Green Smoothies – ‘to be or not to be’?

Recently I received an e-mail detailing the negative experience of drinking Green Smoothies daily, the greens in question are spinach and kale the regular guys who find themselves thrown into the smoothie mix, the term negative experience is open to interpretation and I intend to leave it that way! The interesting topic is what is healthy? Now everyone believes a green smoothie to be a healthy drink and this person certainly did in the beginning, however that is not the case now.

For me Green Smoothies are awesome I love them just the other day I had a green smoothie, well actually it was closer to brown, which had the following ingredients:

• Wild Rocket (from our garden)
• Wild Dandelion Leaves (from our garden)
• Organic Black Kale Leaves
• Frozen mixed berries
• 2 Banana’s
• 4 dates (pitted)
• 2 star anise seeds
• 1 Cardamon Pod

I have to say it tasted earthy and that’s the key here, green smoothies are an earthy experience, if we quickly look at the Chinese five elements practice then green smoothies are the element of earth. This is a bit out there and requires an open mind, now I am born an air sign and absolutely love the earthy taste of bitter greens; it balances my elements, if, however I was already an earth sign and Kapha dominant as a dosha from Ayurveda then I am not going to need the earthy greens that a fiery pitta air sign does (forgive the use of Dosha – mind, body constitutions from ayurveda, the intention is not to confuse, but to merely show that through astrology, ancient healing/medicine systems of China and India, we learn that we are all very unique).

With this uniqueness we are going to become very aware that one dress does not fit all sizes and that one mans rubbish is another mans treasure. This person has done well to recognise that Green Smoothies do not work as a healthy tool and has moved on and learnt a lot from that experience.

Smoothies and Juices alike have come under fire for various reasons including; plastics leaching into the drink, electrical heating at fast speeds disrupts the structure of the food stuff, any refinement is de-naturing and most smoothies/juices break food combining rules.

Truth is there and there is also truth in the fact that the soil is mineral depleted and the need for more fruits and vegetables in our diet is ever more important and that smoothies/juices are a viable option for curing this problem.

The problem lies in the simple fact that we have moved so far from nature that we do not fully understand our own nature, we jump on board too easily with the latest craze never checking in to see if its right for us and when I say checking in I am referring to your gut, we say it all the time – ‘I had a gut instinct about that’, ‘I should trust my gut’. There in lies your answers (your answers) trust yourself.

Fads and great advice will be given all the time and contradictory research and evidence will come flying out of the wood work to disprove it as soon as it has gained a following, with that in mind trust yourself each and every time, if you drink a green smoothie and you feel great then there’s your answer and if you get the opposite experience then there’s your answer and its the right answer for you, is it the right answer for everyone? I do not need to answer that for it is obvious.

When we get talking about smoothies and juices the topic of raw food comes up and again; ‘to be or not to be’? again for fear of repetition – you’re the boss, for me raw, wild foraged and seasonal food is the ultimate ideal nourishment and maybe beyond that living of breath like breatharians for they have mastered the flow and balance of the universal energies (again your mind might be having spasms at the thought of that one, but fear not you can still eat your food and be right :).

In summary if what your eating and drinking is making you the best, most authentic, happy, vibrant and healthy version of you that you can be keep doing that, if you need to change then change, only you can master you, others can have insight, but ultimately this round is yours for the taking.

To you all in great health

Matt

The Yoga Health Coach

Raw Easter Egg Success

I had to post this as I was a very happy camper on easter sunday and so was my little family when we dived into our raw easter eggs and they tasted rawsome. Heres the recipe: 50g – Cacao Butter 50g- Cacao Liquor 2 tbsp – Coconut Oil 2 tbsp – Maple Syrup 1 tsp – Vanilla Extract 1 pinch – sea salt the alchemy: melt the cacao butter, liquor and coconut oil in a Bain Marie. When they have nearly melted add the other ingredients and then stir until an even smooth texture has been achieved. Pour the liquid into the egg moulds at this point you can add gogi berries, hemp seeds, buckwheaties or any other sprinkle to add flavour and texture to your eggs. Pop them in the fridge and a couple of hours later viola. one tip when the mixture is still liquid taste to see if you need to add any other flavouring such as more salt or sweetener, or you may want to add a spice. Its at that point you can make the flavour your own. Enjoy Matt The Yoga Health Coach.

