Its easy eating green!

The last few days we have been low on fresh food and have been hanging out for the weekly organic order to arrive..and Yay..today is organic vegie pickup day so we are once again stocked up on a fresh supply of organic produce. During the days we were low on produce, I have been serving up a few variations of chia seed puddings, which the kids and I both love, but I have been craving some greens, so tonight we got our delicious dose full!

3x greenie green salads

Green salad 1: Silverbeet with spicy tomato dressing:

Slice thinly silverbeet and add to a bowl.
Make up dressing by blending until smooth:
- 1 fresh tomato and 3 sundried tomato pieces
- 1/4 olive oil and a dash of water
- 1 thin slice of fresh ginger
- 1 garlic clove
- pinch of salt
- cracked pepper
- juice of half a lemon
- sprig of fresh oregano

Toss through silverbeet and enjoy!


Green salad 2 - Sprouts with sunflower seeds

Place in a bowl a couple of handfuls of sprouts - I used alfalfa and fenugreek.
Drizzle a dash of olive oil, juice of lemon and top with activated sunflower seeds. That simple!

Green salad 3 - our favourite salad (which always makes an appearance on our table regularly) 

Add to a bowl a selection of greens from the garden - we used kale, cos and spinach.
Toss through some sliced tomato and olives. (and avocado if I had some ripe)
Dress with olive oil, crushed garlic, pinch of salt and juice of a lemon.
Toss

A living plate of 'green freshness' - Love it!

Raw chocolate and coconut cream fruit and berry parfaits

Sneek peek at what will be served up at the next raw food demo in a fortnight! Yummy! Cant wait to share!

Raw green coconut curry soup

I love curries and anything Indian so I am often trying to recreate those delicious coconut curries in a raw version. Here was tonight's attempt which was enjoyed by everyone...all bowls were scooped clean!

I started by making fresh coconut milk by scraping out the flesh of 2 brown coconuts and blending with the coconut milk. I then squeezed this white juicy pulp through a nut bag and was left with a bowl of creamy fresh aromatic coconut milk and a bag full of fresh shredded coconut pulp to be used for future raw creations.

I placed the fresh coconut milk in a saucepan and added to it a selection of small diced raw vegetables such as zucchini, carrots, snow peas and fresh peas. I put this aside while I made the raw curry paste.

Raw curry Paste:
In a blender process until smooth:
2 Tblsp of cumin powder
2 Tblsp of coriander seeds
2 small spring onions
pinch of nutmeg powder
1 small cube of fresh turmeric
1 inch piece of fresh ginger
1/2 cup of fresh coriander
1 stalk of lemon grass
2 kefir lime leaves
2 bulbs of fresh garlic
1 Tblsp agave
fresh chili (as many as you like)

I added a 1/4 cup of the fresh coconut milk to the above ingredients to allow for easier blending. Add this paste to the coconut milk and vegetables and warm gently over the stove until slightly warmed - keeping the temperature below 40degrees. serve

Raw coconut curry soup - so delicious!

Quick raw salad selection

Nothing is more simple, satisfying and delicious on a warm day then a wonderful selection of fresh, organic and raw salads. This is what Starzi and I tossed together in minutes for tonight's meal.

An array of super simple and fast raw salads

Starzi's simple salad:

This salad is our most regular salad that will find its way to almost every meal. It is super simple that my 5 year old can make it and love it. We use what ever greens we have available as the main ingredient. Usually I send the kids into the garden with a pair of scissors and a bowl and allow them to select fresh greens from our garden. Simple toss through what ever else you wish - we usually add some home grown cherry tomatoes, avocado and some home preserved green olives. Dressing is a simple mixture of fresh crushed garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt.

Carrot and Beetroot spiral salad:

  
Here is a salad I just invented tonight. I simply spiraled a carrot and a beetroot and tossed in a mixture of orange juice and a dash of apple cider vinegar, topped with a sprinkle of activated walnuts.

Sauerkraut:

I always have a good supply of homemade sauerkraut on hand and include it often to our meal tables. Starzi loves sauerkraut and will eat a bowl full at anytime of the day.

Marinated mushrooms:

The nicest way I like to eat raw mushrooms is in a mix of sesame oil and nama shoyu. If they are left to marinate for about half an hour, the mushrooms will soften and have a more 'cooked' texture.

Raw Sweet Corn and celery

And finally, raw fresh corn, simply tossed in a sprinkle of seasoned herb salt and a dash of olive oil. Sweet, juicy and crunchy.

I also added a serve of sliced celery and some left over raw 'bean free' hommus from another meal.


