Here’s a super fast and easy recipe I made the other day when I had very little time to eat, but needed a break from my computer for a few short minutes. I didn’t feel like a green salad, and wanted something a bit more substantial.

Zucchini noodles tossed with diced tomatoes and avocado with a touch of garlic, rosemary, and oregano for an Italian flavor. This is delicious and beautiful.

Simple Rosemary Oregano Noodle Salad
Makes 1 serving

• 1 cup zucchini noodles, from about 1/2 zucchini, spiralized
• 1/2 cup diced tomato
• 1/2 cup diced avocado, peeled and seeded
• 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/8 teaspoon rosemary, dry
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano, dry
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Place all ingredients into a mixing bowl. Toss to mix.

To serve, transfer into bowl. Garnish with 1 tablespoon hemp nut.

Enjoy immediately.

I love my raw food sea vegetables for chlorophyll, vitamins and minerals from the ocean, iodine, and all things good for my health. Iodine works with our thyroid to help regulate our metabolism. Plus, I just love how sea vegetables taste. They’re naturally ‘salty’ from potassium rather than sodium. They’re a great add-on to any dish, and also make for a great recipe all on their own. I enjoy nori pretty much daily, wrapped up to hold my favorite fillings….like this arame salad.

Super fast and easy to make, this is a great recipe for when I’m short of fresh ingredients in my house. Seaweed is dried and shelf stable, and  I always have hijiki, arame, and nori on hand.

My new favorite spice is yuzu paste. Found at Japanese markets, the paste is made with an aromatic, sour Asian citrus fruit (yuzu) that’s highly salted with spicy chili added to the mix. It has a pungent flavor with kick of spice and salt, and I like to add a tiny bit of it to some recipes, like this one. If you can’t find yuzu paste, you can just use pinches of salt and chili pepper instead.

The following recipe is super simple, easy and fast to make. It’s how I feed myself on busy days when I don’t have time to spend in the kitchen. I hope you’ll enjoy this. If you want to make it more complex, try adding in a bit of garlic, ginger, and sliced green onions too.

Arame & Sugar Snap Pea Salad
Makes 2 servings

• 1 cup arame, soak for at least 1 hour in double the amount of filtered water
• 1 cup sugar snap peas, sliced diagonally
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon yuzu paste, to taste, or pinches of sea salt

Squeeze all excess liquid from soaked arame. Place into clean mixing bowl with sugar snap peas.

In another small bowl, whisk together vinegar, oil, and yuzu. Mix dressing into bowl with arame and snap peas, toss well.

Serve immediately.

Will keep for 1 day in fridge.

I made a batch of Kanga Dog Treats for my Rhodesian Ridgeback canine companion. She loves these, and asked me to share the recipe with you here on my blog so other dogs could also enjoy these treats.

It’s important to keep your dog’s gums and teeth healthy, especially if they aren’t crunching on dry kibble. These easy to make, crunchy treats will help remove plaque and freshen dog breath.

Your dog may not be used to these at first. Just like other new foods, you may need to teach pooch how to eat them by taking a bite out of one first, then giving it to pooch to try. Dogs always love what they see us eating. Especially when accompanied by yummy, delicious sounds.

Kanga is a dessert dog. She hates water and baths. She was rewarded after her lavender bath today with these treats, and was very happy.

I realize this is a recipe section where I list food for people. The good thing about raw food is that even treats for dogs could easily be enjoyed by humans. Many times, friends have come over and said “your dog eats better food that I do!” And this is so true, since Kanga eats organic, local, seasonal, and many times stuff that I eat. I joke that she’s my compost bin, eating up all my leftovers.

Kanga Dog Treats
(page 241 of Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen, the Kanga dog food chapter)

• 2 large sweet potatoes, sliced 1/2 inch thick

Place sweet potatoes on dehydrator trays, and dry at 104 degrees F for 12 hours, or until completely dry.

Here’s a sneak peak into one of my favorite recipes from my new book, Ani’s Raw Food Essentials (available June 1st). We shot this recipe last Thursday for TV, cable, and web.

I’ve been craving raw Tomato Chili the past few days, so I made sure to pick up some beautiful tomatoes, bell pepper, and fresh oregano at the farmers’ market. When I went to make this last night, I realized I had run out of chili powder, so I used chipotle powder instead. It turned out spicy hot. To help cool it down, I made a batch of raw Taco Nut Meat, which helped a bit, but not enough. So then I added some Cashew Sour Kream, and that helped. It was delicious, and energized me to write late into the night.

This recipes is simple and quick to make. I enjoy the mediation of chopping with my knife. But you can also just place ingredients into your food processor and let it do the chopping for you for an even shorter prep time.

Tomato Chili with Taco Nut Meat
(from pages 145-146 of Ani’s Raw Food Essentials)
Makes 4 servings

TOMATO CHILI

• 3 cup tomatoes, chop
• 1 cup red bell pepper, chop
• 1/4 cup celery, chop
• 1/4 cup yellow onion, chop
• 1/3 cup mushroom, chop
• 1/3 c corn kernels
• 1 teaspoon garlic, mince
• 1 – 2 teaspoon chili powder, to taste
• 1 teaspoon cumin, powder
• 3/4 teaspoon oregano, fresh or dry
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, to taste

Place all ingredients into a large mixing bowl, toss to mix well.

Place half of your mixture into your food processor or blender and puree. Scoop back into bowl with mixture and toss to mix well.

