Ani's Raw Food Essentials (18 page)

½ cup chia seeds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup currant or raisins
½ cup chopped dehydrated apples
3 cups of your favorite mylk

Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir well. Wait for 5 to 10 minutes for the dry ingredients to become hydrated and the cereal to thicken. Serve and enjoy.

 

SERVING SUGGESTION:
Top with fresh fruit before serving.

 

OPTIONS:
Start with ½ cup of chia seeds and your favorite mylk, then add whatever nuts, seeds, fresh or dried fruit you have on hand to create your personalized flavor combos. One of my favorite combos is chia in mylk with dehydrated apples, raisins, and cinnamon. Another is chia in mylk with pecans, cranberries, and dried shredded coconut.

Yes, there is such a thing as raw crepes! These are easy to make, and can be a base for a meal any time of the day—breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Banana or Apple Crepe wrappers, made by blending fruit with flax meal and then dehydrating, are filled with kream or sauce and fresh fruit. A savory crepe is made by filling crepe wrappers with your favorite scramble and a spicy jalapeño sauce.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

 

This crepe is inspired by the delicious-smelling banana Nutella crepes made fresh on the streets of Paris. Here's my healthy and guilt-free version. Feel free to substitute your favorite nuts if you can't find hazelnuts, and carob powder for cacao if you don't want the caffeine.

CREPES
1 recipe Banana Flax Crepes (page 68) (four crepes)
FILLING
1 recipe Chocolate-Hazelnut Kream (page 68)
TOPPING
1 recipe Chocolate Fudge Sauce (page 282)

Lay one crepe onto each of four serving dishes. Scoop about ¼ cup of Chocolate Hazelnut Kream in a line down the center of each crepe. Fold the crepe in half or roll it up with the filling inside.

 

To serve, drizzle with the Chocolate Fudge Sauce.

 

SERVING SUGGESTION:
Sprinkle with cacao powder for looks. Garnish with slices of banana, hazelnuts, or cacao nibs.

MAKES 4 CREPES

 

Mild in flavor, these crepes can be enjoyed in a savory or sweet recipe. Use to wrap salads, make burritos, and form wontons. The flax in this recipe makes for a crepelike consistency that's less leathery than a fruit leather.

1 cup mashed banana, packed (about 2 whole)
½ cup flax meal
½ cup water, or as needed

Place the banana in the bottom of a high-speed blender. Add the flax meal and water, and blend until smooth.

 

Spread the mixture evenly onto one lined 14-inch-square Excalibur Dehydrator tray.

 

Dehydrate for 4 to 6 hours at 104°F, or until completely dry.

MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP

 

Inspired by Nutella, a chocolate hazelnut spread from Italy. My version is a creamy superfood that's packed with antioxidants to keep us healthy and strong.

1 cup hazelnuts (also known as filberts)
2 tablespoons cacao powder
2 tablespoons agave syrup
½ to 2/3 cup filtered water, as needed

To make your kream, place the hazelnuts, cacao powder, agave, and water in a high-speed blender. Blend until smooth, adding only as much water as needed to create a thick cream.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

 

Strawberry lovers' breakfast bliss: sliced strawberries with chunky strawberry jam wrapped inside a crepe, topped with strawberry sauce.

1 recipe Apple Crepes (page 69) (four crepes)
1 recipe Strawberry Jam (page 96)
1 cup sliced strawberries
1 recipe Strawberry Sauce (page 280)

Lay one crepe on each of four serving dishes. Spread ¼ cup of Strawberry Jam on each crepe. Top each with ¼ cup of sliced strawberries. Fold in half or roll up. Drizzle with Strawberry Sauce before serving.

 

SERVING SUGGESTION:
Garnish with strawberries and mint.