On Wednesday, I made apple pie.

I’ve made apple pie before, but never like this. If this was 6 years ago, I wouldn’t have hesitated to buy a pre-made pie crust and a can of sugary apple pie filling and call it a day. Who doesn’t love the convenience of ready-made ingredients? But convenience doesn’t mean it’s a better product. In fact, more often than not, it’s the most convenient foods that are the worst for our health. We may have saved half an hour in the kitchen, but we’re left with a huge deficit of nutrients and frankly a lack of skills!

Stepping out of our comfort zone isn’t easy, but it’s important every once in a while. In the case of the apple pie, my comfort zone was to not make a pie at all. I’m not confident enough to make my own pie crust, let alone a gluten-free pie crust that would be appropriate on my Renewal Detox. But I had quite a few cooking apples picked up at the market last weekend that needed using for something. So far this winter, all of the English Bramley apples I’ve bought have gone towards a spiced apple compote that I kept in jars in the fridge to go with breakfast. Sort of like a chunky applesauce with lots of warming spices, like cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves. A spoonful of that on a bowl of warm grains in the morning? There’s nothing like it. But this had become my comfort zone and it was time to face a new challenge. The elusive gluten-free pie crust. Not only that, I wanted to use whole foods ingredients (meaning as close to nature as possible) rather than a ready-made gluten-free flour mix or a margarine.

The added bonus: an egg. For those of you who don’t subscribe to my monthly newsletter (but you really should!), you might have missed the news that I’m back on eggs. I’ve been looking forward to experimenting with adding my sensitivity-causing foods back in again (after all, it’s been over 7 years), but of course there’s been some hesitation. It’s scary – I associate those foods with lots of negativity and unpleasantness. Out of the three foods, though, the one I’ve been most excited to re-introduce is the egg. So far, I’ve made three recipes involving eggs without any unusual symptoms. I consider this a resounding success! The rumors are true: you can absolutely heal yourself back to health after eliminating food sensitivities for a little while. I could have probably cut this time short and tried to reintroduce earlier but I’ve really only been focusing on eating for my health in the past year or two. Eliminating the foods you’re intolerant to is only half of the equation… what you put in is just as important, if not more so.

I think this gluten-free brown rice flour pie crust is great. All too often, a gluten-free baked good is dry, too crispy, too tough, too crumbly. This crust is flaky, light, sticks together well, and doesn’t give you that heavy bloated feeling after eating. I’ve used my favorite sweetener here, coconut sugar, but feel free to use an unrefined brown sugar (such as rapadura or sucanat). UK readers: I’d highly recommend Sweet Sensations or Red23 if you’re looking for raw coconut sugar. I also used creamy goat’s butter – not quite ready to jump back into cow’s milk yet (and not sure I miss it enough anyway), so my kitchen is still very “Particular”! However, if you’re a butter lover, look for the best you can find – grass-fed is gold!

I urge you to try stepping out of your food comfort zone and explore something new or foreign to you this week. Maybe it’s a recipe you’re nervous to try. Maybe it’s a new food you’ve heard or read about. It could even be a restaurant you’d like to explore that’s perhaps a different cuisine for you. Whatever the case, it feels good to challenge ourselves and to come out the other side feeling accomplished! This is so true for those of you like me with food sensitivities. While I’m not going to start eating omelettes every day, just knowing that I don’t have to avoid eggs (such an important and nutritious food source) feels really really good.

*Note: If you’re currently avoiding a food due to a sensitivity or allergy, I must recommend that you don’t re-introduce that food without first consulting a nutrition expert or a doctor. 

