Sweet Sun-Breads and Un-Cookies

Un-Cookies with Fresh Peaches!

It's June and the peaches from Fresh Connect are divine!

I made this un-cookie recipe to compliment their flavor and give a "peach-pie" taste- sensation to my favorite family members. If you have an Excalibur dehydrator, you can put the buckwheat cookie "dough" in a pie plate and make a crust (dehydrate at 110 degrees for 2 hours or until firm to the touch.) Fill with slices of fresh or marinated peaches*, sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon and orange juice return to the dehydrator to desired "done-ness" or serve fresh.

If you only have a few peaches, or if you have a Nessco dehydrator like mine, make un-cookies in the shape of peach slices and top each cookie with a small pile of sliced fresh peaches.

*Marinated Peaches (stay gooey-good for days and days)

For a more traditional "cooked" flavor, marinate the peach slices in cinnamon and orange juice a a splash of grade B maple syrup in a glass container in the fridge. Toss to coat the peaches occasionally. Use these "wilted" peaches as a topping or filling. You can also use some Cashew Cream "frosting" to "glue" the peaches to the cookies when serving. If using the marinated peaches, add some of the "syrup" formed by marinating the peaches to the frosting recipe. (See below)

I also made an apple-cinnamon-banana sun-bread at the same time. The ingredients complement each other and it saves a wash-up. Sun-breads and un-cookies can be frozen (and thawed in the dehydrator) for longer shelf-life. Be sure to remove some when they are still sticky-moist to reserve for later use.

Buckwheat Grout Un-cookies (or pie crust for fruit pie)

You will need a food processor fitted with an S-blade and a dehydrator with temperature settings below 110 degrees.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dry-measure buckwheat grouts (sprouted 3 days)
• 1/2 cup dry-measure raw pumpkin seeds (soaked 1 hour or sprouted)
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 1 apple cored and chopped
• 1/4 cup ground golden flax seed (optional)
• 1 inch fresh grated ginger
• 2 whole vanilla beans, scraped (or 2 tsp. vanilla powder)
• 1/2 nutmeg corn, grated
• 1 tsp allspice and/or cinnamon
• 1/2 cup soaked flame raisins (plus more for garnish, if making un-cookies)
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• very small pinch of cayenne
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
• clean source water
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup raw walnut or sunflower oil
• rose water (optional)
• 2 TBS heather or lavender flowers and leaves chopped (optional)
• Garnish with fresh mint leaves (optional)

Instructions:

Rinse the buckwheat grouts and seeds and discard the liquid. Seeds can be wet, just do not include the soaking water. Place all ingredients in the food processor, adding oil and herbs last. Process, scraping down the sides often and drizzling the oil as the processor runs until a smooth batter forms. Adjust for salt or sweet by adding more honey or sea salt. Remember the flavors will intensify with dehydration.

Spoon onto Teflex sheets or press a thin layer into an oiled pie plate. (Coconut, sunflower or walnut oil work well). Brush to top of the pie crust with oil. (You may have to dehydrate for an hour or so before you can brush the pie crust.) If you are planning to serve the entire pie immediately, you can skip this step. The oil creates a barrier that helps keep the peach juices from re-hydrating the crust, causing it to fall apart. If making the un-cookies, garnish the tops of each with soaked raisins. Tapp them in a bit to keep them soft after dehydrating. Dehydrate at 110 degrees until desired crispness is achieved. Flip cookies once.

If you like a cobler-like "crumbly top" for your peach pie, grind Brazil nuts in a spice mill with a pinch of living rock salt and the "pie" spices. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the peaches. You can also make this topping in advance and dehydrate to a dryer, more crumbly consistency. Store in the fridge until ready to use.

If you want to save some for later use, take the un-cookies out of the dehydrator while still soft and gooey in the middle, freeze or refrigerate on parchment. Reheat when ready to use by placing in the dehydrator at 110 degrees.

Banana-nut Sun-bread Recipe

You will need a food processor fitted with an S-blade and a dehydrator with temperature settings below 110 degrees.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dry-measure buckwheat grouts (sprouted 3 days)
• 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds or sprouted sunflower seeds (soaked one hour or sprouted)
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 1 apple cored and chopped
• 1 or 2 ripe bananas (the more banana you add the more moist the bread will be)
• 1/2-inch grated ginger
• 2 whole vanilla beans, scraped (or 2 tsp. vanilla powder)
• 1/2 nutmeg corn, grated
• 1/2 cup soaked raisins or dates
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• very small pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
• clean source water
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup raw walnut or sunflower oil
• rose water (optional)
• 2 TBS heather or lavender flowers and leaves chopped (optional)
• 1 to 1 1/2 cup of pecans and/or walnuts (soaked, rinsed and chopped.)

Instructions:

Rinse the buckwheat grouts and seeds and discard the liquid. Seeds can be wet, just do not include the soaking water.

Place all ingredients (except the nuts) in the food processor, adding oil and herbs last. Process, scraping down the sides often and drizzling the oil as the processor runs, until a smooth batter forms. Add nuts, pulse to blend and chop or add last and stir in with a spoon.

Spoon batter onto Teflex sheets as individual serving sizes or form manna-sized loaves. Dehydrate at 110 degrees until desired crispness is achieved. Flip once. If you want to save some for later use, take them out while still soft and gooey in the middle, freeze or refrigerate on parchment. Reheat when ready to use by placing in the dehydrator at 110 degrees.

