Raw Vegan Pecan Pie from "Living on Live Food" of Alissa Cohen.
The easiest pie to make! Requires a lot of nuts though. Don't usually have pecans on hand so picked them up at Whole Foods. But now that I may be celiac, I can't just buy nuts from anywhere. Especially the ones from Whole Foods which come in packages that say "may be from a dozen countries" and packaged in the same facility as every allergen in the world. I know that Braga and Bremner nuts are truly gluten free, let me know if you guys have other truly gluten free nut sources that are not over the top expensive.
Living on Live Food This book is great. Lots of inspirational stories in the beginning and a wide variety of recipes. Have also made her Portabellas, Raw Vegan Pumpkin Pie, Pineapple upside down cake and more.
The end of my cinnamon powder from Mountain Rose. Just got more in yesterday! Have been putting heaping tablespoons of the stuff in my smoothies!
The "normal raw pie crust". Nuts and dates in the food processor.
And more nuts and dates for the filling.
Verdict: This pie was super sweet buy my hubby said that Pecan Pie was generally like this. It totally grew on me and would be great with strong coffee. But very rich. Nice holiday pie and it ended up "setting" quite okay in the fridge. Raw pies are always a juggle for temperature to create nice slicing conditions. Sure you can use coconut oils, lecithin, and irish moss to "stiffen" them up, but you may want to stick to more simple recipes like this that slice fine, but don't require any added oils or mail order ingredients (for the type of irish moss that ya would need for a Cafe Gratitude dessert).
This holiday is going to be tough as our little Nobu dog is dying. He is getting weaker by the day and we don't know if he will make it until Christmas but we are trying to be grateful for what we have. He is older and I am grateful that he did not have to live on the streets his whole life, and that we have a home, fresh foods, and hopefully a healthy family. I try not to get too "up" about the holidays, as it seems everyone gets totally manic and crazy prior to Christmas, and then there is this major let down afterwards. When my mom, aunts and I hooked up in Tuscon just a few weeks ago, they talked about how the holidays brought out a little sadness in them. My grandfather died in his early forties (their father) right after Christmas and I think there has always been a sense that some tragedy could occur during this time. My hubby and I did however, try to put some holiday cheer up by getting our first ever Christmas Tree and putting up some decorations. It will be a quiet holiday for us, cooking up some standards and then I will have to add some weird raw food dishes too! And nursing our little Nobu.
This is Nigel, who was just rescued from East St. Louis this morning.
I did have a Christmas "wish" granted. Well, just an overall "wish" that happened to granted today. Went out with Pj and the Gateway Pet Guardianscrew and we were finally able to get the final of the "Itchy Scratchy" trio. This is Nigel and he, his mom Nina, and his sister Nigella (who just had her last litter of puppies) are now off the streets. Today was Nigel's rescue and he was ready. He went in the trap in about five minutes. Pj has been feeding this trio for about six years, every single day. All these rescues are in East St. Louis, Illinois. This is on the other side of the Mississippi river from St. Louis. David Carlyon of Darkwood studios took this photo. I am grateful these kids are now safe. There are countless others out there, and of course all the farm animals, and all the people with no food.........but a small success today. I will take it.
Krishna Das, a great story teller and a pretty traditional tune.
Soaked Dates and Raw Almonds. Raw Fooders know that it is a "trick" to get "really raw" almonds because of new laws that require them to get pasteurized (or at least heated to above the commonly accepted "raw norms"). I ordered these from Bremner Farms-directly from the grower. They did say they were raw and that their facility is gluten free and that they are safe for celiacs. So give them a call to confirm or check them out if you are a celiac looking for another nut supplier because apparently there aren't scads of Gluten Free (Certified) Nut suppliers! Currently selling from 6-8 dollars a pound depending on what amount you buy (Raw & Organic). So for me this was basically cheaper than the almonds that are at Whole Foods, in the bags, which are not raw, and are not organic, and are not grown in the United States.........
Living on Live Food
This is the "Pumpkin Pie" from Alissa's book (page 498 in my copy). Raw. Vegan. Simple. And it uses butternut squash! Plus it has the standard cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg for an ORAC party.
What are the Miracle Foods?? Nuts & Cloves!! So indulge in some anti-aging pies this Holiday!
Dr G's Healthy Pumpkin Pie (Cooked) from NutritionFacts.Org
Cloves & Cinnamon are AMAZING!!!!
These Dates are the cheaper variety at Whole Foods. Organic but Deglet Noor, not Medjool. However, if you love dates, then you must contact "The Date People" from California who grow natural dates but are not "certified" organic. From what I understand, they do not use pesticides but they are a very small business and could not/would not go through the certification process. When I say "small", I mean there is not always someone answering the phone there because they are picking dates! They have Variety Packs as well, and "wet" and "dry" dates.
Grating the Squash was a cinch. I just put it through my handy dandy retro "Salad Shooter".
Super Spices! Yep, all the stuff Dr. Oz mentions everyday......NO, there will be no mercury filled Salmon in my pie!
Cuisinart......or any old food processor. Yes, push "Go"!
With these raw dishes, I always feel like texture is subjective. I prefer chunky, but you might want a super smooth pie so it could "pass" for a "cooked" version? If I ever want something super duper smooth, I throw it in the Vita-mix. But for my everyday stuff, it's easier to just use the food processor. Plus you don't need extra liquid in the food processor.
So the Nuts & Dates make the "crust". No baking, no dehydrating.
Once again, I wasn't sure how it would "set" or slice. But after the pie spent sometime meditating in the fridge, it formed a beautiful texture that was pretty "sliceable". It wasn't a Cafe Gratitude pie, but it also didn't have 1/2 a pound of Coconut Oil in it-expensive for the wallet (Artisana) and controversial for the heart!! But the is a type of pie you can make easily at home, probably with ingredients you keep on hand if you are flirting with raw foods.
Why a Plant Based Thanksgiving?? Well, if you have a dog or a cat then you probably know a little about animal love. And everyone knows you can't actually "love" animals if you still eat them!! This video is the reality.........The beautiful thing is that we each make a choice every single time we eat. If we are buying these products, then we are personally responsible for creating more suffering in the world. If our goal is to reduce suffering in the world, then eating plants, and less food in general, is a marvelous way to go. For our bodies, the planet, and of course the animals we love.
Just when Fast Food couldn't suck more.....Well Mercy For Animals is going Primetime. Yep, this story is on Diane Sawyer & 20/20. The reality is that these are the truths, the "industry standards" of egg production. These birds are considered "livestock", not animals. They are products and treated by the industry no differently than Chinese Made Toys thrown on shelves at a Walmart. Once again, we have a choice. We create the change. This suffering only exists because people pay for it. With their pocketbooks, with their health, and with a lot of karma.....
Just another East St. Louis Feeding....I go out with Pj & the Gateway Pet Guardians crew once in awhile. I am able to get up early, which basically qualifies me to go-Pj likes punctuality! So even if my boots aren't tied, I usually have myself ready to go on time and get to feel like we are doing something compassionate in the early hours. I would love to hear about rescue work that any of the readers do!! These feedings/rescues are all in East St. Louis, Illinois (across the river from St. Louis, Missouri).
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