Raw Fig Dressing:

This is a winner of a dressing. It has become my go to dressing when I am in a hurry. I just put it over vegetables and greens and let the feast begin.

Ingredients:

• Figs dried (¼-1/3 cup soaked two hours)
• Balsamic Vinegar (¼ cup)
• Olive Oil (¼ cup)
• Water (¼ cup fig soak water)
• Garlic (2 cloves)
• Dijon Mustard (1 tbs)
• Salt/Pepper to taste

Select the best dried figs you can find. If you are new to dried fruits, eat different dried figs from different stores to find the kind you like the best. Some can be supersweet. I prefer soft and moist ones. Soak until soft; some dried figs can take 4 hours to soften. For the Dijon Mustard, I sprout mustard seeds and blend in a food processor. You can use store bought Dijon or even skip this ingredient. A really good Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar is the key. For the Balsamic Vinegar, look for one labeled Aceto Balsamico Di Modena, but be very careful. Most Balsamic Vinegars labeled from Modena are fake and filled with artificial flavors and colors. Like selecting a good olive oil, check the labels on all Balsamic Vinegars (or any vinegar for that matter). If they list a web address, check them out and see if they are estate bottled and made the old traditional way by a multi-generational family in Modena Spain. Wine Vinegars also work well in this dressing. I have lately been using a red wine vinegar from Andalusia Spain that has been aged 12 years.

Put all the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor or blender. Blend about 1 minute. Add olive oil for the last five seconds. This one you can taste and adjust before you are through.  Some may like it thicker so use less water, I like this one runny. It makes about a cup to a cup and a half. I think it keeps well in a covered jar for at least four days. This works equally well with fresh figs if you can find them at a farmers market. 2 fresh figs equal about ¼ cup of dried figs.  Use this wonderful dressing as a replacement for those fake nasty fatty dressings sold in stores. Salud!

Tarragon Sprout Dressing

Here is another fast and tasty dressing. The strong Tarragon taste is not for everyone so experiment with less Tarragon or try another herb like Thyme, Cilantro, Rosemary, Sage, Savory etc.

Ingredients:

• Sprouts (1 cup Mung beans, any sprout will do)
• Tomato (1 large Heirloom)
• Tarragon (1/2 cup fresh)
• Lemon Juice (1/2 fresh squeezed)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Put all ingredients in a food processor and mix for 1 minute. This is maybe too thick for most people, see photo below in the blog before this. I like it thick over Acorn Squash that is from a farmers market and cut into sugar cube size to really taste the squash. I let this marinate over night to soften the squash and let the flavors work together. This dressing keeps for about 3 days covered in the refrigerator. When using sprouts in dressing, pates, etc keep in mind that they can go foul tasting fast, even when using lots of salt, lemon juice, vinegars, etc. So use in 1-3 days to be safe. These are fast and easy to make so get use to making dressing fresh, when you want them.

As you may be able to tell by this recipe I do not list all details. I assume you know to wash the tomato and cut to chunks before putting in the processor. Also the length of time to sprout is up to you. I like about 3 days for the mung bean. I buy my mung beans from a local farmer and they are very flavorful. Sprouts of any kind change their flavor the longer they sprout, so keep sprouting and testing to see what length of sprouting time gives you the taste you like best.

You can see a picture of this dressing in the blog post just before this called "Raw Sweet Potato Pie" Salud!

Raw Sweet Potato Pie

If you grew up on sweet potato pie then this recipe requires practice to get the right amount of each ingredient for that old time taste. My mother made this with sugar and marshmallows.

Ingredients:

• Sweet Potato (2 cups)
• Apple (1 cup)
• Walnuts (1 cup)
• Dates (1/4 cup soaked 30-60 minutes)
• Lemon Juice (1/2 medium fresh squeezed)
• Cinnamon (1/6 cup)
• Nutmeg (1 heaping tbs)
• Salt (to taste, 2 tbs)
• Honey (4 tbs)

Blend everything together in a food processor for at least 1 minute. I like this very smooth but you may like chucky. You can substitute any nuts for the walnuts. On the net most raw sweet potato pie recipes call for Orange Juice. Since it takes 55 gallons of water to make one orange, I use lemons. Using different nuts or the juice changes the taste. Lots of nutmeg and cinnamon can cover this.

This makes a side dish for 4 people. This is very good for a potluck. If you can find local walnuts then it really gets good. Local apples and sweet potato are a must. Experiment with different varieties of heirloom apples. This should keep covered in the fridge for 3 days.

In the photo below I paired sweet potato pie (on the lower left) with raw squash with tarragon dressing. I also had a veggie lasagna. I am not 100% raw. I made lasagna with my vegetarian brother to show him how easy a healthy lasagna can be. Salud.