A Lighter Almond Meal

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Gluten-free is all over the place. More and more people feel that wheat and other gluten products are wreaking havoc on their digestive systems and causing other problems as well. But how disappointing it can be to find that many of the ingredients used in gluten-free mixes and recipes are just as disruptive, if not more so.



Almonds--and nuts in general--were probably my biggest trigger of IBS attacks, so I would have never dreamed that one day almonds would be one of the mainstays of my diet (mostly via almond milk). This lighter almond meal is made from the leftover pulp I get from making my almond milk. I put the almond pulp in bags in the freezer, and when I get enough accumulated to make it worthwhile, I thaw it all, spread in on the dehydrator trays, and let the dehydrator run all night at about 105*. Then next morning I check it, and when it is dry all the way through, I run it through my food processor in batches. Then I put it in freezer bags again and store the dried meal in the freezer or fridge. 

The lighter colored meal was made from the pulp of blanched almonds (skins have been removed). Now, this almond meal will be much lower in fat and other nutrients than whole almond meal, since much of the nutrition was kept in the milk. But if what you are looking for is just something that's both light and naturally gluten-free for baking, this will do nicely. 

Chocolate Avocado Smoothie

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This is a yummy, very filling smoothie with good fats for brain power. Fats are also needed for all body membranes, including the skin and cell membranes. 

This has a nice, speckled appearance when made with the cacao nibs, but if you opt to use regular cocoa powder, it will look more like a chocolate milk shake.

1/2 of a ripe avocado (or one small)

2 tablespoons raw honey

2 tablespoons raw cacao nibs, finely ground

1 1/2 cups raw nut milk

1 tsp vanilla (optional)

Raw Butternut Squash Casserole

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I think I have found my new comfort food: Raw butternut squash "pasta" with creamy cashew "alfredo" sauce.  I was amazed that it actually was "pasta-like." The sauce was amazing. I did cheat with the sauce, though, as I accidentally bought roasted cashews awhile back, so I used those, which gave it a really unique flavor.

So, here's what I did: I peeled the squash with a potato peeler and cut the squash in long quarters. 

Then I used the peeler to take off strips of squash. I added a little oil to the strips (I think it would have been really good with peanut oil), stirred, and let it set while I made the sauce. 

For the sauce, I took the cashews and ground them in my Vitamix. (You can use a regular blender, but it may be grainy.) Then I added some smashed garlic, sea salt, and a little water. I blended it until smooth. (If I had had raw cashews, I would have soaked and drained the cashews and then made the sauce. I think half raw and half roasted would also be good.)

Then I poured the sauce over the noodles and added a little paprika for color. I put a dollup of blended raw young coconut meat on top, and a few sprigs of spearmint. It looked purty! I served it with pomengranate arils, which made a nice color combination.

Just a note - The next day I had some leftovers of this, and to my surprise, the flavors had blended to something that bore an uncanny resemblance to tuna casserole. This was fine in my book, because I had been missing tuna casserole something fierce! 

This, like most raw dishes, is naturally dairy-free and gluten-free.

Raw Chocolate Pudding

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This is very good! I've been making it for a few years now. It tastes very much like regular chocolate pudding. 

2 cups raw coconut meat from young coconuts

1/2 cup raw honey

1/2 cup ground raw cacao (or cocoa powder)

1/2 to 3/4 cup water

2 tsps vanilla

1/2 teaspoons sea salt

Put all in a blender or Vitamix and blend until smooth. Refrigerate for a day or so, if you can wait that long! It generally thickens a bit after a day or so. If you don't care about it being totally raw, you can use cocoa powder instead of ground cacao nibs (that is what's pictured; the cacao has a more speckled appearance). You can also throw in a tablespoon or so of raw coconut oil to make it even creamier and give it a coconut flavor. 
 

Raw Apple Chips

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Apple chips are one of the easiest raw food snacks to make, and great for taking on the road. Simply slice apples (you can go vertically for slices or cut cored apples horizontally for apple rings), and place them in a bowl of water with either sea salt, lemon juice, or both, for several minutes. Then remove and place on dehydrator trays. Try to keep from overlapping, as they will dry faster.


Put the dehydrator on a setting of 115* or lower in order to keep your snacks live. They should take a good day or two to dry out. How long you let them go is up to you. A shorter dehydrating time will produce a more leathery fruit snack, and a longer drying time will produce a crispy chip. Either way, they are D-Lish!

Unbelievable Raw White Cake with Ganache Frosting

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"To dream the impossible dream..." In the world of raw foods, I think the "impossible dream" is probably that of making a white cake that really tastes like white cake. Sure, we can come up with carrot cakes and nut breads that compare with their traditionally baked counterparts, but white cake? I didn't think so, until my experimenting eventually yielded this raw food delight!



Made with approximately equal parts macadamia nut meal, almond meal made from blanched almonds (no-boiling method), dried coconut, and any raw sweetening agent you wish (I usually use raw honey), ingredient amounts can be adjusted to suit your taste. Mix in a food processor and put in an oiled dish. Cover and place in the fridge for a day or even two. Cake will firm up. Remove, cut in half to form layers and ice with raw ganache, which is made from 2 parts each raw cacao powder and agave, mixed with one part softened (room temp) coconut butter. (My ganache didn't come out so smooth this time, but the taste was good.)

As with all truly raw-vegan recipes, this recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free. I make this in very small batches, as it can be a little pricey.