Raw Pancake Birthday Cake

Last Tuesday was my birthday and my wonderful wife or I prefer soul mate Adele decided she would make me a cake! Adele has many strengths, the kitchen is not one of them, however with a little bit of help from Evie’s Kitchen by Shazzie she pulled of a wonderful birthday/pancake cake drizzled in chocolate sauce.

Cheers Adele I loved it.

Pancake Ingredients:

500ml Water
150g – Raw Buckwheat
100g – Flax Seed
100g – macadamia nuts
Maple syrup – sweeten to your liking – 50ml + worked well, at first we only added 20ml to the mixture and it was more savoury than sweet.
Pinch of salt (we used Celtic sea salt).

Chocolate Sauce:
100g – Cacao Butter
50g – Coconut Oil
2-4 tbsp – Cacao Powder (taste to your liking)
Maple Syrup (this recipe is getting naughty and the naughtier you want just add more, I would remember karma at this point though).

Creating the magic:

Measure all your ingredients out, the buckwheat needs to soak for about 20-25 minutes and the water from that discard. The flax seed needs grinding down in either a high speed blender or coffee grinder. Then all the ingredients need to be added to a high speed blender and blended until you achieve that batter consistency; its at this point you taste the mixture to see which way you want it to go – sweet or savoury?
Then pour/divide the mixture onto dehydrator sheets constructing 8-9 round circles, we achieved 9 out of our batch, but more is not better you may make thicker pancakes or thinner ones, your shout.
They will then need to be in the dehydrator for 6 hours on 115 degrees F, flip them over but onto the grilled/holed sheets now so the air can completely circulate then they will need upto and maybe beyond another 2 hours in the dehydrator, all depends on how thick your pancakes are.
When there nice and warm and looking ready to go, get to work on your sauce. Get a pan of hot water place a Bain Marie on top put all the ingredients in and stir until melted, once melted stack your pancakes on top of each other and pour the sauce on top, viola.
Very filling, but very yummy

Please not the majority of this recipe came from Evie’s Kitchen by Shazzie, we changed the sweetener, turned it into a stacked cake and added some yummy sauce, which if you ask me took it to another level.

To you all in great health

Happy Pancake day

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach

Hemp Refresher

I Could not resist we had watermelon and pomegranates hanging around and two hemp plants in full bloom; a match made in heaven.

Ingredients:

Large chunk of watermelon
One pomegranate
A couple of hemp leaves

Method:

The simple things in life are simple and such is the case here; pop them in a blender with some water and then enjoy the magic after.

To great health

Matt
The Yoga Health Coach

Raw Cacao Cheeze Cake

Well this cake was a last minute throw it altogether number and it kinda turned out pretty awesome and so I have shared it to the best of my ability.

Equipment:

Vita Mix (high speed blender)
Bain Marie
8″ Cake Tin

Ingredients Base:

300g – cashew nuts
100g – sunflower seeds
1 – handful of hemp seeds
150g – organic currants

Ingredients cake filling:

100g – Cacao Butter
50g – Cacao Paste/liquor
4 – tbsp – coconut oil
300 – 500ml – spring water
1 – pinch of sea salt
100ml – Maple Syrup (this was not raw)
4 – fresh dates (pitted)
6 tbsp – Coconut Flour (not raw)

Ingredients – Topping:

Buckwheaties (dehydrated sprouted buckwheat)
Hemp Seeds

Method

Start by making the base; place all the ingredients into the blender and blend until sticky, then empty into the cake tin and create your base. Next bring some water to the boil and then simmer to melt the cacao butter, paste/liquor and coconut oil using the Bain Marie. Place all the other ingredients into the blender and when the cacao has melted add it to the blender and blend; it was at this point I thought I had lost it because the texture was all wrong so to save it I added extra water (you will know what I mean by wrong if you get there, water will save you).
Pour the filling on top of the base and then add the toppings; place in the fridge and leave for a couple of hours.

