

Introducing…

Inside-Out (Coconut) Peanut Butter Cups

Want to taste this “Inside-Out (Coconut) Peanut Butter Cup” for yourself? I would share with you, but since there’s such a distance between us, you’ll just have to keep reading – I’ll teach you how to make your own!

This concept is something I’ve been wanting to try for a while. I ate peanut butter cups growing up, and for a lot of my adult life – until I got serious about my health. The awesome Mrs. Averie Sunshine (over at Love Veggies & Yoga) has been killing me with her fantabulous, decadent desserts – including her personal variations of homemade peanut butter cups.

And, well, I finally got around to whipping up a batch – Raw Juice Girl style.

I stepped outside the box, colored outside the lines, and turned traditional peanut butter cups inside-out!

(Aren’t your proud of me, Averie?!) Eeeeekkk!!

Move over chemical-laden candy,

HELLO to homemade and healthy…

Inside-Out (Coconut) Peanut Butter Cups Recipe

(This recipe makes 12. Nope, they’re not all for me. I made extra to give as Valentine’s gifts. )

What you’ll need:

• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used Singing Dog Vanilla from NuNaturals)
• 20 drops Vanilla Stevia (from NuNaturals)
• 2 teaspoons Tropical Traditions raw honey, melted (or agave for those of you who use it – I don’t anymore)
• Tropical Traditions Coconut Peanut Butter <— I’m currently giving a jar away! (Contest ends 2/19/10)
• chocolate bar or block of your choice (I used raw cacao paste from NavitasNaturals.)
• fine dusting of stevia (I used NuNatural NoCarb Stevia Blend). You could also use powdered sugar here if you use that.
• cupcake papers
• muffin pan

NOTE: You could “raw-i-fy and/or veganize” this recipe by using raw nut butter and experimenting with coconut products (or leaving it out) and by eliminating the honey.

Check out that chunk of NavitasNaturals RAW chocolate!!

And there’s only 14 steps in honor of today, February 14!

This is a really fun and easy recipe!!

Directions:

STEP 1: I chopped a wedge of the 1 lb of raw chocolate off (about a fifth?) – and there’s an in-depth review of this chunk of chocolate love coming up in a future post!

STEP 2: Place the raw chocolate in a glass bowl (that’s sitting on top of another bowl filled with hot water) so it will melt.

STEP 3: If your coconut peanut butter is solid, just place it in a bowl filled with hot water so it will become a runny consistency.

Now that that’s done, move on to…

STEP 4: Keep an eye on your raw chocolate and stir it as it melts. This chocolate filling will taste like dark chocolate – if you don’t like dark chocolate, you could melt a sweetened chocolate bar or add your own (sweeter) twist.

STEP 5: Pour coconut peanut butter into cupcake papers – just enough to make your bottom layer.

I was going to make half inside-out and the other half with coconut peanut butter INSIDE and the raw chocolate on the outside – but the raw chocolate didn’t turn out in a runny consistency like I thought it would, so I ended up doing all 12 inside-out (just explaining why only half the pan is filled at this point).

STEP 6: Go back to your raw chocolate. Stir until it’s melted.

STEP 7: Add 4 teaspoons of vanilla extract.

STEP 8: Add 20 drops of vanilla extract.

STEP 9: At this point, I tasted and thought it needed to be sweeter, so I added the last bit of some honey I had on hand (about 2 teaspoons).

Perfect!!!

STEP 10: Combine until you have the following consistency.

STEP 11: Portion the chocolate into each cupcake paper (it’s the middle of your inside-out ‘coconut’ peanut butter cup). You can do this with a spoon, or your hands. Have fun!

Close-up

STEP 12: Sprinkle a fine dusting over each chocolate center. (I used NuStevia NoCarbs Blend from NuNaturals.)

Close-up

STEP 13: Drizzle more coconut peanut butter over the top, to seal the sweet deal on your “Inside-Out (Coconut) Peanut Butter Cups” and pop the pan into the freezer for just a few minutes – so they can harden.

Close-up

STEP 14: Peel the paper off…

Admire its beauty…

And take that bite I promised you!

And if you make ‘em and blog about ‘em, contact me with your blog post link and I’ll send my readers your way! And if you send me photos of your recreation, I’ll post ‘em here, too!

Enjoy!!

And…

Happy Valentine’s Day

I LOVE YOU ALL WITH ALL MY fruit and veggie- (and chocolate!) filled…

HEART!!!

And….

Just in case you were busy this week and missed what happened around here…

I want to thank you for your sweet words on my guest post at Positive Provocations (Healing Your Heart, Holistically) and I’m thrilled that my post on emotional eating, food labels, and judgments resonated so deeply with y’all!

Find out my sweet thoughts on NuNaturals’ NoCarbs Blend Stevia, and don’t forget to enter my latest contest – there’s over 200 entries and it’s headed toward 250 fast! (Contest ends 2/19/10

What about you? Did you blog today? Read blogs? Hang out with family, friends, or a special someone? Did you splurge bigtime on store-bought treats or did you make a healthier version at home? Did you get enough chocolate? Flowers? What does Valentine’s Day mean to you? And… what do you think about my recipe? Are you excited to try it? Let’s give the comment section some love and do some chatting!

photo source (heart)

All other photos were taken by Raw Juice Girl.

Disclaimer: The link for NavitasNaturals is an affiliate link – the others are not.

If you’d like to be featured in Readers Recipes, just shoot me an e-mail and you might see your recipe featured here, at Healing with (Raw) Juices! (It doesn’t have to be 100% raw or require a dehydrator or blender, etc. There’s a wide range of folks who read this blog and we want to share a little something for everyone – so long as it’s on the healthier side and doesn’t involve meat.)

And don’t forget to enter my latest giveaway: Tropical Traditions Coconut Peanut Butter!

Happy weekend, y’all! Hope your weekend has been as fantabulous as mine! Nothing special going on here, but I’ve been safe, warm, happy, and hard at work trying to make this blog even better for y’all in 2010 – and beyond!!

On to the reader’s recipes…

Note: The readers featured today emailed me their recipes. I asked their permission to post them here and they gave their blessing.

