Nourishing Feasts: A Merry Menu for Healthy Holiday Indulgence
Holiday recipes: winter recipes
In the spirit of festive indulgence, this blog is your culinary compass for crafting mouthwatering delights that not only satisfy your taste buds but also treat your body with the care it deserves.
Let’s indulge the right way and savor the season’s delights without compromising on health and feeling bloated, groggy and bogged down.
Get ready to feast with friends and family as we unwrap a treasure trove of scrumptious recipes for a truly nourishing holiday experience!
1. Raw caramel dip
This dip is very easy to make, you just need a few hours for the dates and cashews to soak. And I suppose it isn’t technically “raw” because it contains maple syrup and cashews that are not truly raw. You can also thin this out with extra water and drizzle it over your favorite dessert.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1 cup medjool dates, pitted (about 8 to 10 dates)
- 1⁄4 cup grade B maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla
- pinch sea salt
- date soaking water as needed
Place the cashews into a small bowl and cover with water. Let soak at room temp for
about 2 to 3 hours. Place the pitted dates into a separate small bowl and cover with water. Let soak for about 2 to 3 hours. To make the dip, drain and rinse the cashews then place them into a blender or Vita-Mix along with the dates (save the water), maple syrup, vanilla, and salt. Add about 6 to 8 tablespoons of the date soaking water and blend. Blend until ultra smooth, scraping down the sides if needed. Scoop out into small bowls and serve with sliced fresh apples.
2. Pears with Cacao Ganache & Cinnamon
Ingredients:
- 3 ripe pears
- 1⁄2 cup almonds
- 1⁄2 cup pecans
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1⁄4 tsp all spice
- 1⁄4 tsp ginger
- 1⁄2 cup cacao powder
- 1⁄2 cup agave nectar
- 1⁄4 cup coconut oil, softened
Wash and dry pears. Set aside. In food processor, pulse
almonds and pecans until coarsely chopped. Add
cinnamon, allspice and ginger. Pulse a few times to combine. Set aside. Whisk together
cacao powder, agave nectar and coconut oil to make ganache. Place in bowl. Dip pears
in ganache and let extra drip off. Sprinkle with nut mixture. Place in refrigerator to set.
Pears with Cacao Ganache & Cinnamon
Original recipe from Rawmazing
3. Pumpkin spring rolls
Saturdays are best spent hunting for bargains at the thrift store, especially when I stumble upon gems waiting to be repurposed. There’s something truly satisfying about giving old furniture a new life and adding a personal touch that elevates any room. Crafting my own decor not only makes my space unique but also imbues it with extra meaning and a sense of personal connection. Plus, turning old tables, chairs, dressers, or concocting something entirely new becomes a fun and creative project! And makes for a meaningful gift.
Tahini Dipping Sauce
- 1⁄4 c Eitan’s Marinade
- 1⁄4 c raw tahini
- water, as needed
Mix all ingredients in a blender. Add water to reach
desired consistency.
Roasted Pumpkin
- 1 whole pumpkin or butternut squash
- 3 tbsp Eitan’s Marinade
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Cut pumpkin into thin half moon slices. Arrange on a baking
dish and coat with dressing. Bake until caramelized and lightly brown. Chill.
For Rolls
- 1 c roasted pumpkin
- 1⁄2 c raw julienned kale or spinach
- 3 tbsp pumpkin seeds, dehydrated or roasted
- 2 tbsp green onions
- 2 tbsp coriander
- 1 head butter lettuce
Mix pumpkin, kale, seeds, green onion and coriander. Spoon into lettuce leaves and wrap.
Drizzle with tahini dipping sauce.
4. Raw spicy zucchini chips
Ingredients:
- 4 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 1⁄2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1⁄2 tsp paprika
- 1⁄2 tsp celtic salt
Slice your zucchini with a mandoline very thin. Mix rest of
ingredients together to make a marinade and toss with
sliced zucchini and lay out on dehydrator trays in a single
layer. Dehydrate 14-20 hours.
5. Raw Chocolate Bites
Ingredients:
- 1⁄2 c cacao powder
- 1⁄4 c coconut oil
- 1⁄4 c cacao butter
- 1–2 tbsp raw agave nectar
- 1 tbsp raw almond butter
- 1 vanilla bean, insides scraped
(substitute 1 tsp vanilla extract) - 1 pinch of salt
Melt the cacao butter and coconut oil together in a double boiler.
Add almond butter to the warm mixture and stir until it’s dissolved.
Pour in cacao powder, agave, vanilla and salt. Mix together.
Taste test and see if you want to add anything.
Pour into molds or something like mini cupcake pans.
Store in the freezer and enjoy the health benefits of cacao.
Play with this recipe! You can try other natural & raw sweeteners like sucanat, maple syrup,
and date sweetener. You can also add spices like cinnamon and nutmeg or ground
espresso for a little kick.
6. Spicy pumpkin chai
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1/16 tsp salt
- 1⁄4 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp raw sugar
- 1⁄2 c almond milk
- 1 c pumpkin
- 1⁄8 tsp nutmeg
- 1⁄4 tsp ginger (dried)
- 1⁄8 tsp cloves
Buy pureed pumpkin in a can for a shorter prep time.
Canned pumpkins are also less gassy than whole pumpkins. To
puree whole pumpkins, bake at 350° for one hour. Baking
makes the skin peel easily. Chop and mix the pumpkin with the almond milk and spices.
Then puree in a blender. Bring to a boil in a saucepan and serve warm.
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