marzipan!!!

see how quickly i got your attention with that one word?
:)
i am on the prowl for some good chocolate
and was remembering back when my oma would bring some incredibly delicious chocolates from germany
with the almond-y marzipan inside... makes my knees weak just thinking...
i decided to give it a whirl in the raw arena
and so far so good-
i am now waiting for the cacao butter to liquefy in the D
to mix the coating, the little squares of raw marzipan are cooling their jets in the freezer while i wait.
they look darling and i would have had more than 2 dozen if i had left the batter alone
instead of taste taste taste mmmmmm!
if it works out as good as i think it will be one of the recipe latecomers in the new book 'raw delights'

the rain is melting all my beautiful white snow away and down to the stream,
the mud begins.
but not for real i don't think- because it isn't even march yet, and all the good snowmobile trips get done in march.
so it's a 'false labor' kind of spring.
meanwhile my little yorkie moe needs a good rinse down every time he goes outside.

ok this was just a quickie post
i hope to get a better one in shortly.
xo
snowdrop



post script..
the marzipan was a little too dry and i need to adjust the recipe for a bit more moisture...
but i am not going to be leaving any on the plate to rot :) yummy!

combat exhaustion

too much to do and no umph to do it?
burning the candle at both ends and feeling it?
just plain pooped?

that would describe my week month year...
well having had adrenal exhaustion in the past,
i know i don't want to deal with the long road to health and energy again.
i do not want to get started on coffee again, i know it will cause me more trouble than benefit...especially now.
so i decided to do a little research and found a couple of things that really helped.
first i made myself a very quick very easy chocolate pudding
with some superfood additions to it.
it had chia to thicken it and give me the same strong long lasting energy that the inca's used to feed their runners when they had to go the distance for days on end.
then i added : cacao nibs & powder, maca powder, 3 figs...
mesquite & agave for sweetness and energy,
almond milk and a pinch of sea salt (important)
blitzed it smooth with my blend tec
put in some gogi berries and pulsed it semi-smooth
no matter how tired one is-
chocolate pudding can make it down without too much trouble :)
it was delish- chocolatey dreaminess with slightly crunchy (nibs) slightly chewy (goji) texture.
and i was rewarded with some energy to get up and DO things.
yaaay!!!



then i was feeling the same exhausted feeling come on later that week
and lo and behold my first batch of wheat grass was ready
for harvest and juicing.


i cut it all down and juiced it thru my green star
[a wonderful investment, i must say!]
i juiced it all and came up with a double shot
(thinking later i believe the glass was 3 oz full)
it wasn't bippity boppity boo miraculous-

but the results could not be scoffed at by any means.
now i have another batch of wheat sprouting
and just can't make it grow fast enough!

i have to admit i was very hesitant to drink wheat grass
after all the things i read about how awful it is and that
people are nauseated and only hard core granolas can do it...
but i went ahead and tried it since, after all,
if you are doing shots.... well, it's not like it will be in your mouth very long.

i did not have that terrible experience at all... noooo
the juice was very very sweet, unexpected!!!
and i actually liked it.
when i was done i wanted more so i rinsed the pulp
and got a dilute juice, that was still good and green.
it made me feel sooo much better
and put a spring in my step - purpose in my stride
i DID feel better and had plenty of energy
LONG LASTING ENERGY!!!
BOOYAH!

it is deep winter in the adirondacks
nothing growing under feet of frozen white snow
there are no juice bars
there is no wheat grass to be found, fresh or frozen in any market.
the snow is coming down so thickly today
that i cannot see the lake from my window...
so if i want this deep green elixir
i must grow it myself.

i will post my adventures in growing W.G. in a future post
till then my tired little poppets-
juice up and go!
:)
xo
snowdrop

do you like peanut butter crackers?

i found this in my recipe storehouse
and cannot remember where i first saw it-
but it combines the crisp and the creamy
for an undeniably delightful combo
like peanut butter crackers............... but chocolate!

Chocolate Chia Crackers
Yield 1 tray

1 cup chia seeds
2 cups water
Juice of 1 orange
1 apple, cored & chopped
1/4 cup raw chocolate powder
2 tablespoons raw agave nectar
6 dates, pitted
dash Himalayan crystal salt

Soak your chia seeds for 30 minutes in a large bowl with 1 1/2 cups of the water. Blend the remaining ingredients (including the remaining 1/2 cup of water) together. Add the blended mixture to the bowl with soaked chia seeds and stir to mix. Break up any chia seed clumps with your rubber spatula or spoon. Let the mixture sit (as is) for 15-30 minutes.