From reader, Dyan

Dyan says:

“Just an avid reader of your posts, who like the rest of the world, am trying to eat healthy. A friend of mine gave me the juicer and I almost choked when I put in 1 grapefruit, 1 orange, and an apple and got one glass of juice. LOL No way could I just throw out that pulp. So I just kept freezing it until I could figure out what to do with it. I had this old dehydrator gathering dust in the basement that I had used for jerky, but that was all I had done with it. While shopping, my little girl wanted a box of fruit rollups that were 2.89 for 6 little rolls! That’s when it hit me….I had this whole arrangement of pulp at home that I would experiment with. They are what I call Frankenstein rolls. There is a little bit of everything in them. If you do a lot of juice I suppose you could keep all your pulp separate. But I throw it all in together…And you can put as much or as little sugar in it, to your liking.”

“Dyan’s Frankenstein rolls”

“My favorite thing to do is every time I juice fruit, I put the pulp in a bowl and put in the freezer.”

Instructions:

1. After I have several bowls, I defrost them all and puree it in a blender with a little bit of sugar and cinnamon.
2. Get it really smooth and then spread out in an even layer about 1/4 inch thick on the plastic tray.
3. Dehydrate for about 8-10 hrs and you have a fruit roll-up just like you get out of the stores, but made with real fruit!

Delicious as a little healthy snack, and a great way to recycle the pulp.

Enjoy!

From reader, Kim

Kim says:

“Its impressive  all the new healthy things I’m making with these tools that my picky-eater kids (ages 3 and 1) love to eat each day. I hope to make the crackers soon.

“Kim’s Fruit/Veggie Roll-Ups”

I have a new Excalibur Dehydrator and have a great fruit/veggie roll up combination my young kids LOVE! 

Ingredients:

• 3 medium pears
• 2 small organic carrots
• 1/4 cup grape  juice
• sliver of lemon

Instructions:

1. Blend in a high powered blender (I have a Vita-Mix )
2. Spread out thin on dehydrator sheets, dehydrate at 135 for 4-6 hours
3. Peel, and enjoy!

Thanks, ladies!

Have you tried any of these recipes? Or something similar? Do you have a dehydrator? Is it an Excalibur Dehydrator or some other kind? Do you own a Vita-Mix? Or just dream of one (like me)?

If you’d like to be featured in Readers Recipes, just shoot me an e-mail and you might see your recipe featured here, at Healing with (Raw) Juices!

Mind-boggling fact!

And… here’s  a mind-boggling fact of the week:

“The first-ever large-scale study of organic farming and livestock conducted by the USDA finds that organic food is a $3-billion-a-year industry.

A recent article on the coming touchscreen technology for vending machines notes that the junk food dispensers are a $30-billion-a-year industry.

Ten times as big as organic food.”

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/green/index#ixzz0esNbEh6F

And don’t forget to enter my latest giveaway: Tropical Traditions Coconut Peanut Butter!

Disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase anything once you click on the links, I will receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!

Reference:

San Francisco Chronicle

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

Thank you to www.tropicaltraditions.com for sending samples!

Note: For my 100% raw purist readers, this product is not raw. The coconut is only dried, but the peanuts are roasted. In my opinion, it’s totally worth the splurge, though!

You might remember a Tropical Traditions review and contest in the past here at Healing with (Raw) Juices…. Well, the folks at Tropical Traditions are so very kind and generous, they’ve sent more products for me to review – and give to you!

First up….

Organic Coconut Peanut Butter

Ingredients: Organic Dried Coconut, Organic Roasted Valencia Peanuts

Health Benefits of Dried Coconut

So, we know that fresh, raw coconut (and its oil) is fantabulous for our health, boasting benefits like: colon health, skin health, battling candida, promotes skin elasticity, healthy for your heart, and so much more. Coconut oil is also nature’s richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs)!

But what about the dried coconut that’s used in this coconut peanut butter? I thought you might be curious about dried coconut if you weren’t familiar, so I swiped the following information from an article on the Tropical Traditions site: The Truth about “Raw” Dried Coconut

Dried or "desiccated" coconut is an established industry in the Philippines, with the largest companies being established back in the 1920s to handle the booming candy bar industry in the US. The Philippines produces most of the world’s dried coconut products, and has had a reputation of producing a very high quality product for many years. The meat of the coconut is high in protein, and fresh coconuts have a very short shelf life, especially in the humid tropics.

In the conclusion of this article, they state:

Raw coconut is very healthy and is best consumed from fresh coconuts within 24-48 hours of harvest. For those of us living outside the tropics, dried coconut is the next best thing. However, be careful where you purchase your dried coconut and investigate thoroughly to be sure it was processed according to industry standards to avoid potential contamination.

So, from my understanding, while fresh, raw coconut is ideal for optimum health benefits, dried coconut (when correctly processed) is next in line. That makes a gal feel good about gobbling up her coconut peanut butter for sure!

From the Tropical Traditions FAQ page:

While whole coconut does contain coconut oil, you would have to eat more by weight to get the equivalent amount of pure coconut oil.

Whole coconut contains more than just oil. It would include things like fiber, protein and sugar (natural sugar).

Some people could be allergic to whole coconut, and not be allergic to coconut oil, for example, because coconut oil does not contain protein. If you are trying to restrict sugar from your diet, you do have to account for the natural sugar in whole coconut as well. As to fresh coconuts, most coconuts you find in U.S. grocery stores are transported many miles and are no longer fresh. A freshly harvested coconut does not have a long shelf life, especially if the outer husk is removed down to the brown shell. Hence, many coconuts in U.S. stores may already be moldy. This is especially true for “young” immature coconuts. The best place to eat fresh, raw coconuts is in tropical climates where they grow, and right after they are harvested. Those outside the tropics might be better off eating dried coconut.

From the site:

Tropical Traditions Organic Coconut Peanut Butter is made from organic peanuts and organic coconut. Two ingredients: nothing else! No fillers, no binders, no sweeteners, and no preservatives.

The peanuts are 100% organic Valencia peanuts grown organically by family farmers in New Mexico and Texas. Grown in the dry climate of the southwestern United States, these peanuts are certified organic and free from aflatoxins.

The dried coconut is certified organic coconut meat from the Philippines from coconuts that are grown with no fertilizers or pesticides. This premium dried coconut contains no additives or preservatives, and is not sweetened.

Unlike most dried coconut on the market, our dried coconut products are not treated with sulfites to keep them white.

Together, these premium organic roasted peanuts and the premium organic dried coconut are ground together to make a delicious and nutritious spread!

Nutrition Information

Low, low carb, people!

Coconut Peanut Butter = Yummy to the Tummy!

I have seriously, wholeheartedly enjoyed every smidgen I’ve eaten of this yummy stuff. (I still have some left in the jar, but it’s a secret – don’t tell anyone!)

