Tag Archives: #WAPF

Chocolate Avocado Pie

Posted on by
cacoa-avocado-pie-2

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.

cacoa-avocado-pie-1

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.

Fragrant Ginger Snaps

Posted on by
fragrant-ginger-snaps-2

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.

fragrant-ginger-snaps

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

Spicy Bean Chips

Posted on by
bean-cracker-salsa

Here’s a beanie chip topped with organic cheese, crock banana peppers and homemade salsa.

I just heard about a new snack food called beanitos. I found the ingredient list on the internet and went to work on a grain-free, additive-free version that can be made at home.

I used an old recipe for Spicy Bean Dip from the Moosewood Cookbook and added ground yellow flax seeds to hold the chips together. I put the chips into the dehydrator for the night. I made two versions, one with fresh lime juice and one without. I know I have a great recipe when my family are eating the chips right out of the dehydrator!

bean-chips-2

The bean chips are a bit delicate but have a nice crunchy, creamy texture with a spicy aftertaste.

4c soaked and cooked organic white beans
4T organic olive oil
1 large organic onion, chopped
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
2tsp sea salt
2tsp whole organic cumin seeds, freshly ground
1tsp whole organic peppercorns, freshly ground
1/2c garden parsley, chopped
2-4 pinches organic cayenne, to taste
1/2c yellow flax seeds, freshly ground
1/4c homemade banana peppers, minced (optional)
1 organic lime, freshly squeezed (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 cooking. Rinse the cooked bean in filtered water.

Freshly grind all the spices and yellow flax in a spice grinder for best results. Saute the onions and sea salt in the olive oil until lightly browned. Remove from heat and add the garlic and cumin.

In a food processor, blend the onion mixture, parsley, cayenne, peppercorns, banana peppers and lime until smooth. Add the cooked beans and flax meal and mix well. Use a bit of extra water to get a smooth texture, if needed. The bean paste should be as thick as possible.

Drop the bean paste onto the dehydrator sheets using a teaspoon. With a wet spoon lightly press down the paste into a round shape. The bean chips dry very quickly in the dehydrator.

bean-crackers-test-1

This recipe can be used for making spicy bean chips which are a good travel food. If you don’t have time to dehydrate the chips just use the bean paste as a dip.

Ketogenic Chocolate Fudge

Posted on by
ketogenic-fudge-1

Ketogenic Chocolate Fudge is unlike any fudge you have ever eaten.

This recipe originally came from Eat Fat, Loss Fat by Dr Mary Enig and Sally Fallon Morell. I have made a few changes to the recipe to make it ketogenic.

This is like no fudge you have ever eaten. Normally, fudge is a super sweet dessert loaded with sugar. In contrast, this fudge is loaded with healthy fats.

1 1/4c organic coconut oil
1/4c organic creamed coconut
3-4T organic butter
5-6T organic cocoa powder
1-2T local honey
2 big pinches of sea salt
1T homemade vanilla extract (optional)
1c organic pecans, finely ground

Put the coconut oil, creamed coconut and butter into a Pyrex measuring cup. Place the measuring cup in a sauce pan half filled with water. Bring the water to a boil and simmer the mixture until melted.

In a food processor or Vitamix machine, add the melted coconut mixture, cocoa powder, honey, salt and vanilla extract. Blend very well. Add the nuts and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into a 8″x8″ glass pan lined with wax paper.

Cool the fudge in the freezer until the it is almost solid. Remove the fudge and cut into 32 bars. If you get the cooling at the right point, the fudge cuts cleanly and easily.

Store in the freezer. Enjoy the fudge when you need a quick snack that will fuel your body for hours.

ketogenic-fudge-2

Melt the coconut oil, creamed coconut and butter in a Pyrex cup.

ketogenic-fudge-3

Pour the fudge into a glass pan lined with wax paper. Cool in the freezer.

ketogenic-fudge-4

Use the wax paper to remove the hardened fudge from the pan. It’s easier to cut on the counter. I should have given the fudge a bit more time to cool because the fudge didn’t cut smoothly.

Sesame Flax Crackers

Posted on by
sesame-crackers

Creamy, crunchy crackers! Mmmmm! Progress happens more by mistake than intention.

These crackers can be made in a food processor but a Vitamix machine will give a very creamy cracker that can support loads of butter, cheese or pate without falling apart. I made these crackers by accident by putting the Vitamix machine on high for a moment. I thought I had ruined the crackers but they turned out creamy and crunchy. Progress in my kitchen happens more often by mistake than intention.

2c organic sesame seeds
1/2c organic brown or yellow flax seeds
3c filtered water
2tsp sea salt
1 organic bird’s eye pepper (optional)

Soak the sesame and flax seeds overnight in the water and salt. In the morning, the mixture will have mostly congealed. In a Vitamix machine, grind the mixture at high speed for just a moment. The mixture should be quick thick.

With a tablespoon, scoop out some of the mixture and place it on the dehydrator sheet. Smooth down into rounded crackers or just let the crackers settle themselves. Don’t spread the mixture too thinly or the crackers will break. Dehydrate at a low temperature for 24 hours or until the crackers are dry. Store in a dark, dry place.