Wednesday, July 16, 2008

RAWesome Foods

We've been attempting to eat more wholesome raw foods in our diet each week. Last week we had raw cashew mango cookies, and the week before we tried raw spinach zucchini lasagna. Well, we've had more RAWesome foods :)

For the fourth of July, we made Taco Lettuce Wraps. Most of it was raw, except the homemade bluecorn tortillas that we served with it. Our feast included...
... taco "meat", diced tomatoes, raw corn kernels, sliced avocado, cabbage leaves, and the tortillas (although for leftovers we had a truly raw meal with just the cabbage as our wrap). We got the taco "meat" recipe from a free magazine from the natural food store. Here's the recipe and our comments:

Taco Lettuce Wraps

2 cups walnuts, soaked (~ 1 1/2 hours)
2 Tbsp Braggs
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp cumin
1/2 Tbsp coriander
1 bunch cilantro (we didn't have any)


fresh corn kernals from 1-2 heads of corn
fresh tomatoes, diced
sliced avocado
cabbage heads

Process taco "meat" in a food processor until mixture resembles ground taco meat. Serve with remaining fresh veggies. Serves 8.

It was very tasty, healthy, and filling! We want to definitely have this again, but we brainstormed some other ideas - mix walnut meat with 1/2 quinoa for a lighter "meat"; make an Italian flare with herbs and balsamic; add a creamy dressing such as guacomole or agave mustard dressing; have it in a pita, or serve with other veggies such as cucumber, sprouts, salsa, shredded carrots, etc...



We also made Fresh Avocado and Cucumber Soup (also found this in a magazine).

Fresh Avocado and Cucumber Soup

1 cup soy or hemp milk
4 green onions, chopped
2 large avocados, cut into chunks
juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 tsp salt
1 and 1/2 large cucumbers, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (we didn't have any)
black pepper
lots of cayenne

Puree all ingredients in a food processor and puree until well blended with a smooth consistency. Add pepper and adjust seasonings. Chill before serving.


It was fresh, cooling, easy, and healthy! We added ~ 2 Tbsp bell pepper, and we garnished with corn kernels and chives. It would be good with spinach or pureed cauliflower, or with tomatoes and Italian spices like basil.



With our fresh figs, we enjoyed Fresh Raw Fig Spread. Instead of heating the mixture, which is usually the technique when making jam, we just processed the figs to a thick paste with no cooking required.

Fresh Raw Fig Spread

~ 20 fresh figs (~ 1 lb)
1/8 cup water
1 lemon, juiced, optional
1/4-1/2 tsp brown sugar

Process in food processor until thick puree. Makes ~ 1 1/2 cups! So easy!


We used this on toast, for nut butter banana jam sandwiches, and in our oatmeal.

Lastly, we shopped at rawguru.com, and bought some great new "raw" finds! We've only tried the Mexican Flax Chips, which has a unique crunch (very good!) and a great tomato-Mexican flavor! We'll let you know how the other raw goodies turned out!


The goodies include: Lydia's Organics Apple Ginger Bar, Raspberry Bar, Tropical Mango Bar, Carob Hazelnut Bar, and Apple Fig Bar; Organic Golden Flaxseed Crackers, Mexican Harvest; Goldenberry Brazil Nut Cookie; Nature's Gift Raw Organic Pineapple Flax Cookie; Adam and Eve Dangerous Date Bar; and Gopal's Mexican Power Wrap.

Hope your summer is full of sunshine and good food! LK

5 comments:

Rose said...

I love eating raw every once in a while and the food you two made looks and sounds delicious!

Lisa (Show Me Vegan) said...

That corn is gorgeous!And tacos are always delish.

monique said...

What wonderful recipes! I get hungry looking at your blog!

Anonymous said...

Your tacos look delicious! I have to try that sometime. I'm also trying to go more raw & fresh. Thanks for the post! :)

Ruby Red said...

Your raw food looks so fun! The fig spread and taco lettuce wraps sound especially amazing... One of my favorite raw goodies to date are Mom & Me cookies (from gimmegoodstuff.com). I had the ginger one in an all-raw restaurant in Minneapolis and loved it!