Posted by Jill

Serial and I always try to eat healthy, but a few times a year we decide to add in more raw foods.  Minimally, we like to cut out the processed stuff, wherever possible.  So when I was flipping through one of my raw food books and stumbled on a recipe for a raw cereal made from just two ingredients (three if you count the optional dried fruit), I was all about it.

The book I was flipping through was Raw Food Real World by Matthew Kenney and Sarma Melngailis.  It's not a great starter book, it contains the dishes that they serve in their restaurant so they involve more prep work.  If you're looking for a good entry level book for eating raw, check out Everyday Raw by Matthew Kenney. (not sponsored, just my opinion on books I purchased).

I adapted the recipe for Maple Cinnamon Buckwheat Crispies and cut out about half of the ingredients (mainly just the spices and stevia).  I've been making this for a few weeks now, in big batches before the week starts, and we are both loving it.  I forsee this being a regular recipe in our rotation and saying a permanent goodbye to the boxed cereals from the store. 

This recipe is made with Raw Buckwheat Groats, which are available in most health food stores in the bulk bin section.  They are about $2-3 USD per pound, and each pound will yield a TON of cereal. 

Nutritionally, Buckwheat is really great.  It's comparable to other grains in calories, but it really shines in the fiber and protein categories.  A 1/4-cup serving of dry groats contains 32 g of carbohydrates and 5 g of fiber, which will help lower cholesterol and keep you feeling full, for a longer time than grains with less fiber.  That same serving contains 1.5 g of total fat and 6 g of protein, which is great for energy and nutrient absorption. 

We like to add dried berries to our cereal, although it would be delicious on it's own as well.  We've tried blueberries and goji and now they are both regular guest stars in our recipe. 

3 cups raw buckwheat groats
1/2 cup raw coconut nectar (or other sweetener like agave or maple syrup)
Dried fruit* - optional (we like goji berries and blueberries)

*you really could add anything that you like in your cereal.  dried fruit is just one suggestion.  we're planning to try versions with cacao powder, flax seeds, vanilla, honey... the list goes on.

1. Soak the buckwheat groats in a large bowl with about 6 cups of water, for at least 2 hours.  The groats will expand and the water will become a little thicker. 
   
2. Drain and rinse the buckwheat groats in a mesh strainer or cheesecloth bag, with fresh water.  Your goal is to rinse them clean of the water they were soaking in.
3. Put the soaked and rinsed groats in a blender or a food processor with the maple syrup and pulse until they are combined.  The texture should be like cake or pancake batter, but not quite as smooth.
4. Spread the mixture on nonstick sheets and dehydrate at low temps (115 F for raw, 175-200 F for non-raw).  If you don't have a dehydrator, check your oven settings.  Ours has a "warm" setting that is low enough for raw foods.
   
5. Let the mixture dry for about 3-4 hours, then check on it.  It should be dry on top, but still somewhat wet on underneath.  Take a spatula and flip the mixture over, leaving it in big pieces, where possible. 
   
6. Continue to let it dry for another 3-4 hours, checking on it every hour or so.  The goal is to dry the cereal out, but not burn it.  
7. Once it is fully dried, mix in the dried fruit and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  It should keep for a few weeks.

Enjoy!

Posted by Jill

The concord grape season isn't very long, but we really look forward to it each year.  And this year, we started juicing them.  The result is delicious!  I've tried them in a few different recipes, but I really like it best when they are the main focus of the juice.  This recipe is crisp from the melon, fresh from the lemon and perfection from the grapes.  Enjoy!

Posted by Jill

Two things I really didn't like when I was growing up have now become best of friends in one of my favorite juices.  Cucumber meet lime.  Lime meet cucumber. 

It was (juice) love at first sight. 

I don't think I'm alone when I say that crisp fall Sundays just beg for Chili and football.  Plus, Sunday is the only day of the week where both Serial and I are off work.  It's the perfect time to squeeze in a hike followed by couch/soccer/football time.  Which for me means time to come up with new recipes and hang out with my boys. 

This recipe makes a LOT of chili, which we snacked on all day and still had leftovers.  It will keep for a few days in the fridge, in an airtight container. 

