Tag Archives: Renee Loux Underkoffler

Chocolate Avocado Pie

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This Chocolate Avocado Pie is a great use for over-ripe avocados and bananas. Actually, over-ripe will give you the best results.

This recipe is NOT safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.

Avocado Pie? Sounds disgusting, right? Well, give it a try and get back to me. This recipe is based on the recipe Choconot (not a spelling mistake) Mousse Pie with Vanilla Cream (not real cream) Frosting from Living Cuisine: The Art and Spirit of Raw Foods by Renee Loux Underkoffler. This is a raw food, vegan cookbook. If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you know that the Weston A Price Foundation does not consider vegan diets healthy, especially for people wanting to have children. Since I respect the diet opinions from the WAPF, I just want to be clear that I don’t endorse the vegan diet either. Nevertheless, this book is a great source for nut-based desserts!

I’ve made a few changes to the recipe, and yes, I recommend topping this delicious dessert with lots of organic, whipping cream! You could use carob instead of cocoa, if desired. If you can’t consume whipping cream, whipped coconut cream makes a nice replacement.

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Here’s the pie with some sprinkled cocoa powder. Melted dark chocolate is also very nice.

Crust
6 organic dates, softened if needed
2c organic walnuts or almonds, or mixture of both
2tsp organic cinnamon
2 pinches sea salt
1T organic coconut oil, to grease pan

If the dates are older and dry, re-hydrate them by pouring some boiling water over the dates and covering for 20 minutes, until soft. Soften 3/4c of dates for both the crust and the filling at the same time. Remove the ends and the pits. In a food processor, blend the six dates for the crust into a paste. Add the nuts, spices and sea salt. Blend until the dough starts to form a ball in the food processor. Remove the dough ball from the food processor and evenly spread in a greased pan.

Filling
1/2-2/3c organic dates, softened if needed
2-3T homemade vanilla extract
1/2tsp sea salt
3-4 organic avocados, very ripe
3 organic bananas, very ripe
2/3c organic cocoa powder
3-4T organic coconut oil
organic cocoa powder, sprinkled (optional)
70% organic dark chocolate, melted and sprinkled (optional)

Use the rest of the softened dates for the filling. In a food processor, blend the dates, vanilla extract and sea salt into a smooth paste. Add the very ripe avocados and blend until smooth. Add the very ripe bananas and blend until smooth. Use a spatula to help mix the ingredient. (Close your eyes and taste the mixture before adding the cocoa. Does it taste good with your eyes closed?) Add the cocoa powder and coconut oil and blend until smooth. The food processor will likely be laboring under the thickness of the filling. This is a good sign. Pour the filling on top of the crust in the greased pan. Top with sprinkled cocoa powder or drizzle with melted, 70% dark chocolate. Refrigerate until chilled and serve with whipped, coconut cream or whipping cream. Both are excellent.

Spicy Winter Soup and Creamy Squash Side Dish

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Add some freshly grated turmeric to the soup for a late winter tonic.

This recipe is based on Ginger-Curried Pumpkin Soup by Renee Loux Underkoffler. I’ve made some changes to the recipe and added some fresh turmeric. Turmeric is a wonderful warming spice that is reputed to have numerous health benefits.

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Steam whatever squash you have in storage. By the end of the winter the squash can be quite hard and may need extra steaming to soften.

Steamed Winter Squash
The first step in making these two dishes is to steam some winter squash. The steamed squash will last for about a week in the fridge.

1 winter squash, cut into pieces
1-2 inches of water
Cut the squash and clean out the seeds. Save the seeds for spring planting or compost. Cut the squash into small pieces and put the pieces into a large pot with a tight lid for steaming. Add about an inch or two of water to the bottom of the pot. Steam the squash until soft. This can take some time with older squash. Start with 20 minutes but increase the cooking time as needed. Let the squash completely cool overnight. This makes peeling less of a chore. Peel the squash pieces and place them into another bowl for later use. Some of the squash will be used for the soup and some for the side dish. Keep the squash water for the soup.

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This soup is spicy and fragrant. Adding fresh turmeric is an excellent winter tonic.

Spicy Winter Squash Soup
This soup is made with a Hubbard or Buttercup winter squash. Use whatever squash you have in storage. The soup is really nice for warming up after a cold winter day.

4T butter
2-3 medium onions, chopped
1tsp sea salt, ground
1 bird’s eye pepper, freshly ground
1T whole coriander, freshly ground
1tsp whole cumin, freshly ground
1tsp whole black pepper, freshly ground
1tsp whole cinnamon, freshly ground
3 cloves garlic, finely grated
4T fresh ginger, finely grated
2T fresh turmeric, finely grated
3-4c winter squash, cooked and peeled
3-4c squash water
In a soup pot, saut? the onions and sea salt in the butter until the onions are translucent. Add the fresh spices and cook until fragrant. Remove the onion mixture from the heat and add the freshly ground garlic, ginger and turmeric. Do not cook these spices. In a food processor or Vita-mix machine, puree the onion mixture with some of the squash water until very smooth. Pour back into the soup pot. In small loads, puree the cooked squash with the squash water until very smooth. Pour the squash mixture into the soup pot. Add a bit of filtered water if the soup is too thick. When ready to serve, gently rewarm the soup for best results.

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This side dish is very easy to make and is a good substitute for mashed sweet potatoes.

Creamy Squash Side Dish
This is a very easy side dish to make. It’s a good substitute for mashed sweet potatoes.

4c winter squash, cooked, peeled and pureed
4T butter or coconut oil
1tsp sea salt
1tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1-3tsp fresh turmeric, finely grated (optional)
In a sauce pan, melt the butter or coconut oil. Add the pureed squash or just mash with a fork. Warm the squash, stirring all the time. Add the sea salt and pepper. Add the optional fresh turmeric at the table for best results.

