Posts Tagged With: raw

Pina Colada Juice

Posted on September 27, 2012 by leroy watson

Pina Colada Juice

At this time of the year, with summer on the wane, you need some colour adding.  You need something to remind you that holidays, beaches and the sun, are not just figments of your imagination.  They exist and are alive and well in this pina colada.  It is guaranteed to add a little tropical swing to any day.  Sweet and vibrant, when we tried this, we both felt like we were back on a Thai island or any land where the pineapple grows.

Pineapples always remind me of Costa Rica, where in many places, pineapple plantations stretch to the horizon.  Quite a site, rows and rows of those sharp leaves.  Pineapples take  a long time to grow, like a lot of the fruit and veg we eat and they are real gifts from the earth.  They also look quite amazing, bar the rambutan and the dragon fruit, is there a cooler looking fruit?

You can technically grow your own pineapple, just take the severed head part and plant it in the ground.  Quite shallow.  After a year, a pineapple may have grown.  We have not tried this for obvious reasons.  Wales is not a pineapple friendly environment (however the raspberries are looking well this year).

You can see we quaffed this with a rather funky fruit salad, putting the meat of the coconut to good use with some other fruits seeds and yoghurt.  You can try to make your own coconut butter/paste, just blend it up in a decent blender and after a few minutes it will take on a lovely creamy texture.  Ideal to keep in the fridge and add to dishes.

This sweet and tarty juice takes half a pineapple to make, but its well worth it and the lime juice adds a nice tang to proceedings.  We’ve added a little bit of canned coco milk, for creaminess.  The combo of coco and pineapple is always tantalising and a quick burst of escapism in the morning sets you up nicely for the day.

The Bits

1/2 pineapple, 1/4 tin organic coconut milk (stirred and creamy), juice of 1 fresh coconut (the water only), 1 squeeze of lime juice.

Do It

Get the magimix fired up!

Juice your pineapple in large chunks into a large container.  Stir in the coco water and milk.  Just before serving, squeeze a little lime into the juice and stir.

Serve 

Immediately, with sun hats on and some calypso music.

We Love It!

It’s a tropical juice to spark wanderlust in even the most rooted of souls.  The tropical beaches seem ever closer with this juice in your life.

Foodie Fact 

Pineapples are drought tolerant and the plant grows up to 8ft tall.  Pineapples are a brilliant source of vitamin C and dietary fibre.  They also contain bromelian and incredible enzyme that actually helps you digest your food and fight all sorts of infection/ disease.

View of a autumn sunset from the Beach House Kitchen window

Categories: Juices, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Carrot Top Salad aka The Perfect Packed Lunch

Posted on September 25, 2012 by leroy watson

Carrot Top Salad

So what does a mostly raw food dude take to work for lunch?  A carrot top salad of course!  The most complete salad we can muster.

This Carrot Top Salad is a good example of my daily packed lunch, nice and quick to prepare and bursting with good textures and flavours.  Its one of my favs.  You may have noticed the distinct slow down in Beach House posting recently, I’ve been working like a donkey. I need all the energy I can get and this salad is a serious hit of nutrition, flavour and vitality. I feel fully charged after lunch and light as a feather. Non of those post lunch slumps with this salad.

To make this you need carrot tops.  To find those you need to go get some real food, most supermarkets won’t sell carrots with the tops on and if they do, god knows where they’ve been and what  the poor green things have been exposed to along the way.  Go local and find some earth loving types, normally living in peace and happiness somewhere in the middle of a field and ask them which way to the carrots.  It should’t take long.

Carrot tops are delicious and full of nutrients, especially chlorophyll.  They can be a little bitter, thats the potassium, so at least you know its some good stuff.  They make great juice and can even be crushed and used as a mouthwash.  They contain a lot of vitamins etc not present in the carrot (like ‘K’ for example).  They can be hard going and a little chewy on their own, thats why they are best in this salad.  They’re not as sweet as the ‘root’, thats where all the sugar and water goes.  So much food is thrown away nowadays and much of these we can re-use or munch on.  Please, give these little green beauts a chance!

Glorious local toms

To the salad….I basically combined the fruits, veg and seeds available into a massive salad, stick it in a container and have a jam jar full of dressing (that lasts a few days).  I make enough salad for at least two days (excluding the apple, normally added in the morning) and hey presto! LUNCH.

This is a huge salad by general standards, alot goes into it and it’s designed to be a hearty meal. The Carrot Top definitely cannot be termed as a ‘side salad’, this is the main attraction.  A word of warning, this takes quite a bit of munching.  You need to build up some decent jaw muscles to attempt such a salad.

There are constants in my salad world; dark green leaves make up the majority of it, lots of hard vegetables cubed (for crunch), seeds (lots)and the occasional dried fruit makes an appearance and also a nice easy, tangy dressing.  Then that’s me off, for another day in the office/ kitchen/ restaurant/ field/ bridge tunnel or wherever else the money lies!

We have decided to head off to Spain for a few months over the winter months and all the pennies are needed for time in the beautiful Mediterranean sun. Expect some real bright beach posts soon, until that time comes in mid October, its work and salad time for me.

Just for your information, I also scoff two pieces of fruit and a bowlful of nuts and seeds all washed down with a cup of green tea and lots of water.  You’ll be glowing afterwards, safe in the knowledge that this lunch time you were very kind to your body.

The only reason we can eat like this is due to Jane and I’s passion for healthy foods.  We have buckets of fine pulses and seeds filling up our kitchen.  We buy all this stuff in bulk normally and have it to hand.  We are lucky.  If we are not at home, travelling around etc, it can be tough to get anything like the real ‘Carrot Top’ together.

Kale takes a bath

This makes two large pots of salad, good for two lunches at least.

The Bits

Salad – 1 apple (or pear), 2 carrot, 1/2 cucumber (pickled or not, I like either), 1 courgette, 1 beetroot (all cubed), 2 handfuls of carrot tops (finely chopped), 2 big handfuls of beetroot leaves or green cabbage or kale (chopped), 1/2 handful of raisins, 1/2 handful of pumpkin seeds, 1/2 handful of sunflower seeds, 1 handful of mung bean sprouts, 1/2 handful of chopped mint leaves, 1/2 handful of chives, 2 teas barley powder/spirulina (optional, specialist things from health food shops that are full of zing), handful of cherry tomatoes (whole)

Beetroots on the board

Dressing – Juice and zest of half a lemon, 1/3 cup good olive oil, 1 teas honey, 1 clove garlic (minced), sea salt, cracked pepper.  Or just make a whole jam jar full and shake it up when you need it.  I normally carry it around in my bag.  If you friends laugh at you for carrying dressing around with you, they obviously don’t understand the importance of salad.

Do It

Gather all you ingredients in your largest salad bowl and get you hands in there, give it all a good mix up.  Separate into your containers and pop the lids on and into the fridge.  You are now well lunch’d up and ready to go.

Packed up and ready to go.

Serve

After a good mornings graft, eat with a large spoon and be happy in your munching.

We Love It!

Turning something that many would deem as waste into a tasty dish is just grand.  We love the crunch and texture of these salads, each mouthful is different.

Foodie Fact

Carrot tops can also be made into a brilliant tea, great for purifying the blood and kidneys.  They also used to be used as a fashion accessory:

“In the reign of James I, (1603)  it became the fashion for ladies to use flowers, fruit, feathers and the like to decorate their clothes. Picture showing carrot leaves in a hatThis was amusingly extended to the use of Wild Carrot flowers and its feathery leaves and stalks to decorate their hair, hats, sleeves, dresses and coats. The lacy green foliage  was especially fashionable during the autumn months when the leaves took on a reddish coloration.”

For more carrot facts like this, visit The World Carrot Museum

 

 

 

Categories: Healthy Eating, Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Raw Power Balls

Posted on September 23, 2012 by leroy watson

Apricot Sesame and Tahini – Raw Power Balls

These are real super fuels, if you need power and energy, look no further.  These Raw Power Balls are like duracell batteries for the body.

We love a good raw bar.  Nutty or seedy.  Carob or crunch.  Nak’d and Nine Bar are just a couple on sale in the UK which are perfect when you fancy a treat but don’t want to eat a load of junk.  Making them yourself however is a lot more fun and allows your creative side to get busy.

These little balls pack a serious punch, tasty and like rocket fuel, your energy levels and vitality will leap when you try them.  We experiment with this recipe all the time and they are the perfect snack for a long day walking up steep hills (and then down again).  I eat them at work and they keep me rocking all day.  The measurements are rough here, they don’t need to be exact, handfuls are accurate enough.  This is a simple, quick snack that serves as a tasty last minute treat.

Packed with nuts and date, you need to take it easy with this type of snack.  They are very filling and packed full of sugar, hence the power.  Too many and you’ll negate any benefit gained from all that raw goodness (by getting fat!).

They don’t need any preparation, but the dates and nuts will be better for a soak.  They swell up and even taste better. They become softer and easier to blend.  Soaking will also release many of the useful enzymes and nutrients that are otherwise closed off to the body.  If you do decide to soak your bits, keep the juice, date juice is lovely and sweet and the nut juice is packed with nutrients.  We add it to juices, stews or soups.

