Date & Nut Treats

I've tried a few raw ball recipes and they are either too soft and need to be stored frozen or too rustic and not very appealing.  I dinked around and merged some of the things I liked from a few different recipes and came up with this version that has no added sugar and can be modified quite easily depending what you have in the pantry.  I find these a little too nice, it's difficult to eat just one!

 What you need
1/2 cup of almonds
1/2 cup of cashews
dash nutmeg (about 1/8 to 1/4 of a tsp)
dash ground cardamon
1/2 cup pitted dates
1 Tbsp hazelnut oil (you could use any nut oil or flax or coconut)
1/2 cup chocolate chips

How you make them

• Put the nuts, nutmeg and cardamon into a food processor and mix until they resemble really coarse sand.
• Add the dates and oil and pulse until they are mixed in well - see photo 
• Finally add the choc chips and pulse just to mix through
• Take rounded dessertspoon scoops and form into a ball in the palm of your hand; the ingredients should be crumbly, but hold it's form when pressed together
• Put the balls onto a tray or into small cake cups (I had some so I used them, but they are not a total requirement)
• Put formed balls into the fridge to set for about an hour

The mix should make enough for about 20 balls that will last a couple of weeks if stored in a cool dry place (tub/tin).  I once calculated the  nutritional value of them and I think they are about 60 calories each (if split into 20) have about 5 grams of carbohydrate and 1 gram of fiber. 

Substitutions

• You could probably substitute the cashews for macadamias or even walnuts 
• I bet figs would work as well as dates - I have some dried apricots and I'm sure they would be good too but may need more pulsing than dates (pulse separately if you try it)
• Cardamom could be replaced with cinnamon or even a pumpkin spice blend
• For a healthier option you could use cacao nibs in place of choc chips 

[raw vegan  gluten-free dairy-free soy-free wheat-free]

Coconut Oil...it kinda rocks!

Coconut oil has had a bad rap and that is so sad because it really is good for you, it's a good oil, it's one of the good guys. Take some politics and a little bit of misunderstanding and it was almost eliminated from our general food source in the 80s. Nutritional historians (if there is such a thing) will be talking about the injustice of coconut oil in years to come.  Just remember you read it here first!

What we now know is that not all saturated fats are the same and the fats in coconut oil are not the villains we were led to believe they were. The truth lies in the length of the saturated fats; medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) are not metabolized the same as long chain fatty acids.  In a few days of passive research I have found only good articles about MCFA in relation to coconut oil nutrition.  I find that quite revealing, because if you do a search on agave sweetener you get a mixed list of articles claiming it is the sweetener if choice because it is low glycemic and a bunch of articles claiming it is the same (if not worse) than high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).  I may write a blog post about "higher than HFCS agave" in the future, but for now I'm all about coconut oil. In fact the more I read about the medium chain fatty acids in coconut oil the more I want to shout out their virtues to the world!

I haven't tried to rewrite and summarize the words of good research writers and scientists, in this blog post I tried to provide a collection of articles and paragraphs that I found informative, fascinating and downright uplifting.  For the few days this post sat in my blog draft list I was overcome with a strange feeling of enthusiasm and joy, as if I had just discovered a cure for cancer, Alzheimer's and anti-aging all at once. This knowledge has empowered me, I truly believe the science and chemistry I have read recently will influence me for the rest of my life.

I know, I'm sounding like a religious coconut freak, so if you read only one article on coconut oil, please read this one by Dr Mary Newport and her husband - http://coconutoil.com/AlzheimersDiseaseDrMaryNewport.pdf  

It's a fact that coconut oil is high in saturated fat...we assumed that meant it was bad for us and would clog our arteries....so we stopped using it.

Audrey Kunin, M.D. had the same concern about the saturated fat content of coconut oil; http://www.doctoroz.com/blog/audrey-kunin-md/going-nuts-about-coconut-oil "I have avoided one of my favorite food sources due to my concern that it was high in "bad" fat. Warned about the high levels of saturated fat found in coconut oils, I sadly said goodbye to coconut milk-based sauces, macaroons, piña  coladas and Mounds bars. My palate protested the unfairness of a plant saturated with saturated fat!" 

