Vanilla bean 101: Use soap and water to clean your food processor in between blending vanilla infused concoctions, and those which you do not want to taste like the heavenly Tahitian pod. I simply rinsed the processor bowl and blade after making Rawleen’s apple crisp. Then I proceeded to make a pignoli filling for a Rawsagna. The first day, the Rawsagna was OK, but by the second day, whew, totally odd, and simply not good. One great discovery I did make, was that the marinara recipe in “Raw Food Real World” has a nice, mild, kid-friendly flavor reminiscent of SpagettiOs. I made Felipe some Zucchini Triangles by slicing the raw squash with a veggie peeler and then into small flag shapes. Check out my Flickr album for a cute shot of Felipe taking a bite.  Super yummy in his tummy!

After a most lovely time spent at home with my son, this week I am venturing off to the outside workforce. I am determined to stay away from the candy bowls full of bling adorning many desks, so I’m going to have to maintain a high level of creativity when packing brown bag snacks. I was proud of the lunch I packed on Sunday night, and I was even happier eating it Monday.

Sweet pepper and tomato dolmas:

1/2 C pinenuts
1/2 C sundried tomatoes (soaked 1 hr)
1/2 C chopped yellow bell pepper
1/8 C fresh parsley
3 T chopped onion
1/2 clove garlic
juice of 1/2 lemon

Combine all ingredients in food processor and pulse until combined, but some texture remaining.

For assembly: Place swiss chard leaf outside side down. Trim to 6 inches in length and remove any tough ribs. Spoon 1/4 mixture in center. Wrap burrito style. Roll three more leaves. Pack tightly into dish. Squeeze remaining 1/2 lemon over top. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt. Can serve immediately, but those that marinated overnight were extra yummy and the swiss chard more closely resembled brine-cured grape leaves used in traditional dolmas.

I’m excited to experiment more with dolmas. Next time I’m going for a less tangy, more herbal roll. As always, back to work…in the kitchen!

Yesterday I made a curious concoction for lunch. Totally makeshift, as I had very few ingredients remaining in the fridge, but the flavors were great! I started with the Brazil nuts, because I was starving and knew that I needed some substance. I didn’t want to make the usual bland nut pate, so I had the notion of trying to capture the flavors of ceviche…lime, onion and chile. To make the pate, I combined 2/3 C Brazil nuts, pulp from 2 juiced carrots, 2 scallions, 1/2 clove garlic, 1 jalepeno, 1 nori sheet torn into pieces, juice of one lime, 2 T olive oil, sea salt. Puree in food processor to desired consistency. I wrapped in nori with chopped broccoli and cut into “sushi” pieces after taking the photo. I made hubby a sandwich with a tortilla wrap which he loved. Next time, I’m going to alter the preparation technique and perhaps soak the nuts to soften and create a chunkier sea-viche. The backdrop for the photo is a mid-day mojito which I’ve been drinking by the pitcher-full lately, and a “green bag” produce storage sack.

dorawtos and guac

Originally uploaded by jaimecru

I must admit to being Jaime light and dark this week with my eating. I certainly don’t want this post to have the tone of a confessional, but I fear that when all is said and done, it will. On a positive note, however, wavering between high raw days and restaurant meals is an opportunity to notice how specifically my body responds to different foods and levels of cooking/processing. The day following a traditional cooked meal or a processed evening snack (crackers are my weakness), I wake up so itchy, unbearably itchy…my hands, arms, face, legs, my underarms…craziness. I’m curious as to whether others have experienced this? I’ve always been so itching, but my skin appears normal, no eczema, etc. I did some googling and made a self-diagnosis of Fox Fordyce disease. There is no medical cure, so I’m sure a raw diet is it! I should contact the authorities. Today’s remedy for a meringue hangover was carrot/beet/cucumber/grapefruit juice. I’m so excited to be a juicer now!

Also this week, I made a great raw chip:
1 1/4 C sunflower seeds, soaked
3/4 C almond meal
1/4 C flax meal
2 orange bell peppers
2 cloves garlic
2 T cumin
Sea Salt
Blend together in food processor or Vitamix until smooth. Spread as thin as possible on 3-4 Teflex sheets. Dehydrate for 18-24 hours or until able to peel from sheet. Flip and dehydrate 4-6 more hours on mesh screen or until dry enough to cut into triangles ( I used kitchen shears). Keep dehydrating until crisp. (This process is a bit arduous in Florida.) Next time I make this recipe, I’m going to create a spice blend to dust on top of the chips…the kind that leaves a mess on your fingers!

I’m still perfecting my raw chocolate recipe. These macadamia nut butter cups were good, but not quite right. The chocolate was not rich enough and the filling was not sweet enough. I’ll be continuing with recipe development, so please come back to my blog!

