Once again we wanted to let you in on the amazing fact that you can indeed enjoy delicious treats that are wholesome and good for you too. That’s the beauty of raw foods! The desserts and snacks are guilt free. You don’t have to worry about checking for calories or adding points. You simple make it and enjoy it. This is the perfect recipe to serve to friends, because they will be so shocked to find out how great these taste and yet they are made from all natural, raw ingredients. This is proof that you don’t need artificial sweeteners and food dyes to have an amazing dessert. This recipe comes to us from Susan Powers, the creative force behind Rawmazing, the website designed to help you transition from the SAD (Standard American Diet) to the healthy, tasty world of raw food.

Here’s how to make this delicious dessert below:

Ingredients:
Doughnuts:

• 2 C Brazil Nuts
• 1/2 C Oat Flour (made from raw oats)
• 1 C Flaked Oats (raw)
• 1/3 C Coconut Oil
• 1/3 C Maple Syrup (not raw but used in raw food recipes, you could substitute agave or dates to experiment)

Topping:

• 1/3 C Sucanat (not raw but not processed, used in raw recipes)
• 1 1/2 t. Cinnamon

Equipment:
Foodprocessor, and a mixing bowl with spoon

Directions:
1. Fine chop Brazil nuts in food processor until fine. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl.

2. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl, mix together and then add to the wet ingredients. Stir.

3. For the topping, combine and put through blender. I use a coffee grinder for this to break up the grainy sucanat. You can skip this step and just combine the ingredients.

3. Roll into balls. Roll in sucanant cinnamon mixture and refrigerate. In an hour or so you are free to enjoy (if you can wait that long!).

Source Information: Recipe and photographs are copyright 2009 Susan Powers www.rawmazing.com. All Rights Reserved.

Response:Yes, protein is essential for the structure and function of every cell in our body. It plays an important role in the functioning of our organs and muscle tissues, along with enzyme production. Amino acids are the building blocks for proteins. It is a common misconception that you can only get proteins (or enough proteins to function) from animal products. In fact, plant proteins are more than compatible with our bodies and provide the essentials that our cells need to perform daily tasks.

The World Health Organization states that humans need about 5% of their daily calorie intake to come from protein. This constitutes a healthy diet. Actually, by being a raw food enthusiast, you have the option to get your daily dose of protein from a variety of sources. So no longer do you have to think “gee, I should make sure I have chicken tonight so I get my protein.” Now you have multiple ways to get your protein, from your breakfast smoothie to your afternoon snack. On average, fruits have roughly 5% of their calories from protein and vegetables (especially green leafy ones) have 20-50% of their calories from protein.

Here are some great plant based foods that are packed with the proteins your body needs to make things happen:

• Dark leafy greens such as kale and spinach (great in salads, in juices and green smoothies)
• Fruits such as peaches, avocados (great in smoothies), and raisins (consider making a raw trail mix)
• Nuts such as Brazil nuts, pecans, pistachios (good for snacking)

So go forth and get your protein in more creative ways than ever before! Take that!!!!!

Response: We all know that calcium should be a very important part of any diet. We have to take care of our bones and teeth. A common myth is that the only place to get calcium is from diary products, particularly milk. So let’s arm ourselves right now with some useful tidbits of information about calcium and raw foods. This way when someone asks, you’ll know exactly what to say.

Calcium is more than present in the raw food lifestyle. Here’s where you can get it:

• Nuts and seeds (sunflower seeds, Brazil nuts, pumpkin seeds and flax seeds to name a few)
• Fruits (oranges, limes, figs and berries)
• Veggies (such as kale, which is great in juices, dandelion greens, kelp, parsley, and watercress)

Looks like you could get a good dose of calcium by plugging some of these ingredients into a meal or delicious smoothie! Take that!!!