However on further investigation Dr Kunin found that there is very good information out there to suggest we should all be eating more coconut oil!

"I discovered that my general health concerns about using either coconut or coconut oil in my recipes was unfounded. Coconut oil is composed of an unusual medium chain fatty acid. These fats don't wreak the havoc on the cardiovascular system that its saturated-fat cousins cause." 

The most ironic thing is coconut oil may be The Healthiest Oil on Earth says Dr Ray Peat.  He also has an excellent article here Coconut Oil and Its Virtues  - I have pasted my favorite paragraph here; 

"When I first used coconut oil I saw an immediate response, that convinced me my metabolism was chronically inhibited by something that was easily alleviated by "dilution" or molecular competition.  I had put a tablespoonful of coconut oil on some rice I had for supper, and half an hour later while I was reading, I noticed I was breathing more deeply than' normal.  I saw that my skin was pink, and I found that my pulse was faster than normal--about 98, 1 think.  After an hour or two, my pulse and breathing returned to normal.  Every day for a couple of weeks I noticed the same response while I was digesting a small amount of coconut oil, but gradually it didn't happen any more, and I increased my daily consumption of the oil to about an ounce.  I kept eating the same foods as before (including a quart of ice cream every day), except that I added about 200 or 250 calories per day as coconut oil.  Apparently the metabolic surges that happened at first were an indication that my body was compensating for an anti-thyroid substance by producing more thyroid hormone;  when the coconut oil relieved the inhibition, I experienced a moment of slight hyperthyroidism, but after a time the inhibitor became less effective, and my body adjusted by producing slightly less thyroid hormone.  But over the next few months, I saw that my weight was slowly and consistently decreasing.  It had been steady at 185 pounds for 25 years, but over a period of six months it dropped to about 175 pounds.  I found that eating more coconut oil lowered my weight another few pounds, and eating less caused it to increase."

If that doesn't convince you check out this from Oprah's doctor Dr Oz.

Photo of So Delicious coconut milk carton

 Coconut Oil Super Powers | The Dr. Oz Show

http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/coconut-oil-super-powers-pt-1
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/coconut-oil-super-powers-pt-2 

Dr. Oz reveals the 3 most powerful health benefits of this tropical oil. Learn how it can help you lose weight, treat skin conditions and ulcers. 

Below I pasted more of the amazing benefits of coconut oil from this article; http://www.coconutoil-online.com/Medium_Chain_Triglycerides.html (MCT)

"Digestion and Nutrient Absorption
The digestive health advantages of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA) over long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) are due to the differences in the way our bodies metabolize these fats. Because the MCFA molecules are smaller, they require less energy and fewer enzymes to break them down for digestion. They are digested and absorbed quickly and with minimal effort.
Metabolism and Energy  
The fact that MCFA digest immediately to produce energy and stimulate metabolism has led athletes to use them as a means to enhance exercise performance. Studies indicate this may be true.
Nature's Perfect Food in Nature's Nectar  
An important component of breast milk is medium-chain fatty acids, principally lauric acid. Lauric acid is also the primary saturated fatty acid found in coconut oil. Apparently nature thought it essential to the baby's health to include it."

Some of the important reasons medium-chain fatty acids are included in milk are improved nutrient absorption and digestive function. As noted earlier, pancreatic enzymes aren't even necessary to digest them. They also help to regulate blood sugar levels. Another very important function is that medium-chain fatty acids protect the baby from harmful microorganisms. The baby's immature immune system is supported by the antibacterial, anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-parasitic properties of these vital fatty acids. In fact, without these unique saturated fats, the baby would probably not survive long. It would become malnourished and highly susceptible to a myriad of infectious diseases."

Another good list of Coconut Oil sites is listed here http://www.coconutoil.com/research.htm It is where I found my holy grail of articles by Dr Mary Newport; http://coconutoil.com/AlzheimersDiseaseDrMaryNewport.pdf  This article almost brought me to tears.

