I’m dyin’ for Daiya!

July 10th, 2010

Last year, I stumbled across a post on the Mothering.com discussion boards about substitutes for cheese for those of us who avoid dairy. The general consensus seemed to be that I needed to get my hands on Daiya cheese, however I could.

It wasn’t available in retail packets in the US (it’s  Canadian), but several sites sold it online in 1lb bags. I bought both the mozzarella and cheddar style. We made some pizza, we broiled some nachos, and most of us were delighted to find something that filled that need for cheese. Lucia didn’t care for it at first, but now that she’s had it a few times, she’s delighted with Daiya like the rest of us.

Fast forward to this summer, and Daiya has hit US markets — it’s in Whole Foods, local health stores, and our food coop catalog. Yipee!

Why are we excited? Because we avoid dairy, we now skip traditional “treat” foods that include grilled cheese sandwiches, tacos, burritos, pizza, nachos and more. Daiya allows us to enjoy all those foods with a cheese substitute that isn’t as heavy, rubbery or greasy as your standard pizza or nacho cheese, it’s made with ingredients that aren’t liked to cancer and other health conditions, and it MELTS!

I let the pizza cool too much to get a good stretchy picture, but you can visit the Daiya website for some lovely images of just that.

Daiya Shreds are made entirely from plant-based ingredients and are FREE. Oh, was that misleading? No, not like you’re hoping (it costs around $5 for 8 oz in stores), but check this list out:

  • Cholesterol free
  • Trans Fat free
  • Dairy free
  • Free of all animal products (Vegan)
  • Free of common allergens including:
    • Soy, Casein, Lactose, Gluten, Egg, Wheat, Barley, Whey, Rice, and Nuts
  • Free of Artificial Ingredients
  • Free of Preservatives
  • Free of Hormones & Antibiotics

The full list of ingredients for the cheddar style shreds are as follows:

Filtered water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and /or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegan natural flavors, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, citric acid (for flavor), annatto.

By no means am I suggesting this this is something to eat to bring about optimal health and nutrition. This isn’t a product to consume on a daily basis, and I’m still wary of ingredients listed as “natural flavors” even when they’re preceded by the word “vegan”. Ditto  for glycerin, xanthan gum and citric acid. This is a processed food, something we avoid on a regular basis. However, when invited to a pizza party, it’s much easier on the kids if they have pizza to eat, and easier on me if I am not concerned about the effects of wheat and dairy on their systems.

You can see the pizza before we cooked it — Bob’s Red Mill GF Pizza Crust (made with ground flax instead of eggs) topped with tomato sauce and mozzerella Daiya. See all the lovely individual shreds? Honestly, it smells better and tastes better to me than most of the rubbery stuff you can get in the local supermarket, be it Kraft, Sargento or Organic Valley.

Then we cooked it — we baked the crust for about 15 minutes first, then pulled it, added the sauce and cheese, and popped it back in for 5 more minutes or so until the cheese was melty and bubbly. Click on this picture to see the enlarged version. If you have cut dairy from your diet for health or ethical reasons, but miss the meltiness and tanginess of cheese topping on your pizza, this is some serious food porn.

Yum, yum and more YUM!

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Carrot Cake Smoothie

February 21st, 2010

carrot flowersBotanically, carrots belong to the Umbelliferae family, which also includes fennel/anise, celery, parsnips, dill, cilantro/cumin, parsley, caraway, Queen Anne’s Lace and the poisonous hemlock. Many of the popular plants in this family works well in the garden as a companion plant. Largely because the tiny flowers forming the umbels, for which the group is named, are perfectly suited for parasitic wasps, ladybugs and predatory flies which drink their nectar. These beneficial insects will then dine upon insect pests on nearby plants. Some of the more fragrant herbs in this family possibly dilute the odors of nearby plants, or the pheromones emitted by pest insects to signal to other pests.

