Saturday, December 24, 2011

Raw Holiday Dishes - NBC's My Carolina Today

I had the wonderful opportunity to share some holiday dishes with the ladies of My Carolina Today last week.  This show often shines a bright light on ways to live a healthy, toxin free life!!!  I always feel amazingly blessed and lucky that allow me to participate on their show :)

Enjoy!!!!

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For many of us, it wouldn’t be the holidays without indulging in “food centered” celebrations.  You can still enjoy rich, decadent holiday dishes that are delicious and nutritious without meat or dairy products. Because these dishes are all prepared without heat or at temperatures below 117 degrees, the maximum nutritional value of each ingredient has been maintained.

Just as a quick reminders below are a few facts about how and why including more raw and living foods into your diet can enhance your wellbeing:

Why Raw?
  Food in its natural state is the complete package – a wonderful balance of minerals, vitamins, enzymes, and micronutrients.
  Some nutrition is destroyed when any foods are cooked
  Some believe up to 99% of nutrition is destroyed when cooking vegetables.
  Fruits and vegetables contain a lot of water which is lost when they are cooked.
  Natural enzymes are destroyed when foods are cooked.

And now, on to the recipes...............................

Egg”less”nog
1/2 C Almonds
1 Young Coconut (flesh from)
3 Dates
3 T Agave
1 1/2 t Cinnamon
1/2 t Nutmeg
1/2 t Cloves
1 t Rum Extract (not raw but completes the eggnog flavor)
3 C Water

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until very smooth. Strain through nut milk bag. Top with a sprinkle of extra nutmeg. You can serve this warm or cold.

Health Benefits of Almonds:  Five large human epidemiological studies, including the Nurses Health Study, the Iowa Health Study, the Adventist Health Study and the Physicians Health Study, all found that nut consumption is linked to a lower risk for heart disease. Researchers who studied data from the Nurses Health Study estimated that substituting nuts for an equivalent amount of carbohydrate in an average diet resulted in a 30% reduction in heart disease risk. Researchers calculated even more impressive risk reduction--45%--when fat from nuts was substituted for saturated fats (found primarily found in meat and dairy products).

 Hearty Nut Stuffing

2 cloves garlic
2T sage
2T rosemary
2T thyme
2C walnuts, soaked 12 hours
2C almonds, soaked 12 hours
1T white miso
1 onion, chopped
6 celery, chopped
1C parsley, chopped

Process garlic and herbs. Add nuts and miso slowly and process. Put in bowl and stir in onion and celery. Crumble mixture on teflex sheets and dehydrate at 105 for 6 hours.

Health Beneftis of Herbs:

Parsley is an amazing medicinal herb with a world of health benefits. The root contains calcium, B-complex vitamins, and iron, which nourish the glands that help regulate the uptake of calcium. It is a source of magnesium, calcium, potassium, vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin C and vitamin K.

Sage contains a variety of volatile oils, flavonoids and phenolic acids, including rosmarinic acid. The oils found in sage are both antiseptic and antibiotic, helping it fight infections.

Rosemary contains caffeic acid and rosemarinic acid, both of which are potent antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory agents. Rosemary is also a good source of antioxidant vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) and other important antioxidants.

Thyme has a long history of use for chest and respiratory problems including coughs, bronchitis, and chest congestion. It is an excellent source of iron and manganese, and a good source of calcium and dietary fiber. Thyme contains a variety of important flavonoids and volatile oils, including the important volatile oil thymol.

Marinara (to top stuffing, if desired)

1C sundried tomatoes
1/4C raisins
2L tomatoes
1t thyme
1t sage
1t rosemary

Blend in Vitamix

Mashed Taters

2 Cups Cauliflower
1/4 Cup Pine Nuts
1/2 Cup Pecans
1 Cup Macadamia nuts
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning
3/4 Tablespoons garlic
1 teaspoon salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Process nuts in a food processor with the "S" blade until they
become smooth and creamy. Add in remaining ingredients and
continue to process until it is smooth. Top with cream of
mushroom gravy.
Health Benefits of Cauliflower:  Several dozen studies link cauliflower-containing diets to cancer prevention, particularly with respect to the following types of cancer: bladder cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and ovarian cancer. This connection between cauliflower and cancer prevention should not be surprising, since cauliflower provides special nutrient support for three body systems that are closely connected with cancer development as well as cancer prevention. These three systems are (1) the body's detox system, (2) its antioxidant system, and (3) its inflammatory/anti-inflammatory system. Chronic imbalances in any of these three systems can increase risk of cancer, and when imbalances in all three systems occur simultaneously, the risk of cancer increases significantly.
RAW VERSION

TRADITIONAL VERSION
Nutrition Facts

Nutrition Facts
Cauliflower Potatoes

2lbs Potatoes, 3/4C cream, 1C butter
8 Servings

10 Servings



Amount Per Serving

Amount Per Serving



Calories
251.7

Calories
335.6
Total Fat
26.3 g

Total Fat
21.9 g

Saturated Fat
3.4 g


Saturated Fat
13.8 g

Polyunsaturated Fat
4.1 g


Polyunsaturated Fat
0.9 g

Monounsaturated Fat
17.5 g


Monounsaturated Fat
5.7 g
Cholesterol
0.0 mg

Cholesterol
61.0 mg
Sodium
52.0 mg

Sodium
145.1 mg
Potassium
193.9 mg

Potassium
788.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate
5.2 g

Total Carbohydrate
32.5 g

Dietary Fiber
2.8 g


Dietary Fiber
4.1 g

Sugars
1.1 g


Sugars
1.5 g
Protein
3.1 g

Protein
4.1 g


***Notice that each recipe has a similiar fat content but the raw version contains far more healthy fats while the traditional version is nearly all saturated fat.
Gravy

2 Cups Pecans, soaked
2 Cups Water
1/2 Cup dehydrated onion
1 Tablespoon poultry seasoning
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

Blend the ingredients thoroughly to a gravy consistency.
“Pumpkin Pie”

2 C almonds, soaked
1 C walnuts or pecans, soaked
1 C unsweetened shredded coconut
20 dates, soaked overnight
2 C cashews, soaked overnight, and drained
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced.
3 t pumpkin pie spice
drizzle agave nectar


CRUST
Combine almonds, walnuts or pecans, and coconut in food processor or Vitamix, and process until ground fine and dough-like
 Pat the dough into two pie plates


FILLING
Drain dates; reserve soak water.
In food processor, puree dates, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pie spice
Remove mixture from food processor and set aside in a bowl.
Set mixture aside in a bowl.
Process cashews, agave nectar, vanilla, and date soak water as needed, until smooth and creamy.
Combine cashew mixture and sweet potato mix puree
Spread filling in pie shells
Dehydrate for 6 hours, then refrigerate.

Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes: High in vitamins B6, C, iron, and magnesium

Holiday Fudge
1 c. raw coconut oil
3/4 c. raw
carob (or cocoa)
2 t. vanilla flavor
1/2-1C agave (depending on how sweet you want your fudge)
1 c. raisins, raw nuts, coconut, or whatever you want
Put the coconut oil in a bowl, Put this bowl in another bowl of hot water, When it's melted, stir in the carob to make it smooth, then stir in the other stuff. Spread on wax paper lined cookie sheet, put in fridge or freezer 5-10 minutes to make it hard. Break into pieces
Try experimenting with peppermint or other flavors instead of vanilla.