New Recipe Series - Themes and Variations Intro and #1

New Recipe Series - Theme and Variations

Time for some food talk!

I realized that there are several categories of recipe that I make over and over again, with constant variations on a consistent theme. I thought it would be fun to share these 'themes' and list some 'variations' too. It will be a helpful thing for me to do now, to remind myself that yumminess and using up ingredients are ok and good things, and might turn out to be a helpful collection also.

So, here goes! Today, I'll make my list of 'themes' and talk about just one of them, and then every week I'll talk about another. I'll link everything back, so that eventually it'll all be interconnected. Like life? 

Themes/Food Categories

Coconut Oil/Stevia 'Barks'/Fudges (still not quite sure what to call them but they're my staple atm)

Nut Milks

Salads

Crackers

Smoothies

Puddings and quick-snack-mini-puddings

Variations: (1)  'Barks'/'Fudges'

I might as well start with these, since they are the one thing that I really do seem to be making and eating at the moment, and since I have posted a couple of recipes for them fairly recently.

But what should I call them? I really don't know, and would much appreciate suggestions. 'Fudge?' 'Bark?' 'Nuggets?'...

The basic Theme for this Variation is:

1 c coconut oil, with 1 t white stevia powder, a shake of sea salt and spices and/or essential oils added as desired;

Then, gradually mix in dry ingredients until it holds together, spread out in a flat container (baking sheet or similar) and refrigerate or freeze until firm, then cut into pieces and keep cool. These will melt if they get warm, so I carry them in a small mason jar. They're still really good even if they aren't solid pieces.

Dry ingredients consist of superfoods, ground nuts, protein powder, and often I also include some nut pulp from making nut milk just to extend them. 

Superfoods include: maca, bee pollen, cacao nibs, spirulina, chlorella, glutamine powder, lysine powder (anti-viral), reishi mushroom powder, lecithin.

Ground nuts (presoaked and dehydrated): almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, sesame seeds, hemp seeds are what I have mostly used. I also always include some flax or hemp, to ensure a goodly omega-3 to -6 ratio. I talk about the importance of this in my article for the 'Eighty Percent Raw Magazine' for this month.

Hemp protein/fiber powder is a good addition also, although it always seems to make the overall product blander, so more spicing is necessary. I also use pea protein powder sometimes.

Variations that I have made so far:

I have posted the recipes for my original maca-bee pollen variation and for my green mint-chocolate variation. Last time I made the mint-chocolate version, I added some reishi mushroom powder. It was a great flavor addition.

I have also made:

a Mediterranean almond/sesame/cardamom variation,

a lemon/ginger/poppyseed variation

a cardamom/clove variation

a hemp/bee pollen variation

But the two for which I've already posted the recipe have been by far the most commonly made, especially the mint choc! That's partly because I love getting the algae in: I'll have to think of another 'green' variation besides mint choc.

Another variable with this recipe is how much 'dry' ingredients to add. If you really saturate the oil with dry ingredients, especially if you add a lot of something gelling, like flax or chia, or something very fine, like pea protein powder, you can end up with a taller, chunkier nugget; it's moldable when you pour it out on your sheet, whereas if you leave it a little looser, it'll spread all over the sheet and set up into something thinner and crispier. Both ways are really good.

I'm going to try using a little lavender essential oil and make a lavender variation. Any suggestions for other variations?

And if someone can help me come up with a name for these little treats, I'd be so glad!

Enjoy…