Finding something to stand in for yogurt has been quite a journey for me. This morning for breakfast, despite the fact that I overslept, a potential recipe dawned on me. I had bought a bunch of fresh apricots yesterday for another recipe idea which paired beautifully with this recipe. In the recipe I use a container of Bio-K probiotics. This liquid probiotic can be found in the cooler case of many natural foods stores. It is cultured in a variety of mediums including various dairy-free, gluten-free options. Choose whichever one lines up with your specific dietary requirements.

Lemon Yogurt with Apricots

1 cup Really Raw Cashews, soaked
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup Coconut Creme Vanilla
2 tbs. local, raw honey
1 tbs. Chia Seeds
1 cup water
2 drops lemon essential oil
1 container Bio-K of choice
6-8 fresh apricots, chopped

Add cashews, lemon juice, coconut creme, honey and chia to a high-speed blender. Start blending and slowly pour in water. Allow to blend until smooth. Turn off blender and add lemon oil and Bio-K. Blend to combine. Serve with apricots.

I ended up eating this right away (like I said, I overslept!). I’m going to try a batch soon that ferments a little longer. I’ll let you know how that works out.

Blueberry Goji Pudding Parfait

16 ounces frozen wild blueberries
1/2 cup Goji Berries
1 tbs Chia Seeds
a drops of stevia
1 cup Raw Cashews, soaked
1 tbs. Coconut Oil
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbs. liquid sweetener of choice
1/2 tsp. Vanilla Bean Powder
2 tbs. water

Mix frozen blueberries and goji berries together, place in a refrigerator overnight to allow the blueberries to defrost. Place the mixed berries in a blender with chia and stevia and blend until smooth.

Next process cashews in a food processor until finely chopped. Add coconut oil, lemon juice, sweetener, vanilla and water. Process until creamy.

In 3 or four glasses put a dollop of blueberry pudding. Follow with the cashew cream. Repeat until all of the pudding & cream is finished. Garnish with Bee Pollen. Eat right away or chill.

First up is Xell Calderer of Internal Hygeine. Xell is a Certified Colon Therapist and Wellness Coach who runs a thriving practice in Stamford, Connecticut. You can find many Vivapura products at her office!

Xell’s Amazing Chocolate Carob Chia Pudding

Vanilla Brazil Nut milk or nut milk of choice

8 tbs. Chia Seeds
1 cup strawberry/kiwi rooibos tea, vanilla rooibos tea (steeped strong)
or 1-2 cups Vanilla Brazil or Sicilian Almond milk

Whisk chia into liquid and set aside.

In high speed blender (Vitamix or Blendtec), place:
½ to 1 tbs. Ultra Tocos*
2-3 heaping tbs. raw Italian Carob (or use more cacao)
1 heaping tbs. raw Cacao powder
½ t – 1 tbs. GMO free lecithin powder*
2-3 small dates or 2 or more large Medjool date (the dates adds body and sweetness)
1 – 3 tbs. Vanilla Agave (optional) or stevia to taste (for those sweet tooths out there!)
¼ tsp Sunfire salt (can use Celtic or Himalayan)
½ – 1 tsp. vanilla powder
or ½ vanilla bean, scraped (optional)
1 – 2 tbs. lucuma powder
dash of yacon syrup (about ½ T, optional)
small chunk of cacao butter or cacao paste (optional)
1 tbs. coconut creme (optional)

Once chia has soaked for about 10 minutes, place chia “gel” into blender with other ingredients and blend at high speed until smooth. Eat immediately or allow to “set” in fridge for a couple of hours to firm up.

Variations:
Add 1 or 2 tbs. of Vivapura raw almond butter for a more decadent and rich chocolate almond butter cup type pudding.
A banana may be nice here, but watch your food combining! This is already pretty complex. Sometimes you gotta live on the edge, though!

Vanilla Brazil Nut Milk
-keeps for up to 3, maybe 4 days.

1 heaping cup raw brazil nuts or soaked Sicilian Almonds
¼ tsp sunfire salt
3-4 dates or vanilla agave to taste (optional)
½ to 1 T lecithin (optional but adds great creaminess).
1 T plain or vanilla coconut crème (optional)
¼ vanilla bean pod or vanilla powder
4 to 6 cups water

Place nuts and 1 cup water, and salt, in high speed blender, working your way to high speed. Once things look blended, continue blending and fill the container with rest of water (I usually fill while blending and fill until container is full). Blend very well.
Strain through nut milk bag and pour back into blender, add additional indredients as desired. Blend again, and pour into glass containers. Delicious!

Variations:
Pour half of the milk back into container, add 1 to 2 tbs. yacon syrup, and 1 to 2 tbs. lucuma powder for a maple/caramel type drink that is exquisite and so creamy.
Brazil Nut Milk is lovely gently warmed with shaved nutmeg and cinnamon on top.

As a bit of a bonus, Xell also sent me a few juice recipes to help me along on my feast and I thought I’d share them here with you as well!

50% spinach
48% carrot
2% beets
(this is an incredible colon cleanser, too! This is especially good before a colonic)

Another, inspired by Angela Stokes:
coconut water
1 to 2 T green food (greener grasses is lovely)
1 to 2 T Vivapura bee pollen
This is simple and delicious, a great addition to a liquid meals day

Fave green juice
6 stalks celery
1 large cucumber
1/4 fennel bulb
1 to 2 apples (green or Fuji)
1 lemon
1 or 2 heads of Romaine or Spinach
handful of dandelion greens
1/2 pound sunflower sprouts or another head of Romaine
small chunk of ginger (optional)
Delicious – one of my favourite combos.

