I was first introduced to raw cuisine in 1999 at a gathering in
San Francisco. I had been up all night prior, and was feeling exhausted and
not so into being social. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a man making raw nori rolls
on top of a cooler. I was hungry, so I decided to have one. After taking my first bite,
I suddenly felt a burst of energy, and all of my sluggishness immediately
went away. That was when my interest in raw food first began.
I played with different kinds of raw food for the next six years. In 2005, I went to the Optimum Health Institute in San Diego to do a three week raw food cleanse. It was one of the most intense experiences I have ever encountered. I felt all the toxins that had been accumulating in my body throughout most of my life disappear, and I began to feel more vibrant and alive and eager to try out being a raw foodist full on.
It wasn't so easy at first. Having close companions who were not raw made it a bit challenging for me to stay focused. I continued to make visits to O.H.I periodically, but it wasn't until I did the volunteer work program there last autumn that my ability to be 100% raw fully kicked in.
Even though I went back and forth with eating cooked foods over the years, I still was very interested in raw cuisine. In the beginning, I made raw nori rolls and raw fruit pies. Later, I began recreating my favorite cooked dishes into raw ones. I have a knack for finding raw counterparts for any cooked food item and turning it into a gourmet raw meal. Some of the foods I've made (that are my own recipes and have been a favorite of my friends) are the following:
Mushroom Nut Loaf
Put approximate 2 cups portabellos, 2 cups presoaked walnuts, your favorite italian seasonings, 1 tablespoon ground up flax seeds, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt into food processor. When semi smooth/chunky, take everything out and with a large spoon, mix in 1/2 cup diced onions presoaked 12 hours in olive oil, 1/2 cup presoaked pine nuts (in water) and 1/2 cup diced celery. If mixture taste good, then spread everything into a glass square baking container and dehydrate for 12 hours. The dryness factor depends on how thick the spread mixture is. Enjoy!
Pizza
CRUST:
Soaked pumpkin seeds, soaked brazil nuts, soaked sunflower seeds, olive oil, italian seasonings, paprika, salt.
Mix well in food processor until smooth, taste as you go, then spread out on to teflex dehydrator sheets into flat circles about 1/2 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Dehydrate on one side for 12 hours, then flip and dehydrate other side for 12 hours.
TOPPINGS:
Pesto sauce:
2 cups of fresh basil leaves
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of soaked pine nuts or almonds
1 tablespoon of miso
Put basil, garlic, olive oil, nuts, and miso into food processor and blend until almost creamy. Spread a thin layer on to each dehydrated pizza crust.
Marinara Sauce: 1 cup tomatoes, 1 cup sundried tomatoes, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, fresh oregano, fresh thyme, italian seasonings, salt
Put all these ingredients into blender, blend until smooth, taste to see if it's right. Spread a thin layer over the pesto layer
Cheese: 1 cup soaked cashews, 1 cup soaked pine nuts, 1 tablespoon chopped onion, 1 tablespoon fresh dill, 2 tablespoons miso, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
Blend all these ingredients with just enough water to reach the top of the ingredients. When completely smooth, taste, and then spread over the rest of the sauces.
For veggie toppings, you can add diced marinated mushrooms(presoaked in olive oil), diced marinated onions (also presoaked in olive oil), diced tomatoes, diced sundried tomatoes, diced olives, and diced bell peppers. Yum!
Vegan Sushi
Ingredients: Nut pate, julienned carrots, julienned cucumbers, julienned avocado, julienned lemon peel, picked ginger, spearmint leaves, arugula, daikon radish sprouts
Nut pate: soaked walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, fresh dill, red bell pepper, onion, garlic, miso.
Put all ingredients with a bit of water into food processor and blend until smooth.
Spread a layer 1/2 inch thick on to bottom part of Nori, leaving space by the sides and bottom. Add all other ingredients on top of pate layer and wrap up, using water to stick nori together. Yahoo!