Photo of So Delicious coconut milk carton

www.sodeliciousdairyfree.com

You will notice the So Delicious brand of coconut milk is marketed as having medium chain fatty acids (MCFA), which by now you know means "really easy to digest (and not stored) good fat".  When you read at the nutritional information of a coconut product you have to pay attention to the type of saturated fat, it must be medium chain fatty acids (MCFT) or medium chain triglycerides (MCT) and not hydrogenated. There will be over processed and less healthy coconut products out there - be educated on the differences and be healthy!

And finally, how to get more coconut oil into your body;

• Always use it to saute vegetables

• Add a tablespoon to rice or mashed potatoes before serving

• Add to oatmeal in the morning

• Use it in place of oil, butter or margarine in baking

• Use So Delicious coconut milk and creamer instead of dairy and other non dairy creamers. So Delicious also makes coconut yogurt, kefir and ice cream :-)   

The Spunky Coconut had it right all along!  I'm so sorry I doubted you Kelly!  Check out the great GF CF recipes on her blog - http://www.thespunkycoconut.com/

And don't forget to use it on your skin, it is excellent for chronic dry skin!  You can use the same cooking coconut oil, no need to buy a special cosmetic version.


Where to buy
I'm actually surprised to see it more and more in regular groceries and stores.
If you start using coconut oil as much as you should you might want to buy it in bulk online;
http://www.nutsonline.com/nuts/coconut/oil.html
http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/ 


Note added a few days later....
You should know that coconut oil has a mild laxative effect.  It start to use coconut oil you need to start eating it in small amounts and gradually build up your tolerance.  The first week when I either drank a small glass of coconut kefir or ate a meal where I had used as little as 1 tablespoon of oil to fry onions I got a slight stomach ache about 20 minutes later.  The ache wasn't extreme but it was noticeable. My husband whined about it, but we all know men can't deal with pain as well as XX chromosome individuals (just kidding honey!). Anyway, be forewarned, take it easy, don't overdo it and gradually introduce those MCFA into your life!

Chia Seeds - You can eat them!

Popular Use for Chia Seeds
Say "Chia" and most people will start singing the Chia Pet TV ad., "Ch, Ch, Ch, Chia!" The seeds are not thought of as a food, they're seeds for a Chia Pet toy; the gag gift for Secret Santa games and people you don't know very well.

If you have never had the pleasure of receiving a Chia Pet you may not know how you get the seeds to stick on the clay pet and head forms (BTW - I've grown Scoobie Doo and Homer Simpson Chia heads in the past).   When you make a chia pet you soak the tiny black seeds overnight in water.  The seeds swell as they soak up water and the next day the globby seeds are spreadable and readily stick to the clay chia pet forms.

...But You Can Eat Them
What you may also not know is you can eat chia seeds! Nutritionally they're actually very good for you and the absorption effect of chia seeds can be used in cooking to thicken solutions.  They can be used in cases where wheat and gluten ingredients (flours) are used to thicken soups and sauces, and  in crock pot recipes that call for semolina to be added to create thicker sauce (semolina is the milled product of durum wheat).  So chia seeds can be an important aid to a gluten and wheat-free diet. You can add chia seeds to the following;

• To thicken home made chili
• To thicken stews and soups
• As a replacement for semolina in Crock Pot recipes
• As a replacement in recipes that call for the addition of flour at the end to thicken
• To thicken runny home made yogurt and puddings

They need to soak a while, so add to pots early in the cooking cycle and add to runny deserts and leave overnight in the fridge. In both cases they seeds will produce a semolina or frogspawn consistency, if you don't like that texture you can buzz them in a blender to make a smoother solution; in stews I hardly notice them.

Really, You Should Eat Them!
Those little black seeds are incredibly good for you. Chia seeds are the richest plant source of omega-3, in fact they contain more omega-3 than salmon or flax seeds. They are also easier to digest than flax seeds, don't need to be ground up and are more stable than flax seeds.  Little black chia seeds have more antioxidants than blueberries and they contain 9 amino-acids. More detailed information can be found here.

