Recipe: Peanut butter freezer fudge

Ingredients:

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup agave 

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup cacao

Nuts of your choice in amount of your choice

pinch of salt

Stir together first 4 ingredients. Add  in cacao and a pinch of salt. Whisk together till smooth.  Line a standard loaf pan with aluminum foil making sure to smooth the corners. Apply coconut oil or coconut oil spray to the foil lining the bottom of pan for easy removal. Pour in mixture and top with nuts of your choice. Place in freezer until hardened. Remove fudge from pan.  Separate aluminum from the fudge and cut fudge in small pieces. Store in freezer or fridge to prevent melting.

Enjoy!

- Shelly

Watch the YouTube video here.

Recipe: Zesty Corn Salad

Time to shuck some corn! It is corn season so let the corn recipes begin! This is a light and easy summer dish, perfect to serve at gatherings or to top a salad with. The orange juice dressing really gives it a nice zesty twist that everyone will enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 ears of corn

1 orange juiced

1 sliced avocado

1/2 cup chopped carrot

1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

1/4 cup chopped cherry tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped green onion

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

salt to taste

Whisk together the juice of the orange and apple cider vinegar which will be your dressing for the salad. Combine all other ingredients into medium sized bowl and mix in dressing, Top with avocado and serve. 

Enjoy!

- Britnee

Watch the YouTube video here.

What is a Raw Food Diet?

The raw food diet consists primarily of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. The food we consumes is unprocessed, uncooked, whole living foods. Most of our food is eaten raw in it's natural form. However a small portion of the food we consume is dehydrated, anywhere between 104 and 118 degrees. Heating food above this temperature will kill the enzymes present. Enzymes are the life force of our food, helping us to digest food and absorb nutrients. By consuming cooked food it is forcing your body to work harder and produce it's own enzymes. Why not eat these healthy foods that already have the needed enzymes present rather than making your body work double time. Below is a raw food pyramid as well as a video of us discussing what raw food is to us. Check them out! :)

Watch the YouTube video here.

Recipe: Chahini Hummus

Hummus!!!!!!!!! We love hummus, it is a staple around our household. We use hummus in wraps and just as a veggie dip too. Since the base for this recipe is squash it wont weigh you down like the typical garbanzo bean hummus.  The squash is nice and light and easy on your digestive system. This will be a hit, I promise!

Ingredients:

2-3 medium zucchini squash peeled and chopped

6 tbsp lemon juice (approximately 3 lemons)

3 tbsp chia gel

1 tsp kosher salt

1 clove garlic minced

1/3 cup tahini

Place all ingredients into food processor and blend until you reach desired consistency. You may want to scrape down the sides with a spatula so you make sure to get all the flavors incorporated. 

Enjoy!

-Shelly

 Watch the YouTube video here.

Squash, lemon juice, tahini, chia, garlic, and salt.

 

Dig in!

Mondays with Maddie: Banana Pecan Cereal

Maddie loves her some banana pecan cereal with extra pecans!

Ingredients:

1 chopped banana

1 cup coconut milk

1/4 cup pecans

Place chopped banana and coconut into a small bowl. Top with pecans and enjoy!

Watch the YouTube video here.

Coconut milk, banana, and pecans.

Recipe: Veggie Sammich

Veggies and Hummus! Yes please! This "Sammich" pleases every time. The flavors of the fresh vegetables a top a layer of hummus is always so satisfying. I love how simple and easy this recipe is.  I can prepare it in 10 minutes tops. My best friend Samantha loves this sandwich so I decided to name it after her. I think sammich has a pretty good ring to it if I do say so myself.

Ingredients:

 

2 romaine Leafs

1 avocado

1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped cucumber 

1/2 cup sprouts  (any kind of sprouts will do I like alfalfa sprouts)

1/4 cup chahini hummus 

2 tbsp chopped onions

To assemble this sammich start with your romaine leaf and spread the hummus on top. Add, tomatoes, cucumber, onions, avocado, and top with sprouts.

Enjoy!
-Britnee

Watch the YouTube video here.

 

Hummus,  romaine, cucumber, tomatoes, onions, and sprouts.

How to open a coconut and their amazing benefits.

Coconut water is natures sports drink. Coconut water is packed full of electrolytes including potassium, sodium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. In addition the the electrolytes coconut water also contains  many essential vitamins. The vitamins present in coconut water include Vitamin C, B6, B1, B2, and B9. Coconut water has many health benefits.  It hydrates, relieves urinary problems, kills intestinal worms, breaks up kidney stones, controls vomiting, and it is antibacterial and antiviral.  