One of the most common mistakes people make with their health lies in their fear of fat. While there are plenty of reasons to avoid the “bad” fats, such as trans fats and hydrogenated oils, there are just as many reasons to consume the “good” fats, like the essential fatty acids (particularly Omega-3s) and polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids (aka PUFAs and MUFAs). But how to tell which are good and which are bad? Here’s some help…

Bad Fats

• trans fats (in fast food, fried food, and industrially processed & packaged foods)
• hydrogenated oils (margarine)
• vegetable oils (soy oil, corn oil)
• vegetable shortening (Crisco, Trex)

Good Fats

• extra virgin olive oil
• flax seeds and oil
• pumpkin seeds and oil
• hemp seeds and oil
• chia seeds
• walnuts
• almonds
• avocado
• virgin coconut oil
• sesame seeds and oil
• wild-caught cold water fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines, etc.)
• hazelnuts and oil
• pastured (grass-fed) beef and eggs and butter

Health Benefits

• Lower blood pressure
• Improve joint health
• Support brain function
• Anti-inflammatory, particularly for sufferers of arthritis and asthma
• Improve metabolic function and support weight loss
• Balance blood sugar

With all of this in mind, I made a deliciously fatty raw dessert a few days ago – one you can consume and feel good about. It contains cashews and walnuts, both of which have a wonderful amount of essential fatty acids. Cashews get a bad rap – everyone assumes they are full of fat and therefore unhealthy. While all nuts and seeds contain a large amount of fat, cashews in particular are made up of monounsaturated fats (MUFAs, remember?) – the same fatty acid found in olive oil. Of course, they are nutrient-dense, so you only need a small amount to get all that good stuff into your system.

That’s why I made some individual cream tarts. Pretty, right?

In addition to the cashew filling, the crust is made of walnuts, full of omega-3 fatty acids, that all-important healthy fat that our Western diets so often lack. Instead of downing fish oil, try some other sources, like walnuts, flaxseeds, or chia seeds. A dessert that’s good for you – how delightful!

Raw Cashew Cream Tart

by The Particular Kitchen

Prep Time: 15 mins + 1 hour chilling time

Cook Time: 0 mins

Keywords: raw blender dessert gluten-free soy-free vegetarian wheat free

And just for fun

I posted this on my Facebook page the other day…

1. The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans or Brits.
2. Mexicans eat a lot of fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans or Brits.
3. Africans drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans or Brits.
4. Italians drink a lot of red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans or Brits.
5. Germans drink a lot of beer and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans or Brits.

CONCLUSION:
Eat and drink what you like. Speaking English is apparently what kills you.

Can you believe 2011 is almost over? This year has been quite eventful and I think 2012 will be no different. Want to know why?

We’re moving to Boston!

That’s right – we’re packing up our London flat and hopping back across the pond to set up a home in the Boston area. We are hoping to make the move in early July, Phil’s visa pending. This has been in the works for some time now and a plan we decided on pretty early in our relationship. I will still be able to practice as a Nutrition Consultant, write blog posts here, and cook even more exciting recipes.

I’m so excited to be close to family and friends again and start a new chapter with Phil. At the same time, I know we’ll miss our UK friends and family too – but after moving to London from San Diego, Boston doesn’t seem so far! This New Year’s Eve, we will be celebrating all the wonderful things to come. So what better way to ring in 2012 than with a plate of delicious raw brownies??

I’m dubbing these Raw Nutella Brownies, since they have that chocolatey hazelnutty flavor the spread is famous for. As a high school student, my breakfast usually consisted of white toast thickly spread with Nutella. I shudder when I think of it now! I’d rather have one of these for breakfast – at least there would be some nutritional benefits to it!

Whatever time of day, if you have cause to celebrate, whip up a batch and indulge in these nutty rich brownies. And if you’re a New Englander, I’d love to hear from you – any great holistic health professionals, restaurant recommendations, or natural foods stores you love in the area?

Raw Nutella Brownies

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Makes 12 brownies

The particulars:

• 1 1/2 cups hazelnuts
• 1/2 cup raw cacao powder
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 2 cups dates
• 3/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
• 2 tbsp raw honey or agave nectar

Last weekend, I had a stall at a local Food Fair, my first venture into making and selling healthy treats for the masses. When I first signed up for the stall, I had no idea how great the event would be – hundreds upon hundreds crowded the tent to sample all the wonderful goods on display. My little table was sandwiched in between a fabulous catering company offering fresh oysters and an independent organic olive oil seller. You couldn’t have had a wider variety of stalls – and yet I happened to be the only one with healthy, vegan, wheat-free goodies. The locals loved it!

