Naraya Cooking Health Recipe

 THE VEGAN CHRISTMAS PLATE: baked yams, steamed corn and pepper garlic brussels sprouts with mushroom nut loaf, tahini ginger gravy and orange cranberry sauce 

Cranberry sauce:
5 cups cranberries
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup grapefruit juice 

Nut loaf:
1 cup mushrooms
1 cup walnuts
2 cups black beans
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 tablespoon flax seeds mixed with 6 tablespoons water
1 cup oats
1/2 onion
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon dried sage leaves
1 teaspoon sea salt (optional) 
2 teaspoons paprika

Brussels sprouts:
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3 grated/finely chopped garlic cloves
Black pepper
1 teaspoon maple syrup (optional) 
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 
1 teaspoon tamari, soy sauce or Bragg's 
Water, as needed 

Yams:
2 yams 

Corn:
2 cobs of corn

Gravy:
2 tablespoons miso paste
2 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon ginger root 
Water, as needed

To make the cranberry sauce: simmer the berries with the juices on low, stirring often, until the berries pop and get mushy and it all becomes a delicious gooey red sauce. This will take around 10 minutes. 

Nut loaf: throw everything in the food processor and process until it all is evenly chopped and starting to stick together. Shape into a loaf in a small bread pan and bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees. 

To prepare the brussels sprouts: on low heat in a pan, sauté the garlic in the coconut oil for a few minutes then add the sprouts and the rest of the ingredients and sauté until they soften, about 15 minutes. I add water to the pan as they cook, this steams them and helps them to cook without having to add more oil. 

To prepare the yams: bake on parchment paper at 350 for 30 minutes, then flip over and bake for another 20 or 30 minutes. See if they're done by poking with a fork, they should be soft all the way through.

To prepare the corn: steam for 5 minutes! 

To make the gravy: blend everything until smooth, adding water as needed. 

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It doesn't get much simpler than this when you wanna prepare a wholesome, easy, delicious recipe for yourself. We've got oven-baked sweet potatoes, potatoes, eggplant and garlic paired with a spinach salad, all topped off with tomatoes, sunflower seeds and bell peppers. This meal is also pretty cheap to make because it's mostly sweet potatoes and potatoes (I can get these for $1.00/lb at the grocery store and farmer's market). In case you didn't already know this magical fact, I will let you in on it now: when garlic is baked it basically turns into garlic butter. Praise the heavens and all that is good. The cloves hidden under their skin transform into creamy, flavourful pockets of garlic spread that you can cover your meal in. It's fabulous to the maximum.

I will ACTUALLY be posting more and more savoury recipes for you all to enjoy, because meals like this are what my dinner looks like every night now. For awhile there, I didn't wanna share my dinners because they didn't have much colour. I was eating a lot of rice, potatoes and cauliflower. Healthy? Yes. Vibrant-looking? Not so much. But Instagram has inspired me! I kept seeing all these gorgeous lunch and dinner pics and realized: where's the colour in my meals!? So I have added it back in with salads, sweet potatoes, yams, tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, pumpkin seeds, and more. Once I found grocery stores that sold sweet potatoes for a dollar per pound, I rejoiced. I absolutely adore sweet potatoes (especially since Jack's grandma showed me the light of baking them whole in the oven) and they are one of the most nutritious foods on the planet! Some tribes and civilizations historically have lived mainly off sweet potatoes or yams! Firstly because they have trouble hunting/gathering enough other food but they also ARE ABLE to live off mostly sweet potatoes or yams because they have so much of what you need! Calories, carbs, nutrients, vitamins, hurrah! It's like nature decided to throw one nearly perfect meal into a singular root vegetable for our convenience! Evolution doesn't work like that at all but still, you get where I'm comin' from. Besides, that orange colour is such a winner. Buying organic sweet potatoes and yams is certainly better than buying conventional ones, but around here that usually means at least double the price. Since they are a staple of my diet, and also one of the least contaminated conventionally grown foods, I am okay purchasing non-organic ones, but I do like to treat myself sometimes. I always buy my potatoes organic because we can get amazing ones here for good prices from the farmers market, so I can't pass that up. Support local!

