As farmers harvest the last of their seasonal crops, I'm going to get to the 'root of the matter' this month with articles about delicious and readily available root vegetables. You'll learn how to pick 'em, how to prep' em, and how to use them in all kinds of tasty raw food recipe favorites.
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| Root Root Root For Root Veggies |  Modestly priced, but with big, big flavor and lots of health benefits, root veggies like carrots, radishes, turnips and parsnips are the key to great raw recipes for fall...and the focus of this month's 'pre-Halloween' newsletter.
Root veggies have been a staple of our diet for centuries. From their humble beginnings nestled into the soil and harvested by peasants, root vegetables are being elevated to star status in many restaurants. One of the signature dishes from the kitchen of NYC's renowned Union Square Café is creamy mashed turnips with crispy shallots.
In my kitchen, I like my root veggies raw. My juicer helps me squeeze every bit of root veggie goodness and ginger root flavor into this Carrot-Celery-Beet juice recipe.
Click here for the juice recipe.
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Halloween Mystery: Pumpkin Pie Without Pumpkin
|  Pumpkins are a versatile staple of holiday entertaining. You can carve them into Jack O'Lanterns for spooky Halloween thrills and chills, or transform the orange flesh into whipped cream topped pies for Thanksgiving and Christmas dessert tables.
Pumpkin is a delicious ingredient in all kinds of traditional holiday sweets, but raw pumpkin is quite starchy, and it's time-consuming to peel it and remove all those seeds. But you can achieve great results and a similar texture, color, and sweetness using carrots as a substitute for pumpkin.
You may already know that I like to do things the easy way, and carrots and lightyears easier to process than pumpkins. There's no seeding or trying to remove the thick, tough skin...and carrots are sweeter than pumpkin when raw.
My recipe for a delicious "pumpkin pie" is made by blending carrots and creamy avocado with traditional pumpkin pie spices and healthy sweeteners such as agave or maple syrup. It tastes just like the traditional dessert!
Click here for my 'Pumpkin' Pie Recipe.
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A Radish By Any Other Name
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Radishes are root vegetables that resemble beets or turnips in appearance and texture. I love them for their crunchy, spicy flavor and bright, cheerful colors. I add them to salads, sandwiches, and veggie and dip platters....and sometimes just munch on one 'as is' for a crisp, satisfying snack.
Along with good taste, radishes deliver vitamin C, folate, B vitamins and vitamin K as well as essential minerals that include potassium, manganese, magnesium, calcium, iron, phosphorous, sodium, copper and zinc.
AND, a 1/2-cup serving of radish slices contains only 19 calories and 4 carbs.
Want to keep your radishes fresher, longer? When you bring them home from the market, slice off the greens and put them in a jar with cold water. They should stay fresh crisp up to a week.
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If you're still hungry for more recipes, just head over to www.learnrawfood.com. You'll find video demonstrations for three great dishes right on the home page. And if you want more, just click on the recipes tab for additional quick, easy, nutritious meals and snacks.
See you next time!
Sincerely,
Jennifer Cornbleet
Learn Raw Food |
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Root Touch Up
| |  Although beets are sweet enough to eat raw, root vegetables like turnips and parsnips can be a bit bitter. What's a raw food chef to do? The key is to slice them extra thin with a ceramic mandoline and marinate them in a tasty dressing that can add some sweetness.
My Apple Vinaigrette Recipe is a great option. Apple juice makes this dressing delightfully mild, fruity, light, and sweet, without any added sugar.
Click here for the Apple Vinaigrette Recipe.
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Best of the Blog
| The ever-popular topic of weight loss was the focus of my September blogs. If you've got a few pounds to lose or just want to maintain your healthy weight, check out these posts for some great ideas and recipes:
Easy Raw Food Recipes Are Nutritious, Not Calorie-Free
Raw Food Drink Recipes for More Energy and Less Weight
Lunchbox Cuisine the Raw Way
Eat More and Lose More with Raw Food Recipes
I'd love to hear your comments. Visit the blog here and please share your thoughts at the end of any post!
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