You might remember when I used coconut peanut butter as a fantabulous ingredient in my:

Coconut Peanut Butter Honey Overnight Oats

Or when I spruced up my banana soft serve with some coconut peanut butter and ended up with:

Coconut Peanut Butter Cream

You’ll notice that above in the overnight oats, the coconut peanut butter actually took on a creamy consistency, but in the coconut peanut butter cream (banana soft serve with cream of coconut added), when I drizzled the coconut peanut butter over it, it was “runny” (which is a good thing, in my opinion!) but then it hardened up. And boy, was it FUN to eat that way! LOVED it!

Here’s what Tropical Traditions has to say about the consistency situation:

Note: In warmer temperatures the oils will separate at the top of the jar. Simply mix them back in. If refrigerated, this product will become hard and difficult to spread. It is recommended to store this product out of the light in a cool place.

Other ways I enjoyed my coconut peanut butter:

• straight off the spoon
• drizzled over my salad like a dressing (it was sooooooooooooo good when it ran into the crevices of the kale!

This would also be fantabulous drizzled over raw cakes or cookies, or to make hardened candy. I’m sure it’d taste awesome in a smoothie, too!

 About Tropical Traditions – The Company

From the site:

Brian W. Shilhavy, BA, MA
Brian earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Bible/Greek from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and his Master of Arts degree in linguistics from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago. He is currently the CEO of Tropical Traditions, Inc.

Marianita Jader Shilhavy, BS, CND (Certified Nutritionist/Dietician in the Philippines) earned her bachelor of science degree in nutrition in Manila. Understanding the nutrition of Filipino foods, Marianita worked for over eight years as a hospital dietician and nutritional counselor in the Philippines.

In 1998 Brian  and Marianita returned to the Philippines with their three children and renovated Marianita’s old family farmhouse. By this time the coconut industry was severely depressed due to the negative U.S. campaigns against tropical oils in the 1980s and 1990s. Coconut farmers could no longer support their families on the income generated from harvesting coconuts.

The Tropical Traditions Line of Organic Foods and Healthy Products

Later, when our  family was forced to leave the Philippines, we had to adapt our eating and lifestyle from living in a rural agricultural area of the Philippines, where we had access to a local public market and fresh farm goods produced in our community and the areas surrounding it, to buying food on the shelves of stores where we had little or no knowledge of those who produced the food. As we settled back into life in the United States, I sought out healthy food sources that I felt we could trust to meet the nutritional and health needs of our family.

Finding good food sources and healthy products is an ongoing endeavor, and the products sold through Tropical Traditions are the products I have trusted to meet the needs of my own family. I won’t sell you products that I won’t use personally or give to my own children. With meats and dairy products, it is not enough to simply be "organic." We believe that animals raised on pasture are preferable to animals in feed lots eating organic grains and organic soy, and so we give preference to animals raised on grass and sunshine, and farmers practicing sustainable agriculture.

How are Products Chosen for Tropical Traditions?

We have a strong commitment to family farming and organic standards. But the organic label is not enough for us. We research and find out where the products are produced, and how they are produced. We find that some organic standards too loose for our trust, so we look beyond what is claimed on a label. We find out as much as possible about those who provide the products. And if a certain quality of product does not exist, we will work with others to produce that product and offer it to our consumers. We did that with Virgin Coconut Oil in the Philippines, and we are working on several other products both here in the US and outside the US that we plan to introduce to you soon.

We want you to feel safe when shopping in our online store, so we have a commitment to you to not sell anything that is harmful to the best of our knowledge. All of our foods are either certified organic or meet quality standards that are equal to or higher than organic certification. This is quite different from most health food stores, where you have to be "on your guard" as most of them offer conventional products right alongside organic products, because they want to offer a full selection of products to compete with regular grocery stores. We would rather offer fewer products, and stick to our high standards, so that you can feel safe when shopping here.

Tropical Traditions is constantly adding more products to offer its customers as we move forward and find people producing products that meet our high standards. We are already working with farmers to be able to drop ship products directly to your home from the farm. In time, we will also setup regional centers where you can pick up local food produced close to your community. In early 2006 we launched our Healthy Buyer’s Club that allows individuals and families to purchase bulk retail products for a significant savings. Join us today as we seek to restore traditional ways of producing healthy food and healthy products!

Pros

There are too many pros to mention, in my opinion!  I love the taste and that it’s so versatile. You can eat it so many different ways and it’s so fun to use as an ingredient!

Coconut is good for us and while peanut butter may not be everyone’s cup of tea, for those of you who love it like there’s no tomorrow, this is a great way to enjoy “peanut butter” while also sneaking in some added nutrition and fiber.

Cons

As always, the things I look out for on the “negative” aspect of my reviews are 1) price and 2) that it’s truly a Raw Juice Girl-worthy, healthy product.

As you can tell, I’m totally in favor of this product!

Warning: This stuff is highly addictive! It’s just soooooooooooo delicious – and knowing that it is actually good for you, makes you want to indulge even more!

Verdict/Grade

I think this product deserves an A+ because it’s delicious, fun, and is so cool that it is half coconut, half peanut butter! I also love the consistency and that it’s such a fun addition to desserts and other foods. Love, love, love it!!!

Want some for yourself?

Enter my Tropical Traditions contest: click HERE.

(for U.S. and Canada residents only – sorry international readers!)

If you can’t wait for the contest, you can nab a deal on this golden treat – it’s currently 50% off of its regular retail price of $14.99!

Referral Option

If you’d like to join the Tropical Traditions Healthy Buyer’s Club, visit www.healthybuyersclub.com/orderform.cfm

And enter Raw Juice Girl’s User ID number: 4845073

By following these steps, you will receive a complimentary copy of the book Virgin Coconut Oil: How it has changed people’s lives and how it can change yours! by Brian and Marianita Shilhavy.

Your sponsor (that’d be me! ) will receive a coupon for a complimentary gift to redeem on their next order.

You may view the current complimentary gift being offered here: http://www.tropicaltraditions.com//referral_program.htm

Further instructions can be found here.

Thanks again to www.tropicaltraditions.com!

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

Just stopping by? Have you tried my coconut peanut butter honey overnight oats yet? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my  chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad.  And you simply HAVE to try my latest, simple creation: Coconut Peanut Butter Cream. YUM! And don’t forget to take a peek at my Thanksgiving holiday eats + treats – or my interview with ShimmerOrganics owner, Lisa Ann Turkel!