There are several ways you can incorporate coconut water into your day. I personally love to drink the water plain right out of the coconut. You could mix the coconut water with a juice such as fresh orange juice, lemon juice, or a green juice. While juice feasting,  I would mix my green juice with fresh coconut water to give it a better taste and add more volume. Coconut water can be used as a base for smoothies also. There are numerous ways you can incorporate coconut water,  try them all and see what you like best. With all these amazing benefits how can you pass up coconut water? Drink up!

Watch the YouTube video here.

Britnee's Blab

The raw food diet has changed my life in so many aspects. When I initially embarked on this journey it was solely to lose weight. That was my focus, and the pounds starting melting off right away.  I realized I was missing the big picture here. I wanted to become healthy, and if losing weight came with it will then it was just an added bonus. I knew how unhealthy I was and had been for years. I tried everything under the sun multiple diets, diet pills, exercise. I had come to the conclusion that nothing would work. Maybe I had another health issue that I was unaware of that was preventing me from losing weight? I followed all these crazy diets down to the t and still no results. I had given up hope of ever shedding these pounds or getting healthy. It just didn't seem like it would ever happen. I was always the chunky girl, and for once I wanted to take control and make a change.

Immediately I began to feel so much better. I started to feel alive! I know this probably sounds extremely corny but it is the only way I know how to describe it. The fog in my head cleared out and everything became clear. Colors were brighter and life became an amazing journey. The amount of energy I now had was out of this world. Only to make me think that I was walking around like a zombie before. The standard American diet was really weighing me down in more ways that one. Nothing or no one could hold me back.  I was on top of the world! There was no looking back from this point I was determined to get healthy.

I have been a raw vegan for a year and a half and it is one of the best decisions I have ever made. I still have work to do. I want to be the healthiest I can be. I have made some great progress and wanted to share with all of you. I want to inspire others to take control of their health. I never knew how good I could actually feel, and I want to spread the word! If I can do this so can you! :) 

Stay Healthy Friends!
-Britnee

My husband has also started this journey with me and he has lost a whopping 101lbs.

Recipe: Banana Ice Cream Parfait 

This is my go to dessert lately it is so simple and sweet! The best part about it is that I can have as much as I want because it is all fruit with a small amount of nuts. I have made this for my family and friends who all have loved it and it is an exceptionally big hit with children. The banana ice cream is pretty amazing who would of thought it would taste so sweet and creamy. Just having the banana ice cream would satisfy my taste buds, but I like to spice it up every now and then.  Also a side note on the bananas make sure you are freezing RIPE bananas this will make all the difference. Bananas are becoming ripe when they have small brown dots on them. Ripe fruit will make a big difference in taste and nutritional value.

Ingredients:

Frozen Bananas

Blueberries

Chopped Strawberries 

Chopped Pecans

Depending on how many of these parfaits you will be serving will determine the amount of ingredients that you will need. You can prepare the banana ice cream two different ways. You can place the frozen bananas through a masticating juicer such as the omega juicer as seen in the YouTube video which will come out just like soft serve ice cream. The alternative method to making the banana ice cream would be to blend up the frozen bananas in a food processor. When making the ice cream in the food processor let your frozen bananas thaw approximately 10 minutes or so before blending. Once you have made your banana ice cream you will then assemble the parfait with ice cream, blueberries, and strawberries. Once you have filled up your glass top with pecans and indulged!

Enjoy!

- Britnee

           Watch the YouTube video here.

Bananas, strawberries, blueberries, and pecans.

     Parfait time.

Recipe: Apricot Dill-ishessness Salad

Apricots, Dill, and Ginger, Oh My! I picked up some early apricots for a great price and was about to indulge when i thought, hey these would make a great salad dressing.  With fresh dill from my garden and a bit of ginger I knew I couldn't go wrong with this pairing. This salad recipe calls for Nama Shoyu which is an unpasteurized soy sauce hopefully your local health food store carries it, but if not visit our Amazon store. This salad is sweet, tangy, and tingles my taste buds. Hope you enjoy this Dill-ishessness salad.

Ingredients:

 2 heads of  chopped romaine lettuce

15 chopped apricots

1 chopped zucchini squash

1 pinch of Dill

1 small piece of ginger

1/4 cup chopped Green Onions

1 tsp Nama shoyu (unpasteurized soy sauce)

Chop romaine lettuce and add to a large bowl. Add 10 apricots, zucchini, dill, ginger, green onions, and nama shoyu into blender. Blend until smooth. Pour dressing over chopped romaine. Garnish the salad with remaining apricots, dill, green onions, and serve.