Spread the mixture on a dehydrator tray lined with a non-stick paraflex sheet and score to desired size. (For a thinner cracker, divide between two trays.) Dehydrate at 135 degrees for 60 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 105 degrees and dehydrate another 6-8 hours. Flip crackers onto another tray without a paraflex sheet and peel off the paraflex sheet being used. Dehydrate another 6-10 hours, or until you reach your desired dryness.


Chocolate Hazelnut Butter Spread
Yield 1 1/4 cups

1 1/2 cups hazelnuts
3 tablespoons raw chocolate powder
1 1/2 tablespoons agave nectar
1/2 cup cashews
2 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil
pinch Himalayan crystal salt

Process all of the ingredients in a food processor, fitted with the "S" blade, until creamy.

hope you enjoy this easy duo
xo
snowdrop

chocolate orange confection recipe

someone reminded me about this recipe
and even tho it will be in "raw delights" soon
i thought i would post it here too.
fast... easy... delicious!

chocolate orange confection
1 c sunflower seeds
1/2 c raisins
1/2 c dates (since i didn't have enough raisins in the pantry, & i think it worked better with the dates creaminess)
1/3- 1/2 c cacao powder (i made it very dark with chocolate yummm)
1 T maca powder (why for energy of course!)
1 T orange extract/flavor
1/2 t cinnamon powder
1/2 t vanilla extract/flavor or some seeds
1/3 c (6T) coconut oil melted
pinch salt

food process as smooth as possible
roll a scant tsp full into a small ball shaped candy and dip one side
into sprinkles. plate, seal and refrigerate till firm.
place on a lovely candy dish sprinkle sides up,
and watch them disappear!
i hope you enjoy them as much as i did.

sprinkles
1 T raw sugar crystals (or anything like that)
1 T orange peel (dried & ground into a powder w/coffee grinder)

stir & use to dip one side of candy into

it's pretty fast to make & alot cheaper than the marbled chocolate orange whatever that takes 1-1/2 c of cacao butter $$$ holy schnikie!!!
my inspiration (but not my budget ) i couldn't find
his recipe this morning tho. oh, here it is!
though i really want to taste that too. mmmm
some have added some grand marnier to flavor this recipe
instead of the orange extract, with great results.
if you make this - please let me know how they turn out for you!
comment away on any of these posts.... i'd love to hear from you.

now that i have shoveled for days, i have the sore muscles to prove it.
the snow is at least a few times deeper than moe, my yorkie, is tall.
it is a winter wonderland and the sun shines brilliantly.
time to bundle up, grab my camera and go outside!
have a great day all-
xo
snowdrop

of storms and grasshoppers

storm over.
sun brilliantly melting snow in great big drips & drops off of the trees.
we, of course, didn't get the full amount forecasters promised...
but then again i always fail to remember they report for ratings
(the sky is falling! the sky is falling!!)
i think we got all of 6"

but that was still enough to almost bury the dog


so now i have a free afternoon (snow day, of course silly!)

i have been working on a recipe - grasshopper pie
and i think i have it ready to insert into the book.
it is cool and a creamy pale green with the dark brown crumbs so reminiscent of crushed oreo cookies.
well, here's a slice, you tell me- is this something you'd like to eat?


it was for me, i polished off that slice as quick as i could find a fork!
:) mmm mmm yummy!

i am still in awe of what can be done with raw foods to mimic the old favorites. they taste as good if not better, and they are actually health building instead of health destroying. how much better can it get? (ok, so it could be better if you had your own personal chef, true. but not realistic.)

so now for the free afternoon....hmmm.
maybe next blog i will let you know what that turned out.
till then -
eat well and stay healthy!
xo
snowdrop, chef

Savor the Flavor

today i was really needing some chocolate.
so i worked on a recipe that worked out well

it is a chocolate sponge with whipped cream and pomegranate seeds, and the most delightful part (well, besides the taste) is that it is all raw and completely guilt free!

and it's going into my new book 'raw delights'
i am working at sending it to be published in january.


the impressive part of this recipe for me, is the lightness that one has difficulty achieving without baking. most raw cakes and cookies are either a heavy and wet batter-like consistency.. or dry as a bone.
woof.
this is no 'alpo' or 'milkbone' let me assure you.

i have just set up this blog so this is my first entry
the tester outer blog :)
baby-blog, baby-blog!!!
so let me know what you think
and i hope you come to visit again soon
xo
snowdrop