I love to serve a selection of small simple meals for the family. This allows for freedom of choice in serving size and selection.

Another day of deliciously raw

Breakfast: Banana and Brazil nut pancakes
I will share the recipe for these scrumptious raw treats at my next workshop - I love researching new recipes for my workshops!

Raw pancakes - Banana and Brazil nut

Lunch: coconut wrappers with mushroom and cabbage in a hoisin sauce (inspired by Ani Phyo)

Raw coconut wrappers with cabbage and mushrooms in a hoisin sauce

Recipe:
Coconut wrappers:
Blend till smooth the flesh of as many young green coconuts as you have - I used about 5 to make 16 wrappers. Spread onto teflex sheets and dehydrate over night.
Cabbage and mushroom in hoisin sauce:
Shred 1/4 of one cabbage, a small bunch of chopped spring onions and a cup of mushrooms thinly sliced. Place in a bowl. Add 3 crushed garlic and a Tbls of crushed ginger with a dash of sesame oil. Toss.
Make up a hoisin sauce by blending till smooth: 2 Tbls of raw almond butter, 2 Tbls of sesame oil, 1 Tbls agave, 4 Tbls nama shoyu, garlic clove, dash of chili, cracked pepper to taste.  
Add this sauce to the cabbage and mushrooms and let sit for about 1/2 an hour until cabbage has softened.
Garnish with fresh coriander.
Assemble:
Scoop cabbage mixture into the centre of a coconut wrapper, roll and eat.

Dinner: Super food fruit salad

Raw super food fruit salad

This was a very simple, yet satisfying dish that I made up as I created.

Recipe:
Super food Fruit Salad: Chop and add to a bowl a mix of what ever fruits you have in season on hand. I used banana, pears, apples, oranges and a few strawberries. To this I just started adding everything: a sprinkle of chia seeds, some activated and dehydrated buckwheaties, shredded coconut, activated and dehydrated almonds, goji berries, currants.... and then finally added the juice of 1 orange. A super charged fruit salad!

Dessert: Chocolate on chocolate slice

Recipe: Chocolate on Chocolate slice
This was another creation that just formed. It went something like this:
Base: A mix of activated almonds, macadamias, cacao powder and a couple of dates blended until mixture holds form. Press into a spring sided cake tin.
Topping: Process until smooth a mix of cacao powder, honey, coconut oil and the pulp of a young coconut. Pour over base and set in fridge for an hour.

I topped ours with blueberries and served with slices of banana - yummy!

Snap shots from our holiday in Fremantle

For some real luxury we spent a week in a modern, spacious apartment overlooking the beach in South Fremantle. It was the utmost of luxury we have surrounded ourselves in for a long long time. It was such a blissful escape from the familiar surrounds of our home in Kalgoorlie and we lapped up every moment of it.
Here is a picture of our holiday space, complete with breathtaking views!

Modern luxury! Wow

Living it up in Fremantle on holidays - breathtaking views everyday!

Our holiday apartment

The main purpose other than a complete escape from everyday life, was for me to complete a dreadlocking course with the Weirdsistas in Fremantle. Learning the unique and natural dreadlocking technique offered by the team at Weirdsistas will enable me to pursue an enjoyable business venture along with my raw food workshops as we prepare for our return back to the East Coast when we relinquish all commitment to the mining industry next year.
I love dreadlocks and now that I am a trained loktician in the weirdsista system, I am looking forward to gaining more experience in this technique and spreading some raw harmony dreadlocks in the near future.

Though the mining industry here in Kalgoorlie has supplied us extremely well in the area of finance, it is something that we are not keen to pursue long term and are envisioning a future of ethical, enjoyable and purposeful ventures on our long awaited return back to the eastern side of Australia. Raw food products and workshops, food forests tours, retreats, yoga, meditation tipi's, kayaking wildlife tours, dreadlocking, renewable energy seminars, handmade creative ventures.....these and more are the things we hope to enrich our lives with and share in the near future as we follow our dream and locate our homeland back east.

Being presented with my official loKtician certificate

Training in action

So while I was busy in the attic dreading away, Michael and the kids took to the sites around Perth.

Rhody in 'bubble' at Sci-tech 

Starzi in the 'bubble' at Sci-Tech

Watching the underwater scene at the aquarium

  
And whats a holiday to the coast without some fun at the beach!

And some daisy chains for the kids

Holidays are wonderful. We all had such a fantastic time away from the everyday regular life, but now they are over and its back to work in the morning for Michael - and getting stuck into that suitcase of washing for me. 

