Naraya Cooking Health Recipe

 #ZOMG. What CAN'T the plant kingdom give us!? Some people think a plant-based diet is restrictive and depriving but seriously... as a self-proclaimed herbivore I eat twice as much as everyone around me, my food is always more colourful and - in my humble opinion - loads tastier. Now, if you aren't a plant lover, I ain't judgin'. I love you long time no matter what you choose to put in your mouth. But at the same time, if you wanna discover the most nourishing, eco-friendly, ethical, DELICIOUS diet around? Just eat more fruits and veggies. No need for labels like vegan or vegetarian - it doesn't matter. What DOES matter is your happiness.




What is happiness?

Well, that's about the most complicated question ever to answer so I won't try to provide a definitive response. What I know is that happiness MUST start with a healthy body (and therefore a healthy mind). A healthy body is best built with lots of high-quality plant foods. Try fruit smoothies, giant salads, homemade soups, whole grain breads loaded with pesto and baked tomatoes, veggies and hummus, baked yams with rice, eggplant curry, kamut pasta with marinana sauce, portobello burgers, and whatever else you desire. The list is literally endless, as there are countless more edible plants than conventional meat and dairy products. Just click right here for a snapshot of the infinite possibilities. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, greens, beans, legumes: it's all good for ya. Nourishing yourself with wholesome plant-based recipes will feed your brain what it needs to function optimally. You will find yourself more clear-headed then ever before, with a body capable of what you truly want it to do. What could be a better starting point for a full and long life?

Feed yourself the best foods on the planet, you deserve it.

Now, about those best foods? Look no further than this recipe. In the ingredient list we've got nuts, fruits, and veggies all rolled into outta-this-world yumminess bites. As long as you like the taste of fresh coconut and beets, you're gonna go nuts - pun intended - for these. Otherwise just use cashews instead of coconut, and berries instead of beets! As usual I give you plenty of options for adapting the recipe to your own preferences. Another idea: instead of adding cacao to the chocolate filling, use mint leaves! I was gonna do that but didn't have any on hand so I improvised. I could eat the coconut cream straight outta the bowl all day long, personally. *Must move to Thailand, devour all coconuts. In other news, I have been obsessed with Mariah Carey for the past two days. YouTube makes it too easy. Please improve your day by approximately 12,000% and bump this playlist while shaking your sexy booty and making this recipe. All frustrating gender norms in the videos aside, you can't deny the melodies are on-point and her voice is R&B-angelic. My afternoon has quickly turned into a raw vegan macaroon-filled, late 1990's pop music party. There is absolutely nothing wrong about this. Join me? Yeah, you know you wanna.

ALMOND BUTTER + CHIA JAM BARS with CHOCOLATE 

Almond butter base:
1 cups rolled oats 
1/2 cup almond butter
1 tablespoon maple syrup 
1/4 cup flax seeds

Jam: 
1 cup berries
4 tablespoons chia seeds

Chocolate:
Click here for the recipe.

To make the base: grind the rolled oats into flour in a blender, then mix together with the other ingredients in a bowl. Press into the bottom of a lined bread pan (I used two small ones). Put in the fridge. 

To make the jam: mash or blend the berries until smooth, then thoroughly stir in the chia seeds and let it sit for 10-15 minutes so the chia seeds can gel with the mashed berries and thicken into jam. Spread this onto your base, then drizzle on the chocolate evenly. I swirled in some more almond butter at this point because... why not. Stick it back in the fridge and let sit for an hour, then slice and munch! Note: slice them carefully, the jam is gooey... 

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Ever since enjoying all the amazing food and people at Eternal Abundance's raw potluck last week, I have not been able to get one dish someone brought off my mind. They were carrot cake cookies with cashew cream cheese frosting, and they were heavenly. I have made raw vegan carrot cakes before. In fact, they are my most popular recipe! So it's not like the idea is new to me. Yet something about these cookies was special. I realized it was that the carrots were shredded into strands, not simply grated into crumb-sized pieces. This inexplicably excited me and I have not been able to stop thinking about them since; so today I made them for you (okay... they're mostly for me (and my partner) (brackets on brackets) (bracket inception) (I will stop now)). I don't know why such a simple difference would have such an impact on the deliciousness of the recipe but I think it may be because it gives you a heartier bite. You have to chew, like a real cookie! It adds more texture, and makes for a more interesting cookie experience overall. Yes, a "cookie experience". We're getting snobby. Let's come back down to the chill level and just enjoy these orange bad boys together... they taste UNBELIEVABLE. I don't know why on earth anyone would eat a cake with white sugar, processed cream cheese from a package, or even baking soda; when you know you can make an even tastier version from WHOLE FOODS! Nobody gets hurt, you get healthy, the world gets better. All because of these cookies.

