Chef Teton» Raw Food Diet

Raw Mini Mana Breads and, The Missing Link About Flax Oil!

susan — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 06:30:18 +0000

You have no doubt heard about the health benefits of Flax Oil, how it is the only oil recommended by the Gerson Institute for cancer treatment, and how effective it is in preventing heart disease, weight loss, and inflammation. And there is more. It is known to support immune function, mental clarity, flexible joints, better digestion and glowing skin! But, has anyone ever told just how DELICIOUS it is, and that it makes a great addition to steamed veggies, grains, raw food sauces, dressings, dips and much more?

The Missing Link About Flax Oil? The Flavor!

When I was playing the role of a food advocate in the mid 90’s and was a vegetarian (mostly raw food), people used to comment about how great my skin looked. I would respond by saying, “It is because of the oils”. Many vegetarians at the time had pasty looking skin that begged for good fats. Today people still comment on my skin, and I still say, “It is because of the oils”……Flax oil that is!

Now listen up because what I am about to say is vital in choosing flax oil. Not all are created equal. Trust me on this. I have tasted them all while visiting mills to see first hand how they are pressed, packaged and shipped. As we all know, fresh is best when it comes to anything. Fresh insures nutritional strength as well as flavor. That is why I choose Barlean’s.

Barlean’s is my choice because their oil is pressed then sent straight to you or the store you buy it from. It does not sit on a distributor shelf somewhere for months, and therefore does not require the extra processing often required for a safe and healthy shelf life. The processing I am speaking about often compromises flavor and texture.

Have you ever tasted the nutty flavor of fresh ground flax? Well, that is the luscious flavor that comes from Barlean’s freshly milled flax oils. Not only will a flax oil with this quality nourish you as it is meant to by Mother Nature, but it will enliven a large variety of foods and recipes.

Those of you who have my DVD’s know many ways to use Barleans Oils to enliven and enrich lots of veggies and salads. For those of you who don’t now is the time to put luscious healthy fats and oils in your body! Order Chef Teton DVD’s Now !

Here is one of the many ways I like to use Barlean’s High Lignan Flax Oil, along with a recipe for Raw Mini Mana Bread: Order
Barleans – Receive 20% off all products!

Purchase the prepared Mana Bread in whole foods grocers or make your own (recipe below).
Slice off a piece and toast lightly to warm (or place in broiler to warm for a few moments)
Pour a full tablespoon or more of Barleans High Lignan Flax Oil on top of the warm bread. Sprinkle with a Celtic Sea Salt and enjoy!

Recipe: Mini Manas (need Dehydrator or use oven at lowest temp).

Soak 2 cups of wheat berries and sprout until tails are about 1/4 inch long.
Soak a bowl (1-2 cups) of dates, figs or prunes (or another dried fruit of choice).
Soak 1 cups of walnuts for about 5 hours.
When all of the raw ingredients are ready, place wheat berries, fruit, and water in Cuizinart. Mix until moist and smooth-with a slightly chewy texture remaining.
Add extra water if needed. Dough should hold together yet be moist and easy to mold into small loaves. Add in chopped walnuts before making loaves. Dehydrate until sort of crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Store in airtight containers and refrigerate or freeze.
As you can see in the picture I like to make small “one serving” Mini Manas. They fit in the toaster and are easy for pack and go travel.
Place on plate and smother with Barleans High Lignan Flax Oil and a little Celtic sea salt. Yum!!!! (order Celtic Sea Salt or the Portugease Salt – texture and flavor to live for!)
The variations for Mini Manas is endless. For the holidays we made Mini Mana fruit cakes using a variety of dried fruits and included a variety of nuts and seeds.

Order Barlean’s Products (click here) Save 20% and have the fresh oil shipped straight to your door within a couple days.

Other highly recommended products from Barlean’s:

Their Greens are the vest best tasting…..period, as well as their coconut oil! The new Swirls are so delicious all you will need is a spoon. Go For It!

