RAW GRANOLA BAR Recipe- day 3

I use to make homemade granola bars all the time, but i used rolled oats and had to bake them.  I was in the mood for something sweet and my cabinet was looking a little bar. I did however have dried fruit and nuts, so i thought i would try and make a raw version granola bar.   I knew they would be a little sticky, so i thought i would roll them in shredded coconut.  Feel free to use whatever fruit and nuts you like and add in things like mulberrys, goji berries, raw coaca nibs, etc if you want.  These bars came out sooooo good and are perfect for  packed lunches and snacks on the go. I ate mine as dessert. Make sure to double the recipe so you can put some in the freezer for later. Enjoy!!

Granola Bars Y= 5 bars

1c Nuts, any kind (i used a mixture of almonds and walnuts)
1c Dried Fruit, any kind (i used a mixture of figs and raisens)
2T Coconut Nectar or sweetner of choice
1/2 unsweetned coconut, grated

step 1- put dried fruit and sweetner in food processor and blend until it becomes a paste
step 2- add the nuts and pulse until combined ( the bars should have some texture)
step 3- line the counter with some syran wrap and sprinkle coconut on top
step4- eye ball about 1/5 of mixture and put on top of coconut
step 5- wet hands and shape into rectangles flipping the bars over so there coated in the coconut.
step6- individually wrap each bar and keep in cabinet, fridge or freezer

Day 3- STRAWBERRY TOP SMOOTHIE- Very Budget Friendly

How many times have you eaten strawberries and throw away the tops? Most people do, but the tops are completely edible and full of nutrients.  We had had a bunch of strawberries for a snack and put all the tops in a bowl in the fridge.  They are perfect blended up in a smoothie and didn't really cost you anything! Here i mixed the tops with fresh banana and coconut water.  It tasted Great!

Strawberry Top Smoothie

2c Strawberry Tops
2ea Banana
11oz Coconut Water

step 1- put everything in the blender and puree until smooth

Day 2- The BK WRAP makes a Perfect Snack

Kale is a super food, but some people have a hard time eating it. That use to be me. I would try juicing it or eating it in a salad and i just couldn't get passed that bitter tough taste.  My goal has been to find ways to prepare the kale so i can enjoy it and get all the benifits of this leafy green.  This recipe is one of my favorite and is so easy to put together. It makes a perfect snack or can be eaten as a meal.  Keep this as simple as you want or eat it like i do with almond butter, celery and hemp seeds on top of the banana:)

Banana Kale (BK) Wrap

2 Kale leaves, i like dinasour kale
1 ea banana, spilt in half lenghwise
1 T almond butter
1/2T hemp seeds
1 stalk celery, cut in half (opt)

step 1- put the banana in the kale leaf and top with nut butter, seeds and celery
step 2- eat just like you would a taco. Enjoy

Day 2- Open Faced HUMMAS Sandwiches- RAW VEGAN

This has to be one of my favorite raw vegan recipes so far.  I love making dishes that really do taste like the original or better.  Hummus is such a popular dip or spread for a sandwich, but is made with beans. Since I do not eat beans, I decided to make my version the same way i would normally make hummus, but with zucchini instead of the beans! OMG was it amazing....honestly it tasted so close to the original that most people probably would have no idea it was made with zucchini.  I had this for lunch over some sliced tomatoes and other veggies on top like an open faced sandwich.  Feel free to serve as a dip to a crudite platter at a party or for a snack.  The kids willl like this too:)

Hummus y= 3cups

3 ea zucchini, peeled and rough chopped
juice of 1/2 lemon
2T tahini, untoasted
2ea garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste

step1- put all ingredients in the food processor and blend until smooth
step2- taste for seasoning and enjoy anyway you'd like:)

Day 2- Banana-Mango Colada GREEN Smoothie

Budget Week day 2- I made this banana-mango pineapple green smoothie this morning for breakfast and it was absolutely delicious! So easy to make and such a great way to get you fruits and vegetables in you and your kids without even trying:) Try picking up some coconut water if youve never tried it, it comes in a carton and can be kept in your cabinet until you use it. It really adds a great flavor to smoothies and juices and keeps everything dairy free!!! Give this one a try.