I spent the week running up to the fair primarily in my kitchen (which was a shame because London experienced quite an unusual heat wave, so the last place I wanted to be was indoors!), making all the components of my menu for the fair. In the end, I made 12 banana breads (8 with coconut, 4 with cacao nibs), 10 bags of granola, 120 raw truffles, 90 raw chocolates (30 plain, 30 dried cherry, 30 rosewater), and 48 everyday cookies (24 orange cinnamon, 24 dried cherry). All in my tiny little apartment kitchen!

My recipes have changed over the years since I started this blog. Where I used to add sugar and flour without a second thought, I now seek substitutes and healthy alternatives. My original “particular” banana bread post shows a recipe that has evolved since then – I no longer use margarine or canola oil in my baking, or egg replacement powder, or agave nectar. Instead, I love coconut oil instead of butter, ground flaxseed mixed with water instead of eggs, and either raw coconut sugar or dates instead of sugar. These ingredients vary depending on the recipe – for instance, if I’m making a raw dessert, dates are almost always involved. If it’s a baked good, flaxseed will most likely make an appearance.

I got some great feedback on my banana bread at the food fair. Kids and adults alike seemed to love it, but most preferred the coconut version to the one baked with cacao nibs. Cacao is tricky because it certainly isn’t chocolate – the bitterness overwhelms any resemblance to what most people recognize as chocolate. I added the nibs for texture more than taste, but realized that maybe it’s not quite right in this recipe.

So here it is, my tried and tested banana bread recipe, which is wheat-free, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, refined-sugar-free, and contains no artificial flavors or ingredients. Consume to your heart’s content!

Particular Banana Bread

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The particulars:

• 8 tbsp melted coconut oil
• 2 cups spelt flour, sifted
• 1 tsp Himalayan crystal salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
• 1/2 cup raw coconut sugar
• 2 tbsp ground flaxseed
• 6 tbsp non-dairy milk or water
• 3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Where do you draw your inspiration from? When we’re talking about food and the meals we prepare at home, maybe inspiration isn’t something we need. Instead, it’s an afterthought – a readymeal from the supermarket on our way home from work, a phone call to the nearest pizza delivery company.

Yet it’s a perfect place to get creative if you lack that outlet elsewhere in life. Coming from two artistic parents, I’ve always been encouraged to express myself creatively. Art supplies and blank pieces of drawing paper could be found everywhere in my house as a child. I’d scribble and finger paint at every opportunity. Then I grew up a little and preferred to dance it out – ballet, tap, etc etc. A few more years passed by, along with a growing self-awareness, and it was music. I played piano, flute, guitar and joined school bands. In my early 20s, I turned to photography. Fully self-conscious, photography allows you to be creative while remaining hidden behind a lens. It wasn’t enough for me – I still needed that outlet.

And then I discovered the creative side to food.

The photo above was taken on a recent morning from my bedroom window. That morning, I remember opening my eyes, still in bed, and noticing this pink hue to the room from behind the curtains. I got up, pulled back the drapes, and felt so in awe of this beautiful sky. The photo really doesn’t do it justice – this was a dramatic, fiery display – it didn’t match the quiet, sleepy morning inside the room. I rushed to get my camera and took about 30 photos.

This is what it took – this pink/purple/orange morning – to get my recipe inspiration going. I’ve mentioned Victoria plums recently on the blog, which have this gorgeous, multi-colored skin and are perfectly in season here in England. The plums I had in my fridge were in danger of going to waste – so thank goodness for this sky to remind me that they could be made into something delicious. As luck would have it, I needed to make a dessert to bring to dinner that night. The following raw treat was born…

This raw tart makes use of the plums in two ways. First, they are added to the creamy filling, which very closely resembles pumpkin pie or a spiced cheesecake. Second, they are sliced up for decoration on top (and help guide the slices too – functional AND beautiful!) Take advantage of that seasonal fruit while it’s still around. Or just look outside to get inspired in your kitchen. Those orange and yellow leaves that are starting to appear on the trees could spark some amazing recipe ideas!

