Monday, April 12, 2010

i have a new friend...

sooooooooo...i've been really busy since i last posted...i turned 34...woke up on april 8, 2010...and began my day like all others...as i was exfoliating my face i pulled something in my neck all the way to my shoulder blade...can anyone say excruciating pain? ummm yah! i pretty much drove to the subway in hysterics...

my almost mother-in-law was sweet enough to have me over for dinner, her and her hubby didn't want me to be alone on my birthday (john works nights)...they ordered thai, and my order was red curry tofu...it was soooooo spicy...my mouth was on fire...but it was pretty good...(sorry i didn't get a picture of it)...

i received a few sweet gifts...





i also got a $50 gift card and a stella mccartney top (from my sweetheart)...but i didn't really love it...so we returned it...

and finally, i bought myself my new very best friend...

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saturday night we went out for dinner...we went to our fave restaurant...merlot...the restaurant we had our first date...i called ahead to make sure they would be able to accommodate my diet, i was told they had one main dish that suited a vegan diet...and that they could make me any type of salad i wanted...RIGHT?! i ended up having their crudites salad...because they were out of avocados and asparagus...



and for dinner i had their only vegan entree, a tagliatelle with mushrooms, bok choy, red onion, red peppers, garlic and olive oil...it was ok...i enjoyed it...



ok...so on now to some eats...

today i was a bit of a busy bee in the kitchen...

i made some spicy hummus and some sundried tomato pizza cheese...

spicy hummus

2 cans of organic chickpeas
1 tsp of chili peppers
1 tsp himalayan crystal sea salt
1 tbsp raw tahini paste
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp cumin
4 tbsp lemon juice

throw all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth...

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sundried tomato pizza cheeze

2 cups macadamia nuts, soaked 3 hours
1 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked 3 hours
1/2 cup of basil
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 cloves of garlic
sundried tomato soak water

put all ingredients in food processor except soak water...pulse a few times, until everything is pretty crumbly...add soak water slowly, add as much as you prefer...i like my cheeze to be spreadable...

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sundried tomato hemp seed bread

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1.5 cup hemp seeds
1/4 cup flax seed, ground in a coffee grinder or spice mill
1 cup almond pulp
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp ground back pepper
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 chopped onion
1 cup spinach
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked for 3 hours

mix the 1.5 cups of hemp seeds and flax in a food processor with the sea salt, oregano, black pepper and almond pulp. add lemon juice, olive oil, onion, sun dried tomato and spinach, and mix again, adding water as needed. you want the mixture to moist and dough-like, but not at all runny or overly sticky.

remove mix from processor and flatten to 1/4 inch on paraflex sheets in your dehydrator. dehydrate 6-8 hours...turn the bread over by putting another paraflex sheet over the bread, and then flipping the whole thing. dehydrate for another 6-8 hours, or until bread is very dry and firm, but still pliable. cut into slices and enjoy.

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i also made choosing raw's carrot falafel...really yummy...i had to make a few subs...i only had 1/2 a cup of black sesame seeds...i used 1 tbsp of flax (because i really really hate them)...and i omitted the cilantro (because i hate cilantro more than flax)...

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for dinner i made myself a lovely pizza...i used an ezekiel wrap as the base/crust, i spread 2 tbsp of my spicy hummus and then added some of my mushroom ragout, added some broccoli, red onion, some daiya cheese and some veggie pizza pepperoni...

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have a beautiful night ladies...

7 comments:

  1. You were a busy bee today! I loveee raw pizza cheese (I just made some too).

    Yay for getting a dehydrator :D You should make some macaroons in there!

    Have a good night & I hope your neck feels better :)

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  2. i am so sorry to hear of your pulled muscle! that is how my whole back situation happened. something didn't heal right though. please take care of yourself and don't overdo it for awhile.

    i love how you make raw things and cooked vegan. you are a great example of someone loving raw food because it tastes good enough to stand up next to a cooked dish.

    enjoy that new dehydrator! lucky you and happy birthday!!!!!

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  3. Ummm I don't believe for a SECOND that you are 34. No way.

    I hope you feel better, pretty lady!!! Take care of yourself!!!!

    xoxo

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  4. Happy 24th bday :) wink wink
    I am turning 34 in 2 mos!

    Anyway congrats nelly on the dehyd!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Pick yourself up some of these, they will SAVE you so much cleanup in the future
    http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/ParaFlexx-Premium-Non-Stick-Drying-Sheets-size-11-X-11-each-17-42-regular-prod.htm

    when you make things w/ oil in them, i.e. coconut macaroons for example, the oil melts and drips everywhere!!! and you spend hours cleanin your machine. consider that i jsut saved you alot of cursing and hours of cleanup :)

    sorry bout the injury situation. sigh.

    i have to say, for a total dehyd newbie you have RAWKED out amazing eats, Nelly!!!!

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  5. hey danielle...what do you do with your pizza cheeze??? i was actually thinking of making macaroons yesterday...but i wasn't sure whether it would be ok to dehydrate savory treats with sweet treats...but i'm definitely making the macaroons and banana chips next!!! =)

    hey bitty...i love raw food...it's so much fun to make and so much fun to eat...i will definitely not overdo it...it's still pretty sore...i need to start actively looking for a yoga class i can take...

    hi andria...i definitely am...but thanks...i get carded enough to make me happy...haha!

    lovely averie...i actually ordered them yesterday morning, picking them up on saturday!!! i used some foil paper at the bottom of the raw bread i made...it's definitely still pretty messy! thanks for the tip!!! as always thanks for the smiles!!!!

    =)

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  6. sorry about your neck, but so happy for your new dehydrator!!! everything you made looks amazing! i need to try that hempseed bread.

    and that pizza, oh my god! i need daiya cheese NOW! where did you get it?

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  7. Happy Birthday!!! Sorry about the neck (and that's sweet your boss sent you home:) I really like your new friend...I need a new friend soon too lol. Love all your eats too..yum! Thanks for sharing everything.

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