Sweet Tooth: Cherry Almond Pudding Parfait

Yowsa, it's Friday already... I swear the days go by suuper fast in the summer. It's hot and sunny here so I'll be enjoying a day outside - yoga on the dock, and a trip to the farmer's market before my friend Denyse arrives from Winnipeg.

This morning I tried something new - I added a zucchini to my green juice because I've got so many from the garden. It's delicious along with celery, cucumber, parsley, and ginger. Give it a shot! 

Today's sweet treat is packed with one of my favorite summer fruits. Cherries! Yummy in my tummy! This recipe is nut-free, creamy, and packed with flavor. I layered it with more cherries, and chocolate brownie crumbles that I already had made up. Enjoy it straight up, or layer it however you want it. 

Cherry Almond Pudding

1 1/2 cups chopped, pitted cherries
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon irish moss gel*
1/4 cup packed, pitted medjool dates
1 teaspoon chia seed
1 teaspoon pure almond extract (or more, to taste)**
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons melted coconut oil

Blend all but the oil until completely smooth and creamy.
Add the oil and blend again to incorporate.
Chill the pudding for a few hours.

**Pure almond extract is more diluted in flavor than regular almond extract, so keep this in mind depending on which you decide to use.

*Irish moss gel: Rinse and soak a handful of irish moss in cold water for 8-12 hours.

Remove the moss from the water, measure out 2 oz. and chop.

Blend the chopped moss with 1 cup of water until smooth and warm.

Save remaining gel for other recipes.

I wish you a magnificent weekend!

Interview with Raw Guru and Cacao Contest

The time seems to fly by in the summer, and once again I'm behind in posting, but wanted to take a moment to share a newsy update.

I just finished an interview with Alex from Raw Guru. Some of the questions include: how I got started, what my daily food staples are, my view on fasting, my spiritual connection with raw, my current projects, the inspiration behind my dessert creations, and I give one of my favorite ice cream recipes (which I posted a while back on my blog).

Click here to read the interview on Raw Guru.

I'm excited to be a contestant in the upcoming Best of Raw Cacao Contest which will be held as part of the Living Light Chef Showcase August 26-29.

If you can't make it to the event, you can watch it live! How cool is that?! So I won't actually be at the event, as I will be in Maine visiting relatives, however I will be sending my chocolate entry via UPS. Please keep your fingers crossed that they make it safely :) I'll be sending 25 pieces, packed in ice. As for my chocolate creation, you'll have to stay tuned as I'm not revealing just yet  - but I can tell you that I'm entering the "truffle/bar/treat" category.
Just a few days later, I'll arrived at Living Light for food styling and photography course, so I'm really excited about that!

I'll keep you posted on the cacao contest. I hope you'll pop over and check out all the action!

Sweet Tooth: Mango Berry Crumble

It's the weekend! Any cool plans? I'm off to a friend's wedding shower tomorrow, with a raw pie in hand (will post that soon).

Here's one of my favorite summer treats. It's light, easy, and works well with any fruit. It's also great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side - too bad that I didn't have any this time around. I have a fridge and freezer full of freshly picked blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries... I'm so grateful for all this abundance!

Mango Berry Crumble

Fruit:

2 cups diced mango
2 cups diced strawberries
2 cups blueberries
Extra handful strawberries

Blend the handful of strawberries until smooth.
Toss all ingredients together.
Spread the berries into the bottom of a 9"x 9" pan.

Crumble:

1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup pitted, packed dates
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/3 cup ground oat groats
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

In a food processor, grind all ingredients together into a crumbly, yet moist texture.
If you want the mixture to press together a bit better, add a few teaspoons of water.
Evenly spread the crumble over the berries.
Serve immediately, chill for a few hours, or dehydrate for a few hours until warm.

Go eat some berry crumble! Here's another dessert I've recently whipped up - a simple blueberry pie. No recipe, just a "throw together". A walnut date crust, a layer of diced mango, and a blueberry filling which consisted of blueberries, young coconut pulp, lemon juice, maple syrup, and chia seed.

My best friend Lauren (who is also the graphic designer for my ebooks), returned home last week for a very short visit. It was so great to see her outside of email and the skype box!

We picked sugar snap peas in my yard - they're out in full force now!

Happy weekend!