Texas Chili

Dedicated to that great Texan Jim Hightower

 

This dish is rather different. It neither looks nor tastes like Texas Chili (Chili with meat and no beans) very much but is a fine substitute. It is a modification and addition to the Chili recipe in Sergei and Valya Boutenko’s book “Fresh. The Ultimate Live-food Cookbook” 2008. North Atlantic Books, Berkeley. My favorite raw foods recipe book.

 

Ingredients:

  

Meat:

• Walnuts (1/4 cup)
• Cumin (Heaping tbs)
• Braggs (5 tbs)
• Olive oil (3 tbs)
• Sea Salt (If you like)

 Chili:

 

• Fresh Tomatoes (3 medium)
• Sundried Tomatoes (1 cup if you can afford it or less)
• Basil (1/4 cup fresh or any dried Italian seasoning)
• Raisins (10-12)
• Olive Oil (1/4 cup)
• Lemon juice (1/2 lemon)
• Cumin (2 heaping tbs)
• Garlic (3 cloves)
• Hot pepper (any kind, any size depending on heat wanted)
• Water (0-1/4 cup depending on thickness desired)

 

To make the meat, put all the ingredients in a food processor except the oil and blend. Add the olive oil for the last 3 seconds of blending. Form into grape size balls and put in a bowl. For the chilli, blend all the ingredients except the oil. I do not soak the sundried tomatoes first. This leaves them chucky. You can soak for an hour if you like a smoother chilli. I add no water which makes it paste like. You can add water to thin it out. Fresh basil is not available this time of year so i just use a spoonful of Italian seasoning. Most raw Chili recipes call for more raisins. I like about 8-10 or it overpowers the dish. You may like more. Olive oil is added for the last 3 seconds of blending. Pour the chili in the bowl with the meat and stir. This makes enough for only one person so if you are making it for 4 then it can get expensive as a first course. You can make less meat or omit the meat all together. As always when you are poor, cut back on the amount of sundried tomatoes and add more regular tomatoes. Any kind of tomatoes will work, especially heirlooms. Roma’s are usually recommended but not always available at the market. I prefer very very ripe tomatoes for this. Salud.

 

Indian Cabbage

Dedicated to the new Chief Minister of West Bengal state Mamata Banerjee. She is West Bengals first woman Chief Minister (Governor).

There are lots of raw cabbage recipes on the net. Cabbage is inexpensive and keeps a long time.

Ingredients:

• Cabbage (1/ head)
• Garam Masala (3 heaping tbs or more to taste)
• Agave Nectar (2 tbs)
• Braggs (3 tbs, can use just soy sauce or tamari)
• Lime (1/2 squeezed)
• Cilantro (1/2 cup or more)

Shred cabbage. Chop up the cilantro. Mix everything together in a bowl and there it is. This is enough for 4 people as a side dish. This is good for 2 days covered in the refrigerator. I have eaten it as my main meal. You can add nuts, dried fruit, nutritional yeast, hemp or sunflower seed, shredded carrots etc. Remember the three rules of meal preparation: Experiment. Experiment. Experiment. No photo as it's just cabbage. Salud!

Orange Salad Dressing (Free yourself)

Dedicated to last week’s Pink Floyd reunion

I was given 3 bags of oranges from the marina grocery store where I am painting. So I made a salad dressing with them. This recipe was all over the internet but sounded to easy to be true and I had ignored it. I tested this on others and we all agree that not only is this fast and easy but also extraordinarily tasty. Why has this secret been hidden from the world? Think about it. This is a healthy, fast and beautiful food item. You can make it cheaply whenever you want. Yet the rulers insist we buy poison in a bottle for $4 to put on our garden salad and we do it. Free yourself. Do not be another just another brick in the wall!

Ingredients:

• Oranges (2 organic)
• Olive Oil (1/4 cup)
• Red Wine Vinegar (3 tbs or more to taste)
• Mint (3 tbs or more, preferably fresh)

Blend oranges and mint in a blender or food processor. In a bottle or bowl combine the orange/mint with the oil and vinegar and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate. This keeps for 2 days covered in fridge. It can be put over any salad or vegetable combination. I hope you find this dressing as inspiring as I do. I am now off to write poetry and free the masses. Salud!

Mushroom gravy

I finally got this to work. I think the secret is the hour soaking of the mushrooms and using pulled from the garden Thyme and Rosemary.

Ingredients:

• Mushrooms (3 cups, any kind)
• Cashews (1 cup)
• Lemon Juice (from ½ lemon)
• Thyme (fresh best but dried ok, 2 tbs)
• Rosemary (fresh best but dried ok, 2 tbs)
• Salt/Pepper to taste
• Water from mushroom soaking

This recipe and the Mediterranean Carrot recipe comes from the excellent web site “rawepicurean.net”. They recommend Shitake mushrooms. I use white, brown, Crimini or Portobello mushrooms as they are cheaper. Soak the mushrooms in a bowl of water for about an hour. Some will float so occasionally push them all down in the water. The original recipe calls for cashew flour which is hard to find on the remote island I am on so I make my own. Put the cashews and rosemary (if it is fresh leaves) in a food processor and blend until it is a powder. Add the other ingredients and blend. The amount of water you add depends on how thick or thin you want the gravy. It is hard to get thick. It will be watery but taste it. This goes on everything and keeps in the refrigerator for only 2 days covered. The original recipe recommended sage. I did not have this so substituted rosemary. It does not look great but the taste will win you over. Salud!

Mediteranean Carrots

This is quick and easy.
Ingredients:

• Carrots (4 large)
• Nuts (1/2 cup of Cashews, Pine, Almond, Hazelnut etc.)
• Raisins (1 cup) (or any dried fruit)
• Olive Oil (¼ cup)
• Dill (3 heaping tbs, fresh chopped if available or dried)
• Lemon Juice (from half a lemon)
• Onion (small, any kind or a shallot)
• Garlic (4 or more cloves)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Peel and shred the carrots. Chop the onion into small pieces. The nuts can be cut down to a small size in a food processor or blender. Crush garlic in a garlic press. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. This amount makes a nice side dish for 4 people. It is best after an hour of refrigeration. It keeps for 2-3 days covered in the refrigerator. This is a fast and inexpensive dish for potlucks. You can experiment with other vegetables instead of carrots. Also as an alternative to raisins you can use chopped dates or figs, dried cherries ect. Salud!

 

Bok Choy and Corn Salad

This one is a real surprise. It is fast and very distinctive. Soon farmers markets should have fresh local Bok Choy, Corn and Cilantro.

Ingredients:

Bok Choy (4 heads for each person)
Corn (1 cob for every 4 heads of Bok Choy)
Cilantro (a half a bunch or more, I like much more)
Cumin (2 tbs)
Oregano (2 tbs)
Garlic Powder (2 tbs or more or 2 crushed cloves)
1 Lime (squeezed for juice. I use Verjus)
Salt (To taste)

In a food processor blend the bok choy (already cut up into pieces) with the cilantro thoroughly. Cut the corn off the cob. Mix everything together in a bowl and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. This keeps well covered for 3 days. It is a great side dish that tastes much richer than the work involved in making it. Go crazy with the cilantro. It’s the secret ingredient to this one. The above amounts of ingredients are enough for one person to have as a side dish so double the amounts for 2, quadruple for 4 etc. In the summer bok choy and corn can be inexpensive. This is a fun side dish that is easy to make and is very tasty and nutritious. Great for potlucks but bring the recipe as everyone will want to know what it is. Salud!