Living Body, Spirit and Soul

I never thought that the name of my blog actually would mean anything. I named it because this way because that's what felt good to me. However, the experiences that I had with pregnancy lead me to seek for more answers. And I have been truly blessed with fantastic people that helped me to come to a new level of understanding certain things. To everyone who supported me and lead me to Rachel - thank you. To Rachel - double thank you.

A true unity of emotions , spirituality and physicality is so obvious, that it is mind blowing how we miss it every day. Really looking for answers to some deeper questions, while reading scriptures , I wanted to really understand what the SPIRIT is. And searching more and more, it lead me to trying to find understanding of SOUL, and all of a sudden things just made sense :

EMOTIONS + SPIRITUALITY + PHYSICALITY = SOUL + SPIRIT + BODY

So profound. So true. So obvious. Then that simple realization really made me see certain things as clear as the most beautiful diamond can be.

"We are spiritual beings having physical experiences, not physical beings having spiritual experience" - Rachel, cannot agree more. Thank you.

On the menu to try today

BTW - LOVE this recipe blog! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!

I copied this recipe - looks great, can't wait to try it!

As you can see, the bottom is watermelon, topped with a thin layer of kiwi, a thick slab of pink lady apple (my fave; I wonder if my mom still has my old Pink Lady jacket she let me decorate when I was little), a ribbon of strawberry slices and a mango wedge. The "cake" is iced in a coco-banana pudding (check the bottom of this post for the recipe), sprinkled with coconut flakes (mom's favorite cake is German chocolate, which I rawified one year) and decorated with ripe raspberries.

Coco-banana Pudding

1 peeled banana

1 soft pitted date

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

1 Tbsp. coconut butter

a dash of vanilla

a pinch of sea salt

Blend all the ingredients in a high-powered blender until smooth. Chill to set. Makes one serving of pudding, a small bowl of dip or enough icing to frost a small raw cake. The recipe can be doubled to suit your needs.

Creamed
Pattypan Spinach

Large handfuls

of fresh baby spinach

2 patty pan squash

1 Tbsp. EVOO,

plus extra for drizzling

Few squeezes of lemon juice

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

1 small clove of garlic

Dash of cayenne

Freshly grated nutmeg

Sea salt

Fresh ground pepper

Run a knife through some fresh baby spinach and add it to a bowl (keep in mind that the amount you put in the bowl will reduce substantially in the next step). Drizzle it with a little EVOO, a squeeze of lemon and some salt and pepper. Scrunch it with your hands and set aside to "cook" while you prepare the squash.

Slice the tops off of both squash as you would a pumpkin when making a jack-o-lantern. Then, with a melon-baller, scoop out the insides and add it to a high-speed blender, along with 1 Tbsp. EVOO, some lemon juice, nutritional yeast, garlic, cayenne, nutmeg, sea salt and pepper, to taste. Blend until smooth.

By hand, mix in the wilted/"cooked" spinach. Fill the hollowed squash with this mixture and top with some more fresh ground pepper and nutmeg.

This makes a beautiful presentation for the creamed spinach or for the "cream" by itself, which would be a lovely soup at a dinner party (you would have to make more than two, of course). As always, enjoy!

I was really feeling that I need to spend time with my children. Even though they are my buddies and follow me everywhere, I still feel that I am too busy working , running errands and when the night comes and they fall asleep I always regret that I didn't spend more time with it. So , heck it with the job! I will officially skip today ( because I asked for a short leave, but it was not welcomed very enthusiastically. Come on, people, don't we have some understanding here? Who jumps around on 9th month of pregnancy? Even I need a break sometimes... ). So, I decided - although DEFINITELY NOT my usual policy - but it's better to say sorry later then ask a permission, besides already tried. :) And since I am not the key element in the company anyway, I hope they won't even notice :) And considering that I have to be present on Saturday rehearsals for the Nutcracker 9 to 6pm ( ask me why - I am due to deliver the baby when they are performing. Obviously, I am not a part of the cast. Crazy politics! ), I feel totally justified for a day off. :)

So, since the morning, kiddoes and I were selecting different recipes we want to try over the weekend. We all feel like we again are falling into the routine of doing the same ol' thing over and over, and we are getting tired of it. So, here is what we came up with ( the key element was "simple", but not 10% successful. Oh, well, at least the weekend is coming) Don't have all ingredients, so I'll probably change things around a little. Well, off to the store to get what we need!

