Buckwheat Granola

Suddenly too warm to eat hot cereal?

Upset with all the sugary high-fructose corn syrup cereals in the markets?

Now there is never any need to set foot in the treacherous cereal aisles of boxed addiction and obesity! Heh, okay many cereals ARE healthy, but you see what I mean.
 Candy cereals for breakfast? It almost brings me to tears.

Children who don't know any better gravitate to them because of the good advertising and the bright colors, and some parents, luckily not many I know, LET THEM!

When I was growing up we were allowed Raisin Bran, Rice Krispies (the cereal, not the treats), and Cheerios. Not even Smart Start. I'm pretty healthy, but I adore Smart Start, I think from deprivation. I indulge from time to time, but not often at all, because it contains some of the aforementioned ingredients.

I think it's good to keep kids healthy, but not be too authoritarian in cereals that are reasonable if eaten in moderation.

Anyways, here I have a recipe for raw cinnamon (raisin) buckwheat granola. Credit is due to Epicurvegan - Buckwheat Granola, that is where I found this recipe.

You will need

flax seed mix

dehydrator

several cups buckwheat
(depends on how concentrated you want the spices)
1 c. raisins
1 c. any nuts you like
0.5 c. ground flaxseed
4 tsp. ground cinnamon
0.5 c. Agave nectar
2 Tbsp. water

buckwheat-flax mix

pinch sea salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract


1. Rinse the buckwheat well, then soak, covering it with plenty of water, for 6-8 hours. I did mine overnight.

2. Mix together the water, flax seed, agave, cinnamon, and vanilla in a small bowl.

on the dehydrator

3. After draining the buckwheat, combine with flax seed mixture, nuts, and raisins. A fork was good for this.

4. Lay the entire mixture out on the dehydrator trays, and allow to dehydrate for 6-8 hours.

5. When it is sufficiently crunchy, it is done! Place in airtight containers, and I put mine in the fridge because I was worried about perishability from the moisture in the raisins.

in the air tight container

6. Let it soak in your milk of choice (I use almond milk), for a few minutes before eating, or just eat
the granola without milk as a snack.

Raw Vegan Frozen Fruit Pie

It's like I'm deliberately waiting until the warm season ENDS to post this cool recipe!

Delicious Raw Fruit Pie

When I was a first-year at UC Davis, I took a vegan cooking class through the Experimental College, and one of the sessions focused primarily on raw preparation of food. This raw gem was on the menu, so at the end of the day I bicycled the whole whopper back to my little dorm room across town and stuffed it in the freezer (of our mini-fridge). =)

My roommate at the time, Melinda, who is still my roomie until the end of August, then we will have to find satisfaction being merely good friends, tried the pie and LOVED it, so since then she has been begging and pleading to make it again.

Melinda on the left, me on the right

Come spring quarter, I finally dug up the recipe, and voila!

A weirdness about this recipe is that the ingredients list is vague about quantities. It's not all that important, because you can always soak more nuts than you need, and start with food processing a smaller amount, adding more accordingly. Just make sure to maintain the proper ratios.

Ingredients

Pie Crust

1-2 cups almonds (unblanched, NOT roasted, etc.)
1-2 cups raw sunflower seeds
0.5 cup coconut oil (secret: Use Artisana Coconut Butter, it will do wonders)
0.5 cup Agave Nectar

2 Tbsp Vanilla
dash of sea salt

Pie Filling

0.5 cup cashews
5 Tbsp Agave Nectar
1 banana
4 Tbsp Water
juice from half a lemon
1 tsp vanilla
4-6 Tbsp Coconut oil - remember Artisana - that's an order!
1-2 cups of any berry you wish, fresh or frozen

Preparation

1. Soak almonds, sunflower seeds, and cashews in warm water for several hours (4-6 hours). Soak them in separate bowls.

2. Before you food process all the ingredients for the crust together, you will need to slightly warm the coconut butter, as it is solid at room temperature.

 Keep in mind that the recipe is supposed to be raw, so no cranking up the heat on the stove or nuking in the microwave for 60 seconds. If you must use the microwave, heat it for a few seconds at a time, and keep the stove on low and watch it closely so you don't breach the 118 degree (F) limit for raw foods! Why not just place the amount you need in the sun for a few minutes? It's hot anyway! Problem solved.

 

3. Once you have food processed all the ingredients for the crust, press into a pie pan, and place in the freezer.

4. Now food process the filling ingredients, and pour onto frozen crust.

fantastic color!

5. Carefully place the whole shabang into the freezer, and wait for it to solidify.

6. Once it has solidified, bust out a few pieces, wait 10 minutes or so for them to thaw, et mangez!

I learned something interesting at a Rotary meeting presentation about global warming and its effects on death rates from heat.
Take it with a grain of salt, because it became evident that the speaker was more than a little biased (to put it lightly), but this was based on data. He claimed that there are more deaths in the winter due to heart attacks than in the summer because in the cold blood becomes thicker and and clots can more easily form. In the warmer months blood is thinner and clots do not form as easily.

You may bring up the points that humans maintain homeostasis, blood keeps the same viscosity, etc., but this speaker explained that our extremities do become a lot colder in winter, which can cause a chemical reaction, thickening the blood. I'm no cardiologist, so I can only relay information, but I do know that this is a controversial topic, and a relatively new topic at that!

Just something to chew on!

Enjoy the pie, and the warmth!