Blueberry Pie!

Blueberry Pie

I am sorry I’ve been gone for a couple of weeks. I got hit with minor food poisoning from, of all things, PINE NUTS! More about that later. The other thing was the darn FACEBOOK. All these people I went to elementary school, middle school, and high school with in Southfield, Michigan found me on there. I have been trippin’ and going back to memory lane for a few days. But if anyone from Do Re Mi pre-school and elementary school in Detroit, Michigan find me, I’m going to pass out!

Blueberry Pie from Incredibly Delicious
Crust
¼ cup dates, pitted and soaked
½ cup walnuts
¼ cup almonds

Filling
2-3 bananas
1 lb blueberries, fresh or frozen ( I used fresh)
½ cup dates pitted

Blend the crust ingredients in FP using the “S” blade. Pat mixture into bottom and sides of a pie plate, forming a crust. Press hard. Slice 1-2 bananas into ¼” rounds. (I only needed one banana). Cover the bottom and sides of the crust with slices. Blend one cup of blueberries with ½ to one banana and ½ cup of dates in an FP. Mix in the remaining blueberries (whole). Pour into pie shell. Chill and serve.

And I’m happy to report the filling stayed together and didn’t fall apart like the strawberry pie!

Good stuff.

Eggplant Pizza

I was terribly disappointed that I am allergic to pine nuts. These eggplant pizzas don’t look like much. They don’t photograph well. But damn, they taste phenomenal. The topping is good enough to eat right out of the food processor, which is what I did, many, many times. I was ready to put the filling in a nori roll and eat it without the eggplant. Since me and pine nuts are no longer friends, I'm going to come up with a new "cheese" substitute and post that recipe.

I made this on a Thursday, and had the leftovers on Saturday morning. By Saturday afternoon, I had the WORST taste in my mouth. Everything tasted bitter and disgusting. I mean everything…apple juice, fruit, it didn’t matter. The horrible metallic, bitter taste would not go away. By Saturday night, I panicked a little bit. I googled “bitter taste” and all the sites were telling me I had cancer.

After getting freaked out even more, I finally googled, “everything tastes bitter.” This site came up: http://www.hyam.net/blog/archives/60#comment-323. Finally, there was my answer. Apparently, pine nuts from China are causing an allergic reaction in some people.

Activated charcoal did the trick. (Thank you to my friends at Mystickal Voyage.) I took 2 capsules at 4:00pm. By Tuesday night, the bitter taste was gone, and I physically felt much better. My other symptoms were exhaustion, stuffy nose, headache, and just feeling all-around crappy.

But I am good now. And I have some good news. I got my Ann Wigmore Home Study program, and I’m drinking wheatgrass. I took some pictures, and that will be my next post.

Until then,
Love,
Althea

◦

Blueberry Pie!

My FIRST Raw Food Class and "Ambition to Meaning" (2009)

I give this movie an A+. It gave me the courage to move forward to teach my FIRST raw food class.

My goal with my first class is to simply offer delicious breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert recipes that do not need a dehydrator. I'll share my story and answer questions, and refer students to other resources. Here's the information!

The Raw Mocha Angel Presents:
I Want to be Raw, but What Can I Eat?

-Learn delicious, easy recipes that only need a juicer, blender, and food processor
-Learn how to stock your kitchen
-Ask your burning questions
-Handout included, with shopping list

When: Saturday, March 28, 2009
Time: 10:30am-2:00pm
Where: Fort Washington, Maryland
Cost: $100
Address will be given out upon registration.

Breakfast
Green Goddess Juice
Tropical Smoothie
Outrageous Oatmeal

Lunch
California Sushi
Sun dried Tomato Sushi
Asian Spinach Salad

Dinner
Tacos with the Works!
Nacho Cheese
Salsa
Kale Salad

Dessert
Apple Crisp with Cashew Cream Sauce
Blueberry Cheesecake

There is only room for eight people, so register early. Payment must be received by midnight, Saturday, March 21, 2009, or your space will be given to the next person. If you pay but cannot attend, let me know by midnight, Thursday, March 26, and you'll get a full refund. After March 26, refunds will not be given.

You can pay with a credit card via PayPal to altheachristina@aol.com. If you'd prefer to write a check or money order, email me at altheachristina@aol.com and I will give you the address to send in your registration. A questionnaire, class location address, and contact information will be sent to all paid registrants. Email me with any questions.

***********************************************************

I saw Ambition to Meaning last night at Mystickal Voyage. I was there to do a reading for someone and teach a yoga class. The client was a no-show. This movie was playing, so I sat down to watch it. WOW!

Filmed on coastal California’s spectacular Monterey Peninsula, Ambition to Meaning captures every person’s mid-life longing for a more purposeful, soul-directed life.

