tris & tribulations

Headache is far less intense. I don’t know whether or not to attribute it to lack of coffee, but my brother-in-law sure seems convinced of it. Oh coffee, how I love thee, why must you treat me so?

I was running late this morning and didn’t have enough time to prepare my planned breakfast, but luckily I had plenty of leftovers from yesterday’s oatmeal in the fridge. So this morning was much like yesterday except my friend Kaz, fellow raw-foodie, gave me some raw green tea energy (+ caffiene). I filled my mug with half hot water, half cold water just to be safe. It wasn’t anything I’d ever crave (but then again i am not a tea person), but it was alright and definitely scored points on the warmth factor.

I was hungry again about 2 hours later, so I ate a lara bar (apple pie= raw) thinking I was going to the pool at lunch. A last minute work lunch came up, so my workout was sacrificed and the other half of yesterday’s salad i brought stayed in the fridge.

I was a little weary of eating out and at first thought planned on going and just drinking water, but decided i could make it work. I ordered the house salad (sans dairy and croutons) and asked for whatever raw veggies they had… it being a BBQ place, the offerings were quite limited. They had cucumbers and tomatoes… hm. alright, that’ll do. Luckily i brought my own avocado, some soaked almonds and a lemon wedge. With my additions, my salad was really not that bad. I was completely full and satisfied.

I ate a pear an hour or two later and drank some more tea to distract me from my normal afternoon coffee break. By the time I got home, I was pretty hungry but since I was a little behind on my prep I didnt have much to pick from, so i had a few carrots. I did my quick run before working on dinner.

Tuesdays have become “Raw Tuesdays” and a growing number of people from work and elsewhere come to my house as we prepare raw dishes potluck style. It’s been a fun and experimental and we all get a chance to taste-test new recipes. Most people who come are not raw, but open to trying things, and I love it. Tonight it was just Kaz and me and we kept our dishes simple and straight foward.

Well I made ravioli and Kaz made a kale and dulse salad and marinated broccoli dish. Despite both of us being weary about our dishes and warning each other not to expect much from them, we were delighted with our plates. We both had seconds :) Kaz also brought a chocolate tart she froze from prior week. Raw desserts are so rich and sinful. I want to try making some of my own, but i don’t trust myself :)

Afterwards, I got some stuff ready for tomorrow. I made a zucchini hummus, began dehydrating zucchini rounds (for chips), soaked walnuts for breakfast, spiralized zucchini noodles, and packaged up all my leftover sauces.

Pesto Butternut Squash Ravioli with White Sauce

Ingredients

1 butternut squash
1 teaspoon sea salt
black pepper, to taste
1/4 Pesto (recipe below)
1/4 cup White Sauce (recipe below)

Cut the “neck” from the bottom of butternut squash. Reserve the bottom portion for another recipe (I’m using it for a “rice” later this week). Peel the skin off with a vegetable peeler.
Use a knife or mandolin to slice butternut squash in paper thin rounds (1/8-inch or less).
Place sliced squash in a bowl of sea salt water and let set for a couple hours o soften. Under running water, rinse the squash thoroughly to remove salt.
Add one teaspoon of the pesto to the center of rinsed squash round. Place another slice of squash on top. Pinch the ends to close.
Serve with white sauce. Top off with black pepper.

Basil Pesto

Ingredients

1c fresh basil leaves, packed
1 TBS cold pressed olive oil
1/3c pine nuts
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper to taste

Place basil leaves in food processor and mix until well chopped. Add the nuts and garlic, process again until if forms a thick smooth paste. Slowly stream in olive oil. Stopping the food processor to scrape down sides of container. Process until fully incorporated and smooth, adding water if needed. Season with salt and pepper

White Sauce

Ingredients

1/3 cup cashews, soaked for an hour
1/4 cup water
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 TBS olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

In a blender, puree all ingredients. Add water slowly and blend until you achieve a thin white sauce.

The flavors are incredibly complex and the creamy white sauce plays a great contrast from the spiciness of the pesto. Even after soaking the squash in salt water, it was still too crunchy for my liking. It tasted good, but I would have prefered a softer, more pasta-like texture. Perhaps next time I’ll try using something different (maybe eggplant? or a dehydrated soft bread).