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.

Think Outside the Lunchbox!

I had the wonderful opportunity to share some "raw wisdom" with the wonderful hosts of My Carolina Today recently.  With the start of school in North Carolina just around the corner my segment focused on "thinking outside the lunchbox" and finding creative and yummy ways to include more fresh, whole living foods in the 'ol brown bag!

Consider these statistics from the NC Department of Public Heath:

·        Only 16% of NC high school students getting 5+ servings of fruits and vegetables per day

·        The percentage of children (ages 5-10) getting 5+ servings of fruits and vegetables (including 100% fruit juice) per day has declined by 8% since 2005, with 58% currently getting the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables.

·        North Carolina is ranked 43^rd for fruit and vegetable consumption among adults. In 2001, approximately 25% of adults consumed the recommended 5+ servings of fruits and vegetables per day. As of 2009, there had been a statistically significant decrease to slightly over 20% of adults.

I think some of the the biggest obstacles in packing great lunches is not having enough time, finding things that "pack well", and creating food that kids will eat and not throw away.  Some easy ways to overcome these barriers are to:

• Chop veggies for easy use on Sunday nights and again on Wednesday
• Most spreads and dips will keep in the fridge for 5 days so make a few different ones to use throughout the week
• Get your kids involved – let them pick veggies for lunches and have them help to assemble them
• Keep a bowl of fruit salad chopped and ready in the refridgerator
• Make the food fun.  Kids like to dip, dunk, and eat food with their hands.

THE SANDWICH: 

What's a lunch without a sandwich???  Ditch the starchy breads, nitrate filled lunch meats and processed cheeses.  Use romaine lettuce, endive cups, or collard leafs to create unique wraps to fill with veggies and healthy nut sauces!  Rice papers also make a great carrier for veggies.  Veggies can be served as is or marinated overnight to soften. Get creative and use different flavors to keep lunches interesting and fun.

The wraps and rolls carry great in a lunch box.  Just wrap them securely in saran wrap or parachment paper.

Nut Butter Sandwich

Manna Bread (available in the freezer section of Whole Foods) topped with Raw Nut Butter
*Ezekiel and Manna Breads are flourless, made from sprouted grains and "cooked" at very low temperatures. While technically they are not raw they are highly nutritious and are a much better alternative then white and "wheat" breads.  My favorite is the Cinnamon and Raisen!

Mexican Lettuce Wrap with Red Pepper Spread

1 head romaine, washed

1 carrot, thin matchsticks

1 cup cucumber, diced small

1 avocado, cubed small

6 basil leaves, chiffonade

Red Pepper Cashew Spread

1/2 cup cashews, soaked 3 hours

1/8 cup water

1/2 cup red pepper, chopped (about 1 pepper)

1.5 tablespoons Bragg Liquid Aminos

1/2 tablespoon maple syrup

1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1/2 lemon, zested and juiced

Sea salt, to taste

Drain cashews. In a food processor, blend cashews with water until fairly creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the rest of spread ingredients and blend until smooth.

To assemble wrap, spread red pepper cashew spread on a lettuce leaf and top with a sprinkle of carrot, cucumber, avocado, and basil. Repeat. Serve immediately.

Spring Rollers with Asian Dipping Sauce

Julienned Veggies of Choice (cucumber, zucchini, peppers, avocado, carrots, etc.)

Spring Roll Wrappers (available in Asian section of grocery store)

Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 tablespoon ginger, minced

1 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tablespoon hot chili pepper sauce (again, if you don't like spice, skip this!)

1 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoons honey

1/2 tablespoon Braggs soy sauce

½  cup water**

pinch sea salt

pinch pepper

In a food processor, blend the almond into a mill. Add the minced ginger, garlic, hot pepper sauce, lemon juice, honey, braggs, water, salt and pepper, and blend until smooth. **Adjust amount of water to create your desired consistency. 

Soak rice paper in water until pliable. Place veggies in center of paper and roll.  Serve with Dipping Sauce.
Fruit with a Twist

Jazz up your kid’s fruit with an antioxidant rich dip made with raw cacao!

