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Happy Monday!

It's definately fall and time to break out the fenugreek seeds for a hot satisfying tea. Fenugreek is a seed that is used primarily in curry dishes but is also really terrfic as a tea. Boil some water, add sweetener....I use agave nectar.....then supplement with a squeeze of lemon or ginger juice. Stir and enjoy. Fenugreek is said to have kidney and liver cleansing properties and it tastes great. You can keep adding hot water to your seeds and they will continue to give off a good aroma. So one teaspoon of seeds per cup go a long way to keeping you warm this winter.

Enjoy! and happy November 2010!

Wow how's this for a vegan treat?!!

I just stumbled across 'Rhymes with Vegan' and this recipe for grilled portobella mushrooms. Check it out !

Going RAW in Costa Mesa CA

I'm in Southern California visiting my sister for her Birthday. Yesterday we were blessed to have found 118 degrees. A RAW restaurant in Costa Mesa. 'Amazing' is all I can say about everything we enjoyed on the menu.....especially the Chocolate Ganache.

The Ganache was made with Cacao of course along with coconut oil and agave and other living delights. All I can say is yummy. What a treat to find a place that has such a passion for living food. It really makes a difference.

Thank you Jenny Ross, Executive Chef. I wish you overwhelming success!

Thailand in the RAW!

I just returned from a trip around Southeast Asia and one of our stops was Patong Beach in Phuket.

My favorite thing? The raw food choices that accompany cooked dishes. Naturally there's fried fish, chicken and assorted animal organs but I opted for soups with noodles and let me tell you they were amazing.

On the side a fresh platter of cucumbers, green onions (eaten by bending back and forth a couple of times and then wrapping the green stalk around the white part into a knot), assorted leaves and herbs like mango leaves, dill and more. Have you ever eated a mango leaf? Who knew eating leaves would taste so good and be so good for you. Among the other raw food selections were the usual shredded cabbage and bean sprouts. A local said to us, "this is our medicine."

It wasn't the only time on our journey we heard this same refrain. Apparently the flower bud from a banana tree is eaten by some daily to ward against illness. And it tastes delicious.

2010 is the year for opting out of junk and opting into fresh local produce when possible.

Bon Appetite!

Vegan Mofo Wraps Up!

Wow, what fun and what a challenge. I was and continue to be truly inspired by all of the amazing individuals out there in the vegan community. Thank you to Kittee for allowing us to participate! And for doing an amazing job of organizing all of the participating blogs into one single reader. You are the bomb!

And thanks to everyone who checked us out during this month. We really appreciate all of the positive feedback. 

I can see now I'm going to be busy trying out new recipes and expanding my vegan menu.

And finally, thank you to Melinda for allowing me to guest post this month. It's really been fun.

Hot 'One Bite' Brownies With Cayenne!

These brownies have a slight kick depending on how brave you are with the cayenne.

1 1/2 cup walnuts14 large pitted (not soaked) dates
Powdered vanilla (teaspoon or to your taste)
1 tbls Mesquite powder (full of nutrition!)
1/2 cup Cacao powder (Not to be confused with Cocoa powder...there is a difference)
Pinch (Large pinch of sea salt)
1 or 2 pinches cayenne pepper. More if you really like hot chocolate! Ha.

I dust my brownies with a mixture of cacao nibs that have been ground with coconut sugar to taste.

Press the mixture into a pan and shape it to your desired thickness. Then put in the fridge or freezer to firm up.

Vegan Mofo continues with Brownies from Angelica's Home Kitchen

I used to make these brownies every chance I got. For some reason though I've been more of a cookie person these past few years. Well maybe now is a good time to resurect this incredibly easy brownie recipe.

1/4 cup wheat flour
1/4 cup white flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons succanat
1/4 cup pure cocoa powder (regular cocoa powder is fine here. No need for the raw stuff.)
1/4 cup canola or olive oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons plain soy milk
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Combine dry ingredients and mix well. Combine wet ingredients and mix well. Combine the wet and dry and mix until ingredients are incorporated.

Spoon into an oiled 9 inch pan and bake for 15 to 20  minutes. A toothpick should come out clean when testing if the brownies are done.

Chocolate Smoothie Delight

Need a refreshing and nutritious pick me up? Try this super charged chocolate drink instead of a soy latte.

1 cup water
20 soaked raw almonds
1 teaspoon cacoa powder (Remember, cacoa is not cocoa. Cacoa is raw)
4 prunes soaked and pitted
1 teaspoon prune water
1 teaspoon agave nectar
lemon juice to taste

Blend, strain and drink!

Tangy Sweet Walnut Spread Sandwich with Lettuce and Tomato on Toasted Brown Rice Bread

It's not easy coming up with recipes every single day. Phew. So, today I thought I'd cheat a little. Plus, I don't really prepare different foods every single day. So for example I use this spread as a stuffing for mushrooms and then the next day I'll use the left overs for sandwich spreads. In fact I had this particular sandwich two days in a row. It was that good!

1 cup soaked almonds
1 hand full pine nuts
2 cloves of garlic
3 scallions (trim the ends but use all of the green and white onion part. Chop in 1 inch pieces so they blend better when you process everything.)
4 whole sun dried tomatoes or 8 halves (soaked)
1/2 cup basil leaves
2 tblspoon cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon light miso
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed or ground cumin
Juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons agave nectar (you can omit this if you want your mixture more tart and tangy)

Blend until smooth in a food processor. Serve on toasted brown rice bread and serve with a raw nut of your choice. 

Collard Roll-ups

Adapted from Alissa Cohen's 'Living on Live Foods'

2 Large collard leaves
1 small zucchini, shredded
1 carrot shredded
1 cup sliced onion ringlets (red)
1 cup portabella mushrooms cut into bite sized pieces
2 cups sprouts
hand full lettuce
1 cup Bragg's or Nama Shoyu

Guacamole Spread:

2 avocados
1/4 cup onion
1/2 to 1 tomato
sea salt to taste
Cilantro

Marinate the onions and mushrooms in the Braggs for at least 10 minutes.

Combine the guacamole ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth but slight chunky.

Lay collard greens flat with the inside facing up. Drain mushroom and onion mixture. Place a scoop of guacamole, half the shredded veggies, half the mushroom and onion mixture and lettuce and sprouts on one leaf.

Roll the leaf up and do the same with the other.

Slice in two inch portions and serve.