Raw Cacao Mousse

susan — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 04:42:53 +0000

Raw Cacao Mousse is by far the most delicious “healthy” dessert you have ever tasted. Instead of being made with cream and all the heavy sweet and fattening foods, it is made with avocados! Avocados make up the base for the creamy fat content. The rest of the ingredients are all healthy. Of course, there is sugar to sweeten, but not a lot. Enjoy with fresh raspberries and mint! Don’t leave these out, they just make it!

Recipe:

2 cups avocados (about 2)
½ cup + maple syrup
2-4 tbsp organic sugar (more for sweeter tooth)
2 tbsp coconut oil (Barlean’s)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
½ tsp Shoyu or salt to taste

1 cup pure raw cocoa powder – make sure it is unsweetened. If you want you can use Dark Cacao powder that is slightly roasted. It is less costly and taste great. Make sure it is unsweetened.

I pint fresh Raspberries or other tart fruit
Handful – mint leaves or use for garnish

In a food processor, blend the avocados, maple syrup, sugar, coconut oil, vanilla, balsamic and shoyu until smooth and creamy. Note: if the coconut oil is hard, heat slightly, just enough to soften so it will mix easily/

Add cocoa powder slowly and blend until smooth (sifting as you add will alleviate possibility of lumps).

Serve raspberries on top of Mousse as you desire and garnish with mint. Great in champagne classes or anyway at all.

Store in fridge up to one week in airtight container. You can also freeze it up to a month.

Click here to order Barlean’s Coconut Oil (best tasting and highest quality)

Green Smoothie Recipe with Lime

susan — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:45:24 +0000

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Question or Comment

Just wanted to share I have found THE MOST delicious ingredient for a green smoothie. A lime, complete with peel! The peel gives it such a deep fresh flavor.

Anne

Grape Juice Instead of Wine in Raw Marinara Sauce

susan — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:25:00 +0000

Hi Chef Teton,
I love your dvd’s , and spoke to you when you were on a local talk show once.
In some of your recipes that call for using wine, can I use apple or grape juice instead or something else?
Charlotte
Saugus, MA

Dear charlotte, I do not use wine in any of my raw food recipes, except the marinara sauce. I would recommend leaving the wine out of the Raw Food Marinara Recipe. Grape juice would be way to sweet. I have made it plenty of times without the wine and it is delicious!

Chef Teton

Granny Smith Apple for Green Smoothie Recipe

susan — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:18:04 +0000

I make smoothies using collard or kale(a few leaves)2 stalks celery, 1/2 or less granny smith apple, and 1 cup water, and blend it in my vita-mix, I add a couple tablespoons of lemon juice to the mixture if it’s a little strong tasting and I usually drink it all at one time and it is filling.
clean-up is much faster than if I juiced these ingredients and of course I get all the fiber this way, too.
Charlotte
Saugus, MA

Green Smoothie Recipes

susan — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:54:42 +0000

Sharon in Laguna Beach wrote asking for Green Smoothie Recipes. Here is what she wrote with my favorite recipes that follow:

“I love your Raw Food DVD’s. I have many and your’s are my favorite. The a la Oils is also great with many delicious recipes. I have a questions about vegetable soups/drinks. I love the raw food soup with avocado, but would love more greens. The powdered green drinks are awefull. I really cannot drink them. They make me feel bloated and full. I prefer real food. Do you have suggestions for an everyday green smoothie without the Avocado? Thank you so much. Sharon in Laguna Beach.”

Thank you for your letter, Sharon. Here are my favorite Green Drinks. Enjoy!

Green Smoothie Recipes – Delicious and Refreshing!

Every few days I make enough Green Smoothie to last me till the next batch. This way I do not have to make one each day, saving me time. Also, if I have it on hand then I am more likely to drink it daily. Surprisingly, it stays fresh and tasty for at least 3 days. The smoothie is usually pretty thick, so I just ad some water when I pour a glass. Store in a glass bottle and drink at least 4-6 ounces twice daily.