“Cheesy” crackers with peanut butter

For the cracker

1 cup carrot pulp

2 Tbsp. flaxseed, finely ground

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

sea salt (be generous)

For the "peanut butter"

2 Tbsp. almond butter

1 Tbsp. tahini

1 tsp. raw honey or agave nectar

½ tsp. lucuma

½ tsp. mesquite

dash of sea salt

Pumpkin Bread Ingredients

3/4 cup Almond Pulp*

1/4 cup Golden Flax Meal*

1 cup Pumpkin Puree*

1/2 cup Date Paste*

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. allspice

1/4 tsp. cloves

1/2 smidgen salt

Directions:

Mix by hand and form into a loaf about one and a half inches thick. Dehydrate at 105 degrees for 8 hours on a teflex sheet then remove the teflex sheet and dehydrate for additional 16 hours and enjoy!

Optional:

To make a dryer bread, slice the bread and dehydrate for an additional 8 hours.

To make almond pulp, make almond milk and strain out the pulp.

To make golden flax meal, put golden flax seeds in a dry blender and blend to a powder. Brown flax meal will also due just fine.

To make pumpkin puree, peel and seed a small pumpkin (don't worry about getting all the stringy part off), roughly chop the pumpkin, and toss it in the food processor. Process until it is a consistent texture, but it will never be smooth.

To make date paste, put pitted dates in either a blender or food processor and add as little water as possible to achieve a paste.

Mediterranean Almond Bread

Makes 18 'slices'

1/2c olive oil

1c sun dried tomatoes, loosely packed

3c almond flour*

1c flax meal

3 medium courgettes (zucchini), peeled & roughly chopped

2 apples, cored and roughly chopped

3T lemon juice

1t salt

3T Herbs De Provence or herbs of your choice

2T marjoram or herbs of your choice

*You can make almond flour a number of ways. My favourite is to save the pulp from any almond milk I make and dehydrate it so I can keep it in a glass jar until needed. You could also use the almond pulp wet. Another way would be just to grind some almonds into flour in a high powered blender or coffee mill.

- Process the olive oil, sun dried toms, courgette, apple, lemon juice, salt and dried herbs until thoroughly mixed.

- Add the almond flour and process again until a batter is formed.

- In a bowl mix the batter with the flax meal by hand. The reason you do this separately (not in the processor) is that you are likely to have too much mixture for the size if the processor at this point, and when you add the flax meal it will become quite heavy and sticky and overwork your machine.

- When mixed, process the whole batter in the machine again in small batches to achieve a light fluffy texture.

- Divide the mixture in 2 and place on Paraflexx sheets, on dehydrator trays.

- Use an offset spatula (aka offset palette knife or cranked palette knife) to spread the mixture evenly to all 4 sides and corners of the Paraflexx sheet. If mixture is too sticky you can wet the spatula to make things easier. With a knife score the whole thing into 9 squares.

- Dehydrate for 2 hours and then remove the Paraflexx sheets by placing another dehydrator tray and mesh on top and invert so that your original sheet of bread is upside down. That will allow you to peel the Paralexx sheet off and continue to dehydrate the underside of the bread.

- Dehydrate for approx 8 hours more (do this overnight so you're not tempted to eat it before it's ready) or until bread feels light in your hand. If the pieces don't fully come apart where you scored, use a knife to cut them.

So there you have it. Once you have this bread, the only limit you have is your imagination. I have made bread before and used lasagna leftovers to create 'cheese and tomato' sarnies, one of my all-time childhood faves!

Let me know your favorite fillings!!! :-)

Lasagne

Serves 9 large portions. Can be made in a 33 x 27cm -(or similar size) lasagne dish, or made as individual portions on the plate.

Nut Cheese

2c macadamias

1c pine nuts

2 T lemon juice

2 T nutritional yeast

2 yellow peppers

2T fresh parsley

1T fresh thyme

2t salt ½c water as needed

Process all ingredients together adding as little of the water as possible until a fluffy consistency is achieved.