ROASTED VEGGIES with BUTTERY GARLIC + SPINACH SALAD

Veggies:
1 sweet potato or yam
1 cup baby potatoes
3 small eggplants (mine were super tiny)
1 head of garlic
1 teaspoon coconut oil

Salad:
3 cups spinach leaves
Juice of a lime
1 teaspoon maple syrup
2 chopped heirloom tomatoes
1 chopped red bell pepper
1 tablespoon sunflower seeds
Black pepper and sea salt (optional) 

To prepare the veggies: preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash your root veggies and dry them. Poke some holes in the sweet potato/yam. Slice the eggplants and rub them in a little coconut oil. Bake everything on a parchment paper lined pans and bake for 30 minutes, then see how it's all doing. My little potatoes, eggplant, head of garlic and sweet potato were all soft by this point so I took everything out, but if you have a large sweet potato/yam it will take longer to cook. (And yes, I did simply throw a head of garlic into the oven and it ended up perfect. You just have to peel off the skin to get at the goodness once it's done baking.)

To make the salad: mix the greens with lime juice, maple syrup, black pepper and salt (if using). Throw on the tomatoes and pepper, and sprinkle with sunflower seeds. Pair this with all your baked treasures and enjoy! 

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This is a perfect example of what my dinners look like these days: loads of baked sweet potatoes, greens and fresh veggies. I don't use any oil or salt and yet the whole meal ends up being so flavourful and delicious I can hardly believe it! My secret? Lemon or lime juice and herbs and spices!  Feel free to add a pinch of Himalayan salt if you want to, but I am JUST SAYIN: I don't use any when I make this. I also used to think I HAD to use oil to get my potatoes just right, but I was wrong! I have learned that if you bake them on parchment paper and spray them with a bit of lemon or lime juice (this adds flavour too) they will turn out perfectly crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside - exactly how I love them. You might be thinking: "But Emily - those aren't sweet potatoes because they aren't orange!" Well, my friend, they actually are! Sweet potatoes come in many varieties. There are white ones (my favourite), orange ones, purple ones, and all kinds of variations in skin colour, flavour and more. Also, yams and sweet potatoes are NOT the same! Go figure.




In case you didn't know - I eat a whole foods, plant based, high carb diet. What the heck does that actually MEAN? Basically I just eat a lot of fruit, vegetables and whole grains. I also enjoy a bit of nuts, seeds, beans, tofu, and super foods like cacao, coconut oil, spirulina, maca, and more. And I eat as much as I freaking want, because why restrict foods that are good for me!? I have always loved eating huge amounts, and this diet allows me to do that with only positive effects. I am strong, healthy and happy! The key to a healthy diet is simply whole foods, lots of fruits and veggies, and eating enough for you. If you think you're full after a meal like this but then craving a donut later... you should eat more of this! I notice that when I eat as much as I desire throughout my day, I don't crave richer foods later on. But when I don't eat enough, I start thinking about how good some greasy vegan burgers would taste. In those cases I just stuff my face with a giant smoothie or a huge plate of something like this recipe and my mind is back to normal. It is simply about fuelling your body with what it needs. Your brain is an organ, and your diet and lifestyle affect it like any other organ. If you suffer from chronic anger, depression or stress - check out what your diet, sleep schedule and exercise regime look like. I am no doctor but it seems like common sense that eating well can improve these mental (i.e. physical) problems. For example, ADHD is correlated with high processed sugar consumption. I could give countless examples of a psychological disorder being related to poor diet and lack of exercise. Again, I have no certification in nutrition or medicine, but the data speaks for itself. Of course sometimes a healthy lifestyle will not solve all your problems, but the evidence is there that is can solve quite a few. Check out documentaries like Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead, Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days, and SuperJuice Me! to learn more about this. And if you are into books read Eat To Live by Joel Fuhrman. Let thy food be thy medicine!

SWEET POTATO FRIES with GARDEN SALAD + SWEET CORN

Wedges:
2 sweet potatoes
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 lemon or lime

Salad:
3 cups swiss chard leaves
1/2 cup sweet corn 
1/2 cup sliced tomatoes
1 thinly slice shallot
1 lemon or lime
1 teaspoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Make the wedges: preheat your oven to 420 degrees. Slice the potatoes into wedges, circles, or whatever shape you like. I don't peel them. Put the slices into a large bowl and dump on the herbs, spices and then spray on the lemon or lime juice. Shake it all up until they are evenly coated. Bake on parchment paper for 15 minutes, then flip them all and bake until they are lightly browned. I usually just stick a fork in one and bite it to see when they are done. 