Click here for Green Smoothie Recipes

Raw Food Smoothie & Sorbet

susan — Sat, 09 May 2009 23:56:52 +0000

Smoothie – Sorbet Recipe Idea. Healthy snacks for kids and adults too. Returning home from a hot morning at the swap meet I wanted something cool. I remembered I had frozen blueberries in my freezer, but did not want a full on smoothie. What I wanted was something light, cool and a little sweet. I proceeded to put a cup or more of frozen blueberries in the Vita Mix with about 1/3 cup water, 1 tsp of raw honey and 2 tsp of Maple Syrup. I blended it and it hit the spot. But, I couldn’t stop there. I thought, how would this taste with a dose of Barlean’s High Lignan Flax Oil, or how about some yogurt, or protein powder? The experiment began. First I added 1 tbsp of the Barlean’s High Lignan Flax Oil. Yum. The yogurt didn’t exactly turn me on, but I might try that another time. Then I tried the same ratios of blueberries, sweeteners, water and flax oil with tbsp of vanilla protein powder. Ahhhhh, now we’re talking. This was perfect. I proceeded to transfer all my creations into small glass jars, plastic containers recycled I had from deli foods, and placed them all in the freezer for future cravings. Click here for Raw Sorbet Recipe. This is a great healthy snacks for kids. It is dairy free (you can use any type of protein powder), gluten free, very simple and you can prepare a bunch of them ahead of time.

Flax Oil

andrew — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 00:04:41 +0000

Flax Oil: Eat Like the Roman and Exhibit
Strength, Stamina, Mental Clarity and Beauty!
To many, the aroma of freshly baked bread is so pleasant that it’s almost intoxicating!

According to historical record, soldiers of the Roman Empire marched with rations of bread baked with flaxseed meal and flax seed oil 9000 years ago. They most likely felt the “grounded” feeling, a feeling of mental stability after eating their bread, just like we do today when we add it to our foods.

Additional records prove that flax was also used in India, China, Syria and Turkey for its seed and fiber to make fabric, dye, paper, fishing nets, cattle feed, medicines and soap. It’s extremely useful to us, just like coconut.

Flax may be responsible for why the Romans were so successful in their conquests.

One major reason why is that the type of fat consumed is linked with your state of mind.

In the early 1980’s, Dr. Donald O. Rudin, Director of the Department of Molecular Biology at Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute found that within two hours, patients who had various mental disorders experienced improved mood and their depression lifted with flax seed oil.

Certainly, we wouldn’t want those with mood disorders in our own military, but when you consider that omega-3s are involved in IQ and behavior, how one reacts to allergens, the status of the myelin sheath surrounding the nerves, inflammation, the ability to mentally focus, cardiovascular health and hormone modulation, flax seed meal and oil become more and more important.

One of Dr. Rudin’s patients experienced dramatically improved moods after only three days. Her marked sense of increased physical energy and unique exuberance was also exhibited in other patients in varying degrees. After six to eight weeks, most of them were sleeping better and were more energetic. They also were less anxious and depressed. Switching them back to a high omega-6 fat diet, such as one found in the American diet, resulted in a return of their symptoms.

Not Just Mental Attitude, But Other Illnesses Helped

The brain is composed of 60% fat, and nerve cells are extremely rich in omega-3 fatty acids, containing five times more omega-3 fatty acids than red blood cells.

Flax seed contains 18 carbon omega-3 fats, which can be converted to other omega-3 fats, EPA and DHA (20 and 22-carbon chain fats), although the conversion rate is low (2-15%). Still, for some who don’t eat fish, which may be a much better source of EPA and DHA because it needs no conversion in the body, adding flax seed oil may kick start health benefits. Taking 1-2 tablespoons of flax oil daily fulfills the requirement for linolenic acid, EPA and DHA, three essential fats important for preventing cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis and auto-immunity, as well as boosting our brain’s ability to think clearly without the need for mood elevators. Flax seed oil is the plant world’s most abundant source of omega-3 fats, about 55% by weight.

