TV Thai Food

I had a great time during my latest appearance on NBC's My Carolina Today!  I am always amazed at the outpouring of interest in raw veganism that comes from these segments.

WHAT’S ON THE MENU?

 

Spicy Thai Kale Chips

3 bunches of Kale

Splash of olive oil

1 cup almonds
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 -2 teaspoons hot chili pepper sauce (again, if you don't like spice, skip this!)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon Braggs soy sauce
½ cup water
pinch sea salt
pinch pepper

Clean and rinse kale and tear into large chunks. Douse with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt. Massage into kale.  In a food processor, blend the almond into a mill. Add the minced ginger, garlic, hot pepper sauce, lemon juice, honey, nama shoyu, water, salt and pepper, and blend until smooth. Pour over Kale and massage in. Lay Kale leaves on dehydrator sheets and dehydrate at 115 until crisp.  If you don’t have a dehydrator, put your oven on the lowest setting and bake until crisp.

 

BENEFITS OF KALE: The “queen of greens”!  Kale is high in vitamins A, C, & K, iron, and is filled with powerful antioxidants.  Kale also possesses wonderful anti-inflammatory properties.

 

Asian Collard Wrap

2 large collard leaves

 

Stuffing Veggies:

**ADD ANY OF YOUR FAVORITE VEGETABLES AND/OR NUTS

1 red or yellow pepper

½ small head of cabbage, shredded

1 carrot, peeled and cut into match stick pieces

1 bunch asparagus

1 bunch Bean sprouts

¼ c chopped cashews

For the Marinade:
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 ½ tablespoons honey
1 ½ soy sauce
1 ½ tablespoons minced ginger
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender and set aside.

In large bowl, place all stuffing veggies and cover with marinade.  Let sit for at least 30 minutes

Wash a de-stem collard leaves. Rub each leaf with 1/2t lemon juice, 1/2t EEVO, and a dash of salt.  Place shiny side down. Load leaf with assortment of veggies and nuts. Fold short end over the filling and begin rolling tightly until you reach the end.  Place on a plate with the stem side down.

 

BENEFITS OF GINGER:  Ginger has long been used as a medicinal root to help with inflammation, pain, stomach discomfort and more.

 

Kelp Noodles Asian Style

1 yellow zucchini, peeled and spiral sliced

1 red or yellow pepper, cut into thin strips

1 pkg kelp noodles, soaked in water

2 chopped green onions

5 basil leaves, chiffonade

1/2C cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

Press all water out of zucchini and kelp noodles.  Toss with other ingredients in large bowl.

Dressing:

1/2C cashews, soaked for 2-4 hours

1C coconut water

1/4C basil leaves

1/4C agave

1T garlic

1T apple cider vinegar

1T sesame seeds

1t Nama Shoyu

1/2t grated fresh ginger

Pinch of dried red pepper flakes

Sea Salt and pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Season to taste. If mixture is too thick, add water to obtain desired consistency. Toss with noodles. Plate and serve.

 

***Kelp noodles may be purchased at health food stores or online

 

BENEFITS OF KELP:  Kelp is rich in more than 70 different minerals and more than 21 amino acids. Kelp also is rich in vitamins, enzymes, and trace elements.  Because of its high iodine content kelp is wonderful for glandular health, specifically thyroid functioning.

 

Macaroons

1C flaked coconut

1C large coconut pieces

3/4C raw almond flour

¼ t sea salt

½ C agave

2T coconut butter, melted in sun or slowly over a double boiler

1/2t vanilla

1t almond extract

 

In a food processor, pulse together coconut, almond flour, and salt. Add remaining ingredients and pulse until combined.  Pinch a tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball, flatten.  Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 8 hours. Store in fridge

You can dress up macaroon by sprinkling with cinnamon/coconut flakes or dipping in raw chocolate.

 

Best Corn Chip Recipe EVER

I love corn chips!  As a child I love Fritos with dip, Frito pie, BBQ Fritos, Chili Fritos.....you get the picture.  Luckily, being raw does not mean you have to live sans corn chips.

I've tried many corn chip recipes but this one - HANDS DOWN - is my all time favorite.  The sweetness of the corn really shines through.  I let these suckers dehydrate for a really long time because I like them as crisp as can be.  Serve them up with some fresh salsa, raw chili, or just crunch on them by themselves!

Corn Chips
4C Fresh Corn
1/2 ground flax seed
1C almond pulp
1/2 large yellow bell pepper
1/2C Vidalia onion
1/2t cumin
3/4t sea salt

Soak ground flax seeds in plenty of water for about a hour (let it get good and gooey).  Put all ingredients in a high speed blender and process until a pancake like batter forms (use water if you need to thin the batter a bit).  Pour onto Teflex sheets and spread to 1/8 of an inch.  Sprinkle with a little extra sea salt if desired.  Dehydrate for 12+ hours at 115 degrees.  Midway through the dehydration score the batter/chips into triangles so they will break apart easily once dehydration is complete.