Enjoy!

-Shelly

Watch the YouTube video here.

                                          

     

 

Look closely on the apricot you will see two hearts :)

  

Two hearts and a cyclops happy face while cutting up green onions.

Yummy Salad!

Serve and Enjoy!

Recipe: Pineapple Banana Smoothie

Yes, I can be pretty sneaky at times, but it is always for a good cause. When my husband and I started our raw food lifestyle, he absolutely despised anything green. I started making this smoothie for him and he loved it.  I let him in on the secret and he admitted that spinach wasn't so bad after all. Spinach has a long list of amazing health benefits. Spinach contains antioxidants, aids as an anti-inflammatory, helps lower blood pressure, helps with vision, contains key components that fight infection, aids in preventing acne and wrinkles, contains protein that is essential for maintaining bone density, helps with brain and nerve functions, and contains anti cancer properties. So as you can see Popeye had it right all along. Spinach is packed with tons of nutritional benefits. So make sure to get some of those greens in daily. You may have to be sneaky like me but it is for a good cause.

Ingredients:

2 frozen bananas

1 cup fresh spinach

1/2 cup frozen pineapple

Place all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth. Depending whether or not you used frozen ingredients you may need to add a little bit of ice or water to reach a desired consistency.

Enjoy!

- Britnee

Watch the YouTube video here.

Spinach, Banana, and Pineapple.

Smmmooothie Time!

Recipe: Prickly Persian Salad

Raw cactus, also known as nopal, has some amazing health benefits. Cactus is filled with antioxidants and is high in vitamin C.  It helps with inflammation, diabetes, as well as ulcers. When eating cactus, try and consume it in it's raw form that way you will have all these amazing benefits. You can also add cactus to salsa recipes or to top a salad.  This recipe also calls for Persian cucumbers, however you can use any cucumber you like. The Persian cucumbers give it just an added flavor if you have never tried them i suggest you do.  This is one of my favorite summer dishes hope you like it.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes

1 1/2 cups chopped nopal cactus (prickles removed) 

1 1/2 cup chopped persian cucumbers

1-2 juiced lemons to taste

1/4 cup chopped green onions

salt to taste

Add all ingredients into large bowl stir and serve.

Enjoy!

-Britnee

Watch the YouTube video here.

 

Cactus, Tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, Lemon, and Green onions.

Mondays with Maddie: Caribou Smoothie

Maddie loves animals! She names this smoothie "Caribou Smoothie" since one of the ingredients is Carob powder. This smoothie is a hit with all the kiddos. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups coconut milk

1 banana

1 tbsp natural peanut butter

1 tbsp carob powder

1 tsp agave

1 pinch of salt

1 cup ice

Place all indigents into blender. Blend until smooth.

Watch the YouTube video here.

Coconut milk, Natural peanut butter, Banana, Carob, Agave, and Salt.

Recipe:  Simple Salad

Mondays with Maddie. A recipe so easy even the kids can do it! Gather the kids around and show them that there are other kids who want to be healthy too.

Ingredients: 

1 cup chopped romaine lettuce

1 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp black olives

1/2 lemon juice

Place lettuce into a bowl and add remaining ingredients. Mix everything together and enjoy.

Watch the YouTube video here.

Recipe: Sunrise Smoothie

I have a confession.....I'm just a tad bit obsessed with smoothies to say the least. I just love how easy it is to throw different ingredients into a blender and have a meal ready in 5 minutes! I usually have a smoothie every, and it never gets old. I'm always trying a new creation. I just love how simple, easy, and filling smoothies are. I have literally been having this smoothie everyday for the past two weeks. It is starting to warm up and this smoothie is perfect to cool me down.  This recipe calls for chia seed's, which may be tough to find especially in smaller towns. Chia seeds are starting to pop up more and more in health food stores, but if you are unable to find them in your area check out our Amazon store.  Chia is a great source of omega 3 for vegans, it is the richest plant-source of this healthy oil. By weight, chia contains more omega 3 than salmon, and it still tastes like whatever you want. Omega 3 oil is important in heart and cholesterol health. This smoothie is a perfect way to start your day, enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 bananas

1 mango

1orange

1 pitted date

1/2 cup strawberries

1/2 cup pineapple

1 tbsp soaked chia 

Add all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth. If you are not using any frozen ingredients make sure to add a little bit of ice. 

- Britnee

                                                                       Watch the YouTube video here.

Oranges, bananas, mangos, strawberries, pineapple, dates, and chia,

Ch-ch-ch- Chia

Dates and Chia.

Enjoy this smoothie and watch the sunrise.