Tag: fresh

Posted on

Homemade Chocolates

Hello! Several years ago, I learned how to make raw chocolates from scratch. I believe that it was a recipe by Any Phyo that I found in the book and wanted to give a try as the chocolate-making at home seemed to be a pretty straightforward process.

In reality, the process was straightforward and a bit messy, however, the results were totally worth all the efforts. The homemade chocolates were so heavenly delicious that the store-bought varieties could not come anywhere close. Since then, I experimented with many different raw chocolate recipes. There are many variations posted on the internet. Some of them recommend using fewer oils or fats and more of the cacao powder, and vice versa. Others called for different types of sweeteners such as maple syrup or honey. All these recipes turned out pretty good. One thing I want to mention is that the quality of the ingredients really matters! To get the best tasting, smooth, homogenous, bitter-sweet chocolate, use the best ingredients that are available. You want to select the ingredients that are raw, unrefined, organic, and pure (without additives or preservatives or flavors). Today, I’m sharing with you one of the recipes that I like the most; I can call it a “full-proof” recipe. Every single time I followed this recipe, I got great results.

 Download the recipe!

The ingredients:

  • 1/8 cup raw, unrefined, virgin coconut oil
  • 1/8 cup raw cacao butter
  • 1/4 cup raw coconut nectar or any other liquid sweetener (maple syrup, date syrup, or honey)
  • 1/2 cup raw cacao powder

Equipment:

  • A double boiler (or a large and a small pot) for melting the coconut oil and the cacao butter
  • A wooden teaspoon
  • Silicone molds

The method of preparation:

  1. In a double boiler, bring 2 cups of water to a boil and turn the heat off. Alternatively, boil the water in a large pot and put the dry and empty smaller pot into it.
  2. Place cacao butter in the double boiler (or into a smaller pot) and allow it to melt completely. Add coconut oil and let it melt as well. This step may take a few minutes.
  3. When both fats turn into liquid, stir in the liquid sweetener of your choice.
  4. When the liquid becomes homogenous, add cacao powder and mix it all well. The final mixture looks glossy and homogenous and has a rather thick consistency.
  5. Start filling up the molds using a teaspoon. If the chocolate mixture hardens, warm it up a bit to make it liquid. Place the filled with chocolate molds into a freezer for at least 8 hours to firm up.
  6. To serve, press the chocolates out of the molds. Enjoy with tea or fresh vegetable juice. Store in a refrigerator for up to 14 days.

Enjoy! Nataliya

References: Baird, L. & Rodwel, J. (2005). The complete book of raw food. Healthy Living Books: New York, NY

Posted on

Pomegranate Seeds

Do you like pomegranate seeds? They are available only once a year, usually around the holiday season, in November and December.

Tasting delicious and looking gorgeous, they can add beautiful decor to any dish (think about a salad, dessert, main dish, or a breakfast smoothie bowl). But this is not all – pomegranate seeds have many health benefits!

They are rich in polyphenols, flavonoids, antioxidants, anthocyanins, tannins, alkaloids, simple organic acids, vitamin C, calcium, iron, magnesium, and potassium. Pomegranate seeds are small but mighty inhibitors of inflammation and have anti-atherogenic and anti-hypertensive qualities (Zarfeshany, Asgary, & Javanmard, 2014; Shahindokht, 2018).

Do you know how to get the pomegranate seeds out in a fast and non-messy way? I can show you one idea; it takes slightly more than a minute to get all the seeds out from a pomegranate.

You will need the following equipment:

  • a bowl
  • a cutting board
  • a knife
  • a ladle or an oversized spoon

 

 

 

The steps:

  1. Wash the pomegranate and cut it in half (or quarters, if it is a big fruit).
  2. Put a bowl into a sink, take a piece of a pomegranate in your hand, and turn it upside down so that the seeds are facing the bowl.
  3. Start tapping on a pomegranate using a ladle, until all seeds come out into a bowl. One fruit can yield about 1/2 cup or more of the seeds.
  4. Use immediately or store the seeds in a glass jar in a refrigerator for up to 3 days.
  5. Add to your salads, smoothie bowls, desserts, or main dishes.

Here is a quick video that explains all the steps:

If you know a better way to remove the pomegranate seeds, let us hear from you! 🙂

Enjoy!

Nataliya

 

Posted on

Tomato Celery Cucumber Juice

It is the end of summer and I like to celebrate it with vegetable juice prepared from some local and seasonal produce.

My favorite is a homemade version of V-8 juice. The original V-8 recipe calls for eight vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, celery, beets, parsley, lettuce, spinach, and watercress.

However, I found that if I only have three ingredients, it still tastes pretty yummy.

For this Tomato Celery Cucumber Juice recipe, I like to juice tomato, celery, and cucumber, in any proportion, depending on what I have. The taste of this juice is sweet and salty and can satisfy the salty cravings in a very nutritious way.

To make an easy homemade version of V-8 juice, you will need these ingredients:

  • Tomatoes, 8-10, average size
  • Cucumber, 1 large, or 2 small
  • Celery, 2 stalks

Preparation

Wash and scrub the vegetables. Depending on your juicer, you may need to cut them in halves or quarters. Put the vegetables in the juicer. Enjoy immediately or store in a refrigerator for up to 12 hours to preserve the maximum nutrition.

Here is a quick video on how to make this juice.

To your health,

Nataliya

Reference:

Campbell’s. (2018). V-8 vegetable juice. Retrieved from https://www.campbells.com/v8/vegetable-juice/v8-vegetable-juice/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwiJncBRC1ARIsAOvG-a5wF6jqgUboThqErspcWGGcFK8tUE-FmjSz-EGGVAd2690ad0Le10QaAoiFEALw_wcB