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Chips

I've been so busy since lately that I haven't had a chance to blog in a while.  I've already had big changes this year as I'm am frantically working to re-launch my website and a roll out a new program in early February in partnership with another organic company - STAY TUNED!!!!  But..........with the abundance of winter root vegetables I could pass up the chance to jot down this fabulous treat - Sweet Potato Chips.

Before I get to the recipe I want to throw out a few facts about this wondrous root vegetable. Sweet potatoes are packed with massive amounts of vitamin A, which is vital for proper eye health. One sweet potato contains nearly eight times an adult's daily need of this important vitamin, and, because the vitamin is fat-soluble rather than water-soluble, the body can store it for later use.  Sweet potatoes and yams are often confused as being the same thing but they are quite different species. Compared to yams, sweet potatoes contain significantly higher amounts of calcium, iron, and vitamin E, and they twice as much protein per serving. Sweet potatoes also contain massive amounts of anti-inflammatory compounds (more than the yam), which are very important in the health of people with IBS, arthritis, gout, and other inflammation-related diseases.  This is not to say that yams are useless.  The yam is the shining star when it comes to omega 3 fats.

Take advantage of their abundance at your local farmer's market.  Sweet Potatoes make great raw soups, can be shredded and used in raw breads, or made into delicious chips.  Try one or both of these recipes. You may want to double up because they won't last long!

Sweet Potato Chips - savory
3 small sweet potatoes
1/4 c Olive Oil
Sea Salt to taste

OR

Sweet Potato Chips - sweet
3 small sweet potatoes
1/4 c agave
2t cinnamon

Slice sweet potatoes paper thin with a mandolin, potato peeler, or run them through a food processor fitted with slicing blade.  Toss with desired ingredients.  Dehydrate at 110 until they reach your desired crispness.  I like mine super crunchy so I let them dehydrate for 24-36 hours.  To speed the process you can always start off by dehydrating at 145 for a couple of ours (the internal temperature of the food will not get this high so nutrition will stay intact) and then turn the temperature down to 110 for the remainder of the drying period.

Kale Chips with a Kick!

Wow - October is off to a busy start!  Taught a RAW class on Friday night, have another on Wednesday night and another next Saturday!  My house has been deplete of "snack food" so yesterday I whipped up some Kale Chips with a Jalepeno Kick - these suckers are unbelievable!

3 bunches of Kale
1/2 cup of Olive Oil

1 Cup soaked cashews
1 Large Red or Orange Pepper
1/2 Cup Water
2 Tbs nutritional yeast
2 Lemons, juiced

1 Jalepeno (seeded)
1 Tbs Crushed Dried Chili
4 Cloves of fresh garlic
1 Tbs Onion Powder
1 Tbs Sea Salt

Soak cashews for 4 hours in salted water.  Clean and rinse Kale and tear into large chunks.  Douse with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt.  Massage into Kale.  In the Vitamix, add cashews (drained), red/orange pepper, water, yeast, lemon juice, jalepeno, dried chili flakes, garlic, onion powder and salt.  Blend until smoother.  Pour over Kale and massage in.  Lay Kale leaves on dehydrator sheets and dehydrate at 115 until crisp.  THESE JOKERS ARE SPICY!!  If you don't want them super spicy omit either the jalepeno or chili.  Or you can cut the amount of those two ingredients in half.  ENJOY!

Raw Potluck Goodies

I must say we have a pretty cool raw, vegan community in the greater Triangle area of NC.  Last night we had a snack potluck and watched Supercharge Me.  The documentary was great but the conversation and fellowship with others on the raw journey was the best part.  Whether you've been raw for 2 decades, 2 years, 2 months or 2 days we all face challenges and triumphs in our quest for optimal health.  I am always surprised at the paths that brought people to raw and the different approaches people take on their journey.

So, on to the good stuff.....recipe!  I whipped up this little hors d'oeuvre to contribute to the potluck.  Basically, I took a zucchini and cut it to make rounds.  Then I took a basic nut cheese recipe (see below) and added in about a quarter cup of fresh basil and 4 chopped sundried tomatoes:

1 ½ cups raw cashews
1/3 cup water
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon sea salt
Process in food processor

On top of the zucchini I put small piece of argula or a small piece of cilantro, a dollop of cheese and then topped with half a cherry tomato.  And yes, they were a hit! Nary a left over made it home.......