Raw Food Summer Recipe Essentials: Soups, salads, and a raw fruit simple mousse
As a passionate cook, raw food has always intrigued me; I love to experiment with new techniques, textures, and tastes. When I first discovered raw food years ago, I discovered that I was already practicing a 50 percent raw food lifestyle. I took a four-week certification course in Bali, running in parallel with a yoga teacher training. It was exactly what I needed because it gave me the opportunity to dive into the world of raw and living foods, meet amazing people, and understand that a healthy diet was a simple way to cultivate balance.
When I was young, I traveled around the Mediterranean. My cooking has been influenced by the dishes I tasted during those adventures: I love to use spices such as cumin, coriander, and cayenne pepper. It is important for me that my recipes are tasty enough to encourage people to engage in a gourmet raw food lifestyle.
Try these healthy dishes. The fattoush salad, tabbouleh, red gazpacho, and avocado soups are perfect recipes for the summer—they’re fresh, vibrant, and full of flavor.
TABOULEH
1 cup sprouted quinoa or cauliflower
1/2 cucumber, diced
2 tomatoes, diced and seeded
1 cup parsley and coriander or mint, chopped
Juice of 2 lemons, freshly squeezed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 spring onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together. To enhance flavors, chill for an hour.
Option 1) If you use cauliflower, blend until you achieve the size of a couscous grain.
Option 2) Sprouted quinoa: rinse 1 cup of quinoa to remove saponin. Soak for 3-4 hours in lukewarm water. Drain and rinse.
If you’re using a sprouter, follow its instructions. If not, spread quinoa evenly on plate or tray and proceed with rinsing/draining process twice a day.
Quinoa is ready when sprout is 1/2 inch long (two to three days)
Shelf life: three days in the fridge.
FATTOUSH SALAD
1 Head of baby Romaine lettuce
4 Roma tomatoes, diced and seeded
1/2 cucumber, diced
10 radishes, sliced with a mandolin
1 small red onion, chopped
Few leaves of fresh mint
Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of 3 lemons, freshly squeezed
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 tsp sumac or 1/2 tsp ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
- Combine all the dressing ingredients.
- Toss the salad with the dressing.
Variation: Mix all salad ingredients except baby
Romaine, pour dressing on top and wrap in lettuce.
Serving Suggestion: Hummus or crackers.
Shelf life: Dressing keeps up to five days in the fridge.
RED GAZPACHO
3 cups ripe tomatoes
1 cup cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 1/2 cups red bell pepper, finely chopped
1/2 cup red onion
1 cup fresh basil
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
1/4 cup cold spring water
1/8 cup olive oil
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Blend all the ingredients.
- Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
- Pour in bowls and top with diced tomatoes,cucumber, celery, or coriander.
Shelf life: 1 day in the fridge.
AVOCADO CILANTRO SOUP
1 zucchini, chopped
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 yellow pepper, diced
1 avocado, diced
1 tbsp. tamari
1 tsp. Himalayan pink salt
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
- Blend all ingredients except avocado.
- Add the avocado and blend again.
Shelf life: 1 day in the fridge.
RAW FRUIT MOUSSE
Here is such a simple and scrumptious dessert! Everyone can make it, even beginning chefs, yet it looks impressive. I recommend using seasonal fruits for a fresh and delicious treat.
1 cup strawberries or pineapple
1/4 cup cacao or coconut butter
1-2 tbsp agave syrup
1/8 cup almond milk
- In a bain-marie, melt the cacao or coconut butter.
- Then, blend all the remaining ingredients together with the melted butter until smooth.
- Pour in small glasses and refrigerate for at least two hours.
Shelf life: 1 day.
Emilie McBride is the author of The Raw Food Beginner’s Deck, published by Deckopedia. She is a passionate cook whose recipes are inspired by Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” She defines Raw as living foods full of enzymes and higher nutrient values vital to healthy digestion and strengthening the immune system. deckopedia.com/the-raw-food-beginner-deck.html
Emilie McBride is the author of The Raw Food Beginner’s Deck, published by Deckopedia. She is a passionate cook whose recipes are inspired by Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” She defines Raw as living foods full of enzymes and higher nutrient values vital to healthy digestion and strengthening the immune system. deckopedia.com/the-raw-food-beginner-deck.html