Fragrant Ginger Snaps

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This recipe makes a soft, chewy cookie with a fragrant taste. Top the cookie with some honeyed ginger or dried fruit pieces.

This recipe is safe for someone on the SCD/GAPS program. Just eliminate the optional blackstrap molasses.

This recipe is based on Ginger Snaps from Living Cuisine: The Art and Spirit of Raw Foods by Renee Loux Underkoffler. Renee’s cookbook has an amazing section of raw desserts based on nuts and she has a special gift for balancing flavors with spicing.

Living Cuisine was a gift from my sister many years ago. I was new to the SCD/GAPS program at the time. I was frustrated because I had no recipes for making a birthday cake for my youngest daughter that was “SCD/GAPS legal”. After reading Renee’s book, I never had problems with making SCD/GAPS legal desserts again!

2c boiling filtered water
18-20 organic dates, soaked and pitted
1/4c organic ginger, freshly grated very finely
2tsp organic nutmeg, freshly grated very finely
1T organic cinnamon stick, freshly ground
1/2tsp organic whole cloves, freshly ground
1/2tsp sea salt
2T organic blackstrap molasses (optional)
2c organic white beans, soaked, cooked and rinsed
2T organic whole yellow flax, freshly ground
organic raisins or homemade Honeyed Ginger, topping (optional)

Soak the white beans overnight in filtered water. Rinse the beans well before covering with fresh water and cooking for 1-2 hours until very tender. Remove any scum or hard beans during the cooking. Rinse the cooked bean well in cool filtered water before using.

Place the dates in a bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Cover and let the dates soak for 20-30 minutes. While the dates are soaking, finely grate the ginger and nutmeg and freshly grind the cinnamon and cloves in a spice grinder. When the dates are cool remove the pits and put the pitted dates into a food processor.

In a food processor, blend the dates until very smooth. Add some date soaking water, if needed. Add all the spices, ginger, molasses and sea salt and mix very well. Add the cooked beans and process until very smooth. Add the ground flax seeds last and grind again very well. Refrigerate for a few hours until the dough thickens.

Drop the cookie dough onto the dehydrator sheets in teaspoon amounts. With a wet spoon lightly press down the cookie dough into a round shape. The trick with the cookies to have the cookie dough thick enough not to drip through the dehydrator screen. The cookies are nicer if not over-dried. This produces a moist, chewy cookie.

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Try topping the ginger snaps with raisins or small pieces of honeyed ginger. See the link for a recipe for homemade Honeyed Ginger.

Renee is a raw food vegan and she has developed some delicious nut-based desserts. The Weston A Price Foundation does not consider a vegan diet healthy. In contrast to this view, many WAPF health practitioners use short-term vegan diets for a cleanse. These practitioners just don’t think veganism a good diet for long-term use or if you are planning on have children. Regardless of the WAPF views on vegetarianism, Renee’s desserts are fabulous!

“The Foundation believes that strict vegetarianism (veganism) is detrimental to human health. Vegetarianism that includes eggs and raw (unpasteurized) dairy products, organic vegetables and fruits, properly prepared whole grains, legumes, and nuts, and excludes unfermented soy products and processed foods, can be a healthy option for some people.”
Weston A Price Foundation: Vegetarian Tour

Chocolate Mousse Pie

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This recipe is based on Choconot Mousse Pie from Living Cuisine: The Art and Spirit of Raw Foods by Renee Loux Underkoffler. This is a raw vegan cookbook. The Weston A Price Foundation does not consider vegan diets healthy. If you would like to read more about the WAPF views on vegetarianism, please take the Vegetarian Tour.

Nevertheless, this cookbook has some excellent recipes for nut based desserts which is helpful for people on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. My sister got me this book when I first started the SCD/GAPS. I was having problems making desserts for special occasions. Desserts became a breeze after reading this book and learning her technique for raw desserts!

One more note on nuts. Some people find nuts difficult to digest, even when the nuts are properly prepared by soaking and dehydrating. If you are one of these people, be careful with nuts and only eat them for special occasions.

Crust
1c soaked and dried almonds or walnuts
4 softened organic dates, pitted
1T organic vanilla extract
1T organic coconut oil
2tsp organic cinnamon
pinch sea salt

Pre-soak the whole almonds or walnuts in lightly salted water overnight. In the morning drain off the water and dehydrate the nuts until completely dried. (Make a large quantity of nuts and store the soaked and dried nuts in the freezer for quick use.)

Pour boiling water over the dates and let the dates soften. When the dates are cool, remove the pits. (Soak the dates for the filling at the same time.)

In a food processor, grind the nuts into a fine meal. Add the dates and blend into a soft paste with the nuts. Add vanilla extract, coconut oil, cinnamon and sea salt. Continue to blend until a ball of crust is formed. Remove the crust and press into the bottom of a pie pan. I use a beautiful stoneware pie pan for this dessert but any pretty pie pan will work.

Filling
1c softened organic dates, pitted
4 organic avocados, soft
1T organic coconut oil
1T organic vanilla extract
2/3c organic cocoa powder
1 organic banana, chopped into rounds (optional)
2-4T organic maple syrup (optional)

In a food processor, blend the dates into a soft paste. Add the avocados, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Add the maple syrup, if you want a sweeter pie. Add the cocoa powder and blend until very smooth.

Place the rounds of banana over the crust. Pour the filling over the banana rounds and the crust. I like making a swirly pattern for the top. Refrigerate and serve when cooled. Don’t tell the children about the avocados until they have tried the pie first!