Walnut Meat Layer

1 ½c walnuts soaked 1 hour or more

1c sun-dried tomatoes, soaked for 1 hour or more

2T dark/brown miso

2t dried oregano

2t dried sage

5T nama shoyu

½t cayenne pepper

2T olive oil

1T agave nectar

1t sea salt

Grind all ingredients in a food processor, leaving the mixture slightly chunky.

Tomato sauce

1 ½c sun dried tomatoes

2 soft dates

2 cloves garlic

2c tomato, seeded and chopped

1 ½T dried oregano

2t salt (depending on how salty your s/d toms are)

1/3c olive oil

2T lemon juice

Process in a food processor until smooth.

Green pesto

2 c tightly packed basil leaves

¾c pine nuts or walnuts

½c olive oil

1t salt

1 clove garlic

1T lemon juice

Process all ingredients, leaving plenty of chunkiness!

Spinach Layer

6c torn spinach

5T dried oregano

3T olive oil

2t sea salt

Place all ingredients in a bowl to marinade and wilt for 1 hour or longer, putting the covered bowl in a dehydrator will help this process but it’s not essential.

For the assembly

5 medium courgettes (zucchini), cut lengthwise and marinated in 2T of salt and 3T olive oil for 10 minutes.

Pinch black pepper

Assembly method:

Line the base of your dish with a layer of the courgette strips that slightly overlap.

On top of this put down a layer of the walnut meat, then the cheese, then tomato sauce and finally the pesto on top. Finish this with another layer of slightly overlapping courgette strips.

Repeat step 2 but before adding the final layer of courgette, take your wilted spinach and create an additional layer with that.

Placing the whole dish in the fridge for several hours will firm it all up slightly which will make it easier to cut into portions.

Garnish individual portions with black pepper and a sprig of basil.

Life and Emotions

It's nothing new. Absolutely nothing. It's just one of those things where the light bulb finally sparks. I always new that emotions are a huge part of life. I always tried to follow, but I guess it is one of those really truly realization things - unless it clicks 100% , you don't understand the meaning of it. Struggling with the doctors, I called Rachel ( thanks Veronica). And lots of things made sense. She mentioned Louise Hay. I LOVE those books. Have several , read them all, thought how great they are, and somehow never learned to apply it... Why is that? The time must have been wrong then. One thing that Rachel said - and I totally believe and agree - is that there is no perfect ONE way to health and happiness : there is no such thing and a perfect diet - and you are healthy. It's a combination of spiritual, emotional and physical states. Now - is this new? NO. But do we really realize that? No. I am very grateful that the light turned on for me, finally. I believe, that we have our energy channels - call it how ever you want, there are so many names for it - that we communicate with divine beings whom we are going to become some day. I believe, that those channels can be blocked so easily too. And then all those 3 states are interdependent : when you have a better spiritual sense , you emotions are better , your diet is better. When your emotions are out of whack, what happens to your diet? and then spiritual being? Yeah... Does a situation like being really upset , eating a ton of "really not supposed to" stuff, and then beating yourself for it sounds familiar? I kinda doubt that after "pigging out" one would sit and say to him/herself " I am so great! i love myself! " Much stronger opposite is much more likely to occur ( to say it soft :)). So, here is the pattern, a triangle, all interconnected : spirituality, emotions, physicality. Does not matter in what order, but all need to be in balance.
One thing that Rachel said made my jaw dropped. My baby is wrapped in the cord, bad enough to cause a concern. When I mentioned it to her, she said " The reason the baby is wrapped from emotional point of view, is not because the baby is afraid to come into the world ( the logical explanation would-be). It is because the mother , somewhere deep inside, is rejecting the baby, or the fact of the pregnancy, or something that the baby and/or pregnancy is causing". I was speechless. As much as this is a VERY much wanted baby, and this is a VERY much wanted pregnancy, and I LOVE this baby dearly and worried about her all the time, there were so many times that I exclaimed " I HATE being pregnant! Why did I do it again? Why can't I just have a normal, worry-free pregnancy", etc, etc. And the more I thought about it - I did the same thing with my second pregnancy. But NEVER with the first. I loved every minute of it - from throwing up all 9 months, to contractions, to uncomfortable nights, etc, etc... My son was born early and unexpectedly , but you could not tell - 7 lb, perfect baby. My daughter was born just a couple of weeks sooner ( due to cord) - and despite of all the preparations , all the shots to mature baby's lungs, all the observations I had to do, she struggled. And a lot. One would think the opposite should have had occurred. And here is the answer to my question " Why while this is by far the most healthiest pregnancy that could have happened , there are so many uncontrollable problems? ". Those problems can be controlled, can be changed. It is something that one cannot physically prove , but that is why it is an emotional and spiritual state. We all know God lives. But prove it.

