i try making healthy, raw cherry ripe slice

I adapted this recipe from Live, Love, Eat Raw. I made a few changes (mainly with the topping) so I've re-written my version of  the recipe below. This is a really delicious recipe. The tartness of the cherries balances out the subtle sweetness of the base and top well. and, best of all, its healthy, vegan, raw and refined sugar free.

Ingredients

Base
10 mejool dates
1 cup almond meal
1.5 cups shredded coconut
2 tbs raw cacao powder
2 tbs rice malt syrup (a little more if you prefer it sweeter)
2 tbs chia seeds
pinch of sea salt

Filling
2 cups of frozen cherries, thawed and drained of excess liquid (can use fresh cherries if in season)
Juice of small lemon
1.5 tbs coconut oil
3 cups shredded coconut
1 tbs rice malt syrup
1 cup cashews (soaked for 4 hours)
1 tbs chia seeds
pinch of sea salt

Top
55g cacao butter
30g coconut oil
3 tbs agave nectar (more if your prefer it sweeter)
50g cacao powder, sifted
pinch of sea salt

Method

1. To make the base: combine all base ingredients into a high-powered blender/food processor. Process until mixture is well combined and comes together. 
2. Press into lined 24cm baking tin. Refrigerate.
3. To make filling: place all filling ingredients into a high-powered blender/food processor. Process until mixture is well combined and comes together. 
4. Press into tin on top of base mixture. Refrigerate.
5. To make top: Bring a small amount of water to a simmer in a small pot. 
6. Put cacao butter and coconut oil in a glass bowl and place a glass bowl on top of the pot of water (ensure the bottom of the glass bowl does not touch the water). Stir gently with a metal spoon until cacao butter is melted.
7. Whisk in agave nectar.
8. Remove from heat. whisk in cacao powder and salt. 
9. Pour over filling and base. Refrigerate until set. Slice and serve.

Note: I recommend keeping your slice in the freezer.

i try solomon's cafe

I really like this place. I really, really like this place. That's all you need to know. You can probably just get away with looking at the pictures from here on in...but if you would like some details then read on...

First things first. Here's the menu.

It's a rare thing to find you'd be happy with anything on a menu. Literally anything. I could've closed my eyes and randomly selected my dish by swirling my finger around then landing it somewhere on the menu. Instead I elected to go for the Solomon's salad of organic chicken breast, quinoa, brown rice, broccoli, almonds and seeds with fresh asian inspired herbs and spices (pictured, $28).

This is a big call, but I'm going to put it out there and say this is one of the best salads I ever had. Ever. It was fresh, a little bit zingy and generous. Highly recommend this one. I was dining with my sister who opted for the entree sized sweet potato gnocchi with a citrus and coriander pesto, served with a side of salted coconuts and assorted seeds (pictured, $18/28).

I've never been a great lover of gnocchi, so I have to admit I was a little sceptical about vegan gnocchi. I did sample one of the little pieces of gnocchi. And. I. Was. Wrong. These fluffy little morsels were delicious. They had a very light breadcrumb coating and were given a good boost of flavour by the pesto. My sister thought they tasted "a bit bready" but I thought they were delicious. We also shared cripsy beetroot chips (pictured, $6).

Looking around it seemed like every other table had ordered beetroot chips. For good reason. They are light, crispy, flavoursome and go well with the fresh orange and salt that accompanies them. 

It's easy to see what these guys are about. Healthy food. Nourishing food. Unprocessed food. It's also worth mentioning that everything on their menu is organic, gluten free, dairy free and sugar free. The staff are exceptionally friendly. Even the chef thanked us as we walked out. The space is that shabby-chic-mixed-with-industrial-cool type fit out. I really like this place. Alot.

Oh, and apparently they do a great brekky.

Solomon's Cafe

487 Beaufort St

Highgate, WA

6003

PH: 08 9328 7995

i try smiling more

My sister told me a wonderful story the other day. It made me smile from ear to ear and i'm sure it will make you smile too...

Here's my sister's recollection:

"I first noticed them because we were walking out of the car park and this guy just, I don't know, he just looked at us and smiled as we walked passed. It was a bit weird. We were in the Perth Cultural Centre and we were going to the Perth Festival Gardens. Then we passed a woman and she looked at us. When I say 'looked at us' she really made eye contact. Just like the guy before. It wasn't like when you walk pass someone and happen to catch their gaze for a moment. And she had a big smile on her face like the guy before as well. I thought, 'that was weird'.

