April 8th, 2010

raw nut butter

raw nut butter

The Secret Is In The Sauce – A Raw Food Chef's Taste Trick

My name is Jennifer Cornbleet, but sometimes when I'm cooking, my alter-ego -- ‘Saucy Susan' – takes over.  You see, I love what sauces do for the flavor and texture of a recipe, and I'm always looking for ways to sauce-up a meal or snack.

The problem is that I don't like what the ingredients in traditional sauces do for my waistline or my arteries.  That's why it was important to me to re-imagine sauces in both of my raw cookbooks, Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People and Raw for Dessert.

You might be wondering what kind of sauce recipes would be appropriate to a desserts cookbook.  Raw food sauce recipes, like their traditional counterparts, can be sweet or savory. Some of my favorite raw food sauces serve as the ‘crowning glory' on ice cream sundaes.

So in this article, I'd like to invite everyone to ‘get sauced' the healthy way...with some delicious raw food sauce recipes that you can whip up in no time.

It's the Sauce, Silly

Do you know where a lot of the flavor can be found in a dish?  That's right!  In the sauce.  After all, isn't fettuccine just pasta until you spoon on Alfredo Sauce? Isn't a vegetable spring roll just ‘bunny food' until you give it a whole new personality by drizzling on a spicy, flavorful Thai-style peanut sauce?

Imagine ice cream without hot fudge sauce.  Or think about where a certain fast food giant would be today if it served two all-beef patties, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onion, on a sesame seed without ‘special sauce'?.

It's easy to see that to get more flavor into every bite, the secret is in the sauce.  What is less easy to see is that the ingredients that go into typical sauces – like butter, cream, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, refined sugars, etc – are not healthy.

For example, there are 850 Calories in a single serving of Fettuccine Alfredo from Olive Garden and 432 of those calories are from fat.   As for the Big Mac, it has about 560 calories...with nearly 100 of them coming from the sauce which is made from salad dressing, pickles, and brown sugar.

Dessert sauces are the biggest culprits when it comes to sneaking in fat and calories.  A two-tablespoon serving of a commercial hot fudge sauce manufactured by Smuckers, for example, has 4.5 grams of fat and 18 grams of sugar.  That doesn't sound so bad if you can limit yourself to just two tablespoons...but I know that I can't!

There are other problems with traditional sauces, too, that occur because of the processed foods used to make them.  The recent problem with commercial peanut butter underscores how much healthier it is to use ingredients that come straight from your garden...or your local farmer.

That's the whole theory behind the raw food movement:  using fresh, local ingredients to make delicious meals and snacks.  So I've found ways to make Alfredo without the cream...peanut sauce without the processing...and lip-smacking dessert sauces without a hint of refined sugar.

Care to join me for a dip into sauces?

Raw Food Sauce Recipe Ideas

Raw food sauces are (you've heard this phrase before) delicious and nutritious.  For example, my recipe for raw food Fettuccine Alfredo dresses translucent ribbons of pale green zucchini with a sauce made from soaked cashews and a tasty spice blend.  Believe me; you won't miss the cream or the butter (or the fat and calories).

If you like your sauces green instead of white, try my raw food Pesto.  Like the original, my recipes calls for basil leaves, olive oil, garlic, salt, and pine nuts.  The only difference is that the pine nuts are raw instead of roasted.

One of my favorite raw food sauce recipes is the Mock Peanut Sauce that I created for Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People. Traditionally, this sauce calls for roasted peanuts, but I use raw almond butter instead.  As well as retaining more nutrients, I think raw almond butter actually tastes better in the recipe.

You can make your own almond butter or purchase it in stores.  Just make sure you choose raw almond butter.

Mock Peanut Sauce

  • 1/2 cup raw almond butter
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoons tamari
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • Dash cayenne
  • Dash salt
  • Place all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth

This simple raw food sauce can be kept for up to five days in the refrigerator.  Drizzle it over your favorite veggies at lunch or dinner or use it as a dipping sauce to add Asian flair to the crudités your serve at your next party.

Every Day Is Sundae

I created my raw food Chocolate Ganache Fudge Sauce for all the chocoholics I know (including me!), but I never miss a chance to introduce people to my rich, nutty Caramel Sauce.  Instead of the butter and sugar of a traditional caramel, this nutty brown sauce call for dates, cashews, vanilla...and dark agave syrup.

Agave syrup (also called nectar) is a natural sweetener made from the juice of the agave plant. I use the dark version in this recipe to give the caramel a deep, molasses-like flavor and color.