Researchers studied different sub-groups of the population to find possible correlations of low omega-3 fats and different health issues, and see if the addition of flax seed oil and omega-3 fats might help. Their results showed a definite correlation to those with high blood pressure, those on statin drugs that deplete the omega-3 brain fats, violent criminals, children with ADHD, women with PMS, those with calcium deposits and low bone density, and even moms who just gave birth. In addition digestion and elimination was also significantly improved.

Now that we know how to gain better focus and a happier state of mind, how about becoming more beautiful? The addition of flax oil in many people’s diets has been known to create radical improvements in skin conditions. In many cases eczema and dry skin have disappeared. With adequate supplementation of flax oil in the diet men and women alike are enjoying radiant skin, moist and lubricated for a healthy glow and shine. And, it doesn’t stop there. Hair and nails also benefit from Flax oil.

Delicious and Healthy!

Omega 3’s, which are abundant in Flax oil, are an Essential Fatty Acid (EFA). Essential Fatty Acids are absolutely necessary for healthy cell function, and the only place we can get them is through our food. What does this mean? It means that we must put good fats, like flax oil, in our daily diet to receive the benefits of healthy cell function. The good news is now we can enjoy the healthy fats that our bodies need and our palate craves.

Many low fat diets are deceiving people into depriving themselves of the good fats that contain Essential Fatty Acids. It is true that you would benefit by cutting out trans fats and other unhealthy fats, but that does not mean you have to cut out the good fats too. Bringing good fats into you life will not only benefit your health but can enhance all your meals into becoming a delicious and satisfying adventure.

We all love a good sauce on anything. Using flax oil for sauces and dressings can be one of the best ways to include more vegetables and whole foods in your diet. Making quick and easy sauces and dressing with excellent flax oil along with a couple other ingredients is actually what started my culinary career. Upon tasting my recipes, people often remarked, “What did you put on these vegetables, they are absolutely delicious”? I would answer, “Oh just a little flax oil, tamari and sesame seeds”. When they tasted my salad dressings, which were also made from a flax oil base, they would say, “What is in this dressing, I want to drink it”?

Most people are so deficient in Essential Fatty Acids that when they taste a sauce or dressing made with high-quality flax oil, their body loves it.

When counting calories and reading labels for low fat ingredients, don’t skimp on the good fats. Flax seed oil, along with some other specific ingredients, will deliver the most delicious sauce and/or dressing for steamed veggies, raw salads, grains and even fish.

Milling the Fresh Way!

Beware; all flax and other artisan oils are not created or “milled” equal.

Most oils and particularly those rich in Omega 3’s are very sensitive to light and heat. They go rancid and can loose their integrity easily. In other words, they loose their effectiveness if not milled, stored and used correctly. Some manufacturers have gone to great lengths to mill their flax oil in ways that give the oil a long shelf life so they can withstand the transportation and distribution process. These processes often change the natural nutty flavor of the flax oil. I like Barlean’s Organic Oils because they mill their oils at the time you or the store places their order. Once pressed, they are delivered straight to your door or to the store. This type of fresh express milling and delivery guarantees great tasting oils with a high level of integrity.

You can also include flax seeds in your diet. You can purchase them already ground, or grind your own. Sprinkled on top of fruit salad, cottage cheese or breakfast cereal will add great taste and a more satisfying meal. The ability of the seeds to swell up and draw water to itself also makes it an excellent binding agent for burgers, cakes and muffins. One tablespoon flax seeds together with three tablespoons water added to a recipe can substitute for one egg.

Today we have the opportunity to learn from the Romans and give ourselves excellent foods for stamina, focus, and beauty!