RAW VEGAN PEANUT BUTTER & CHOCOLATE BUTTER CREAM CUPS

I know. They sound amazing. They look orgasmic. But guess what - they taste EVEN BETTER. Plus: gifs. I was having a busy afternoon in the kitchen a couple days, whipping up a raw vegan cake (which will be coming soon, don't ya worry babe), and I ended up with an extra container of raw vegan chocolate "butter cream". I don't usually like calling my recipes after their non-vegan conventional counterparts BUT in this case, this recipe ACTUALLY tastes just like chocolate butter cream... but of course it's vastly superior because it's cruelty-free and HEALTHY. So much caps lock today. What's goin' on.

Hey, guys. Back to the story, you're getting me off topic. I ended up with all this extra chocolate frosting - not the worst problem in the world (in fact, it's probably the greatest) but I still had to figure out what to do with it. I also promised my lover that I'd bring them some kind of chocolate delight when I saw them the next day. I decided to make inside-out Reeses cups. Yeah, man. It's happening. It HAPPENED.

For the filling, as I hope you already surmised, I used my *famous* chocolate butter cream recipe (it's not truly famous, but I just love it a lot so it's a celeb in my world). To make the outside of the cups, I combined tahini (sesame seed butter) with peanut butter and coconut oil. The coconut oil allows the nut/seed butter to become solid when refrigerated. Heh heh heh - I'm so clever. Not really but this is what I tell myself in order to get up every day; the sunshine and chirping birds help too. The final result is simply to-die-for. I mean I'd seriously consider sacrificing my own life so more people could get this in their mouths. The thing is: I cannot fathom in what world I would have to die so people could eat chocolate... that makes zero sense. And thank goodness! This means we can all shove these things in our faces, mouthgasm into nirvana and still LIIIVE. Yesssss.

RAW VEGAN PEANUT BUTTER & CHOCOLATE BUTTER CREAM CUPS  

Filling:
This chocolate butter cream recipe.

Outside:
3 tablespoons coconut oil
3 tablespoon peanut butter 
3 tablespoons tahini 

Note: you can use whatever nut/seed butter(s) you want. Also: try to be patient and let the butter cream sit in the fridge overnight, it becomes exactly 1 million times more amazing.

Stir the outside layer ingredients together in a bowl over steaming water until melted and combined. Pour 1/3 of this into the bottoms of cupcake papers and try to get some around the sides. Freeze until solid. Pour a little more around the sides and freeze until solid again. Fill with the butter cream then cover with the remaining nut/seed butter mixture. Freeze for 10-30 minutes then GOBBLE. 

raw snickers candy bars

I don't remember what a "real" snickers bar tastes like but I know that they are basically just white sugar... gross. I had a fun time looking around the official snickers website where they claim snickers are "part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle."

LOL. 

Let's take a look at the ingredients that make this such a nutritional treasure, shall we? MILK CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, COCOA BUTTER, CHOCOLATE, SKIM MILK, LACTOSE, MILKFAT, SOY LECITHIN, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR), PEANUTS, CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, MILKFAT, SKIM MILK, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL, LACTOSE, SALT, EGG WHITES, CHOCOLATE, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR. MAY CONTAIN ALMONDS. Yes. We all know "partially hydrogenated soybean oil" is necessary for fitness excellence. NOT. Anyways, enough with this silliness. On to whole foods chocolate bars!

I got the idea to make this recipe from a reader. These are so freaking tasty, and mostly just - you guessed it - almonds and dates. They are pretty sweet and filling so you probably won't need more than one. Or maybe you will. What do I know? After some quick research (thanks, Wikipedia), I learned snickers bars are defined by a nougat layer topped with caramel and covered in chocolate.

PFF. NO PROBLEM. 

Consider these rawified. The nougat layer is raw flour, almonds and a wholesome sweetener of your choosing. Then I made the simplest and most delicious raw caramel ever (anyone can do it, I don't have any special powers) by blending dates with water, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Finally I threw together some raw chocolate and covered the bars in it. I am impatient so I did not wait for them to harden but in theory - they should. 

raw snicker bars: makes about 10 bars

Nougat layer:
1/2 cup raw flour (such as oat, coconut, buckwheat, almond, etc.)
1/3 cup raw agave/maple syrup
1 cup sliced almonds
1/4 pine nuts (optional) 

Caramel layer:
1 cup dates and enough water to cover them
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional) 
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons melted coconut oil

Raw chocolate coating:
Just use your fave recipe or my own 

To make the nougat: pulse the flour, pine nuts (if using) and sweetener together in your food processor until smooth. Add the almonds by hand. Shape into small logs on parchment paper and put in the freezer. 