Yields: 5-6 large servings

Ingredients

• 4 cups tomatoes, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 5-6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 cups sweet peppers, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 4-5 cans of beans (any kind), rinsed and drained - we used black beans, chickpeas & lentils
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
  
• 6 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons salt (optional)

Directions

1. In a large pot, heat the tomatoes, tomato paste and water on low/medium.
2. In a separate pan, saute the garlic and onions with 1/2 tsp olive oil.  After about 7-8 minutes, add the garlic and onions to the tomato mixture in the large pot.
3. In the same garlic/onion pan, saute the peppers and carrots with the remaining oil (use more if needed), until they are soft.  You want to remove the crisp and crunch from these veggies.  (not the most nutritional objective, but makes it more chili-like).  Once softened, add to the tomato mixture in the large pot.
   
4. Rinse and drain all of the beans that you're using, then add them to the large pot.  If you want to mimic a meat texture, you can take a cup or two of the beans and pulse them a few times in a food processor. 
   
5. Add in the chili powder and salt, then let simmer on low for 30 minutes.  We actually let ours simmer for a few hours, on the lowest setting, and just ate from it all day.  Once done, transfer to an airtight container, let cool, and store in the refrigerator. 
   

Enjoy!!  And Go Bears.

Posted by Jill

One of my favorite juices is Beet Lemonade.  It's refreshing and tart, but also sweet.  It gives me a huge boost of energy and it's a great afternoon pick-me-up.  Plus, let's face it, it's hot pink.  You can't argue with hot pink.  Go pour yourself a big glass of vibrant beet lemonade.

Now that there's a bit of the fall chill in the air, I've been craving a pumpkin spice latte.  Every morning.  And every time that Facebook shows me another add for one.  How do they know my weakness??  Get out of my head, fb.

The thing is, I gave up caffeine and coffee/espresso is just not in my world right now.  I've been on the herbal tea express train.  So, I was downing loose Rooibos Chai Tea a few times a day.  It was close, but not quite hitting the spot. 

I decided to try a carton of the pre-made chai tea concentrate from the store, with almond milk.  It was delicious.  But unfortunately, not kind to my wallet.  So, I went ahead and made my own.  And to make it extra fall-like, I added some pumpkin spice to the mix. 

The result is satisfying and delicious.  I made a big batch and stored it in the fridge.  I just mix 1 part tea concentrate with 1 part unsweetened almond milk, then heat it up.  Here's what you'll need.

Yields: 8 cups

Ingredients:

• 8 cups water
• 8 bags of chai tea (I used rooibos, but you could use any kind)
• 6-8 teaspoons pumpkin spice (you could use fresh spices and ingredients, but I just used the dried spices)
• 3/4 cup maple syrup (or another sweetener)

Directions

1. Bring the water to a boil
2. Remove from the heat and add in the tea bags & spices, cover and let steep for 10 minutes
3. Remove the tea bags or strain through cheesecloth if using loose tea
4. Stir in maple syrup
5. Let cool to room temperature, then store in an airtight container in the refridgerator

Curl up with a book and a puppy and enjoy this delicious fall treat!!  Or maybe that's just what I do :-)

You know when you go to Whole Foods, Earth Fare or whatever health food chain your city has, there is always a raw sesame kale salad in the prepared food section.  Well that salad is my favorite.  It's delicious and seems to always be made exactly right.  I always end up buying a container and scarfing it down before Serial has a chance to get some.  Me and kale, we're tight like that. 

Now that it's summer (or at least it feels like it everyday), I've been craving raw foods more.  This salad is top on my list and I've been able to recreate that same one I see in the store from my own kitchen.  It's so easy too. 

There are different kinds of kale leaves, but the one I most often see in the store is the curly kale or the dino kale (you can see the types here).  For this recipe, the curly kale works better.  You could use others and it would taste the same, but the texture is best with the curly version. 

Curly kale is kind of rough when it's raw and this recipe will soften and the leaves into a salad that is super tasty.  I usually make this in the morning before work and let it sit in the fridge until lunch or dinner, at least 4-5 hours. 