You may also like to make these into a truffle.  Heat up some chocolate (in a bowl above a pan of steaming water) and roll you power balls in them until well coated.  Place on a tray, covered with baking parchment and stick them in the fridge.  Once the chocolate has hardened, they are ready to be enjoyed.  That’s surely a treat worthy of a special birthday walk or even a dessert in its own right (just make the balls slightly bigger).

On a wander, seeing some flowers.

Here are a few of our favourite Power Ball flavour combos:

The Bits

Makes six decent power balls

Basic recipe:

1 handful of good dates (we like medjool, soaked for 2 hours), 1 handful of almonds (soaked overnight), 1/2 handful of cashews (soaked overnight)

Dark Chocolate Orange

2 heaped teas cacao powder, 3 teas orange blossom water or 2 teas orange zest, 1/2 handful of raisin (soaked) 

Apricot, Sesame and Tahini

3 teas sesame seeds, 2 teas tahini, 1/2 handful of dried apricots (soaked and chopped)

Walnut Apple Pie

1 handful dried apples (soaked), 1 handful of walnuts (replace almonds), 1/2 teas cinnamon

Lemon Cardamom

2 teas lemon zest, 2 teas crushed cardamom seeds

Coco Choco Mint

1/2 handful of fresh coconut (blend first), 2 teas cacao powder, 2 teas finely chopped mint leaves

Vanilla Cashew

1 teas vanilla extract, use only cashew nuts

Very Berry 

1 handful of dried cranberry, 1/2 handful of dried blueberry, 1/2 handful dried cherries, 1 teas vanilla extract

Seedy Wonder

1/2 handful sunflower seeds, 1/2 handful pumpkin seeds, 1/4 handful sesame seeds, 1/4 handful poppy seeds

Ginger Bread

1/2 teas all spice, 1/2 teas dried ginger, 1 handful of pecans (replace almonds)

Maple Fig and Lavender (CAUTION – very sweet!)

1 teas maple syrup, 1/2 teas dried lavender, 1/2 handful dried figs (soaked and chopped)

Peanut Butter 

2 teas peanut butter, 1 handful of raw peanuts

The list goes on…………..like kids in a sweet shop……

Do It

The technique is always the same.  Put it all into a food processor, blitz until smooth (or chunky, you decide).  Get your hands in there and roll out a decent sized ball between your palms.  That’s it!

Place in the fridge for a while to make them firmer and a little less sticky.  They last for a long time in a sealed container in the fridge and can even be frozen and munched at a later date.

Chocolate Orange – Raw Power Balls

Serve

Preferably on top of a peak or in a forest somewhere far away from anywhere.

We Love Them!

Better than a biscuit and full of only raw goodness.

Foodie Fact

Dates give you a hefty dose of protein and fibre.  They are also high in calories, essential when wandering around the countryside (or city for that matter).  They are also a good source of Vitamin B and you’ll even get a splash of C thrown in as well.

Sun on flowers, taken on a walk in the woods

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Snacks and Inbetweens | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake

Posted on September 18, 2012 by leroy watson

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This is just one of those recipes that comes along, out of the great blue yonder, that catches the eye and demands to be made.  This floated by via a recommendation from Yolanda at the wonderful Byzantine Flowers blog.  There are millions of recipes hovering around out there, but only a small minority grab me and really get my creative juices flowing.  I like something a little bit different, something challenging and new.  When I saw that this cheesecake had either kale, beetroot leaves or spinach in it, I knew I’d discovered a new dessert for me to play with.  I’m strange like that!!

MERCI CHEF!

We are in veggie heaven at the moment after helping chef strim his garden.  To be honest it was more of a wild field than a garden and due to our combined efforts in helping tame his jungle, chef gifted us a serious glut of amazing vegetables from his pristine veg garden (you can see where his priorities lie!).

Chef lives way up in the hills and has a fantastic garden that he and his Zimbabwean wife, Estele, take magnificent care of.  Estele is a natural with the good earth and can grow things that just shouldn’t grow in these temperate parts.  Chef is a proud frenchman and quite handy with a strimmer and mandolin.  Thanks to them we are now the proud owners of literally bin bags full of incredibly sweet spinach, fiery mint, intense chives, vibrant cabbage and some of the most vivid carrots.  You may be seeing more of these ingredients soon (maybe in desserts?!)  I have never tasted spinach this sweet (see below), the seeds came from chefs sister in the Loire Valley in France.  Ideal dessert spinach I’d say.

Raw desserts normally have a lot of components, but they are easy to get together and require a lot less messing around than normal baking (its not going to sink, burn, crumble, split……etc), it just sits there on the plate looking sexy.  I’ve never used pumpkin seeds in a base before and I think they taste even better than nuts.  Less fat, more flavour.  Seed bases are a winner.  The filling is rich and bright green (the spinach doing its thing) and you won’t believe that cream cheese wasn’t added.  It’s so smooth and creamy.

Who needs flowers

In the bright, green future, we’ll all be eating these!

Here’s the recipe with a few Beach House additions.  I stuck with handfuls, rather than exact measuring, here because its so straightforward and we love getting our mitts involved in cooking!!!

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Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake (raw, gluten-free, vegan, yum!)

Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake

The Bits – 6 little cheesecakes or one large one

Crust

4 big handfuls pumpkin seeds

2 big handfuls dates (pitted and soaked in warm water for an hour)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 teas tahini

Pinch sea salt

 

Filling

2 avocadoes (peeled and stoned)

3 big handfuls spinach leaves (washed)

2 handfuls dates (pitted and soaked n warm water an hour)

125ml (1/2 cup) water/ water from date soaking

3 tbs lime juice

2 tbs coconut flakes/ desiccated

1 tbs coconut oil (melted)

1 tbs maple syrup

1 tsp lime zest

Pinch of sea salt

The pumpkin seed bases

Do It

Using a food processor, pulse the pumpkin seeds, dates, vanilla, tahini and salt together until they start to clump into a ball.  Place in the fridge for an hour to firm up.

On a chopping board, using your hands, press the ball down into a flattish sheet (approx 1.5cm thick).  Then take a cake/cookie cutter and cut circles.  Roll up the leftovers and make another smaller sheet, repeat this until most of the base mix is used (eat the rest.  Yum!)

In the mix

Get all of your filling ingredients in your food processor/ blender and blitz up until nice and smooth.  Place you cake/ cookie cutter over your bases and spoon in a good layer of mix, using the spoon, even out the mix and make sure it meets the edges (giving you a nice looking, clean edge).  Gently pull off the cutter, your cheesecake should look splendid.  If not, be more careful with the next one!  Repeat until your mix runs out.

As I mentioned, the base can be rolled up into little balls and snacked on at a later date, so no waste here.

Please feel free to play with sizes and shapes.  We used this cutter as it makes for a decent dessert size and was handy.  The original recipe was more of a cupcake size.

Serve

They don’t last long, for many reasons, the avocado doesn’t help (so creamy!)  Serve them immediately with thin slices of lime, bits of coconut or as we did, a sprinkle of coconut flakes and a few pumpkin seeds.

We Love It!

People look quite disgusted when we tell them we’ve been making desserts with spinach in.  Hopefully they’ll read this post and have their minds changed, even better, they’ll actually try it for themselves.  Vegan desserts are the future, next week, garlic beer! (joking)

Foodie Fact

Coconut oil is an excellent substitute to cooking oils and especially butter.  It has been heralded as a ‘superfood’ and it certainly is.  The benefits of coco oil are many, for example, it can even be rubbed into your hair and skin giving amazing nutrition to both. Coconut oil is high in saturated fats, but they are mainly lauric acid, which actually helps repair the heart and arteries.  These fats also contain micro-biological qualities that fight bad bacteria and fungi in your guts, they also help you absorb many vitamins and minerals.  I could go on here……..I’m sure you get the idea.  Eat more cocos!

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Black Prince Tomato & Coriander Soup (Raw)

Posted on September 11, 2012 by leroy watson

Something like a Black Prince Tomato

These little toms are mind-blowingly tasty and light up this fabulous raw soup recipe.  We believe they are called Black Princes, but cannot be sure.  If they are Black Princes, they originated in Siberia but we picked them up from the wonderful John and Pippa in the small village of Bethel (a couple of valleys away). They are stunning tomatoes to look at, purple and dark green inside and mottled with emerald patches on the outside.  The most surprising thing about these tomatoes is that they have been grown organically in Wales (the land of the shy sun).  How is this possible?  I put it down to great expertise and poly tunnels, 20 years of growing experience also helps!  We are so very grateful to the brilliant Pippa and John for eeking out the best of the conditions of this, the wettest and worst summer on this grey island for over 100 years.  Can you imagine what they’d do in Spain!  Jane and I are almost addicted to these little gems, even scoffing them like popcorn whilst watching a samurai movie recently.

So whats all this about a Black Prince anyway? 

Well, the Black Prince (apart from just having the most epic name of any tomato we have encountered) is one of the most popular black tomatoes in the world (more dark green than black to be honest).  These toms are classed as an heirloom variety in the U.S. (see the foodie fact below) and have a wonderful deep, rich and fruity flavour.  The Black Prince is known as a ‘true Siberian tomato’, which makes it perfect for growing in cooler climates like our little grey island.