Colonic

If you have been missing my regular posts, we have been on holidays, indulging in a glorious week away in Fremantle just south of Perth. We returned yesterday from a week of bliss, and now are slowly settling back into the regular rhythms of daily life, particularly washing once all the suitcases are unpacked.

The lead up week to our departure was filled with preparations in raw food snacks and fasting prior to our first colonic. The prepacked raw snacks were a great success for the long journey to Perth and as handy snack packs and quick lunches for the days entertaining ourselves in and around Perth. The colonic on the other hand was less of a success. 
The procedure was something that I had constantly read about in many raw food books and websites. so I was keen to give it a go, but when it came to doing the actual task, I was a lot less excited. Poor Michael went in the room first and done the 'deed'. He exited the room after almost an hour with not much to say. I then prepared myself and took to the table and was 'connected up' which was rather uncomfortable. To keep the details to a minimum, the entire process I felt was quite 'yukky' as the constant filling and releasing of the bowels felt very much like a bad case of diarrhea. This was endured for almost an hour. Thankfully, my overall results were excellent as the final 2 rinses flushed crystal clear without a trace of 'sludge' to locate. The lady who conducted the procedure told me during, of common stories about many people returning daily for a week and still managed to remove 'black' liquids and solids from their insides. The worst the water ever appeared during my colonic was a pale discoloured, transparent yellow which was minimal. Though this procedure was really uncomfortable to say the least, I did experience some positives.
Firstly, the results that I achieved was a huge reassurance and confidence boost as it was a direct result to my extremely healthy lifestyle. The other positive was the sensation of lightness and extreme energy I felt afterwards. I literally danced down the street and felt like I could run around the block several times with great speed - though I didn't and managed to contain my energy in public.
I had been juice fasting for 6 days in preparation for the colonic and once it was completed, we found ourselves afterwards within the walls of the fresh food market of Fremantle surrounded in produce. I reached out and grabbed 2 cobs of raw corn and ate it from the cob. I continued my pursuit of raw food and indulged in a wheat grass smoothie and a raw pizza slice from the 'Raw kitchen'.

To have fully enjoyed the extent of my energised body from the colonic, I should have held back on eating so much so quickly, but it was my first day of holidays and I was surrounded in great food, so found it difficult to contain myself.

As for Michael and his reaction to the colonic, well, all he said was 'the things I do for you' and shook his head. He didn't like it at all and assured me that he wouldn't be attempting anything similar in the future. His results too, were very good, with little built up residue. Due to our fantastic joint results, I assured him that we shouldn't have to do it again, which suited me too. 

           

More raw sweet treats, kale chips and green seeded crackers

Even while juice fasting, I have found motivation to churn out some more delightful raw snacks which I cant wait to feast on once I am finished my detox.

I have now enjoyed an easy 4 days of juice fasting which has been without any side effect. The more I indulge in fasting the easier it becomes. I have not pangs of hunger, no sensations of dizziness or lack of energy - completely opposite in fact. I have enjoyed 4 full days of constant activity, including 2 great yoga workouts, rollerskating with the kids and even found the motivation to give the interior of our car a thorough clean, tomorrow its the house windows and I am nearly up to date with my laundry which doesn't happen often! This is what you would consider a complete clean, inside and out!

As for my juices, they have been a variety of concoctions. I am limited to the variety of fruits as we are still in the season of winter, so a lot of oranges, apples and pineapples. I also made a 'mix up of anything juice' to use up all my old fruits and vegetables before welcoming a new box of organic produce for the week. Pictured is a mixed juice of apple, carrot, beetroot, pineapple, lemon, spinach and ginger. Even with such a variety of blends, it still tasted great!

So anyway, here is a snippet of whats been produced from my kitchen over the last couple of days to add to my snacks and crackers reservoirs

Raw Banana and fig balls, Raw Coconut and Chocolate rounds, Raw Vanilla and almond balls 

Raw Banana and Fig balls have been something that I have made regularly for many years - ever since Starzi was born. Its simple and enjoyed by everyone. I usually have all of these simple ingredients on hand at all times.

Recipe:

Process until combined:

2 fresh bananas

about 8 or so dried figs

a cup of sesame seeds

and a cup of dried coconut.

Roll into balls and roll in more coconut,

Please adjust quantities to your preference as I usually just use handfuls at a time to make my mixture.

I like to freeze a large batch of these to store for a long period of time. They are easily eaten direct from the freezer and are not hard like you would expect.

Raw Banana and fig balls

 Raw chocolate and coconut rounds was something that just happened from an 'on the spot' mix of ingredients as I was gaining inspiration from a mix of recipes.

Recipe:

In a high speed blender, combine until smooth:

1/2 cup of cacao nibs,

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup of honey and a couple of dates.

