If you don’t have a dehydrator, it might be time to get one because this raw food recipe for “sliders” is worth buying one for!

Before I started eating a diet of mostly raw, vegan food, one of my favorite treats used to be sliders. You know, the mini-burgers that you just pop in your mouth. The best were from a local gourmet restaurant and were basted with a compound butter (a butter with flavor) that was made with a red wine. They were insanely flavorful but extremely unhealthy.

Now that meat (and butter, for that matter) are off the menu, I threw together these little “sliders” made from mushrooms and sweet potato. The flavor is exciting, and the nutritional stats – off the charts.

Made from mushrooms and sweet potatoes with a binder of pumpkin seed flour, all I can say is that I was eating them way before they came out of the dehydrator. They are easy to throw together and can be dehydrated in an afternoon. Best of all, they can be frozen and thrown in the dehydrator to warm up later. 

Grind 1 cup of pumpkin seeds in the food processor to make 1 1/4 cups pumpkin seed flour. It doesn’t take long, just stop before you get pumpkin seed butter!

I used a combination of white and portabello mushrooms. To remove dirt from your mushrooms, you can give them a very quick rinse. Just be careful not to let them soak as they will absorb water. They will chop better in the food processor if you use small batches. 

The mixture will be wet but don’t worry. Just drop a mound onto the non-stick sheet (these are the new silicone sheets) and spread it into a 3-inch circle. You will dehydrate these for 1 1/2 hour on a non-stick sheet then transfer (don’t flip) them to a mesh sheet to finish the dehydration. 

Fall is one of my favorite seasons. I love the crisp feel in the air and the exploding colors as the trees move into their their winter slumber. The raw foods I love start to change from the light, fresh summer fruits to the heavier root vegetables. Seasoning starts to speak of sage and cinnamon. I want food that is more earthy, more dense.

Butternut squash is abundant in the fall and is showing up at the farmer’s markets. It is rich in antioxidants and phytonutrients, has tons of fiber and has significant levels of vitamin b6, and potassium. One glance at the orange flesh instantly lets you know that butternut squash is also full of carotenoids which help protect against breast cancer, macular degeneration and heart disease.

We often think of butternut squash only cooked, smothered with butter and brown sugar. But did you know that butternut squash is amazing raw? I think it taste better than cooked. When you cook the squash, not only do you decrease the available nutrients, it also gets very starchy. Raw butternut squash has a fresh taste and great texture.

I had mushrooms in the refrigerator and sage growing in the garden. They combine beautifully with the squash making a delicious, filling raw food recipe for your fall table. The addition of an organic white wine while delicious, is not mandatory. 

* You will want to marinate the mushrooms and soak the cashews the night before.

I have been wanting to create a recipe for raw lasagna for a while now. Today was the day and I am pretty excited about how this turned out. I mixed things up a bit by making a spinach-walnut pesto, a delicious tomato sauce, an exciting cashew cheese and using some traditional sausage herbs, a walnut “sausage” to top it all off. Throw in a few sliced fresh tomatoes and you have a wonderful dish.

I have also included instructions on how to make take the same lasagna ingredients and make tasty little “lasagna rolls” that kids or company will enjoy.  This dish is packed with nutrients, delicious and very satisfying!

Raw Vegan Lasagna with Spinach Walnut Pesto and Walnut “Sausage”

Ingredients:

• 1 medium zucchini, sliced thin lengthwise
• 1 tomato, sliced thin
• Marinara Sauce
• Spinach Walnut Pesto
• Cashew Cheese
• Walnut Sage “Sausage”

1. Place a layer of zucchini on a plate. Top with marinara sauce, fresh tomato slices and cashew cheese. 

2. Top with a layer of zucchini and top that with pesto.

3. Top with another layer of zucchini and sprinkle the walnut pesto and fresh tomatoes on top of that. 

4. Finish off with one more layer of zucchini, marinara sauce, cashew cheese, spinach pesto and sprinkle top with walnut sage “sausage”.

 

Marinara Sauce

• 1 clove garlic
• 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, softened
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 lemon, juice from
• 4 dates, soaked until soft and pitted
• 2 tablespoons water (if needed)
• 1 teaspoon italian spices

1.  With food processor running, drop garlic in and chop fine.

2.  Add remaining ingredients. Process until smooth.

Spinach Walnut Pesto

• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 cups spinach
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup walnuts, soaked at least 6 hours, drained and dried
• 1/2 lemon, juice from

1.  With food processor running, drop in garlic.

2.  Add remaining ingredients and process until a paste is formed.

Cashew Cheese:

• 3/4 cups cashews, soaked overnight, drained
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• pinch Himalayan Salt and pepper

1. Place all ingredients in food processor. Pulse until a cottage cheese texture is achieved. Add a little water if necessary.

 

Walnut Sage “Sausage”

• 2 cups walnuts, soaked for at least 6 hours in fridge, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon sage
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon marjoram
• 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons nama shoyu
• Himalayan salt and pepper to taste

1. Place all ingredients in food processor. 

2. Process until coarse crumb is achieved.

 

To make the rolls:

1. Place a strip of zucchini, cut length wise on the counter. 

2. Layer sauce, “cheese”,  pesto, and “sausage” only on 2″ of the strip next to the edge. 

3. Roll up and slice in half. 

Fill 2″ in from edge.

Roll up and cut in half with a serrated knife. 