I recently posted the chai chia recipe, this time around I was looking for something a little more hearty. My daughter especially enjoyed this new round of chia pudding, I hope you do to!

Maca Pecan Breakfast Bowl

1/2 cup Chia gel (3 tbs. chia soaked & stirred often in 2 cups of water)
1 tbs. Pecan Butter
1 probiotic capsule, opened
1-2 Turkish Figs, cut up
1/4 cup Goji Berries
1/2 tbs Super Maca
1 tsp. Lucuma Powder
1/4 cup Buckwheaties
2 tbs. Jarrah Bee Pollen

Pour chia gel into a serving bowl and mix in pecan butter until well combined and creamy. Stir in everything else and eat it up!

Now fall is very different. For one, I live in Arizona. There is a crackle under my feet but it’s dead grass because we’ve entered the dry season. When I wake in the morning the air is crisp and chilly but by lunch time it’s 80 degrees (not complaining!). As far as donuts go, well celiac disease has effectively closed the donut eating portion of my life. Well, celiac and a wonderfully raw diet.

I desire donuts though. When I heard there was going to be a Raw Halloween party in town with a treat contest that offered fabulous prizes like facials massages & colonics (!) I decided to cave into my desire to create a raw donut.

I whipped up a test batch, worked out the kinks and made myself a fairy costume. I brought the donuts to the party and won! And now I share this terribly nostalgic recipe with you all.

Apple Cider Pumpkin Donuts

3 cups small pie pumpkin, peeled and chopped
4 apples juiced
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup Raw Cashews, ground to coarse powder
1/4 cup Coconut Oil, melted
1/4 cup Original Coconut Creme
1/4 cup honey or liquid sweetener of choice
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. powdered suma

Add pumpkin and apple juice to high powered blender and blend until smooth. Add this and remaining ingredients to a mixing bowl and mix until well combined. A soft and fluffy dough should be the result. Carefully shape into donuts or donut holes, trying not to compress too much.

Place onto non-stick dehydrator sheets. Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 2 to 3 hours until dry enough to place on screens. Dehydrate for another 8 to 10 hours. Donuts should be lightly crispy on the outside and moist on the inside.

Glaze:

1/4 cup Coconut Oil, melted
1/4 cup honey or liquid sweetener of choice
1/4 cup Lucuma Vanilla Coconut Creme, melted

Mix ingredients in a bowl. They will separate a bit so mix quickly and pour over cooled donuts for a glazed effect. For more of a frosting allow the glaze to solidify a little and then mix, carefully spreading over the donuts.

These are best eaten right away, just like the old-fashioned fried ones!

My first choice is Chia. Why Chia? Well it’s one of my favorites but most importantly, I have a ton of it in my refrigerator right now so it seemed like the obvious food to play around with tonight!

Chia’s major claim to fame is its high Omega 3 content. Omega 3′s have been in recent human dietary history, seriously lacking. Traditional people’s consumed much more of this important fatty acid but industrialization of our foodways have greatly reduced the amount of Omega 3′s in our diet. How much Omega 3 does the chia seed contain? Well the seed itself is 34% oil and of that oil 64% is Omega 3. Chia contains more Omega 3 than flax and it is easier to digest. You can grind chia as you would flax but it is not a necessary step to get the most benefit.

I eat chia because I like a great source of Omega 3 fatty acids but I eat mostly because I love the texture. It reminds me of tapioca when it has been soaked in liquid. When made into crackers it is so delightfully crispy. And when I grind it and add it to my smoothies it adds just the right amount of thickness.

In recipes you can use chia just as you would flax. It gels and holds things together just as flax does though it is a bit lighter and a bit more crumbly. By far my favorite use for chia is as a pudding or porridge. You can soak it in any variety of milk, juice or tea and in about 15 minutes have a lovely little meal. The recipe I’m going to share could make a nice breakfast or a tasty dessert.

Chai Chia

2 cups strong herbal chai, cooled
1 or 2 tbs liquid sweetener of choice
1 tbs. raw tahini
1/4 chia seed
1 large handful white mulberries
1 large handful coconut flakes

Pour chai into a mixing bowl. Whisk in sweetener and tahini. The tahini will not completely dissolve, that is fine. Next whisk in chia seed, mix in until well combined. Let sit for a few minutes and then whisk briskly again. You will notice that the chia has started to thicken. Whisk every few minutes until a pudding-like consistency has been achieved. You can add a little more chia if you prefer it thicker.

Once the chia has thickened add in a handful of mulberries and a handful of coconut flakes. From here you could go in two directions. For a breakfast porridge put a serving of the chai chia in a bowl and drizzle on a little more tahini and perhaps a little more coconut or mulberries. For a light dessert a dollop of whipped cream(scroll down for the whipped cream recipe) and a sprinkle of vanilla powder.

I also really enjoy using chia in crackers and raw “breads”. This recipe from Kate Magic is a fun chia biscuit. Or you can make your regular flax crackers with chia instead for a light & crispy cracker.