Raw carrots contain vitamin C, vitamin B6, thiamine, folic acid, potassium and magnesium. Carrots are one of the best sources of carotene which is a strong antioxidant and is converted by the body into Vitamin A. Also most of the goodness is actually in, or just below the skin. Many people do not realize that numerous antioxidant compounds are located in the skin of fruit and vegetables, so buy organic where you can for fruits and veggies that have edible peels and don’t peel them before using!  You can get some vitamin K by using the greens on top of the carrot — the carrots themselves don’t have much of this important vitamin, so save those greens for your next green smoothie! Carrots are also known for their sweetening, antianemic, healing, diuretic, remineralizing and sedative properties.

This smoothie isn’t as simple as my usual morning fare, so I only tend to make it once or twice a year as a treat. It’s also incredibly sweet, so seldom is probably better than frequently anyway. But I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks now, and bought an extra bag of carrots to satisfy my craving.

We are lucky to have gotten a juicer from Luke’s parents when our old one broke, but if I didn’t have this I would probably just make a pulpier version in the Vita-Mix. Since I do, I juice the carrots ahead of time. I was making enough for myself and the kids, and while a better juicer might yield more juice with less carrots, I nearly used the entire 5lb bag!

I poured all the carrot juice into the blender and set the pulp aside for a later use (I’ll post that later this week — Luke ate all that I made so I am dehydrating the second batch for pictures).  The kids were playing Harry Potter and had a hard time settling to smoothie, so I’m here to confess that I didn’t push this sweet treat too hard and found an alternative use for the extra smoothie.

Carrot Cake Smoothie

  • 3.5lbs carrots, juiced
  • 2 carrots
  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 2 bananas
  • 2-3 dates
  • cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, etc  to taste
  1. I juiced all the carrots, poured this into the blender.
  2. I roughly chopped 2 carrots, added to the blender, along with the bananas, walnuts and spice. I opted for only cinnamon this time to keep it simple.
  3. Blend til smooth. My old Oster blender never managed to get all the little walnut bits, so I had to chew that smoothie more, but this one was pure smooth goodness.

If our ice cream maker hadn’t started leaking freezy fluid, I would pour this in for a  delicious and different raw ice cream. It’s incredibly rich. If making this as a smoothie, I would probably leave out the dates and perhaps one of the bananas. Did I mention that I found this to be incredibly sweet? I don’t remember thinking that at all in the summer when I made this last, so either my carrots were much sweeter or my palate and sensitivity to sweetness has changed. At any rate, it was a lovely, rich treat on a cold winter day.

YUM!

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Mayo Madness

February 2nd, 2010

“One of the sauces which serve the French in place of a state religion.”
Ambrose Bierce, on mayonnaise in his “Devils’ Dictionary”

I detested mayonnaise as a child or young adult. I would not eat sandwiches or salads that contained mayonnaise, and my mother’s attempts to scrape it off the toast never erradicated the taste enough for me to eat it if a restaurant kitchen forgot to leave it off. So early on in my foray into raw foods, when my husband sent me a recipe for raw mayonnaise, I could not muster much excitement. I assembled the ingredients, having decided to make it as a dip for our own family superbowl party and to use the leftovers to make sandwiches for him to take to work.

Cashew MayoI did not have a Vita-Mix at the time, so I made it in my food processor. Finished making the mayo, I removed the lid of the Cuisinart and got a whiff of YUM!  I scraped this concoction out into a jar since I was making it a day or so ahead, and, intrigued, I tasted a little. Holy Moly! This stuff is delicious! I immediately went to the fridge and got out some broccoli and carrots which I hurriedly washed and chopped. And dipped. And dipped and dipped and DIPPED.

Used as a creamy, thick dip, diluted with a little more water to make a dressing, or spread in a sandwich, it adds a richness that is noticeably absent when you don’t have some on hand. I’m revisiting this recipe after a long respite (sparked, no doubt, by constant overindulgence) and am looking forward to enjoying it often in the near future. The Vita-Mix makes this recipe even smoother and creamier than I ever could before, but don’t let that discourage you if you don’t have one. It’s all good.