Reflexions on life...

Raw pregnancy evaluation

Some more thoughts. Pregnancy. I must say that I hate being pregnant and love it at the same time. There is nothing like a nausea and throw-up to make you want to double your birthcontrol, but there is also nothing like a little "wormy" in your belly that kicks and stretches to make you want to be pregnant again. I know I'll miss it when the baby is born. I really doubted if I wanted to be pregnant for the third time considering how sick I get. But I did. And while for some of the things it is the hardest pregnancy, I must say, that being 100% raw definitely helped me. Once I figured out how to listen to my body properly, I am pretty good about understanding what the baby needs. Not once those things made me sick. I learned that any craving - chocolate, conventional ice-cream, thanksgiving turkey , etc, etc - are not really the body needs. They are our emotional attachments. If to give in, i KNOW i'd regret dearly and pay for it by being very sick just after eating ( tried and proven twice) . So, again , not a body need, but an emotional attachment. Kind of like a kid gets attached to a teddy bear or a blanket. Interestingly enough, I found 2 very successful remedies for that: a good green salad ( or juice , or smoothie - I just love salads :)) and/or a cup of good herbal tea ( hey - raspberry leaf is always great while pregnant!) and a comfort movie/book. Those ALWAYS work. the salad fills the nutritional need - because sometimes our body wants/needs something, but we misinterpret the signal ( like wanting candy is usually a sure sign of starving for nutrition body. ) And the salad definitely covers all those areas. I usually find that after a salad I don't really want to eat anything any more. Things don't looks so good in my imagination or don't smell so good either ( if the downstairs are making something :)). The other one - a cup of tea and movie/book - also works great. Gives me that comfort that we need sometimes. But no hard "payback" later.
Another things - despite of the problems ( and again - unrelated to health, just the accidental things, just like with my other 2 pregos - so , despite of the problems, the baby has been doing so well. Actually, the best of all so far. I took the liberty, and after careful thinking and consideration I decided not to take any commercial ( and definitely RX) vitamins. My husband and I researched, learned, thought and decided that correct nutrition is much more beneficial then vitamins. You'll pee them out anyways, so why pay so much to just get an expensive pee, and plus , stuff the body with the by-products that cannot be processed properly. Chemicals are chemicals however you look at that. So, I got the wheatgrass, chlorella, rejuvelac, kombucha and definitely juices and salads. And interestingly enough, once I discontinued to take my prenatals, within days I started to feel much better. I realized, that my "living in the bathroom , not wanting to go anywhere and just die" pregnancies before were probably the bodies reaction to vitamins ( even thought I tried about 100, and was using the most natural ones, STILL - they don't grow on the tree, they are not 100% natural). A pregnant body is very sensitive to pollution. DId you know, that morning sickness if the way the body deals with excess toxins? The crazy thing is not to try and mellow it down with pills and stuff, but to let it run its course ( kinda what docs tell you when the baby get a flue rash - just let it run its course, it will be better that way. ). While it maybe hard initially, it is much better for you and the baby. This is the first time when I dared to do so. And I must say, while I REALLY wanted to die at first - i mean I really get sick - the process was faster and I started to feel better or was able to manage everything much better. The results for the baby - according to the U/S this is the healthiest and the best growing baby I had so far ( my babes always seem to slow down growing at the end - nobody really knows why) .AND while this time around I have a problem with placenta ( it did not attach properly at the beginning, and still is that way), the perinatologist was really concerned about the baby getting enough through this placenta, she is growing like a mushroom after rain. I know , that it is the proper nutrition and proper exercise too. I tried to educate myself the best I could on the natural pregnancy and birth, and while I don't know if I will be able to have a natural birth ( just some kinks... Although, I really wanted to ), I am still happy that at least my body will not be as overloaded with chemicals as it could be if I continues with my $32 a pill treatment for nausea and $80 a bottle prenatals. I hope that my body responds to whatever labor procedure will be ( I am thinking , it will probably have to be induction again) faster, and we both - Justin and I - are definitely very firm in standing out our desires of "no-no"s during the labor, that are really not necessary , but are there most of the time because of the "routine". So, will see how the labor goes.

