Thursday, May 26th, 2011

Cucumber Avocado Boats – Perfect Raw Food Summer Snack

by Kristen in raw food, raw vegan recipe

I have a real love for cucumbers… They’re such a great summer time snack. I put them in salads, smoothies, juices, and they’re especially fun as boats for carrying yummy fixin’s like mashed up avocado. Previously, I shared my Avocado Cucumber Smish Smash recipe here… still one of my favorites. Here’s another great one I’ve been making the past couple of weeks. It’s simple, takes about 5 minutes, and uses minimal ingredients.

Cucumber Avocado Boats

Yield 1 to 2 servings

1 cucumber, cut into quarters
1 avocado, pitted and peeled
Juice from 1/2 lime
1 to 2 pinches Himalayan crystal salt
Dash onion powder
Fresh basil to garnish, optional

After you have your cucumber in quarters, like boats, scrape the seeds into a medium size bowl. Add the avocado, lime, salt, and onion powder. Mash up the contents. Fill the boats with the avocado mixture. Top with fresh basil, if desired. That’s it! Enjoy!

Exciting News! I’m Teaming Up With Chronicle Books

by Kristen in Kristen Suzanne, Kristen's Raw, raw food

Exciting news… I’ve been dying to share something with you all for awhile now. As some of you noticed, I’ve been working on recipes for my next book. But, what I didn’t mention is that my next book will be published by Chronicle Books! Yep! I’m teaming up with this great publisher and the estimate for the book to be in print, and available to you…. Spring 2012. It seems a long way off, but I promise… it’ll be worth the wait! I’ve been hard at work creating the most amazing raw food recipes you’ll ever taste.

Food Journal – My Fitness Pal App for iPhone

by Kristen in almond milk, food journal, green juice, raw food, sun warrior rice protein, watermelon

I’m so glad to see the excitement surrounding the food combining app for iPhone that I blogged about here. Thanks for chiming in to let me know about your thoughts on it.

As many of you know, one of the ways I stay on track with my eating is to write it all down. I usually use my “notes” app on iPhone, but lately I’ve been tinkering with an app called My Fitness Pal. It’s great for tracking food and exercise, and it helps you count calories. I’m not a big calorie counter, as most raw fooders aren’t, but I do like to make sure I’m taking in enough while breastfeeding. I thought it was neat that the app had the calorie info for Boku bar! Turns out, users input data that’s not in there, so some other Boku bar loving person must have done that. I’ve also found Sun Warrior protein powder in there. :)

Today’s food intake list is big! I just felt hungry most of the day so I kept eating. :) It’s a High Raw, All Vegan, All Organic day

Breakfast: Teeccino with raw almond milk (recipe here). I waited about 20 minutes and then had a few cups of organic watermelon. I’m a total watermelon nut – so now that it’s in season, expect to see a lot of it in my food journal. About a half hour later, I had raw granola with raw almond milk.

Lunch: Watermelon. Waited a half hour and then had cucumber boats with brazil nut garlic cheese sauce and a Boku bar. Read More »

Raw Vegan Recipe: Horseradish Mustard Dressing

by Kristen in Kristen Suzanne, Kristen's Raw, raw food, vegan

Kamea, my little stinker bunny.

I made this dressing for our easter dinner last week. It was great and everyone loved it, so I wanted to share it with you. It gives you a fun warming sensation from the horseradish in it, and it’s a pretty yellow color from the mustard. And… as usual, it’s so easy to make! I still consider this recipe raw even though the mustard and horseradish probably aren’t technically raw, but you could make it truly raw by making raw mustard and using fresh horseradish (not always easy to find). And, if you don’t want to use raw agave nectar, you could try blending 1 to 2 pitted dates.

Horseradish Mustard Dressing

Yield about 1 1/4 cups

1/2 cup raw cashews
water for soaking
1/2 cup water for blending
1 1/2 tablespoons tamari
1 tablespoon raw agave nectar
2 tablespoons mustard
2 teaspoons prepared, ground horseradish
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Horseradish Mustard Dressing

Put the cashews in a small bowl and add enough water to cover the cashews by about an inch. Soak the cashews for 30 to 60 minutes. Strain the cashews and put them in a blender. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.

We enjoyed this dressing on salads with romaine lettuce (perfect for holding up to the heat from the horseradish), cucumbers, zucchini, purple cabbage, celery, and carrots. My mom loved it so much, she asked me to make another batch for her before we left.

7 Tips For Saving Money with Raw Foods

by Kristen in banana, juice pulp, nut butters, raw food, smoothies, Spinach

Eating raw food doesn’t have to mean breaking the bank. In fact, there are a number of ways, seven specifically right here, that can keep more moola in your piggy bank! And, who doesn’t want some more moola?! These money saving tips are easy to incorporate and still keep raw exciting and delicious.