Cashew AppleNot knowing much about cashews, I decided to look into them a bit before posting.  Cashews grow on a small evergreen tree native to northern Brazil, swelling at the base of a false fruit often called the cashew apple (or in Central America, the marañón), which is edible and has a strong sweet smell and sweet taste (so wikipedia reports. I’ll probably never know, as the skin is fragile and therefor unsuitable for transport.) The single seed hangs beneath this sweet juicy treat, surrounded by a double shell containing a resin, a potent skin irritant chemically related to the more well known allergenic oil urushiol which I know very well as the toxin found in poison ivy. Happily, despite my horrible reactions to poison ivy, I can thoroughly enjoy cashews with nary an adverse reaction. Unless I eat too many. Did I mention that I like to do that?

raw cashewsCashews contain less fat per serving than many other popular nuts, including almonds, walnuts, peanuts and pecans.  Cashews keep your heart and blood vessels healthy by providing monounsaturated fatty acids (healthy fats like those found in olive oil).  High in copper, moderate consumption of cashews keeps your joints, bones, and blood vessels flexible. Cashews also help prevent premature aging and disease by supporting the antioxidant activity of a powerful enzyme called superoxide dismutase. And cashews are rich in magnesium which has many health benefits:

  • Decrease muscle cramps and soreness through relaxation.
  • Promotes healthy blood pressure by keeping blood vessels relaxed.
  • Keeps your nerves relaxed by acting as a natural calcium channel blocker.
  • Promotes deep, restful sleep by relaxing the  nervous system and muscles.
  • Builds and maintains strong bones and teeth.

So you can see that, as long as you don’t have any issues with allergies, there are plenty of good reasons to include a handful of cashews in your diet on a regular basis. And now you know one lovely way to do so!

Ingredients for cashew mayoCashew Mayonnaise

  • 1 cup raw cashews
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 2-3 soft dates, pitted
  • 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • dash white pepper
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  1. Cashew mayo in the blenderSoak cashews for 1-2 hours, drain and rinse well til water runs clear. This helps soften the cashews, as well as making them more digestible.
  2. Puree all ingredients, except oil, in food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
  3. While continuing to blend, add oil in a steady stream, until emulsified.
  4. Store in a tightly sealed container the fridge for up to 2 weeks. This recipe made enough to nearly fill a small 16 fl oz  jar. It firms up nicely in the fridge.

I don’t often add the pepper, I used a mix of lemon juice and apple cider vinegar, and since I didn’t have onion powder on hand I used a small chunk of onion to taste, but otherwise, I actually follow this recipe to the letter. Although I do double it, since it seems to disappear so quickly around here.

One note — this recipe contains relatively little water, and both food processor and blender warm up the dip considerably during processing. You will need to make this ahead of time and chill it unless you plan on serving it warm. It does thicken considerably in the fridge, but will loosen slightly if set out at room temperature for a bit. And now that I think about it, it would be delicious served warm on top of kelp or zucchini noodles…

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Celery Soup

January 30th, 2010

Sabrina already issued our official greetings, but since this is my first post, I’ll reiterate how excited we are to share our passions with you all. Feel free to comment often and let us know what you think, or tip us off about something! Now, let’s make some soup!

I was hungry today and there weren’t many options for ingredients in my fridge. Jinjee had sent this around as part of her Daily Raw newsletter, and since I did have celery, avocado and lemon, I thought I’d give it a try.

becoming celery soupCelery Soup

Blend up:
1 bunch of celery
1 avocado

Stir in:
juice of 1 to 2 lemons
dash of olive oil or flaxseed oil
salt to taste (1/4 tspn)
season to taste (dash of rosemary, tarragon, sage)

Optionally, warm in saucepan on lowest heat for two minutes, til it is just warm, not hot…

My changes: I used 1 Meyer lemon (definitely a different flavor, but all I had), added a couple cloves of garlic, I didn’t have any herbs, and I just put it all in the blender, instead of dividing it. The texture was light and fluffy — almost like a frosting. Got me thinking about a shredded veggie/nut or seed sort of cake with this as frosting…  I’m not sure the soup would come out like that if I hadn’t added the oil, lemon etc to the blender.

celery soup with red peppers and onionI also chopped some red pepper and a little onion into the bowl once I’d blended and poured because I like to chew my soups and even when cooked I shy away from pureed soups, or only puree half. But that’s my idiosyncrasy. You might enjoy it without the peppers. I would also consider adding some crushed red pepper to spice it up a little and make it more warming, though the garlic did add some of that effect itself.