Ambition to Meaning explores the intertwined lives of an overachieving businessman, a mother of two young children seeking her own expression in the world, and a film director trying to make a name for himself. Ambition to Meaning not only inspires, but also teaches us how to find the path to our spiritual purpose and therefore our greatest joy.

“I am 68 years old and I have a new career,” Dyer explained. “When I was asked to do this film, I didn’t think ‘I’m too old to do something I’ve never done before.’ I thought ‘I am open to everything. I am willing to change and to learn.’ I’m more proud of this film than of anything I’ve ever done before.” Wayne Dyer appears in the film as himself. The website is
http://www.ambitiontomeaning.com/

I originally came in on the scene where the gardener is talking to the film director. The gardener had been child prodigy pianist. He said that he'd been so afraid to disappoint family and friends that he started to disappoint on purpose. While he was talking music was playing, and he began to play the song on the piano by ear. He had thrown away a career out of fear.

I was feeling him. I thought to myself, what am I so scared of? There is so misinformation and dogma in the raw vegan community. I do not want to be so hardcore that I confuse people. I truly believe in listening to what your body is telling you. I joke that one day I will write a cookbook called The Intuitive Raw Vegan because everyone is different and has different nutritional requirements. So I thank Wayne Dyer and Tracie Coleman who asked me to do this class :-).

Love,

Althea

◦

My FIRST Raw Food Class and "Ambition to Meaning" (2009)

When Raw Food Goes Bad, Good, and Fantastic!

Strawberry Crepes

When a raw food recipe goes good, it's fantastic. As was the case with these strawberry crepes from Alissa Cohen's Living on Live Food. She said they were her favorite of all her creations, and I know why. Me, Rom, and Raymond fought over these things. They moved up to our favorites list right away. They are soft, succulent, with the right blend of sweet and tart. I am sharing the original recipe, but when I make it next time, I will double everything.

Crepes

Shells
5-6 RIPE bananas

Filling
1 cup macadamia nuts
1 cup cashews
1 large lemon, juicer
4 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons Braggs Liquid Aminos
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons water (I used more to get it smooth)

Strawberry Sauce
1 1/2 cup strawberries
1-2 tablespoons honey

Shells:
Blend bananas in FP until smooth. Spread about 1/8 thick onto a teflex sheet on top of a mesh dehydrator screen. Dehydrate for about 14 hours. Check sooner to make sure they are not crispy. They should be pliable, but not crisp. I kept mine in for 10 hours. Remove from dehydrator and slice into strips, about 4 inches by 2 inches.

Filling:
Put all the filling ingredients in FP and blend until smooth.

Strawberry Sauce:
Blend strawberries and honey until smooth in FP.

Assembly:
Pour some of the strawberry sauce on the bottom of a platter. Place scoops of filling onto banana shells and roll up. Place the seal face down on the plate. Pour remaining strawberry sauce over the shells. Let them sit for 45 minutes to 2 hours to allow the shells to soften.

My shells were thin, so it took about 30 minutes for them to soften. Really, really good and worth the time to make.

Strawberry Pie

This strawberry pie is also from Alissa's book. It tasted great, but, as you can see, it didn't stay together. With raw food, you can tell how the final product will turn out before you are finished. When the filling was in the food processor, I was thinking that it would have trouble staying together. I should have followed my instincts and put it in the freezer. But I know for next time.

Strawberry Pie

Crust:
2 cups almonds
1 1/2 cups dates, pitted and soaked for about 3 hours
1 cup diced strawberries

Filling:
3 1/2 cups strawberries
3 VERY ripe bananas

For Crust:
Blend almonds in FP until fine. Add the dates and blend until smooth. Put the mix into a bowl and add the strawberries. Use your hands to mix the berries into the almond-date mixture. Mold into pie plate.

Filling:
Dice 1/2 cup of the strawberries. In an FP, blend 3 cups of strawberries with the bananas until smooth. Place in a bowl and stir in diced strawberries. Pour into crust.

I would freeze this for at least an hour. Keep an eye on it and let me know how it turns out. My husband and Raymond ate it all up even though it was runny. So I know it'll be good if it holds together :-).

And this is what happens when raw food goes bad. Ugh. This was frustrating. I won't say what book I got it from because I choose to put only the good recipes on blast, but this was AWFUL! I knew I was in trouble when the sweet potatoes were still grainy after being in the food processor at the seven minute mark. The book said "seven minutes" and they'll be smooth. Forty-five minutes later, they still weren't smooth. And it didn't taste good.

Raw pies are easy to make. They look intimidating, but they are not. The crust can always be 2 cups of almonds and 2 cups of dates mixed in an FP. The fillings are usually simple too. But if the batter tastes like crap....then your pie is going to taste like crap too.