Add this chocolaty goo to:

1 cup of crumbled macadamia nuts,

1 1/2 cups of coconut shreds,

dash of vanilla powder.

Roll into balls and flatten and coat in more coconut shreds. Mixture will be quite soft, so let them set in the fridge to harden.

Raw Chocolate and coconut rounds

I also made a batch of what I call raw almond and vanilla balls. These were also a made up selection of ingredients based on what I had an excess of.

Recipe:

Mix in a large bowl:

2 cups of almond meal left over from making almond milk

1 1/2 cups of dried coconut

1/2 cup of honey and some dates

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 Tblsp of vanilla powder

Roll into balls and either eat as it, or dehydrate a portion of the batch to create a crunchier ball - as I did.

Dehydrated almond and vanilla balls on left - fresh almond and vanilla balls on right

I also made up another batch of candied nuts due to the huge success of the sweet and spicy pecan and walnut mix I recently did.

Here is a macadamia version.

Chili and lime Macadamia nuts

Recipe

Soak macadamia nuts for 2 hours.

Rinse and dehydrate for 1 day.

coat dehydrated macadamias in a mix of:

3/4 cup of honey

juice of half a lime

2 Tbls chili powder

2 tsp salt

dehydrate for a further day until honey has candied slightly.

Raw chili and lime macadamia nuts

For something savoury, I made my favourite raw falafels from Gabriel Cousins - Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine book which I use a lot.

Recipe:

Process all ingredients in a food processor until combined but still textured.

1 cup of soaked almonds

1 cup of soaked walnuts

1/2 cup of sesame seeds

1/2 cup of fresh parsley - (I use more herbs then advised as I love the herb taste of these raw falafels)

1/2 cup of fresh coriander

2 cloves of garlic - or more

10 fresh sage leaves

10 fresh oregano leaves

1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

1 tsp salt

2 Tbls olive oil

Roll into balls and dehydrate for up to a day or less

Raw herb falafels

I also made some more kale chips because we love them so much. I tried a new flavour variation today  - curry.

I made this up using a surplus of carrot pulp from my juicing.

Recipe:

1 cup soaked cashews

1 cup of carrot pulp

2 Tbls coriander seeds ground

2 Tbls cumin seeds ground

pinch of salt

2 Tbls mild curry powder

1 Tbls turmeric

Blend in high speed blender until smooth, and then coat kale pieces before dehydrating overnight.

Rhody was enjoying these before they went in the dehydrator!

Raw Curry flavoured Kale chips

And finally using up more left over excess produce in the fridge, I made these batch of green seeded crackers. I cant recall exactly what went in the final product but it was a lot of everything. Here is what I remember I used in a mix of quantities:

Flax seeds

pumpkin seeds

black and white sesame seeds

almond pulp

tomato

spinach leaves

fresh parsley

zucchini

and some herbs like oregano, thyme

and a few sprinkles of seasoned salt.

I basically threw all the vegetables in the food processor and blended before adding to a large bowl filled with the seeds and nuts. I stirred it all together and spread on teflex trays and dehydrated overnight flipping once. This is one way to ensure your kids are getting a dose of greens, calcium from the sesame and omegas from the flax.

raw 'Greens and seeds' crackers 

   

This just goes to show that anything goes - blend it up, mix it up and make it up!

Its all good!

Raw Kale chips, hummus dips and snacks for trips

My dehydrator has been churning solid for a few days now, pumping out all kinds of dehydrated snacks. I have quite a collection building up to make for a great variety of raw snack packs for the kids.

A collection of raw dehydrated travel snacks

I have made the ever so popular Kale chips, in both favourite versions- spicy bbq and cheesy garlic.

Raw Spicy bbq kale chips

Raw cheesy garlic kale chips

As I have previously posted the recipe for the Spicy bbq, here is the recipe for our cheesy garlic kale chips.

Recipe Raw Cheesy garlic kale chips:

1 cup of soaked cashews
1/4 cup of water
juice of half a lemon
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 bulb of garlic - yes that's right an entire bulb!
1 tsp salt
1 Tbls agave

Blend all of the ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy.
Pour over washed and torn (de-stemed) kale pieces

Cheesy garlic sauce ready to massage into kale

Massage sauce onto kale until evenly covered

Kale covered in cheesy garlic sauce 

Spread onto teflex trays, sprinkle with dried granulated garlic and dehydrate until crispy (usually just overnight)

Raw cheesy garlic kale chips ready to dehydrate

Rhody will eat these until his breathe reeks of garlic! - which I don't mind as I know it helps keeps the colds away.