Interesting thought

Ok. Just a little thinking and realizing. Our tastes have changes SO MUCH. I remember, last year I came across David Wolfe's stuff. I found the chocolate, that was absolutely raw. Cost $10 a "heart", but is was raw, but looked and felt like cooked. We bought some, loved it. This year our health food store "Real Foods Market" decided to carry it. We were SO EXCITED! While I could always buy it online, I never really got around to it. So, yesterday we made it be our treat day, and bought 4 hearts. And.... We were very disappointed! I guess, we became better chocolate makers ourselves! LOL :):):) Or , maybe , we got over excited and expected more. Or maybe , we just don't like chocolate any more so much. I know that the recipe didn't change a bit. Don't get me wrong , it is good. We just didn't like it so much any more. I love the chocolate candies that we make ( the recipe is in earlier posts) much, much better. Well, the kids love it anyway. LOL. Kids and candy. What can you say. :)

Sea Veggies

 

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So, for the past few weeks I've been craving sea vegetables ( sea weeds :)) . I don't know what it is in them that I need right now ( need to research and see, maybe baby's development right now requires more minerals) , but I know they are super rich in minerals, and are a great source of B-12. So, something there is what my body needs. I've been wrapping everything into the nori sheets, and then dipping those in tahini dressing ( oh , we had lot's of fun making different tahini dressings too!!). But today I read on one of the other sites about kelp noodles, and happen to find them in our health food store! SUPERB!!! As they are raw, and basically, just tasteless - they just have this noodley texture and are somewhat crunchy at first, but if you soak them in a dressing or marinade, they completely absorb any flavor! I tired them with my tahini sauce ( of course) and with marinade

Olive oil
apple cider vinegar
water
salt
spices
Everything to taste , as everyone is different. I like my "tingy", so I add a lot more vinegar and cayenne.

After soaking them in the marinade for 10 minutes , the noodles were FANTASTIC!!! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them. And apparently, as i was reading the package, you can use them in salads, soups, etc. Well, here comes the "benefits of sea veggies" heaven!

Some more...

I have to just post this quote that I got in my email today! I loved it - it's SO TRUE! So, here you go:

"If you fall off the bandwagon, don’t be discouraged! Sometimes the harder you fall, the stronger the momentum you have to get back up. What typically happens is that you find yourself equipped with an even stronger mindset that nothing will stop you. Use this to your advantage. Be encouraged. I like what Tony Robbins (one of my favorite personal growth experts) has to say, “When you’re frustrated, that is the time to get excited – because you are about to have a breakthrough.” Whoo-hoo! Now, THAT'S what I'm talking about! "

Olya

Awesome CHEESE

Absolutely fantastic! I never thought that probiotics can substitute for cheese culture so well! We did this today too ( we are having a "sunday heaven" for new recipes, and although it needs to be in the fridge for 24 hours ( and it is, but I really had to fight the kids), we tried it while making and it is fabulous! Kids are licking the bowl and forks.

Garlic & Dill Cheeze

1 cup Cashew Cheeze (See recipe below)

1 generous teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced chives

1 teaspoon nutritional yeast flakes

1/4 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

---

Finely ground almonds, dried dill and garlic powder for the crust

Combine Cashew Cheeze, chives, garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and salt in a bowl. Stir until well mixed. Add fresh herbs and stir until well distributed. Taste and adjust salt, if desired.

Shape the Cheeze mixture into a round or press firmly into a small container or bowl lined with plastic film. Sprinkle mixture of ground almonds, dried dill and garlic powder on top. Allow to chill for at least 12 hours or until it firms up.

When firm, de-mold, turn over and transfer onto a plate. Sprinkle more dried herbs on top and sides.

Store in fridge in airtight container for up to 3 or 4 days.

Basic Cashew Cheeze

3 cups cashews, soaked 12-14 hours

3 capsules probiotics

2/3 cup fresh rejuvelac (see instructions in this post)

In high speed blender, blend the soaked cashews with probiotics and rejuvelac until smooth.

