I'll be honest I have made more raw desserts than anything but I mean really isn't that where most of us run into trouble? With our junk food or desserts. A lot of it is our portion control and lack there of but I think the piece of cake or ice cream after supper can be the kicker.
That being said I ended up eating these desserts as meals most of the time because they were more than filling. And they made me feel really good after I ate them. Not once did I feel bloated, sluggish or tired after my meals. These raw food experiments have definitely proved to me I need to do more.
First I tried chocolate banana cream pie. I have to say avocado chocolate pudding completely blew me away. Man it tasted good. Who new? Now my meat and potato eating boyfriend wasn't overly impressed lol but what can you do. It definitely tasted different than a Betty Crocker cake. ;)
After that I tried raw carrot cake. Sorry no pics but it was once again an amazing thing. Talk about a revelation. I could eat my cake and instead of feeling yucky from eating all that icing and sugary goodness that I would normally feel, I felt energized and light as a feather from eating all the raw goodness in the carrots, dates, oats & raw cashew icing.
The next was a chocolate caramel tart. Now that was fricken good. Dates creamed make an amazing caramel. Even my boyfriend liked that one. I added some raw agave nectar to the carob topping. A little vanilla to the creamed date filling, helping the caramel flavour along and a little salt in the nut & date crust. This was beyond my favourite :D
The last recipe I tried was raw cheesecake. Made with cashews, dates, banana's and some oats for the crust. I made raw chocolate, melted coconut oil with some agave and cocoa powder, to go on top with my just peanuts, peanut butter. Man that was yummy. However I found it to be a meal in and of itself... which really wasn't that bad.
I did learn I love raw chocolate. So easy to make too. I keep mine in the freezer for storage and to keep it from getting soft. Very easy to snack on and I love the coconut oil mixed with the cocoa. I didn't add too much sweetener (real maple syrup) so it kept a dark chocolate flavour, just a little bitter. Very yummy.
However I have also tried some vegan cooked meals and really liked them as well. Recently tried some vegan burgers, which where gluten free, dairy free and very good. Loaded with nuts, mushrooms, onions, oat flour and more. They were very tasty. Even my 11 month old daughter liked them.
I love wraps too. I often lightly fry some of my veggies just to warm them up and put them in a wrap. Zucchini, mushrooms, carrots and onion warmed up. Add a little grated ginger root and garlic. Fry gently in coconut oil until just warm enough to eat. Sometimes I add a nut of my choice, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds etc. Then I put them in a wrap or pita with spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers & maybe some salt. The ginger and garlic in the coconut oil make a great dressing. And the strong flavours seem to help curb any cravings I may be having.
All the dessert recipes can be found on www.thisrawsomeveganlife.com. I have a ton of recipes from all over I want to try. I will keep you posted.
In summary I have to say I have never felt better. It has been several weeks now since I have decided to make a conscious effort to eat more raw foods, more vegetables over all and drink more water. (I may have to write about water consumption soon) Actually when I think about it, it has probably been two months now. Part of me feels I should have been doing this my whole life but I suppose if I hadn't eaten junk food first and learned how yucky crappy processed food can make me feel I may never have appreciated how good real food makes me feel. I had started to change my diet a year ago but it never really stuck. This time I am sticking to it. Why? Because I can. ;)
If you have recipes to share I would love to hear them. Wishing everyone a happy, healthy spring. :)