Fruit with Chocolate Dipping Sauce

Chopped fruit of your choice

Chocolate Sauce

1 1/4 cup raw cacao powder or carob powder

1 cup agave nectar

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/8 t. salt

In a small bowl, mix together the raw cacao powder, agave, oil and salt until well combined and smooth. Place in the refrigerator to chill for 10 minutes.

Drizzle fruit with chocolate sauce or skewer fruit and serve with sauce on the side.

Guilt Free Cookies

Throw away the processed store bought cookies AND the homemade goodies laden with processed sugar. Your kids will love these alternatives and can help make them too!

Oatmeal Chewies

3C Rolled Oats

2C Any Raw Nut Butter

3/4C Raw Honey

Optional: shredded coconut, powdered cacao, cinnamon

Mix butter and honey until smooth. Mix in Oats. Form small balls with dough and roll in coconut, cacoa or cinnamon. Refridgerate.

Coconut Caramel Cookies

3 cups dried and shredded coconut

1 cup dates, pitted

3 tablespoons almond butter

2 tablespoons agave nectar

2 tablespoons coconut butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 tablespoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons nutmeg

A pinch of finely ground sea salt

In a food processor, combine dates, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut butter, almond butter, and sea salt. Process thoroughly and transfer to a large mixing bowl.  Add dried coconut and mix together. Roll into balls and place on a dehydrator sheet. Press into cookies shapes with the bottom of a glass and store in refrigerator until hard.  If you have a dehydrator, dehydrate for 12-20 hours at 110 degrees. Store in an airtight container in the fridge, dry place, or freezer.

Almond Cookies

2 cups almonds, ground

1/3 cup agave

2 teaspoon organic almond extract

1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon Himalayan crystal salt or sea salt

Using a coffee grinder, grind almonds into flour – one cup at a time. Add almond flour and remaining ingredients to a food processor. Process until the dough forms into a ball. Transfer dough to a bowl and refrigerator for an hour.  Scoop dough out in balls and press into cookie shapes. If desired garnish with an almond on top.  Dehydrate for 8-10 hours at 110 degrees flipping cookies after 5 hours.

Living Raw with Natural Insect Repellants

Summer is here and the mosquitoes are feeding!  In the midst of itching and scratching it is really tempting to spray on poisonous DEET laden insect repellents.  However, what if I told you that CINNAMON (yes, that delicious spice) could save you from being the focus of a mosquitoes feeding frenzy.

In fact, a study published in the the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reported that the compounds in cinnamon oil are more potent in killing mosquitoes than DEET. The researchers tested eleven compounds found in cinnamon leaf oil for their capacity to kill the larvae of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito that carries yellow fever. Further, the researchers went on to explain that the cinnamon oil prove similarly lethal against larvae of other types of mosquitoes, providing a safe, natural, pleasant-smelling alternative to other pesticides.

Different essential oils have been found to be effective against different insects.  For instance, below are some that work against biting insects:

• cinnamon oil (mosquitoes)
• lemon eucalyptus or regular eucalyptus oil (mosquitoes, ticks, and lice)
• citronella oil (mosquitoes and biting flies)
• castor oil (mosquitoes)
• orange oil (fleas)
• rose geranium (ticks and lice)

Since different insects respond to different chemicals you can combine a few of these oils to customize the "insect repellent blend" you need.

The basic recipe for insect repellents are 1 part essential oil to 15 parts carrier oil.  Safe carrier oils and alcohols include:

• olive oil
• sunflower oil
• any other cooking oil
• witch hazel
• vodka

Example:

• 10-25 drops (total) of essential oils
• 2 tablespoons of a carrier oil or alcohol

Mix the essential oil with the carrier oil or alcohol. Rub or spray the natural insect repellent onto skin or clothing, using care to avoid the sensitive eye area. You'll need to re-apply the natural product after about an hour or after swimming or exercise. Unused natural insect repellent may be stored in a dark bottle, away from heat or sunlight. If you wish, you may combine the oil with aloe vera gel to change the consistency of the product.

Hope this helps you enjoy a bite and itch free summer!