Raw Caponata Turkey:)

If you have been following this blog, today's post probably isn't much of a surprise!

Of course I had to find a way to celebrate this Thanksgiving with my favorite recipe, raw eggplant caponata.

Here is the caponata recipe, and you can see how it is arranged on the large platter with assorted lettuce and cut mini sweet peppers. It took me a few days to eat the whole thing, but it would be a nice side dish to a raw Thanksgiving feast.

Raw Eggplant Caponata Recipe
makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant,peeled, 1/4"dice approx 4 cups
1 cup tomato, 1/4" dice
1 sweet bell pepper, I used yellow today, 1/4" dice
1 celery stalk, 1/4" dice
¼ cup red onion,or more to taste, 1/4" dice
¼ cup olives of choice,I used a mix of green and black, 1/4" dice
2 tablespoon capers,optional, not raw
````````````````````````````````````````````
Dressing:
½ cup sundried tomato, soaked... or use 1/4 cup fresh tomato and 1/4 cup dried
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons agave, or 2 soaked medjool dates
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove garlic, or more to taste
all organic if possible

Preparation:
1. Prepare dressing ingredients in magic bullet or blender.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl and mix well with dressing.

I love to use my vidalia chop wizard for cutting all the veggies quickly and uniformly:)

If you would like to reduce the amount of oil, replace with equal amount of tomato soak liquid:) .

Good right away or can be marinated several days in fridge. This keeps very well and almost gets better as it sits. I love it served at room temperature or warmed in the dehydrator:)

The liquid that forms after marinating may be mixed back in, or carefully poured off.
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My family has a tradition on Thanksgiving day after we are all seated at the table. We take turns saying what we are thankful for. It is so nice to hear what everyone says, especially the little ones:)

This year, I have something very special to be thankful for...YOU!

Since I am alone in my raw journey, I am so thankful to have you to share my passion for raw food with. I am especially grateful to those of you who comment here, and all the people that have taken time to email me. Your encouraging words mean so much to me.

I am very happy to have gotten to 'know' some of you through your own blogs too:) You are all such an inspiration to me! Thank you.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Creepy Caponata

It looks:) like my favorite recipe has gotten a Halloween makeover! This will be added to my complete list of Healthy Raw Halloween Recipes.

Creepy Peepers Caponata

For creepy peepers:
eggplant globes, cut using a melon-baller
black olives
green pimento stuffed olives, these are probably not raw but look cute:)
pine nuts, for "maggots"
capers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1 Recipe Raw Eggplant Caponata, recipe follows

Preparation:

1. Peel eggplant and create as many globes as desired for eyeballs. Use the un-seedy parts.

2. Cut slices from green olives, cut black olives in half lengthwise.

3. Apply olives to eggplant globe, securing with decorative picks if desired.

4. Prepare caponata using all scraps from any garnishes.

5. Plate caponata and garnish with eyeballs, capers, and pine nut "maggots".

I had this today with the cheezy tombstone crackers I recently made, but my caponata crisps recipe would be good too.

You can check out some of the comments on gone raw for the different ways people have eaten this caponata, without the creepy peepers, of course:)

I made myself laugh when I realized what I was drinking with this...kom-boooo-cha!!!

If you want a very quick decorating idea, simply make some chive and olive spiders, and cut out a few moon shapes from yellow pepper. For spiders, cross (like an "X") 4 chives approx. 2 inches long and top with half a black olive.

Here is my caponata recipe re-posted for convenience.

Raw Eggplant Caponata
makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant,peeled, 1/4"dice approx 4 cups
1 cup tomato, 1/4" dice
1 sweet bell pepper, I used yellow today, 1/4" dice
1 celery stalk, 1/4" dice
¼ cup red onion,or more to taste, 1/4" dice
¼ cup olives of choice,I used a mix of green and black, 1/4" dice
2 tablespoon capers,optional, not raw
`````````````````````````````````````````````
Dressing:
½ cup sundried tomato, soaked... or use 1/4 cup fresh tomato and 1/4 cup dried
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons agave, or 2 soaked medjool dates
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove garlic, or more to taste
all organic if possible

Preparation:
1. Prepare dressing ingredients in magic bullet or blender.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl and mix well with dressing.