Buy sunflower and pumpkin seeds – A lot of recipes call for the use of expensive cashews, pine nuts, pecans, etc. You can make the recipes less expensive by using sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds without sacrificing much flavor, if any!
Juice pulp – Use your left over juice pulp and make raw dehydrated crackers out of it! Here is a video where I show you how. No need to waste that pulp by throwing it out when it can be the base of yummy raw crackers and crusts.
Almond (or any nut or seed) pulp – No need to throw this out! Make raw banana bread with it. Here is a recipe showing you how to make Cinnamon Banana Bread Squares.
Make homemade nut butters – I showed you how to make your own raw nut and seed butters before here. It can make a big difference in your wallet if you make your own. Big!
Simple smoothies – For a lot of us, green smoothies are a staple in our diets. But, making them with a bunch of fancy greens and fruits can add up in cost. When you need to save a few bucks, consider making green smoothies with simpler ingredients such as bananas and spinach, but add sass and variety to them by incorporating different spices or extracts. Think: nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice, cayenne, Chinese Five Spice, garam masala, vanilla (or other flavor extracts), etc.
Raisins in place of dates – Many times I use raisins in place of dates to save money. Pie crusts, cheesecake crusts, and cookies are a great place to start with this tip. They add sweetness and binding abilities without costing you as much.
Buy in bulk – I talk about this a lot. Buying in bulk does save in the long term, even if it does briefly hurt in the short term. I buy almonds from Bremner Farms (just bought 30 pounds this week!), nuts/seeds/and other goods from Blue Mountain Organics, and Amazon. All great places to stock up!

What are some of your favorite tips for saving money when living the raw lifestyle?

Cinnamon Banana Protein Shake – Raw Vegan Recipe

by Kristen in almond milk, Kristen's Raw, raw food, sun warrior rice protein, vegan

I wrote about why protein powders have a place in my raw diet here. But, in the post I wrote that I generally don’t use the protein powders in shakes or smoothies blended with other ingredients (unless it’s hemp protein powder, I prefer that in a shake or smoothie). Traditionally when I consume Sun Warrior’s chocolate protein powder, I do so with water (and sometimes an extract or seasoning as mentioned in the post).

Today, however, I’m sharing a recipe with you where I blend Sun Warrior chocolate protein in a shake with cinnamon and banana. It’s fun and delish! I’ve been making it all week, and last night I made it as dessert for mom, Greg, and myself. I facebooked it last week and a couple of people tried it and reported the same results: YUM!

Here it is if you can’t see it from the writing in the picture.

Cinnamon Banana Protein Shake

Yield 1 serving

1 1/2 cups raw almond milk

1 – 1 1/2 cups ice

1 scoop Sun Warrior chocolate protein powder

2 bananas

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Blend until smooth.

How Raw Are Raw Almonds Really? My Raw Almond Saga

by Kristen in almond milk, almonds, organic, raw food

As you may know, it’s hard to find raw almonds these days due to the pasteurization requirements that are now in effect.

So, you can imagine my delight when I found raw almonds available from Blue Mountain Organics. According to the company’s website, the almonds are from Italy and they’re whole, raw, and organic. Completely unpasteurized. I bought a lot of them because the website offers quantity discounts. I was very happy with these almonds. The flavor is intensely almond-y. Apparently it’s due to a higher concentration of almond oil. Whatever the reason… I love them.

I blogged about these amazing almonds and the delicious homemade raw organic almond milk I make from them weekly. I mentioned in the post that I have a weird addiction to taking the skins off the almonds (although I never have time to so I usually don’t do it).

A while later, I received an email from a reader who questioned the “rawness” of the almonds because I was able to take the skins off. Apparently, there are a couple of bloggers who have written about a raw almond “test” where if the skins are able to come off easily, they are not truly raw.

“Crap.” – I thought to myself. Hmmm… what the heck… here I thought I was drinking raw almond milk and it turns out that I might not be. Read More »

Monday’s All Raw Food Intake – Pregnancy Food Journal

by Kristen in cherry chocolate bomb shake, go raw, kaia foods, pregnancy, raw food, raw vegan chocolate, rejuvenative

Magic herbal tea blend given to me by my goddess midwife
3-4 T Kaia Foods Garlic Salt Sprouted Sunflower Seeds (mega yum!)
2 cups organic green juice (cilantro, grapefruit, carrot, collard green, tomato, celery)
1/2 serving Kaia Foods Fruit Leather (OMG YUM!)
Raw vegan chocolate (about 4 bites worth)
7.5 oz jar of Rejuvenative Brand’s Kim-Chi (ate the whole jar!)
Huge organic salad with lip smacking awesome dressing, red bell pepper, carrot, and gorgeous romaine from the farmer’s market
2 servings Kaia Foods Fruit Leather (OMG YUM again!)
Go Raw’s Ginger Snaps Cookies (maybe 1/2 the bag?) Mmmmm!!!!!!!
Huge organic salad (same as above)
Cherry Chocolate Bomb Shake! (This recipe is making the Internet rounds and the feedback is AWESOME! Have you tried it yet?)