Check out what  Dr Weil  has to say about them!

There are some articles that state they aid with weight loss, however the findings are inconclusive so, at this time, you shouldn't assume they have that property, just eat them because they are good for you; 

• Treat them like ground flax seeds and sprinkle on cereal
• Bake in muffins like you would poppy seeds
• Add to salads and dressing

They're so good for you, you should just have a jar next to the salt and pepper and sprinkle them on everything you eat - just kidding! 

I buy them in bulk here from Nuts Online 

Balsamic Reduction

Last night we had a quick meal that was healthy and used up a large bunch of spinach in the fridge!  It's weird that one of the positives is that it used something green and leafy....I really fight to eat all the door to door organics veggies before the next batch.  At the moment it is a chore, not stressful, it's just keeping me on my toes. I can't complain, I signed up for the deliveries to encourage me (and the significant other) to eat more fruit and veggies. The sad thing is we signed up for the smallest amount (Bitty Box) and we're still struggling. My hope is I can create and acquire more healthy recipes and get to the point where I'm choosing what to use the produce for, rather than scrambling to think of something to do with it.  I can see that happening with some vegetables; I have no problem with kale anymore (soup, wilted in a creamy sauce or oven baked chips), I wouldn't have said that last year at this time. in fact I'm not sure if I could distinguish kale from chard from collard greens last year!

Last night's meal was a broiled sockeye salmon on a bed of wilted spinach with onions and garlic, topped off with a balsamic reduction.  It was wonderful and made me happy!  I've had similar reductions with lamb and thought of it as a dark meat sauce.  I'm not sure why I thought of it last night, because I usually put Dijon mustard or dill on salmon, but for some reason a balsamic reduction sounded like it would work nicely with spinach and salmon.

Balsamic Reduction Sauce

This is what you need;
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2/3 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp Earth Balance, buttery spread (soy free)

This is how you make it;

• Sauté the onions in olive oil for a few minutes until they are just about to turn brown and there is no hint of crunchiness. You want to fry out some of the moisture and you don't want a crunchy onion texture to interfere with the main meal, conversely, you don't want crispy or overcooked plastic onions either...yes, I'm a little picky about my onions. 
• Add the vinegar and broth and summer until the volume has reduced to less than half of the original volume and forms a thin runny glaze over the back of a wooden spoon.
• Finally add the Earth Balance, stir until melted, serve immediately

This makes enough for 2 generous portions (over everything on the plate), or 4 directly portions (cover protein on the plate).

 

[gluten-free dairy-free soy-free yummy]

Green Vegetable Bisque

Oh yes, this has to be good for you! If you have eaten badly recently, if you know you haven't been getting your 5 servings a day, make a batch of this and feel good.  Even better, have it with a glass of wine and you'll probably reach the recommended intake of fruits and vegetables for the day :-)

Reason for this recipe

Organic Flat Leaf Parsley

Picture the scene, the fridge was full of lettuce and green leafy stuff from last week's DTD Organics delivery. Bulk quantities of Costco avocados along with cilantro and citrus fruits fill the vegetable draw and today is the day another DTD Organics delivery will be placed in the cooler out side for me.  When I signed up I promised myself I would eat everything they brought me...so I had to make room for the new delivery!  My first thought "throw it all in the blender and make a robust luminous green vegetable smoothie",  it would get the job done, but there had to be a better choice on a day when 3 inches of snow was predicted.  I decided to make a warm creamy smoothie and give it a sexy name!

This is what I used;
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 large onion (finely chopped)
1 garlic clove
3 celery sticks (finely chopped)
Bunch of Arugula (washed and loosely chopped)
Bunch of Flat Leaf Parsley (washed and loosely chopped)
Whole head of Lettuce (washed and loosely chopped)
1/2 cup cashews (soaked in water in the fridge overnight, or at least for 4 hours at room temperature)
3-4 cups Stock/Broth Chicken or Vegetable (or water, if you must)
1/2 tsp Celtic salt
1 Tbsp Herbs De Provence (or your favorite herb mix)

This is how you make it;

Sauté the onions, garlic and celery  in olive oil until the onions change color from white to translucent off-white. Add green leafy ingredients and wilt them; I use tongs and gently pick up pieces and turn them over until the bulk has reduced.  The leaves should not be too soggy, just a little floppy.