Raw Cashew Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 cup un-roasted whole cashews (soaked at least one hour)
• 1/3 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice
• 1 tsp of orange zest
• pinch of fresh-ground nutmeg
• pinch of Himalayan pink salt (or other high-quality living salt)
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 1/2 tsp of rose water (optional)
• 1 TBS unprocessed arrow root powder

( If using the marinated peaches, add some of the "syrup" formed by marinating the peaches to the frosting recipe.)

Instructions:

In food processor fitted with an S-blade, process until creamy. Refrigerate until ready to use.

TIP: Make tea before you toss small, flavorful, scraps into the compost. If using the herbs and ginger, take the coarse parts of the ginger peel, the lavender and/or mint stems and vanilla bean pod (after scraping) to make a light and lovely, mood-enhancing, cleansing tea. Place "scraps" in a stainless steel pan with clean source water, bring to a boil, let steep for 10 minutes or so. Strain into a cup. Sweeten with honey, as desired.

Keep a lot of empty space around your dehydrator for best results.

Raw "Cheeze Cake" : better than the real thing!

Inspired by Cynthia's Winter Solstice Chocolate Moose, this delicacy has many variations but one thing in common: Avocados. Yup. I didn't believe it until i tried it. It's smooth, silky, chocolate yumminess without a clue to the main ingredient. Not that I don't love avocados, BOY, do I?! However, this is worth sacrificing the guacamoli or purchasing extra. They are in abundance this time of year. You can add-on Organic Avo's to your Fresh-Connect home delivery for $1.50 each. worth it! They are twice that in the store.

Turn's out, it's fairly common in raw food circles to whip up a batch of coaco-enhanced avo-meat. Check the dessert section of any reputable raw foodie un-cookbook. you will find at least one raw chocolate or carob dessert made with the secret ingredient: alligator pear!

Avocados are a healthy fat, complete protien and packed with: vitamins E and K, dietary fiber, folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin C, trace minerals, oleic acid, (a monounsaturated fat that may help lower cholesterol.), potassium (a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure)

All ingredients are organic.

Start with a Nut-Crust of Choice. My two favorites are Peanut/Pumpkin Seed and Hazelnut Date

Peanut/Pumpkin Seed Nut-Crust

You will need: 1 glass dish or pie plate, flat-bladed food-processor (Cuisinart), refrigeration.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of dry or soaked pumpkin seeds
• 1 cup roasted peanut stock (from New Mexico)*
• 3 or 4 soaked majool dates (soaking water reserved)
• Soaking water from the dates, as needed
• ¼ cup grade B maple syrup
• ½ tsp of living sea salt
• ½ cup coconut butter
• ¼ cup coconut oil plus a bit more the oil the glass dish
• ¼ cup wild-crafted mesquite pod meal (optional)
• seeds of a whole cured vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla caviar (optional)
• ½ tsp of pure almond extract (optional)

Process in flat-bladed food processor to desired consistency. Add small amounts of the soaking water from the dates and scrape down the sides of the processor bowl frequently. You can pulse it into a course and crunchy crust, or a consistently smooth dough. I like course and crunchy and it’s easier to work with. Use wet hands to press crust into a glass dish. Pop it in the freezer while you make the filling.

Option #2: Hazelnut-Date Crust

Same as above. Substitute 2 cups of soaked or dry hazelnuts for the peanuts and pumpkin seeds. Or use half pumpkin seeds, half hazelnuts or any fraction you’d like. It’s a very forgiving recipe as long as you keep it fairly sticky, but not too dry. Avoid too much liquid. If it does become to wet, add lucuma powder or tocol trinols to desired consistency. It will firm up when chilled.

Chocolate Filling

• 2 or 3 pitted medjool dates, soaked (soaking water reserved)
• seeds of two whole cured vanilla beans or vanilla caviar, in a pinch, natural vanilla extract
• Fruit meat from 3 or 4 ripe mashed avocados
• 1/4 cup grade B maple syrup
• 2 to 3 TBs of raw honey
• 1/4 cup of coconut butter (optional, but, will have a lighter texture without it)
• 2 TBs of coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of raw carob powder
• 2 to 3 TBS of raw cacao powder (For color. Carob alone makes a murky greyish green color pie.)
• soaking water from the dates

Place the dates, maple syrup, coconut butter and vanilla in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the avocado, 2 TBs coconut oil, raw honey, carob and cacao powders. Blend until creamy, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides. Add the date-soak-water as needed. Take out 2 to 4 small protions to eat as “mousse” at room temp. Fill crust with the rest. Chill until sliceable. Will keep for three days in the refrigerator or two weeks in the freezer.

Variations: Omit the water and use as mouse as a frosting for uncookies. Double the water to use as chocolate sauce. Freeze for 4 hours then thaw 15 minutes to use as frozen custard.

Top with fancy stuff that you like!

Other Cool Stuff to Do with Avocados Disguised as Chocolate Mousse:

Mesquite Almond Spoon Truffles

Add mesquite pod meal and sprouted almonds in amounts to your liking to the Chocolate Filling recipe above, eat by the spoonful! Be creative, you can ad whatever you want! Who's going to argue with that!? Here, have a whole spoonful of goodness for goodness sake!

Fancy Freezer Truffles

Use a melon-baller dipped in oil to form little round globes of Chocolate Filling. Decorate with fancy stuff like: sprouted almond "leaves", black walnut bits, candied flower pedals and berries of all types. Serve chilled. Don't worry if you forget to pass out the napkins. There will be finger-licking, even among the most polite.