The last time I tried to make raw flax seed crackers, they ended up being a flop, thus the new Healing With (Raw) Juices category: Raw Flops.

But these… these were NOT a flop!

Delicious Flax Crackers!

I soaked my flax seeds overnight. And this time, I used red and green bell peppers (like the recipe called for). I still used apple in the place of the zucchini – but this time I left the peel on. 

Into the Blender

I forgot to take a photo of the other ingredients before I blended ‘em up! But here’s what it looks like when all the ingredients are whipped in the blender….

I added my juicy concoction to the soaked flax seeds….

Then I added the ground flax.

Stirred It Up

HimalaSalt = YUM!

I bought parchment paper this time!

I decided to add a few shakes of Mexican Seasoning to one tray of the mixture.

Here’s the four trays the recipe yields!

Up close

I cranked it up more this time (about 120).

Look at my crackers! Yay!

Some raw flax crackers all plated up. 

  Look at how crispy and beautiful!

I used the same recipe for inspiration as last time, from  The Raw Food Revolution Diet by Cherie Soria (sent to me by www.bookpubco.com for review). The recipe really makes 100 raw flax seed crackers. Yay!

I’ve enjoyed these crackers with sliced avocado, by themselves, with a drizzle of agave, a smear of nut butter, with salad…. SO delicious!

This post has actually been set to publish for a few days now, but I noticed Gena (from www.choosingraw.com) just published her raw juice pulp cracker recipe. Do check that out, too! I’m going to make her version as well.

Oh, and I’m also going to make some time to experiment in the coming weeks, and I’ll share the recipes I come up with on my own….

Have you tried your hand at raw crackers yet – with or without a dehydrator? Do you have Cherie’s book? If so, what do you think about it? Do you love it? Have you made good use of it? (I have a review coming up of my copy!)

Just stopping by? Have you tried my coconut peanut butter honey overnight oats yet? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my  chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad.  And you simply HAVE to try my latest, simple creation: Coconut Peanut Butter Cream. YUM!

A Day of Eats + Treats

This post is a record of my raw, Vegan eats and treats from the other day. I started the morning off in a fun, protein-filled way by making myself some of Averie’s Raw Vegan (Vanilla) Chia Seed Pudding. It’s filling, delicious, and held me over nicely until lunch. Lotsa protein, flavor, texture, plus that fantabulous superfood: chia — YAY and YUM!

Oh, and Averie even told her readers all about me making her recipe. She shared lots of readers’ photos and links to their blogs in her tribute post to readers who’ve made her RAWsome concoctions!

Lunch was…

leftover Tuna Fish-Less Salad

on top of raw veggie salad, with a few cranks of pink sea salt

and black peppercorns

And the Treats?

How about two simple ingredients and flavor that’ll rawk your world??!!

Enter:

A Date with Almond Butter

I had two more of these later that evening. SO good!!

Wow. Such a simple dessert – and it’s raw AND delicious! Woo hoo!!

For dinner

I had more raw veggie salad topped with the last of my Raw Tuna Fish-Less Salad.

This is what a day is like for me when I’m truly sticking to 100% raw/Vegan foods. Of course, there are times I’ll use something that isn’t 100% raw but I try to stay as raw as possible. I just feel better physically and mentally that way.

So what’s a day of your eats and treats like? Have you ever enjoyed a date filled with almond butter? If not, are you going to try it?

Just stopping by? Have you tried my coconut peanut butter honey overnight oats yet? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my  chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad.  And congrats to Cyn for winning my latest contest!!

This morning when I woke up, I enjoyed a delicious bowl of overnight oats. It was SO filling that noon came and went and I still wasn’t hungry for lunch!

I eventually wanted a little something and remembered I had some frozen bananas. My mindwheel started turning….

The result?

Coconut Peanut Butter Cream

Know the banana soft serve that’s swept across the blogosphere like a cyber hurricane?

Oh, yeah!

I tossed the bananas in the blender and I noticed there was some cream of coconut a family member hadn’t used up. So I threw 3 tablespoons in the blender. I’d say there was about 4 bananas in that bag.

What came out of the blender was this:

Beautiful, isn’t it?! And if that wasn’t delicious enough, I thought of the Coconut Peanut Butter that Tropical Traditions sent me!

  Drizzle, Drizzle

Then… a MIRACLE

When Tropical Traditions Coconut Peanut Butter is drizzled over something cold (like banana soft serve), it hardens up!! Like the chocolate on a dip cone!!! Eeeeeekkk!!! What??!!! I was ecstatic!!!!

Dessert for Lunch

I must admit, this hemp-loving, salad-chompin’ Raw Juice Girl enjoyed every last creamy, smooth, decadent, sweet bite of her dessert for lunch. I know I’ll be having Coconut Peanut Butter Cream again soon!! YUM!!

Oh, and I only had a small portion. I shared the rest with family. Boy, were they SURPRISED at how good my banana ice cream tasted!!

For anyone wondering: The peanuts in the Coconut Peanut Butter are roasted so that isn’t raw. And the cream of coconut from that can had preservatives, so it isn’t raw either. Of course, the bananas are raw. Yippee for that!

Even though this dessert isn’t 100% raw, it SURE was yummy to the tummy!

Worried about the nutritional value of this dessert for lunch? Well, Coconut Peanut Butter Cream provides protein, fiber, potassium, and more!

What about you? Have you jumped on the raw banana soft serve bandwagon yet? What’s your favorite raw dessert? Are you going to try my Coconut Peanut Butter Cream? Tell me all about it!

Just stopping by? Have you entered my latest contest (over a $200 value)? It ends tonight! Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad. 

Two of my latest product arrivals for review are Coconut Peanut Butter and Raw Honey from Tropical Traditions. (Of course, I’ll be doing a thorough review of each product in upcoming posts, but I had to share this recipe with y’all!)

Oh, and for raw foodie purists, the ONLY thing I can find that doesn’t make this breakfast recipe 100% raw is the fact that the peanuts in the coconut peanut butter have been roasted. Well, and I used boxed almond milk (you could make your own, raw almond milk though).

Before I share the recipe, I have to tell you that these two products are soooooooooooooo yummy!!!

A sneak peek to my upcoming review:

“The coconut peanut butter is amazing! It literally tastes like 50% coconut and 50% peanut butter in each bite. Although the consistency is runny, it really fills my mouth with explosions of flavor and healthy goodness. I’m a thick consistency/crunchy kinda gal but I’m LOVING this stuff. Really. I could eat it every day! And the raw honey is solid and needs to be scraped out or sat near a low heat to be softened but it is really sweet and fantabulous!”

