Fudgie Hemp Balls

Hello everyone! Just a quick hello and recipe idea today. You don't even want to know how busy we have been since the big move!

Of course, we all have to eat no matter how hectic our lives may be. Isn't it wonderful that even the simplest raw foods can be beautiful and nourishing? I have been living on smoothies, juice, salads, and an occasional treat:)

Sometimes around 3p.m. I need a little "pick-me-up". Often it is in the form of chocolate hehe. The following recipe is an estimate, hope you don't mind!

Fudgie Hemp Balls

For fudge balls:
8 Pitted medjool dates
1 heaping tablespoon cocoa powder, or carob
1 heaping tablespoon hulled hemp seeds (aka, hearts)
1 heaping teaspoon coconut oil
few drops extract such as hazelnut or vanilla, optional

For decoration:
1-2 tablespoons hemp seeds for rolling

1. Process first 5 ingredients in food processor fitted with an "s" blade until mixture starts sticking together.

2. Shape into 1 inch balls and roll in extra hemp seeds. Fudgies can be refrigerated about 1 hour to firm up. These are very soft and chewy if eaten right away. Recipe makes about 6 balls.

Another quick burst of energy recently came from this frozen treat...reminded me of a hazelnut mochachino...

The mug was drizzled with chocolate syrup (coconut syrup mixed with cocoa powder) and the frosty drink was a couple of frozen bananas blended with one packet of microground coffee:) 1/4 cup hazelnuts, a drop or two of hazelnut extract, 1 Brazil nut, sweetener, and a splash of water to blend. This had me going until midnight! Ya might not want to drink this the same day you eat the fudgies, just sayin':)

Now, if there are any gardeners out there, I would really appreciate your help! I am attempting my very first garden:) I would love if you could share your favorite online resources with me in a comment or email. I have started some seeds...

and really need specific details on organic gardening. Google searches have led to information overload. BTW, my gardening accomplishments include a pitiful herb garden in a pot last year...lol!!!

'Lil sprouts are so cute:)


Hope you are all having a wonderful day!!! Love ya:)

I'm Nuts About This Post!

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a good weekend.

We did the usual...shopping:)

The rain stopped us from a day trip to Vermont, but we were just there last weekend anyway:) Below is a picture of Lake Champlain with the Adirondack Mountains in the background. It was so lovely.

Our main reason for going to Vermont last week was an Antique and Classic car show in Stowe. Have you ever seen a car with a record player in the dashboard?

Raise your hand if you actually know what a 'record player' is! :)

Since we usually have to do our food shopping on weekends, I was so happy to find a great Natural Foods store right on the same road as the show:) We stopped on the way home for a much needed cold coconut water and a few pantry essentials. If you find yourself in Waterbury Center, Vermont make sure to stop by Sunflower Natural Foods.

The store was very well stocked,

and so neat and clean with a very friendly staff:) There was even a sweet play nook upstairs for the little ones:)

Don't you wish you were 4 or 5 again?

My recent post, Raw Pantry Essentials, showed a few pictures from one of my usual places to shop. But sometimes, a 'special ingredient' can only be found online.

I recently ordered Heathy's Moonie Pie ebook (they look amazing btw), and noticed that I didn't have one of the ingredients. Hmmm...as well stocked as my favorite store is, they do not carry this one special ingredient. A quick online search for it brought me to NutsOnline.

My order was placed on Monday, and the box arrived at my door Tuesday afternoon, less than 24 hours later! What a pleasant surprise:) Everything looked great!

NutsOnline has a huge selection of organic and raw products, as well as hundreds of other products.

While checking out their blog, I was thrilled to see they had linked up to my Sprouting Chia seeds post:) Thanks NutsOnline!

So, I am very excited to tell you NutsOnline has generously offered one of you* a chance to try 2 of their products!

One pound of Organic Chia Seeds, and one pound of Raw Organic Hemp Seeds! YAY!!!!!

Thanks so much to the lovely Katie Ide from NutsOnline for making this giveaway possible.

These products were hand picked by yours truly:), but you can change them if you have issues with either of these...for anything of a lesser or equal value:)

*This giveaway is limited to residents of the United States and Canada only.

Requirements to enter this giveaway are simple:

Mandatory for entry #1:
Visit NutsOnline and leave a comment below telling me which of their products you would love to try, and what you would make with them.

For one additional entry:
Subscribe to the NutsOnline Newsletter to receive special offers and coupons, leave a comment here telling me you did so, for entry #2.

