Caramel Apple Pie

Simply put, the caramel apple pie from Lisa Viger's Raw on $10 a Day is a perfect balance of sweet, creamy, and crunchy. The recipe is here:
http://www.rawon10.com/2011/12/caramel-apple-pie-perfect-for-holidays.html

If you look at Lisa's picture, the caramel is on top of the pie. I didn't put the caramel on top because I wasn't sure if Jona would eat it. He didn't want it anyway because he is the picky eater. I placed the caramel in a jar to pour over the pie once it's cut into individual pieces.

I had never made a caramel sauce before. It's a combination of almond butter, agave. olive oil, and water. I was super pleasantly surprised at it's creamy sweet richness. Good stuff.

I also learned that if you overprocess walnuts and raisins (the crust), it turns into an oily, inedible mess. I had to throw my first batch away. I was trying to take pictures of Jona making the crust in a food processor. Turned out I left the walnuts and raisins in the food processor too long. They got warm, runny, and icky. Only process until the walnuts and raisins start to stick together.  (And I didn't get any pictures of Jona because my camera needed new batteries .)

Raymond and I tore that pie up. He asked for it everyday when he came home from school. So this pie is kid-approved too!

Take the time to make it. It's perfect for the holidays. You'll love this pie :-).

Love,
Althea ◦

Caramel Apple Pie

Harmony Spinach

Another easy salad for you all!

Harmony Spinach 
from The Joy of Living Live by Zakhah

1 bunch spinach
1/4 cup sesame oil
1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and chopped fine
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons liquid aminos

Wash the spinach, remove the stems, and chop. Put into a big mixing bowl. 
Mix in the other ingredients and serve. This rocks. Subtle flavor and goes 
well with any Asian-inspired dish.

Love,
Althea ◦

Harmony Spinach

Black-Eyed Pea Salad

At the Washington, DC Black Expo in 2000 or 2001, I sampled a Black-Eyed Pea Salad offered by Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor. She is a culinary anthropologist, and best known for her PBS show and her books Vibration Cooking: or Notes of a Geechee Girl, and Vertamae Cooks Again.

I never forgot that sample. It's tastiness shocked me. I had never considered beans, especially black- eyed peas, as the star of a salad. How good could it be? Bad ass good, it turned out. I believe she said she used Italian dressing in hers. Whatever the ingredients, if it's been over ten years since I ate something and I still remember it, then that is one hell of a food memory.

I was craving this salad last week. There's plenty of versions of this on the internet. I chose the Neelys version, then changed it a bit after reading the reviews. This is their original:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/patrick-and-gina-neely/black-eyed-pea-salad-recipe.html
They use canola oil, sugar, and parsley. Olive oil tastes better. This salad does not need a lick of sugar. And cilantro reigns over parsley any day of the week.

This is my version:

Black-Eyed Pea Salad (V, GF)

Ingredients

1 large tomato, diced

1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped

1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 jalapeno, finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped green onions

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup unseasoned rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyed peas, drained

Directions

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Toss all together and let marinate for at up to 8 hours in the refrigerator before serving.

Twenty minutes is all it took to make this salad. Do leave it in the fridge for a few hours to let the flavors marry. Add some avocado for more body. You can even switch up the beans. Black beans would be good. Let me know when you all make it!

Love,
Althea


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Black-Eyed Pea Salad

I'm a Lot Better

Me on Thanksgiving Day. Photo taken by Jona, age 8.

Don't I look a lot happier than the photo from September 1?

The single best advice I've gotten during my separation is, "A marriage is a living, breathing thing. It is alive. And when it dies, you must grieve the loss." (Courtesy of Vivian Nic!)

I have been in mourning. And no, there is no chance of reconciliation. I had to take time to grieve the loss of a 14-year relationship and 12-year marriage. There is nothing easy about grief. It will take you down, way down into the Bowels of Hell at times...to the point you want to jump out of your skin to get away from the pain. Been there. Done that.

The second best piece of advice I got was, "Use this time to take your power back." In the past three months since my last post I have:

- Started the INSANITY workout. I am on Day 43.
- Started bellydance, Bodypump, Cycle, Cardio Dance, Ashtanga Yoga, walking, running (again), strength training, and Tiffany Rothe workouts.
- Lost 5 pounds (would be more if I weren't baking so much).
- Been to North Carolina to see family (and on Thanksgiving!)
- Created a budget for myself..first time ever really.
- Connected with Pathways to Whole Living, a lovely holistic center.
- Perfected chocolate, peanut butter, apple cider, and pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes.
- Begun plans on Mocha Angels Omnimedia.
- Seeing life as abundant rather than scarce.
- Toyed around with seafood. Came to the conclusion that I am a natural vegetarian.
- Realized my life/healing POV is holistic and that my social media platforms should reflect that.
- Currently taking my power back.