Coconut Peanut Butter Honey Overnight Oats

1/3 cup oats (heaping)

2/3 cups almond milk

2 tablespoons Tropical Traditions Coconut Peanut Butter

1 tablespoon Tropical Traditions raw honey

1 (small, very ripe) banana

Coconut Peanut Butter is runny, but DELISH!

Dump your oats in the bowl.

Pour almond milk in.

Add coconut peanut butter.

Add raw honey.

Mash in 1 small (really ripe) banana.

Stir, and refrigerate.

Note: Averie saves half her banana for adding as a topping the next morning. I just mashed the whole banana in.

Looks like this going in…

This Morning

After Stirring

I’ll admit, I’ve seen various concoctions of overnight oats all across the blogosphere and although they all look delicious, I wasn’t thrilled about the idea of eating cold oatmeal for breakfast. Just sounds a little gross, doesn’t it?

I am not new to the idea of soaking oats overnight – I’ve done it for years (with steel-cut) but I’d always cook ‘em on the stove top the next morning.

And… I’m now a new overnight oats convert. I’ll be eating this often. It’s DELISH! Oh my gosh. If you’ve been hesitant to try it, you have to make this – I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the results!

Plus, this is the PERFECT (healthy) breakfast for anyone who has to be up early and works outside the home. You can make your oatmeal the night before, grab it out of the fridge in the morning and gobble it up. Who says you can’t have a healthy breakfast if you work long, crazy hours??!! Overnight oats is a fantabulous solution for you!!

And have you entered my latest contest yet? Prizes are valued at over $200!! And the contest closes at 9 p.m. (Central Time) TONIGHT. A winner will be chosen via random.org. There are TWELVE ways to enter. Hurry and get your entries in!

Coming Soon

Interview with the owner of ShimmerOrganics, my review of her raw beauty mask (plus a surprise for y’all!!) and lots more reviews and contests.

Oh, and guess what??!! I made a new batch of raw flax seed crackers – and they turned out this time! The recipe made 100. Eeek! I’ve been gobbling ‘em up and love every single taste! I’ll be sharing photos and everything in an upcoming post. Yay for raw flax seed crackers!!!

Your Turn

Do you make raw recipes often, or do you read raw blogs for inspiration and learning? Have you ever made overnight oats? What’s your favorite overnight oats combo? What did you think of eating  ‘em cold? Let’s talk about it!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Just stopping by? Have you entered my latest contest (over a $200 value)? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad. 

You might remember the Excalibur dehydrator I was sent to review. I’ve been experimenting with it – just hadn’t posted about my adventures. Why? I’ve had quite a few “Raw Flops" goin’ on around here. Yep.

Upon a reader’s request (thanks, Beth!) I’ll be sharing my (un)cooking disasters in the new category: Raw Flops. But don’t worry, I have some rawsome stuff comin’ up, too!

And… here’s a story written in third person. Why? I guess I just kinda felt like writing about myself that way as I reflected on this dehydrating disaster.

Raw Juice Girl’s Flax Flop

Once upon a time, in a raw fantasy world, lived a gal who dreamt of creating the bestest raw flax seed crackers ever. She put her flax seeds to soakin’ while thinking about all those health benefits: omegas, manganese, fiber, folate, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, and Vitamin B6.

Those beautiful little seeds gettin’ their soak on just screamed healthy heart, blood pressure, bones, hair, skin, nails, colon, and so much more—like fighting cancer, diabetes, dry eyes, and hot flashes.

Oh my!

<insert dreamy (healthy) eyes here>

The Raw Food Revolution Diet , by Cherie Soria (sent to her by The Book Publishing Company for review – aka as in free sample/Raw Juice Girl didn’t buy it) had a raw flax seed cracker recipe that sounded fantabulous!

It felt like DAYS waiting the 8 hours for those seeds to soak. *looks around* Where’d Raw Juice Girl’s patience go? Someone stole it!

Cherie’s recipe called for 4 cups of chopped bell pepper (or tomato). Raw Juice Girl had neither so she used raw broccoli slaw instead. Oh, joy!

Next up, raw zucchini. Nope, none of that either! Enter: diced, raw apple.

Blend it all up, Cherie says.

Um, it looks like puke. That’s what she said.

Gotta have some seasoning! Yay for HimalaSalt samples (again, free  – yummy – samples Raw Juice Girl was sent for review)…

Organic garlic salt

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Stir it all up!

Smear it on the dehydrator tray (with a liner).

Close-up

Score the mixture to make separated cracker lines.

The house smelled sooooooooooooooooo good while these crackers were (un)cooking!

105* for 12 hours, Cherie says

Raw Juice Girl leaped out of bed the next morning, with bright eyes and pep to her step. She ran into the kitchen like a child on Christmas morning expecting shiny, new flax seed crackers ready for flippin’.

Imagine her surprise when she opened the Dehydrator door and found this:

Flax Crackers Stuck to Wax Paper!!!

Raw Juice Girl wanted to just cry…

And the saddest part? Raw Juice Girl managed to break off a teeny piece of cracker (without waxed paper attached!) and it tasted REALLY good.

*sigh*

The moral of this story, folks, is that Raw Juice Girl shoulda used parchment paper or waited ‘till she got some Excalibur non-stick, reusable sheets.

She was so blasted mad at that wax paper, she thought about eatin’ it but didn’t have an appetite after finding her ruined crackers! Humph!

See, Raw Juice Girl is real. She makes mistakes. She doesn’t have all the raw food stuff figured out. She’ll be your guinea pig, though. You can learn from her mistakes and get a few laughs along the way…

Stay tuned for more Raw Flops. This is a new category featuring Raw Juice Girl’s bloopers. You won’t want to miss a single post!

Resources:
WH Foods: Flax Seeds

Just tuning in? Be sure to get yourself entered in my latest contest (prizes are valued at over $200!!!). Also, check out Zeenat’s guest post about the healing benefits of onions. You might also enjoy my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or my version of tuna fish-less salad.

Hi, y’all!

Today, I’m going to share with you my experience of making Averie’s Raw Vegan Chia Seed Pudding. You can find all sorts of variations she’s created by checking out her chia seed category over at Love Veggies & Yoga.

I was super excited the other day when I mentioned I received a package from NuNaturals.com.

Why, you ask? Well, of course, I’m excited to get creative with all their tasty products, but I was even MORE excited when I saw my RAWkin’ friend, Averie, included in the information packet.