I have also been busy making more crackers. These are delicious zucchini and walnut crackers that have a delicious 'buttery' taste which have become a household favourite.

Raw zucchini and walnut 'buttery' cracker Recipe:

Basically blend equal parts soaked walnuts and zucchini with some flaxmeal and salt. The portions I use to make 3 trays is 3 cups zuchini with 3 cups walnuts (or pecans) with 1 cup of flaxmeal and a 1 Tbls salt. I process until blended, but still slightly coarse for texture.
Spread onto trays and dehydrate overnight, flipping once.

Raw zucchini and walnut 'buttery' crackers
These are great for savoury or sweet toppings

Next I made up some apple rings as I had an over supply of apples at the moment.

Raw crispy apple slinky rings

Recipe of crispy apple rings: 
These are simply made by chopping apples into thin slices - made easier by using an apple slinky machine, spreading onto trays and dehydrating. The longer they dry the crispier they become. I left mine for about 2 days and they are now very crunchy - just the way the kids love them best.

Apple Slinky's ready to crisp in dehydrator

Another great snack I made was these super food nut bars, filled with lots of goodness.

Raw super goji, maca, cacao bars

Recipe for 'super bars'
As I had some left over almond pulp from my nut milks, I used that as the base.
To this (which was about 3 cups) I added: 
2 cups of chopped cashews, 
1 cup of macadamia nuts,
1/2 cup activated pepitas,
1/2 cup of soaked linseeds,
1 cup of goji berries,
1/2 cup cacao nibs,
1/4 cup maca powder,
1 tsp vanilla powder,
dash of salt,
lemon zest
and 1 cup of agave syrup.

This was all mixed together in a bowl by hand and flattened onto trays. I cut them into bars and dehydrated for about 2 days to get them totally dry for longer shelf life. They can be dehydrated for less and eaten partially moist, but must be consumed with a few days and store in fridge.
I finished them off with a strip of chocolate made by blending until smooth 1 cup cacao nibs, 3/4 cup agave and 1/2 cup of coconut oil. I used a piping bag to create stripes. (Recipe was inspired by a recipe in Matt Kenney's 'everyday raw' book) 

Then there was these little battered raw zucchini chips.

Raw zucchini battered chips

Recipe for Raw battered zucchini chips:

These were simply made by thinly slicing a few zucchinis, coated in a couple of Tbls of olive oil and then coated in a mixture of 'powdered buckwheaties', nutritional yeast, granulated garlic and salt.
Dehydrate until totally crispy - about 2 days.
The final result is a very crunchy subtle cheesy battered chip. Great for dipping in raw hummus or enjoying as is.

And....
Finally, I made my second batch of sweet and spicy pecan and walnut mix. It was my second batch because my first batch got eaten before it finished dehydrating - they were that addictive!
I found this recipe in one of Ani Phyos books and am now addicted. This batch is almost all gone too even though I tripled the quantities!

Addictive raw sweet and spicy coated pecan and walnut mix

Recipe for sweet and spicy walnut and pecan mix:
I soaked 2 cups of both pecans and walnuts for about 6 hours, then drained and rinsed.
I then mixed through a tsp of chilli powder, 1 tsp of cardomon powder, 1 tsp nutmeg. 1 tsp salt and 1/4 cup of raw honey. spread onto dehydrator trays and dried until nuts are crispy and honey is candied. This is an addictive blend of sweet and spicy that is so moreish. I cant stop at one!


I did say hummus dips, so here is my favourite bean free hummus dip that is so super fast to whip up and tastes wonderful. I made up a batch last minute yesterday for a social gathering. Always a  great standby to serve with carrot sticks. My kids love it and will lick the bowl clean with their fingers.

Recipe for Raw bean free hummus:
2 zucchinis peeled and chopped
3/4 cup of sesame seeds
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup of olive oil
4 garlic cloves
2 tsp salt
1/2 Tbls cumin

Blend in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy.
Top with a drizzle of olive oil and another sprinkle of cumin.
Serve with raw vegetable strips, or as I did carrot and zucchini battered chips.

Bean free Raw hummus with raw 'dippers'

My dehydrator and myself are all 'fooded' out and will both be taking a break from food.

Michael and I are starting a 6 day juice cleanse before undertaking our first colonic next week.
I missed my usual 'new moon fast' this cycle but will start one in the morning. This time of the waxing moon is not ideal for detoxing, but this is the time that is convenient for Michael's work and he was keen to participate in this detox with me, so we are compromising and being flexible with what is ideal.

I will keep updates on our juice cleanse beginning tomorrow.