Add the wilted and sautéed ingredients to a blender and add 2 cups of broth to help blend the mix. Most recipes have you heating broth with the ingredients before you blend, but then you end up with steaming fluids and exploding blenders - why not blend with broth from the fridge?

Return the blended solution to the pan, add another cup of broth and season with salt and herbs;  gently simmer for 10 minutes. If's too thick for your liking, throw another cup of broth in, nobody's counting! :-) Also, don't let the algae sludge put you off, be patient, even though the soup will have a very strong parsley flavor now, it will mature into something wonderful as it simmers.

After 10-15 minutes the Herbs De Provence flavor will start to infuse through and your kitchen should smell very appetizing. While it's simmering, prepare the finishing cream for the bisque.  Drain and rinse the cashews and put in a blender with 1/2 cup water.  Blend until a pouring cream consistency is achieved (you may need to blend for a minute or two to get the required smoothness).

Reduce the heat and add the creamy cashew mixture (save some for garnish).  The algae-looking soup will be transformed into a wonderful creamy bisque! Again don't forget to taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. I think it turned out really well, I love the creamy nutty flavor of the cashews with the herb flavored greens.  Even the significant other was pleasantly surprised!

This recipe makes about 4 servings depending on whether you use it as an appetizer or main meal. It will go well with grilled cheese or any warm sandwich!

Cauliflower and a Cheese-Like, Non-Dairy Horseradish Sauce!

We got a beautiful organic cauliflower in our Bitty Veggie box from Door To Door Organics last week and this is what I did with it!

Relevant side story:
Over the holidays I had made some fingerling potato skins with horseradish filling to take to my sister-in-laws house.  While I was there I had a fortuitous taste-bud-to-brain malfunction and I forgot what I was eating; the creamy potato skin filling tasted like it had sharp cheddar in it ... very interesting. 
Note to self - Remember horseradish when sharp cheddar is needed.
So when the cauliflower arrived, I knew what experiment I had to do.  

This is what I used;
 Whole head of cauliflower, cleaned and broken into florets
Horseradish Sauce
  1 Tbsp olive oil
  1 Tbsp rice flour
  1 cup unsweetened hemp or coconut milk
  2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
  1 Tbsp sesame tahini
  1 Tbsp horseradish
  dash of salt
  dash of garlic powder
  dash of onion powder
  1 tsp rice vinegar
Optional;
  turmeric(for coloring)
  dash of nutmeg

This is what I did;
Set the oven to 350 F.

Lightly steam the cauliflower for 5 minutes and place in an oven-proof dish with the florets facing up.

Make a roux with the oil and flour; heat the oil and mix in the flour to make a thick paste, on medium heat slowly add milk in stages as the sauce thickens. After adding the milk, slowly stir in nutritional yeast, sesame tahini, horseradish, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, rice vinegar and cook (keep stirring) for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Don't forget to taste the sauce at this point and add more horseradish, salt, garlic powder or onion powder if you feel something is missing or want a stronger taste.

At this point you can add turmeric to make the sauce yellow and more cheesey-looking, it doesn't add any flavor.  I added a dash because it's good for you and I wanted to see if it really would look like a cheese sauce.  It looked more like custard and made the cauliflower look like scrambled eggs, but at least I got the turmeric benefits!

Pour the sauce over the cauliflower florets and grate some fresh nutmeg over the top.  Place the dish in the oven for 10 minutes until the cauliflower is cooked through, the sauce is bubbling and the flavors have all melded together (not sure what that looks like....must be a zen thing, when it looks ready, it means it's ready).