Raw Food Caramel Sauce Recipe

  • 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
  • 1/2 cup dark agave syrup
  • 1/2 cup Date Paste (see below)
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla extra
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • Place all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.

Date Paste is made by soaking Medjool dates in filtered water and then processing the fruit along with the soaking water into a paste-y consistency.

This caramel sauce is a ‘natural' when it comes to topping off a raw food ice cream sundae where nut milk replaces the dairy variety.  It's also amazing on top of cake or in-between the layers.

For a really decadent dessert, you can drizzle Caramel Sauce and Chocolate Sauce over ice cream and top with crushed raw nuts and dried fruits.  Amazing!

When You Want to Warm Up After a Cool Down

Like the savory raw food Mock Peanut Sauce above, the sweet raw food Caramel Sauce can be stored in the refrigerator.  To take the ‘chill off' before serving, follow this simple process:

  • Place 2 inches of water in a saucepan and bring to boil.
  • Turn off the heat.
  • Place a small bowl of sauce in the hot water  (The sides of the bowl should be high enough so that the water from the saucepan cannot flow into the sauce)
  • Let sit for 20 minutes
  • Stir to achieve proper consistency.

As an alternative, you can place the bowl in a food dehydrator at 105 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes.

Interested in buying a dehydrator?  Want to know where to get raw nuts?  I've got information about products and ingredients I use and recommend at Raw Food Equipment and Serving Ware. There's a quick description and when I've been able to find them, links to purchase items at Amazon.com

Enjoy!

How to make raw macadamia nut butter


BTR Brazil Nut Butter, Raw, Sprouted, Organic - 8 Ounces
BTR Brazil Nut Butter, Raw, Sprouted, Organic - 8 Ounces
Sale Price: $14.50
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Description

Now get all the benefits of Brazil nuts in a delicious, creamy butter.Brazil nut trees are powerful, enormous evergreen trees that are native to the Amazon jungle. Brazil nut trees are not cultivated, they grow wild. Attempts at domestication have been unsuccessful. Because they are a wild food, they still have all their original properties intact.Brazil nuts contain sulfur-bearing amino acids (methionine and cysteine) giving them strength-building, liver-supporting, and tissue repair properties. Brazil nuts are best known for being the number one plant source of the mineral selenium, just beating out the number two source, macadamia nuts. Selenium is a powerful antioxidant which has been proven to protect against disease.Brazil Nuts contain roughly 14% protein, and are also a good source of fiber. Try using liberally in cacao smoothies.Ingredients: Premium, organic, ground Brazil nuts.

Features

  • Raw, Organic, Sprouted Brazil Nut Butter.
  • 8-ounce jar.
32oz. African FILTERED CREAMY Shea Butter from Ghana
32oz. African FILTERED CREAMY Shea Butter from Ghana
Sale Price: $13.95
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Description

African Shea Butter 100% Natural African Shea Butter is made from the nut of the African Shea Tree. It contains a rich amount of unremovable fatty acid which render it far superior to cocoa butter and other natural vegetable butters. this fatty is crucial to rejuvenating and moisturizing the skin. Shea Butter provides all the essential vitamins needed to make skin look and feel smoother, softer and most importantly, healthier. Its therapeutic properties protect the skin from wind, cold, sun and it helps heal wounds faster. Shea Butter stimulates cellular activity, fights the effects of aging and repairs rough, damaged skin.

Features

  • Made from the nut of the african shea tree
  • Makes skin look and feel smoother, softer and healthier
  • Therapeutic properties protect the skin from wind, cold, sun and it helps heal wounds faster
  • Stimulates cellular activity, fights the effects of aging and repairs rough and damaged skin
Organic Raw Hazelnut (Filbert) Butter, 8oz - Nuts Soaked and Germinated
Organic Raw Hazelnut (Filbert) Butter, 8oz - Nuts Soaked and Germinated
Sale Price: $18.95
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Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Description

BTR? stands for Better Than Roasted. This term originated in the early days of our business, when a friend was sampling our soaked dehydrated nuts. He discovered what most people who taste these nuts realize: nuts that have been through this process taste better than roasted nuts. They?re sweeter and less dense. It?s an added bonus that nuts put through this process are also better for the body than conventionally roasted nuts. This four-fold, four day quality control process yields an extremely high-quality, fresh, sweet and crisp product. Our nuts are both healthier, and better tasting, than conventional raw or roasted nuts and seeds.