Raw Spiced Plum Tart

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Makes one 8″ tart

The particulars:

• 1 1/2 cups raw almonds, soaked and drained
• 1/2 cup dates
• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1 cup cashews, soaked and drained
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 6 small plums, stones removed
• 1/4 cup dates
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• To serve: 4 plums, sliced into thin wedges

1. For the Crust: Combine the first 3 ingredients in a food processor until a dough ball forms. Press the dough into an 8″ quiche or tart pan (one with a removable base is ideal). Refrigerate or freeze to harden.
2. For the Filling: Blend all remaining ingredients in a food processor or high speed blender until smooth and creamy. Pour on top of the cooled crust and refrigerate or freeze until firm (about 1 hour).
3. To Serve: Decorate with sliced plums and cashew cream (optional).

It happens every year, yet it never seems to be any less unsettling. The changing of the seasons from summer to fall can bring about lots of discomfort. Maybe we come down with a cold. The weather goes a bit crazy: warm and sunny one day, gloomy and cold the next. We pack away our flip flops and bathing suits in favor of knitwear and coats.

Being a food lover, however, I happen to like this particular seasonal change. I’m a big fan of butternut squash, apples, pears, and plums. Especially the gorgeous Victoria plums they grow in this country. They have a yellow flesh and a beautiful blush skin with many shades of pink, purple, and yellow. I’m definitely looking forward to many more weeks of these:

And I used this week’s collection from the farmer’s market to make muffins. They’re actually more like mini muffins, as the plums tend to break down a bit in the oven and create a gooey consistency that could cause them to fall apart. So the smaller size and the paper cases are crucial here.

As far as the other ingredients go, I’m more and more fond of using coconut sugar (aka palm sugar) as a sweetener. It is quite low on the glycemic index and contains minerals and vitamins (which conventional white and brown sugar certainly don’t!) Also, the coconut milk I used is not the typical, thick kind you can buy in a can, but rather a milk substitute that comes in a carton called Kara. However, a thicker coconut milk might add a nice rich texture to the muffins, so give it a try. Of course, the spelt flour isn’t required – you can use whichever flour you want, although if you choose gluten-free, be sure to include some xantham gum for thickening.

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And pretty soon, you’ll be breaking that muffin apart and devouring it…

I’m having a love affair with summer crops. It’s such a nice change from the depths of winter – even though we are lucky to have a year-round farmer’s market in our part of London – to see more fruit than just apples and pears. There have been some particularly wonderful berries this year, and more recently, peaches and plums. I know this won’t last, so I’m hanging on to every sweet moment.

But it’s not just about the sweet stuff. Courgettes aka zucchini are around in abundance in all shades of yellow and green. Last week, we picked up 6 small ones, but this week we bagged 3 huge ones. I love that. Seeing how the crops change week to week and altering your meals accordingly.

So we made use of these different courgettes in two very different ways. The first, a spicy Thai curry for dinner. The second, a classic Zucchini Bread but with some healthy and vegan substitutions. Whichever way you use them, make sure to snap up a few before the summer is over. Which, here in England, it feels like it already is!

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Blogging from a smartphone: not the first time I’ve done it, but harder to write a coherent post nonetheless! So this will be brief. My laptop is at the doctor’s office so I’ve kept myself busy in the kitchen and setting up a home office.

It is daunting starting a business on my own, but so exciting at the same time. And while there is a lot of “hurry up and wait” involved, I’d rather take my time and get things right than rush to start. Lots of changes will be occurring over the next few months. I’ll still be blogging, but (as has been the case recently), the posts will be focused on quality rather than quantity.

When I started this site in 2009, I was determined to write something every day. It was more about the consistency for me rather than writing something I felt proud of. Going forward, my focus will be on providing the best services I can to my clients through my nutrition consulting business. Secondary to that will be this blog, which will still be a place for recipe sharing and healthy habit discussing.

You will notice changes to this website too. A new logo is on its way as well as a new design. A simple and more streamlined way to find the information you are looking for. Whether that’s a recipe, an event, or how to get in touch with me for a consultation (no matter where you live!), I hope you’ll find it easy to use.

