Raw Recipe - Holiday Pecans

While everybody else is gorging on candy, treat yourself to this really nice (& sweet) treat.

• 1 cup agave nector
• 4 cups pecan halves
• 1 cup raw orange juice
• 1-2 cup raw cacao powder

Heat the agave & orange juice, stirring till it is thin.  Don't get it too hot, keep it raw!  Stir in pecans.  Spread over wax paper.  Shake cacao powder over pecans till coated.  Let cool, then enjoy!

Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipe

This is how I get my caffeine nowdays...

2 cups unsweetened almond milk
1 tablespoon flax seeds
1 heaping teaspoon raw chocolate
1 serving green superfood of your choice
shot of coffee
shot of agave

Blend in Vitamix on low setting for a minute, gradually turn up to medium/high for another 30 seconds or so.  Sit in the sunshine & enjoy.
mmmmm...

Raw Chocolate Recipes

My daily staple:

1 Gala Apple
freshly ground peanut butter
raw chocolate (powder works best with this recipe)
raw honey or agave--your choice!

Slice the apple then mix the rest of the ingredients together. Smear the apple slices with the mixture, go outside on your porch & make the squirrels jealous! 

One note--it's really easy to over-do the sweet taste so go easy on the honey/agave in the beginning. You really only need it if the peanut butter is too thick to mix well.

Simple pleasure...

Another Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipe

This is the time of year when bing cherries are so good, & I can tell you for sure that it is worth the time it takes to pit them. This smoothie is so refreshing & good! We use cashews that we have soaked in pure water overnight--somehow it adds to the general sweetness of the drink. Don't know how to explain that other than to say that we've tried almonds, flax, rice, etc., & the cashews are the definite winner.

1/2 cup cashews (soaked)
3/4 cup raw chocolate powder
1 cup bing cherries
1 glass (about 12 oz) pure water
1 cup ice
3 tbs raw agave nector or local honey

Blend cashews in water till smooth then add the rest of the ingredients, leaving the ice for last.

If you want a really intense taste, try adding a bit of cold coffee this--no more than a tbs or so. I also like this one with a bit of vanilla too if you're wanting something sweet.

Enjoy!

Another Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipe

This drink is so simple but it's my all-time favorite. It never fails to be the perfect answer to a sweet craving.

Strawberry/Chocolate shake

1 cup raw cashews
1 cup pure water
2 cups ice
1 cup ripe strawberrys
1/2 cup raw chocolate powder
3tbs raw agave nectar

Combine cashews & water. Blend till smooth. Add in the rest of the ingredients, saving the ice for last. Ease the Vitamix up to variable/high & blend till smooth.

Enjoy!

More Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipes

I have been eating so good this week!

Raw Chocolate Cupcakes

1 cup pecans (don't soak)
3 to 4 tbs raw agave nectar
1.4 cup raw cacao powder
1 tsp almond extract
1/4 cup dehydrated bing cherries
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt
1/2 cup pure water
1 tsp fresh coconut

Mix together in vitamix w/setting on low/variable. Slowly increase speed till mixture is consistency of cookie dough.

Drop on dehydrator sheets & form teaspoon-sized balls.

Dehydrate at 100 degrees for 4 hours.

Decorate with coconut.

Enjoy!

More Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipes

A variation on what we have almost every day:

Chocolate Health Shake
4 cups pure water
1.5 cups raw pumpkin seeds (soaked overnight so they're almost sprouted)
1 tsp vanilla
4 tbs raw agave nector
3/4 cup raw cacao powder

Add all the ingredients together into the vitamix. Start on low/variable & work up to higher speed for about 1 to 2 minutes. If you decide to keep the Vitamix on to heat up the drink remember that it shouldn't really get much above 100 degrees if you want to keep the enzymes living.

If you don't like the pulp, filter & keep it to make the recipe below.

Raw Chocolate Cookies

Take the pulp from the drink above. Drop it in teaspoon sized balls then flatten out. Dehydrate at 100 degrees for 4 hours. Enjoy!

The cookies are so good! They have the exact same consistency as little brownies, but are good for you! The recipe above doesn't make too many cookies, just about 6 small ones. Here's a recipe for them that actually makes more:

Raw Chocolate Cookies (bigger batch)

4 cups raw pumpkin seeds (soaked overnight so they're almost sprouted)
1.5 cup raw aguave nector
1 tbs vanilla
1.5 cups raw cacao
2-4 cups pure water

add 1 cup of water & the rest of the ingredients to vitamix & start on variable/low. Slowly add water until consistency is doughy. Be sure that pumpkin seeds are crushed completly. When finished, add in fruit (if desired) by hand. Bing cherry bits are really good with these cookies or fresh blueberries.

Drop onto dehydrator sheet & set to 100 degrees for about 4 hours. These are chewy & so good! It's hard to believe that something that tastes like this can actually be good for you. I love this recipe because it's extremly easy & doesn't cost that much.

Pumpkin seeds are a great source of protein & have a good amount of essential fatty acides, magnesium, iron, & zinc (not to mention fiber). As a matter of fact, raw pumpkin seeds are so healthy that the oil inside of them is pressed & resold as a nutritional supplement. An additional benefit is that they're cheap! I can get raw organic pumpkin seeds for under $2 lb vs $10.99 lb & up for cashews, $7.99 & up for almonds, etc.

I really like trying new raw food recipes. My energy level has shot up since I started including living food in my diet. If your mind is open to trying new things, I highly recommend this.

I dont have

Another Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipe

Chocolate Protein Shake

• 2 cups pure water
• 2 cups ice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 4 or 5 tbs raw cacao
  
• 1 cup barely sprouted raw almonds
• 1 cup protein sprout mix (or oat sprouts)
• 4 tbs agave nectar
  

Soak the almonds 24 to 48 hrs ahead of time until there's a little sprout peeking out of the end of them.