Features

  • Ingredients: Hazelnuts
  • Our process starts with premium, whole, certified organic nuts & seeds
  • which we then hand sort, soak, rinse and dry at a low temperature, below 108 degrees, protecting vi
  • Foods high in live enzymes require less of our own digestive enzymes, helping us to conserve enzyme
Wonder Junior Deluxe Hand Grain / Flour Mill by Wondermill
Wonder Junior Deluxe Hand Grain / Flour Mill by Wondermill
List Price: $259.95
Sale Price: $199.95
You save: $60.00 (23%)
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Description

The Wonder Junior is the highest quality most versatile hand grain mill available. You can create super fine flour or coarse cracked grains for cereals. By simply swapping the stone heads for the stainless steel burr heads you can make delicious peanut butter or other nut butters, you can grind flax or any other oily or wet grains, you can grind herbs and spices, soy beans, and legumes. And you can even grind fresh coffee. In all these applications you are assured to always have the perfect fresh nutritious ingredients for your family even if the power is out. Features and Versatility - The Wonder Junior Hand Grain Mill has amazing features at a very reasonable price. The whole mill is powder-coated making it safe to wash for easy clean up. The hopper is large and holds over one quart. The octagon shape of the hopper makes it easy to fill. And because the Wonder Junior is one-piece construction you don't have to worry about the hopper coming off during milling like many other hand grain mill models. One of the greatest features of the Wonder Junior is its heavy-duty patented double clamp. It attaches to tables or counters up to 2 inches thick. The Wonder Junior Hand Grain Mill uses extra large lifetime lubricated bearings and it has a heavy base that can be bolted to any table or counter. The Wonder Junior has features like no other hand grain mill. The stone heads are one-third thicker than the competition which results in a smooth operation and a lifetime of use. In seconds, the high-quality stainless steel burr heads can be put on the Wonder Junior for milling wet or oily grains. This "World's Best Hand Grain Mill" has the capacity to perform big jobs. The Wonder Junior Deluxe comes complete with the grinder, the stone heads, the burr heads, and a table-top clamp.

Features

  • Limited Lifetime Warranty
  • Burr grinder works with wet/oily grains; legumes, coffee, garbanzos, seeds, nuts, etc.
  • Powder-coated for easy cleanup
  • Large octagon hopper fills easily and holds more than 1 quart
  • World's only patented dual clamp secures to surfaces up to 2" thick, will not slip like other mills.
Nutiva Organic  Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, 15-Ounce Tubs (Pack of 2)
Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, 15-Ounce Tubs (Pack of 2)
List Price: $24.00
Sale Price: $13.54
You save: $10.46 (44%)
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Description

Nutiva's coconut oil is cold-pressed, organic extra-virgin coconut oil, with its light taste, pleasant aroma, and pure white color, and industrialized coconut oil, with its bland taste, faint aroma, and off-white color. Please note that any tiny brown specks found at the bottom of Nutiva's coconut oil are from the coconut fiber and are indigenous to extra-virgin coconut oil. It is deliciously healthy cooking oil. Better than butter and are USDA organic. Unrefined with no trans fats, rich in lauric acid.

Features

  • Pack of two 15-ounce jars (total of 30 ounces) USDA-certified-organic, extra-virgin coconut oil
  • No refrigeration required; solid at room temperature and melts at 76 degrees
  • Use as cooking oil, butter substitute, shortening substitute in baking, and massage/body oil
  • Product of the Philippines
Raw Food/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow
Raw Food/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow
List Price: $37.50
Sale Price: $24.75
You save: $12.75 (34%)
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Description

Top New York chef and restaurateur Matthew Kenney and his partner, Sarma Melngailis, had been thinking of opening a Moroccan restaurant. But one night they were invited to a raw food restaurant -- and it changed their lives. They instead opened Pure Food and Wine, a restaurant devoted to creative, tasty raw food, and it has been drawing rave reviews. Dishes such as Zucchini and Green Zebra Tomato Lasagne, Golden Squash Pasta with Black Summer Truffles, and Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart with Vanilla Cream have given raw food a sexy new appeal. The decision to go raw was shocking at first for these two ex-carnivorous chefs, but they soon found that preparing and eating raw food made them and their guests feel their physical best. Melngailis noticed a difference almost immediately -- "Light, clean, natural, and alive foods make you feel light, clean, and more alive. And sexy." This new way of life has changed their outlook on eating and cooking and connects them to the world around them. As Kenney says, "Raw foods and the lifestyle associated with it are so compelling and complex that we will be forever learning and growing. Already it seems that we have discovered some of the magic that life offers." In this lushly photographed book, Kenney and Melngailis share some of that magic -- and show that preparing and eating raw does not mean bland, unsatisfying, or impossibly time-consuming meals. Using dehydrating, Vita-Mix blending, a nuanced understanding of spices, and unprecedented creativity, they explore a whole new outlook on raw food that transfers beautifully and easily from their kitchen to yours -- no matter what your present diet. And you'll immediately begin to reap the benefits of healthful, delicious, life-giving raw food.

