Going Raw: Adventures in Uncooking

Delicious Raw Tasty Pile

Don’t get me wrong, I love a fun, complicated culinary adventure as much as the next foodie, but lately I simply haven’t had a lot of time to invest in high-preparation raw meals. So I thought I would share our new favorite quick meal: the Delicious Raw Tasty Pile, as enthusiastically dubbed by my husband.

Greg strikes a dramatic pose with his favorite quick dinner.

This Delicious Raw Tasty Pile takes about 15 minutes to prepare, if you happen to have a stash of already-sprouted sunflower seeds. We sprout seeds pretty often so it is common for us to have sunflower seed sprouts hanging around, but I suppose in most kitchens you would have to remember to start some sprouting action the night before. (Click here for a great primer on how to sprout sunflower seeds.)

INGREDIENTS
1 avocado
1/2 sweet or red onion
1 large tomato
3-4 stalks of celery
1/4 cup kalamata olives
1/2 zucchini or yellow squash
1 bell pepper
1/2 cup sprouted sunflower seeds
handful of dill, oregano, basil, and/or parsley, fresh if possible
Celtic/Himalayan sea salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice — I strongly recommend avoiding bottled lemon juice; fresh juice is many times tastier
1 tsp agave syrup
1 Ezekiel bread wrap — Ezekiel bread isn’t raw, but it is made out of sprouted grains, so I use it a lot with my otherwise all-raw meals

Finely dice all the vegetables, including the olives. In a big bowl, combine those diced veggies with the sunflower seeds, herbs, and spices. Then add the olive oil, lemon juice and agave syrup, and feel free to add more of these ingredients to your taste since I admit that my tablespoon and teaspoon measurements above are just estimates. Mix well.

Finally, cut the Ezekiel wrap into triangles and toast in a toaster on low, or bake at about 300 degrees until barely crispy.

To serve, spoon the veggie mix into bowls and add the Ezekiel wrap triangles on the side. Use the triangles to scoop up the veggies as you would with chips and salsa. (Although this meal may be reminiscent of chips and salsa, the ingredients and spices are different enough that I hesitate to actually call it “salsa.”) You might not guess it, but this is also a very filling meal, due to the sprouts and avocado.

Since this is a fun meal to eat, it one of my favorite dinners to munch on while hanging out on the couch in front of a movie. Tonight, we treated ourselves to bowls of Delicious Raw Tasty Pile and The Princess Bride; in my opinion, the best way to relax at home on a Wednesday night!