Can I feed my family of 5 for 1 week with $100 on A Raw Food Diet????????

After coming back from the holiday weekend, i decided to do a raw food challenge.  Since i desperately needed to do a food shopping, i thought it would be fun to see if i can feed myself, jennn and the 3 kids raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds for 7 days on $100.  My plan is to shop at a few stores and buy things in bulk, on sale and what we enjoy eating and then make videos on the dishes and meals i make.  I thought this would be fun and also show people that money shouldn't be an excuse for not eating healthy:) Subscribe to my youtube videos/blog to stay up to date on daily post. thanks for watching.

Fresh Pineapple -Raspberry Orange Juice

Papaya Guacamole on Tomato "toast"- Raw Vegan 80/10/10 ok

Hi there. Hope you had a great holiday weekend! I wanted to have something for breakfast this morning besides my normal smoothie or fresh fruit.  I was limited by the ingredients in my house since i had gone away this weekend and hadnt been to the store yet.  I had a papaya and some avocados that were ready to eat as well as some misc. items in the fridge, so i decided to make a papaya guacamole and put it over some sliced tomatoes!!! OMG was this absolutely delicious!!! and perfect for something a little more savory. You could serve this at a party or as an appetizer or eat as a snack or meal.  This combo might sould a little odd, but the ingredients go great together.  Kids will enjoy this recipe too and any raw foodie:)

Papaya Guacamole y=2-4 servings

1 Avocado
1/4 Papaya, red carribean
2T red onion, finely chopped
1/2- 1 t jalapeno, finely chopped
juice of 1/2 lime
salt and pepper to taste

4 tomatoes, sliced

step 1- peel papaya and deseed, rough chop
step 2- finely chop onion and jalapeno
step 3- chop or squeze avocado in a bowl
step 4- add all ingredients to the avocado and mash together with a fork
step 5- put in a bowl with sliced tomatoes around or spoon guacamole on top of tomatoes
step 6- Enjoy:)

STRAWBERRY SALAD w/ Celery,Mint,Zest,Walnuts,pepper and an Orange Dressing

All I have to say is that Strawberries are in Season and are super sweet! The obvious would be to eat them plain or put them in a smoothie, but why not make them the star of the show in a salad.  This recipe is very tasty and pairs nicely with the crunchy celery and Orange.  You can eat the strawberry salad on its own or put over some greens. Give this a try next time you grab some berries:)

Strawberry Salad
2c Strawberries, quartered
2c Celery, sliced
2T mint, fresh, chopped
1/4 c Walnuts
zest of 1 Orange

step1- cut your strawberries, celery and mint
step 2- zest the orange
step 3- add all ingredients to a bowl and toss with orange dressing (recipe below)

Honey-Orange Dressing
1ea Orange
1T Raw Honey

step 1- Put both ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth
step 2- Pour over strawberry salad

Easiest Kale Salad

This is a great raw food salad.  It only has 3 ingredients and can be made a head of time.  Feel free to use fresh or frozen pineapple and let your kids do the smushing to the salad. Enjoy

Kale salad
1 bunch kale, chopped
2-3 tomatoes, chopped
16 oz frozen or 1/2 a fresh pineapple, chopped

Step 1-put everything in a bowl and smush with hands for 5 minutes

Vietnamese-style Vegetable Wraps w/ Sweet Chili Sc- RAW 80/10/10 ok

RAWFOODFORKIDS is for EVERYONE!!!