They say an Indian summer is coming to these parts, having experienced a couple of these myself in India, I am not sure that this is an accurate description of the potential weather situation.  We can however hope for some late summer sun which makes for a perfect raw soup climate.  But raw soups are not just for the summertime.

One of the things we both struggled to imagine prior to our month of raw food eating in June, was sitting down in front of our fire in mid-December, all wrapped up warm with thermals on and tucking into a cold soup with a salad.  We now know that this would work out just fine.  Although the temperature outside is chilly, the effect this kind of soup has on body and mind is seriously rejuvenating and they are absolutely jam packed full with the vitamins etc. that your body needs come the darker months.

This soup really does the black prince toms justice, it’s refreshing and not shy of a few flavours.  Whether you feel like sparkling some more, or are getting over a good old-fashioned beer garden adventure, this soup will get you zinging in all the right places.

Recipe Notes

The juice in the recipe replaces a traditional stock.  We have been experimenting with this juicy method and have had some brilliant results in mainly raw soups and stews.  No stock can live up to the vibrancy and freshness of a raw juice, especially for a chilled soup like this one.  We picked only the freshest flavours here and the combination of the tomatoes, peppers, oranges, chilli, coriander and ginger……well you can imagine!  With all those colours in a bowl, expect fireworks!

We like to use a little of the orange zest, it gives it even more pizzazz. The dates are essential to balance the saltiness of the miso.  You could use agave syrup or the like if you fancied, but there is something wonderful about adding dates to savoury food.  Avocado is perfect in soups, but does mean that it must be eaten within a day.  The avos add creaminess without the cream and are a great little raw food trick.

If you don’t own a juicer, just buy some fresh carrot juice instead.  You could also use the same quantity of water, but it would be slightly lacking.  You may also omit the sprouted mung beans and still produce a wonderful bowl of happiness, we just had a glut of them to hand.

Black Prince Tomatoes

This recipe is enough for two big bowlfuls with ample seconds.

The Bits

10 ripe black cherry tomatoes (or the best cherry tomatoes you can get your hands on)

3 ripe tomatoes (the bigger variety)

1 avocado

1 big handful mung bean sprouts

250ml carrot and celery juice (that’s roughly 4 large carrots and 1 stick celery)

1 big handful chopped coriander

1 yellow pepper (chopped)

1 tbsp flax oil (or good olive oil)

2 tsp miso paste

2 cm cube ginger (finely chopped)

1 clove garlic (mashed)

1/2 red chilli (or 1/2 teas chilli flakes)

Juice of 1 orange (with half the zest)

3 finely chopped dates

 

Do It

Make your juice first and then placed all ingredients in a food processor.  Blitz and add the juice gradually.  We think a minute or so is enough, maintain a few chunks, a longer blitz means a smoother soup.

Pre-blitz

Serve

Just not quite chilled and with a good handful of freshly chopped coriander (cilantro) as a topping and a scattering of sprouted mung beans.

We Love It!

Our favourite raw soup yet!!

Black Prince Cherry Tomato and Coriander Soup

Foodie Fact

In America ‘heirloom’ veggies are all the rage.  The Black Prince is an ‘heirloom’ fruit, which basically means that they are pure seeds and have not been touched by any GM crops.  At local markets in Britain, it is great to see people growing our indigenous varieties again, all mis-shapen and knobbly, with real flavours and textures.  Many people are single handedly keeping these varieties in existence and passing on these heirlooms to future generations.

Categories: Local food, Raw Food, Recipes, Soups, Summer, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , | 13 Comments

Trio of Simple Organic Summer Salads

Posted on August 27, 2012 by leroy watson

Aloe Vera Plant

Only naked and fresh veggies here!  Food for the sun.  When the produce is this good, you don’t want to mess with it too much.  The flavours of these veggies are amazing, we are so privileged to live in an area with some serious vegetable growing heroes living close by.

We are getting veg from two local farms over the hill and have recently been picking up a veg box from another farm.  We are suddenly inundated with incredible produce and can think of no better way of eating it than raw.  Bring on the salads!

Local food is fresher and contains more nutrients due to this, we also like to support these amazing folk who are dedicated to the land.  These salads are simple and contain only a few ingredients.  Its what you’ll find us eating most days.  Adding less ingredients to food makes the nutrients in food easier for the body to digest and use.

Our garden has taken a beating recently with the ‘summer’ storms, the wind is raging out there as I type these words.  Leaves whizz by at right angles and the rocket is blown flat to the ground.  The slugs have also had a field day out there, I can only hope they enjoyed what they ate.  We have been harvesting some lovely red potatoes and a little rainbow chard, but really, the garden had been a steep learning curve this year.  Next year, we are full of hope and fresh ideas to fortify our garden from these vicious Welsh elements.  Having spoken to local farmers, it has been the worst growing season for 20 years, so a meagre crop is understandable.  So we need some help!

Doing my best for the leeks

I’ve been working like a trooper of late, no time to cook food at the BHK.  I needed plenty of shiny food and nutrition to keep me going and Jane has stepped in and has been making the most fantastic raw food delights.  These salads, that we ate last night for dinner, were for me the pick of the bunch.  Simple and tasty with a wonderful dressing.

I have a habit of throwing things together and letting a little bit of experience and my taste buds sort out the rest, Jane is brilliant at following recipes and measurements.  This is important with some parts of cookery, namely baking and it would appear dressings.  This dressing was perfectly balanced, with the warm edge of mustard and a good amount of honeyed sweetness.

Thinly sliced veggies

Thinly Sliced Veggies

Some may call this a ‘carpaccio’, but really it’s just a stunning way to serve veggies as a salad.  Get your nicest plate out of the cupboard, some amazing veggies and slice thinly and arrange.  Viola!

The Bits

We used our one each of our local organic farms courgette, beetroot, broccoli and a organic yellow pepper.  Any combination of hard vegetables will do, if you are conscious of presentation, maybe mix up the colours a little.

Tomato and Basil Heaven

Tomato and Basil Heaven

For this you must have the finest tomatoes available.  These red/green tomatoes came with our veggie box and completely blew us away.  They grow in poly tunnels and god knows what else!  They are insanely tasty and needed just a few torn basil leaves which are blooming on the windowsill and a splash of olive oil.

The Bits

2 handfuls of amazing tomatoes, meagre handful of torn basil leaves, a splash  of great olive oil and sea salt and pepper if you must.

Carrots and Almonds

Carrots and Almonds

The sweetness of these carrots and almonds goes perfectly with the sweet mustard dressing.

The Bits

3 wonderful large carrots (scrubbed, not peeled), 1/3 head of broccoli (broken into little pieces, use the stalk and leaves), 1 handful of raw almonds, thinly sliced red onion and yellow pepper.

Sweet Mustard Dressing

Shake all ingredients together in an old jam jar, they are also handy to keep your dressing in afterwards.

The Bits

1 teas English Mustard, 2 teaspoons clear honey, 1 tbs lemon juice, 4 tablespoons rapeseed oil, a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper.

There is so little work in getting these together, we hardly need a ‘Do It’ section.  More time to soak up some rays with your loved ones.

Serve

All veggies are best served at just under room temp, we used the dressing on the Carrot and Almonds and Thinly Sliced Veggies, the tomatoes needed no additions nonsense.

We Love It!

Magic veggies deserve to be eaten in all their glory i.e. naked and fresh!

Foodie Fact

Why buy organic/ local?  Food loses nutrition when shipped and kept, so the more local fresh food you consume the better for you and your community in general.  Organic veggies actually contain no more nutrients that conventionally grown, but they are clean and contain no pesticides (or poisons).  Organic practices enrich the earth and by not using chemicals and GM techniques, ensure the fertility of the earth for future generations.  Also, people who grow organically are normally lovely people to visit for tea!

Categories: Organic, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Raw Strawberry Tartlets

Posted on August 13, 2012 by leroy watson
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Raw Strawberry Tartlets

This is a variation on our Raw Summer Berry Cheesecake that was SOOOOO GOOD we thought we would do it again… only adding some different ingredients to make it tastier and a little more interesting (and smaller!).  One for the sweet tooth and can be eaten on a raw food diet too.  Try it, it’s amazing!

It was a beautiful sunny day so I put on my shorts, went in the garden, felt super-summery, and then decided to surprise Lee with a beautiful treat for when he got home from work.  The strawberries were farm-fresh, juicy, and looked oh so irresistible in the fridge, and the result was a delightful delicate mix of this rich nutty sticky base with it’s thick creamy sweet fruity topping. Such sunny decadence!!!

I just love raw food preparation and cooking. It’s quick, there is very little mess or washing up, and I really feel like I am learning so much about how to combine the ingredients and flavours. It’s so incredible how tasty these blends of foods can be and how versatile these ingredients are – the topping in this recipe is unbelievable!  Tahini never tasted so good.

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Raw Strawberry Tartlets

The Bits

Base

200g dates

200g soaked almonds

Large handful sultanas

Large handful cashew nuts

A shake of cinnamon

A shake of ground (or chopped ginger)

 

The delicious creamy topping

1 large banana

Juice of one lemon

3 tablespoons tahini

8 dates

 

Topping

Chopped strawberries

 

Do It

So here’s how it’s done!

