Feijoa & Manuka Icecream

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Feijoa & Manuka Honey Icecream

This recipe combines two iconic New Zealand ingredients. Feijoas and Manuka Honey. Feijoas, also known as the pineapple guava, are in abundance at this time of year and are one of my all time favourite fruits. This icecream has a delicate clean flavour, a slight sweetness and it’s not too rich or heavy. Very cleansing on the palette. You could play around with the quantities to make it sweeter.

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Soaked Raw Cashews
• 6-8 Feijoas
• 1/4 Cup agave syrup
• 1 Tbsp Soy Lecithin Granules (optional, for extra creaminess)
• About 12 Large Ice Cubes
• 1 Cup Pure Water

Preparation:

1. Make sure your icecream maker bowl is sufficiently frozen. It will most likely need to have been in the freezer 18-22 hours.
2. Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy.
3. Pour the mixture into your icecream maker immediately and process according your your machines instructions.

Note: If you don’t have an icecream maker you can pour the mixture into a bowl and place it in the freezer. Then whisk with a fork every 30 minutes. Or you can freeze the mixture in icecube trays and once frozen, blend in a food processor.

What is a Feijoa?

Although originally from South America, some might say the feijoa is now even more kiwi than the kiwifruit. They come around once a year in the autumnal months and people tend to go a little crazy for them when they are about. Besides being overly delicious, feijoas are a good source of vitamin C, folate and fibre. and they are so low maintenance that at least one house on every block is likely to have a tree.

Tom Kha or Tom Yum with Spiced Coconut Dumplings

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I love Thai food. The flavours are always so fresh and vegetables are often the star. Tom Yum is one of the cooked dishes I will eat if I am going out to dinner with friends and there are no raw options. It’s still all vegetables in a light spicy broth. But making a raw version of Tom Yum or Tom Kha is so easy to do at home. The main difference between the two is just the coconut which is used in Tom Kha. So if you are looking for a fat-free version just leave it out and perhaps add extra tomato for a Tom Yum version.

Tom Kha
Ingredients

Stock

• 1 Stalk of Lemongrass
  
• 1 Lime Leaf
  
• 1 cm Piece of Ginger
  
• 1 cm Piece of Galangal
  
• 2 Stalks of Celery
  
• 1 Cup Dried Coconut
  
• 2 Cups of Spring Water
  
• 1 Tomato
  
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
  
• 1 Tbsp Miso Paste
  
• 1/4 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
  

Fillings

1. Choose from a variety of fresh raw shredded or spiralised vegetables like cucumber or zucchini noodles, carrot, mung bean sprouts, snow pea greens, cabbage, tomatoes, turnips or anything else that you have. In the picture above I used snow pea greens and cucumber sliced into wide noodles with a vegetable peeler and a few slivers of avocado.

Preparation

1. Place the lemongrass, lime leaf, ginger, galangal, celery, coconut and water into a blender and process until well mixed. Strain through a nutmilk bag or a fine sieve.


2. Pour the liquid back into the blender and add the remaining ingredients. Blend well.


3. You may like to gently warm the stock to a low temperature before pouring over the vegetables, but it does just fine as a cold soup as well.


4. Place your vegetables of choice into a bowl and pour the stock over the top.
   

Black Pepper Celeriac Risotto

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It’s mid-winter here in New Zealand and the organic supermarket is full of celeriac and fennel, two vegetables that go well together in a kind of rustic French way. Celeriac is one of those underrated but highly versatile vegetables that often gets shunned for it’s rather unelegant apperance. It’s not the root of celery as it’s name suggests but kind of like a cousin, similar in flavour but a little more nutty. With the fennel, lemon and celeriac, this whole dish is very high in vitamin C. Mother Nature sure knows how to look after us by providing produce that’s high in flu-fighting properties during the winter. It’s also pretty high in magnesium, phosphorus and vitamin K. Make sure to use the zest of the lemon as well as the juice to give the risotto that wonderfully fragrant flavour. Yum.

