Raw Strawberry Walnut Bars

Raw Strawberry Walnut Bars
Raw; Gluten Free; Vegan

I made these for San Antonio Vegetable Eaters 5th annual Happy Christmas Hangout and these were a hit! You know it's a great recipe when you don't get to even try it and everyone is still talking about the dish days after the event. This festive easy recipe is a crowd pleaser!

Crust and Topping:
1/2 cup of walnuts
1/2 cup of almonds
1 cup of dates


Filling:
1 cup strawberries (fresh or frozen)
1 cup dates

For the crust and topping
1. In a food combine all of the ingredients and pulse until course. Divide mixture in half and set aside.

2. Continue to combine the ingredients until well combined.

3. In a blender combine strawberries and dates until smooth.

4. Layer the well combined nut/date mixture in a parchment paper lined 9x9 dish. The second layer will be the strawberry filling. Sprinkle the course nut/date mixture over the strawberry filling and gently press down. Freeze for 1 hour to set.

Tooth Care~Earth and Animal Friendly

Tooth Care~Earth and Animal Friendly

I haven't posted one of these in a while, so here are some natural tips on keeping your pearly whites sparkling....

Teeth Whitening

1 ripe strawberry
1/2 tsp. baking soda

1. In a cup or glass, mash the strawberry and add the baking soda. Mix.

2. Apply the mixture to your teeth with a toothbrush. Leave on for about 5 minutes.
Brush your teeth with your favorite cruelty-free toothpaste or for a smaller carbon footprint, use the recipe below and rinse.

3. Enjoy your newly white teeth. Now that's something worth smiling about!

Tooth Paste

Cashew Cream Stuffed Strawberries

Cashew Cream Stuffed Strawberries
Vegan; Gluten Free; Raw

Well, these little red creamy jewels are truly the taste of the summer sun.... Super easy to make, use the cashew cream (I used 1/3 of the recipe for this recipe and the rest for spinach artichoke dip) in the blog, adding sugar to it.

1/2 pound of strawberries, cleaned and hulled
1 cup cashew cream (with 1 teaspoon of sugar)
2 Tablespoon almonds
1 teaspoon sugar

1. Clean the strawberries and hull "hollow" the strawberries. Fill with prepared cashew cream.

2. In a coffee grinder (this seems to be my best method, so if you have one make sure it's a clean one) put almonds and sugar. Grind until coarsely ground and sprinkle on top.

Enjoy as a snack or as a light dessert!

Strawberry Mousse Cupcakes

Strawberry Mousse Cupcakes
Vegan; Makes 16

Speaking of birthdays, I made these a few years ago for mine. So, these were my "Stuck in the Middle with You" cupcakes to with my Quentin Tarantino themed party. These turned out really good, my non-veg friends were very impressed! I warn you, there are a lot of steps-so worth it!

For the Cupcakes:

1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups vanilla soy milk
2 cups plus 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. organic sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

2. Mix the vinegar and soy milk together and set aside.

3. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.

4. In another bowl, stir together the soy milk mixture, the canola oil, and the vanilla extract and add to the dry ingredients, mixing well.

5. Fill each cupcake liner about two-thirds full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean.

6. Let cool in the cupcake pan for 5 minutes, then remove and place on a wire rack. Let cool completely before frosting.


For the Strawberry Filling: (This part can be cut in half, I had WAY too much left over)

2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced
1/2 cup organic apple juice
1/4 cup organic unbleached granulated sugar
4 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup water

1. Place the strawberries and apple juice in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the strawberries soften.

2. While stirring, slowly add the sugar. Dissolve the cornstarch in the water and add to the saucepan. Heat until thickened, being careful not to boil.

3. Remove from the heat. While still warm, blend briefly with a hand blender, creating the consistency of a very thick purée. If you do not have a hand blender, use a traditional blender instead.

4. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until jelly-like.

For the Strawberry Mousse:

1 cup vegan margarine
1/4 cup nonfat soy milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4-5 Tbsp. prepared strawberry filling
5-6 cups organic powdered sugar
1 drop red food coloring (optional)

1. Beat the margarine until creamy. Add the soy milk, vanilla, and strawberry filling and mix well. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the food coloring, if desired. Beat for 5 to 10 minutes.

To Assemble:

1. Cut a cone-shaped piece out of the top of each cupcake. Fill with 1 to 2 teaspoons of the strawberry filling. Replace the cupcake top and frost with the strawberry mousse.

Found: PETA

Frozen Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake

Frozen Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake
Vegan; Raw; Gluten Free; Serves 8

I made this for Grants birthday. Super easy to make, your food processor will be used a lot. Grant liked it, however depending on where you live-the cake to be more like a ice cream cake may stay more frozen then thawed.... I took it out an hour before, but it was still more frozen-still very yummy! Bruce loved it, too! I garnished it with strawberries covered in vanilla coconut yogurt and then frozen.

Ingredients

Crust:
1 cup(s) almonds
1 cup(s) Medjool dates
1/4 tsp. sea salt

Filling:
3 cup(s) raw unsalted cashews, soaked overnight and drained
1 cup(s) strawberries
2/3 cup(s) coconut oil
2/3 cup(s) agave
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Topping:
1 cup(s) strawberries
1 tbsp. agave
1/4 cup(s) orange juice

Steps

1. To make the crust, pulse almonds, dates, and sea salt in a food processor until well combined and crumbly. Press the crust into the bottom of an 8-inch spring form pan.

2. For the filling, combine cashews, strawberries, coconut oil, agave, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in a food processor or high-speed blender until smooth and well combined. Pour the mixture on top of the crust and spread evenly.

3. To make the topping, add strawberries, agave, and orange juice to blender. Blend until smooth and pour on top of the 'cheese' layer. Freeze overnight.

4. Take the cake out to thaw for about 40-50 minutes before serving. You'll want to cut it when it's still semi-frozen.

Found from a reader of The Kind Life

Non-Dairy Cheese Cake

Non-Dairy Cheese Cake
Vegan

Bruce loves this with strawberries, and Grant really liked this too.... My favorite topping is raspberries, it compliments the lemon so wonderfully! My sister in law would always ask for this as the dessert during holidays.... ~_^

Ingredients:

2 8oz. containers of plain non-dairy cream cheese (I like Follow Your Heart)
1 cup organic sugar
juice of 1 lemon
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
dash of vanilla (about 1/8 teaspoon)
1 graham cracker crust
Fresh Fruit topping of your choice (raspberries, blueberries or strawberries are all good)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine ingredients until smooth and pour into the graham cracker crust. Bake for 60 minutes or until the top is golden. Allow to cool at room temperature then chill in the refrigerator until firm. This take several hours or overnight. Cover with fruit topping and serve.....

Found: PETA

Papaya Smoothie

Papaya Smoothie
Serves 2

This is my go to smoothie when I have an upset stomach. For those who know me, I tend (like most women) to internalize my stress, that comes out in a sour stomach or where I can't eat anything. The ginger in this helps with that....

1 cup cubed ripe papaya (if you can find frozen, keep it on hand)
6 frozen strawberries (this helps thicken the smoothie)
1/2 cup soy milk (I use hemp)
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1 tsp. light agave nectar
1/4 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1. Place all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth.