Emily von Euw's Blog, page 17

TACOS with TOMATO CORN SALSA + SPICY NUT MEAT

The power was out for 24 hours [until just a couple hours ago] 'cause of crazy wind storms so I had no choice but to make raw food yesterday for lunch. Thus, this recipe requires no equipment but a knife and a hand or two. Fortunately I was planning on making it anyways. What we've got here is cabbage leaves wrapping up fresh, juicy, limey veggies with crunchy, spicy nuts and seeds. Ya can't go wrong.

I want to take a moment now and say: if you dig this recipe, I HIGHLY SUGGEST you pre-order my new cookbook, The Rawsome Vegan Cookbook. Why? Because it's full of recipes just like this one: raw or gently-cooked, whole foods, gluten-free, vegan, quick and easy to make... and oh yeah - every recipe has its own full page colour photo, taken by yours truly of course. I know you all have been asking for more savoury recipes and a savoury cookbook from me for awhile now. FINALLY I answer your calls. It's all in The Rawsome Vegan Cookbook. I am gonna be blunt and announce: this is my best book yet. I will be doing a whole post - maybe more than one - on my new book soon so stay tuned for some insider info there. For now I will direct you to >> this page << where I list all the places you can pre-order The Rawsome Vegan Cookbook now. As a personal challenge to myself I wanna get 500 pre-orders on this baby so if you know/are pretty sure you're gonna buy it at some point, send me some love and pre-order now. Okay I feel weird when I self-promote for this long so I will quit it. Back to the recipe.

These tacos come together in no time at all, look beautiful, are basically fool-proof as long as you can handle a knife, and taste AMAZING. So fresh, juicy and crunchy all at once. Plus, as always, they are suuuuuuper good for ya. I made 'em while my friend, Sophie, was staying over so I forced her to be my hand model (for once Jack got off the hook). She just got a new tattoo and you can see it peaking through in one of images. Hope you like the recipe! I have a list of adaptions you can do if you don't have all the ingredients or prefer to use other ingredients. xxox


TACOS with TOMATO CORN SALSA + SPICY NUT MEAT
Probably serves you and a friend

Taco shells:
1 small savoy cabbage

Salsa:
4 heirloom tomatoes
2 cobs of corn
1 cup packed basil leaves
2 limes
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Nut meat:
1/3 cup pecans
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
3/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
3/4 teaspoon cumin powder
1/8 teaspoon or more chili powder, if desired
1 teaspoon tamari 

Tear off the cabbage leaves gently: instant taco shells.

To make the salsa: chop the tomatoes as roughly or finely as you like. Slice the corn off the cob. Mince the basil and juice the lime. Throw everything together, including the pepper. It should taste really yummy.

To make the nut meat: finely chop the nuts and seeds then toss in the tamari and spices. Nom.

Fill your taco shells with the salsa and nut meat. Enjoy.

ADAPTIONS: use lettuce instead of cabbage; any seeds or nuts instead of pecans and sunflower seeds; soy sauce, coconut amino or Bragg's instead of tamari; any veg you like instead of tomatoes and corn.

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COFFEE CREAM CAKE with CHOCO CRUST + DATE SYRUP

This is a re-up of a recipe I did aaaaaages ago and that is also featured in my [best-selling, heh heh] raw vegan desserts cookbook, Rawsome Vegan Baking. It's damn fine. Basically it's like vanilla "cheese"cake but with coffee and chocolate infused. Yup, I know. Obviously I added goji berries and pumpkin seeds on top because A) colour and B) yum. 
The star of this recipe is the date syrup though. It's in the chocolate crust, the coffee cream and on top. Yes you can make your own date syrup very easily: blend up some dates with water, vanilla and a tiny bit of salt until you get a heavenly, sweet caramel-type substance... not a bad idea. But recently Vegan Cuts (check them out) sent me a few bottles of date syrup from The Date Lady and my life will never be the same again. It's like liquid toffee or something. But the thing is: the only ingredient is ORGANIC DATES. They don't add anything else! Having said that, they sell other versions like a chocolate spread and a caramel date sauce which are BOTH INSANELY GOOD. But the original kind is my fave and it makes everything better. Smoothies, desserts, savoury and sweet sauces, heck it'd probably be good for your skin if you rubbed it all over yourself in a moment of extreme adoration for the stuff. Likely to happen. 
I made this cake for Jack's birthday on Thursday and brought it over to his family's dinner. We had bought some raspberries at a farmers market earlier in the day so I added those on top too (highly recommended). They really liked it! His lil bro had two pieces. Note: Jack's family is the best. I love them. Just had to say that. They are so supportive of everything I do and his grandma may as well my Sales Rep because she has gotten so many people to buy my cookbooks. There were no leftovers of this cake. Gone. I think when you are in the business of making food for others, the best compliment is an empty plate at the end of the meal. 

COFFEE CREAM CAKE with CHOCO CRUST + DATE SYRUP
Serves eight

Choco crust:
1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
1/4 cup date syrup
2 tablespoons coconut butter

Coffee cream:
2 cups raw cashews, soaked for 3 hours in water then rinsed1/4 teaspoon vanilla bean3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
1/4 cup date syrup1/8 teaspoon salt1/2 cup very strong, brewed organic coffee
Toppings:Pumpkin seedsGoji berriesDate syrup!
To make the crust: stir up the flour with the syrup and coco butter until it resembles a crumbly dough that holds it's shape when pressed together between a couple fingers. If it's too crumbly, add more date syrup. If it's too moist, add more flour. Press into the bottom of a springform pan or adjustable pan (mine was about 7 or 8 inches). Put in the fridge.
To make the mocha cream: blend all the ingredients together until smooth and delicious. Add some more liquid if it's too thick, or some dates or coconut oil if it's too thin. You want it to have the consistency of thick yogurt. Spread evenly onto your crust and leave in the fridge for 24 hours so the flavours can develop and the cake can set. 
Decorate with the toppings and enjoy!
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DECADENT SUPERFOOD CHOCOLATE CAKE

I cannot lie to you and say this recipe is super innovative. I have done several raw vegan chocolate cakes on this blog in the past and yes, this is another one. But while it may be lacking in revolutionary flavour combinations, it still tastes really effin' good. And I mean c'mon, does chocolate ever truly get boring? (No.)

I made this cake to showcase a raw organic [vegan...duh] cacao-based blend called Rockin' Wellness. It's a formula created by a couple music-loving health enthusiasts (Seth and Mike) who wanted to make a mix they could easily include in their day that would give them energy and nutrition all in one. I think it tastes really good. I love adding it to frozen bananas and water after the gym and blending... it becomes a chocolate shake. The ingredients are all foods I am wanting to incorporate more in my diet. I have been listening to Rich Roll's podcast a lot lately and taking notes on foods and supplements he - and the very intelligent people he interviews - recommend. What's great about Rockin' Wellness is that nearly all the ingredients are on my list of what I wanna eat more of. Flax, hemp, maca, etc. Score. If you wanna try some Rockin' Wellness, this is a good place to start.

They add cane sugar which I don't mind (although some of you might) so you can add it to a not particularly sweet smoothie to make it taste great. I also appreciate that it doesn't irritate my skin. I mentioned this in a post awhile ago and I'll recap now: about a year ago my facial skin started getting really sensitive, flaky, red and itchy; especially around my nose. At first I thought it was because I was eating too much sugar (I eat looooads of fruit everyday) so I tried to limit my fruit intake. Well that was a stupid idea because 1) I love fruit too much to restrict it, and 2) it didn't work anyway. So then I found some stories of people healing the same problem by eating a MOSTLY FRUIT diet. The human body is a weird thing. But I tried that and it worked. I was already eating a mostly fruit diet anyways but I also lowered my fat intake a bit. My skin has cleared up. My digestion still is not on point though so I am gonna go see my doc soon. When I actually stop procrastinating and call him.

This cake is delicious and made with mainly whole foods. It's gluten-free and very decadent. Enjoy.

Oh wait P.S. in case you were wondering: I had SUCH a fun time at Spokane Vegfest! I did presentation on overcoming eating disorders and depression on a vegan diet and also did a recipe demo. I got to meet inspiring people in the animal rights movement and noticed the vegan community in Spokane is decidedly very LGBTQI+ oriented as well. YES! I rubbed piggies' bellies and ate [probably too much] vegan mac and cheese pizza. I had the privilege of meeting some of you guys too! It's always overwhelmingly flattering for me when someone comes up to ask for my picture with them or if I'll sign their book. I wish we could hang out forever. Anyhoo, let's eat cake.


DECADENT SUPERFOOD CHOCOLATE CAKE

Frosting:
1/2 cup dates
1/2 cup raisins
3 scoops Rockin' Wellness chocolate blend (or cacao powder)
1/8 teaspoon Himalayan salt
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean
2 tablespoons coconut butter
2 tablespoons almond butter
2 tablespoons maple syrup
3/4 cup water

Cake:
1 1/2 cups buckwheat groats
1/2 cup pistachios
1/2 cup brazil nuts
3 scoops Rockin' Wellness chocolate blend (or cacao powder)
1 cup dates
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 cup water

To make the frosting: blend everything together until smooth and delicious. Put in the fridge until it firms up and becomes more like the consistency of buttercream. It's really the best when you let it sit in the fridge overnight because the flavours develop more.

To make the cake: grind the groats and nuts into flour in a high speed blender. Add the flour to a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients and process until it forms a dough; it should come together in a ball and be able to keep it's shape but still be a little crumbly. Roll out and cut into rectangles or whatever shape you want your cake to be. Put in the fridge until they firm up.

Assembly: layer the cake with the frosting until you run out of one or both. Carefully slice with a sharp hot knife and serve to a 8-10 lucky folks. Ideal when paired with banana or coconut ice cream.

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BLUEBERRY NICE CREAM with CINNAMON + BAOBAB

Vegans get all the good stuff. Longer lives, better sex, and as much ice cream as we want. 'Cept we call it Nice Cream 'cause we didn't steal the ingredients from cows. Anyhow: eating massive bowls of nice cream for breakfast, lunch or dinner is 100% a THING in the vegan world. This is because our nice cream is just made of frozen bananas and other fruit. That's why you can and SHOULD eat as much as you want. In this version I'm givin' ya today, I threw in blueberries from the front yard as well as some baobab and cinnamon powders for A) extra flavour and B) extra nutrition.

It tastes real good. I like to eat nice cream for dessert most of the time, it satisfies my sweet tooth but it's a light recipe (seriously, it's just fruit) so you don't feel bogged down afterwards by butter or sugar or whatever else is in conventional desserts. Sometimes I will have it as an appetizer though, or even breakfast if the day is exceptionally hot. It doesn't matter when you have it or how much you have because it's all good for you! Unless you are deathly allergic to fruit, in which case I am very sorry. So sorry.

This is the third and final chapter in my trio of recipes done for the British Columbia Blueberry Council. They asked me to do some to promote... well... blueberries grown in BC. They are a community of a bunch of berry farmers in the province and FYI: BC grows like all the blueberries in the world. Almost. Our climate and blueberries are BFFs thanks to evolution. I was thinking about this yesterday: how cool is it that BC blueberries have their own council!? I mean as a vegan I know aaaaall too well about the freakin' Beef Boards and Dairy Councils in the US and Canada. They control government policy regarding their own yucky products and so long story shortened and simplified: that's why people still think milk and meat are good for you. Derp. They also have all the moneys to run gross, misleading ads on TV and billboards everywhere. But why can't we see ads for the foods that are actually good for us!? It almost never happens. I remember that a few years ago there would OCCASIONALLY be this commercial on for broccoli. Yes, there was a TV ad for BROCCOLI. I was so excited and would always cheer on the Broccoli Board from in front of my screen. But I guess that campaign was short-lived because I don't see it anymore. Nice try though, Brocco Board.

So the fact that the Blueberry Council is active and engaged in the vegan community (they contacted me and offered to sponsor these three posts) makes me happy. We need more boards and councils representing organics whole plant foods to step up like the blueberry guys are doing.


BLUEBERRY NICE CREAM with CINNAMON + BAOBAB
Serves one or two

Ice cream:
3 peeled frozen chopped bananas
3/4 cup fresh or frozen BC blueberries
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 teaspoon baobab powder

Toppings:
1/3 cup fresh BC blueberries
2 tablespoons date syrup

Blend it all up 'til smooth like soft serve. Nom. I like to top mine off with more blueberries and date syrup. 

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BLUEBERRY BANANA ICE CREAM CAKE with GINGER + CAROB

I don't have a whole lot of energy today because - yippee - it's the first day of this month's Menstrual Party. But ya know what: it's cool. For the first one or two days I have a really sore lower back and will sporadically burst into tears when there's an uplifting background song playing in a radio commercial, but after that it's only about three more days of hardly noticing the flow and I am back to "normal". All together it's a necessary celebration of sorts, since it means I am healthy and fertile. Like some good soil.
...
Anyway. 
The whole point of me divulging that information was to illustrate that even though I am going through this bloody cycle today; I still made this cake. And THEREFORE, this cake is super easy to make. It's also raw, vegan, gluten-free, low in fat and high in fruit. Yay for life/fruit. This is my second instillation of my 3-part recipe series I'm gettin' done for the British Columbia Blueberry Council. They are an organization of different blueberry farmers in this province, and lots use organic practices. What you should know (besides a vague education about my PMS) is that blueberries from BC are the best. I already knew that but now you do too. ALSO: most of the high bush blueberries (the big plump ones) distributed throughout the whole world are from BC. We have prime real estate to make the juiciest high bush blue babes around. Get' em fresh right now if you live around the pacific north west, ooooooor find them frozen basically everywhere else, all year. 
Blueberries are super rich in cancer-fighting antioxidants and several studies have linked them to benefitting brain health. All that is great but at the end of the day I love them for their flavour. Juicy, sweet, slightly tart and always vibrantly coloured - blueberries are one of my top fave foods ever. 
About the recipe: it's really yummy. Essentially it's a smoothie in the form of an ice cream cake. If that concept makes it unappealing to you, forget I said it. But if you are like me, a smoothie cake only sounds more enticing. We've got a chocolate crust followed by banana blueberry ice cream infused with fresh ginger aaaand vanilla. I topped it off with more blueberries plus some brazil nuts. Did ya know: eating a couple brazil nuts errday gives you all the selenium you need (for the day)? Plant power, man. 
I really need to go lie down with my heat pad now and get comfy with Netflix and another piece of this cake. I'll talk to you later. x

BLUEBERRY BANANA ICE CREAM CAKE with VANILLA, GINGER and CAROB
Makes one 6-inch cake

Crust:
1/2 cup buckwheat groats
1/2 cup gooey dates
2 heaping tablespoons carob powder

Ice cream:
1 1/2 cups frozen peeled bananas
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 teaspoon chunk peeled ginger
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean pod

Topping:
1/4 cup roughly chopped brazil nuts
1/3 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

To make the crust: grind the groats into flour in a high speed blender. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend (or use a food processor) until it comes together in a ball. Press into the bottom of a lined 6-inch springform pan.

To make the ice cream: blend all the ingredients together until it gets to the consistency of soft serve ice cream. I like to scoop it out when there's still pieces of white and purple ice cream. It's more interesting to look at. Scoop this onto your crust and even it out with a spatula. Decorate with some more blueberries plus brazil nuts and put in the freezer for 20-30 minutes until you can cut it. Cut it. Eat it. Nom.

ADAPTIONS: use vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean pod; use coconut, seeds, nuts or oats instead of buckwheat groats; use cacao or cocoa instead of carob; use ginger powder instead of fresh ginger. 

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VANILLA CHIA OAT PUDDING with LOCAL BC BLUEBERRIES

Let's celebrate BLUEBERRIES. I like to call 'em my BBs because it kind of makes sense and also shows my adoration for them. The first time I truly understood the phrase, "You are what you eat", was when I was picking blueberries from the front yard a few years ago. I was gently taking them from the branches into my mouth and really appreciating the smells, tastes, colours and textures of the experience. I was talking to the berries (obviously) and that's when it hit me: they are going to BECOME me as much as I am going to become them! I am not simply eating. I am participating in a relationship of synthesis. The blueberry and myself are changing our structures to become one being together, different from before I consumed them. Their cells will become mine, and simultaneously my cells will become theirs. Does that make any sense? Do I just sound cooky?? Ah, I know what I mean so at least there's that. Anyways, I love BBs. That's the point.

I am going to be doing three posts (starting with this one right here) over the next couple weeks, dedicated to my devotion to blueberries, thanks to the BC Blueberries Council. They were kind enough to send me a box of local, organic smoothie ingredients a few months ago (including frozen blueberries!); and recently they got in touch with me again, wondering if I'd be down with them sponsoring some blog posts about BC BBs. Duh. Yes.

All summer, every summer, I basically live off the blueberry bushes in the front yard which seem happy to provide brain-building fruits the whole season. Sometimes I wish I lived in a tropical part of the globe so I could feast on papayas, mangos and durian whenever I pleased; but it's the blueberries that keep me blissed up staying on this rainy west coast. BC is responsible for growing most of the world's highbush blueberries (I didn't know that until I learned it from the BC Blueberry Council!!), which legit makes me proud of this province. We are the largest highbush blueberry growing region in the world!! FTW!? Blueberries are the jewel of BC, they make me grateful to live here.

If you wanna find more blueberry recipes besides the ones I will be sharing, check out the Council's recipe page (lots of 'em are vegan).

I know I am a lucky-ass duck for having organic blueberry bushes in my front yard, but not to fret if that's not your situation. BC Blueberries are sold across Canada (and the States), AND not just in the summer. You can get frozen BBs all year. Buy blueberries labelled "Canadian" or if you're in Canada, they'll probably be labelled "local". Right now they are at AAALL the farmers markets here in BC so move your cute butt over to one right now.

P.S. heirloom tomatoes are coming too... yes!!


VANILLA CHIA OAT PUDDING with BLUEBERRIES
Serves 4-6

Pudding:
2 cups water
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean 
1-2 tablespoons maple syrup, as desired
1/4 cup chia seeds

Toppings:
2 cups blueberries
4 tablespoons goji berries
1 tablespoon cacao nibs

To make the pudding: blend everything together - except the chia seeds - until smooth. Strain through cheese cloth or a nut mylk bag to make it really fine. Stir in the chia seeds and leave alone for 30 minutes, until the seeds puff up and the mixture becomes like a rice pudding consistency. Top with all the goodies and eat!

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VANILLA CHERRY NICE CREAM

So. I shaved my head. (Well actually Jack shaved it, but only because I asked him to.) We're all voyeurs at heart so if you wanna see what I look like now, just check out the photo on Instagram.

I have a few strong, beautiful women in my life who have all shaved their heads when they were around my age, and when the topic would come up in conversation I'd get dreamy eyes and say, "Oh, I should just shave all my hair off too!" They'd agree, and I'd promise myself I would eventually do it when I was ready. This seems to be a reoccurring process for me. I learn of some kind of lifestyle, hobby, diet, etc. that I initially admire but simultaneously think is nuts and way too challenging for me. The idea slowly grows on me over months or years, until I begin to really resonate with it and start to realize it's only a matter of time before I adopt whatever ideology, activity or life-change it is. Eventually, I do adopt it. Once that happens I feel like a better, improved, more enlightened version of myself. Not only have I overcome something I once thought to be too extreme for me to do, it's something that opens my mind more to the world around me, and probably makes me a more responsible agent of nonviolence, sustainability, strength, self-love, or whatever aspect is relevant to the change I've made.

Examples: going vegan, quitting shaving my pits and legs, quitting makeup, getting rid of nearly all my clothes and other belongings in place of only what I need, beginning meditating, buying organic food and clothing, going to the farmers market every week, getting back on my bike, lifting HEAVY in the gym, buying ethical clothing, writing a cookbook (and then two more), going nude in public, buying whole boxes of bananas, doing public recipe demos, cutting my hair super short, then shaving it all off... I feel like I am forgetting a bunch but ah well.

I wanted to shave my head because to me it symbolizes empowerment, independence, confidence, minimalism, and functionality. I was still too attached to my old worries about beauty for a long time, until finally a week ago I spent the day with Sophie - a lovely vegan human who was visiting from Australia - eating fruit, sunbathing on the beach and discussing veganism, gender and the lack of hair on her scalp. This was the third female in my life who had shaved their head and implored me to do the same. I was ready this time. Something had changed in me, I let go of those last few attachments to what I thought equaled "beauty". I texted Jack that evening and told him he was going to shave my head. He wouldn't be my lover if he was the type of person who'd think this was a weird request. We did it that night and when I looked in the mirror at the finished product I flipped out for half a sec. But then I got over it and have since fallen in love with the absence of hair.

In my opinion: I think makeup, colourful clothes, nail polish and all the rest of the decorations we adorn ourselves with are distractions from my central self. I am a minimalist and functionalist, although I do have my aesthetic preferences. At the end of the day, I want to get to know me better. And the less distractions there are, the more successful I'll be. As I strip away the layers of gender and fashion, I see more of myself looking back at me in the mirror. As I get to know myself more, I love myself more.

Self-love, to me, is real beauty.

My choice to shave my head comes from a place of minimalism but also a place of resistance. Resistance against gendered structures built around us since birth, and against the power of social norms and public acceptance. I'd like to point out that this is MY perspective. I can imagine how someone else would come to opposite conclusions using the same line of thinking. Example: covering yourself in colourful clothes, shiny nails and bright makeup could be just as much a stand against societal norms as me shaving my head; same goes for dressing and acting within the accepted binary but as the opposite gender to which you were assigned at birth. We are all unique - thank heavens - so I embrace the different routes each of us is taking to express ourselves. However, if this resonates with you, consider shaving your head. You'll look gorgeous. You'll feel new. It's fun to rub.

Onto cherry nice cream. It's the bomb dot com.


VANILLA CHERRY NICE CREAM
Serves one or two

Nice cream:
4 peeled, frozen, chopped bananas
1/3 cup pitted cherries
1/8 teaspoon whole vanilla bean 

Topping:
1/3 cup pitted cherries

To make the nice cream: blend it all up until it's like soft serve. Yum. Top with the left over cherries and eat. If you don't have whole vanilla bean, use 1/8 teaspoon vanilla powder or 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract.

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This post was my contribution to a blog series called The 30 Day Beauty Detox, put on by Jacqueline Parker. Did you like this post? Then *subscribe to my blog* and get all my posts by email!

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CHOCOLATE PUDDING BOWLS with COCONUT CREAM + CHERRIES

This recipe is everything you want chocolate pudding to be. I have nothing else to say for now, so talk soon.

X


CHOCOLATE PUDDING BOWLS with COCONUT CREAM + CHERRIES
Serves four or five humans

Pudding:
2 avocados 
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup cacao powder
Pinch Himalayan salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 teaspoon vanilla powder
1/2 cup almond mylk 

Coco cream:
Use this recipe (minus the sugar)

Toppings:
Cherries
Cacao nibs

To make the pudding: blend everything together until smooth, creamy and thick. Adjust according to preference. Serve in bowls with whipped coco cream, cherries and cacao nibs. Nom.

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RAW VEGAN MYLK CHOCOLATE BARS

HOLY CRAP YUMMMMM. So these actually taste like the candy bars I used to greedily inhale when I was a kid. Sweet, creamy decadence in the shape we have come to recognize as holy: the chocolate bar. When you think about it, there is nothing intrinsically appealing about chocolate; it's brown, solid and sold in unnatural brick or chip forms. But why we love it is because we've got brains that allow us to remember good experiences, like eating a sugar-dense meal (chocolate bars).

It's a good memory because all our cells run on carbs, and sugar is fuuuull of 'em. So we have this awesome time eating super sweet chocolate, and from then on whenever we see it, we know what it is beyond it's unassuming and kinda drab - unless you're crazy about earth tones - appearance. Anyways, evolution ramble over. These were a random creation because Jack wanted chocolate this morning and since I am the best life partner ever I threw some stuff in the Blendtec mini twister jar (I love the thing) and magically mylk chocolate bars came out. There's not even any vegan mylk involved in this recipe but no one ever said this blog was based on logic or consistency. So the ingredient amounts listed are not exact, since I wasn't keeping track while I tossed stuff in the blender. In any case though, taste as you go and the result is gonna be THE BOMB DOT COM. This is not the healthiest recipe I've ever posted - although it's still raw, vegan and gluten-free - but when you want to satisfy that sweet tooth craving and miss the chocolate bars you used to get from the corner store after school and not tell your mom about (a lot of people did that, right?), you've found the right recipe. Also, if you're just starting to get into healthy living or vegan treats, this is a wise one to try because it's gonna make everyone flip out in a good way. Let's chocolate. I did just use chocolate as a verb and I'm okay with it.


RAW VEGAN MYLK CHOCOLATE BARS
Makes two bars but they are VERY decadent so you only need a few bites at a time

3 tablespoons coconut sugar
2-3 tablespoon hazelnut butter (ideally from Prana Bio cuz it's like Nutella)
2 tablespoons cacao powder (I used this though)
Pinch of Himalayan salt
1/4 teaspoon chopped vanilla bean (or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
2 tablespoons coconut oil 
A few dates if you want there to be chewy middle (you do) 

Blend everything - except the dates - together until smooth and liquid. Taste it: it should be unreal. Then pour into chocolate bar molds or whatever shape you fancy, dump in a date to create a chewy centre, let them get hard in the fridge, and then eat. YUSSS. Jack and I decorated ours with pomegranate and pumpkin seeds. Plus figs. Oh and I put some peanuts in Jack's, he loved that.

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CHOCOLATE CHERRY ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Yummy yummy. Biodynamic cherries are iiiiin at the fm (farmers market) and I could not be happier. Yes, they are $12 a bag but I don't really care. The rest of the year all we get at the fm are potatoes and kale and beets for like a buck a pound. Time to indulge, BB. I think these ice cream treats are sexy to look at but also - hopefully not TMI for you - I came up with the idea for them during some sex. My mind is an explicable tunnel system of random thoughts and feelings. Who knows what I'll think of next... and when. Actually now that I am thinking about this I am really excited for the recipe ideas that come to me on my death bed! I can see how some would see how this blog post was first explicit and then a little morose, but honestly I'm just bein' real. I could be WAY more explicit, believe me, but then this might not be safe for work. I have such a passion for love-making but I never really know if this is the right place to share it. I guess I will find out in the comment section soon.

Back to the recipe: it's a party in yo mouth. Just fresh fruit and some buckwheat groats make these creamy sweet ice cream sandwiches RAW, VEGAN, GLUTEN-FREE and pretty low in fat. I just love adding Prana Bio's almond butter because uggggh it makes everything taste like marzipan. Magic. Eat these whenever you want. Breakfast, snack, lunch, dinner, whatevs. Like I said, it's legit just fruit so you can't go wrong. I think I'm gonna go for a bike ride now so I'll talk to you beauties later on. Let me know what you think of my recipe/photos/sex obsession that I don't really talk about/etc in the comments below! Much love.


CHOCOLATE CHERRY ICE CREAM SANDWICHES
Makes 3 large sandwiches

Cookie:
1/2 cup buckwheat groats, soaked for 30 minutes then rinsed
1/2 cup gooey dates
Pinch of Himalayan salt

Ice cream:
3-4 frozen bananas
1 cup pitted cherries
1-2 tablespoons almond butter (optional but omg yum)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean (or vanilla extract) 

Chocolate:
3 tablespoons carob powder (or cacao/cocoa powder)
3 teaspoons maple syrup
Water, as needed

To make the cookies: pulse the buckwheat and dates together until they become a rough dough. If it's too crumbly, add more dates or some water. Add the salt. Shape into cookies and leave in the fridge*.

To make the ice cream: blend everything - except a 1/2 cup of the cherries - until smooth. If you need to, add some water or coconut milk. Stir the remaining cherries in by hand. Cherry chunks yusssss.

To make the chocolate: stir everything together until smooth, adding enough water to get a chocolate sauce consistency. If you want, add some coconut oil and salt.

Assembly*: spoon some chocolate onto each cookie, then scoop some ice cream onto half the cookies, and make them into sandwiches by putting the remaining half on top of the ice cream scoops. Voila.

*Or if you want to do it exactly how I did it: get a few different cookie cutters and when you have the cookie dough ready, using half the dough, press a little bit into the bottom of each cookie cutter; don't take off the cookie cutters. When you have the chocolate ready, spoon a little on top of each cookie (still inside the cookie cutters), then scoop on some ice cream, spoon on a little more chocolate, then let them get solid in the freezer and press on the remaining cookie dough. I feel like I did a bad job explaining that but oh well.

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