You go, Averie!

And now it’s Raw Juice Girl’s turn to try her hand at Averie’s Raw Vegan Chia Seed Pudding.

I followed her recipe to a T. (View her chia seed variations here.)

2 Tablespoons Chia Seeds

Almond Milk

Vanilla Stevia

Chia Gellin’

Gettin’ Thick!

All Thickened Up!

The amount of agave was too much for me – lots of sweetness! So, the next time I made myself some chia seed pudding, I used half the amount Averie does. She uses 2 tablespoons of agave nectar, and I cut it down to 1. Even that was too sweet for me, so now I just drizzle a little agave and it’s just right for me (kind of like the porridge from Goldilocks and the Three Bears!

But this is soooooooooooo delicious, y’all! If you’ve never made it – and you have the ingredients on hand – I urge you to stop what you’re doing and whip some up. Like, now! Seriously. It’s SO good!

Have you ever made raw, vegan chia seed pudding? Did you like it? Are you addicted to it yet? So far, I’ve enjoyed chia seed pudding as breakfast, and as a snack. YUM!

And guess what’s coming up? My chocolate version of chia seed pudding. It’s similar to Averie’s, but I put my own twist on this one. Can you guess what ingredient I used?

Stay tuned….

Before you scroll down to find out what takes the place of tuna in tuna (fish-less) salad, be sure to check out what I think about reversing diabetes in 30 days, plus  my latest contest (over a $200 value!) and my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. You might also enjoy some naturopathic teaching in Zeenat’s guest post about the healing properties of onion.

Gone raw – or want to – but don’t want to give up your beloved tuna salad? No problem! Just check out my raw tuna fish-less salad below. YUM! Pretty close to the real thing, don’t ya think?

This is an especially nice meal or snack for someone who can’t stand the fish smell/taste. You get the benefits of tuna salad (protein, omegas,vitamins, minerals, etc.) but not the fishy aroma or flavor.  And you’re even getting zinc from the sunflower seeds! (Oops! I spilled the beans!) 

Raw Juice Girl’s Tuna Fish-Less Himala Salad Recipe:

1 1/2 cups finely ground sunflower seeds

2 tablespoons ground flax seeds

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 small onion, chopped (I used about 3/4 of that small onion)

17 (soaked) cashews, roughly chopped

small handful raw sunflower seeds (I didn’t take time to soak these)

avocado (half in the mix, half sliced for serving)

freshly ground Himala pink sea salt (to taste)

Himala organic garlic salt (to taste)

freshly ground Himala black peppercorns (to taste)

Just enough water to make the consistency of tuna salad

(I had a cereal-sized bowl of leftovers.)

Note for next time I make this: It needs more onion and some pickles. If you like pickles in your tuna salad and aren’t worried about being 100% raw,  you could add canned pickles. If you are worried about staying purely raw, you could make some “fridge pickles” as my friend, Beth, pointed out.

Mix it Together

Serve with your favorite, sliced veggies – or dehydrated flax seed crackers (those are coming up soon!). Of course, you could also smear it on bread and have a sandwich but I try to avoid the bread-like stuff. If I don’t, I look like dough.

And there you have it. What do you think? Does it look like the real thing to you? Have you ever made mock tuna salad? Are you a vegetarian, vegan, or do you try to cut back on your meat intake (some people consider fish to be meat)? This is a great recipe for you, too – even if you aren’t a high-raw foodie.

The best thing about this tuna fish-less recipe is that it’s free of soy, gluten, dairy, and harsh chemicals/preservatives.

Himala Samples

And a ginormous thank you to Melissa Kushi from Himala Salt for sending me these beautiful, delicious samples! A full review of each product (and the extremely eco-friendly company is coming in the near future!)

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out my review of E3Live and also my thoughts on BrainOn. And a huge thank you to the folks at www.E3Live.com for sponsoring the first contest where one LUCKY reader will be receiving a prize valued at over $200!

Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Mission

This post is in honor of Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness

Katie is doing a fantabulous job of spreading kindness. Let’s help her out!!

In honor of the chocolate theme (and y’all know how much I love chocolate!) I thought I’d share a few recipes. Only one is mine, but I think you’ll like the others I mention, too!

Chocolate-Covered Recipes

Katie has a long list of chocolate-covered recipes on her blog. You’ll want to browse through ‘em all! Not only will you come across delicious treats you can whip up for yourself and your family and/or friends, but you’ll be helping Katie raise money for charity while you’re looking!

For starters, you might enjoy perusing her Fudge Babies. Oh, yeah! If that isn’t enough to drive you chocolate bonkers, feast your eyes on All Things Oatmeal, Pancake Pandemonium, The Pudding Files, or the Most Popular. Of course, there are tons more. Enjoy!

Oh, and you might want to grab a napkin before you dig through her recipe archives – you just might drool!

Averie’s Chocolate Fudge Balls

The amazing Averie is always, always whipping up the most RAWsome Vegan desserts over at Love Veggies & Yoga. She creates the most decadent, sinful looking (yet healthy!!!) treats over there. She’s an incredible inspiration, from her years of yoga practice, to her ability to juggle day-to-day chaos with a toddler, she manages to be wife, momma, blogger, reviewer, keeps a spotless home, and even hosts contests for her readers! But back to those delicious desserts…  Her latest: 3-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Fudge Balls

I haven’t tried Averie’s chocolate ball recipes yet, but I will soon.

Jocelyn’s Brownie Batter Balls

Jocelyn blogs at Jocelyn Eats Fresh. I’m sooooooooooooo proud of her because although her blog posts are often upbeat and inspiring, she’s worked very, very hard at overcoming an eating disorder. She is finding a beautiful balance of healthy foods and also allows herself to splurge sometimes on the not-so-healthy stuff so she won’t find herself feeling the need to go back to those old, harmful habits. She has an “everything in moderation” mentality and it’s working wonders for her body, mind, and soul. She’s a beautiful person, inside and out, and is losing weight the slow, right way. You’re doing a great job, Jocelyn. Keep up the great work!!!

Anyway, I knew I had to try out Jocelyn’s cool creation when I happened upon her Raw Chocolate Brownie Batter Balls. I didn’t have the exact ingredients she used, so I switched it up a little. Or, well, a lot!