Please note the measurements are not exact in fact I didn’t measure anything out, but I roughly from experience used the measurements mentioned, however I share because, well I thought I had messed this cake up, but I kept going; managed to rescue it and it was fantastic and my 3yr old son agrees; so this is more about creating your own cake with the help of a very rough guide.

Enjoy

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach

The Raw Zinger Mousse

The Raw Zinger Mousse is pretty special why? Well it’s a dessert so that makes it a treat, but unlike most desserts/treats that leave you feeling slightly naughty and guilty this little warrior is a healer and especially at this time of year with a rise in coughs, colds, flus and overall poor health.
The Zinger part of the mousse is a jewel of the healing world turmeric, which in short dries up the mucous and removes it safely from your body, it is so awesome you could be suffering from tonsillitis and rather than suffer the best part of 1-2 weeks you could be on your way to great health in just a couple of days when you add this little jewel to your pantry. Like all things in life the magic occurs when your in a relationship and for this Zinger relationship we have coupled turmeric with ginger, which needs no introduction, we all no this fiery root is a great healer.
As usual I put together this dessert with no attention to detail, but simply through feeling the balance of the flavours as I was creating it and I encourage you to do the same remember mistakes are ok and it’s better to make mistakes and learn than follow blindly in my humble opinion. Below are the ingredients I used:

Ingredients:

Fresh Turmeric Root
Fresh Ginger root
Filtered water (about 300ml)
1tbsp – coconut oil
1 – Avocado
2 tbsp – Cacao powder
1 – pinch Himalayan salt
1/2 tsp – spirulina powder
Cashew nuts
Flax seeds
6 – fresh dates (pitted)

Method:

Take the skin of the turmeric and ginger and place all ingredients into a high speed blender (vita mix or similar), you will need a high speed blender if adding the cashew nuts and flax seeds, if you don’t have a high speed blender leave those ingredients out; you can grind the flax seeds in a coffee grinder if you have one of those. Pour the smooth mixture into your serving bowls and place in the fridge, the longer you leave them in the fridge the harder they will set. Take out sprinkle some hemp seeds or anything else you wish to on top and dive into your Zinger for great health.

Another great use for turmeric is tea:

Ingredients:

Fresh Turmeric
Lemon
Fresh Ginger
Honey

Method:

Blend the ingredients in a blender except the honey, then place in a sauce pan and heat. Pour the tea through a strainer and then add the honey. Cheers to great health.

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach

Yin & Yang Raw Dessert

This yin and yang dessert was created to show the balance of life in rawsome desserts. Enjoy and have a wonderful 2014.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp Cacao Powder
4 Dried Apricots
6 fresh dates (pitted)
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1/2 tbsp coconut oil
100g cashew nuts
1 avocado
200 ml filtered water
1 tsp of flax seed
1 pinch Himalayan Rock Salt
1/2 tub of probiotic coconut yoghurt (dairy free & was purchased from a local shop)
Black & white sesame seeds to dress.

Method.

Place all ingredients except the coconut yoghurt and sesame seeds into a high speed blender such as a vitamix and blend until smooth. Fill half your dessert pot with the coconut yoghurt and then fill the other half with your cacao cream; finish by placing the black sesame seeds on the coconut yoghurt and the white sesame seeds on the cacao cream.

Serve and enjoy

Matt
The Yoga Health Coach
Place

Raw Vanilla Cheescake

My son turned 3 years old the other day and he requested a cake for his birthday, no problem I have been making cakes for years, but here’s my problem! It was awesome the best ever and I have no idea what quantities I used and have a vague recollection of most of the ingredients; the thing is when you are use to creating anything you simply go by instinct and intuition and the only real reason it’s a problem is it becomes more problematic sharing your creation, but as they say ‘a picture speaks a thousand words.’