I love to use my vidalia chop wizard for cutting all the veggies quickly and uniformly:)

If you would like to reduce the amount of oil, replace with equal amount of tomato soak liquid:) .

Good right away or can be marinated several days in fridge. This keeps very well and almost gets better as it sits. I love it served at room temperature or warmed in the dehydrator:)

The liquid that forms after marinating may be mixed back in, or carefully poured off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This month has been so much fun for me! I have so many more ideas, but Halloween is next week! I would love to hear from anyone if there is something special you are looking for, like more kid ideas, or a main course, or anything. Please send me an e-mail with any suggestions. My contact info is on my profile here:) Thanks!

Caponata Tartlets

A weekly staple for me is raw eggplant caponata. It is a very versatile recipe as it can be used on top of salad, to stuff mini tomatoes or peppers, or just "as is":)

Today I filled some mini-tart shells with the caponata. I made the shells a week or so ago and kept them in a glass jar. They held up perfectly! Just as crisp as when they were made. I used my Crisp Italian Herb Cracker recipe for them, but any of my almond cracker recipes work well for tart shells. The Italian herb blend matched those in the caponata today.

I have my caponata recipe in my very first post here, but will copy it for convenience:

Raw Eggplant Caponata

Servings:
makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant,peeled, 1/4"dice approx 4 cups
1 cup tomato, 1/4" dice
1 sweet bell pepper,I used orange, 1/4" dice
1 celery stalk, 1/4" dice
¼ cup red onion,or more to taste, 1/4" dice
¼ cup olives of choice,I used a mix of green and black, 1/4" dice
2 tablespoon capers,optional, not raw
`````````````````````````````````````````````
Dressing:
½ cup sundried tomato, soaked...or use 1/4 cup fresh tomato and 1/4 cup dried
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons agave, or 2 soaked medjool dates
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove garlic, or more to taste
all organic if possible

Preparation:
1. Prepare dressing ingredients in magic bullet or blender.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl and mix well with dressing.

I love to use my vidalia chop wizard for cutting all the veggies quickly and uniformly:)

If you would like to reduce the amount of oil, replace with equal amount of tomato soak liquid:) .

Good right away or can be marinated several days in fridge. This keeps very well and almost gets better as it sits. I love it served at room temperature or warmed in the dehydrator:)

The liquid that forms after marinating may be mixed back in, or carefully poured off.

Tarts should be assembled as close to serving as possible, but will stay crisp for an hour or so after.

Of course the caponata recipe is posted on my favorite raw recipe site, gone raw, along with my Caponata Crisps.

Caponata Crisps

makes 3 excalibur dehydrator trays
Ingredients:

½ cup sundried tomato, soaked
1 small peeled eggplant, approx 2cups
1 sweet bell pepper, red,yellow,or orange
1 stalk celery
¼ cup red onion
1 clove garlic, or more to taste
2 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoon dried parsley
2 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon agave
2 tablespoon olives, raw, black and green
2 tablespoon capers.optional, not raw
3 cup golden flax meal
all organic if possible
Preparation:

1. Process everything,except flax meal, in bowl of food processor until fine.

2. Add flax and mix well.

3. Roll,(covered with food wrap) 1/8” thick on parchment on mesh, or teflex sheets.

4. Pre-cut,and decorate with sliced olives and capers if desired.

5. Dry at 115 degrees approx 18 hours or till crisp.

Most crisps had a gentle curve to them, perfect for scooping caponata

Starting to Eat Raw

Welcome!
You may have found this blog because you have decided to make a change in your eating habits.A change for the better! Raw food is quickly becoming a popular way for people to regain health, lose weight ,increase energy, and feel amazing.