Base – Blend the ingredients for the base in a food processor. Make little balls with the mixture and squash flat to make little round mini-bases. This took the longest out of everything because the mixture gets so sticky. Make as many bases as you want, any size or shape you want! Worth persevering with your sticky fingers for the end result 🙂

Topping – Blend everything together and smooth the lovely thick mixture on to your bases. Throw on some chopped strawberries, or any other fruit you may have that looks beautiful; and serve straight away.

You can keep the base and topping separate in the fridge and they will keep well for a few days.

Only add the fruit just before serving for the freshest taste imaginable!

 

Serve

We like it all left out of the fridge, at room temperature.  Served in the garden and eaten with teaspoons (to prolong the happiness).  Normally with a nice cup of Rooi-al (Rooibos tea with almond milk) or Rooi-soy (with soya milk).  The perfect little summer treat.

 

We Love It!

This is so simple.  The most delicious dessert and minimal effort…leaving more time for eating!!!

 

Foodie Fact

Strawberries are actually native to Europe, and technically a ‘creeper’.  Nothing evokes summertime in Britain more than the coming of the strawberry.  Strawberries are very high in vitamin C, our anti-oxidant friend and vitamin B. They also contain plenty of vitamin B and E and have good levels of mineral content.  They are also full of phyto-nutrients that are brilliant for the body, they fight diseases and other nasty things.  Oh, and they are low in calories.

Enjoy!!

Jane x

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Summer, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Beetroot and Apple Raita

Posted on July 22, 2012 by leroy watson

Beetroot and Apple Raita

The perfect accompaniment to the ‘Hippy Daal’.  This sweet, crunchy, fruity raita salad is the ideal side dish to spicy rich food, also great as a salad in its own right.

This is a really nice twist on your normal raita recipe. Absolutely nothing wrong with the original recipe, but when you have amazing beetroots and apples in the bowl, you just have to play with flavours!

Of course we love beetroot at the BHK, for the most part, we live on the stuff.  We juice it, chop it, grate it……our table is incomplete without a little purple plate or two.

I like using the apples here, because I would normally sweeten my raita, but with these apples it doesn’t need it.

Jane and I on the beach today, enjoying the a little bit of sun (too rare).

The raita will look great if you try and chop all components in an even way.  Squares work well!  Circles more difficult, but very impressive!

Make sure your yoghurt isn’t too thick, water it down if needed.  Otherwise you could have a sticky mess on your hands.  The fresh mint makes this dish, so do try and get some together.  It is really easy to grow and we have found it saves alot of hassle (and money) to have some planted outside or on a window ledge.  If given space, it will spread like wildfire and you’ll never have a fresh mint crisis again (you’ll also have an endless supply of amazing mint tea).

The Bits

1 medium sized beetroot (peeled or scrubbed and chopped), 1 sweet organic apple (chopped), 1/2 cucumber (chopped), 1 small courgette (chopped), 1/2 teas ground cumin, 1 clove of crushed garlic, 1 handful of chopped fresh mint (chopped), 150 ml of yoghurt (we use soya, greek/turkish would be amazing)

Do It

Add all ingredients to a bowl and give it a good stir.

Beetroot and Apple Raita (Raw)

Serve

Leave for at least an hour before serving, let the flavour’s gather.  Serve as you like, traditionally with a stonking curry or as we like, as a main course salad with some green leaves.  Add nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts) to make it more of a meal of it.

We Love It!

Creamy, spicy, fruity and what a crunch!  Difficult to find anything wrong with a raita.

Foodie Fact 

Mint is high in fibre and magnesium.  It is very high in vitamin A and folates and also packs some serious vitamin C.  It also helps with all sorts of stomach issues.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Rich Tomato and Basil Soup (Raw)

Posted on July 20, 2012 by leroy watson

Tomato and Basil

Here’s one for when you are in a little bit of a hurry and you need something quick and tasty. Cold soup is a funny one for most people, it can be difficult to get your head around. Cold soups are served all over the world and I can think of many delicious recipes from Spain. It is very much a cultural thing, in Britain we have diabolical weather, which means we normally need a little warmth in our bellies. Soup is so sustaining and comforting, I don’t see why cold soup cannot have the same effect.

We managed to get our hands on a decent amount of lovely tomatoes, rare in these parts and this soup really did them justice.  The tomatoes really make this dish and without gorgeous tomatoes, you will struggle to get much flavour.  It’s all about tomato here!

Raw food is nutrient dense, which means alot of ingredients.  It is not your average soup, which normally relies heavily on a decent stock, its really just one big savoury smoothie!

This is a recipe that has the added richness of an avocado. I love the way that raw food uses things like avocado to add creaminess to dishes, surely better than a blob of clotted cream (no!?). But I must admit, clotted cream is definitely better on a scone.

We added on green chilli here, to add a little mexican style zing to proceedings.   It is optional of course.  If you’d like it richer, add more avocado, you can never get enough!

So dust off the blender and give this one a whirl. The perfect summer soup, refreshing and filling.  You can heat  this if you like, it will be nearly as nice!

Makes two big bowlfuls:

The Bits

8 tomatoes (medium size, chopped into 1/4’s), 1/2 sweet red pepper, 8 sun dried tomatoes (finely chopped/ mashed), 2 cloves garlic (minced, crushed etc), 1/2 medium sweet onion (Spanish are good, finely chopped), 1 big handful of chopped basil leaves, 1 avocado, pinch of good quality sea salt, 1 green chilli (very optional), olive oil for a drizzle

Tomato and Basil Soup (Raw)

Do It

All in a blender and pulse until a nice chunky texture is formed, add water if needed to thin out slightly.

Serve

We topped ours with sprouts (no surprises there then!) and a couple of basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil maybe?

We Love It!

Nice and rich and refreshing, a great way to use glorious toms!

Foodie Fact

Basil is regarded as the ‘king of herbs’ and is a holy plant in many cultures.  Basil originated in Iran and India.  Basil has many anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-oxidant properties, it contains exceptionally high levels of beta carotene, vitamin A, iron and a whole host of other good stuff.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Soups, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Summer Chili (Raw)

Posted on July 17, 2012 by leroy watson
Summer Chilli

“The aroma of good chili should generate rapture akin to a lover’s kiss.”
Motto of the Chili Appreciation Society International

It is chilly here!  But not in the good way, we thought we’d flip that and add a spicy chili to get some heat back into our sleepy Welsh village.  I know I keep on going on about the weather, but it is a bit of an issue.  We need the sun!

Chili is the epitome of soul food and I love the heated variety in all its forms, it was probably one of the first things I became passionate about cooking.

Chili is a dish that originated in the south of America, probably Texas and they are mighty proud of their dish down there.  I wonder what they would think of this, beef-less/chilled version.  I think I’d probably have to leave the state.

Chili originated, like most good soul food, in poorer homes and was made by scraping together ingredients that were available.  This raw chili was made with a similar sentiment, but we just happen to have loads of veggies and raw food bits.  The principal is the same.  Make do and make very tasty.

There are so many options to play with here if you are not raw.  I would definitely like to see some sweetcorn in here somewhere, but it needs cooking.

This raw food is addictive, in the sense that when you eat cooked food, you feel quite rubbish.  Your belly complains (swollen and windy) and your energy levels are low.  You become very sensitive to foods and this isn’t a bad thing, but it can be a challenge when travelling and socialising.  You can come across as some kind of nutter!  It has certainly made us more aware about what we are putting into our bodies and who our real friends are!

This sauce can be warmed up and poured over roasted veggies, which sounds delicious!  The beauty of these raw things, are their simplicity.  Whack it all in a blender and you’re off, leave it in the fridge and heat it later.  A very easy dinner and something a little different.  If you heat it to just over warm (seems to be a decent enough gauge) you will not kill all the good stuff either.

The inspiration for this recipe comes from the raw cookbook, ‘Live Raw by Mimi Kirk’ and a mighty vibrant read it is.

The Bits

Sauce – 1 cup of sun dried tomatoes (soaked for two hours to make tender), 2 cups of tomatoes (chopped and organic), 1/2 cup of carrots (chopped), 1 sweet yellow pepper, 1 small chilli (check the heat  there), 2 cloves garlic (crushed), 2 tbs tamari (or g.f. soya sauce for non-rawers), 1 tbs of each evoo (e.v. olive oil), apple cider vinegar (white wine vinegar will do), agave syrup (or sugar) and chilli powder, then 1 teas cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, fresh cracked pepper, 1 handful of chopped coriander leaves.

Chunky Bits – 1 cup sprouts (mung beans, aduki beans, or green lentils something nice and fat, we mixed them up a little), 1/2 cup celery, 1/2 sweet potato, 1 courgette, 1 sweet red pepper, handful of chopped mushrooms

Do It

Chop all of your chunky bits into funky shapes, set aside in a big bowl.

Add all sauce ingredients to a blender and whizz away until smooth.