That's it! This giveaway will close at midnight EST Sunday August 29, 2010. Winner will be announced on, or shortly after Monday, August 30.

You probably already have a favorite recipe using hemp or chia seeds, but if you don't, here are several pictures of a few of mine to whet your appetite.

All the links are to my posts which either have the recipe, or tell you where to find it:

Chia Puddings

Bitts Hemp Brownies

Kate Magic's Marching Biscuits

Magic Chocolate

Hemp Power Ball Truffles

Chia-Sesame Cracker

Oh my...I think we need something with a little green:)

Russell James' Wilted Kale Salad with Creamy Chipotle Dressing


My S&M Salad with Creamy Macadamia-Lime Hemp Dressing

There, that's better!

Good luck everyone!!!!

Choccie Cherry Chia Pudding

Happy Monday everyone!

I want to express my sincere gratitude for the wonderful response to my last post, Recipe Index. I added the index icon to the top of the right sidebar for your convenience:) Thank you all so much:)

I have been so inspired by the chia pudding trend lately among fellow bloggers! What chia pudding trend, you say? Check it out!

Cinnamon Raisin Breakfast Chia by Nikki of Yummy Raw Kitchen

Chia pudding by kelli of Animal-Friendly Eating

Chai Chia Pudding by Michal of lil Earth Muffin

Goji Chia Pudding from Raw Goddess from The Adventures of Raw Goddess Heathy

Chia Seed Porridge with Bananas and Raisins by Antony of Antony in London

And I am only going back about a week!!! If you, or someone you know has posted a chia pudding recipe you would like to see added here, please let me know:)

Of course I can never forget my first;)
Chocolate Ecstasy Tapioca Pudding from Slosh-uh on Gone raw!

And here are a few more posted on Gone Raw

Here is a coconut one to try.

How about a warming chia pudding :)

Goji chia pudding

Chia Chocolate Chip pudding!

Chia Mulberry Goji Pudding

Chia pudding is a wonderful way to get in some healthy chia seed. Here is my recipe, inspired by all of the above!

Choccie Cherry Chia Pudding

2 tablespoons chia seed
1 tablespoon hemp seed
1 teaspoon cacao powder
1 teaspoon agave, or sweetener of choice
10 pitted cherries, chopped or halved
1/4 cup brazil nut milk*, or milk of choice:)

*Brazil nut milk:
12 brazil nuts, shelled:)
1 cup water
vanilla and sweetener, optional

For 1 cup of milk:
Blend all ingredients, strain, or not...lol

1. For chia pudding, mix chia, hemp, cacao.
2. Add nut milk. Add as much as desired, but at least 1/4 cup.
3. Stir until combined.
4. Sweeten to taste.
5. Add cherries, and an extra sprinkle of that healthy hemp:)

Chia pudding is a great recipe idea to make your own.

There are endless combinations, just put in what you like:)

Hugs and Hemp

Hugs first!....{{{Hugs}}}

As you may know, today is International Hug a Vegetarian Day! Of course every day should be HVD, but oh well!

And now, the hemp !
Creamy Hemp Basil Sauce from Gena at Choosing Raw.



The following recipe is from one of my favorite bloggers, Gena from Choosing Raw. It makes a generous amount, especially for one person, so I found quite a few ways to use it:)

Gena was kind enough to allow me to repost her recipe here. Please click here to view Gena's original post on this recipe.
*************************************
Creamy Hemp Basil Sauce (yields about 1 1/2 cups — possibly a bit less)

½ cup hemp butter
½ cup water
1 tsp lemon
1-2 dates (pitted)
1 tsp oregano, dry
½ tsp thyme, dry
¼ cup fresh basil, packed
¼-1/2 tsp salt (start with ¼ and then adjust to your taste)
1 tbsp olive oil

Procedure:

Blend all ingredients in a blender, food processor, magic bullet, or Vitamix until well mixed. Adjust water if you’d like it thinner—but keep in mind that it will thicken in the fridge.
****************************************
Gena used it as a sauce for spiralized carrot and zucchini pasta and suggested it would be good as a dressing for slaw...it was! I made the sauce a bit thicker by adding a little less water.

The Creamy Coleslaw is shredded carrot, green cabbage, purple cabbage, and a sprinkle of hemp seed mixed with the sauce.


