Check out this delicious Raw Coconut Yogurt. Perfect for a healthy Valentine’s! Just head over to One Green Planet.

These recipes come from one of the raw food classes I took earlier this year. They are slightly adapted to use what I had on hand. I don’t have a Vita-Mix and these three recipes can be made without that pricey piece of equipment! Although they may be a little chunkier….ha ha ha!

Eating raw isn’t an all or nothing thing for me- I just like the idea of preparing and eating raw food dishes because of their high nutritional content. So use what you have on hand and if it isn’t perfectly raw than so be it!

Eat these tapas style, or put them together in a wrap!!

Raw Falafel

• 1 cup pumpkin seeds
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tomato chopped
• 3 tbsp fresh cilantro
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 shallots
• 1/4 cup olives, stones removed (*I used kalamata which means my falafel aren’t technically “raw” due to the way they are processed)
• 2 tsp oregano
• pinch of cayenne
• pinch of black pepper
• 1/2 tsp himalayan sea salt
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Process all of the ingredients in a food processor until throughly mixed. Form into falafel balls and dehydrate at 145 degrees F for 1 hour, and then 105 degrees F for another hour or so.

Raw Hummus

• 2 cups grated zuchinni, some water squeezed out
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 clove garlic, chopped
• pinch of black pepper
• 2 tsp cumin
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil (start with 1/4 cup until desired thickness is reached)

Hey everyone,

Just a quick request- it would be greatly appreciated if you could head over here and vote for my Starbucks cupcakes. You can vote once per day, and I would love it if you did so. Thanks for you support!

I’ve been reading a lot about spring water lately and the benefits of drinking spring water. Spring water is rich in minerals and has a slightly alkaline pH. Drinking water like this can help to neutralize acidity in the body and reduce free radical damage. Aside from this…it just tastes great!!

I went to Find A Spring to search for springs near to my area. I picked one and dragged the boyfriend along for this adventure! (Just kidding, he was stoked, too!) We parked at a truck stop and climbed over a train….

We went through a chain-link fence and found this structure.

And then we filled up our bottles!

And enjoyed our water!

I definitely encourage everyone to look for a spring near you…Find A Spring.com is a great resource.

Last week I was invited to an event at Whole Foods Cambie St. location. It was really about healthy eating and nutrition and Whole Foods “Health Starts Here” program…which is amazing!! Basically all the food made by Whole Foods will focus on having minimal salt, no refined sugar, only whole grains, and no refined oils. The program is rooted in 4 basic ideas- eat whole unprocessed foods,  eat a colourful variety of plants, eat healthy fats, and eat nutrient dense foods. I think it’s awesome to see an entire chain of stores taking this much effort to promote healthy eating. It’s so important!!

The evening started with a healthy smoothie as we walked through the door for all of us bloggers. There was plenty of food including this healthier banana bread, brownie bites, two kinds of pizza, lettuce wraps and more!

These brownie bites are sweetened with date paste only.

Obviously all of this lovely food was served on eco-friendly bamboo plates.

These pizzas use an oil-free crust...the secret? Vegetable stock!

The main event was Whole Foods Senior Global Chef Derek Sarno’s demonstration. The topic of the night was his Wellness Bowls O’ Goodness. The idea was to create a bowl featuring a healthy grain, a protein, veggies, and a combination of delicious herbs/spices/sauce. These make up a nutrition-packed and filling meal. Chef Derek made a couple of bowls- one was made up of chicken, barley, black beans, onion and cilantro.

The 2nd bowl was an Asian-inspired one. It featured a mixture of brown and wild rice, edamame, steamed broccoli and brussel sprouts, onion, mint, bean sprouts, mushroom crusted tofu, tamari, coconut water, and fresh ginger. How can you resist!!?

Chef Sarno is also a big fan of kale (me too!!!!). He made a simple massaged kale salad using lime juice and avocado.

Chef Sarno in action

A great event for a great program I also had the pleasure of meeting Jennifer from Sweet On Veg for the first time in person! She was the lucky winner of a Vita-Mix that night- congrats Jennifer!!

Head on over to One Green Planet to grab this yummy recipe!

I hope you all had great holidays and fun New Year’s celebrations! I had a great Christmas, spent in Whistler with my family and my boyfriend. It snowed the whole time, and I gave snowboarding a go. Our car was jam-packed so when we picked up a little Christmas tree there one was only one place for it…thanks Mom! We also had no room to bring up ornaments for the tree….but we are a festive family and thought of something suitable

New Year’s was also spent in Whistler and my boyfriend and I enjoyed a great meal at Earl’s and more than enough jagerbombs!!