Line a sieve with a double thickness of cheesecloth and place over a bowl. Transfer the mixture to the sieve, drape the cheesecloth over the top, cover with a towel and leave in a warm place to ripen for 14-16 hours.

Season according to one of the following recipes (or come up with your own variation!)

Alternatively, shape the mixture into a round, place in a covered container, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, or until it firms up.

Notes:
~ You could sub the probiotics with some miso; the idea is to give the culture a kick start.

~ If you don't have rejuvelac, fresh water would also work.

~ It is key to use as little liquid as possible for best results in terms of texture.

~ You may want to adjust the culturing time, depending on how 'strong' you like your cheeze.

Rejuvelac Demystified
My good friend and accomplished raw chef Heathy was telling me the other day how she felt intimidated by that whole rejuvelac thing. I know where she's coming from as I was in her shoes only a few weeks ago. However, there's really not much to it. Put simply, rejuvelac is obtained by soaking sprouted grains in fresh water for a couple of days, so don't let the length of these next instructions turn you off.

To Make Rejuvelac
I'm sure there are many different ways to make rejuvelac, but here's the basic technique as described on the Sproutpeople's site.

Ingredients

2 Cups Rye

10 Cups Water

2 Qt. Jar

Preparation

1. Soak 2 cups of Rye in your 2 quart jar. Cover with 1 quart or more of cool (60-70 °) water. Stir seeds up to assure even water contact. Soak for 8 - 12 hours.

2. Pour off water.

3. Rinse (fill Jar 3/4 full with water), twirl vigorously, pour water out, and repeat - if necessary - until water runs clear). Use cool (60-70°) water.

4. Drain thoroughly by shaking your Jar - you want as little water as possible to remain in your Jar between Rinses. Set your Jar in a low-light, room temperature (70° is best) location.

4. Rinse and Drain (repeat steps 3 + 4) again 8 - 12 hours later.

5. 8 - 12 hours later your seeds will have the beginnings of little tails (sprouts). Add 6 cups of water (spring, purified or tap - your choice) to the sprouts and place the jar in the usual low-light, room temperature (70° is best) location for 2 days.

6. Pour liquid - this is your Rejuvelac - into a glass and drink some! Refrigerate the remainder until ready to drink or use in a recipe.

7. You may make more Rejuvelac by repeating step 3 and then adding 1 quart of water. Place your Jar in the usual location and culture your Rejuvelac for 1 day - then follow step 6 again.

Your sprouts are now pretty much spent, so toss ‘em to the critters (squirrels, rabbits, birds and many other outdoor creatures love sprouts) or compost them - or - throw ‘em in the garbage - it’s nice to add a little organic matter to a landfill though, don’t you think?

Notes:
~ You can make rejuvelac out of other grains too, but wheat and rye are the most commonly used. My last batch was made with sprouted quinoa, and it turned out great.

~ If you only want rejuvelac in order to make cheese, you might want to cut the recipe way down. I'm experimenting with freezing the left-over rejuvelac for future usage. Hopefully it will still work! *fingers crossed*

Alright! Now this is the part where it gets really fun and interesting!

You get to come up with whatever flavors you want: chive, sun dried olives and fresh basil, rosemary and thyme, or jalapeño pepper. Mmmmmmm... So many variations to play with! For my part, I opted for the following...

Cashew Cheeze au Poivre
Adapted from a recipe by Chad Sarno

1 cup Cashew Cheeze

1 tbs nutritional yeast, small flake

1/4 tbs onion powder

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp sea salt

---

Coarsely crushed peppercorns for the crust

Place first 5 ingredients in a bowl and mix well with a spoon.

Shape the Cheeze mixture into a round or press firmly into a small container or bowl lined with plastic film.

While still in the pan, sprinkle the crushed peppercorns on top. Allow to chill for at least 12 hours or until it firms up.

When firm, demold, turn over and transfer onto a plate. Sprinkle more peppercorns on top and sides.

Store in fridge in airtight container for up to 3 or 4 days.

Herb Cheeze
Adapted from a recipe in Charlie Trotter's Raw

1 cup Cashew Cheeze

1 tsp minced green onion

1/4 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp nutritional yeast, large flakes

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tsp chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 tsp dried)

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)

---

Dried basil and thyme for the crust

Combine Cashew Cheeze, green onion, lemon juice, nutritional yeast and salt in a bowl, and stir until well mixed. Add fresh or dried herbs and stir until well distributed. Taste and adjust salt, if desired.