Serves one

Ingredients

• 1 medium celeriac root juice
• zest of 1 small lemon
• 1 tbsp finely chopped celery leaves
• 1/2 cup finely shaved fennel bulb
• 1 tsp unpasteurised miso
• 1/4 cup soaked sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup pure water
• 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Preparation

1. Trim off the outer layer of the celeriac root to remove all the dirt filled crevices, dice into cubes and pulse in a high speed blender or food processor with the lemon juice until fine. It should be about the size of rice or a little smaller in order to release more of the flavoursome juices. Adding the lemon juice at this point prevents the celeriac from discolouring as it oxidises.
2. Set the celeriac aside and process the sunflower seeds, miso paste and water until fairly smooth but still with a little texture.
3. Combine the sunflower mixture with the celeriac and the remaining ingredients.
4. Season with extra black pepper, sea salt and a little cold pressed olive oil if desired.
5. Serve in a bowl garnished with chopped celery leaves and lemon zest, scoop up with flax crackers or even wrap in romaine leaves with some fresh alfalfa sprouts and your favourite greens.

Blueberry & Banana Icecream

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This is a delicious alternative to the heavy nut based raw icecreams and it’s super quick and easy to make if you keep some bananas on hand in the freezer. The riper the bananas the sweeter it will be.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries
• 1 frozen organic banana
• 1/2 organic avocado
• 1 tbsp organic raw agave nectar
• a splash of filtered or spring water

Method

1. Put everything apart from the water into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. If it’s not moving just add a little water to get it going.
2. Either eat it right away for soft serve or if you are patient enough freeze for about hour then whisk with a fork before serving. Yum!

TIP: Peeling and chopping your bananas before freezing makes life much easier. Peeling frozen bananas is a surefire way to get a bad case of finger frostbite.

Green Curry Soup

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A lot of raw vegans find it difficult to keep warm in the colder months. This soup uses a lot of warming spices to heat you up from the depths of your belly. I made it in the middle of a hailstorm, parked myself by the heater and got toastie.

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups filtered or spring water
• 1 cup tightly packed chopped spinach
• 1 cup chopped broccoli stalks
• 1/2 cup chopped leeks
• 1 avocado
• 1 carrot
• 4 – 6 soaked sundried tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tbsp miso paste
• 1 tsp himalayan or celtic sea salt
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 2 tsp tumeric
• 1 tbsp tamari or nama shoyu
• 1/2 – 1 tsp cayenne pepper

Method

1. Blend the water, spinach, broccoli and leeks in a blender until smooth.
2. Add the remaining ingredients and blend again until smooth. You can adjust the spices to taste.
3. This can be served chilled in the summer or in winter it’s nice to warm it up a little. You can warm it either in the dehydrator for about an hour, or it can be warmed on the stove. If you are warming it on the stove, to preserve the enzymes, keep it on the lowest heat, stir constantly and make sure it doesn’t go over body temperature by dipping your finger in. It should be just warm, not steaming hot.
4. Sprinkle with cayenne pepper, flaxseed oil and top with some crunchy kale chips.

Blueberry & Banana Pudding

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I made this for my flatmates last night to eat while we watched a movie. It’s really easy if you keep chopped frozen bananas in the freezer and have a jar of buckwheaties on hand. It probably took 10 minutes to whip up.

Ingredients

• 2 frozen bananas (chopped)
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 small avocado
• 1 tbsp honey, agave or a couple of dates (whichever you prefer)
• 1/2 cup dried coconut
• 1/2 cup buckwheaties

Method

Pudding:

1. Place the chopped frozen banana, avocado, blueberries and your sweetener of choice into a food processor or high speed blender and blend until smooth.
2. Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with coconut and buckwheaties for a bit of crunch!

Buckwheaties:

1. Soak whole buckwheat groats in water for about 8 hrs.
2. Use a sieve to drain and thoroughly rinse the buckwheat.
3. Spread the buckwheat over mesh dehydrator tray and dehydrate 8-12hrs or until fully dry and crunchy.
4. Another optional extra is to add cinnamon and honey, maple syrup or agave nectar before dehydrating.

Red Cabbage, Fennel and Mandarin Salad

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This is a fantastic winter salad with amazing colour and a good sweet/savory balance. It’s full of vitamin C to keep away colds in the chilly months. It’s good to use a mandoline to help you to slice things finely which brings out the flavour more. Always try to use organic ingredients where possible.