Nachos
Ingredients: Nut pate, julienned carrots, julienned cucumbers, julienned avocado, julienned lemon peel, picked ginger, spearmint leaves, arugula, daikon radish sprouts
Flax crackers: soaked flax seeds, mexican seasoning, paprika, clili powder, salt
In the bowl that the flax seeds are soaking in, add all seasonings and mix well. Then spread out very thin on to teflex dehydrator sheets. Dry over night, flip them over the next morning, and take out when completely dry.
Raw "bean" dip: 1 cup Soaked sesame seeds, 1/2 cup soaked sunflower seeds, 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, fresh onion, fresh garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt
Mix all ingredients in food processor with a little water to keep smooth. Set aside as bean dip.
Jalapeno Cashew Cheese - see recipe below.
Guacomole - mash up avocados, lime juice, fresh cilantro, powdered onion, powdered garlic, paprika, cayenne, and sea salt together, taste as you go.
Salsa- dice or put in the food processor tomatoes, fresh cilantro, red onion, paprika, chili powder, cayenne, and sea salt.
Put a scoop of each ingredient over a bed of flax crackers. Garnish with diced bell peppers, diced cucumbers, and sliced olives. Delish!
Vegetable Pot Pie
THE CRUST:
2 cups almond pulp leftover from almond milk
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
THE FILLING:
A mixture of diced broccoli, cauliflower, celery, snap peas, bell pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, and bean/lentil sprouts.
THE SAUCE:
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon of miso
1 teaspoon of Nutritional yeast
a dash of mixed powdered seasonings
TO MAKE THE CRUST: Combine all crust ingredients and press into a glass pie plate. Dehydrate for 12 hours.
Once done, place all veggies on the crust. Combine sauce ingredients in a blender, and when ready to serve, pour over veggies to make a "pot
pie" appearance. Let it sit for about 20 minutes before eating to let the veggies and crust marinate with the sauce. Fabuloso!
Raw Savory Mashed "Potatoes"
2 parsnips
1.5 cups of caulifower
1 cup of soaked macadamia nuts
1 or 2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon Spike seasoning
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
Blend all ingredients in the food processor or blender until fairly smooth. Serve warmed. Mmm, baby!
Cinnamon Yams
4 yams, cubed
A mixture of olive oil, cinnamon, and sea salt (you can add as you go)
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
Using a cooking brush, paint the olive oil, cinnamon, and sea salt mixture on to each yam cube. Dehydrate for 24 hours
Then, take the yams out and put them into the food processor or blender with the almond milk. Serve warmed.
You sure this ain't cooked?
Mushroom Gravy
1 cup variety of soaked and diced mushrooms (in either water or olive
oil to soften)
1/2 cup of miso
1/2 cup of tahini
1 dash of paprika, italian seasonings, and cayenne
1/2 teaspon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon on lemon juice
Blend everything in the blender except 1/2 of the mushrooms. Add them in when everything else is smooth for a chunky texture. Serve warmed.
Better than mama made on Thanksgiving!
Pesto Pasta
2 bags of kelp noodles or spiralized zucchini (done in "spirooli" device)
2 cups of fresh basil leaves
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of soaked pine nuts or almonds
1 tablespoon of miso
1 cup of mixed diced sundried tomatoes and black olives
Drain excess water from noodles. Put basil, garlic, olive oil, nuts, and miso into food processor and blend until almost creamy. Mix into a bowl with noodles. Stir well. Then add in olives and sundried tomatoes into mixture and stir. Ready to serve, or serve warm.
Gettin' hungry yet?
Stuffed Tomatoes with Jalapeno Cashew Cheese
(blender needed)
Soak cashews overnight.
Cut four Roma tomatoes in half and scoop out the centers.
Put soaked cashews, 3/4 a jalepeno(eliminating the seeds), a teaspoon/tablespoon of miso, a tablespoon of nutritional yeast, powdered tumeric and Mexican seasonings, and a little bit water in the blender, whip until smooth.