Pour sauce over base (we were a little stingy with ours, it should look more like a stew really) and mix together.  Ideally, leave in the fridge for a while to let the flavours get together.

Rare blue skies –  salvaging some of our plants after another summer storm

Serve 

We would normally have an avocado on this, but had none.  Next time.  This would be great with some corn bread or tortillas (if you have a dehydrator handy) and would also be amazing with sour cream (raw cashew cream is very good indeed) and of course, loads of cheese and coriander.

We Love It!

Just the spice and fuel we needed in our lives this windy, wet summer.

Foodie Fact

It’s a fruit!   A gift from the Mayans and Aztecs, native to Central America and then shipped around the world by those dodgy conquistador types.  Tomatoes are low in fat and cholesterol and are full of good things.  They contain lycopene, that is a super antioxidant that protects your cells and also your skin (from the sun).   They are also rich in vitamin A and C and have great levels of potassium.  When picking tomatoes to eat, the redder the better.

Categories: Dinner, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Cashew Hummus (Raw)

Posted on July 17, 2012 by leroy watson

Raw Cashew Hummus

Here’s a quick little pot of goodness, so rich and so healthy. I love making hummus, mainly because it is so easy and tastes so much better homemade than out of a plastic tubs from a plastic shops.  You can get to play around with the flavours and really tailor your hummus to your taste.  And as we all know, hummus is important!

This hummus requires a little preparation, you do need to soak the chickpeas and cashews overnight, but its well worth it.  It’s healthy hummus.  Most hummus has alot of fat, due to the large amounts of oil used, this hummus uses a little oil (possibly none) and loads of raw cashews and chickpeas that are jam packed full of good things.

The chickpeas just need to be plump (and well rinsed) to use.  They don’t need to sprout, if they do, that’s a bonus!

You can make this with just cashew nuts (just double the quantity of nuts) but I like it with the chickpeas.  It’s slightly more traditional and after a night in the fridge, it takes on a lovely ‘cheesy’ quality.  ‘Cheesy’ is the best way I can describe it, basically, it matures nicely and gets more flavoursome.

Cashew are a real gift from nature, one nut grows on the end of a fruit (called a cashew apple, see below) and they’re really difficult to harvest.  The tree gives off toxins, it doesn’t want to let go of its precious nuts!

Cashew apples growing in Wat Suan Mok Monastery, Thailand

This will make a decent tubful:

The Bits 

1 cup cashews (soaked in filtered water, they will swell a little overnight, rinsed), 1 cup chickpeas (soaked overnight in filtered water, rinsed), juice of 1 lemon, 3 nice tablespoons of tahini (unroasted is milder, roasted is full on), 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 teas cumin, 1/2 teas paprika, pinch of rock salt, a little water/  oil to form a nice paste.

Do It

Place all ingredients in a sturdy blender, blend until smooth, adding water/ oil if needed.  You may need to stop a couple of times and scrape the mixture back into the centre.

Serve

As you like your hummus, we had ours on chicory leaves, which make a great little ‘boat’ for dips and the like.  They also look cool.  In a warm wrap is something quite special!  We suggest topping it with a little more oil, especially if it’s been in the fridge for a while.

We Love It!

This hummus has added lovely richness to our raw salad meals.  Always a brilliant addition to add a different texture to the plate.

Foodie Fact

Although high in fat, cashews boast mono-unsaturated fats, meaning in moderation they’re good for you.  Cashews are packed with soluble dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and numerous health-promoting phyto-chemicals that help protect from diseases and the big ‘C’.

 

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Kiwi ‘Slaw with Orange and Mint Dressing

Posted on July 16, 2012 by leroy watson

Kiwi ‘Slaw Base

We realise that we may be at risk of becoming a salad blog.  Not so much a kitchen as a place for leaf munching.  We are happy enough with this.

Eating salads up here, in the cold hills, is a little like eating a roast turkey dinner on a tropical beach; slightly incongrous, considering the rain is lashing down outside and we’ve been living in a cloud for the summer (what summer?!).  Still, these colourful bowls of goodness bring the sunshine to our table and some much needed colour and vitality to our lives.

The flavours here work wonderfully.  ‘Slaw is so underrated, just because its grated, doesn’t mean it can’t actually be an amazing salad that takes centre stage for a while.  I love the way that slaw absorbs all of the dressing and marinades so well.  It is also the idea stuffer and stacker, due to the grated part. It is easy to handle and won’t topple a sandwich, or stick out all over the place.

The thinking behind this recipe was maximum POW! flavours and colours. It’s a crunchy slaw with a tangy, creamy dress and if you can’t locate a kiwi, stick some pineapple in instead.  Swede is a revelation in salads and must be liberated from it’s ‘granny’ vegetable bracket.  It has a lovely, mellow and sweet flavour when eaten raw and goes great in salads.  It’s also cheap, which is never a bad thing.

The dressing here is quite special and is actually more of a sauce.  The lovely flavours of orange and mint really come through.  It has a rich texture and flavour and coats the slaw beautifully.

This is all put together using the magic of a food processor (they really are magic!  Even if they have a terrible name….process….food….it’s a bit robotic!?)  If you don’t have one, you will have to chop all the dressing bits up very finely and mix together and hand grate the salad.  A little bit more effort, but wow, how you will enjoy the spoils of your toils!

This is enough for one big bowl, you may have some dressing left over, it goes well on most things, even as a dip.

Kiwi ‘Slaw with Orange and Mint Dressing

The Bits

The dressing/sauce – 1/2 cucumber, 1 plump clove of garlic, 1/3 cup evoo (extra virgin olive oil), 1 kiwi (peel and chopped), juice 1/2 lemon, 2 oranges (peeled and chopped, minimal bitter white bits), handful of mint leaves, handful of parsley, 1 teas caraway seeds, 2 teas smoked paprika

Salad – 1/2 swede, 3 carrots, 1 courgette, 1/2 cucumber, 1 kiwi (peeled and chopped into little chunks), 1 big handful sunflower seeds (roasted taste better, but of course aren’t raw), smaller handful of flax seeds

Do It

Make dressing.  Add all ingredients to a food processor and whizz up for a minute of so.  Remove any stringy orange pieces, if we were being very restauranty, you could even strain the dressing.  But we like chunks.

Give the FP a rinse out and put your grating blade on.  Grate the swede, carrot and courgette and then chop up your kiwi and cucumber finely.

Mix all nicely together in a big salad bowl and that’s it!

Serve

Top with a few thin slices of whole kiwi as a nice touch and maybe a sprinkle of seeds and ‘erbs.

We Love It!

It’s the kind of salad that your makes your taste buds and body sing.  The kind of food we like to eat, real ‘soul’ food.  You can feel it doing you some good and its a real looker too.

Foodie Fact 

Kiwis are your vitamin C friend.  Just one of these emerald delights has 120% of your daily ‘C’ requirement.  Scientist cannot figure it out, but kiwis protect our DNA, making us less likely to develop illness.  If that wasn’t enough goodness, these little beauties are also full of dietary fibre.  They also look very cool.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Beetroot & Sprouts Salad with Strawberry Dressing

Posted on July 8, 2012 by leroy watson

Hello Beauty Strawbs….we are going to eat you…..

This is a vibrant looking thing.  Beetroots, Radish and Strawberry coming together for a colour-fest!

The beetroots we are getting at the moment are amazing, we are buying them from the farm by the bunch; quite small roots, but huge leaves. They are proving excellent value as the leaves are lasting for a few days salad-wise.  The leaves are actually more nutritious than the roots.  Its great to be able to eat the whole thing, no waste at all.

Beetroot, as we all know, is a vivid customer. Mainly due to the lasting impression it makes on your hands and nails when handling it. My advice, rubber gloves. I have no problems donning the marigolds in the kitchen, you do lose the ‘feel’ of cooking, but you gain a fantastic stain proof layer!

We are also getting a good supply of strawberries with actual flavour, always a challenge at this time of year.  It seems that most people just want to cash in on this highly prized crop and do naughty things to grow them. Whatever they are up to, it completely saps their flavour.   Anyway, our strawbs are ace!

I liked the sound of strawberry and beetroot, I liked the way it looked in my mind and it soon ended up in a bowl.   I’ve used beetroot for desserts in the past (stuck some in a chocolate cake to great effect) and thought I’d give the strawberries a similar reverse treatment.  They make for a really tart dressing and something I would highly recommend with any sweet-ish salad base.

Food processors are a choppers best friend.  They do the hard work, while you stand there holding the button, wondering how much longer you can handle such a mental noise!  Ours rattles like a badly oil cement mixer on overdrive.  We used the contraption for the beetroots here and for the radish, it saved valuable minutes of our precious lives.

Radishes are funny little things, my Grandad loved to grow them in his allotment, but never seemed to know how to eat them.  I think this was a general trend.  This salad does them justice and I’m sure Bobby would have been proud, if a little confused by the pink dressing.  I love a radish for its crunch and it just so happens that the colour goes very well with beetroot.

This is quite a sweet salad and very pretty, but we had to give it a dose of sprouts.  They are so tasty and chock-ful of good things.  Ideally served with some cashew cream cheese.

