Good Morning Hotties, how’s your Monday morning? Did anyone do anything groovy over the weekend? Or better yet, did you all DVR Khloe and Kourtney? Don’t tell me anything, I haven’t watched it yet. And it’s cheap thrills peeps cuz I only watch two shows…the Real House Wives and K & K. I DVR ’em and watch like 20 minutes at a time while my pumpkin naps in between fueling my bloggaddiction. That’s all I seem to be able to fit in, but that’s cool.
Anyway, onto some weekend creations that I haven’t had a chance to mention in the more frequent posts I’ve been hookin’ ya up with based on this decision.
Remember yesterday’s vegan blondie coconut macaroons? Thanks everyone for showin’ the love on the recipe and commenting. If you missed it, I was kinda toying with the idea of running a contest to win a few of those yummy treats. If I decide to do it, I’ll keep ya in the loop, so stand by….
Well after the macaroons, the coconut craze continued round here. I made some homemade coconut milk kefir. I have posted about this before, but basically homemade countertop coconut milk kefir is 3 ingredients and uber cheap-n-easy.
Dump coconut water, coconut milk, & kefir starter in a glass or plastic container. Stir & let sit for 18-24 hours loosely covered at room temp. Don’t let the contents come in contact with a metal container or metal stirring utensil becuz metal and the happy bacteria don’t really get along. Kinda like Kim & Sheree.
After 18 hours, the happy bacteria had been to work. And you did nothing. Just the way you likey it.
Stir ‘er up and slurp ‘er down. If you and a friend each have a glass or two, the batch is history. If you’re a pokey drinker, you can easily get 4 days in the fridge before I’d begin to wonder. It won’t last that long though, no way.
Onto some Banana Pumpkin Pie Oats
1/3 c dry oats cooked with 1 mashed nanna, 2/3 c lowfat vanilla almond milk. Stir in some in some of TJ’s handy dandy Pumpkin Pie Spice as well as some Brown Shug, garnish with raisins if you like.
And garnish with ‘Whippy if you like that, too.
Another brekkie was fresh pineapple, pears, and grapes that I froze cuz I dig it that way. Go figure. I should prolly just buy frozen and save some moola but whatev. All on toppa a brekkie cookie.
Dinner one night was the leftover roasted sweetie pots & carrots with a salad garnished with the tail end of the kale chips. Who said leftovers can’t be delish?
Another meal was Aspar-Grass, B.S., red & yellow pepps, carrots & dressed with OJ, Agave, & Cracky Blacky.
Then, I decided to make up some Red Pepper & Nooch Dippin’ Sauce. Into the VitaNoocher went most of 1 Red Pepper, 1/3 c water, and 5 Tbsp Nooch. That’s nutritional yeast for anyone who hasn’t had the pleasure yet.
The result.
Things I would change? Not add 5 Tbsp of nooch, 3 generous Tbsp would have done the trick. Can you say cheeeee-sey? The sauce sorta reminds me of the healthy equivalent to the cheesey coating on Cheetos, and really, who doesn’t love the memories of lickin’ that stuff off your fingers? So yeah, no real worries on the 5 Tbsp of nooch come to think of it.
And this doesn’t happen often that I say this, but the Vita-Mix was not ideal for the job. In order to liquify the pepper and blend it with the nooch, I had to add more water than I would have wished so the Vita could “grab” the scant amount of food at the bottom of the canister. The resulting sauce was runnier than I would have preferred. Of course EVOO coulda helped with that prob, or just using a basic food processor probably woulda been ideal. But no biggie.
The nooch sauce, in all it’s cheesyass goodness, worked perf as a dipper for my veggies. This pic was taken before I drown the veggies in nooch. We’re talkin’ a bath. It wasn’t that photogenic, trust me. I’ll pretty it up and getcha another nooch pic tomorrow.
Also was talking to the Beautifully Sweet VeggieGirl and we were comparin’ TJ’s lists. We both agreed that their seasonal selection of pumpkin butter, pumpkin & sweetie pot purees, and butternut squash soup puree action are all speck-tack. Here’s a smattering of a few of the things I picked up over the weekend.