Shape the Cheeze mixture into a round or press firmly into a small container or bowl lined with plastic film. Sprinkle

dried herbs on top. Allow to chill for at least 12 hours or

until it firms up.

When firm, de-mold, turn over and transfer onto a plate. Sprinkle more dried herbs on top and sides.

Store in fridge in airtight container for up to 3 or 4 days.

Garlic Paprika Cheeze

1 cup Cashew Cheese

1/4 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp nutritional yeast, large flake

1/4 tsp onion powder

3/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

---

Paprika for the crust

Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl and stir until well mixed. Taste and adjust salt, if desired.

Shape the Garlic Paprika Cheeze mixture into a round or press firmly into a small container or bowl lined with plastic film. Sprinkle paprika on top. Allow to chill for at least 12 hours or until it firms up.

When firm, de-mold, turn over and transfer onto a plate. Sprinkle more paprika on top and sides.

Store in fridge in airtight container for up to 3 or 4 days.

Oh, and have I mentioned that nut cheeze even freezes well?

Raw BORSHCH

This is our borshch recipe. As I am a ukrainian, and PREGNANT ukrainian, I was craving the food I grew up with. So, as we didn't want to cook it, we made up a raw recipe. It actually, really tastes like a true borshch, just like it is supposed to.

BORSHCH

Ingredients:

First step:

3 beets ( medium)

7 bay leaves

4 cloves of garlic

4 cups of water

Salt

Second step:

2 carrots

2 celery sticks

2 roma ( or one large) tomatoes

1 large red bell pepper

2 large spoons of miso ( brown rice miso is what we use)

1/2 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar

4-5 small small sundried tomato halves

All purpose seasoning

Ms Dash seasoning

Salt

4 cups of water

Optional - Olive Oil ( we don't like it with oil, but my sister loved it)

Third step :

Cut in thin strips ( or shred)

Cabbage

Carrot

Jicama ( dice in cubes)

Green onions

Parsley

Red bell pepper ( can do green here too)

Dill weed

Onion ( sweet ) - optional

Mashrooms ( portobellos are great ) - optional

Zucchini ( cubed) optional

Nutritional yeast - optional

Preparation

First step : put all ingredients from the first step in the blender , blend. Pour in the large bowl or pot. Use a spoon to take of the foam.

Second step : blend everything from the second step , pour into the pot/bowl. There shouldn't be more foam, but if there is - scrape if off with the spoon. Mix some dill weed in, adjust taste with salt/seasonings if you need to.

Third step : shred/dice veggies, salt them a little, put it all in the pot. Mix. Use as much of veggies as you like your soup to be. We like it with lot's of veggies, but still with enough liquid.

To serve : Put a good pinch of nutritional yeast into the bowl. Pour soup. Mix. Also , can add mushrooms ( broken into pieces) and a little of cashews or pine nuts ( kids love it with nuts). On top put a spoonful of sour cream. Decorate with more parsley or other greens.

PS : Onion bread goes SO GOOD with it!

SOUR CREAM

sunflower seeds or cashews ( soaked)

lemon juice

salt

water

Blend to the consistency you like your sour cream to be. If have time - add a capsule of probiotic and leave overnight on the counter , then refrigerate. If not - add more lemon juice and refrigerate

FAMOUS ONION BREAD

Ingredients
3 large yellow onions

¾ cup flax seed, ground in blender

¾ cup raw sunflower seed, ground in food processor

½ cup nama shoyu

Preparation
Peel and halve the onions. In a food processor, cut the onions with the slicing disc. Transfer the cut onions to a large mixing bowl, add the remaining ingredients and mix until the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

Spread 2 cups of the mixture evenly on a dehydrator tray lined with a Teflex sheet. Repeat until all of the mixture is used. Dehydrate at 100’f for 24 hours. Flip the tray over onto a work surface, and gently peel the Teflex sheet off the bread. Return to dehydrator for another 12 hours. Once dehydrated, cut into 9 equal pieces (makes 9 cuts horizontally and 2 cuts vertically).

EnJOY!!!!!