Beetroot and Radish Salad with Strawberry Dressing

The Bits

Salad

3 whole beetroots (leaves and all)

Around 8 radishes (thinly sliced)

1 big handful of sprouting green lentils (or a sprout of your choice)

2 handfuls of spinach

 

Dressing (makes 1 small tub full)

2 handfuls of strawberries (washed and stemmed)

1/3 cup great olive oil

Sprinkle of good sea salt

Good few turns of cracked black pepper

2 tbs white wine vinegar

1 tbs purified water

1 teas of sweetener i.e. agave syrup (if needed).

 

Do It

Make your dressing, add all bits to a food processor and blitz for a minute.  Taste and add sweetener if your strawberries are a little tart.  Set aside, will keep nicely overnight, so you can make in advance if your that organised.

Take your beetroots of the stems and scrub them well.  Cut off an unsightlies.  Take the stems and cut into cubes, then cut up a few leaves, finely shred, to be used as a base.  Mix with the spinach and place in a nice big salad bowl.  Place a few of the whole beetroot leaves over the edge of the bowl, covering the whole circumference to make a nice looking bowl.

Add the slicing blade to your FP and slice your radishes, then take your shredding tool-thing and shred all of your beetroots.  Put them in a bowl and mix in a few tbs of the dressing, until well coated.  Then take that mixture and place it in the salad bowl.  Finish with a good sprinkling of sprouts (not essential).

Serve

Non rawers, sprinkle a roasted pumpkin seeds, rawers (you brave and wonderful few!) tuck in from your favourite bowl and let the flavours dance in your mouth!

Beetroot and Radish Salad with Strawberry Dressing

We Love It!

This turned out a treat, a little unusual, and we’ll be making strawberry dressing again.

Foodie Fact

Radish is one of the most nutritious root vegetables.  Apparently you can get a black Spanish radish, but I’ve never encountered such a thing.  You can also buy watermelon radishes that have a sweet flavour and look like watermelons when you cut into them.  What amazing things you learn writing a blog!

The Chinese have a saying:

“Eating pungent radish and drinking hot tea, let the starved doctors beg on their knees”.  Poor doctors.

As with most veggies, they are packed full of only good things for the body.  They are a very good source of anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins and dietary fiber.  High in vitamin C especially.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan, Welsh produce | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Beach House Kitchen voted for ‘One Lovely Blog Award’

Posted on July 4, 2012 by leroy watson

One lovely blog award

This is the best title for a blog award yet!  I love these awards, not only do you get a nice warm feeling inside, you also get to meet a whole bunch of shining individuals who can inspire you.  What a wonderful world this blog-sphere is.

Thank you so much to the wonderful veganmonologue for deeming us ‘lovely’ enough for this award. We do try our best!  The veganmonologue achieves something we can aspire to (I can get carried away with ingredients when I’m in the kitchen) gorgeous vegan food on a budget.  The pictures on this blog have the professional look that makes me actually feel like learning something about photography!  Having said that, we do live in a cloud up a hill.   Not the best light for a photo shoot.

7 facts about us

–  We share our garden with a cat named Buster who is one of the coolest creatures on the planet (tied with bees).  We have no idea where he came from, or where he’s going.

–  We plan on buying another little orange Honda motorbike and taking them to India, via Iran and Italy.  One day…when we are young.

–  The Beach House is actually nowhere near the beach!  But you can see it from the kitchen window (on a good day). You can also see Lover Peninsula and a lighthouse.  It is a magical land for sure.

–  We have a stone circle in our garden, we thought druids built it, but it was actually a lady at our local garden centre.  We still like it.

–  We would like to get rid of more things than we buy.  The Beach House is small and besides, our lives are too cluttered with ‘stuff’ as it is.

–  We believe in the power of positive thinking………….

–  We believe in the power of positive food…………

We have nominated these ‘Lovely’ Blogs, we haven’t trawled the internet for new sites, these are simply a selection of our favourites (who have no doubt received this award many times over).  They bring much sun and wonder food in equal measure (in no order at all):

emmycooks – emmy’s blog is so appetising, it makes me feel like eating my laptop.  Emmy’s blog inspires me to always be better cook and think more about flavours and presentation.  A real inspiration and sweetheart.

byzantine flowers – a blog about all things vibrant existence.  Full of important info that is not well reported and could be vital to our health.  A doorway to an ‘alternative’/ more natural lifestyle

almostrawvegan – surely the healthiest blog in the world!  wonderful smoothies and raw food ideas.  If you are thinking about eating more raw food, this site is a must read.

kolponacuisine – wonderful bright energy here and mouthwatering India food.  I can almost smell the spices and ghee floating all over the Atlantic from Seattle.

a little saffron – lleana is from Nicaragua, one of my favourite countries and her food is simply delicious to look at.

allotment2kitchen – or A2K, it’s a wonderful blog.  Now based in Wales, you will find seasonal dishes cooked beautifully, with photography to match.

veghotpot – One of my favourite blog folk, veghotpot is always lovely and here food is pretty damn fine too.  This is a place for real food and some great writing also.

vegetarian venture  – an absolutely gorgeous looking blog with veg food with beautiful recipes.  It really is a work of art!

The list ends here, as that’s all I have time for at the moment.   There many, many more lovely blogs I can think of, but its late and my eyes are going square.

The Rules of One Lovely Blog:

• Link back to the blogger who nominated you

• Paste the award image on your blog, anywhere

• Share 7 facts about yourself

• Nominate 5-15 other blogs you like for this award (last time it was 5, this time it’s 15…so do what you can.)

• Contact the bloggers that you have chosen to let them know that they have been nominated

What a wonderful blog world we are in!   Spread the love……
Happy days,
Lee and JaneX
PS – 8/7/12  We’ve just been voted for this lovely award again, by the fabulous
turningveganese  A vegan blog written by Filipinos, full of tasty recipes and a dreamy sense of happiness.  Have a look!
Categories: Awards/ Recognition, Blogs | Tags: , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Sweet Pepper and Pomegranate Antipasto (Raw)

Posted on July 2, 2012 by leroy watson

Raw Sweet Pepper and Pomegranate Antipasto

We felt like a little starter, something to nibble on.  Nibbles seem to be the new thing, judging by the snack section in our local supermarket.  We seem to becoming a nation of rampant nibblers (dipped in hummus of course).

Italians are the kings of the nibble, tied with the Spanish, but they tend to make it more of main meal, a la tapas.  Antipasto (translated as ‘before the meal’) is always the perfect accompaniment to nice glass of chilled something and good conversation as the sun is beginning to settle down.

This raw June (just passed) we have been mainly having large salads for dinner.  We didn’t manage to arrange a dehydrator for the month, which would have meant many dried, crisp goodies.  Instead we have normally opted for large bowls of salad, normally a green leaf based salad, a dip/ hummus/ raw cheese (something with a creamy texture), olives/nuts/pomegranate etc and one salad that is made of primarily harder fruit and veg (like this antipasto).  All this served with a lovely dressing.  The combination of these salads is tantalising!  We cannot get enough of them and have decided to extend raw June in the future……………our rawness may never cease!?

This is a clean and citrus antipasto dish that boasts fresh, fresh flavours.  The ideal pre-dinner plate to get the palate zinging.  The combination of sweet pepper, tomato and pomegranate is a taste explosion that is difficult to match.  If this little plate doesn’t liven up a dinner party, your friends may be comatosed!

The asparagus here was the last of the season from our local farm shop and very much relished.  It is not essential to the dish, but a real treat non-the-less.  The subtle flavour and crunch of raw asparagus will be missed until it re-emerges next year.

You can serve this with other antipasto favourites to make a platter, olives, artichoke hearts, chunks of cheese, marinated mushrooms etcetc.

Organic peppers and tomatoes will make all of the difference to this dish and your salads in general.  The organic veg flavour is infinitely better.

Thanks to Mimi Kirk and the brilliant ‘Live Raw‘ book for inspiration here.  If you live on a drab island like ours (where June resembles November) it is wonderful to leaf through the pages of this book and see the Holywood lifestyle and sunshine!  How I miss the sun.

Sweet, sweet tomatoes

The Bits

Antipasto 1 red pepper (sliced thinly), 1 yellow pepper (sliced thinly), 1 bunch of asparagus (cut into batons), 1 small pomegranate (seeds (or arils as they are called) only, no pith), 1 big handful of the sweetest plum tomatoes (we used red and yellow ones here)

Marinade – 4 tbs good olive oil, handful of fresh basil leaves, 1-2 cloves of garlic (crushed), a pinch of marjoram, oregano, thyme, basil, juice of 1 small lemon, 2 teas capers, pinch of sea salt and cracked pepper.

Do It

Whisk your marinade then combine all ingredients in a tupperware and mix together gently, don’t break up the asparagus and tomatoes.  Make sure all is coated with the marinade.  Leave in a fridge overnight or for at least a couple of hours to infuse.

Sweet Pepper and Asparagus Antipasto – So colourful, its worth a second look

Serve

On a nice big serving platter with whatever accompaniments you prefer.  You may like to add a little torn basil leaf as a topping and of course, some nice toasted ciabatta drizzled with olive oil if it takes your fancy.

We Love It!