Ingredients

• 1 Bunch Kale
• 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
• 2 Tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos
• 4 Tbsp Rice Vinegar

Directions

• Tear the kale leaves from the stalks, and into medium size pieces.  Place the pieces into a large bowl.  Usually at this point, I have about 4-5 cups of loose kale.
• Add in your oil, aminos and vinegar.  Use your hands to massage everything into the leaves.  They are coarse pieces so just stirring with a spoon won't have the same effect.  Use your hands and make sure each leave gets a good coating.  You'll probably have a little bit of liquid left in the bottom of your bowl when you're done and that's OK.
• Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, if the leaves were coarse to start.  If they weren't as coarse/curly, they won't take as long to soften up.  Once the marinade sets in, the leaves will soften up and they will appear to shrink down.  They're really just loosing their toughness and laying flatter.  I usually end up with 2-3 cups of salad when it's all said and done.
• This salad keeps for the whole day, but I find that it's not great past that.  It gets too soggy.  Try to make it in the morning for dinner that night, or make it the night before to have at the lunch the next day.
• Enjoy!
  

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The Ingredients:

2 Cups Basil
1/2 Cup of Soaked Cashews (soak at least 4 hours)
3 Cloves of Garlic
1/3 Cup of Olive Oil
Salt to Taste

The How To:

Pour all of the ingredients into a food processor and pulse for several minutes until nuts are finely ground. The longer the cashews are soaked, the creamier it can turn out. However, even after soaking them for 18 hours, there still was a slight crunchy texture about it, which both Jill and I really liked. It makes about 1.5 cups of pesto.

The Yummy End Product:

The result is a nice, garlicy spread that tastes fantastic. We bought some Quorn Chik'n Cutlets and stuffed them full of our cashew pesto. Super delicious! The next time I make this, which will be soon, I'll experiment by adding some boiling/simmering water to the food processor to make it more creamy or maybe add some agar flakes to make slices. I'm not sure yet.  While it didn't turn out to be cheezy, it was really good and another recipe I'm excited to make!

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We've been trying to go more vegan around here, but our biggest obstacle (really our only obstacle) is cheese. Jill and I both love cheese, so I've set out to become a master vegan cheeze maker. I searched the internet for simple recipes for my first attempt and came across this one, Vegan Cashew Cheese Recipe from Ann Gentry. I decided to alter the recipe a bit because I wasn't trying to make 3-5 ramekins of cheeze.

3/4 cup raw cashews (soaked for at least 8 hours, though i soaked ours for 24)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 Tsp onion powder
1 Tsp sea salt
1/2 Tsp garlic powder
1 3/4 cups plain unsweetened soy milk (any unsweetened nut milk will work)
1/3 cup  agar agar flakes
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbs yellow miso (white miso can also be used)
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice

This really was a simple recipe to follow and perform. The results are a mildly flavored cheeze that we've used in a lasagna, a topping for our veggie burgers and mixed in a delicious cous cous meal. There are tons of spices that could be added to it to give it more flavor: chives, more onions & garlic, black pepper, chillies, what ever you fancy. This is really a blank slate that can be taken anywhere. I think I could have used a little less agar agar flakes and that might make it a little more melty, but it's worked out well enough in it's current state. I'm excited to try this recipe again, adjusting it slightly for experimental purposes and seeing what else I can create. In the future, I will be substituting soy milk for my homemade cashew or almond milk. At first I was nervous to try making this, but now I'm just excited by all the possibilities.

I hope you have success and enjoy!

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Once spring and summer get going, there are lots of parties and celebrations with family and friends.  And if you're like me, a good deal of them are pot luck style (my favorite!).  Pot luck just means that all of the guests bring something to share with everyone else.  It can be a main dish, a side, a dessert or something to drink.  Sometimes it's organized and everyone is "assigned" something or it can be more casual and everyone just brings what they make best.

Either way, I love a good pot luck and I almost always opt to bring the dessert.  I have a mean sweet tooth and I love finding ways to make it healthy, but still satisfying. 

Enter, Chocolate Covered Katie.  If you haven't browsed her blog yet, you really should.  It's packed full of vegan, healthy desserts that are tasty enough for even the pickiest sweet tooth.  One of my favorites from her site are the healthy chocolate chip blondies.  I make them for parties and at home all the time.  They are always a hit.

I follow her recipe accurately, using coconut or beet sugar and ground flax seeds.  Sometimes I use peanut butter, sometimes I use almond.  The bars always turn out deliciously warm and gooey when they first come out of the oven....but my favorite is when they're cold from the fridge.  They are so good! 

So pop on over to CCK's site and try this recipe.  And maybe like 10 others while you're at it. 

If you like what you read, we would love to hear from you in the comments section!  It's fun to get feedback and it helps us create future posts.  And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or RSS!