And my boys!! They are both in school now. Jona's first few days were exactly what you would expect from a homeschooled Autistic child. ROUGH! Woo! I must say I thought it would take months for him to get used to school. I was proved wrong. He still has his moments, but Jona LOVES school. He has settled into a routine, and his teachers, principal, and Inclusion Helper are amazing people. He has an IEP (Individualized Education Plan). Both of us are happy.

Raymond is in school half-day at a private school. He loves it too and wants to go full-time. (Since I'm all about appreciation and abundance, I am affirming that for him, because private school is not cheap.)

I am happy to report that we are all better. I will continue blogging because I have lots to share with you all. Thanks for reading.

Love,
Althea

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I'm a Lot Better

Warm Cherry Tomato and Corn Salad

From Raw Food Real World.
Holy Goodness...this is darn fantastic food. Two thumbs WAY up!

Warm Cherry Tomato and Corn Salad

    3 ears fresh corn, husked
    3 pints small cherry, teardrop, or grape tomatoes, sliced in half
    4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
    1 tablespoon lemon juice
    2 small or 1 large head butter lettuce, or other soft greens
    3 tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram
    1 cup crumbled Fluffy Macadamia Feta (page 288)
    Coarse sea salt
    Freshly ground black pepper

1. Cut the kernels from the corn cobs and place in a medium bowl with the tomatoes. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and toss to coat. Spread the corn and tomatoes on a Teflex-lined dehydrator tray and dehydrate at 115 degrees for 1 hour.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the lettuce leaves and toss to coat. Add the corn, tomatoes, marjoram, feta, and salt and pepper.

Fluffy Macadamia Feta

    4 cups raw macadamia nuts, soaked 1 hour or more
    1/4 cup lemon juice
    2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
    1 green onion, white and 1 inch green, minced
    2 teaspoons sea salt

  In a food processor, thoroughly grind all the ingredients, but leave it a bit
  chunky. Drop heaping teaspoonfuls onto Teflex-lined dehydrator trays and
  dehydrate at 115°F for 4 to 6 hours, or until dry on the outside and still
  tender on the inside.

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Warm Cherry Tomato and Corn Salad

The Vegan Mocha Angel

Announcement:

The Raw Mocha Angel has been changed to The Vegan Mocha Angel.
The new address is www.theveganmochaangel.blogspot.com.

Full explanation is coming soon.

love,
Althea ◦

The Vegan Mocha Angel

Cookie Dough Truffles

Cookie Dough Truffles

(V) (GF)

These are fricking amazing. I read about them on Chef Chloe's website. I saw her for the first time on Food Network's Cupcake Wars. She's a vegan chef, and her vegan cupcakes WON! That's when I became a fan.

I made her Avocado Pesto Pasta back in August, and RAVED about it on my other blog. I've got another rave. I made this about a month ago. Once again, Chloe delivers. Think chocolate chip cookie dough encased in chocolate. Yes, it is as good as it sounds.

The original link is here:

http://chefchloe.com/sweets/vegan-cookie-dough-truffles.html

I used gluten-free flour instead of white flour. And because I was out of parchment paper, I had to adapt. Below is the recipe.

Ingredients

• ½ cup vegan margarine
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (I used Pamela's Gluten-Free Baking Mix, also 1 1/4 cups.)
• 1/3 cup semisweet mini chocolate chips (dairy-free)
• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate (dairy-free)

Procedure

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
(Note: I was out of parchment paper, which is a natural non-stick paper. I lined the baking sheets with white, regular paper. Then I put olive oil on some plastic wrap. I used that to rub the oil into the paper. Without it, the truffles will stick to the paper. It'll be a hot mess. Keep this one simple: buy the parchment paper!)

Using a mixer, beat margarine, brown sugar, salt, vanilla, and water until combined. Add flour and beat until incorporated. Fold in mini chocolate chips. Cover dough and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Roll chilled dough into 1-inch balls with the palms of your hands. Place on prepared baking sheets.

Freeze for 15 minutes. (I froze for an hour.)

Melt the remaining 12 ounces chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Let cool to room temperature.

Remove one tray of cookie dough balls from the freezer. Dip each ball into the melted chocolate and remove using two forks. Place the coated balls back onto the baking sheet and transfer to the refrigerator.

Repeat with the second tray of cookie dough balls. Chill until the chocolate is set, about 20 minutes. (I kept them in the fridge for an hour.) Store in refrigerator until serving.

They won't keep long in your house! ◦

Cookie Dough Truffles