It is so full of crunchy flavour and pomegranate in a salad is a revelation.  I’m not sure if my Italian friend would agree with such an addition, not proper antipasto they would say, but they only know what mama taught them!!!!  (Sorry guys)

Foodie fact

Most of us are aware that pomegranate is good for us.  You can buy it in juice form all over Britain, it is most definitely a super fruit of note, packed full of the antioxidant punicalagin which scavenges free radicals from our bodies.  Hooray!  One of my favourite pomegranate products is the pomegranate concentrate, it adds an incredibly intense flavour to anything it touches.

The worlds finest pomegranates are grown in southern Afghanistan, although I heard that Iraq had some tasty arils also!

Categories: gluten-free, Healthy Eating, Local food, Lunch, Organic, Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Side Dish, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Nourishing Banana Smoothie

Posted on June 28, 2012 by leroy watson

Banana Smoothie

Eat your greens.  Now they are real words of wisdom.

A clean and fresh smoothie that feels so good on the way down.  A green smoothie a day is a huge step in the right direction for a zinging, healthy approach to living, especially in the morning time when our body needs some real t.l.c.

This was a part of my little detox spell which went incredibly well.  It always amazed me, when we inhibit or restrict our diet in anyway the cravings or desire for that food just slips away.  That’s me anyway, I think I’m a lucky one!   When I make a clear decision to give up something that is blatantly not doing me any good (we all know what they are……booze, coffee, lots of fatty, processed foods) my body respects that decision and responds in a very positive way.  It is such a reassuring step in the right direction.

Smoothies do most of the breaking down that our bodies would normally do, making nutrients readily accessible to be snapped up by our bodies and make us shine.  This is why they’re such a wonderful thing early in the day.

This smoothie is so simple and effective for a morning super boost.  You can play around with the fruit and veg, just keep the quantities the same and don’t add and citrus fruit (remember the Raw No No’s!).

I always try and pack as much spinach into the blender as possible, I normally add the spinach last as it does not blend well.  As a rule, add your juicy bits first to the blender.

This smoothie recipe is taken from the raw food book ‘Live Raw’ by Mimi Kirk which I can recommend highly.  Mimi is a real foodie and some of the dishes would grace any fine dining restaurant (not that  they have anything to do with real food).

GOOD MORNING to you all……….

The Bits

2 bananas, 4 stalks of celery, 1 apple (quartered), 3 handfuls of spinach, 1/2 cucumber (cut in half), 1 1/2 cups of filtered water (add to your liking, ice will be nice in hot places)

Do It

Add all to a blender and blitz until nicely smooth.

Serve

In your finest glassware, add a slice of fruit of vegetable to give it that special finish, you can use it to scrape out the leftovers in the glass.

Foodie Fact

A good tip with fruits is, freeze them.  If you have a glut of something, get it in the freezer and use it whenever you like.  Great in smoothies as it gives them that lovely chilled touch.

Categories: Breakfast, Detox, Healthy Eating, Raw Food, Recipes, Smoothies, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Black Olive Tapenade with Beetroot and Red Onion Salad

Posted on June 25, 2012 by leroy watson

Beetroot and Red Onion Salad with Black Olive Tapenade

Tapenade is one of those things that we don’t eat enough of.  Everytime we have it, we say the same thing, “Why are we not eating more tapenade!”  It is delicious and is one of those classic summer dishes that reminds me of holidays in Greece and France.

I ate alot of tapenade at break times whilst picking grapes in Beaujolais.  We’d have it spread over warm baguettes, with local cheese and lashings of whatever wine was in the bucket (purely medicinal, it helped to dull the back pain you see).  I believe that the intense satisfaction I got from munching the tapenade pulled me through those back breaking times.  The wine was certainly nothing to get excited about, unfortunately.

This is a wonderful concoction of flavours that I’ve had a little play with (of course) and omitted the use of capers due to a forgetful moment at the shops.  The unique caper-ness has been replaced by the gorgeous sun-dried tomato.  Not a bad substitute!  I have also added raisins to add a little sweetness, the black olives can be a little bitter in these parts, Wales not being high on the olive producing charts.   The rest is fairly classic tapenade, forming a delectable black paste that can be spread or dipped as you choose.  I love this type of food, which is greater than the sum of its bits.

I normally think of Tapenade as being a Greek dish, but it actually hales from Provencal in France.  Traditionally this puree contains caper, anchovies, black olives and olive oil.  The French would normally serve it as an hors d’oeurve or stuff it into a steak.

Tapenade is alot like pesto (see our ‘Hazelnut Pesto‘ post) in that it is a joy to behold sitting in the fridge door.  It just hangs around and marinates, getting better and better.  It goes well in so many things and mixed with some oil, makes for an instant wonder dressing.  The best part is that it has a gourmet flavour with very little needed in way of preparation.

The way you chop up your veg has a major effect on the presentation and texture of a salad.  Have a little think before you begin to chop about what type of effect you’d like to create.

If you spend a little more on good quality olives here, it is well worth it.  The black variety are normally a little cheaper and in their own way, just as good as some of their greener brothers and sisters.

The Bits

Tapenade – 1 cup black olive, 6 sun dried tomatoes, 2 cloves crunched garlic, 1/2 red onion, 1/4 cup raisins, juice of 1 lemon, handful of chopped parsley, sprig of rosemary, pinch of thyme and oregano, glug of olive oil, cracked black pepper and sea salt (to taste), glug of olive oil (if needed)

Salad – 1 nice red onion (thinly sliced), 4 small beetroots (cut into eighth’s), 2 cups of spinach (chopped), 3 carrots (grated), 2 stalks celery (chopped), 1 cupful of sprouts (we used green lentil sprouts)

Black Olive Tapenade in the mix…..

Do It

Tapenade – Add all ingredients to a food processor and begin to whizz.  As it becomes sticky, trickle in some remaining olive oil to create a beautiful, shiny puree.  Keep in a sealed container in the fridge overnight for maximum marination (new word for you there!).

Salad – We put the red onion and carrot into a food processor and grated, then chopped the celery, spinach and beetroot separately.

Serve

Thin out some tapenade by adding the same quantity of good olive oil and whisking well.  You can lower the amount of tapenade if you’d prefer a lighter dressing.  Pour the dressing over the salad and give a good mix in.

Place in your favourite salad bowl and top with a handful of green lentil sprouts (see our ‘sprout‘ post for how to sprout your own, its quite simple).  Then spoon on some tapenade.

We have also used it to flavour soups and stews and of course in post June days we’d have it lathered on some warm oat bread.

We Love It!

This tapenade has a great balance of bitter and sweet, with the beautiful silky texture of pureed olives.

Foodie Fact

Olives are one of the oldest foods known, dating back 7,000 years.  Black Olives are left to ripen for longer on the trees, green ones are picked earlier, they generally have a milder flavour.  Olives are a good source of iron (which helps to carry oxegen in our blood) and are low in calories with plenty of good fats.  They do however contain a decent amount of sodium and should be eaten in moderation if you’re keeping an eye on salt intake.

Twelve black olives provide 1.8mg of iron.  Interestingly women need 18mg of iron per day and men only 8mg.

Categories: Dinner, Dressings, gluten-free, Healthy Eating, Low G.I. (glycemic index), Lunch, Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Side Dish, Snacks and Inbetweens, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Purple Sprouting Broccoli & Broad Bean Salad with Hazelnut Pesto

Posted on June 21, 2012 by leroy watson

Local veggies

We live on Bryn Teg which translates to English as ‘Fair Hill’.  I call it tiger mountain because of the stripes, but it doesn’t seem to be catching on in these parts.

So Fair Hill it is and this salad reflects what is growing near our little home.  Things are beginning to come into season and our local farm shop’s shelves are beginning to fill (thankfully).  We bought what they had and this delicious salad was born.  The combination of flavours worked surprisingly well with the pesto and it was even better the day later after having a good marinate in the fridge.

Broad beans (Fava beans) are special in any salad, they add a unique, nutty texture.  Texture is one of the key ingredients to a brilliant salad and ingredients should be selected accordingly.  Limp leaves are not the way forward!  Fresh and crunchy is the key, something that is exciting to in the mouth and on the taste buds.

We have been discovering the art of salad making this raw month.  Ingredients and dressings take on a completely different flavour when combined and subtle changes in flavouring can make all the difference.

Making a vegan pesto is tricky, without the pungent cheese, you just cannot recreate that unmistakable flavour.  I think this is a decent attempt, matured cheese is something that vegans just have to give up on.  You can buy those yeast cheese flake things.

You do end up using quite a bit of herb in the pesto, but it is well worth it.

The Bits

Salad

1 cup shelled broad beans

3 handfuls chopped sprouting purple brocolli (leaves as well)

1 sweet potato (peeled and grated)

1 courgette (1/2 grated, 1/2 cubed)

 

Hazelnut Pesto

4 cups basil leaves, loosely packed

1 cup fresh parsley

1 – 2 tsp sweetener of your choice

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 tsp fresh ground pepper

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup hazelnuts (soaked overnight, drained and rinsed)

1 – 2 cloves fresh garlic, crushed

3 tbs nutritional yeast flakes (optional)

 

Do It

Salad – Separate your broccoli florets from the stems and leaves, chop up.  Mix all ingredients in a bowl.