Tuesday’s plan (here is why I love planning my food intake):

Magic herbal tea blend
Organic green juice (cucumber, celery, collard green, tomato)
3 T Kaia Foods Garlic Salt Sprouted Sunflower Seeds
4 Organic prunes
Huge organic salad with lip smacking awesome dressing, cucumber, carrot, and romaine
1 serving Kaia Foods Fruit Leather
2 scoops Sun Warrior Brown Rice Protein Shake
Crunchy Buckwheat Biscuit with Rejuvenative Brand’s Kim-Chi on top
Spicy-n-Sweet Fitness Noodles (from my Hemp recipe book)
If I’m still hungry? Then a Cherry Chocolate Bomb Shake!

I walked on Monday and will also get in my 2 mile walk Tuesday, too.

Pure Market Express Raw Food Delivery Review

by Kristen in holidays, Pure Market Express, raw food, raw travel

I was sent a package of food for review by the cool people at Pure Market Express. Have you heard of them? Tried their raw food delivery? Let me say… GOOOOOOOOD STUFF! I’m a fan of their work. Not only do they make good raw vegan food, but their energy is pure love. It comes through in both their food and their email correspondence / customer service. That’s important to me. I’ll be honest, this hasn’t been my experience with all of the raw food delivery companies out there.

Raw food delivery can be so helpful with living the raw food lifestyle. For starters, as a pregnant woman, I sure do appreciate being able to sit back and put my feet up on the couch while I wait for the delivery man. Top that with feeding my body and my growing baby some of the healthiest food in the world. That rocks! I also love that they’re including the nutritional information on the packages of food now. That can be very helpful for people who want to calculate calories, protein, fiber, etc.

Secondly, I’m a fan of raw food delivery during busy times in life… for example the holidays. It’s such a relief that amidst all the food prep for gatherings, attending parties, cleaning, decorating, shopping, and resting from all the activity, it’s a real treat to have a box of organic raw food show up at my door.

Thirdly, raw food delivery is great when traveling. Check out this post (video) I recorded when we traveled to New York and Pure Market Express treated me to a delivery for the first time. (My how my hair has grown since that video in September).

Here are some of the foods they sent to me this second time.

Bacon Jalapeno Poppers

These are really yummy. I had them in the last package and was smiling from ear to ear when they sent them to me again. The combination of spice and creaminess is wonderful. (pictured)

Banana Cream Pie

Pure Market Express knew how much I loved their Banana Cream Pie that they sent me TWO pieces in this delivery. The flavor was the same awesomeness as before, but this time the presentation was different. In NY, the pie arrived in a whole piece. In AZ, the pie arrived kind of all mushed up, like a pudding. It might have been the longer distance it traveled that caused this, but I don’t know. It was still tasty though!

Maple Apple Crepes

Hhmmmm! Excellent. I really enjoyed these and hope to have them again some day. A lovely treat. (pictured)

Baked Mac-n-Cheese

I specifically requested this and was very happy with the result. I wish I had saved some for my husband to try. The one thing I’d change… I’d like a little more sauce with it.

Lasagna

There was some zing to this that affected my mouth a bit (my husband’s mouth, too) that I could do without, but otherwise it was good flavor and a pretty presentation. (pictured)

Donut Holes

These were fun. My favorite part was the somewhat crunchy exterior – reminded me of donut holes.

Back To Raw In My First Trimester

by Kristen in boxed greens, cheezy hemp nacho sauce, csa, morning sickness, organic, pregnancy, raw food, vegan

Whew! This week marks my 9th week being pregnant!!!! I’m in the final stretch of the first trimester and my body is visibly changing with this little life growing inside me. I’ve been sick as a dog (all-day-morning-sickness) but happy as hell about it. However, there were many days over the past 2 weeks that I didn’t want any food… not Raw, not even cooked vegan… not bread… nothing! And, this coming from a woman who used to eat even with an upset tummy. However, even though I didn’t want to eat the past couple of weeks, I forced myself to eat. I had to. I was able to manage some fresh fruit, as well as a green smoothie here and there, but most of it was cooked vegan.

But, something has changed. Even though I’m still feeling nauseous (Monday and Tuesday were particularly bad), I have been wanting Raw food! I’ll still have some lentils sometimes (quinoa, beans, etc) for extra protein and such, but my body wants lots of fresh, organic Raw foods. I’m not in the mood for Raw pastas or things like that (although a piece of my Raw lasagna does sound yummy! I just don’t feel like making it. If only I could wiggle my nose and blink my eyes and magically my husband could make it!). I am craving big salads, fresh fruit, fresh veggies and dip, green juices, green smoothies… things like that. In fact, the other day, I made my famous Cheezy Hemp Nacho Sauce recipe and loved it up with organic Romaine hearts, carrots, and celery for three days in a row. YUM! (I also had it as a sauce on my organic cooked veggie burger —>>> DOUBLE YUM!)