I also used some as a dressing for a simple Creamy Kale Salad. It makes two servings. I loved it so much, I had one for lunch, and the other for dinner!!!!

Creamy Kale Salad

1 small bunch of kale, stems removed
1 cup tomato, 1/4 inch dice
3/4 cup Creamy Hemp Basil Sauce
2 Tablespoons hemp seed
sprinkle of salt
drizzle of olive oil

Makes 2 servings

1. Tear kale into bite sized pieces, and place into a medium sized bowl.

2. Sprinkle kale with salt and olive oil, and massage with hands to soften.

3. Add Creamy Basil Hemp Sauce and hemp seed and mix well.

4. Top with diced tomato and an extra sprinkle of hemp seed, if you like.

This creamy kale salad was so awesome. I love to find a new twist on an old favorite like kale salad:) I am definitely making this one again!

I absolutely love the sauce. You know it is good when you spend 10 minutes scraping out the blender!

It also made the perfect sandwich spread. This is a ezekiel tortilla spread with a little of the creamy hemp basil sauce, and topped with alfalfa sprouts, crisp maple jicama bacon, sliced tomato, and a sprinkle of hemp seeds. This was seriously good!

Since there was such a generous amount of sauce, there was still enough for today's lunch, sushi! It made a wonderful dipping sauce. If you like a spicy sauce, try mixing in a little powdered wasabi. I tried it in a little bit, but preferred the sauce sweet:)


Hemp is one of my favorite ingredients to use in raw recipes. It is really a powerhouse of nutrition.
If you enjoy adding hemp to your raw food diet, here is another wonderful way to enjoy it.

Thank you, Gena, for allowing me to share your wonderful recipe.{{{BIG HUG!}}}

Hemp Power Ball Truffles

Here is a quick and easy recipe for a yummy, healthy treat. It is a great way to use hemp seed butter. It is adapted from a recipe I found online.

Hemp Power Ball Truffles

For truffles:
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup hemp seed butter
2 tablespoons carob powder
2 tablespoons agave
2 tablespoons cacao nibs, ground fine
2 tablespoons goji berries, ground fine
1 teaspoon maca powder
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon cinnamon

For decoration:
About ¼ cup hemp seeds, to roll truffles in
Whole goji berries, for decoration if desired

Makes 16 one inch truffles

1. Combine all ingredients , except hemp seeds and whole goji berries, in a small bowl. Mixture should be shiny and smooth, pulling away from the sides of the bowl. You can add a little more carob if it seems sticky. You may chill the mixture to firm it up a little before shaping.

2. Roll into 16 one inch balls.

3. Roll each ball into shelled hemp seeds.

4. Press one goji berry into truffle, if desired.

5. May be stored covered in fridge for about 1 week or so, if you hide them!

Click here for more hemp recipes, many are raw:)

Hemp Brownie Sundae

As soon as I saw this hemp brownie recipe by bitt on gone raw yesterday, I knew I would have to make it!
My favorite recipes lately have been quick and easy, so this one fit right in:)
It is a great way to get in more healthy hemp and pumpkin seeds.
Thanks to bitt for another great recipe!

I doubled the recipe, and shaped the mix in a bite-size brownie pan. Chilling the brownies make them easier to release from the mold. I dipped the top of each brownie bite in additional hemp seeds, then decorated some with goji berries, walnut halves, or a pumpkin seed.
For the little sundae, take a brownie, and top it with a mini scoop of stRAWberry ice cream. The chocolate sauce is just blended date paste, coconut oil, and cocoa powder, but this recipe looks great!

Strawberry Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 cup soaked almonds, sprouted if desired
¾ cup hemp seeds
1 cup fresh water
3 cups ripe strawberries, washed, hulled
½ cup date paste, soaked dates,blended with water
1 inch vanilla bean seeds, or 1 tsp. extract
optional:
up to 1 tablespoon beet juice to enhance color

Preparation:

1.blend almonds,hemp,and water.

2.strain using nut milk bag.you should have about 1 cup “cream”.*

3.add cream to blender with berries ,vanilla, date paste, and beet juice if using.

4.process in 1 and1/2 quart ice cream maker.

*this recipe was made before I had a high speed blender, so now I don't strain:)
Sweet ripe strawberries are best for this recipe. The strawberry flavor may be enhanced by adding a ripple of strawberry jam(strawberries blended with a few dates).

Just adding this pretty butterfly pic from today:) The milkweed has grown so much and is flowering now.