Coconut Chia Dessert

4 Layer Raw Dessert

Top layer: Raspberry

Coconut Meat, Coconut Water, Fresh Ginger, Coconut Sugar

Coconut Water in Chia Seeds with Cardamon

Lowest layer: Cherimoya, Cinnamon, Maca

Let the Chia seed set first and layers chill

layer into dessert glasses and serve

I got a date!

Dates and then more dates! Dates are still in season at the local Farmers Market (yes dates are plentiful in Southern California)! Dates are a very healthy treat or substitute for sweeteners in recipes. I have a couple of desserts I want to make this week so I stocked up at the date stand. I choose three varieties out of about eight available. Wow. I got some Medjool, Deglet Noors, and I forgot the third (I will take pics and get names next week.) Typically we can count Dates to be low in cholesterol, low sodium, high fiber, some minerals, the negative has a lot of sugar. With that said keep in moderation, and find creative ways to substitute as sweetener. What am I going to do? I got some to mix with snacks, I will be making a Raw Fruit Pie and using a date/nut crust, and I am making a Coconut, Chia Seed, and breadfruit dessert. I will post as I make.

Along with Farmers Market, I always try to get wheatgrass juice from the local sprout booth. Here is a double shot next to fresh squeezed orange juice with a blackberry to serve as a chaser (not that I needed one). Because not only did I get dates, wheatgrass, I go a 25 lb bag of Organic Oranges for ten dollars! How can you beat the Farmers Market in our area. Except for my love of young coconut and fresh Turmeric I am on my way to being a localvore! YeeHaw another label!

Woke up, Got out of Bed, Dragged a Comb Across my Head

I really enjoy Cherimoya a soft bread fruit with large almond-like seeds. It is native from the Andean highland valleys of Peru, Ecuador, and Chile. It is one of the earliest recorded New World fruits. Often found juiced and in smoothies in Chile, but it can be found in fish dishes and other non-fruit like recipes. It can simply be scooped and eaten by spoon as well as pureed as ingredient for pudding or ice cream! The taste is pear like but unique. Cherimoya is loaded with potassium, vitamin B6 and vitamin C. It also grows in areas such as Santa Barbara, CA so it is a fresh, local seasonal food. If you do have the good fortune of finding it in a Farmers Market don't let the large sized fruit which is green skinned and spiny-like dissuade you from trying it. Talk to the vendor and ask of possible uses or recipes. You will typically purchase as hard and let ripen and soften. For today's breakfast I simply sliced in half and de-skinned lying upon a plate like chicken breasts. I then sprinkled some Nutmeg and dried ground Vanilla Bean onto the fruit. I continued by smothering in a orange-mango puree sprinkling some chopped sprouted Almond Nuts on top and garnished with sliced cherries around the plate. I didn't de-seed the fruit because I wanted it halved so you have to bite around and spit out the seed as it is inedible.

Picnic with wild foods

Salad with wild foods added

Nasturtium Wrap

Nasturtium Wrap

Nasturtium Wrap

Picnic! What a spread! Raw flat breads, fruits, spirulina chips, salad, tahini-miso salad dressing, nasturtium leaves, avocado, cashew spread, fennel, mustard, nasturtium flowers.

Today I went to my favorite trail in Santa Barbara's front country. I like to go where there is a year round spring nearby with a nice vantage point overlooking the ocean. I brought food up for a picnic. Along the way to my destination I gathered a little bit of wild foods to contribute to my meal. I found wild Fennel leaves and flowers, Mustard flowers and Nasturtium leaves and flowers. These are several plants illuminated by Brigitte Mars whom gave a wild foods hike here last week. I used the flowers as garnish to the salad and mixed the feathery Fennel leaves into the salad. I then made use of the Nasturtium leaves to make veggie wraps with the salad.

It was so good and satisfying to discover the bounty of edibles growing all around my walk. How local is that! With thanks to Brigitte for alerting me to the possibilities of this wonderfully bountiful Mother-Earth! What a special Mothers Day all too rarely we reflect that that includes the planet as well. I will never forget that the earth is always ready to nourish if we but open our eyes.

Spirulina chips

Spirulina Chips!

I am going for a hike today, and so yesterday I wanted to make a fun snack that was not too sweet or salty. And what I did was dehydrate some Spirulina chips. This is very similar to how you would make fruit rolls in a food dryer. I use an Excalibur food dehydrator but you can mimic and approximate by setting to the lowest temperature in the oven and placing in the broiler or with the oven door ajar. The real goal with Raw food is to not heat above 104 degrees. Above 120 degrees you start to destroy the nutrients.

Here is my basic recipe:

2.5 cups of blended or pureed Banana's and Cherimoya (optional)

1/2 cup ground sprouted almond flour

1/4 cup Black Sesame Seeds

1/4 cup Chia Seeds

4 tablespoons Spirulina Powder

2 tablesoons Maca Powder (optional)

2 tablespoons Lemon Juice

Take 4-5 banana's and puree. I had Cherimoya (bread fruit) ripe and thought that would be nice added. Then mix in all ingredients except the Chia Seeds. Add Chia seeds right at the very end and then mix into mixture (Chia and Flax will gelatinize and stiffen if allowed to set). Spread thinly onto drying trays at 105 will take about 4-6 hours (depending on humidity, etc). After spreading I used something circular to cut shape to the chips.

After drying store! Yum now I have a healthy snack to take on the trail! With no added sweetener beyond the fruit!

Chia Breakfast not just for "Chia Pets"

Chia Breakfast

Last night I started breakfast and this morning I am eating something very tasting and good for me (and you)!

Chia Seeds are very nutritious and can be used in a variety of ways, it can be blended in smoothies, dehydrated into cracker recipes, or it can be soaked and eaten as is. Chia Seeds are low glycemic, helps to reduce cholestral, good for the thyroid, has lots of fiber and assists in digestion.

Here is the recipe I created but you can google lots of Chia Seed recipes.

1 oz Chia Seeds

1 teaspoon Coconut Sugar

1 teaspoon Carob

1 teaspoon Maca Powder

a dash of salt

a dash of powdered Vanilla

a dash of Cinnamon

1 tablespoon Goji Berries

Mix the dry ingredients and then add water. Typically about a 7-to 1 ratio of water to Chia Seeds. Let soak overnight. It will gelatinize overnight and have a consistency of oatmeal in the morning. It will have a mild sweet taste you could add more or less sweteener depending on need or taste.

In the morning I topped with:

Blend:

1 Orange leaving as much of the white pith as possible to make use of its bioflavonoids

2 tablespoons of Goji Berries.

Pouring blended mix onto the dish then garnish with un-sweetned dry coconut.

Yum, yum delicious and so easy to make!

This made about a one and half servings so I will come back and revise, you get the idea now!

NOTE: You can use any variant or ingredients you choose. The important things is a a 7-1 ratio.

Naturally I used all Organic and Raw ingredients, but use any ingredients to get started! I found Chia Seeds locally in Bulk food bins as well as packaged.