Then I realised she was wearing the same stuff as the other guy as well. Black t-shirt, had some writing on it, I can't remember what it said, and black pants. After we had been to the Festival Gardens we headed to Bivouac and there was a lady standing on the corner of James St and William St. We walked passed her and she did the same thing again. She looked intently at us and smiled. I just did a big smile back and she squatted down and made a mark on the pavement at her feet in chalk. I looked at it and said, 'oh, she's collecting smiles!' On the pavement it said 'smiles' and had a tally and then it said 'one wink'."

I couldn't help but smile thinking about someone collecting smiles. It made me realise how much impact a smile can have and how people don't smile enough. So, I've decided to try to smile more. Proper smiles. At my friends, at my family and at complete strangers. I've been doing it for a week now and
Some people don't smile make. Some do. I don't care either way. I've found that even when I feel rubbish and not at all in a smiling mood, when I do smile I still feel better. Even if I'm only smiling to myself. Try it.

i try samudra

Samudra can be found in Dunsborough, Western Australia. It's worth a visit if you find yourself in the South West. It is the kind of place where you can feel your body thanking you for the goodness. I've eaten here on a few occasions. The service is always prompt and friendly. The atmosphere always has a  certain 'have a seat, whatever, relax' kind of feel to it. On this occasion I was with Dr Gab. She was visiting WA en route to Darwin. We strolled into Samudra for lunch.

Dr Gab and I decided to share three dishes. The first was one of my favourites on the Samudra menu: The Power Pizza. It is made up of a dehydrated chia seed crusty base topped with tomato marinara sauce and spinach pesto; mushrooms, avocado, soy marinated onions and cashew cheese (pictured, $12.50).

The pizza is small but the dense dehydrated base is quite filling. The sauce is delicious and I was surprised how much I liked the soy marinated onions. It is a really fresh, tasty, light dish. Dr Gab and I also had the Kombi Kofta: Tamari soaked mushroom and nut kofta balls served on leafy greens with a tzatziki dip (pictured, $12.50). 

These were very delicious. I was sceptical but these little balls were nom nom nom. They were a little crumbly but I didn't mind. It meant I couldn't just inhale them. My only problem is that they aren't bigger. Definitely worth a try. For our third dish we got the Kombi Breakdown: A gujarati lentil dahl, with cumin, coriander, fenugreek and mustard seeds, ginger, garlic, chilli and turmeric served with quinoa (pictured, $14).

This had all the characteristics of a decent dahl, although, it seemed a little watery. I liked the addition of quinoa instead of rice. The flavours were subtle and given a little kick with a squeeze of fresh lime. Probably a good choice for the less adventurous. However, when I go to a restaurant as a general rule I tend to order dishes I would probably never make at home. This is something I feel I could easily knock up myself for less than what I'd pay for a daily newspaper.

I return to this place every time I go down south. It's always delicious, healthy, fresh food in a really relaxed, no-fuss environment.



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i try making vegan cheesecake

My sister rang me up and asked if I wanted to come over and help her make a cheesecake for our Ma's birthday dinner. There were two problems with this:
1. Pretty sure our mum doesn't like cheesecake.
2. Your vegan...

But she assured me that neither of these two issues where going to be a problem. She had a plan. And a recipe. She sourced the recipe from one of my favourite blogs: My New Roots. It is definitely worth a visit! My sister also highly recommends the happy crackers.

I must admit, I was sceptical at first. We sampled some of the filling before we scooped it into the pan. It was delicious, smooth and slightly zingy. I had no reason to doubt my sis.

The base is made up of almonds, dates and a wee bit of salt. The filling consists of soaked cashews, lemon juice, vanilla bean, coconut oil and honey. Half of the mixture is also whizzed up with fresh raspberries.

I was worried the mixture wouldn't solidify properly and we would end up with a goopy mess (a delicious goopy mess but still a goopy mess). However, when we took them out of the freezer several hours later they were perfectly formed.

This is a delicious recipe. Even our carnivore brothers went back for more. I love a desert that is delicious but doesn't clog your arteries or give you that I-really-didn't-need-that-chocolate-cake feeling. I highly recommend these cakes for any occasion! We did mini cakes because we were pressed for time but the original recipe is for one big cake. Both ways work equally well!

You can find this recipe at My New Roots.

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i try making raw granola

Raw Granola Recipe

I must confess I am addicted to the Samudra berry granola. It is very delicious. However, at $13.50 for a 250g bag ($15 at some places) it don't come cheap. So I decided to experiment with making my own raw granola. No offense Samudra but I like mine better :)

Ingredients

3/4 cup almond meal
1/2 cup vanilla protein powder
1/4 cup shredded coconut
2 tbs oats
1 generous tbs each of sunflower seeds, pepitas and chia seeds
2 fresh dates
1/4 cup cranberries
3 tbs goji berries
50ml agave syrup
Squeeze lemon juice

1. Put cranberries in a bowl with 50ml of boiling water and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Place almond meal, protein powder, coconut, oats, seeds and dates in a food processor and blitz until desired texture is formed (i.e. if you like a more chunky granola just blitz it until it's combined.
3. Add remaining ingredients (including the water that the cranberries were soaking in). Blitz until just combined. Mixture should be slightly sticky, not runny and not dry.
4. Place on baking paper on the racks of a dehydrator and dehydrate at 45 degrees for 10 hours.