Fall is in the air, the evenings are getting cooler and my dehydrator is humming again! During the summer, dinner is almost always a hearty salad made with fresh finds from the farmer’s market. But as the evenings cool off, I find myself wanting something a little more substantial and the raw food recipes start getting a little more creative!

I made this little tart with the left over tomatoes from the Hearty Heirloom Salad. I love the concentrated flavors of a marinated tomato, so into the dehydrator they went. Once these were done I knew they would make a perfect little tomato tart. The crust is made from almonds and kale (for an extra nutritional punch) and the filling uses cashews, tomatoes and spinach! With a little advanced planning to marinate the tomatoes and dehydrate the kale, these little raw, nutritious tarts come together in a pinch and the flavor is unbelievable! A perfect raw food recipe for dinner tonight, or your entertaining menu!

*Day Before Notes: Marinate tomatoes, dehydrate kale, soak cashews.

You can use baking rings, or tart shells for these tarts.

Perfectly marinated tomatoes!

Having just returned from a wonderful trip to the San Francisco area, I was greeted by an empty refrigerator this morning. My first errand? A trip to the farmer’s market, of course! As I browsed the isles, the tomatoes started calling to me. Wanting something fresh for dinner, I started searching for more ingredients.

During the summer months, my favorite dinners always are built around a hearty salad. Produce is abundant, fresh and delicious. With not too much planning, you can whip up a flavorful raw food salad, throw on a handful of nuts and create a healthy, satisfying dinner.

After picking up some small heirloom tomatoes, the purple beans caught my eye. In the bag they went along with a purple onion. I knew I had fresh basil growing at home and a little of that combined with a balsamic vinaigrette would be just the trick. The final touch? A handful of walnuts to provide some more substance.

This salad is easy and good. A perfect dinner for the last few days we have left of summer.

I just returned home from a fantastic trip to San Francisco. It is beautiful there. The stunning bay and the brilliant flowers and vines everywhere have such an amazing impact. It is like you landed in a fairytale land full of color. And the produce! Let’s just say that Dorothy wasn’t in Kansas anymore.

It was a blessed trip and I can’t honestly say I am ready to be home. But I am and tonight I wanted something simple and fresh to eat. I decided to whip up stuffed tomatoes. This recipe comes together in just minutes and is packed with flavor. You can use the dill dressing recipe or just salt and pepper the filling and enjoy it that way! I had some of the dill dressing in the freezer so that was a no brainer!

When the summer heat hits, I am looking for quick, easy light raw food. Today I threw together a nut and seed pâté that you are going to love. There is about 3/4 of a cup of nuts and seeds plus a cup of chopped carrots, celery, etc. to lighten it up. I threw in some fun, super healthy spices, turmeric, cinnamon, and cumin to give it a lot of flavor. This blends up quickly with a food processor!

You can serve this in romain leaves, roll it up in chard leaves, and put it on flat breads!

I promised yesterday that I would let you now what I did with my purslane. Tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, purslane and a wonderful southwest dressing! A perfect background for this beautiful little plant. I am going to go eat lunch now…

To read more about the fantastic nutritional benefits of purslane, click here: Purslane

I have been creating and shooting around the clock, working on the next Rawmazing E-Book, Frozen Desserts. It is coming together beautifully and will be released soon.

When I am working on a recipe book, I have a tendency to put my head down and lose track of everything else. I often describe it as being in a completely different reality. It’s my cookbook reality and things like stopping for lunch just don’t exist there!

Today, in the middle of shooting, I realized I hadn’t even though about lunch. I was hungry and I needed food fast.  I had some beets and cucumbers in the fridge and quickly threw together these beautiful little “sandwiches”. They are perfect for a quick lunch, or a as a great appetizer for your next gathering. The pine nut “cheese” spread is full of scallions, cucumbers and a touch of tarragon. So simple and tasty I had a hard time photographing them because I kept eating them! Lucky they take less than 10 minutes to throw together!

The filling uses pine nuts which used to be a favorite of raw food recipe folk until the price soared through the roof. But the price is finally coming down…search around I bet you will find them!

Last night I had the pleasure of attending the “Big Olive Oil Night” at Cafe Levain in Minneapolis. It was a fun and educational evening, sponsored by California Olive Ranch. We learned that there are areas in California that are great spots to grow olives! I was amazed at how much olive growing was like wine. They even prune their trees to resemble the vine pruning.

I have to admit, I was impressed with not only the freshness of the oil but also the taste. It was amazing. I left with a complimentary bottle of the Arbosana. All of the oils are cold pressed and never see heat over 87 degrees so great for a raw food recipe. Wanting to experiment with this beautiful, fresh olive oil, I started throwing some ingredients together. What I ended up with is a perfect summer salad, hearty enough for lunch or dinner. The use of sprouted wheat berries adds a beautiful flavor, crunch and tons of nutrients!

Wheat berries are very simple to sprout. I always use hard winter wheat when sprouting. Simply soak the berries overnight, then rinse two to three times a day until they sprout, which can happen in just a day and a half. 1 cup of wheat berries will yield 2 cups of sprouted wheat. For this recipe, I started by sprouting one and a half cups and had the perfect amount.

I used the olive oil in a beautiful lime basil vinaigrette. Made with honey as a sweetener, if you don’t use honey, you can substitute agave or another sweetener. I think this recipe will become one of your raw food recipe staples.