And Raw Juice Girl’s version…

Chocolate-Covered Raisin Hemp Balls

This recipe made 14 chocolate balls. It probably would have made 16 or 17. Um… Oops!! *giggles*

• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 1/2 cups raisins
• 6 tablespoons Dark Chocolate Hemp Powder (www.manitobaharvest.com)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon agave (or so)

I had to add a dash more almond flour and a little water to try to get the right consistency. I should have used the food processor, I think. I used the blender instead. Hmmmm…. Or, I needed to start with more liquid.

No worries… they turned out YUMMY!!!

Manitoba Harvest Chocolate Hemp

Oh my goodness y’all… The dark chocolate hemp powder from www.manitobaharvest.com is DIVINE!!! So far, I’ve enjoyed it in a smoothie and these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. It’s fantabulous to get your hemp protein in via chocolate. YUM-O!!!!!

You can expect a full review on the product itself in an upcoming post.

Roll the dough into balls

Then wash your hands!

And enjoy! Yum!!!

Good, and Good For You!

And that’s it! If you love chocolate-covered raisins, you’ll LOVE these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. You’re getting a chocolate (and a snack) fix!

AND hemp is full of whole food nutrition:

“ALL Essential Amino Acids (Protein), Omega-3 and Omega-6 Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), and both soluble and insoluble dietary fibre.”– www.manitobaharvest.com

You’ll also be gobbling up antioxidants, boron, calcium, vitamin C, iron… (from the raisins). And the almonds are giving you manganese, vitamin E, magnesium, tryptophan, copper, vitamin B2 (riboflavin), phosphorus…

My goodness, that little chocolate-covered raisin hemp ball packs a powerful punch. I could take a beating (or two!) from these yummy treats. Yep, I could!!!

Don’t forget about Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness

Contest Alert!!!!

Katie (as in, Chocolate-Covered Katie I mentioned above) is having a Your-Choice Giveaway

Leslie (from Leslie Loves Veggies) is also having a contest: KALLARI Chocolate {Giveaway} 3 Winners

Win a mixed case of Chobani Greek yogurt over at The Actor’s Diet Blog.

And… don’t forget about the awesome giveaway I’m hosting. Prizes are valued at OVER $200!!!!

Latest Package for Review!

I have lots of awesome posts planned for these yummy products!!!

Visit www.NuNaturals.com to learn more about their line of sweeteners, extracts, and other health supplements.

Thank you, NuNaturals!!!

Resources:

WHFoods: Raisins

WHFoods: Almonds

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to enter Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for TWO containers  of Amazing Grass – one is CHOCOLATE! (Thursday, October 22 is the last day to enter.)  You can also use the code hwj (small J as in JUICE) for a 15% discount on your order, if you can’t wait. And a BIG thank you to Amazing Grass for sponsoring!

Fun Treats for Fall

Nathalie, at Raw Foods Witch, recently shared a new raw recipe video: How to Make a Festive Raw Pumpkin Pie Recipe. I love Nathalie. She’s fun, creative, informative, and I just adore her enthusiasm for raw living!

Cindy, from A Sparkle A Day, made us readers drool with her version of a healthy pancake. If you aren’t 100% raw/vegan, I’d definitely recommend you give this a try. I haven’t yet, but I will!

Love Veggies & Yoga? Averie sure does! This gal is RAWkin the blogosphere with her creative raw recipes. She has a passion for raw, vegan living and shares all sorts of recipes and tips–with pizzazz! One of her creations I’m lookin’ forward to making myself: Raw, Vegan Apple Crumble! Of course, Averie’s recipe archive is exploding over there, so dig through and find yourself some stuff to eat!

Mysti, of Life’s Approbations, shared her original recipe: Fall Perfection Pumpkin Muffins. This one isn’t raw or vegan, but is made with healthy ingredients! If you’re looking for a raw recipe from this gal, she offers that too at her new site, Dining Family: Sweet, Smooth and Cold! (And you’ll find a real little pumpkin at the end of that recipe!) UPDATED TO ADD: “Egg can be substituted out with 1/4 c applesauce and 1/8 tsp baking soda,” says Mysti. She wanted to share that for vegan readers. Thank you, Mysti!!!

I love pumpkin seeds, so Katy Joy’s recipe (from Raw People), sounds like a delicious treat. I’d like to make it sometime. Have you ever had Pumpkin Spice Milk?

And, here’s one of my recipes–that I haven’t enjoyed in quite a while!

Pumpkin Pie Yogurt

Ingredients:

• a container of organic, Greek yogurt (I love Oikos, but you could use raw, nut based yogurt)
• about 1/4 to 1/2 can of organic pumpkin (or raw)
• pumpkin pie spice

Stir pumpkin into your yogurt and sprinkle on as much pumpkin pie spice as you’d like.

Optional Toppings:

• trail mix
• granola
• raisins
• cranberries
• cookies
• raw pumpkin seeds (or nuts)

Do you have any favorite Fall recipes? Do you stay 100% raw in the Fall and Winter seasons, regardless, or do you stray and enjoy some warm (or other non-raw) comfort foods? Have you ever had the recipes I mentioned today? Do you plan on trying any of them? Hope you enjoy your weekend! Can you believe we’re half-way through October??!!

Want to REALLY enhance your recipes?? Enter the contest for NuttZo over at An Apple A Day blog! Hurry, contest ends soon!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ve also been working on a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks toNavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

Navitas Natural Delivery!

I was super excited when I received this package from NavitasNaturals.com . Today I’m focusing on the Organic Superfood Chocolate Kit–but take a look at that eco-friendly canteen!!! Eeeeek!!!

Craving Chocolate

Ever had a craving for chocolate but didn’t want to spend a lot of time–and make a big mess–in order to enjoy some? Okay, it’s true, you can just make a quick visit to the store and pick up whatever chocolate you want. And, with the Web’s convenience, you can shop ’till your heart’s content and order anything that appeals to your eyes–and tummy!

But if you’re wanting the fun (and healthy!) experience of whipping up some organic, raw, delicious chocolate candy in just a few minutes, without wrecking your whole kitchen, then Navitas Naturals Organic Superfood Kit is for you!

Organic Superfood Chocolate Kit

This is a super fun kit. It comes with 3 ingredients! Who can’t whip up 3 ingredients, eh?  And, besides, the directions are easy and precise–you get to take a class right off the box: Chocolate School 101. Does that mean I have a degree in Chocolate now? Oh, how very RAWsome!

Chocolate School 101

First, they told me to sit a smaller bowl into a larger bowl that had hot water (for melting the cacao butter via the raw method). You can also nuke it or use a double boiler but you’ll be zapping the nutrient value.

Melting Cacao Butter

Cacao Butter All Melted

It doesn’t take long and it’s all melted!

