Naraya Cooking Health Recipe

• 1 tablespoon chia seeds or flax seed meal
• 3 tablespoons almond milk
• 1 1/4 cup rolled or quick oats, divided
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar, turbinado or pure cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon himalayan salt
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil (in it's melted state)
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons almond butter, optional
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 100% fruit jam for filling (I used strawberry & blueberry)

I have been enlightened. Never again will I make raw chocolate without orange! It is incredibly delicious, and I mean literally incredible. I added the zest of one orange to the chocolate to include a fruity component so it would pair well with the layered fruit - what a wonderful decision it was.

My boyfriend says these taste like "amazing flying chocolate fruit saucers of deliciousness" and I can go with that. It sounds like a compliment... right? Right.


Originally I was going to sprinkle some nutmeg and cinnamon on bananas and use them instead of the kiwi. I was also going to use fresh figs. But I wanted to make this recipe (it's been floating around in my lofty brain for quite some time now) today and fresh figs and bananas were not available; to my momentary dismay. Then I decided I could just use kiwi and dried figs instead. Nothing lost and gorgeous green colour gained!


I'm certainly in an orange phase right now, as you might have seen my previous recipe was an orange & blueberry "cheesecake". We get the treat of juicy, sweet mandarin oranges here in winter time for the holidays and I intend to take advantage of this. One thing I love to do with oranges after watching mum do it for years each Christmas is gently simmer orange peel, cloves, cinnamon sticks and nutmeg on the stove all day. It creates this vibrant, festive aroma that has come to immediately remind me what time of year it is.


spiced orange chocolate layered with fresh kiwi, orange & dried figs: serves 3

raw orange chocolate:
3 tablespoons liquid coconut oil
1-2 tablespoons agave/maple syrup
2 tablespoons cacao powder
zest of one orange
pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 

fruit layers:
1 kiwi
1 orange
4 figs (fresh or dried)

goji berry coulis:
1/4 cup dried goji berries covered with water
1 tablespoon agave/maple syrup

To make the chocolate: stir all ingredients together by hand until smooth and SO YUMMY. On parchment paper, take a spoonful of the chocolate and spread it into a circle about 2 inches in diameter. Do this until you run out, you should end up with 6 or so. Put in the freezer.

To make the fruit layers: slice all the fruit... duh. 

To make the berry coulis: blend the berries with the sweetener and water until smooth. If you have other berries add those if you like. I did not have any. 

Now put it all together: Take the chocolate out of the freezer, they should now be solid. Decorate plates with coulis as you desire, then layer on the chocolate discs and fruit slices. 

this is delectable! i am so proud of myself because i haven't used chocolate in a recipe for a few times now. this is all fruit, all the time. the colour of chocolate desserts gets boring after a while because it's always brown... ya know? this cake has a vibrant array of colours that are naturally pleasing to your pretty little eyes.





orange & blueberry cheesecake: makes one cake

crust:
2 cups raw nuts
1 cup dates or raisins
pinch of salt 

orange cheesecake:
3 cups cashews
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup agave/maple syrup
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
juice of one lemon
zest of all the oranges you juiced
pinch of salt

blueberry layer:
2 cups organic blueberries (i used frozen)
1/4 cup of the orange cheesecake mixture

to make the crust: process the nuts and dates/raisins in your food processor until the nuts have become crumbs and the mixture sticks together when you press it. press into the bottom of a springform pan and put in the fridge. 

to make the orange cheesecake: blend all ingredients (except orange zest) in your high speed blender until very smooth, then add in the orange zest with a spoon. reserve 1/4 cup of this mixture for the blueberry topping - pour the rest onto your crust and put in the freezer. 

to make the blueberry layer: blend the blueberries and the 1/4 cup of cheesecake mixture in your food processor or blender until creamy but still with small pieces of blueberry for texture. spread this over your cheesecake and keep in the freezer or fridge overnight. if you can wait a day - this is best after 2 days (and not frozen, of course) enjoy with sliced oranges and blueberries!

Vegetable Chili

• 3 cups tomatoes (I used roma and grape)
• 1 small red bell pepper (orange would be great too), diced
• 1 large celery stalk, diced
• 1/2 yellow or red onion, diced
• 1 small zucchini, diced
• 1 corn off the cob
• 1 - 2 garlic cloves, minced
• cilantro (as much as you like), chopped
• 1 - 2 teaspoon chili powder, to taste
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 3/4 teaspoon oregano, fresh or dried
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, to taste

Prepare vegetables and combine all ingredients in large size bowl. Place 1/2 or so of the mix into a food processor and blend until pureed. Return puree to diced vegetables and toss well.


Nut Meat

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 cup mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 2 teaspoons coriander
• 1 teaspoon tamari, bragg's or nama shoyu, or 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, to taste

Place all ingredients into food processor and pulse until crumbly. You don't want to over blend or it will be a paste.

To serve, place vegetable chili in bowls and top with nut meat adding any additional garnishes you like. Serves four, or two generously. Store left overs, if there is any, in an air tight container in the refrigerator. Chili will last for five to six days. Nut meat will last up to two to three days, depending on the freshness of the mushrooms. Before eating let sit at room temp as it tastes best this way.