chocolate raisin oat cookies

yum. that's what these babies are.

i will admit right off the bat - i didn't make the chocolate chips myself today so they aren't 100% raw in the photos. but as long as you make your own raw chocolate chips (or buy some), you're golden!

i was asked to give a raw cookie recipe so here it is. these are mostly oats with a bit of coconut, almonds and agave (i didn't have any dates!) i recommend using dates if you have them, they're a whole food whereas agave is more processed... still far better than white sugar though ;)

personally, i find these more satisfying than baked cookies. they taste just as good, and the bonus is that they're good for you. nothing to feel guilty about here! i bet these would be good if you dehydrated them for a couple hours, they'd get like baked cookies on the outside. for me though - they were great as is.

i made quite a few so i'll be giving them away to friends and what not. it would've been nice to go downtown and give them to the homeless. last time i was downtown i was bringing some raw brownies to a friend's house and didn't think to share them with the people who needed them more than my or my friends until after i was coming home... dang. next time!

hopefully you're not homeless and so can enjoy them in the comfort of your dwelling today.

chocolate raisin oat cookies: makes at least 2 trays

2 cups oats

1/2 cup coconut chunks

1/2 cup almonds

1/4 cup hemp seeds

3 figs

1/3-1/2 cup agave/maple syrup/honey (or 3/4 cup dates)

2 tb melted coconut oil

1 t vanilla

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 t salt

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup raisins

in your food processor, pulse oats, almonds and coconut chunks until they're like a rough flour. add all the other ingredients and blend until it comes together. add raisins and chocolate and mix in by hand. then form them into balls and flatten. dehydrate if you desire. hurraw!

lavender vanilla dream balls

i dreamt about these, woke up and wrote down the recipe, then went back to sleep. hence the "dream" part of the title. all my dream recipes are so much better than reality ones.

these were a big hit. my family loved them and so did my friends. i really tried to do something sans chocolate, but hey - can you blame me? i'm sorry i dipped these delicious, healthy treats in dark chocolate.

sue me.

you can leave out the chocolate, but - no surprise - i recommend adding it. chocolate and lavender seem to like each other, and who am i to deny them a great relationship?

for some reason the coconut oil in these did not want to be part of the party. i only put in about 2 tablespoons but it wouldn't combine with the other ingredients! you can see it soaking into the cutting board... hopefully this won't happen for you. start with 1 tablespoon and see what it does.

after rolling out all the balls with my friend, we had coconut oil dripping from our hands - literally! so i just rubbed it all over my body. yum! i love when the food i eat is also the stuff i put on my skin to keep it glowing and healthy. like avocados, bananas, oats, papaya, lemon, mango, etc.

vanilla lavender balls: makes around 25?

1/2 cup coconut chunks

1 cup walnuts

1 cup cashews

3/4 cup dates

1-2 tb melted coconut oil

1-2 tb agave/maple syrup (optional)

1/2 t salt

1/2 t cinnamon

1/8 t ginger powder

seeds from 1 vanilla pod

2 t vanilla extract

1 t dried lavender

2-3 tb hemp seeds

in food processor, process coconut chunks and nuts until they're crumb sized. add dates and pulse until it clumps together. add all other ingredients and process until it forms into a ball.

roll this into balls and then dip in raw chocolate, or melted dark chocolate. stick 'em in the fridge for maybe 10-15 minutes and then gobble them up.

funky monkeys

I'm rocking out to some great - albeit weird - music right now and I don't wanna stop playing it so my writing will be pretty brief; since I can't concentrate on listening to music and pay attention to what I'm writing at the same time! All you need to know, is that these are delicious and possess magical properties.

They are frozen banana slices covered in raw dark chocolate, then rolled in coconut chunks, goji berries, and raw jungle peanuts. NOM! Who couldn't love that? Anyway, you can change up the mix however you want. Don't like (or have) goji berries? Use another dried berry... or no berry at all. Use different kinds of nuts too. If you're allergic to coconut - put something else on.

I called them funky monkeys because monkeys eat bananas... and they're funky because they're covered in chocolate, berries and nuts! Plus, it hopefully got your attention. Something magical and delicious happens when you let them thaw for about 30 minutes after taking them out of the freezer. The bananas get the consistency of ice cream - they melt and become all gooey and sweeter. So be patient and let them soften a little before chowing down, it's worth it. 

Funky Monkeys: makes... however many you want! 

1/2 recipe for raw chocolate (or you can use a melted dark chocolate bar)

3 bananas

1/2 cup mix of goji berries, coconut chunks and peanuts

Peel and slice the bananas. Dip/cover in the chocolate and then roll in the nut/coconut/berry mix. Put them on wax paper on a tray and stick in the freezer for 1-2 hours. When they're frozen, take them out and wait 30 minutes or so, until you see the bananas start to "melt". Devour. 

NOTE: If you have left-over chocolate... well yeah. I don't consider this a problem so nevermind.  