Add Organic Chocolate Powder

Then you add the organic chocolate powder and stir, stir, stir!

Stir

Stir

Stir Some More

All Stirred Up

Just take a look at that raw chocolate. Eeeek!

At this point, you can drizzle in a tablespoon of agave syrup or some other sweetener. I didn’t. So the chocolate had more of a dark chocolate taste in the end. I’m more of a milk chocolate gal so I think I’d add sweetener next  time but I still really enjoyed the taste of this chocolate–which surprised me, considering I’m not a huge fan of dark chocolate.

In to the Ice Tray

Close-Up

Pour your melted chocolate into an ice tray (Raw Juice Chocolate Girl got a little messy–I never said I wouldn’t!)

No More Chocolate!

Raw Juice Girl also CHEATED and licked some chocolate right off that spoon! YUM-O! It’d be good drizzled over Gena’s banana soft serve.

Frozen, Raw Chocolate

After I popped that ice tray in the freezer, I almost forgot about it (ahem, I was busy uploading photos and working on reviews and contests like a good blogger)! 

Chocolate Ice Cube!

See the Goji Berries?!

Nutritional Info

From the site:

Healthy Homemade Chocolates

Navitas Naturals Chocolate Kits contain everything you need for an authentic chocolate alchemy experience – including 100% Navitas Naturals superfood ingredients. Enjoy this chocolatey blend with goji berries: a synergistic combination of exciting power ingredients that’s packed with antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, essential minerals, and is sugar and dairy free. Each synergistic combination of exciting power ingredients is packed with antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, essential minerals, and is sugar and dairy free.

Source and Processing

We carefully source each ingredient from indigenous regions around the world, honoring the traditions of the ancient cultures, and using minimal processing techniques to ensure maximum nutritional benefits. Our products are of the highest quality, sourced directly from farmers, cultivated sustainably and in accordance with fair trade standards. Navitas Naturals Chocolate Kits are 100% organic, kosher, vegan, gluten-free, and raw.

Verdict/Grade?

This kit is simple, precise, and so fun to make. I felt like a kid again! The ingredients are organic, and you’re loading up on antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, phytonutrients–all the good stuff! Another bonus is that the only dishes you dirty up are 2 bowls, 1 spoon, and an ice tray and you end up with 12 pieces of quality chocolate. And I had leftover goji berries  that I can add to steel-cut oatmeal or a smoothie! So, this baby gets TWO thumbs up from Raw Juice Girl. That’s an A+ in my (RAW) book!

Oh, and it retails for $9.99 (USD) per kit. So you’re essentially paying $10 for 12 pieces of quality, organic, raw, superfood candy!

So, what do you think? Is this something you’d like to try? Have you already used this neat little chocolate kit? What did you think? What’s your favorite chocolate, and your favorite way to eat it? Do tell, I’m craving your answer!

Latest Navitas Natural Arrival–Reviews Coming Up!

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out Healing With (Raw) Juices’ latest contest for an 8 ounce bag of Raw Chia Seeds–thanks to NavitasNaturals.com for sponsoring!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Pancake, that is!

Yep, a real, genuine, prepared-in-a-skillet-with-sizzling-olive oil-plus-real-butter pancake!

I woke up this morning with a crazy craving for pancakes. I haven’t eaten pancakes in forever. I try to stay away from things like that not only because of the carbs but because it’s like bread and my body doesn’t do well eating much bread–even if it’s a healthier version. But today I thought “why not splurge and live a little?” So, today I made myself a pancake!

There was a box of fiber pancake mix in the pantry. It called for 1 cup of the dry mix to 2/3 cup water. That’s it. Here’s how I made it even healthier: I filled up the measuring cup a little more than the 3/4 mark and then poured in ground flax until it reached the 1 cup mark. Then I mixed that together really well so the flax would be throughout the pancake mix. Then I added the water.

I added a little olive oil and a dab of real butter to the heated skillet and once it was sizzling, I poured in my pancake batter. This made 4 good-sized pancakes (not really huge). I only ate one, though! The rest went to family.

The Toppings

I gently placed that beautiful, fluffy pancake into a plate and decided on the toppings: a dab of real butter, a blob of almond butter, and drizzles of agave syrup. Oh my, so DELISH!

See for yourself…

YUM!

The Healthy Part

Flax seeds are small but are bursting at the seams with goodies our bodies are crying out for. They’re anti-inflammatory, help us have strong bones, and are good little soldiers for fighting cancer, diabetes, and other diseases. They also promote a healthy bowel and help reduce hot flashes in menopausal women by a whopping 60%!!! Does blood pressure problems run in your family or do you already have trouble with yours? Add flax seeds to your diet to help prevent and/or control your blood pressure levels. The omega-3 fatty acid in flax seeds helps dry eyes, too!

Besides the omega-3 fatty acids, flax seeds contain:

• manganese
• fiber
• magnesium
• folate
• copper
• phosphorus
• vitamin B6

Awesome!

So, yeah, my pancake may not have been raw but I’m not 100% raw right now. I’m trying to live just a little without being too harsh on myself. I think this breakfast was A-OK!

UPDATED TO ADD:

Some of you were interested in carb count and other nutritional information. I double checked and what I used was the Fiber One brand. The more I read the box, the more I realized it’s more processed than what I like; however, if I had read it beforehand, I wouldn’t have enjoyed my Sunday pancake so I guess I’ll forgive and move on.

Here’s the nutritional information you all asked for. (I about passed out when I noticed the sodium. Ack!)

And for those of you who try to keep it low carb, you probably won’t be happy with the 36 grams of carbs this has. There are 5 grams of fiber so that cancels out some of the carbs and leaves you with 31–still quite a large number for a low-carber. But there are other flours and probably mixes, too. Since I stay away from foods like this, I’m really not up-to-date with all the latest and/or healthiest versions of processed mixes out there. Anyone want to chime in?

If you’re just tuning in, be sure to catch up and check out the first guest post to ever appear on Healing With (Raw) Juices—Dehydrator Recipes: Healthy Kids’ Snacks, written by Mysti Guymon-Reutlinger. Thank you for sharing your creations with us, Mysti!

I have LOTS of reviews and contests coming up, so you’ll definitely want to subscribe if you haven’t already!

Want to keep up with Raw Juice Girl’s adventures + more?  Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. I’ll also be making a recipe page where you’ll be able to easily locate recipes for raw juices, smoothies, and now dehydrator creations!

Resource:

WH Foods – Flax Seeds