Friday, February 6, 2009

Full Circle






I had a happy renewal of my faith in raw chefs this week! To explain, let me tell you about some of my early experiences with the raw food lifestyle. I went to raw food classes with someone who was interested, but I only went because she invited me to go. I remember sitting there thinking "This food is so gross. I will never eat this way!" while in the back of my mind there was a little voice telling me I would need to "eat this way" and that I just wasn't ready yet. I realized later that part of the reason I thought the food was gross is that the food I tasted had no salt, or very little. That problem was easy to fix. The other one wasn't so easy - maybe it will sound familiar to some of you?

I got a recipe for a raw "carrot cake" and busily set about juicing oranges, juicing carrots, opening & chopping up fresh coconut, trying to make "whipped cream" out of orange juice & sunflower seeds in a blender as old as I was that couldn't blend two strawberries in a cup of water...I was frustrated & tired from all the work, my hand hurt from hacking at the coconut, and I was totally confused - since when is a "crust" made of almonds & dates? And since when does "cake" have a crust, anyway?! I was expecting Carrot Cake (that was the title of the recipe, after all) and this was not cake in any way, shape or form. I think if someone had told me I was going to be eating a pile of carrot-raisin mush plopped on top of some dates & nuts, with some orange flavored sunflower seed goo on top, I might have thought it was okay. This was just one example, but it's the one I remember, and it happened about the same time as a lot of other craziness in my life, and I gave up on the raw lifestyle.

I have since learned to eat food & just enjoy it for what it is, and life is a lot better. I know that there is no way to make a raw "cake" that is really anything like cake I ate before. I know I can make things that taste good, but I've thought about giving my recipes more accurate names like "Green Stuff in a Bowl" or just giving them numbers...

This week, Winona ( http://www.2juicy.blogspot.com/ ) told me she had made this AMAZING cake, and after she mentioned it a couple of times & that it wasn't complicated, I thought, "Why not? It's not going to be cake, of course, but it might be good." So...I tried it...and it didn't take me three hours...and I made the batch into four cute little mini-cakes...and I made frosting...and IT TASTED LIKE CARROT CAKE!

I don't always trust my own judgement on these things, because it's been a long time since I've eaten the "other" kind of cake, so I got a second opinion from my mom, who said that she was impressed and that she thought that if someone was trying to be raw & liked carrot cake, this would really help!

I feel the wrongs I experienced in my former "cake"-making have finally been avenged, and I can eat my (raw) carrot cake in peace! (Or by the piece!)

http://www.therawchef.com/carrot-orange-cake/

It makes a fantastic breakfast! I made an orange flavored icing for mine by replacing the water with orange juice & using orange zest instead of vanilla. I used 2 large carrots instead of measuring 3 cups after grating. For the spices, I used 1 1/2 tsp. allspice plus 1/4 tsp. cinnamon.

10 comments:

  1. ah, allspice and cinnamon. glad you mentioned that - i was having trouble making his 'mixed spice' recipe - i didn't know what ratio to combine the spices! the photo is lovely, by the way.

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  2. Winona - Thanks! I am creative in the kitchen, but it wasn't worth that much touble to me, to try to figure it out! ;)

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  3. Your cake is too cute! I love the plate as well. So homey. I have to make it soon.

    Yeah at first to me raw food tasted "too healthy" but if you change your mindset to it and get off the addiction to sugar, it tastes different and is more enjoyable. Now everyone who tastes my raw desserts and is a SAD eater loves them.

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  4. Aimee - Thanks! It's true; raw desserts seem to be the thing I find people really like, although for my dad, anything with garlic is also a good place to start. ;)

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  5. Sounds good!

    I bought a dehydrator, now what can I do with it....?

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  6. Andrea - Woohoo! I'll be happy to show you!

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  7. I tagged you as a Kreativ Blogger.

    See my blog for details.

    -Aimee

    http://bittsblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/7-things-i-love.html

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  8. Hi Angie, it's my first time to your blog...just wanted you to know how much I like it! I also think the carrot cake looks scrumtious and love,love the plate...reminds me of my grandmother who has the same!

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  9. Angie, Your cake looks beautiful! I've noticed that the simpler the recipe, the tastier it is. Thanks for sharing!

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  10. Sorry I hadn't checked the comments here sooner! Welcome, Amanda & Mandy. :)

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