Note, the coconut water is from WF but the light coconut milk (used in the above kefir) is a TJ’s find. 99 cents kids. It’s also good in coffee if you partake in that addiction. Coffee, ice cubes, coconut milk, stevia or agave, blend. Very yum.
Finally, some yoga. Astavakrasana. Or here’s another link for Eight Angle Pose (cuz you’re makin’ 8 angles with your bod). To begin, you need to sit down and hook your right leg at the upper thigh behind your right shoulder. The rest is easy. You just lift off, swing your left leg to the front and join up with the right, hook ankles, and tilt yourself perpendicular to the gravitational pull known as the floor. Probably not a beginner’s pose, but give ‘er a whirl. Don’t forget to smile and breathe. And in all honesty, don’t compare.
That’s my Tip of the Day: Don’t compare. Comparing your finds at TJ’s is one thing, but don’t compare your yoga, your weight, your size of house, your ring or lack thereof, how many friends you have, how many blog hits you get or don’t, how raw you are or aren’t, or any of the other silly stuff that we women just love to torture ourselves with by comparing with our neighbors. Love thy neighbor and thy self, but don’t compare with your neighbor.
I want to thank you all for reading, commenting, or just lurking & soaking it all in, and for being your generally awesome selves! I did have an anonymous comment come in on a previous post that didn’t sit well with me so I deleted it. What do you all do if you get a comment that doesn’t sit well with you? Do you delete it? Allow it? Since I don’t have the time or desire to moderate comments, I suppose an oddball comment here or there is to be expected, but removed nonetheless. I took this one down because it was just not quite the vibe I wanted happenin’ round here and this is my blog = my rules = only comments I want up will stay up. Just wondering what you do with the negative or weird comments. Sorta like dirty socks? Remove immediately! Or do tell…
On more fun matters…Don’t forget to vote for the Blogger Awards. Step 6. there is a tiny little link, click there. You don’t have to be a blogger to vote, you can be just a reader, it takes 5-10 minutes, you don’t have to vote in all categories, but you really should go Rock the Vote!!! Successful bloggers put their heart, soul, time & energy into their bloggies. Go show your favorites some lovin’. Okay?
See you later today I think but this post was really long and I broke my own new rule against long posts but I had alot to say (as I rationalize it) so maybe I’ll see ya and maybe I won’t. If not, Happy Monday! I am off for a glorious quick run and some quick yoga…
Yesterday I wrote on facebook that I have a girl crush on Jillian Michaels. After this post I now realize I have one on you too Averie!! I am loooooovin' the raw cheesecake idea. Could it really be this easy?! I won't know for sure until I try it. I WILL try it!! The only thing I might change is the lemon juice part. I can't stand the taste of lemons in anything…would it still work? I need to get those cashews a-soakin'!
A-MAZING cheese cake! I bet the filling would be the bomb scooped out frozen and eaten as ice cream!
-A
Hey Averie!
I have a question…how did you find out about your food allergies/intolerance? Did a traditional allergy test tell you, or did you keep a food diary and just use the process of elimination?
I'm going through some things (have been really for the last 14 years) and I'm having an allergy test for 80 foods on Friday. Just curious. I'm suspicious of soy, but not sure altogether. What were your symptoms? What happens if you accidentally eat it?
If you don't have time to write back, don't worry, I'm just curious. Thanks so much!!! Good luck winning my giveaway! I think it would be cute for you or your daughter!!!
Thanks again,
Erin
Ahhh, making the cheesecake was a wise choice. It's DELISH, no?! A couple weekends ago my husband and I came back from a 10 mile hike all sweaty and grubby and he told me I could use the shower first. When I got out, he had whipped up one of those bad boys for desert that night! Yummy! I made it again but tried making the crust chocolate…didn't come out as chocolatey as I like so I think next time I will use a brownie base I have and top that with the cheesecake goo. YUM!
I love cheesecake and this looks so yummy! Thanks for the insight on the dehydrator. I fall into the "it would be nice for once in awhile" category. But I also love, love, love new kitchen gadgets!