To make the caramel: blend all ingredients together in your blender until creamy and thick, adding the least amount of water you can. spread a little on to the tops of each nougat log and put back in the freezer. 

When they are frozen enough, cover each one in chocolate and let harden in the freezer or fridge. Enjoy!

curry with tofu & grilled vegetables

this curry is delish! mom wasn't here for dinner so it was my turn to make something. brown rice had been cooking and i figured some spicy curry with broccoli, leftover grilled veggies and tofu would hit the spot; since it has been raining all day here.

everyone said it was really great, in fact - jasper used the word "addictive". can't argue with that. we all took seconds. i'm glad it was so tasty because i didn't use any conventional curry recipe. i didn't even have curry paste. so if you're in the mood for warming curry, crispy tofu, tender veggies and rice; try out this funky recipe!

yellow curry with tofu, veggies & rice: makes a big ole pot

1 onion
4 garlic cloves
1 head broccoli
1 grilled red pepper
2 grilled zucchinis
2 packages tofu
1 can coconut milk
6 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons raw sugar (or other sweetener)
3 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)
3 bay leaves
3 tablespoons curry powder
1 tablespoon each of coriander, paprika, cumin, turmeric, garlic, and onion powder
1 teaspoon each cinnamon, chili flakes, and dill
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

prepare the tofu: sautee it on med-high heat with a bit of olive oil, rice wine vinegar and tamari (soy sauce) until it browns. set aside.

chop all the veggies. in a large pot, sautee the onions, garlic and all the spices together with 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of rice wine vinegar until they're translucent and softened. add the remaining ingredients, including the tofu and veggies. let simmer on low heat for 30 minutes or so, until the broccoli is cooked enough for you. see you if you like it! curry is easy to change.

serve with whole grain brown rice in bowls with chives, hot sauce, sweet basil, and gypsy kings. yeah man!

oh and i have some news: I GOT TWITTER! it's mainly to get my blog out there more (by "there", i mean the world wide web). so follow me, please! it's so weird that i have a blog and a twitter account now. i feel like such a participating member of my generation, a feeling that is rare for me. i'm a bit of an enigma... if you haven't noticed.

raw fudge brownies: YEAH BABY!

Thank you, Mother Nature.

These sexy things are delicious and packed with nutrients to keep you living long; enjoying life and all it has to offer... like brownies.Raw desserts are pretty much the easiest food in the world to make, because usually they consist of just dates, nuts, coconut oil, and whatever else you want to add. These are no different.

Normal brownie ingredients? White flour, white sugar, butter, and cocoa. What're those gonna do for you?! Make you sleepy and gain weight. In these brownies: there's prunes, dates, hemp, chia, flax, cocoa, mesquite, cinnamon, vanilla and oats. Yummy in my tummy, good FOR my body. 

Yours too.

You can make these in like 5 minutes, and they'll disappear even faster. The best part (aside from eating them) is telling people they're healthy and made from whole foods! It's a magical world, my friends. These are also great for pre- or post-workout snacks!

 -
Raw Fudge Brownies: makes about 8 large brownies

1 1/2 cup oats

1 cup dates & prunes

1 t vanilla extract 

3 Tb coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup honey/agave/maple syrup

2 Tb mesquite powder (optional)

1/4 cup cup hemp seed

2 Tb flax seed

2 Tb chia seed
1/3 cup cashews (preferably soaked)

1/3 cup cocoa/cacao

1/2 t cinnamon
Pinch of salt

Put dates and prunes in bowl of water. Set aside.

Blend 1 cup of the oats in blender until it becomes oat flour. Then in a food processor, process dates and prunes (with about 1/4 cup of the water) with all the other wet ingredients until smooth. Now add all the dry ingredients, including the remaining 1/2 cup of whole oats and oat flour. Good consistency? It should be thick, but very moist. Press it into a pan lined with tin foil or plastic wrap and set in the fridge for a little bit so the coconut oil can stiffen them up.

Then cut 'em up and serve! Make a chocolate sauce for them, or have with fruit and nut butter!

*You can make these even simpler by just blending dates, cashews coconut oil and cacao. But I always like to add a bunch of stuff for more flavours. I cannot help it. It's up to you!