Three’s Company Pie (aka Chocolate, Peanut Butter, ‘n Banana Pie) wheat-free option, gluten-free option, soy-free

All combinations here are winners – chocolate and peanut butter, banana and peanut butter, and chocolate and banana.   Together, three’s company, not a crowd!

1 cup non-dairy chocolate chips
2/3 cup natural organic peanut butter (can also use a nut butter like cashew or almond, see note)
1 cup ripe banana, sliced (not too overripe as for banana bread, but just lightly flecked)
1 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 ½  tsp pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp (little scant) sea salt (see note)
3/4 cup plain or vanilla non-dairy milk

1 prepared whole-grain pie crust (I use Wholly Wholesome brand) or  can use “Rustic Pie Crust”* or “Gluten-Free Pie Crust”*
 *recipes for these wheat-free and gluten-free crusts will be in LTEV.

Toppings:
1 - 2   medium-large ripe banana, sliced
½ - 1 tsp orange or lemon juice (to toss with bananas to prevent discoloration; use full tsp if using 2 bananas)
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
¼ cup chopped peanuts (or other nuts)

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Fit a metal or glass bowl over a saucepan on medium-low heat and filled with several inches of water (or use a double-boiler). Add the chocolate chips to bowl and stir occasionally as water simmers (not boils), letting chocolate melt. While chocolate is melting, in a food processor, first combine peanut butter with the banana, process through, and then add the cocoa, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt.  Puree, scraping down sides and base of bowl as needed to incorporate the sticky peanut butter.  Then add milk and puree through again until fully incorporated (again scraping sides and base of bowl to work in stickier parts of mixture). Once chocolate is melted, add to food processor and purée with peanut butter mixture, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Pour mixture into pie crust (scraping out all filling) and tip pie back and forth gently to evenly distribute filling.  Bake for 20 minutes.  The pie will be firmer around the edges and a little looser in the centre, but it will set further as it cools. Carefully remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Let cool completely (refrigerate if needed) before adding toppings.  In a small bowl, toss banana slices with juice.  Then, layer bananas (very random/rustic) on pie, use a fine sieve to dust the cocoa powder over top bananas, and then sprinkle the peanuts over top of everything.  Slice and serve!

Ingredients 411:  Some natural peanut butters contain salt.  Try to find a brand without salt.  If the brand you have does have salt, reduce salt from ¼ tsp to just a pinch.

If This Apron Could Talk:  This pie freezes very well, if you have leftovers.  Slice in portions, pop in an airtight container and then freeze.  Take out sometime later when you need a fix!

Another pretty way to decorate this cake is to dust it lightly with some powdered sugar.  Simply use about 1 tbsp of powdered sugar, place in a fine sieve, and tap it lightly over the pie to dust and decorate.

Serves 6-8.

Recipe from Let Them Eat Vegan.

lavender ice cream with dark chocolate

Luscious, light, and lovely. That's what this ice cream is.

Oh my goodness. It's better than any ice cream I've ever made; and guess what. It's full of raw whole foods that will bring you closer to excellent health. There's not much else to say about it. I suggest you make it ASAP, and enjoy the wonders our planet full of plants has to offer. 

No stealing the milk of another species here! Nor is there any disease-causing refined sugar, or freaky-deaky preservatives and stabilizers. Just some coconut, cashews, chocolate and lavender!

Before I made my lavender cheesecake, and now this ice cream, I didn't think I'd dig the taste of lavender in my food. 

I was wrong.

It's divine! I've grown up with the smell of lavender emanating through the garden and home. My aunt is also a lavender NUT, so whenever we visit each other you can bet there will be lavender gifts involved. 

I also use lavender oil to calm my nerves, keep my skin clear, scent my baths, and put me to sleep! It's a wonderful flower with endless uses. One of which being flavour! I want YOU to experiment with lavender in your food. Seriously. You won't regret it. 

It brings out this dimension in desserts I didn't know existed. Light, summery, delicate notes that remind you of the sun, wicker chairs, and busy bees traveling from flower to flower in the afternoon light. 

Okay so I said there wasn't much else to say and then wrote a paragraph... my bad. 

Bottom line: make this ice cream! 

(By the way I'm just using my basic raw ice cream recipe and adding a few things.)

lavender ice cream with dark chocolate: makes 3-6 servings

2 cups soaked raw cashews 

Coconut meat from 2 young Thai coconuts (1-2 cups)

1 cup of water

1 cup agave/honey/maple syrup

Seeds from vanilla bean

2 Tb vanilla extract 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup plus 1 T or so of coconut oil, melted

3 teaspoons dried lavender

1 bar dark chocolate, roughly chopped (optional)

Blend all ingredients except coconut oil and chocolate in your blender (Vita-Mix works best!) until smooth and creamy. Add in the coconut oil and blend until the chocolate chunks are the size you want, and the oil is mixed in. 

Try it now... Yeah. I know. 

Feel free to add some lemon to this - I bet it would taste heavenly.

Now try to resist eating it all before it's frozen: if you have an ice cream maker use that. 

If not, stick it in the freezer and stir it every 30 or 60 minutes until it's solid.