In the meantime, enjoy this summery raw treat: an easy-to-make cookie that you keep in the freezer!

RAW LEMON CASHEW COOKIES

makes 12

The particulars:
2 cups cashews
1/4 cup agave nectar or other sweetener
Zest & juice of 3 lemons
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1/4 tsp Himalayan salt

1. Blend the cashews in a food processor until it becomes a fine powder.
2. Add the other ingredients and blitz until smooth.
3. Spoon the mixture into a freezer-safe container, using your hands to shape the cookies.
4. Freeze for at least 2 hours before enjoying!

today’s guest post comes from the beautiful pippa aka the intolerant gourmet. pippa and i became friends because of our blogs and discovered our very similar dietary restrictions. even though she doesn’t live in london, we meet up occasionally, the first couple of times at the sainsbury’s free-from dinner parties where we made some allergy-friendly food with other bloggers. be sure to pick up a copy of pippa’s book, the intolerant gourmet, when it comes out in february! until then, i hope you’ll enjoy her recipe for a take on a classic english dessert: strawberry fool.

The English strawberry season is short and sweet and it having come early this year means that it’s never too soon to pick up a gloriously ripe punnet.  If pushed I would have to say that the best way to eat strawberries is as nature intended: picked ripe and juicy from the plant and popped into your mouth directly.  No messing about, no fuss and no preparation either!

Towards the latter half of the season, the sweetness of each strawberry can begin to wane.  The trick with these latecomers is to sweeten them with a little sugar and combine them.  Strawberry Pie, Strawberry Ice Cream and Strawberry Shortcake all come to mind, but my current favourite is this Strawberry Fool.  Made thick and creamy by blending cashew nuts with rice milk and vanilla, a freshly made strawberry puree is folded through and studded with a handful of sliced berries.  It’s a wonderful summer pudding, just light enough to suit the season but sweet enough to sate.  Serve in vintage glasses or small glass ramekins for best effect.

If you don’t want to serve this immediately then cover it tightly with clingfilm and leave in the fridge to chill.  If kept this way it can last for up to 3 days.

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seasonal eating. a popular phrase these days. so how are the foods you eat different in the summer than the winter? for me, i know that i will choose fruit that we don’t get in the winter: berries, peaches, nectarines, and cherries. i’ll go for lots of fresh light greens, like spinach, rocket (arugula), and leafy HERBS… parsley, mint, coriander, chives. and here in england, summer peas, the kind you pop out of a pod yourself… it doesn’t get much better than that.

warm weather means cold food for most people. what better time to try out some new salad recipes or try your hand at a raw creation? we had some friends over for dinner last weekend and made them a meal which was great for summer. it featured a herby spelt salad, monkfish and red mullet kebabs, and for dessert, raw chocolate cookie dough bites (dreamed up by phil).

it’s june. the food needs to be light instead of heavy, nourishing in a fresh and pleasant way, rather than warming and comforting. yet you still want to feel as though you’ve eaten a meal. that’s the beauty of a grain salad. it satisfies without weighing you down. the grain we used here is spelt, but you could always substitute quinoa, couscous, brown rice, millet, or any other grain you prefer.

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and for dessert, this new creation:

raw chocolate cookie dough! little nuggets of joy coated in coconut. they take about 5 minutes to make, so if you’re craving something sweet and you have the right stuff in the house, these are perfect.

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hope you enjoy the recipes and a whole summer’s worth of good eating!

phil and i are off on an adventure next week – we are going to the states for a whole month, starting on the east coast (rhode island) and driving across to the west coast (san diego). we’re staying with some awesome people along the way and i’ve done lots of research on shops & restaurants with particular-friendly food. it should be an amazing trip.

while i’m gone, i will have very limited access to the internet (as you can probably imagine). i won’t be bringing my laptop with me. life is for experiencing, after all. so i’ve enlisted the help of some blog friends here in the uk to fill in for me while i’m away. i hope you’ll enjoy the guest posts i have lined up! they are some of my favorite bloggers and i’m delighted to call them friends now too