Why hello there everyone, it's me, Aya. It's not a name you read often on the blog these days because my posting speed is about as rapid as a sloth strapped onto a turtle walking towards a fan blowing in the opposite direction. But I also understand that you guys are not waiting in front of your laptops all day, waiting to hear word from me (although you guys could lie and tell me you are anyway to inflate my ego because my ego loves that).

Lately I've been obsessed with this red smoothie. I'm usually a green smoothie kind of girl but I started buying beets every week and now I can't get enough of this stuff. It's a drug, it's an addiction, it's real life. For fun and because Halloween is right around the corner (in 2 weeks time to be exact), I'm also calling it blood juice though it tastes better than blood and is cruelty free!

Healthy Appetite's Blood Juice
Serves 1

Ingredients
1 large banana, sliced (ripe, with spots)
1 medium large pear, diced (I use two here but they are very small and had many bad spots that I cut off)
80 g cooked beets, diced (about 1 small beet)
1/2 cup frozen or fresh raspberries
1 teaspoon acai pulver (optional)

Place all ingredients into a blender and blend with 3/4 cup of water or coconut water. Pour in a glass and enjoy!

Blood Juice a.k.a. »my« Red Smoothie

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• beverage breakfast drinks fruit halloween no-bake recipe vegan •
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• by Aya S
  Aya S

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Hello everyone and TGIF! Sorry I've been missing from the blog-o-sphere; I've been a tad occupied with school, babysitting, and working out. Also I've just seen the Aliens trilogy for the first time recently and didn't realize how amazing they are! Not to mention I watched Lord of the Rings for the first time this Summer too. Have I been living under a rock or what?

Speaking of rocks, this pie rocks.

. . . okay, that was an incredibly uncreative way to dive into the recipe but my brain is really only half functional at midnight anyway (do you feel me?) I'll make up for it by giving you this insanely delicious recipe. It's very similar to my raw apple tart from last year but with a few additional steps and ingredients.




Raw Vegan Apple Pie
Serves 6-8

Ingredients
Crust:
1 1/2 cups walnuts (you can also use almonds or a mixture)
8 pitted deglet noor dates (or 6 medjool dates), diced
1 tsp cinnamon

Filling:
1 1/2 cups walnuts, soaked in water
6 pitted deglet noor dates (4 medjool), diced
1 knob of ginger (about 1/2 tsp), minced
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 inch piece of vanilla, or 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup water

Layer & Topping:
3 medium apples, thinly sliced

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Soak the filling walnuts in water for at least 2 hours (the longer you soak, the softer and creamier they will be--if you have the time, soak overnight).

Prepare the crust: pulse in a food processor the nuts until they become coarse granules. Add the dates and the cinnamon and pulse until the "dough" comes together. Press into a 9 in/23 cm round cake pan (it's important to use one that unclips on the side for easy removal) and chill in the fridge until the filling is done.

Prepare the filling: drain the nuts and pour into the same food processor along with the 1/4 cup of fresh water. Depending on how long you soaked them and the power of your machine, it may take longer than a few minutes. Add the rest of the filling ingredients and pulse until a thick paste is formed and everything is well combined (make sure to scrape the sides every few seconds during this process for best results).

Prepare the pie: Take the crust out of the fridge and spread about 3-4 tablespoons of the filling mixture on top (essentially just enough to form a thin layer of the walnut cream). Now create a layer of sliced apples. Repeat these steps until the filling is used up and you have just enough apples to garnish the pie. Chill in the fridge for an hour before serving, then sprinkle cinnamon on top. Guten Appetit!

Raw Apple Pie

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• autumn dessert gluten free no-bake raw recipe sweets vegan •
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• by Aya S
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It seems Fall brings out the desire in me to make raw treats. It makes absolutely no sense since the colder it gets, the more people are likely to want to turn on the oven. Well for me, I get mega lazy this time of year. We're talking let-me-drink-this-chai-tea-for-several-hours-while-watching-youtube-wrapped-in-my-ikea-blanket lazy. So if I can just whip up a dessert without turning on the oven and cutting baking paper to fit the bottom of my cake pan, I will.

Now I'm going to try and refrain from saying this is one of the best things I've made lately on a whim BUT GUYS, this is really freaking good. I want to take this gooey mess and put my face all up in it the way Bruce Bogtrotter did with that chocolate cake in Matilda. Except it's not a punishment. Oh, and it's dare I say it, good for you.

Raw Chocolate Walnut Brownie
with Cinnamon "Cream Cheese" Frosting
Makes 4 Brownies

For the Brownie
3/4 cup of dates, pitted (mejool or deglet noor dates preferrably)
1/4 cup of almonds, ground
1 1/2 tsp cocoa powder
pinch of sea salt
walnuts for studding

For the Frosting
1/2 cup of walnuts, soaked + 1 tbsp of soaking water
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp maple syrup or 2 dates

Start by soaking your frosting walnuts in water for 30 minutes, making sure the water covers them completely.

Chop up dates into pieces and place in a blender or food processor. Pulse until it comes together to form a sticky paste (if your dates are not soft enough, have them soak in water for 15 minutes before pulsing). Add your ground almonds and pulse again. Pour out into a bowl and add the cocoa and sea salt. Mix with a spoon until the mixture is the same dark brown throughout (it might seem crumbly at first but it will eventually come together). Using plastic wrap, shape the "dough" into a 6" x 6" square. Push in walnut pieces throughout the square, then wrap and store in the fridge.

In the meanwhile, drain your walnuts, leaving a tablespoon of the soaking water. In the same machine you used to pulse the dates, do the same for the walnuts until it has a chunky cream cheese like consistency. Add cinnamon and maple syrup (or dates if you want to keep it purely raw).

Cut the brownie into 4 squares. Top with the frosting and top with walnuts and extra cinnamon if you'd like. Enjoy!

Raw Chocolate Walnut Brownie with Cinnamon "Cream Cheese" Frosting

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• chocolate dessert gluten free no-bake raw recipe sugar free sweets vegan •
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• by Aya S
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Some days I wake up in the morning and take time to cook oats or cut up a bunch of fruit for a layered yogurt parfait. Other days, I pour cereal into my bowl and stare into the distance until my cornflakes get soggy.

Then there's my lazy fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt that comes in between. Easy and involves no cooking, you can make it with fresh or frozen fruit (the difference will be in the texture--frozen will produce an icier, thicker product).

Lazy Aya's Fruit-on-the-Bottom Yogurt
Serves 1

1/4 cup Yogurt of Choice
1/4 cup of Frozen or Fresh Fruit
1 tbsp Ground Flax* (or whole, as it will grind in the blender)
3-6 drops of Stevia**



Blend your fruit and flax together with 2 tablespoons or so of water until smooth. Drop stevia into the fruit blend and mix. Place it in a bowl and top with a layer of yogurt.

*The flax is added for extra fiber and as a thickener. You can omit it if you don't have it on hand.
**Depending on how sweet your fruit is, you may not even need the Stevia.



I personally don't like my fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt fully mixed because swirled just looks so much more appetizing.

Enjoy!

Lazy Aya's Fruit on the Bottom Yogurt

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• breakfast fruit no-bake recipe snacks •
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• by Aya S
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