Raw Apple Cobbler

From Thanksgiving to New Year's, it's really easy to forget about health.
It's the holidays, it's cold, family get-togethers... all of these things make eating sweets very justifiable. Especially on Thanksgiving when the majority of my calories are coming from mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie!

But eat decadently doesn't have to mean eating poorly. This raw apple cobbler was well-liked by family- even the New Orleans-food loving step-cousin of mine.


Ingredients:
4 C apples, diced

Sauce:
1 banana
1 apple
1/3 C maple syrup
1 T cinnamon
1 C almond milk

Crust:
2/3 C almonds
1/2 Tbsp neutral oil (I actually used flax oil for omega-3's, and it came out fine!)
pinch salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 Tbsp maple syrup
2 Tbsp raisins

Chop up the apples and place in a serving dish, I leave the skin on.
Then, add all of the sauce ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree. This will make more than enough, so you'll only need about half of this. Pour what you will use over the apples and toss.
Add the almonds to the food processor and pulse. Add the remaining ingredients and process until well combined. Crumble this over the apples.



It can be eaten right away, but it's better if it's left to marinate a little in the fridge. It's perfect for both dessert and breakfast!

Banana Almond Maca Mush

Fruit is great for breakfast. Especially on those hot Summer mornings when it seems all I want is watermelon. But on a chilly morning before a long day of school? I tend to want something more substantial...

This is a tasty bowl of banana-ness, raw, and a wonderful breakfast to wake up to!

Ingredients:
☺ 2 ripe bananas
☺ 1 Tbsp raw almond butter
☺ 1/4 C almond milk
☺ 1/2 Tbsp maple syrup (or to preference)
☺ 1 tsp maca powder
☺ cinnamon and ginger, to taste

☻ In a bowl, thoroughly mix the almond milk, almond butter, maple syrup, maca, and spices. Mash in the bananas so that it has a lumpy texture, and voila! Easy, delicious raw breakfast.

Raw Buckwheatie Cereal

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

But trite expressions aside, eating a raw breakfast is more important that eating any other meal raw. And I need a breakfast that I can anticipate every night. If I weren't trying to be more raw, soy yogurt with fruit and granola, oatmeal, quinoa pilafs, cereal, nut butter on bread with apple slices, or sometimes even pancakes would suffice. And sometimes I don't mind enjoying some oatmeal or soy yogurt for breakfast, still.
But this recipe satisfies any cravings for a non-raw breakfast. It's sweet, flavorful, with a slight crunch, and it's raw!

♫ Buckwheaties ♪
1 C buckwheat
1/4 C nuts or seeds, chopped up, more or less if you want (optional)
1/4 C raisins or other dried fruit (optional)
Cinnamon

Soak the buckwheat for eight hours, or overnight. Drain it and rinse well. Rinse once or twice a day until you see little tails, this should take only around one or two days.
Dehydrate them until they are crispy.
Toss them with the other ingredients in an airtight jar or container.

☼Cereal☼
Fill a bowl with fruit. I like to use grapes, strawberries, blueberries, and bananas, but whatever works for you.
Take a small handful of the buckwheaties cereal and toss with the fruit. Pour over some almond mylk like you would pour it on cereal, and add a drizzle of maple syrup.

It's mostly fruit, but it's pretty jazzed up for a fruit salad, and it has been my latest breakfast obsession! ☺

Rice Pudding (A Breakfast or Dessert Item- you decide!)

I love breakfast. It is no doubt my favorite meal of the day...
Maybe because the mornings are my alone time while the rest of my family sleeps (I'm an early bird...the only teenager I know who happily gets up before 7 am on a weekend), or maybe because it starts the day off right. And there isn't anything like a good, hearty breakfast to put you in a good mood before a weary 7 hours of school...

That, or the fact that you can get away with eating dessert-like items for breakfast!

I have a sweet tooth. Most taureans do.
I love having a bowl of quinoa or oatmeal [very] liberally drizzled with maple syrup, or a plate of sweet, juicy, fresh fruit. Or maybe cakes, muffins, scones, or cinnabuns.

And I don't see anything wrong with that...
To be honest, I thought this was normal though. I mean, what with all those nasty, processed cereals being sold today. (Though, you can't really compare a home-made, not-Quaker bowl of oats to Lucky Charms) But I guess my parents didn't agree. They thought it was odd that I offered to make rice pudding for breakfast before we went skiing...

But it's all the same. Whether you eat it in the morning or at night, rice pudding is still a yummy bowl of...rice. And hey, at least it's brown rice! Plus, if we didn't eat High-on-the-Glycemin-Index breakfasts to make our blood sugars crash, how else would we get rid of all that energy a vegan diet gives? (hee hee)



Brown Basmati Rice Pudding
2 C brown basmati rice
4 1/2 C water
1/4 tsp salt
1 cinnamon stick
1/3 C raisins
2 C unsweetened, plain plant milk (more or less to preferance, I like a litle bit more)
1/2 C maple syrup
1/4 C agave nectar
2 Tbsp vegan butter
1/4 C slivered almonds
1/2 Tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

1) Whirl the rice in a blender/food processor/coffee grinder to chop it up a little bit. It's okay if some turns to rice flour, but make sure most of it is about half the size it was.
2) Toss it in a pot with the water, cinnamon stick, and salt and bring it to a boil. Once it's rolling, reduce heat, add the raisins, and let it simmer until all the water is absorbed. (It took mine roughly 25 minutes, but my grains always seem to cook faster than the recommended time- whether they've been chopped up or not)
3) When the water has been absorbed, and the rice is soft and cooked fully,remove the cinnamon stick and add the milk, maple syrup, agave, butter, almonds, vanilla, and spices. Mix it thoroughly and let it cook on low just a couple minutes longer...
4) Done! I prefer mine cold, but it's tasty either way :)



And enjoy it for both breakfast and dessert ;D