I think my body is rebelling against NOT training. It’s been a little over a week since the race and I’m just exercising for fun with no structure whatsoever, letting myself sleep in, and enjoy some time off. Apparently my body thinks this is absurd behavior and it should rebel. Despite having a massively debilitating migraine Monday afternoon all the way until Tuesday afternoon and a less-than-enjoyable stomach bug since Friday, I came through at the last minute and concocted a delicious meal for Raw Tuesday, if i do say so myself.
I thought this recipe would be perfect because i could use some of the collards i scored from the farmer’s market on saturday… for free. zero dollars. the super nice guy behind one of the stands overheard me say that i was out of cash (whoops. spent it all on my raw granola staple) and i was commenting on how gorgeous the collards were… well, he told me to stay put and came back from a truck with about a bagillion collards. no joke. a bagillion. i gave a some to Gary, some to Marni and i went home with a bagillion minus 20. my math is bad, but that’s a lot.
For not starting until about 3pm (when i was well enough to stand upright for longer than a few moments), this meal looks (and tastes!) like it took well many more hours than it actually did. While I wouldn’t call this one a “throw-together” meal, if you’ve got the ingredients on hand, it really is quite simple to prepare. I always like to think about how i can improve upon a recipe after making it, but honestly, i thought this one is great as-is. It definitely got the stamp of approval from the Raw Tuesday Crew, too.
My only complaint?
It looked a little too much like real sausage.
like, a lot.
But once it was all wrapped up and tied with a bow, it was a joy for the eyes and the tastebuds.
So there you have it. my contribution were these “raw autumn wraps”.
by the way, the “ribbon” used was just some butternut squash spiralized and tossed in some remaining spices and a splash of olive oil. nothing special, but icing on the cake. i always say “you eat with your eyes before you eat with your mouth”… and presentation is always key :)
Gary brought his infamous “Fiesta Soup”– a warm, comforting bowl of yumminess. it’s one of Gary’s go-to meals that always pleases the masses. think Mexican-tortilla meets avocado with bites of corn and green peas, to boot. thankfully, he tweaks his recipe to suit my (weak) tastebuds and saves the spicy additions for after he dishes them up. thanks gary :)
Sarah and Chris brought a really yummy colorful salad made from red cabbage, apples, raisins, and a tangy dressing. Christy made a small aperitif of pumpkin seed (she extracted from a fresh organic pumpkin!) pate, served it with celery. She also whipped up a creamy spinach, cucumber, avocado salad with a dressing made from fresh herbs in her garden. love me some fresh herbs.
What raw tuesday would be complete without decadent raw dessert(s)?! none that i want to take part in, that’s for sure. Tonight we had trio of date cookies (which chris has now perfected), a pumpkin mousse of sorts from Christy, and the drool-worthy lemon squares from Kaz. These aren’t just any lemon squares, that much is for sure. This recipe took a lot to achieve. We’re talking blood, sweat, and tears… ok, slight exaggeration, but really I worked hard to get this (and another exciting one i’ll write about later this week!). After visiting Chicago and touring the raw-scene there, I fell in love with Chicago Raw– a small food stand that sells pre-made dishes (actual meals, salads, desserts, dehydrated items, etc). I’ve done a LOT of traveling and a LOT of raw food reviewing and this place (not even a restaurant!) blew my socks off. I’ve since been in contact with the owners, placed a couple orders for cross-country delivery to fill my fix and had co-workers (we have an office a few blocks away) bring extra luggage to cart me my goodies. i may be obsessed. but anyways, i was able to purchase a couple recipes and the lemon squares were one of them. sorry, i won’t be posting this recipe, but trust me, it’s a-may-zing.
if you’re lucky maybe i’ll make some more and share ;)
yet another raw tuesday potluck success.
