A Joygasm Recipe

my slightly different version is as follows:

2 large ripe Avocados
1/4 cup Raw Cacao
1/4 cup cane sugar (instead of agave or honey)
1/4 cup pitted dates (soak to make chopping and processing easier)
1 Tbl spoon Vanilla extract
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup Coconut oil (melt over bowl on boiling water)

there are a few other versions of this bitty of heaven out there. what i like about this one is how the coconut oil will make the mixture smooth and then thicken it up after refrigerated.


chill and get it on ~

spanish saliva ?

Last year out of the blue, my mom's friend calls me to tell me about these seeds that are supposedly a better source of calcium and fiber than flax seeds. a few weeks later, i hear about them again at a raw food festival. so i figure, alright, don't have to tell me anything twice!

Salvia hispanica or chia seeds have since been a daily part of my food consumption. I've also been finding them to be much more adhesive in my baking (as an egg substitute) than flax seeds. AND they don't leave the nutty flavor in my banana bread like the ground up flax seed mixture did. overall, i LOVE them! i currently have two bags - one of whole seeds, and one of ground up seeds. i keep them in my fridge and use them in my smoothies, and whatever else i consume in the mornings. mmm mmm fiber.

and apparently "for centuries this tiny little seed was used as a staple food by the Indians of the south west and Mexico. Known as the running food, its use as a high energy endurance food has been recorded as far back as the ancient Aztecs. It was said the Aztec warriors subsisted on the Chia seed during the conquests. The Indians of the south west would eat as little as a teaspoon full when going on a 24hr. forced march. Indians running form the Colorado River to the California coast to trade turquoise for seashells would only bring the Chia seed for their nourishment." (source: http://www.living-foods.com/articles/chia.html) Well how COOL is that?! that article also says more about the mechanics through which this little seed offers a whole lotta goodness for the body.

I still use flax seeds in my smoothies since they've got a little bit of iron in them, but it's just always good to learn more about what natural source of goodness exists in my world.

happy exploartions!

Raw Chewy Bars (Vegan Recipe)

Raw Key Lime Coconut Bars



Ingredients

* 1 cup raw cashews
* 1 cup dates
* 1 teaspoon lime zest, Zest before juicing
* 1 Lime, juiced
* 1 cup shredded (dehydrated raw) coconut

Preparation

1. Chop dates to make processing easier. If you don't chop them, they'll likely just spin around whole in your processor. Fun for them, yes. Not helpful for you though.

2. Process the nuts then add dates in a food processor until crumbly. If you want chunky nuts in your chewy bar then process nuts and dates together.

3. Add in lime zest and lime juice to your food processor. Then add the coconut.

4. Press mixture into a glass dish or tightly into plastic wrap in desired shape.

5. Refrigerate for an hour or more to let the flavors combine, and the bars to firm up.

Raw Chocolate Coconut Bars



Ingredients

* 1 1/2 cups raw cashews
* 1 1/2 cups dates
* 1 cup shredded (dehydrated raw) coconut
* 2 Tbs Cocoa powder

Preparation

1 & 2 same as key lime recipe.

3. Add in coconut and process. Then add cocoa powder and process until cocoa fully blends into the mixture.

4. Press mixture into a glass dish or tightly into plastic wrap in desired shape.

5. Refrigerate for an hour or more to let the flavors combine, and the bars to firm up.

Easy Breezy Potato Medley

5-6 Medium Potatoes cooked and cubed
1 Jalapeño Pepper
1 Small Red Onion
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Teaspoon Salt

Peel and boil your potatoes (20-30min), then cube them once cooled. Dice your jalapeño pepper and red onion.

In a medium sized bowl combine your potatoes, jalapeno, and red onion. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and mix well.

Chill and serve.



* you can add your favorite fresh herb (ie oregano or basil) to this dish for some aromatic flavor.

My Drunk Noodles (Veggie-Vegan Friendly Recipe)

Also known as: Pad Kee Mao, Pad Ki Mao, Pad Ke Mao, Pad Kimao

I love this dish and still will likely name my first born Pad Kee Mao.



To get your noodles drunk like this, you'll need 20-30min and:



1/2 package of wide rice stick noodles (vermicelle 400g bag)
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce
3 hot chili peppers chopped (Thai chiles if you can find them; and yes this part of the ingredient always makes me think of Blood Sugar Sex Magik)
1 teaspoon regular soy sauce
1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce
1 tablespoon cooking oil (I use canola)
1 red bell pepper sliced & diced
1/4 cup of green beans or broccoli
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves (Thai basil leaves if you can find them)

*If you're not a fan of your tongue being on fire, omit or reduce the 3 chili peppers.

Directions:

Break up the rice noodles. You can leave them long but I prefer smaller bites.

Follow the instructions on your rice noodles package to cook them. Generally for the 10mm large rice noodles, you toss them in boiling water for 3 minutes (yes, just three minutes), then rinse them under cold water to stop the cooking.

If you over cook them, they get very mushy.

Drain.

In a skillet/wok (non-stick preferably) heat your cooking oil. Cook the garlic and chile sauce for 3-4minutes.

Add the rice noodles to the oil, garlic, and chile sauce you have cooking and stir fry for 3 minutes.

Add the veggies (bell pepper and broccoli) and cook until tender.

Pour the sweet soy sauce and stir. The noodles should only be a light brown color. If they're too dark, it means it's too much sweet soy sauce and your mouth will complain about the overwhelming flavor. You can add the sweet soy sauce just a few drops at a time.

Add basil and the regular soy sauce and cook for just a few more minutes.

Turn off heat and allow it to sit for a few minutes.

And then serve...

*** My recipe serves two.

Notes:
* You can put whatever veggies you like into this dish. I'll substitute with yellow/orange bell peppers and another green veggie like green-beans for instance.

*This dish tastes great with fried bean curd (which you can buy at a store), so if you have time to deep fry some bean curd, definitely add it to this dish. Only add it toward the end so that it can get flavored with the soy sauce and basil.

Chocolate Monkey Blueberry Smoothie (Vegan Friendly Recipe)

1 cup chocolate almond milk
1 banana
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed

Directions:


Add all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth.

I sometimes add 1/2 cup of fresh baby spinach to this and use sunflower seeds instead of flaxseed for a flavor change.

You can pretty much use any kind of fruit you want. Frozen mango and pineapple are amongst my favorite smoothie makers.

***To make this into a frozen smoothie, add 6 to 8 ice-cubes after blending the ingredients together and blend until cubes are crushed.

Easy Chickpea Medley (Veg Recipe)

For the Veggie Lover in you...


To create this fresh party in your mouth you'll need about 15-20min and:

• 1 can (15ounce) of chick peas (soak in water for a few minutes and rinse)
• 1 bunch of parsley finely chopped
• 1 garlic crushed/finely chopped
• 1 small red onion finely chopped
• 2 small tomatoes diced
• 1 lime
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (can be substituted for whatever other vinegar you like)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Drain chickpeas and in a medium sized bowl combine with all the veggies (onion, tomato, garlic, parsley). Mix balsamic and olive oil together and add to bowl. Add the juice from the lime and stir. Sprinkle salt to taste.

You can play with this easy dish and switch up the veggies (i.e. cucumber and tomato with oregano and just olive oil will make it Greek-ish) while still getting your awesome dose of protein a la chickpea love.

If you want to use dry chickpeas, you can! But be sure to soak them overnight. Your teeth will thank you.