Rawgasm!

Raw Chocolate Silk Pie with Raspberry Sauce

I created this delicious pie after watching a Food Network program with Paula Dean. Her pie looked delicious, but it was filled with ingredients that could potentially clog every artery. My pie, however is GOOD for your body! Every ingredient will make you healthier and the Superfoods contained in it will give you so much energy! It is absolutely delicious, rich and pure chocolate BLISS!

Filling

2 cups soaked raw cashews

1/2 cup raw honey

1/2 cup coconut oil

juice from one lemon

1/2 cup raw cacao powder

1/2 Tbl. organic vanilla

1 Tbs. raw agave syrup

1/4 cup water

Mix in Vitamix until creamy.

Crust

5 dates, pitted

1 cup raw pecans

1/4 cup shredded, raw coconut 

Mix is food processor and press into bottom of pie plate. Pour filling over crust and spread it evenly. Place in the freezer to set for about 90 minutes. 

Raspberry Sauce

1/2 pint raspberries

2 Tbs. raw agave

Mix in Vitamix and pour over slices of pie. 

Raw Company!

I love entertaining! Since becoming raw, I have really enjoyed preparing delicious raw meals, snacks and desserts and blowing my friends minds at how delicious raw foods can be! Here are a few of my favorite raw foods that always deliver the "Wow" factor! 

These stuffed endive leaves are great to serve for an appetizer, or bring to a raw potluck. I actually just use a raw cheesecake filling and add a generous amount of curry seasoning to it! It creates an awesome balance of savory and sweet that goes just perfect with the bitter endive leaves. 

Raw Sushi with Turnip Rice, Veggies and "peanut" sauce 

Raw Vegetable Sushi is always a hit! I've turned people on to raw simply by serving this elegant dish! I love it, although I still have trouble rolling the nori and cutting it without making a mess.

Raw Chili with Raw Corn Bread

This raw corn bread was so delicious! Spread with raw honey, it was to die for! This raw chili is so good that even my husband, who has never liked traditional chili, loved this!! It is even better the day or two after once the flavors meld together! I added taco nut meat to a basic raw chili recipe and it made it just amazing!!

Love and Decadence

Here is a Valentines Day Gift For YOU! 

I wanted to spread the Raw Love, so I created this recipe to share with you all! I hope you LOVE these as much as we do!!

Raw Ice Kream Sandwiches. ♥ Cacao cookies with strawberry, banana ice kream. 

Cookies

1 1/2 cup raw cashews

1 cup dates

1/2 tsp pink Himalayan salt

1 1/2 tbsp coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup raw cacao nibs

1/4 cup unsweetened finely shredded coconut

Mix all ingredients in a food processor. Roll into balls and flatten with the bottom of a glass. Place in freezer to firm them up. 

Ice Kream

3 Frozen bananas

1 cup strawberries

1 cup soaked cashews

2 Tbls. raw agave

2 Tbls. Coconut oil 

1/4 cup raw almond milk

Mix all ingredients in Vitamix. Put in the middle of two cookies and stick back in the freezer for as long as they take to set. Roll in coconut and cacao nibs and ENJOY the LOVE!! 

Raw Insight

Raw Vanilla Sweet Cake with Fresh Berries & Coconut

I never knew how profound the change would be shifting to a living foods lifestyle. I call it a "lifestyle" and not a diet because the word "diet" is so loaded and filled with negative energy for me. It truly is a lifestyle choice and one that takes commitment, time and education to grasp fully. Loosing 50 lbs. was powerful for me to experience. Feeling physically and emotionally lighter, I have improved my life so much! I have become so passionate about this life and have had so many people ask me for support and information that I thought I would share some insight and advice to newbies on the raw scene:

Buy new raw pantry items every week. Things like, liquid aminos, cacao, chia seeds and coconut oil are expensive and foreign to most of us. If you buy one new item a week, before you know it, you will have a fully stocked pantry worthy of bragging rights! There is nothing worse than going through your raw cookbooks only to realize that you don't have half of the ingredients on hand to make most of the recipes. Take notes as your go through them and then buy what you can during your next supermarket trip! Pick up items at the health food store when you can too.

Entering the Raw realm can be overwhelming and intense when you first step into it. It reminds me of visiting a foreign country where everything seemed strange and different. Once you have immersed yourself in this world, it will all becoming more comfortable and familiar. Today, I get a sick rush seeing the confusion on the cashiers face at the supermarket when I buy aloe, or young coconuts. I love seeing them struggle trying to figure out what the heck it is or what it could be used for. You too can enjoy this twisted pleasure! ;)

Take it slow and build up raw pantry with the best quality ingredients and know that it doesn't all happen at once. As you gain knowledge and shift your life, you will begin to shift the physical items in your kitchen and before you know it, you will have a pantry that even David Wolfe will be impressed with! (If you don't know who he is, Google him!)

If you need any extra encouragement on your Raw Food path, I am happy to help! I am now offering raw food information and support for those just starting out. Drop me an email to find out more.

Eat This!

I created this recipe from my desire for the foods that I once enjoyed before making the Raw leap! The difference between these and old-school onion rings are these won't give you a heart attack! ;) Seriously though, these delicious onion rings are really good for your body, mind and soul! They are crunchy and delicious and when you serve them with my raw kethcup, you having a snack reminiscent of junk food, but loaded with living enzymes and nutrients to make your body strong and healthy.

Raw Onion Rings?!

2 large sweet white onions, sliced

1 cup almond meal (ground almonds)

1/2 cup ground flax seeds

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon powdered chipotle 

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Tablespoon water

Mix olive oil and water in a bowl. Mix all of the dry ingredients together and spread it out on a cookie sheet. Dredge onions in olive oil/water mixture. Coat them on both sides with the dry mixture and place on the screens on your Excalibur Dehydrator. Dehydrate for 6-8 hours. Enjoy yourself! 

Dayna's Rawkin' Ketchup

1 1/2 cups of diced tomatoes

4 tablespoons raw agave

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

1/2 teaspoon cracked pepper

2 tablespoon Bragg's apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked for 2 hours, then drained.

Excalibur Love!

Since choosing a Raw food lifestyle, I have had to rethink how food is prepared and have  begin using new tools and techniques to create delicious raw meals. One of my favorite appliances is the Excalibur Dehydrator. I use it almost daily and have made so many amazing foods that taste cooked, but are still alive and loaded with enzymes. I have the 9-tray model and I love how easy it is to use and to clean. 

Here are a few other features that I appreciate: 

-The heat source and fan are in the back, forcing air to distribute evenly throughout the chamber. There is never uneven drying spots like I experienced with the cheap, round models.

-I LOVE the temp control and in fact being raw, I feel it is essential to be sure to keep the temp low enough to not kill the living enzymes present in the food.

-The big trays rock! You can pack a LOT of food into them. I can make two of three items at once with room to spare. This is so important when you are 100% raw like I am, because I am always making something.

-I like the mesh liner on all of the trays. The holes are tiny, so no food falls through like with other brands that I've seen. 

-You gotta love the removable trays! If I have large items-- like kale chips or bread I can just remove every other tray and have another 1/2" or more room!

-I love the 10 yr warranty! I am in for this Raw lifestyle for the long haul! I can't imagine ever going back to cooked food now that I've felt and seen how much better I feel living this way. Knowing that this dehydrator will last me a decade makes me feel like it was an incredible investment! 

I can't say enough good things about the 9-tray Excalibur!! 
Next to my Vitamix, I couldn't live joyfully Raw without it!!