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As I said a few weeks ago, I’m a dietary traveler. I enjoy dabbling in all different dietary lands and bringing some of their magic into my own culinary bag of tricks.

This time, I’m entering the Land of Raw. There are several Raw domains, and the one that is getting the most talk these days is raw vegan. Raw vegan food diets consist of, obviously, raw food that hasn’t been heated above 120 Farenheit. The vegan addition means no meat, eggs, or dairy.

Raw veganism, if nothing else, really opens your eyes to how food is prepared or processed. A lot of the staples of regular veganism are off limits: beans need to be cooked, most nuts are roasted, maple syrups and several other natural sweeteners are heated while being made, preserved foods are heated in order to become preserved, sauces and stocks are boiled to get the essence of their flavors.

Even with these restrictions, there’s still a surprising amount of food raw vegans can eat and dress up to be something else besides another salad. Raw vegans have a lot of tricks up their sleeves to mix things up, including desserts.

Christina Ross, a raw pastry entrepreneur and food blogger, has created Love Fed, a cookbook with endless raw vegan dessert options. Pies, tarts, cakes, sorbets, shakes… you name it, she has a raw recipe for it.

If you’re like me, and just dipping your toe into the raw vegan land, start with her Fig Bliss Energy Balls, Blueberry Coconut Dreamsicles, Jason Mraz (yes, that Jason Mraz)’s Chocomole, or any of her fruit recipes.

If you’re a raw vegan and very familiar with raw ingredients, this book will be a treat for you. Your raw vegan world will never be the same with all of these new ways to enjoy your diet.

I decided to try Christina’s Red Velvet Chia Parfaits. I’m a big fan of chia pudding. It just such a fun new take on pudding that’s also loaded with omega-3s and helps keep you full, unlike regular pudding. Her parfaits are bit looser than a chia pudding and have a wonderfully light flavor that’s filling but not heavy.

The parfaits are topped with a coconut whipped cream, which is made with coconut cream. Coconut cream is the solidified part of the coconut milk you find when you opened canned coconut. You can buy coconut cream or you can buy coconut milk. Either way, you’ll have to chill the can for eat 24 hours in the fridge, then separate the cream from the water and whip up the cream. Chilling the can for that long is pretty essential. I tried this recipe without chilling it for that long and came out with a very soupy cream.

Whether you’re a raw vegan visitor like me or a resident of Raw Vegan Land, Love Fed has a lot of recipes and techniques that will give you a new definition of dessert. You can find Christina’s book wherever books are sold. You can also WIN a copy of her book by entering your name, email and letting me know in the comment section: What is your favorite Raw dessert? (fruit totally counts!) The giveaway will end on March 24, 2015 at 12:00am PST, and I will notify the winner via email.

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Print Red Velvet Chia Parfaits Prep Time: 15 minutes Yield: 4 parfaits Parfaits provide a lot of payoff for very little effort—in 15 minutes you can have a beautiful, deliciously creamy dessert. This parfait is notable for the raw vegan cream cheese frosting on top. It’s wonderful spread on cakes and cupcakes, too. If you like a sweeter frosting, feel free to add 2 tbsp. of your favorite sweetener. Ingredients Parfait Base ¼ c. chia seeds (black or white or a mix of the two)

1 tbsp. cacao powder

2 c. almond milk

2 tsp. beet juice or natural red food coloring

1 ½ tsp. coconut nectar

¼ tsp. vanilla bean powder or vanilla extract



“Cream Cheese” Frosting 4 tbsp. melted coconut oil (see page 28)

2 c. chilled coconut cream

1 tbsp. Meyer lemon juice (regular lemon juice works, too)

1 tsp. vanilla extract



Chocolate curls or cacao powder, for garnish Instructions To make the parfait base: Combine the chia seeds, cacao powder, almond milk, beet juice, coconut nectar, and vanilla bean powder in a medium bowl and whisk until well incorporated. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes to thicken. Make the frosting. To make the frosting: Place the melted coconut oil, coconut cream, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer or a large bowl. Beat on medium speed or whisk by hand until the mixture is whipped and well incorporated. Don’t overmix or the frosting will be runny. To assemble: Divide the chia mixture among 4 parfait glasses or bowls. Place a frosting bag (or plastic bag) inside a glass, allowing the top of the bag to fold over the outside of the glass. This will allow you to scoop frosting into the bag without the risk of it leaking. Fill the bag with the frosting, then squeeze a dollop into each parfait glass on top of the chia mixture. Add the garnish and serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Notes Reprinted with permission from BenBella Books. 3.1 (c) 2013-2014 Small Eats

Disclaimer: Benbella Books, Love Fed’s publisher, reached out to me for to create this post for a blog tour to promote Love Fed. I was compensated with a review copy of the book, but all thoughts and opinions are my own.