Bread and Butter (Raw,vegan,delicious)

This raw bread is one of many variations that I make and it never fails to make me so happy every time I pull a batch out of my dehydrator. It is soft and moist just like sliced bread but it doesn’t leave me feeling too full or sluggish like I can sometimes get when eating bread. Not only that, but it is packed with nutrients making this bread and and butter breakfast not just something to fill up my belly but something to nourish and fuel me for several hours in my day!

The vegan butter is a twist on my childhood favorite. I grew up eating vegan butter that my family would make. I actually preferred eating that over butter, even though I grew up in the country in France where the butter we got was freshly made in our neighbors barn. Don’t get me wrong, that butter still tasted amazing to me, but on a regular basis, I preferred lathering my bread with the vegan homemade stuff. I remember my family using vegetable margarine, which I am not a fan of so I replaced it with coconut oil, which adds a really great flavor in my opinion. But if you are not a coconut fan, you can replace the coconut oil with another vegan oil or butter of your choice.

This butter if full of healthy fats, super easy to make, and lasts a really long time in the fridge!!! Several months I would say. But I usually make a small batch so that we go through it in several weeks.

Top it off with some homemade jelly or fruit spread and have a happy belly!!

The bread is a variation of this bread. I did not put coconut this time and used brown flax seeds instead to the golden. It was equally delicious.

Vegan Butter Recipe (raw):

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup nut butter (I mixed almond and hazelnut)
• use all raw ingredients if you want to keep this recipe all raw, but I have to admit I prefer the flavor of toasted nut butters

Steps:

• in a double boiler (or a glass dish over a boiling pot) melt all ingredients together
• store in a jar or ramekin in the fridge
• use just as you would any other butter!

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Edible Body Scrub

I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not, but you could really eat this body scrub. All the ingredients in it are edible and it tastes good enough to eat, so why not take a spoon with you to the shower?

Little back story on this scrub: It was meant to be a whipped body butter. My friends and I had a little DIY holiday gift making session. One of things on the “menu” was a whipped body butter, amongst other things. When it was time to make it, we realized that my friend had picked up coconut butter, not cacao butter. BIG difference here. As the reality of the situation sank in, we decided to move forward with our creation and see how it goes. Unsurprisingly, coconut butter doesn’t whip like cacao butter does. Being a big rawfoodie, I knew that the texture of the coconut butter was going to be too grainy to ever create the luxurious smoothness of a body butter. So after unsuccessfully trying to whip this into a lotion, we decided to turn it into a scrub. At this point it just became super fun and creative. We didn’t really care what the end result would be as the process itself was interesting. We threw in whatever ingredients sounded nice together, adding some known things to make the scrubby feeling, and voila! I present you the Edible Body Scrub.

I am sharing this with you not so much because I think you would want to try making it, but more to show you that screw ups can be quite quite fun, insightful, and surprisingly useful at times. Also to remind you that even when a recipe doesn’t turn out the way you expected, with a little creativity and imagination, you can usually find something else to make.

I was skeptical at how useful this scrub would be, but after using, I must say, I LOVE it!!! It definitely felt like a body scrub, and it definitely left my skin feeling smooth and hydrated afterwards. No need for lotion!! AND, I got to have a snack while in the shower, super bonus points for that.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup coconut butter
• several drops of grapefruit essential oils
• 3/4 cup of oats
• a handful of dried rosebuds
• 1/3 cup of poppy seeds

Steps:

• Melt the oil and butter together,
• let harden for a bit
• then mix well with a hand held electric mixer
• add all other ingredients and mix with a spoon
• store in a jar

We ended up splitting the coconut oil and butter once it was melted to make 2 different “flavors”. The other one we made was coffee coconut sugar. That’s the one that is dangerous on a spoon. It might never make it to my body if it stops any where near my mouth.

I have no idea how long this will keep. I will maybe come back and update this post once I find out.

Have you had epic fails that became surprisingly good?

Basic Chocolate Sauce

This is my basic raw chocolate sauce that I use for so many chocolate treats in my house. I build off of this to create all kinds of delightful satisfying temptations. I need to share it with you guys as I will be referring to it quite a bit in this blog. I have used a version of it in my banana ice cream as well as in my raw persimmon pie. So stay on the lookout for more yumminess to come here!!

As the name indicates, this is a basic, simple healthy chocolate option. Three ingredients and just minutes away from mouth watering bliss (if you are a chocoholic like I am, this is key).

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup  cacao powder
• dash of salt

Steps:

• in a double boiler melt all the ingredients (you can do this in a pot on the stove top, just make sure to have it on very low heat and turn off the heat before all the oil is melted, and finish melting by whisking).
• whisk together until well combined
• either pour it in a jar with a tight fitting lid (this is my favorite option) or pour in in a bowl
• if in a jar, shake it vigorously every 5 minutes until it has come to room temperature, the sauce will become thicker.
• if in a bowl, just whisk it until it has come to room temperature.

This last step is very important as it will allow for all the ingredients to cool while blending together. If you do not do this the oil and honey will separate, creating a very sweet bottom layer and a very oily dark chocolate upper layer when it cools completely. This is especially important when making raw chocolate in the freezer. I have made raw chocolates without blending all the ingredients together and the honey layer was all gooey and stuck to the bottom of the mold while the top was super dark in chocolate flavor. It wasn’t bad at all mind you!! Just not a nice chocolate that I could easily pop out.

This sauce will keep for weeks on the shelf. It will become very thick because of the coconut oil. Just put the container you keep it in, in some hot water to soften it up before using. (Or just eat it out of the jar with a spoon!)

Citrus Hand Scrub

I spend many hours in the kitchen. Creating, chopping, cooking, cleaning, washing, drying, repeating. Add to that the toddler butt wiping and diaper changes, I am constantly washing my hands. Even if I use gentle soap, my natural oils are constantly being stripped, leaving my hands feeling dry.

For that reason I keep a small jar or bowl of sugar scrub by my kitchen sink. This is the only time you will ever see me using sugar in my kitchen. Once I am done with whatever I had going on in the kitchen, I grab a walnut size ball of scrub and friction it all over my hands and wrists.

The scrub cleanses my hands gently while hydrating them. I quickly rinse off the sugar under warm water and massage the rest of the oil and moisture all on my hands and arms afterwards. I don’t usually towel dry after that.

It feels wonderful. It’s like a mini self massage. I actually take a moment to close my eyes and enjoy the feeling of the rough sugar against my skin mixed with the silkiness of the coconut oil. It’s such a nice way to wrap up my kitchen time. And my hands feel nourished, even if for just a moment before I go change another diaper and wash my hands again 😉

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 15-20 drops of either lemon or orange essential oils

Steps:

• put everything in a bowl and massage together until well combined
• store in a jar or bowl with a lid in a place where you will see it frequently

I make small batches intentionally as I like to switch up the oils I use. I have made this with almond oil and olive oil instead of the coconut and it works just as well. It will remain liquid though, and I personally like the fact that coconut oil will harden. I find it easier to grab. Play around with the essential oils too!