With the holidays behind us though, it’s time to get back on track! But that does not mean you have to skip dessert. 

Raw food desserts are amazing because they taste delicious and sweet, as dessert should, but they are made with healthful and nutrient-dense ingredients! I first tried this coconut cream pie in a raw food class that I took. It blew me away that something could taste this good and not only be healthy, but also contain so few ingredients. It was so rich and satisfying that just a small portion is all you need.

This recipe can make one large 9-inch pie, but I chose to make 5 smaller pies instead.

RAW Coconut Cream Pie

Crust:

• 2.5 cups dry coconut flakes
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup packed, finely chopped dates
• 1/4 tsp raw vanilla powder, or 2 vanilla beans

• 1 1/4 cups coconut milk (this is coconut meat and water blended together- not canned coconut milk.
•  3/4 cups coconut meat
• 3/4 cup packed, finely chopped dates
• 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
• 2 pinches salt
• 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp raw scented coconut butter

Blend all ingredients except coconut butter in blender until smooth. Add coconut butter last and blend until smooth. **If you have a Vita-mix this will be easy…if you are like me and don’t have one, you may need a bit of extra liquid or to do small batches. I ended up using a food processor for this step because my blender sucks.** Pour into prepared crust and top with coconut flakes. Refrigerate or freeze for about an hour. Enjoy!

The other day it was one of my best friends birthday, and I was super excited to make some cupcakes for her! She works at Starbucks and I thought I would make some adorable Starbucks themed cupcakes. We also recently took a trip to Seattle and of course hit up Starbucks every single day!

Pike Place Market

Taylor + Randi at Starbucks

Pike Street

I made a basic vegan yellow cupcake, filled them with a delicious caramel sauce, and topped them off with a swiss meringue buttercream. Of course if you make these, you’ll have to discreetly steal some supplies from Starbucks….hehehe!

Vegan Yellow Cupcakes (adapted from here)

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp apple cider vinager
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt (increase to 1/2 tsp if using oil instead of vinegar)
• 1/2 non-hydrogenated margarine, softenened, or 1/3 cup canola oil
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp espresso (I used instant)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners. Whisk the almond milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside for a few minutes to get good and curdled. If using margarine: Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix. In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer at medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. (Don’t beat past 2 minutes.) Beat in the espresso and vanilla, then alternate beating in the almond milk mixture and dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times.

If using oil: Beat together the almond milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extracts, if using, in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix until no large lumps remain.

Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before frosting.

Caramel Sauce (adapted from here)

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
2 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 10-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Cut butter into evenly sized cubes and melt over low heat in large 3-4 quart saucepan.
Once butter is fully melted, add brown sugar, being careful to avoid the sides of the pan. If any stray sugar crystals fall onto side of pan, carefully brush off with a wet pastry brush.
Once butter and sugar are fully combined, add corn syrup and condensed milk. Clip on candy thermometer to side of pan.
Cook mixture on low heat (still continually stirring) for about a minute or two. Increase heat to medium and continue to cook/ stir until mixture reaches 225 degrees. Once the mixture is removed from heat, stir in vanilla extract.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

3/4 cup sugar
4 egg whites
3 sticks unsalted butter (at room temperature)
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Heat sugar, egg whites, and salt in a heatproof mixer bowl set over a pan of simmering water, whisking until sugar dissolves and mixture registers 160 degrees on a candy thermometer. Return bowl to mixer, and whisk, gradually increasing speed from low to medium-high, until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 10 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add butter, a few pieces at a time, whisking well after each addition. Whisk in vanilla. Switch to a paddle attachment and beat until air bubbles are gone, 2 to 3 minutes more.

Check out my latest post on One Green Planet!

It’s that time of year when I get to start baking for Christmas! I loooove Christmas baking, and I kicked off the season’s treats with these Lemon Lavender Shortbread. I’ve made this recipe a few times now and it takes the rich buttery taste of shortbread and pairs it up with the delicate scent of lemon and lavender. These are so unique- I bet your family and guests will never have tried a cookie flavoured with lavender before. The recipe is a snap to make, but do make sure you follow the chilling times even if you are impatient

Lemon Lavender Shortbread (recipe from Epicure Selections)

• 1/2 lb (125 g) butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 heaping tsp lavender (I use this)
• 1 heaping tsp fresh lemon zest
• 1 cup all purpose flour