I tried to save my crust (because I was not throwing away an almond-date crust...ya'll know how much almonds cost?) I had pressed water out of the sweet potato mix because I knew it would be runny. But that meant I didn't have much left. I thought to put half on the pie crust and put an apple pie filling on the other half.

It tasted like crap (and that's my clean, technical term). It was like drinking hard liquor straight up and telling yourself that it really tastes good. It didn't.


So I scraped the sweet potato mix off and threw it away. Damn, that was frustrating. I could have spent all that time with my kids. But they thought their frustrated mommy was hilarious. I'll laugh about it in the future :-). Can you see how I gently scraped the sweet potato off?

I made an apple pie instead! And saved my crust! This has become a standby. When my husband asks me to make a raw anything for him, I know it's good. I'm making him another one for his birthday tomorrow. If you'd like to make it, the original recipe is here:

http://therawmochaangel.blogspot.com/2009/01/feast-of-apples.html

*************************************

And I have randomly chosen another winner of the wheatgrass juicer. The name pulled out of the hat was...

DEBBI MARSH of My Raw Life!

Congratulations, Debbie. Email me at mochaangels@aol.com with your contact information.

Love,

Althea

◦

When Raw Food Goes Bad, Good, and Fantastic!

Update on Wheatgrass Juicer Giveaway

Hi Ya'll:

It's been a week, and I haven't heard from SherriK yet. If she hasn't contacted me by midnight on Wednesday, February 11, 2009, then I'll have to pick another person. So if anyone knows her, let her know she won!

Love,
Althea ◦

Update on Wheatgrass Juicer Giveaway

Simple Raw Food Recipes - A Week's Worth

Monday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Tacos or Tostadas on lettuce
Kale Salad
Fruit

Tuesday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Portabello Mushroom w/
tomato and avocado
Mexicavo Salad
Applesauce
Mango-Banana Salad
Fruit

Wednesday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Tomato Soup
Sesame Seed Milk
California Nori Rolls
Fruit

Thursday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Cashew Nori Roll
Harmony Spinach
Tahini Shake
Fruit

Friday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Ice Cream
Heavenly Chocolate
Nutmeat Burger (see below)
Fruit

Saturday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Apple Mango Smoothie

Mexicavo Salad

Falafels (see below)

Fruit

Sunday
Green juice of your choice
Green smoothie of your choice
Carrot Tuna
Salad
Chocolate Pudding


Falafels, from Joy of Living Live by Zahkah
1 cup dry almonds, ground in FP (not soaked)
2 tablespoons coriander
2 tablespoons kelp
1 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder or granulated garlic
1 1/2 tablespoons powdered cumin
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon dried onion or onion powder
1-2 tablespoons EV Olive Oil
water

Put the ground almonds in a mixing bowl. Add all the other ingredients, except water. Add very little water at a time until mixture has dough-like consistency. Form into balls. Serve with a dressing of your choice, diced cucumbers, and diced tomatoes.

Nutmeat by Jeremy Safron
2 cups dry walnuts (not soaked), ground in FP
1 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked
1 glove minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons Braggs Liquid Aminos or Nama Shoyu

Grind the walnuts until fine in FP. Blend all the other ingredients in a blender. All the wet to the dry in bowl and mix well. This is RICH. Use in a lettuce wrap, stuff a pepper or mushroom, use in a lasagna, whatever you like.

This might look like a lot of food, or it may not look like much. It depends on what you are used to eating. Raw food fills you up fast. For instance, I had 2 green juices and 1 slice of apple pie for breakfast. It's after 12:00pm and I am not hungry yet.

And depending on how many people you are feeding, you will have leftovers of everything. All the recipes are to serve 2-3 people. If it's just you eating the food, there will be plenty left the next day or even more to eat later in the day. None of these recipes require a dehydrator. Only a blender and food processor are needed.

Shopping List
Kale
nutritional yeast
olive oil
lemons
Braggs Liquid Aminos
Walnuts
cumin
chili powder
portabello mushrooms
tomatoes
avocados
romaine lettuce
corn
Spike seasoning
apple cider vinegar
garlic bulb
onion
cilantro
apples
maple syrup or agave nectar
powdered cinnamon
sesame seeds
cauliflower
nori sheets
chocolate or carob powder
mangoes
bananas
oranges
cashews
dates
almonds
powdered coriander
dried kelp (in HF stores with the other seasonings)
paprika
onion powder
carrots
Veganaise (in HF stores in refrigerated section)
sweet relish
Fruit and veggies for your juices and smoothies

I wrote the shopping list by order of the day. You don't have to get all these things at once. Look in your fridge and cabinets and see what you do have. Some things will become staples once a food becomes your favorite. Try them out and let me know how it goes. If you have questions, leave a comment and I will answer you there because other people may have the same question.

Love,
Althea ◦

Simple Raw Food Recipes - A Week's Worth