SunButter Organic Sunflower Seed Spread, 16-Ounce Plastic Jars (Pack of 3)
SunButter Organic Sunflower Seed Spread, 16-Ounce Plastic Jars (Pack of 3)
List Price: $24.87
Sale Price: $18.60
You save: $6.27 (25%)
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Description

SunButter® is a great tasting alternative to peanut butter made from specially roasted sunflower seeds. All of our products are completely peanut-free;tree-nut free;and gluten free. Our sunflower seed spreads are all processed in a peanut & tree-nut free facility. SunButter® is packed with nutrition and an excellent healthy alternative to other nut butters. It is nutritionally superior to peanut butter with 1/3 the saturated fat;27% of your vitamin E in one serving;and has a much higher iron & fiber content. All of this extra nutrition is derived from the sunflower seeds which are also a great source of protein. SunButter® is an American product of Sungold Foods;Inc. The sunflower seeds used are sourced from local farmers and SunButter® is manufactured in Fargo;North Dakota. If you have any further questions or comments about our products please contact us directly at 800-437-5539 or e-mail us at sunbutter@redriv.com

Features

  • Pack of six, each jar holds 16 ounce (total of 96 ounce)
  • SunButter is a great tasting alternative to peanut butter made from specially roasted sunflower seeds
  • Product of the U.S.A
  • All of our products are completely peanut-free, tree-nut free, and gluten free
  • SunButter is packed with nutrition and an excellent healthy alternative to other nut butters
100% Organic West African Shea Butter 16 oz
100% Organic West African Shea Butter 16 oz
Sale Price: $7.50
  Eligible for free shipping!
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Description

African Shea Butter 100% Natural African Shea Butter is made from the nut of the African Shea Tree. It contains a rich amount of unremovable fatty acid which render it far superior to cocoa butter and other natural vegetable butters. this fatty is crucial to rejuvenating and moisturizing the skin. Shea Butter provides all the essential vitamins needed to make skin look and feel smoother, softer and most importantly, healthier. Its therapeutic properties protect the skin from wind, cold, sun and it helps heal wounds faster. Shea Butter stimulates cellular activity, fights the effects of aging and repairs rough, damaged skin.

Features

  • Directly from the shell
Organic Raw Pistachio Nut Butter, 8oz - Nuts Soaked and Germinated
Organic Raw Pistachio Nut Butter, 8oz - Nuts Soaked and Germinated
Sale Price: $22.49
  Eligible for free shipping!
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
See Reviews For This Product

Description

BTR? stands for Better Than Roasted. This term originated in the early days of our business, when a friend was sampling our soaked dehydrated nuts. He discovered what most people who taste these nuts realize: nuts that have been through this process taste better than roasted nuts. They?re sweeter and less dense. It?s an added bonus that nuts put through this process are also better for the body than conventionally roasted nuts. This four-fold, four day quality control process yields an extremely high-quality, fresh, sweet and crisp product. Our nuts are both healthier, and better tasting, than conventional raw or roasted nuts and seeds.

Features

  • Ingredients: Pistachio Nuts
  • Our process starts with premium, whole, certified organic nuts & seeds
  • which we then hand sort, soak, rinse and dry at a low temperature, below 108 degrees, protecting vi
  • Foods high in live enzymes require less of our own digestive enzymes, helping us to conserve enzyme
Raw Organic Macadamia Nut Butter 8 Oz.
Raw Organic Macadamia Nut Butter 8 Oz.
Sale Price: $14.99
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Description

One of our newest creations! A taste that will bring you back to a sun-filled world of times long past. Rich and flavorful.

Features

  • Alive, Organic, Fresh and Delicious
  • Sliced slowly over several days to remain fresh and alive
  • Created in Berkeley California
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