I left the ingredients out on the counter for a while before I got around to making soup, but I also blended it long enough to give it a little warmth. I could see it being lovely in the summer if served cold too, but I did like it warm in the winter, and the avocado makes it feel very rich and filling.

all mixed upUpdate 2/28: I have really been enjoying this soup lately, dumping in loads of garlic — kiss me kiss me kiss me! — and cayenne to make it really warming. I also added some dried parsley and tarragon, but didn’t notice a huge change in flavor. But I love it as it is. One day I added it to the blender that already had some olive oil, cayenne, honey and salt and the honey added a nice dimension as well. But since I already get enough honey in my diet and I like the soup without it, I don’t add it regularly. I have mixed in nutritional yeast as well and like it blended in the soup or sprinkled on top. The buckwheat crunchies or crumbled up flax crackers would make a nice topping as well.

I think fresh cilantro would take this soup to a whole new level, and you could add a touch of cumin, chili powder and lime instead of the lemon, or a fresh jalapeno for some heat.  Good for your next taco night! It would also lend itself to being a flavorful sauce or veggie dip as well. And I’m still working on the concept of a veggie cake with this as frosting… cake for dinner! Yee haw!

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Salutations! (& kale salad love)

January 28th, 2010

“Whoo hoooo! Check it out, we’re live!!!” That is what I heard when I picked up the phone today. I love it! Sioux and I have had a dream of starting this blog for some time and now here we are. This comes to fruition at a time when both of us are experiencing a constructive flow in our lives, and it reminded us that when you follow your passions, the universe delivers with abundance.

With that said, welcome to crunchybits.net! Our goal is to share information on all the topics that we love and are an important part of each of our families. We will include bits about nutritious and delicious food,  natural parenting, homeschooling, gardening, friendship and other topics that capture our attention and beg us to research them as is our habit.

Sioux and I love discovering those special crunchy bits in the small and big towns that surround us, including family farms, independent bookstores, open spaces, delicious restaurants and more. We want to share this local goodness with you, giving you the chance to support those unique places, as well as being able to learn more about the fun and interesting spots around your town.

So let’s celebrate! This recipe is an all-time favorite, and we have both passed on to pretty much everyone who has tried it because it is just that good!

Kale salad

serves 4 (if you plan on sharing)
kale salad ingredients

  • 1 bunch lacinato kale
  • 1 bunch of curly green kale
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
  • ½ tsp. Salt
  • 2-3 TBS sweetener
  • 1 avocado
  • ½ red onion
  • 1 large tomato
  1. kale salad ready to massageWash kale and tear into bite sized pieces. Drain off water of use a salad spinner.
  2. Combine kale, olive oil, cider vinegar, sweetener (we recommend raw local honey or date paste) and salt.
  3. Massage for about five minutes. The kale will break down and become the most beautiful dark green.
  4. Add chopped avocado, chopped tomato and chopped onion. Massage gently this time until incorporated. I usually go by feel when making this recipe. While massaging you want it to be oily enough without being drenched and it should feel a little sticky while massaging. Make sure to taste test it and add more of what you think it needs.

    5. voila! kale salad

  5. If you can manage to wait, let sit in fridge for an hour before serving. The kale marinates down quite a bit, so don’t be intimidated by the size of the salad when first put into the bowl. You’ll likely end up downsizing bowls to serve it, due to both marination and frequent taste-testing.

Yum!

Now here is the low down…

I use the apple cider vinegar, Sioux uses the equivalent of fresh squeezed lemon juice.

I pour it all in and mix while Sioux prefers to make the dressing and pour it on top before mixing.  I know they are subtle differences, but they do also make subtle differences to the salad. Now it is your turn. Give it a try and add your little twist! Leave a comment below to let us know what you think of the salad, and if you have your own special twist or alternative version to contribute.

The family reviews:

  • Husbands: will devour the entire bowl unless under close eye.
  • Kids: 3 out of 4 approve!

Enjoy!

Sabrina and Sioux

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