---

Seriously you can never totally replicate a good cheese sauce, but I think this does a pretty good job.  What I was happy about was how well the horseradish went with the cauliflower. This is really a recipe for Cauliflower and Horseradish Sauce and it really should be named that, it doesn't need to hide under a pseudo cheese title so people will try it!.  It is a really nice pairing and it made me realize that I prefer cauliflower and horseradish to cauliflower and cheese - so there!

Weekend Breakfast Potatoes

This recipe arose out of laziness.  We had problems getting out of bed at the weekends, getting dressed and driving to a breakfast place.  It also had something to do with the long lines at restaurants on Saturday and Sunday mornings that we just couldn't tolerate.

You might also be surprised to hear that it took quite a few years to perfect this recipe to a reproducible version....let's just say we ate a lot of soggy undercooked and hard potatoes with our poached eggs.

Indredients
Big white potatoes, we use one potato per person depending on the size of the potato, and the person :-)
Secret Salt (see the bottom of this recipe), or any msg-free spicy salt you like!
Natural Balance (soy-free) Spread (this version produces the crispiest potatoes...if you eat dairy, then butter will work well)

Method
Par-cook the potatoes in a microwave (if your microwave takes 5 mins to cook a baked potato, cook for 4 mins for this recipe);

Let the potatoes stand for about 5 minutes to cool and evenly heat through. This is important, in the early days we would end up with a mixture of over and under-cooked potato cubes until we slowed down and let the potato finish cooking after it had been removed from the microwave.  Another option is to put the potatoes in the microwave, get a cup of coffee and go back to bed and read the newspaper for 10-15 minutes...the tatties will be perfect by the time you go for your next coffee!

Cut the potatoes into 3/4 inch cubes, spread them out on a cutting board, sprinkle with secret salt and leave to cool for about 15 minutes. Read another section of the Sunday paper!  The purpose of this is to dry the potatoes so they are crispy and not mushy.

Heat a decent chunk of spread in a large frying pan (or anything with a wide base), and melt until it just starts to sizzle, add the salted potato chunks and toss until all are lightly covered.  On medium heat gently saute the potatoes for the next 5-10 minutes; gently turn and agitate so they become brown and crispy on all sides.

I serve this with poached eggs (from local, happy, pasture-raised chickens) with a freshly chopped organic avocado, cucumber, cilantro or tomato garnish.

 

Blueberry Almond Muffins

I have mentioned my almond muffins before but since then I have modified the recipe to the point where I consistently make this version.  I still have one a day with my 10am coffee and I still believe they are a good diet aid as they keep me satisfied until lunch time! I once went through and worked out the nutritional information, I think they are about 160 calories each and fairly low carb.

Ingredients

• 2 cups almond flour (almond meal) - I use unblanched almond flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (or less) 
• 1 tablespoon of SteviaPlus (or the equivalent of 1/3 cup of sugar, if you use a 1/3 cup of liquid sweetener reduce the water by 1/3 cup) 
• 1/2 cup of freeze dried blueberries (if you don't add f/d blueberries reduce the water by 1/3 cup)
• 1/3 cup coconut oil 
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (this helps mask some of the bitterness of stevia)

Method

Preheat oven to 350 F and place cake cups in a 12-muffin tin.(please use cake cups - they'll stick in the muffin pan no matter what you do) .

Mix dry ingredients together well including the blueberries.  I use freeze dried blueberries because fresh or frozen ones will sink to the bottom of the muffins (remember there's no gluten in this and fresh blueberries will be too heavy). Also, make sure the stevia is mixed in well, you don't want concentrated patches that produce bitterness.

Beat the eggs and add the oil, water, vanilla and mix thoroughly.

Stir  the wet ingredients with dry ingredients and immediately fill muffin papers  (about 2/3 full - fill all 12 muffin papers evenly) and bake for about 15 minutes until they are just lightly browned.

**Eat all within 24 hours or freeze to store**

I'm not sure if it's the eggs or almonds but these are not very shelf stable!

Also note, stevia has a slight bitter aftertaste that mellows as it sits with other ingredients, for that reason I leave the muffins in the fridge overnight before I freeze.

Photo has blueberry muffins in the foreground with plain muffins top left.