No, no, no…this fresh meal in no way made my tummy hurt, it’s just the name of the cucumber salad. I grew up in rural Illinois, a “corn fed dame” as my hubby from Long Island likes to call me. When the summer heat was at its peak, and generous friend’s gardens bursting, my family would have a meal very similar to that in the picture. My great aunt Jesse was the best bellyaches maker. Paper thin cukes, vidalia onion, white vinegar and lots of sugar and salt. My RAW bellyaches recipe (for a very small batch that is in no way sharable) is: 1 cucumber peeled and thinly sliced, 1/8 large vidalia thinly sliced, 2 T apple cider vinegar, 1 T agave, 1/2 t sea salt. I rounded out my corn-fed dame meal with some salted tomatoes and a quick chop of orange bell (from my friend’s garden!) and jalepeno peppers drizzled with olive oil. I did cook the corn (just can’t get a taste for raw), but I only got one bite before my baby stole it from my plate anyway!

It was so appropriate that the gift table at my son’s birthday party be set up near the “share” painted on the wall in the banquet room of the celebration locale. All of these gifts are actually donations (in lieu of traditional birthday presents) to be made to the Florida Wildlife Hospital. My good friend, Colleen suggested this idea, and I believe it is truly brilliant. (If you haven’t already read Rawleen’s blog about the party, we put the event together to celebrate my son’s 2nd and her daughter’s 3rd…in keeping with the theme, we “shared” the fun!) So many parents expressed interest in “sharing” Colleen’s idea and finding other charities and organizations that could work into themes for their own children’s parties. To bring the theme to the kids’ level, we decorated with animal confetti and “Diego and Dora”, super cool cartoon characters who perform animal rescues (for those of you who don’t follow pre-school TV!) We put the party favors into these cute boxes for all the little animal rescuers in attendance. I made some fruit leather and Colleen made fabulous playdough. We served some raw and vegan food, supplemented with a few SAD staples to ease our workload. It was great to see people head for the good-for-you stuff! Here’s a peek at the fun my baby had at the party…sharing a moment with Dad…

my felipe

Originally uploaded by jaimecru

My baby truly colors my world. Every day there are new discoveries, new words. Thursday he added “bllllack” to his color vocabulary while sifting through his crayons with Daddy. Also on Thursday night, my hubby, my mom and I got together to wish my little Felipe a big happy second birthday.

After reading Rawdorable’s blog earlier that afternoon, I decided to add a rainbow theme to the dinner menu. I had already made the sauerkraut last week, adapting a recipe from I Am Grateful. I made a “potato” salad using diced jicama dressed with pinenut mayo and tossed with fresh dill and parsley. The carrot salad has chopped raisins, cider vinegar, and olive oil. It all seemed so German, so I had to toss some gherkins onto the platter and indulge my obsession with goofy translations: Regenbogensalatbüffet!

My mom insisted that I bake a traditional cake for the day. It was the first time I’d turned on the oven in months. The process felt odd, but I have to admit that the smell of cake baking was lovely. After the candles were blown out and cake eaten, it was time for Felipe to drive his car! I can’t believe that I’m that parent, the one who buys her baby a crazy commercialized, over-priced hunk of landfill-destined plastic, but Daddy discovered this toy and we knew that Felipe would love it…and love it he does.

There is something absolutely adorable about a baby driving a car. We live on a quiet, dead-end street, so Felipe was able to drive down the block and back. At the end of his joyride he said goodbye to all of the beauty around him as he cruised home. ”Bye-bye tree, bye-bye flower, bye-bye bird”. I’m so blessed to have a beautiful, healthy boy who always finds joy and brings it to everyone around him. He’s my little rainbow.

Just posting a recipe I made this weekend…

1 c almonds (measured after soaking)
1/4 c buckwheaties
1/2 c dates
1/4 c dried fruit (I used mix of cranberries and blueberries)
1/4 c carob chips
1/4 c flaked coconut
1/8 c agave
2 T coconut oil
1/8 t salt

Pulse almonds and dates in food processor until well combined. Empty into mixing bowl and add all remaining ingredients. Mix well. Empty onto sheet of parchment or wax paper. Roll into log approx. 8 inches long. Press dough tightly and cinch roll ends (like a Tootsie roll wrapper). Chill until firm. Slice into 1 inch thick rounds.

my five

Originally uploaded by jaimecru

Look at these grungey gadgets! Here are my top five useful tools for the RAW kitchen (minus the power tools!).

1- A beat up old knife for cracking Thai coconuts. Believe it or not, I actually broke the tip of the knife on a papaya, not a coconut!

2- A hand-held reamer to juice citrus.

3- A small bamboo cutting board. I love small boards…so much easier to clean.

4- A mesh sieve to catch shell bits when draining coconut water, to rinse fruit and nuts and lots of other random uses.

5- A star tip for piping pates, cookie batters and other whipped foods into nice designs.

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