Pesto – Chop the basil and parsley until reduced to 1 cup basil and 1/4 cup parsley, blend all ingredients except hazelnuts until smooth.  Add hazelnuts gradually and continue blending, adding more olive oil as needed for desired consistency.  Check seasoning.

Thin down the pesto a little, a thick dressing and mix into the salad.

Serve

Dress with a few of the broccoli leaves and a few more spoonfuls of the thick pesto.  Maybe a few leaves of parsley or basil if you are feeling extravagant!

Raw pesto salad

We Love It!

The glory of pesto!  Mix it in yoghurt for a tasty side dish, thin with oil for a dressing, mix with hummus to make the finest hummus ever!  It really is one of the finest things you can have lurking around the fridge.

Foodie Fact

Sometimes referred to as the horse bean (!), broad beans like all legumes are a high in protein and low in fat.  A really meaty legume!  They are packed with vitamins, fibre and have a high iron content.

Categories: Dinner, Dressings, gluten-free, Healthy Eating, Local food, Low G.I. (glycemic index), Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Side Dish, Vegan, Welsh produce | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Rich & Raw Chocolate Brownie with Chocolate Icing

Posted on June 16, 2012 by leroy watson

Raw Chocolate Brownie with Chocolate Sauce

This rich slice of brownie goodness just made my DAY!! Thank you to The Rawtarian for the idea!  After seemingly forever without any chocolate (it feels like a very long time ago since we did the Willies Cacao and Chocolate tastings – our favourite chocolate in the world!) Lee treated me to this yummy dessert. After all we couldn’t go on a raw diet without experimenting with a broad range of food including LUXURY puddings could we? J Hehehe!

Whilst munching our way through half a slab last night we concluded the only possible drawback is the amount of sugar it contains (from the dates) and fats (from the coconut oil and the nuts…)  But then you’re not supposed to eat 1/2 slabs at one sitting!!  It is unbelievable to think there is no butter, cream or chocolate in this recipe; it tastes just so rich.

But because it’s all healthy ingredients; it is still no major crime to while the evening away with a delicious huge slab and a tasty cup of sweet vanilla rooibush tea to accompany it! And that’s exactly why I love this recipe – it’s naughty tasting healthy food!! Woo-hoo!

In the bits, we used soaked almonds instead of pecans and it worked out very nicely.  We were lucky to have a few coconuts hanging around, so we were privileged to used fresh coconut and shredded it in our coffee grinder.  The star of this recipe though is the salt (it is not often you say that!), Halen Mon Tahitian Sea Salt.  We’ve been waiting to use this since we tried it in a ‘Dark Chocolate Ricotta’ recipe a few months ago.  It really brings out the flavour of the chocolate and adds subtle hint of vanilla.

This recipe makes a great base for other desserts and can also be easily rolled up into dark chocolate truffles.

This is so packed full of energy, with the dates and nuts alone, if you planing on  running any marathons in the near future, we highly recommend this for dessert the night before.  You will break records!

The Bits

Brownie

1 cup pecans (you can use walnuts/ almonds in a pinch, but pecans are much better)

1 cup dates (stoned)

5 tablespoons raw cacao (cocoa) powder

4 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut (dessicated will do)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/2 teas Halen Mon Tahitian vanilla sea salt (normal sea salt is of course cool too)

 

Chocolate Icing

1 cup dates (soften in water for 1 hour)

1/4 cup raw cacao (cocoa) powder

1/4 cup cold-pressed coconut oil

3/4 cup water (or a tiny bit more if needed)

 

Do It

Brownie

Add the nuts to your blender and whizz until broken down, then add dates and blend for a minute, add all other ingredients and continue to whizz away until the mixture turns a lovely shiny dark brown, not too buttery (you should still be able to see bits of nuts).  You may need scrape the mixture from the side of the blender to ensure that all is blended nicely.

Press down into a suitably rectangular container (cake tin will do) and press down evenly so the mixture evenly covers the base.

Cover and refrigerate, this mix keeps its shape well and even looks like a brownie!

Chocolate Icing

Could not be easier, soften your dates in the water for an hour before blending.  This makes them softer and easier going.  Then add all ingredients to the blender and whizz up. Start slowly and build up the speed, blend for a while, until the icing begins the shine and no dates can be seen (roughly 5 minutes).   If needed, turn off the blender and scrape the icing down from the sides.

Voila!! A rich icing that would grace any dessert!

Raw Chocolate Brownie

Serve

We keep the chocolate sauce separate, in a sealed container, and spread onto the chunks of brownie when cut.  Both the brownie and the sauce keep well in the fridge for a while.   Otherwise, this needs no additions, just a few sweet teeth and a nice cuppa!

We Love It!

Deep, rich and velvety.  This is a stunning recipe that keeps well and gets better with age (i.e. a couple of days).  It is incredibly dense and a little goes a long way, meaning more days of decadent brownie time, which is never a bad thing.  The icing is also very versatile and has an almost mousse-like texture that melts in the mouth.

Foodie Fact

To the Aztecs, the cacao bean was the food of the Gods.  Raw cacao is bitter ad is normally sweetened, it is the main ingredient of chocolate and boasts many health benefits.

Cacao produces much the same effect as caffeine, yet milder and non-addictive.  It stimulates the brain to produce a gentle euphoria via a release of endorphins.  It also contains very high levels of antioxidants.

Like much of the research on foods, the science is ever changing and the cacao bean seems to be a contentious topic.  The general opinion though is that it’s a superfood and dark chocolate, even when processed, contains many health benefits.

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Raw Asian Buckwheat Stew

Posted on June 16, 2012 by leroy watson

Sprouting Buckwheat

This is not exactly Asian, not your average back street Shanghai fare; we lack some ingredients but do our best in the hills of Wales!  This recipe boasts all the flavours you would expect from a classic Asian dish, with the raw touch of sprouting buckwheat and the richness of cashews.  It really is a revelation that this food tastes so good cold and is so satisfying.  Who knew?

We live quite remote, the nearest decent shop being 30 mins drive.  For a cramped island like ours, 30 mins is quite a distance.  If you can believe it, there are no fresh fruit and veg markets in the entire area.  It is strange, we are quite unique.  We therefore use what we have locally, there is a shed over the hill that sells the occasional organic vegetable, at this time of year, local produce for sale is quite sparse.  Hence we make do and blend!

We have been missing our Thai curries, stir fries etc, so this was my attempt at adding a new set of flavours to this Beach House raw June.  I like adding cucumber to dishes, it freshens and lifts things.

These recipes are known as ‘living food’ due to the sprouting going on.  Anything sprouting is full of life and nutrients and is serious super fuel for your body (and mind/well-being…..).

Sprouting buckwheat has a lovely bite to it and reminds me of a fuller quinoa in flavour.  It tastes and looks like a grain, but is gluten and wheat free.  It can also be blended up into a lovely porridge (more of this to come).  Buckwheat sprouts well and only takes a couple of days.   The technique is simple enough, soak for 24 hours in fresh water, drain and wash, leave for 24 hours, drain and wash etc.  Until sprouts begin to appear.  It  is then ready to eat.

This stew has a lovely rich feel and is very satisfying, which you need on the grey island (Britain) were it is currently summer/winter in just one day.  The storms may rage outside, yet we are warm inside and dreaming of the East….

The Bits

Veg – 1 large tomato, 1 small onion, 1/3 cucumber, 1 carrot, 1/2 red chilli (check for heat)

Sauce – 2 cloves garlic, 2 inch cube of ginger, juice of 1 lime (finely chopped zest if you like a real tang), 2 teas honey, 3 tsp sesame oil, 2 tbs tamari (or light soya sauce)

Stew – 2 cups sprouting buckwheat, 1/2 cup whole cashews,

Topping – 1 1/2 cups chopped green beans, 2 teas sesame seeds, handful of broken cashews

Mid blitz aka carnage

Do It

Add all veg and sauce bits to the blender blend to a fine salsa like mix, taste check for balance of flavours, then add your stew bits and pulse a few times to break up the buckwheat and cashews slightly.  Not too much, you need a little bite there.  Chop up your greenbeans and scatter on top in any fashion that takes your fancy (we normally mix half into the stew).

Serve

Finish with a few sprinkles of sesame seeds (we were out of stock here) and some broken cashews.

Raw Asian Buckwheat Stew

We Love It!

This beats a sloppy Chinese takeaway any day of the week!  Bursting with vitality and nutrients, this is one of our favourite raw recipes thus far.

Foodie Fact

Buckwheat is one of the most complete grains globally and contains all eight essential amino acids (meaning you can basically live on it!).  It is great for diabetics as an alternative to sugary wheat and also alkalizes the blood.  Buckwheat even boosts the brain, it contains high levels of lecthin and 28% of the brain is made of lecthin which also purifies the blood and actually soaks up bad cholesterol.  Wonder food!

Categories: Detox, gluten-free, Healthy Eating, Healthy Living, Low G.I. (glycemic index), Lunch, Nutrition, Raw Food, Recipes, Superfoods, Vegan, Welsh produce | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

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