Notes: You can easily adjust this recipe to suit your taste. Add dried apricots or sultanas. Try using hazelnut meal instead of almond meal. You can use honey instead of agave syrup if you prefer it. You may need adjust the level of liquids in order to get the right texture.

i try the raw kitchen again

Since my initial visit to The Raw Kitchen in Fremantle I have returned numerous times. If you have read my first post on The Raw Kitchen you will know the first visit didn't go so smoothly.

The sister and I visit fairly regularly now and they seem to have got themselves together. We have had nothing but impeccable service on every visit. The food is always consistently good. We have now tried almost everything on the menu except the raw soup. Love getting a mix of the three salads and a piece of pizza ($17.90, pictured). It's always loaded with fresh herbs, veggies and delicious cashew/macadamia nut cheese. Be warned it's very filling!

And, I know the felafel balls ($16.90, pictured) look small but you won't need to go back for seconds. They too are very filling. Nutty little balls of deliciousness.

As good as the cashew cheese is on the nachos we find entree size is more than enough! The spicy 'refried' walnut and pepita corn chips are delicious. The fresh tomato and avocado balances off the spiciness of the chips nicely. Sadly, they do tend to go soggy quite quickly, so grab some utensils. Don't worry they are still yum ($18.50 for entree, pictured).

I must say I am sad they no longer sell the raw florentines. We were told they were too time consuming. Although I do love everything I have tried on the menu (side note: mango lasso = so so so good), it would be nice to see some new additions at some point. Having said that, I will remain a regular regardless.

i try the raw kitchen

(Note: Read my newest write up on The Raw Kitchen here.)

Tucked away in picturesque Fremantle is a little place called The Raw Kitchen. As the name implies all the food is raw, vegetarian and gluten free. You can read the little speel on their menu at the bottom of this post.

Thelma, Louise and I rendezvoused at The Raw Kitchen at 1.45pm. We were lucky to snag a table because the little kitchen was bustling. Don't worry if you can't get a table because the peeps at The Raw Kitchen are happy to do take-away. Both Thelma and Louise had been here before and thoroughly enjoyed the nachos and the live dips plate. After some quick decisions I approached the counter running through the orders in my head. Pizza, nachos and a club sandwich. Pizza, nachos and a club sandwich. I repeated these words as I waited in line eyeing off a large berry cheesecake in the cabinet nearby.

When I got to the counter I was informed that they had run out of nachos and the pizza would be a 30-60 minute wait. No worries. I switched to an extra club and the felafels. Apparently, they were out of felafels too. I switched to a third Club Sandwich (dehydrated flax cracker 'bread' topped with creamy avocado, raw mayo dressing, mango & coriander chutney, marinated mushroom pieces & fresh salad toppings, pictured, $17.90).

We chatted away, soaking in the midday sun, as we waited for our meals. We then realised that 45 minutes had gone by. Tables nearby that had, not only ordered after us, but had arrived after we had placed our order had received their meals, which happened to be a fresh batch of pizza. Louise went inside to suss the situation out and was told our sandwiches were on the way.


The sandwiches were delicious. I feel like I am doing my body a favour. The ingredients were fresh and flavoursome. Despite essentially being a sandwich full of salad it was far from bland. I couldn't help but notice some inconsistencies in the sandwiches even though we had all ordered the same dish...
We followed our sandwiches by sharing three bliss balls one choc-mint, one chocolate, one jaffa (they had run out of cheesecake). They were all delicious and again I can feel my body thanking me. Word to wise: Don't waste your time with the chocolate or the jaffa, choc-mint is where it's at.

I wouldn't normally post a menu but given we were only able to try one dish i thought i would. I really like this place. Despite the fact that our meal took forever, the service was lacking (almost non-existant) I will definitely go back. I like healthy food and it's nice to know there's no crap in my food. No extra salt, no copious amounts of butter and no "4-cheese dishes". Yep, I'll be back for the nachos...and the pizza...and the felafels. I've also heard good things about the mango lasse!



Here's the menu. Let me know if you manage to try the nachos!







If you like the sound of this you'll definitely like The Greenhouse and my Healthy Biscuits.

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