Ingredients.
Base.

100g – Almonds
100g – Pecans
50g – Currants
50g – Coconut flour
Pinch of Himalayan Salt

Middle layer.
50g – Cacao butter
50g – Cacao paste
80g – Coconut oil
1 tbsp – molasses
1/2 – pomegranate

Topping.
50g – Pecans
50g – Cacao butter
100g – Coconut oil
100g – Cashew nuts
1 tsp – Vanilla powder
8 – dried apricots
1 tbsp – wild honey
1 pinch sea salt

Note – nuts, cacao butter, cacao paste, currants and coconut oil are guesstimates on the quantities used.

Method.
Prepare the base first, I used an 8 inch cake tin. Blend all the base ingredients together and place into the base of the cake tin. The cacao paste, cacao butter & coconut oil need to be melted down to liquid using a Bain Marie; then pour the cacao liquid (molasses added at this point) on top of the base and sprinkle the pomegranate over the top, place into the fridge to set/harden. To make the topping you will need to melt down the cacao butter & coconut oil and add all the ingredients to the blender, blend until thick and creamy (you will need to keep adding water until you get the right consistency, don’t rush this part as your cake will either win or loose at this part). Place in the fridge and leave to set for 24 hours and then serve with a sprinkle of cacao nibs on top.

To you in great health

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach

Pumpkin Pie

I made this cake for my wife’s 30th birthday, she wanted to mix birthday and Halloween celebrations together & the Raw Food Chef had this recipe. I’m sure I will make an extra cake this week to celebrate Halloween and I may make this one again as it was a hit with the whole family including my nearly 3 year old son.

Ingredients:
Base.

1/4 Cup – Coconut Flour
1/4 Cup – Oat Flour
7 – Dried Apricots
1/2 Cup -Sultanas
1 1/2 Cups – Pecans
2 tbsp – Honey
3 tbsp – Coconut Oil
1/2 tsp – Lemon Juice
Pinch salt (pink rock salt)

Filling:
1 Cup – Chopped Pumpkin
1 8 oz Glass – Carrot Juice
1 3/4 Cups – Cashew Nuts
1/4 Cup – Honey
1/2 Cup – Coconut Oil
1 tsp – Vanilla Powder
1 tbsp – Lemon Juice
Pinch salt
3 tsp – Mixed Spice

Decoration:
Clementine Segments

Method:
Make the base first by blending all the ingredients together and placing the mixture into an 8 inch cake tin base. Then add the filling to ideally a high speed blender and blend till smooth; note that the liquid is smooth and runny so leave in the blender for a few moments to thicken up before pouring over the base. Add to the fridge and enjoy the next day. Dress your cake with the clementine segments, cut the cake, make a wish & serve.

Enjoy

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach

Big Green Inspiration

Hi everyone I wanted to share this. I posted about the Big Green a few weeks ago and it’s so awesome I feel the need to share its awesomeness again, however the ingredients have changed and that’s part of its beauty; it’s ability to change to be something slightly different every time you make it, but one thing stays the same and that’s that it makes you want to sing and dance. It gets a bit messy enjoy.

Ingredients:
Dinosaur Kale leaves
Sauerkraut
Sundried tomatoes
Tomatoes
Olives
Grapes
Ground hemp seed
Cucumber

Dressing:
Olive oil, tahini, apple cider vinegar and Himalayan rock salt

Method:
Prepare your dressing in a bowl, then spread on the base of your kale leaf then add the ingredients; pop on the other kale leaf as a lid and welcome. Note I ground up my hemp seeds in a coffee grinder.

Note:
I have not provided quantities as you are an intuitive and instinctive creator who knows how you love to roll.

Enjoy.

To you all in Great Health

Matt Allen
The Yoga Health Coach