Add almonds to water & mix on variable/low gradually increasing to high until they are completely pulverized & the mixture is really smooth. About 45 seconds should do it.

Add the rest of the ingredients & do the same thing.

This shake is high protein, low glycemic, & tastes great. It provides sustained energy & is a good way for me to avoid caffeine in the afternoon. The sprouted almonds & regular sprouts are packed with healthy enzymes & raw chocolate is brain food! I love drinking this--it has become one of my favorite recipes because it is so easy to make. I occasionally add 1 cup blueberries to it, to change up the taste a bit.

Enjoy!

Here Are Some Raw Food and Vitamix Recipes

Tom & I are big into the Vitamix & raw food recipes. Here are some of the most recent things we've been creating.

Pecan Milk (tastes a bit like eggnog)

• 5 cups pure water
• 1 cup raw pecans (soaked in water overnight is best if you have time)
• 3 tbs agave nectar
• 2 tbs vanilla
• 1 tsp nutmeg

Blend until smooth. Strain it if you want to. (The pulp can be used later to make cookies). If you want the fiber, then go ahead--drink up! I've been adding a peach to this & heating it up just a bit, & really like it that way.

Raw Chocolate Pudding-ish Dessert

• 1 ripe avocado
• 3 tbs raw cacao
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 pitted dates
• 1 cup of pure water

Add all the ingredients to the vitamix, blend with water to your desired consistency. *note--using the water you soaked the dates in will add flavor. I call it pudding-ish because it doesn't taste like Jello pudding--which is what you might expect. It tastes far better!

Here's my favorite for tonight:

Sprouted Pancakes & Banana Syrup

• 1 cup of whatever you've sprouted lately
• 1 cup raw pecan milk or almond milk or cashew milk
• 1 cup flax seeds
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla

Mix sprouts with milk in Vitamix until smooth. Add salt, vanilla. Add flax seed & blend until the mix is the consistency of pancake batter. Pour into nonstick heated pan & cook on medium low, turning as needed, till done.

Bananna Syrup

• 2 ripe bananas
  
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup pure water
  

Blend bananas & vanilla in Vitamix till smooth. Add water to achieve desired consistency.

That's what we had for supper last night. Man, it was good! The pancakes are so dense that they are very filling, but without all the fat & gluten's in regular pancakes. The banana syrup had a very intense flavor. I'm sure you could add blueberry's, strawberry's, or whatever to the pancake batter to make them even more flavorful. IHOP has nothing on us!

Seriously, pancakes without guilt? Too good to be true...

Hope you enjoy these ; ) Let me know what you think if you try them out.

Raw Chocolate Vitamix Recipes

Randy says he learned how important chocolate is not just from me, but from going in & out of multiple offices all day. Through the years he's evolved from bringing home the occasional Hershey bar, to bringing home "the good stuff", ie Godiva, Vans, etc. What a good husband!

I do like the typical "good stuff" but in the last year or so my tastes have evolved to more exotic chocolate. I discovered chocolate and red chilis at Earth Fare (my favorite last year). The spicy zing along with the dark chocolate just tasted right somehow.

For Christmas I got some raw chocolate & a book about the health benefits of raw chocolate. I have seen the health claims in various places on the internet about chocolate but didn't pay much attention to them till I read the book. It was pretty interesting. For instance did you know that raw cacao beans are known as 'the food of the gods' and were used as money by the Aztecs? Ok, so you knew that.

Well then, how about this: Cacao powder and butter are the beans pressed and powdered. Both are antioxidants; rich in magnesium and potassium. Without sugar or dairy products the benefits of chocolate reach you in their pure state. When chocolate is eaten raw, the enzymes (important for health) remain intact and the amazing properties of chocolate are undiluted to be enjoyed to the full.

Tom & I have long believed that enzymes contained in raw foods are more important than mainstream media have portrayed. Tom says that what makes a cell living is the enzymes. For instance, what seems more healthy--a raw apple or a cooked one? Why do you think that is? We both have tried to up our intake of raw vegetables to some degree of success, & I think it has made a difference in our energy overall.

Back to raw chocolate. It is full of Tryptophan (the relax chemical), Anandamide (the bliss chemical), Phenylethaylamine (PEA, the joy molecule), Polyphenols (heart-nurturing), MAO inhibitor (appetite suppressant), and about 300 other nutritional compounds. But most importantly, it tastes really good! It's not sweet but can be sweetened with fruit, aguave nector, or whatever you use.

We created some raw chocolate drinks in the Vitamix & they are really good so I thought I would share:

Toms Raw Healthy Chocolate Drink

2 cups pure water
one cup raw cashews
3 medjool dates
1/2 cup raw cacao nibs

Add cashews to water & set vitamix to low for about 30 seconds
Slowly add pitted dates & cacao nibs
Blend up to one minute
Drink up

Lala's Raw Healthy Chocolate Drink

3 cups pure water
1 1-2 cup raw cashews
aguave nector
1/2 cup raw cacao nibs

Add cashews to water & set vitamix to low for about 30 seconds
Add cacao nibs
Blend up to one minute then strain.
Add aguave nector to taste.

Man, I've got to go make some right now!

Hope you like our Vitamix recipes. I am a Vitamix nut & have lots of them so if you want more let me know.

Drink up : )

Here's the link to where you can buy the book I've been reading.

Raw Chocolate & 70's Music

Makes the best breakfast ever! Seriously, I am so mellow now.

Here's what I like, in case anybody is wondering what to get me for my birthday, which is in April, but it's never to soon to start planning.

Somehow the receiver decided that it was a 70's morning & I just didn't feel like arguing. Shoop, shoobee do wah...

On to work shortly then I think I'll go out.