      RAWFOODFORKIDS is for EVERYONE!!! Hi there. My name is Lisa and i'm a proud mom of 3 little girls all under the age of three.  I have always loved being in the kitchen creating new and exciting meals/dishes for myself and others.  Over the years I have worked in many restaurants doing almost everything, including going to Culinary school at the Culinary Institute of America in NY.
    Over the years i have always tried to stay on top of food trends, health and fitness.  I usually would prepare most of my meals myself in order to keep them fairly healthy and keep cost down too.  During this time in my life i ate almost everything (stayed away from fast food and fried stuff).  I would never imagine that 10 years later i would be married with 3 girls and be eating 90% raw fruits and vegetables.
     My transition to raw foods happened in Dec.2011 when Jenn and I decided to get our cholesterol checked.  Mine was actually very normal, but Jenn's was 219 and the doctor wanted to put her on medicine.  I knew fruits and vegetables did not have Cholesterol, so we decided to do the vegan thing for 3 months and see if her cholesterol would drop.  After 3 months of eating a plant based cooked diet, Jenns cholesterol droped 22Points!!!!!
     We felt so good eating this way, that we decided to continue with this lifesytle.  We slowly started to incorporate more raw fruits and vegetables into our diet in place of cooked after i was reminded several times by other raw foodies that you lose up to 85-95% of all nutrients once something is cooked passed 118 degrees. We made the switch to be healthier and now we only eat of fruits and veggies raw:)
      These fruits and veggies have brought life back into my life and i feel like a kid again. I also wanted to be able to get my kids involved and have them be excited about these foods too.  Hence Rawfoodforkids was born.  Here i can make healthy foods for me, my family, friends and you.  My goal is to help everyone get inspired in the kichen and learn new fun ways to eat fruits and vegetables.  I also share any tips related to food and health that might be benificial to you too.
     Thanks so much for watching my videos. I enjoy the comments you post. Please feel free to share a recipe or tip i post to a friend AND ALWAYS REMEMBER TO EAT HAPPY FOODS!!!
Lisa Rovick

Cardamom Scented Fruit with Pecan Cream-RAW VEGAN

If you would like a printable copy of this recipe, please leave a donation in any amount and I will email you a copy. Please specify the name of the recipe you would like in the memo section at the end of the paypal info, so i know which one to send you. Thank you so much for your support with this channel :) Lisa

Making homemade dressings is sooooo easy and the taste doesnt even compare to storebought. The nice benifit to making your own too is you can controll what goes into it. This dressing is fat free, dairy-free and is made from local Peaches i picked up with my kids at the farmer market....yummy! This salad dressing is very well balanced and makes for a pretty appearance because of the poppyseeds. You can substitue another sweetner for the raw honey, but please try raw honey if you havn't. It is sooo Good! Feel free to make a larger batch and  store in a glass jar in the fridge. It will keep for a few day.

Fresh Peach-Poppyseed Dressing
1 ea Peach, fresh or you could use 1/2 c defrosted frozen peaches
Juice from 1 lemon
1/2 T Poppyseeds
2 T Raw Honey or other sweetner
Salt and Pepper to Taste

step 1- cut peach into chunks
step 2- juice lemon
step 3- add all ingredients to blender or food processor and puree
step 4- store in glass jar or pour over salad and Enjoy:)

ORANGE-FIG DRESSING- 2 Ingredient RECIPE

Are you looking for a quick and easy dressing to make for a salad? Well, this is a homemade fat free, gluten free, all natural dressing that is soooo good and can be made in in less than 2 minutes.  It is sweet from the orange and figs, so you dont need to add any sugar either! Feel free to double or triple this raw food recipe and store in the fridge. It is really tasty....simple usually is the best! Enjoy :)

Orange-Fig Dressing
1ea Orange
2ea Figs, dried

step1- Put both ingredients in food processor and puree. You can keep this dressing a little chunky or make it smooth.

Raw Vegan VANILLA-CINNAMON BANANA MILKSHAKE-Recipe

This milkshake is perfect for Everyone! It is cold and creamy and has the consistency of real icecream.  This version however is dairy-free as well as fat free and is very healthy for you. Parents...kids wont even know the difference! So get some bananas and put them in the freezer, cause you will want to be able to make this recipe when you have a sweet tooth.  Fresh coconut water is sooooo good, but you can use store bought too and it will taste great! Enjoy

Vanilla-Cinnamon Banana Milkshake

4 ea Banana, frozen
10 oz Coconut Water
1/2 T Vanilla Extract
1 t Cinnamon

step1- Pour the cocont water into the blender with the vanilla and cinnamon
step 2- add the bananas to the blender and puree untill smooth (you might need to stop and scrap mixture with a spatula to insure it blends evenly)

Note- Make enough to eat fresh each time, because this doesnt have a ton of sugar like regular icecream, it will freeze to solid to eat.