Scoop cheese mixture into tomato halves, sprinkle paprika over cheese for garnish. Tasty tasty!!!
Carrot Almond Dip
(food processor needed)
CARROT ALMOND DIP(food processor needed)
Soak almonds overnight.
Add almonds, carrots, shallots, dill, red bell pepper, lime juice, miso, and nutritional yeast to food processor until pieces are as small as desired. Add water to make it more creamy.
Dice up cucumber and celery and add them to the dip (but not to the food processor).
Great to bring to tupperware parties. Praise Jah!!!
Seed Cereal
Soak golden flax seeds overnight in one bowl.
Soak sunflower seeds and almonds overnight in another bowl.
In the morning, strain nuts and seeds and put all in one bowl.
Add powdered cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, maple syrup.
Added fruit, can be diced apples, banana slices, date pieces, raisins, figs.
COCONUT WHEY (blender needed)
Open one young coconut and pour the juice and scoop the spoonmeat into the blender along with a capful of vanilla and one tablespoon of maple syrup. Blend until creamy. Pour over cereal. WAAAA-HOOOO!!!
Raw Carrot Cake
THE CAKE:
2 cups total of soaked walnuts, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds
4 Medjool dates
1/2 a ripe banana
2 large carrots
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
THE FROSTING:
2 cups soaked cashews
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons agave
Mix cake batter together in a food processor. All pieces should be tiny before putting in the cake container. For frosting, blend cashes, lemon juice, vanilla, and agave with enough water to make it smooth and creamy. Spread over the top. Serve and enjoy! Hallelujah!
Apple Cobbler
(food processor needed)
Soak walnuts overnight prior to making cobbler.
Put apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, and fresh squeezed lemon juice in the food processor, mix until small chunks are made. (Don't blend for too long.)
Empty and spread in a glass tray.
Put soaked walnuts, date pieces, and a tablespoon of maple syrup in the food processor and mix for approx. 5 seconds.
Spread this topping over the apple mixture. Optional to add dried coconut flakes on top. Fridge and serve, or serve right away.
A LA MODE:(juicer needed)
Freeze bananas and chermoyas (custard fruit) overnight.
Put fruit thru the juicer the next morning with no screen.
Pour this ice cream over cobbler and eat right away. Oooo-wheeee-man!!!
Fruit Pie
(blender needed)
Press pecan or coconut or walnut date roll pieces into a round glass pie tray and make a crust.
Dice up either pineapples, mangos, peaches, or nectarines and sprinkle them into the pie pan directly on top of the crust.
Put half the juice of one coconut, all the meat of one coconut, two or three bananas, one or two dates, vanilla, maple syrup, cinnamon, and nutmeg in the blender, whip until smoooth, makes the pie filling.
Pour pie filling into the pie pan over the diced fruit and crust.
Slice up berries and place in a mandala-like formation over the pie filling. Chill and serve. Ahhh, the taste of an orgasm!!!
Chocolate Cream Pie
(blender needed)
Press pecan or coconut or walnut date roll pieces into a round glass pie tray and make a crust.
Put dates, avocados, cocoa or carob powder, and some water in the blender, blend until smooth. (If you like it sweeter, you can add a bit of maple syrup.)
Pour the now thick chocolate cream mixture over the crust and put in the fridge overnight.
Next day, when cream is more solid, slice up berries and place mandala-like on top of pie. Who want to have me over for din din?
Kale Chips
Make a mixture of olive oil, salt, cayenne, and mexican or italian spices in a bowl.
Brush one or two stroke on to each leaf without drowning them in the mixture.
Dehydrate from 6-12 hours. Enjoy, and much love!
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*NOTE: I don't usually make raw dishes by measurments, I just go with what tastes good. So of some of the recipes don't taste as flavorful or have too much of something, feel free to add or subtract different amounts of ingredients as you go. And have fun!
If you are interested in either learning more about raw food or having me cater for you or for an event, please contact me and I'll be happy to connect with you!