Raw Pecan Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms

Just so you know...I hate mushrooms!

I don't like their texture and I usually pick them out of stews and meals that have them.  What I didn't realize was that I didn't like "cooked" mushrooms!  I just love this recipe because marinated mushrooms don't have the same texture and sliminess as cooked mushrooms!

My inspiration for this came from a Walnut and Spinach Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms recipe on http://foodsforlonglife.blogspot.com. I changed some of the ingredients to make a sweeter version.

Ingredients

8 small or 5 medium Baby Portabella Mushrooms ( I like them because they are shaped better for stuffing, but White Button Mushrooms will also work)
1 cup Basil Leaves
1/4 cup Pecans
1 Tbsp Lime juice
1 Clove Garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp Olive Oil
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast 

Balsamic Vinegar

Method

Remove the mushroom stems and gently remove some of the inside so there is room for the filling. Clean (and I peel) the mushrooms and.save the stems for the filling. Steep the mushroom caps in a little balsamic vinegar and let them marinate for about 15 minutes; I turn them over a few times to make sure they are well soaked.

  

Place the pecans, basil, lime juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, mushroom stems and nutritional yeast in a food processor and buzz for a few seconds until well mixed, don't over process, it shouldn't be a paste.

Remove the mushrooms caps from their balsamic bath and stuff with the mix.  Server at room temperature. I have no idea how long you can store them because we usually eat them immediately!


Oh, make sure your significant other has some too...the garlic can be a little antisocial ;-)

Curried Squash Soup

Over the last couple of weeks I was overwhelmed with squash of all shapes and sizes and on top of that the last two deliveries from Door To Door Organics dot com had a Butternut and Delicato squash.  Both have happily decorated my kitchen counter and waited patiently through the holiday festivities for their turn, so today I thought it was about time I used them for something yummy...it is Soup Season after all!!!!

Ingredients
1 Butternut squash, peeled cored and cubed
1 Delicata squash, peeled cored and cubed
    (about a total of 2-3 cups of cubed squash)
 2 Sweet Apples cored and roughly chopped - I used 2 Braeburn's (there is no sweetener in the ingredients so if you use Granny Smith's you may want to add a dash of agave or honey)
1 Onion chopped
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1-2 Tbsp Curry Powder/Paste - I used a Mild Yellow Curry Powder from the Savory Spice Shop.
4 Cups  Vegetable (or Chicken) stock
1/2 Cup White Wine - I used Italian Frascati what we had open in the fridge

Optional
1.5 cups hemp, almond or coconut milk
2 Tbsp toasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds (garnish)

Method
Peel each squash, remove seeds and chop into 3/4 inch cubes.  Place cubes in a pan, cover with water, and boil until tender ~ 5-10 minutes.  In a big soup pot, heat the olive oil and saute the onion and apple...don't under cook the onions, take your time and let the onions saute for at least 10 minutes until they start to caramelize a little.  Drain the squash and mash lightly then add to the apple and onion mixture (the orange and red colors will look wonderful).  Stir in the curry powder, stock and wine and bring to a boil and then simmer everything for 20 minutes to let all the flavors mingle. Taste for sweetness, salt and curry spice and add more if necessary (if it is a little bland, add some salt).

Cool the soup mixture and process in a blender in about 3 batches.  Please be careful when blending the soup, if it is too hot it will build up pressure while blending and push the lid off - the first time I tried to blend something that was too hot it exploded in my kitchen and could have burned me quite badly if I hadn't been quick on my feet.  So, please be careful; let the soup cool and place a cloth on the lid and hold down when you blend.

Return the soup to the pot and taste again (just to be sure).  At this point the soup should be very thick, I generally add about 1 to 1.5 cups of water and warm before serving.  You could also add hemp milk, almond milk or even coconut if you like a creamier taste.

This recipe makes about 6 x 8 oz portions and freezes well.  I save individual portions in mason jars and microwave them for lunch.

You could also serve more people and serve in small espresso cups as an amuse-bouche.  See top photo, garnished with toasted sunflower seeds.