VERY INEXPENSIVE JUICE RECIPE-Carrot+Carrot Tops+Celery

A Juice that Taste Great and doesn't Cost Much to Make:)

5 Tips For SUCCESS With Your Health Goals

A little Motivation for staying on Track with your Health Goals:)

The Most Delicious TOMATO SALAD w/ lemon, garlic, chili, basil and marjo...

Use the best Tomatoes you can find for this Salad. All I have to say is Yummy!!!

Instant baby Food on the Go

An easy way to feed you kids on the Go. Can't get any Simpler:)

CHERIMOYA- How to eat it and what it taste like:)

This was my first experience eating Cherimoya and alll i can say is it won't be my last!

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Apple Chips- 80/10/10 Recipe

Awesome snack or appetizer for a party. This is a definite Crowd Pleaser!!

ICE CREAM RECIPE-Chocolate Banana (Vegan)

Easiest Ice cream you will ever make without any fancy equiptment and so good for you that you can eat as much as you want!!

CUCUMBER CANAPÉS- Raw Vegan

Very easy snack or Appetizer to make...will satisfy a salty craving too:)

Strawberry-Banana GREEN SMOOTHIE- Raw Vegan

This smoothie was delicious and goes off well with newbee's to green smoothies.  Give it a try and Get Your Green On:)

Get Your Salad On- Raw Vegan

Quick idea for a salad....fruit and nuts are delicious together:)

LIVING GAZPACHO SOUP RECIPE- Made In The Blender-Raw Vegan

Such a wonderfull and healthy cold soup. I use fresh tomatoes instead of tomato juice to make this soup alive.  It is very easy to prepare since it is made in the blender. Give it a try:)

811 Diet- Sweet Corn and Cherry Tomato Salad

This is a wonderful and simple summer salad that can eaten on its own or added to a wrap. I really enjoy the simplicity of the salad so i can taste all the ingredients. Feel free to add some spices such as cumin or corriander or avocado to the mix.

3-4 ears of corn, shucked or 2 cups
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halfed
1/2 cup green onion, thinly sliced
juice of half of a lime
salt and pepper to taste

step 1- add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well.
step 2- taste for seasoning and enjoy!

Banana Bomb Bombs- Desert Recipe (RAW VEGAN)

Great make ahead dessert and excellent to do with your kids.  Give this one a try. You won't be dissapointed:)

Sweet & Sour Mango Tango Drink- Raw Vegan

Lebanese Bread Salad (fattoush) RAW VEGAN- 80/10/10 ok

Most people are familar with tthe the Italian bread salad called Panzanella, but the Lebanese make a version too called Fattoush.  It is made with toated pita and beans usually, which is fine if your doing the vegan thing or transitioning.  I have improvised the traditional to a raw vegan version that is equally as good if not better!! This is a great salad to entertain with or serve family style.  I served the salad on top of some shaved romaine and ate it for lunch. Yummy:)

Fattoush Salad y=2 servings

1c Tomatoes, cherry
1c Cucumber, med diced
1c Bell Pepper, orange and yellow mixed or any kind, med diced
1/4 c Red onion, chopped
2 T basil, chopped
2T Mint, chopped
2T Parsley, chopped
1 Romaine, shaved (optional)

Tahini Dressing
1/3 c lemon juice
2T Tahini Paste, untoasted kind
salt and pepper to taste

step 1- mIx dressing together in a large bowl
step 2- prep all vegetables and add to dressing
step 3- mix everything together and taste for seasoning
step 4- Put on top of Romaine and eat!