They are chewy, sweet but not too sweet, and bursting with flavour because they are mostly just straight up carrots. The frosting isn't even necessary but who can REALLY say no to raw vegan lemon cashew cream? The answer is: no one I have ever met. I could eat these for days. I plan to. The recipe makes 12 large cookies, and you will probably have leftover frosting. This will not be an issue. Make sure to spice them right! I think nutmeg is the magic ingredient in these, but cinnamon is equally important. If you don't want to add more than a couple tablespoons of coconut oil or maple syrup in total, you can substitute them with water, or leave them out entirely (see my notes in the ingredient list). Having said that, I have them listed for a reason. They make the flavour and texture top notch. I also gave rolled oats as low fat alternative to cashews in the cookies. See? I got your back.

In other news: anybody else heard of Boiler Room? UGH IT IS AMAZING. Basically the authority of underground DJ music. I could listen to the different bumpin' sets all day- oh wait. I do. Solo dance party in room? Done. That was my workout. Dancing is the best kind of therapy; I always walk (read: boogie) away with sweat dripping off my smiling face. Musical medication. Is it just me or am I really funny today? Hmm... I think I am just in a good mood because I have been jamming to the grooviest tunes since rising. Okay - make these cookies. Love me (You KNOW I already love you, baby). Peace out for now.


CARROT CAKE COOKIES with LEMON CREAM FROSTING

Cookies:
2 cups shredded carrots 
1 cup cashews or rolled oats
1 cup raisins 
Heaping 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
Heaping 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg powder
2 tablespoons coconut oil (or water) 
2 tablespoons maple syrup (or water) 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch Himalayan salt (optional) 

Frosting:
1 cup cashews 
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon maple syrup (optional) 
2 tablespoons coconut oil (optional) 
Water, as needed 

To make the cookies: put the cashews or rolled oats in a food processor and pulse until they become powder. Add the rest of the ingredients - except the carrots and raisins - and process into a thick wet mixture. Add the raisins and pulse a few times until you have them incorporated, but still have some whole raisins. Throw this mixture into a large bowl with the carrot shreds and mix with a wooden spoon until it all sticks together. Form into cookies and place in the dehydrator, or use your oven at it's lowest temperature. I "baked" mine at the lowest temperature (200 degrees) in my convection oven for about 2 1/2 hours.

To make the frosting: blend all the ingredients together until smooth, adding the water as needed to get the texture you want: thick and creamy! Refrigerate overnight, then frost your cookies and enjoy! 

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So. I know this blog is supposed to be centered around RAW vegan foods, but I cannot resist my addiction to baking. I've always loved baking. Now I just love vegan baking! =)
Plus, with the holidays and all, there's really no way I'm not gonna be making all sorts of delicious and semi-healthy baked goods for family and friends.

Who doesn't want a vegan pecan bar made with love and coconut oil? I have yet to meet such a person.

As you may have guessed, today I'm sharing a pecan bar recipe. I made them yesterday and everyone says they're amazing! As a bonus, they're pretty good for ya too! 

They're all whole wheat, and there's not a lot of sugar at all, but they taste as good as (or better!) than any old cream-, egg- and sugar-loaded bar.
They can EASILY be sugar-free, but I currently don't have any honey, agave or maple syrup.

When a few of my friends came over on the weekend, I suddenly had the intense urge to make a layered chocolate cake, with yummy chocolate ganache icing. I know, I know. Not raw or even particularly healthy at all. But I'm fine with that.

I used to be totally infatuated with baking, and actually got quite good at it! I was making puff pastry, eclairs, fondant-laden cakes, and other fancy things. I could whip up the perfect apple pie in a couple hours. Those days were lovely and fun, but of course those foods weren't vegan (sooo much butter), and not doing anything good for my body or anyone else's.

That being said, I still love to bake! I can't explain why... something about it is just so comforting, it's like a form of meditation for me. So I decided to make a cake for me and my friends to enjoy together.

I whipped the batter, laughing and dancing with my friends, to Eminem, N'Sync and LMFAO songs... yes, I am lame; and yes, it was fun. =)
It turned out deliciously. The cake was SO moist and the icing was off da hook. (I added peanut butter for good measure... was the right choice).