Serves 1-2

Ingredients

• 1/4 of a red cabbage
• 1 fennel bulb
• 4-5 mandarins
• 1 lemon
• 1 orange
• a good splash of cold-pressed olive oil
• a sprinkling of himalayan salt

Method

1. Using a mandoline, shred the cabbage and fennel. If you don’t have a mandoline you could use a food processor or slice finely with a knife.
2. Halve the orange and slice a few pieces off with the mandoline to save as a garnish. Juice the rest of the orange and the lemon.
3. Peel the mandarins and break into segments.
4. Combine all ingredients in a bowl to serve.

Optional Extra: This is also great with some chunks of avocado mushed into the salad. It combines nicely with the juices.

Florence Fennel & Strawberry Salad

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Strawberries have just arrived at Commonsense Organics! To celebrate the onset of summer produce I threw these few ingredients together for lunch today and it turned out great. It just tastes like summer. And because all the ingredients are really juicy you don’t even need a dressing. I found it perfect just as is.

Ingredients:

• 3-4 Large Strawberries
• 1/2 a Lebanese Cucumber
• 1 Small Fennel Bulb
• A Handful of Fennel Fronds
• 2 Cups Chopped Lettuce
• 1/2 Avocado

Preparation:

1. Slice the strawberries, cucumber and fennel bulb with a mandoline. Finely chop the lettuce and the fennel fronds and dice the avocado into thin pieces. Combine everything in a bowl to serve. Easy.

Strawberries are the one of the most popular berries in the world. Not only do they taste and look great but they are also full of anti-oxidants. They are also heart-protective, anti-cancer fruit, and anti-inflammatory.

Nutrient-wise, strawberries are an excellent source of vitamin C and manganese. They’re also pretty high in fibre and a good organic source of iodine.

You can read more about the big red berries here

Chocolate Cherries Ice Cream

Courtesy of Beautiful Living Food in Vermont http://beautifullivingfood.blogspot.com/

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of cashew pieces. (soak them for 4 or 5 hours)


• 1/4 cup of packed, pitted dates cut in half. (soak for 30 minutes )


• 1/2 cup of reserve water from soaking the dates


• 1 1/4 cups of pitted and coarsely chopped fresh cherries


• 1 cup of firm young Thai coconut meat (I used one large coconut)


• 1 cup of coconut water


• 1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon of agave syrup


• 1 scraped vanilla bean


• 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract (or 2 vanilla beans)


• 2 pinches of sea salt


• 1 tablespoon of coconut oil


• 1 capful of cherry extract (Boyajian brand)


• 2-3 tablespoons of raw cacao powder

Add all the ingredients into the Vitamix and blend until smooth. Pour into a container and chill in the fridge until nice and cold (several hours or overnight).

Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker (according to the manufacturer’s directions). It takes about 30 minutes to reach a nice soft serve consistency. Stick ice cream into the freezer for a couple hours for a firmer texture that you can scoop with an ice cream scooper.

Kale Chips

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Now I’m certainly not the first to post a recipe for kale chips but I think it’s important to revisit them considering how freakin delicious and nutritious they are. These chips can rival any potato snack and win hands down. Even if you don’t dehydrate these the recipe can make a very tasty salad. I can’t wait until my homegrown kale gets bigger and I can eat chips like theres no tomorrow.

Ingredients

The amounts of these are really up to individual taste, but I suggest you start with lots of kale because it shrinks quite considerably with dehydration and just add seasonings to taste as you go. Remember that flavours tend to become concentrated after dehydrating. Try to use all organic ingredients where possible.

• Kale (I like the curly kale)
• Lemon Juice
• Flaxseed, Hemp or Olive oil
• Himalayan or Celtic Sea Salt

Method

1. Destalk the kale and chop any larger pieces into smaller sizes. The size is not really too important.
2. Throw the kale into a large bowl and drizzle with a little oil and lemon juice. Massage the kale with your hands until it has wilted a bit and turned a dark glossy green. You can add more oil as you go if needed.
3. Sprinkle with a little salt and place on mesh dehydrator trays.
4. Dehydrate for about 6-8 hours or until crispy.
5. Store in an airtight container.

About the Ingredients

Kale is a part of the brassica family so it’s a sibling of broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts and collard greens. It is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, and also pretty high in calcium. It has anti-cancer properties and can help your cells to cleanse and detoxify among other things. It’s also going to give you a pretty good dose of amino acids which are the building blocks of protein. So when anyone asks you where you get your protein just say kale!