NUT MEAT TOPPING

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon cumin, powder
• 2 teaspoons coriander, powder
• 1 teaspoon bragg’s or nama shoyu, or 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, to taste

Place all ingredients into your food processor, and process into small pieces.

To serve, scoop raw Tomato Chili into bowls. Top with Taco Nut Meat. Enjoy.

Tomato Chili will keep for 1-2 days in fridge. Taco Nut Meat will keep for a week or more.

“Ani’s Raw Food Essentials” is now available in soft cover, as of May 1, 2012!

In this book, I break down recipes to the simplest of ingredients. Then, I show you how to build from there to make variations and different flavors. I hope you’ll enjoy my new raw food book! Can’t wait t hear what you think about it.

This is a recipe I taught during my workshop in Phuket, Thailand, to a packed room full of locals. My raw vegan version of their traditional Thai soup.

Tom Yum Inspired Soup
(serves 4)

TOPPINGS

• 1/4 cup shallot, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup straw mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tablespoons green chili peppers, chopped, about 3 Thai or 1 serrano pepper
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

SOUP BASE

• 2 cups coconut meat
• 1 teaspoon garlic
• 5 medium Kaffir lime leaves
• 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 2 Tablespoons lemon grass, chopped, lower stalks only
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 3 to 4 cups filtered water, as needed

GARNISH

• 2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, chopped

Marinate toppings by placing all ingredients into a bowl. Set aside for 10 minutes or more.

Into your blender, place soup base ingredients with 1 cup water. Blend smooth. Add remaining water,  blend to mix well.

To serve, scoop soup base into 4 bowls. Top with marinated vegetables,  and garnish with cilantro leaves.

A delicious recipe I taught at the first ever raw food workshop in Phuket, Thailand. It was a packed house, standing room only. A great day of fun, food, and new friends.

Baja Fresh Taco Boats Filled with with Cilantro Cashew Cheeze, Fresh Corn and Tomato Salsa, and a Ground Almond Taco Meat
(makes 4 servings)

GROUND ALMOND TACO MEAT

• 1 cup almonds
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1/8 teaspoon  sea salt

CILANTRO CASHEW CHEEZE

• 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup cashews
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice, fresh, from about 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup packed cilantro leaves
• 1/4 cup water, as needed

SALSA

• 1/2 cup tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cup corn kernels, cut off cob
• 2 Tablespoons cilantro,  chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped green chilies, to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt

BOATS AND TOPPING

• 12 small romaine leaves
• 1 avocado, pitted, sliced

To make taco meat, process almonds into small pieces. Add oil, cumin, coriander, and salt, and process to mix well. Set aside.

To make cheeze, process garlic and salt into small pieces. Add cashews, juice, cilantro, and only enough water to process into a thick cream texture. Set aside.

To make salsa, mix ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.

To assemble, fill romaine leaves with about 2 tablespoons cheeze. Sprinkle on 1 to 2 tablespoons taco meat and salsa. Top with avocado slices and serve.

Ani’s Raw Food Durian Essentials: 4 min, 39 sec
Watch video
I’m in love with durian. I love the flavor, texture, and yup, even the scent. So, I flew myself to the other side of our planet, all the way to beautiful Bali, Indonesia, to visit during their 2 month durian season. There, I was able to enjoy a fresh durian daily, and even visited a durian farm where I ate fresh durian straight off the tree. This was the highlight of almost all my gastronomical adventures in life.

Many people in the USA have not yet seen or tried durian fruit. So, I shot this video in Seminyak, on the West Coast of Bali, as an introduction to the King of Fruit. I hope this video may encourage you to give this delectable fruit a try.

Watch video

Almond Veggie Pate Nori Rolls

A delicious save-the-fish style pate made with almonds and cashews, flavored with ginger and lemon. The orange salmon-like color comes from sweet carrots full of beta carotene. Use this pate inside nori rolls, lettuce wraps, and scooped on top of a bed of greens.

Almond Veggie Pate Nori Rolls
(Makes 4 servings)

FILLING

• 1 cup almonds
• 2 cups cashews
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice, from 1/2 lemon

WRAPPING

• 4 sheets nori, or 8 sheets if too thin
• 4 cups spinach leaves, washed and dried

DIPPING (optional)

• Soy Sauce or Nama Shoyu (raw) or Braggs (gluten-free)
• Wasabi

To make filling, process almonds and cashews  into a powder, and set aside.

Next, process ginger, garlic, carrots, onion, raisins, and salt into small pieces. Add oil, lemon juice, powdered almonds and cashews, and process to mix well.

Wrap by placing nori sheets onto flat surface. Spread dry spinach leaves along bottom half. Onto spinach, spread about 1/4 cup filling along edge closest to you. Roll up nori sheet. Slice into 6 pieces using a sharp knife.

Serve with soy sauce and wasabi.

Mango Breakfast Cobbler
adapted from p 215 of Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen
(serves 4)

CRUST

• 1 1/4 cup almonds
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1  cup pitted and packed medjool dates
• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil or butter

FILLING

• 4 cups Mango, pitted and diced
• 1/4 cup agave syrup

To make crust, place almonds, vanilla, and salt into food processor. Lightly process into small pieces. Add dates and coconut butter, process to mix well.

Sprinkle half of the crust onto bottom of a loaf pan.

To make filling, toss together all ingredients. Scoop onto crust. Top with remaining crust.