Make the salad: toss everything together and spray on the lemon or lime juice! Yum!

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Hey, baby. How you been? I've been makin' salad.

I was in the garden with my mom today a few weeks ago and we were looking at all the edibles we have growing. She noticed the arugula should be picked so my fate was sealed: lunch was to be arugula salad. I also picked some basil, cilantro, and cherry tomatoes. I cannot really take much credit for all this wonderful food we have blooming in our yard - momma Nancy does it all, and I reap the bounty. Hehe. The night before, I was making my dinner which was a bowl of red beans and sweet corn, when my partner and I decided we were gonna go OUT for dinner (at this cool veg place called Tera V Burger). So I threw my food in the fridge - figuratively - and headed off. Thus the following day I had that to add to my greens and tomatoes! It was perfect. I sprinkled on some lemon juice, antioxidant omega oil blend, agave syrup, salt, cumin, coriander, sunflower seeds, and love. The result was pure deliciousness. I wish I had made more but I was going for vegan tacos with my friends later that night so we could all laugh hysterically together and slap each other before I went away for 3 weeks.

Note: I do not eat out every night, but it's summer and hey - I'm a wild child (sarcasm). Usually I prefer to be a frugal ferret and only go out once a month or so. Save money yay! I will have to be even more of a thrifty homo sapien once I move in with Jack since Vancouver is LITERALLY the most expensive city in the world to live in. Great.

Back to the recipe! Honestly, this salad is so simple and so tasty. It made me remember why I love salad so much. It makes you feel nourished and connected to the earth, especially when you pick most of it from your own backyard. I haven't been eating enough greens lately and this was the yummiest wake up call I could have received. Eat your greens! Eat this salad!

ARUGULA BASIL SALAD with SWEET CORN, RED BEANS, LEMON + SPICES

Salad:
2 cups arugula
1/2 cup basil 
1/2 cup cilantro
2 tablespoon sunflower seeds
1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes 
1 cup red beans
1 cup sweet corn 

Dressing:
1 teaspoon maple syrup
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon antioxidant omega oil blend
Pinch of Himalayan salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander 

Throw it all together, let it sit for a few minutes so the flavours develop and the leaves soften, then chomp! Note: you can really use whatever you have lying around to make the dressing (and salad too, for that matter). All you need is a sweet component, a creamy component, and a tangy component. 

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A lot of you have been asking for more savoury recipes and more low-fat dinners. My job as I see it is to give you what ya want. So here we go. This is also a good representation of my actual diet; since I do not simply live off raw vegan chocolate cake (although sometimes I wish I could), but in reality enjoy mostly fruit all day in the form of smoothies followed by a dinner of lots of steamed or baked veggies with rice! Check out my Instagram to see more on this... and also to see my PMS face.  I do love my raw vegan desserts recipes, and I definitely eat as much of them as I want, but I see them as a fun and delicious way to get in my fats for the day, so in the rest of my diet I keep fat content to a minimum. Fat is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle, but I just don't need much of it. So in this recipe, I only use a handful of nuts (or 1 tablespoon of nut butter if you prefer). It provides the perfect amount of creaminess and richness without making me feel sluggish afterwards, which happens when I eat too many nuts in a day. I have learned my limits.

As many of you may know, I have gradually transitioned into an 80/10/10 diet (a high carb diet) and for me that basically meant just increasing the amounts of fruits and starchy veggies I was eating. Instead of 3 bananas a day; I eat anywhere from 5 to 15 now. Instead of 3/4 cup of rice; I eat 2 cups, etc. When I eat this way I find I don't crave the rich foods that I used to. I don't want to eat the entire tray of raw vegan brownies, I am satisfied with one. I have learned that my body does best with minimal amounts of fat. As I stated a moment ago, I feel weighed down and head-achey when I eat too much fat in a day. All I need to keep me energized and strong is a handful of nuts, 1 avocado, or 1 tablespoon of nut butter or coconut oil a day. Am I saying this is the ideal diet for everyone? Of course not! You know your body better than I do! So experiment and find what works for you. I have a friend who does best on a high fat diet, and so that right there is proof that we all require different percentages of macronutrients to fuel ourselves right. Having said that, it DOES make sense to me from an evolutionary perspective that most of us would do best with a diet high in fruit, greens, and starchy veggies.

