healthy living – Survival of the Fittest Thoughts

Raw Lemon & Dill Cashew Cream Non-Cheese Recipe

Posted on May 29, 2014May 29, 2014 by mustardseedmia

All my dairy-free readers are going to fall in love with this recipe. Every time I make this cashew cream non-cheese and let someone have a taste, the first word to come out of their mouth is YUM! I often eat this with raw crackers (recipe to come) or spread it on some wild smoked salmon…Mmmm my mouth is literally watering just thinking about it!

DSC_8111-26-2 — Lemon & Dill Cashew Cream Non-Cheese (Raw, GF, DF, Vegan)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups raw cashews (soaked for two hours)

Juice of one lemon

3 large cloves garlic (use 4 if the cloves are small)

4 tablespoons of fresh dill chopped

1 chive, thinly sliced (I only use the light green part, so I use 2 chives)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/3 cup filtered water

Directions:

To soak the cashews, place them in a medium bowl with water. The water should be about 1-2 inches above the top of the cashews.
Drain cashews after two hours and place all of the ingredients, except the 1/3 cup filtered water, in a food processor or high speed blender (I prefer using a processor for this particular recipe, but a blender works well too). Slowly increase the speed and blend for about 1 minute. With a spatula, scrap down the sides, pour in the filtered water and blend for another few minutes. Pour contents in a mason jar with a tight lid, and store in the fridge for 12-14 hours to thicken and then it’s ready to eat. This recipe can be stored in the fridge for about a week.

Bon appetite!

-Maria

Raw Coconut Almond Yogurt!–Dairy Free and Delicious

Posted on May 18, 2014May 19, 2014 by mustardseedmia

Raw Coconut Almond Yogurt

I was excited to share this recipe with you guys, because I got really good feedback on the granola recipe I posted a week or so ago. This yogurt goes really well with the granola and it’s such a great intro to raw “cooking”. This yogurt is so easy to make it’s kind of a joke.

Since I have learned how to make this yogurt I have made a slue of different raw salad dressings, dips, pesto pizza sauce and even frozen yogurt (recipes still to come) using this yogurt as a base.

Ingredients

2 cups of young thai coconut meat OR 2 two cups of soaked raw almonds (soaked for 24 hours) OR one cup of each

One cup of coconut water (bit more or less depending on how thick you want it)

1/2 teaspoon probiotic blend powder or 2 probiotic capsules (open the capsules and just use the powder)

Directions

Blend all ingredients together in a blender. Note: if you don’t own a vitamix or blendtec blender then you may NOT want to use the almonds. I also peel my almonds after they have been soaked, but it’s not imperative.

Pour mixture into a container that has a lid, but don’t put the lid on just yet. Cover the yogurt with paper towel and let it sit out for 4-6 hours (depending on the temperature and humidity of your room) until the probiotics start to activate and make the yogurt tangy. On hot humid days 4 hours should be sufficient and cold days you will need the whole 6 hours. You can taste it at 4 hours and if it’s really tangy like yogurt and it has thickened, then it’s likely ready. Cover with a lid and put it in the fridge.

This delicious yogurt should be good for a few days in the fridge.

Notes:

If you don’t like the bits of almond skin in there then you can drain the yogurt through a cheese cloth.

To make the next batch you do not need more probiotics, a spoonful of the previous yogurt will be enough to culture the new batch. When you do this you will not need to let it sit out for the whole 6 hours. 4 hours should be enough time.

If your yogurt starts to go pink then you have left it out for too long and you should start over. DO NOT EAT PINK YOGURT PLEASE!

Good luck with this recipe and keep me posted on how your yogurt turns out.

Thanks for reading!

-Maria

Whole-Food Granola

Posted on April 30, 2014April 30, 2014 by mustardseedmia

In my series of 5 Ideas That Completely Changed the Way I Eat, the first idea “Say No to Crack“, was about making better choices at breakfast time, so I thought it would be appropriate that my first recipe on the blog be one of that can help with that choice.

I fell in love with this granola when I went gluten-free and dairy-free 3 years ago. The great thing about this recipe is that I used absolutely no refined sugar!

Listed under “ingredients” are the ones I used in the picture, but to add variety to my routine, I often substitute some of the nuts and seeds. If you have a nut allergy then you can use buckwheat, and your choice of seeds. This recipe can also be made raw, but since I am currently travelling and my food dehydrator is half-way across world, I only have times for cooking.

Ingredients:

1 cup of raw organic sliced almonds (or any other nut of your choice)

1 cup of raw organic walnut pieces (or any other nut of your choice)

1/2 raw organic pumpkin seed (or any seed of your choice)

1/2 raw organic sunflower seed (or any seed of your choice)

1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

A generous amount of cinnamon (this depends on your taste)

1/2 cup of pitted Medjool dates

2 teaspoons water

2 tablespoons maple syrup (or honey)

1 tablespoon coconut oil (melted)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees celsius. Grease a large baking sheet.

In a blender or food processor, mix dates and water until it forms a paste. In a medium mixing bowl combine the rest of the ingredients. Add the date and water mixture to the nut mixture. Make sure all the nuts and seeds are well coated with the honey and coconut oil (you may need to add a bit more honey or maple syrup, depending on the nuts you used).

Spread the mixture on the baking sheet and bake for 25 mins. With a spatula, mix and flip the granola mixture and bake for another 25-35 minutes. Turn off oven and let the granola sit in the warm oven for 2 hours.

Serve as a cereal with sliced or dried fruit, and coconut or almond milk, or just eat on its own as a tasty treat. Store the granola in your fridge for up to a week.

For a more salty taste you can add 1 teaspoon of salt before baking.

Can’t wait to hear your feedback on this one. If you are enjoying these recipes and posts, then please don’t forget to share them.

Thanks for reading!

-Maria