Published: August 18, 2008 09:50 am      

In The Raw: Raw food may support healthy weight loss, prevent disease

Today's full article by Nancy Krcek Allen appears in our print edition. Although we cannot publish Nancy's articles online, we do post her recipes:

You can purchase any of the ingredients in these recipes at Oryana.

Raw: Tabbouleh

2 servings

1 c. quinoa, rinsed and soaked for 24 hours

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 t. sea salt

1 c. seeded and diced cucumber

1 c. seeded and diced Roma tomato

1/4 c. minced red onion

1/2 c. chopped flat leaf parsley

Drain quinoa, transfer to a medium bowl and marinate in oil, lemon and salt for 30 minutes to one hour. Add remaining ingredients and toss until well incorporated. Eat immediately or let flavors marinate for an hour prior to serving.

-- Adapted from "Everyday Raw"

Raw: Spicy Thai Vegetable Wraps

Makes 12 wraps

Wraps:

1/2 c. chopped raw cashews

1 T. Asian toasted sesame oil

1/2 t. sea salt

1/4 c. maple syrup or agave syrup

1/2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 T. peeled, chopped gingerroot

1 T. chopped red chile, seeds included

1 1/2 T. nama shoyu (or Japanese soy sauce) *

1 c. raw almond butter

1/2 head Savoy cabbage, finely shredded

6 very large collard greens leaves

1 large carrot, cut into matchstick pieces

1 large ripe mango, peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch strips

2 c. bean sprouts

1 handful cilantro leaves

1 handful torn basil leaves

1/2 handful mint leaves, torn if large

* Nama shoyu is soy sauce that has not been heated.

Tamarind dipping sauce:

1 c. soaked and strained tamarind pulp, see note below

3 T. maple syrup

1 T. nama shoyu

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

pinch of sea salt

Mix the cashews, sesame oil and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

In a high speed blender or Vita Mix, purée the maple or agave, lemon, ginger, chile and nama shoyu. Add the almond butter and blend at low speed to combine. Add water to thin-- you want a thick, cake-batter like consistency. In a medium bowl, toss the cabbage and almond butter mixture well.

Place tamarind pulp, maple syrup, nama shoyu and oil in clean blender and purée until smooth. Taste and season with salt, if necessary. Pour into a serving bowl and set aside. (You may refrigerate it for up to 2 days.)

Cut out the center rib of each collard leaf and divide leaf in half. Place one-half leaf on cutting board with the underside facing up. Arrange a few tablespoons of cabbage mixture evenly across the bottom third of the leaf, leaving about 1 1/2 inches clear at the bottom. Sprinkle some of chopped cashew mixture over the cabbage. Lay on a few sticks of carrot, a few strips of mango and a few sprouts. Top with a few leaves of cilantro, basil and mint.

Fold the bottom of the collard leaf up and over the filling, keeping it tight and tuck the leaf under the ingredients and roll forward. Place the roll, seam side down on a serving dish. Repeat with remaining collard leaves. Serve with tamarind dipping sauce.

For the tamarind pulp: you can find sun-dried bricks at Asian, Latin and Indian markets. Pull off what you need and soak it in a little warm water for 15 minutes. Strain the pulp and liquid through a fine-mesh colander into a bowl to catch the usable diluted pulp, leaving seeds and fiber in the mesh strainer to discard.

-- Adapted from "Raw Food, Real World"