My logic is simple: we all know fruits and vegetables are good for us, so let's eat as many as we can!

Now, onto this meal! I am in love with sweet potatoes. They are excellent for your brain and eye health, as well as overall wellness. Basil is called The Sacred Goddess Herb and is thought to be the embodiment of femininity and holiness itself, tomato is great for the prostate (holla to the males out there), and the whole recipe is just freaking yummy altogether... so make it.


STEAMED SWEET POTATOES with WILD RICE, BASIL + TOMATO CHILI SAUCE

Sauce:
1 tomato
1 tablespoon nut butter (optional) 
1 tablespoon miso paste
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup 
1 teaspoon chili powder, to taste 
1 garlic clove

Other ingredients:
1 large sweet potato, sliced and steamed until soft and tender
2 cups cooked wild rice
1/4 cup basil leaves

To make the sauce: blend all the ingredients until smooth. Mix the sauce into your rice and sweet potatoes in a bowl, then top with basil leaves and enjoy! 

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I KNOW you guys are gonna be stoked about dis one. I sure am. I've been meaning to make this recipe and share it for some time but for whatever reason I haven't. Until now, obviously. I was walking home and suddenly thought "Hey, why not make raw curry today!?" I made some delicious organic curry last night for me and my parents and it was SO GOOD, leaving me wanting more today... I figured I don't really wanna eat cooked food like that two days in a row - I'm NOT saying cooked curry is evil or anything, my body just prefers mostly raw - so I should make a raw curry recipe that so many of you have been asking for! Honestly, this was just as amazing if not BETTER than the curry last night (which was freaking fantastic in itself).

This recipe is actually super simple and yet has mind blowing flavours. I don't know if I'll ever make conventional cooked curry again (not because it's not healthy, but because this seriously equals it in awesome taste!) I highly recommend finding some organic curry powder, I got mine from a wonderful little raw vegan cafe and store called Tao Organics in North Van, I used it in the cooked curry I made last night and that is probably why it tasted so good. The flavours are fresher and cleaner.

Basically all this recipe is is cashew milk blended with some onion and curry powder. Done. I added some marinated mushrooms and onion and that's it! You can add whatever veggies you like, I bet this would also be incredible with some zucchini noodles... Mmm... Let's get curried! P.S. I have a low-fat and nut-free option - that's right, I'm always watchin' out for ya.


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Maybe I make things up in my mind - well, I DEFINITELY make things up in my mind, but I mean in this particular instance - because I thought the cashew cheese tasted a little bit like mustard, which conveniently paired deliciously with the fresh tomatoes, herbs and marinated mushrooms. Serve these "burgers" with salad and a raw dessert (look no further than this blog, hint hint) and you will plausibly be able to convince your most critical skeptics that raw vegan grub is actually kick-ass. 'Cause it is.

The weekend was pretty crazy for me. Friday night I went to a classical music concert that my medieval European history professor told me about; it was performed in a church and was beautiful and moving. Then I headed to a club to see my friend's fashion show and dance like it was the end of the world (in a good way). I licked some celebrities and some people licked me; a great night. I went to sleep at 3 AM and got up at 7 AM - an ungodly hour for me, normally - to jump on my dads motorcycle with him and ride up to Lilooet and back! It took about 8 hours and we had gorgeous weather for most of it. The scenery was absolutely breath-taking, empowering and humbling all at once; the autumn mist and colours made it extra special. I love this province. We stopped in at an Oktoberfest my dad's friends were throwing in West Van just so he could say hi and steal some veggie burgers and strudel.

Got home that night at about 8 PM, had a quick shower, gulped down some raw hot chocolate and headed over to my romantic partner's house for a Halloween party with my friends. It was... eventful and entertaining. Slept for a few hours after FINALLY getting to sleep at like 5 AM, then went for ridiculously delicious Indian food. No seriously, it didn't even make SENSE how good that chana masala tasted. I also have a theory that food tastes better when someone else pays for it. Got home that evening and studied for my history mid term exam, which I wrote this morning.

That was my weekend.


Today, I enjoyed the majestic foggy weather up on campus then headed home to be crafty with beads AND creative with mushrooms. Made these. Photographed 'em. Here they are for you.

Much love.