As for the halloween candy, I am not raw or vegan, but there have been years when I have gone well beyond a treat and end up with a very yucky tummy. Luckily I have learned my lesson (I hope) and will allow one maybe two pieces. Reese's and I have a long and complex love affair going on! :)
I'm going to make that cheesecake this weekend for the niece and nephew. It looks like it will pass the kid-friendly test. =)
I've never been much of a fan of candy at all, so Halloween candy doesn't really appeal to me. My issue is potato chips. I'm still trying to figure out a way to dehydrate something healthy that tastes like chips. =) Some things come close, but just not close enough.
Averie! Your vegan cheesecake sounds better to me than reg. cheesecake! Those cashews!!
thanks for the info on the appliances, that seriously helped me out!!
ohh I have some raw bars up for grabs today…thought of you!
I'm eager for the recipe! Do you find that you can substitute soaked almonds for the cashews? I love making everything with cashews (cheese, sauces, etc), but my grocery was out of raw cashews today! Ahh! Thanks…
Wow, Averie, that cheesecake looks DIVINE!!! I'll have to get some cashews and try it. I wonder if macadamia nuts would work? You're So creative!!! I'm a dweeb–I have to follow recipes to a T. LOL
Thanks for mentioning my contest!!!
:-D
Michele
That recipe looks great. Reminds me of Alissa Cohen's similar recipe for date nut torte, but she uses walnut and date to make the crust. There is lemon in the spread also. yum x
Oh my goodness! Cheesecake is my favorite dessert (well, besides tiramisu). That looks heavenly!! Love the Kim K comment, haha!
I'd be a cheesecake hoarder all the way! What's "sharing"?! ;)
Thanks for the dehydrator info! I really can't justify buying one but I drool over all of the raw eats on the blogs so maybe I'll flex my oven's muscles and use that method!
Re. Halloween candy: I'm not much of a candy eater so no over indulging on my part. One year I OD'd on candy corn and haven't been able to look at it without wanting to…well, you know.
To answer your carob question: I used Sunspire Carob Chips and I LOVE them!
haha i am loving all this humpin' talk going on! ok onto the CHEESECAKE! yummo! and i cannot believe it was a total of FIVE ingredients! what! so almond meal=ground up almonds.. and then just dates? what a simple crust! how long do you have to soak the cashews? and i am literally shocked that cashews and lemons can take on the consistency of cheesecake filling. i am in awe over here, can you tell? and i LOVE my vita but i was lucky enough to have it as a hand-me-down.. i wouldnt ever buy one but now i cant live without it! as far as candy goes, me & the boy had a NYR to give it up so i havent had any in 2009! my vegan friends got really excited when skittles changed their ingredients and became vegan! they are super, super strict vegans so they can't have a lot of things! i saw alison's balls inspired by you and they look great! ok this is long, i love you so much!
I am loving that cheesecake. Very inspired. I have yet to make a cheesecake and all the recipes I have come across require young thai coconuts, which I love but are hard to find for me. Wow, I just want to eat it right off my computer screen! :)
yup…making it…I hope hope hope I have some raw cashews left…
I have been avoiding Sprouts and Henry's cuz the budget is tight right now…but I HOPE.
that looks PERFECT
OH, a while back I pressed a crust into a tart pan and put a lemon custard (tofu based sorry) into it and chilled it…it was so so pretty….I am gonna do that with this one too!
MINE is definately going to be LEMON-Y
NICE JOB
I want a dehydrator so I KNOW my creataions are still raw..I am guessing right now and I know it's "close" but probably not.
LOVE that pose! I haven't done that one in ages!
and boo, i 've not done my am yoga in 2 mornings…lazy butt!
time to get back to it!
Hi Averie! I am so impressed by your vegan raw desserts. This looks just as good as "regular" cheesecake! I love the idea of thirding it to make a smaller "tester" portion before you commit ;) Makes perfect sense!
Thank you for the sweet comments you've been leaving on my blog! I'm sure your daughter feels the exact same way about you already—how could she not when you make hip desserts and teach her yoga?!