So What Does a Raw Food Vegan Eat Anyway?

Happy weekend all! Well I passed four out of my five exams, good enough for me! I still have to wrap up some loose ends but screw it: FREEEDOOOMMMM. Ah that felt good. So yesterday I revealed some exciting new about making a recipe e-book this summerbut in the meantime I also have plenty of recipes to share on the blog! Yesterday was a day full of great eats so I figured now was a great time for a ‘what I ate today’ post!

The Food

7 AM Green Lemonade 10 AM Homemade coconut yogurt with berries & raw cacao nibs 12:30 PM Raw Zucchini Linguini (a new fav!) with Omega-3 Pesto & 3 Hemp Fudgies Afternoon Snacks @ school Glowing Green Smoothie + 2 nectarines 7 PM Coconut Risotto (& raw sauerkraut for digestion) 9 PM Chocolate Chia Pudding (with blueberries, half a banana & coconut butter) 11 PM the munchies: Slice of rye/spelt bread with sunflower/tomato spread

The Recipes

Green Lemonade Serves one* Big bunch mixed greens * 1-3 stalks celery * Juice of one lemon * Optional: half an apple or pear * Stevia and/or ginger This is a great way to get a biggg load of greens in every day. The lemon, stevia and/or ginger do a perfect job of masking the taste. In the ebginning, you might want to add half a piece of fruit for taste too. Juices with minimal fruit give less of a bloodsugar spike.

Coconut Yogurt One – two servings * 1 young Thai coconut* * 5 probiotic supplements Open your coconut** (good luck! haha). Combine  1 1/4 cup of the meat and 1 cup of the water with 5 probiotic supplements and blend until completely smooth in your blender. Place in a container and put in a warm place overnight. In the morning, chill for 1-2 hours before consuming. * Thai young coconuts are the immature version of the coconut as we know it (the brown, hairy ones). They are available at Asian supermarkets and Tokos and are very cheap! ** Google ‘how to open a thai young coconut’ for dozens of tutorials. Here’s how I open mine: You want to take a big sharp knife, and start hacking away with the part of the knife shown above. While doing so, always put your other arm behind your back for safety! Hack away like this, so you can pop open the lid. You’ll know you’re there once the aroma of fresh coconut fills the air! Pour out the water (you can do this through a strainer or sieve, I don’t find this necessary) With a spoon, spoon out the meat. So yummy! Congrats, you killed your first young coconut! It takes a little practice. My first one was a disaster. The second I had opened in under one minute flat. Now I have to work on perfecting my method so I can scrape the meat out easier, that’s all. Raw Zucchini Linguini Serves one (as a main) * 1 medium-sized zucchini * 2 T Omega3 Pesto (see below) or regular homemade pesto * 1 T cold-pressed oil of choice (+ optional 1 T water) * 1 handful sundried tomatoes, sliced * 1 handful pine nuts * salt, pepper

Needed: mandolin slicer* or spiralizer

Finely slice your zucchini into linguini using a mandolin or spiralizer. Dice the zucchini that you have leftover. In a small bowl, thin out pesto to a sauce consistency using a little oil and/or water (especially if you use my homemade pesto recipe, which uses very little oil so it can be crumbled like feta cheese). In a large bowl mix the pesto through the zucchini and add pine nuts and tomato. This dish tastes best when the zucchini gets to marinate for a few hours (or even overnight, but this is not necessary). I love this dish and I want to knock myself over the head for not trying this traditional raw food meal sooner. I’ve never been a big zucchini fan, until now! It’s feels so amazing to basically eat a big bowl of just veggies, that tastes like a gourmet meal. Please do try this!

* I bought my mandolin for €20 at the organic farmers market (Noordermarkt) at the raw food stand. I use it a lot! It can grate and julliene your vegetables perfectly or make thin or thick uniform sliced. Comes in very handy for my apple – beet – tempeh carpaccio!

Omega-3 Pesto * 120 grams hulled hemp seeds * 1 basil plant * 30 g nutrional yeast * 5 garlic cloves * 1/3 cup cold-pressed oil of choice * pepper & salt Blend or process all ingredients into a silky smooth pesto and store in an airtight container in the fridge. This is great with the raw zucchini linguini, atop salads and even on bread. Hemp seeds are possibly the best vegetarian omega-3 source, containing more omega-3 than flax seeds and in a better ratio (omega-6 : omega-3). Hemp seeds are also very high in protein and iron, making this creamy pesto a perfect healthy addition to any meal.Raw, hulled hemp seeds are available at iHerb, unlimitedhealth (Dutch shop & webshop) and the Noordermarket.

Hemp Fudgies
Yields ~15 fudgies
* 1 cup hemp seeds
* 1/8 cup + 2 T raw cacao powder
* 8 pitted dates (fresh, or soaked)
* 2 T maca (optional)
* 1 T raw honey or other liquid sweetener
* 1 t vanilla extract
* dash of salt
* garnish: nuts, coconut, hemp seeds, cacao powder

Process hemp seeds and cacao (and maca if using). Add dates one by one until a thick batter forms. Add vanilla, agave and salt. Taste batter and see if it needs more sweetener for your liking. Form into balls, bars, whatever you wish, and garnish for a fancy look. I love these fudgies! Gooey, sticky and chocolatey, just right!

Basic Chocolate Chia Pudding One serving *  3/4 cups Brazil nut milk (or other milk) * 3 T chia seeds * 2.5 T raw cacao powder * 1 T agave or other sweetener * 1 t vanilla extract * optional: 2 drops Stevia (depending on preferred sweetness)

Mix everything together and place in the fridge for at least a couple of hours, preferably overnight so the pudding can thicken up quite nicely. Stir once or twice in those hours.

This chocolate pudding tastes great on its own, or with some fruit and other toppings.

I hope you all enjoy these recipes as much as I enjoyed creating & devouring them . On to a new load, I say! But for now I have to run, the farmers market & Bikram are awaiting me. Enjoy your weekends!

Love,

Sabine