To start eating raw, you don't need any special equipment. Most likely, you already have everything you need.The following recipes require a blender or magic bullet,a knife and a bowl! Here is a sample of what I eat on a typical day. I hope you will enjoy these simple favorite recipes.

What do you eat for breakfast on a raw food diet?
This is easy!The best thing for me to eat for breakfast is summed up in one word.
FRUIT!
Your breakfast can be as simple as peeling a banana(or two , or three!) or grabbing a piece of your favorite fruit. Fruit smoothies are also a wonderful way to start the day, if you have a blender. All morning long, I eat as much fruit as I desire.It is easy to digest fruit.
Here is a fast and easy favorite:

banana and currants













Ingredients:
1 or 2 bananas
2 tablespoons currants
optional:
1 tablespoon coconut flakes
2 tablespoons orange juice

Preparation:
1. slice banana into a bowl
2. sprinkle with currants, and optional coconut and orange juice.

Here is a picture of a fancy fruit plate, special enough for...you!













What can I eat for lunch as a raw foodist?
The easiest thing for me to have for lunch is a veggie salad. These sometimes include fruit, as well.Many salads contain mostly raw ingredients already. Here is the salad I enjoyed for lunch yesterday, with a tasty raspberry vinaigrette, based on this recipe.
Thanks to ray at gone raw:)

Berry yummy salad














Ingredients:
for salad:
3 cups baby greens
1/2 mango, cubed
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup raspberries

for dressing:
1 cup raspberries
¼ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
1 tablespoon agave, optional
pinch of salt and pepper

Preparation:
1.In bowl, combine greens, mango, and berries.
2.In blender or magic bullet, blend dressing ingredients until smooth.
3.Pour dressing over salad and dig in!

Dinner can also be as simple as another salad, with veggies added in an unlimited amount.Raw soups are simple and satisfying.If you have a blender, it only takes a few minutes and several simple ingredients to make a delicious soup.Here is a quick soup recipe:

Warm tomato soup














Ingredients: 
6 plum tomatoes
1-2 limes, juice only
¼ cup flat leaf parsley, or cilantro
1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
pinch salt

Preparation: 
1.warm serving bowl by filling with very hot water while preparing soup. Discard water before filling with soup.
2.place tomato, juice of limes, parsley,(or cilantro), garlic, oil, and spices in blender.
3.blend until smooth
4.garnish , if desired, with rose made from tomato peel ,chive stem, and parsley leaves and a drizzle of balsamic glaze:)

If you have access to raw crackers or breads, those will add bulk to your dinner, helping you feel more satisfied.As you become more involved with the preparation of raw foods, you may invest in a dehydrator, so you can make you own raw breads and crackers. My first year raw was without a dehydrator, as I was saving for the 9 tray excalibur model I had heard so much about.

Here is my personal favorite recipe.It can be served over greens, as a bruschetta or pizza topping, or just have a bowl of it! I love this so much, I have actually eaten it for breakfast. It keeps well, so you can always have a bowlful in the fridge.

Raw Eggplant Caponata













Servings:
makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant,peeled, 1/4"dice approx 4 cups
1 cup tomato, 1/4" dice
1 sweet bell pepper,I used orange, 1/4" dice
1 celery stalk, 1/4" dice
¼ cup red onion,or more to taste, 1/4" dice
¼ cup olives of choice,I used a mix of green and black, 1/4" dice
2 tablespoon capers,optional, not raw
`````````````````````````````````````````````
dressing:
½ cup sundried tomato, soaked
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons agave, or 2 soaked medjool dates
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove garlic, or more to taste
all organic if possible

Preparation:
1.prepare dressing ingredients in magic bullet or blender.
2.combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl and mix well with dressing.

If you would like to reduce the amount of oil, replace with equal amount of tomato soak liquid:)

good right away or can be marinated several days in fridge.