Raw Vegan Beetroot Burgers with Mango Lime Sauce

Mmm burgers especially the juicy ones with lots of flavour. I always loved Grill'd which is in my opinion one of the best burger places in Melbourne. But you know you have to sacrifice a few things when you want to be raw vegan.....but not burgers!!!

These burgers are dry on the outside but when you bite into them they are so moist and amazingly flavourly (I know thats not a word) in the inside. And with the mango sauce oh my god it is to die for, that tanginess from the lime just gives that extra kick of flavour.

Raw Beetroot Burgers with Mango Lime Sauce


Makes 4

Burgers:
3 cups beet, chopped
1/2 cup finely shredded dried coconut
1/4 cup raw, shelled hemp seeds
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 inch chunk fresh ginger
juice and zest of one lime
1/4 tsp sea salt

Mango sauce:
1 1/2 cups mangos
1/4 cup lime juice
sea salt to taste

Tomato, spinach and mango pieces to serve

For the burgers, combine all ingredients in the food processor and process until smooth and well combined.  Shape into 4 burgers, and place on a lined dehydrator sheet.  Dry for about 4 hours or until desired consistency. 
Meanwhile, to make the sauce, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until smooth. 
Serve the burgers on the spinach topped with the sauce, tomato and mango (or however you desire your burgers)

Recipe derived from Fragrant Vanilla Cake

Raw Vegan Mini Pizzas

I am a pizza lover, always have been always will be. The fact is I don't get to miss out on what I love when I am raw vegan. These pizzas taste better than normal pizzas because they taste so fresh and actually taste homemade. I used to love making pizzas at home in my pizza maker until mum broke it by accidentally leaving the pizza handles in them. By the time she realised it was way too late.

The thing I love about pizzas is that you can put whatever you desire on top. But these raw pizza bases obviously call for raw pesto and raw veggies for the topping. So I decided on raw avocado pesto, spinach, tomato and grated carrot. Fresh, healthy and absolutely delicious!!

Raw Vegan Mini Pizza's

Crust:
2 cups beet, chopped
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 garlic clove
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup water 

Pesto:
1 avocado
1/3 cup raw shelled hemp seeds
1 bunch fresh basil
1 garlic clove
juice of one lemon
sea salt to taste

Toppings:

Whatever you desire

For the crust, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth and well combined.  Spread out to desired circumference on a lined dehydrator sheet and dehydrate for 12 hours, then flip over and continue to dry until crisp, about another 10-12 hours.  
To make the pesto, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  Spread out over pizza crust.  Top with whatever you like and enjoy!

Raw Vegan Strawberry and Kiwi Cheesecake

Green and pink are the colours which form swirls of raw goodness. This cheesecake was so fun to make due to all the colours it involved and swirling the colours together was so much fun. The revealing of it is always so exciting, taking it out of the tin to reveal these amazing colours and layers which have all formed together to create heaven in a cake. And then to be able to decorate the top with all the goodness that is inside the cake is even more satisfying.

The only thing I would do differently next time would be putting the spinach in whilst the mixture is still in the blender so it blends it up smoothly and I don't get these bits of spinach in it but apart from that I would do everything the same. The original recipe which was from Fragrant Vanilla Cake I changed a bit by omitting the strawberry puree and making the mixtures separately and it worked out amazingly as you can see by the photos and it tastes like pure heaven.


Raw Strawberry Kiwi Cheesecake
Makes one 6 inch cake

Crust:
2/3 cup dried finely shredded coconut
1/3 cup ground flaxseed
3/4 cup dried finely shredded coconut
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
10-12 soft medjool dates, pitted and chopped (if they are not soft, soak them in water until they are and drain them well)
1 inch chunk raw red beet

Strawberry Filling
2 cups raw cashews, soaked
1/2 cup coconut water
1/3 cup raw coconut nectar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup raw coconut oil, warmed to liquid
1 cup fresh organic strawberries
1/2 cup fresh beetroot, chopped

Kiwi Filling
2 cups raw cashews, soaked
1/2 cup coconut water
1/3 cup raw coconut nectar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup raw coconut oil, warmed to liquid
1 cup fresh organic kiwi
handful of spinach

Fresh strawberries and kiwis for decorating

Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pans with coconut oil. To prepare the crust, process flax and coconut in a food processor until fine crumbs, then add the dates and beet and process until the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers (if not holding together, add more dates). Firmly press crust into the bottom of the prepared pan, and set aside.

To make the strawberry filling, in a high speed blender place coconut water, coconut nectar, vanilla and coconut oil and blend until combined. Then add the soaked cashews one cup at a time blending after each add until completely smooth. Pour filling into the mini food processor and add strawberries and beetroot and process until smooth. Set aside.

To make the kiwi filling, in a high speed blender place coconut water, coconut nectar, vanilla, coconut oil, spinach and kiwi and blend until combined and smooth. Then add the soaked cashews one cup at a time blending after each add until completely smooth. 

There are two ways to assemble this cheesecake; layered or swirled.
For the layered look place all the kiwi mixture on top of the base and shake pan until spread over the base and then place the strawberry layer on top of the kiwi layer and repeat until completely covered.
For the swirled look, place tbsp of each mixture on top of the base and once the base is covered swirl with a knife. repeat this process until the mixture is finished or the pan is full. Tap the pan lightly on the bench to settle the mixture and prevent air bubbles.

Place in the freezer for four hours or until firm enough to unmold. Serve and enjoy! Place leftovers in the fridge.

Raw Red Velvet Cupcakes

Who likes cupcakes?? WE LIKE CUPCAKES!!! I always loved baking especially cupcakes I always found it so simple and easy. Raw cupcakes are a whole new story, with the use of veggies and dates and nuts and only a small bit of flour you have to make sure you get the right consistency for them to dehydrate properly and they can't be too dry or too sticky. So much to get right!!! Red velvet cupcakes were always my favourite because I am such a girl when it comes to colours..... I LOVE PINK AND RED!!! The recipe I used for these needed a little bit of adjusting but that may have been because I didn't exactly follow the recipe to a tee but I have never been able to follow a recipe, I like to improvise and then it a problem arises then figure out how to fix it. When looking at the recipe for the first time it required 8 cups of flour/meal which I thought was a crap load with the little amount of liquid required for the recipe so I decided 2 cups would be quite enough and sure enough they turned out exceptionally well.

I also found out today that my puppy loves raw vegan cupcakes. She first looked at it with curiousity wondering what is this thing mum is giving me but then continued to try and grab it out of my mums hands. She ended up having a bite and following mum around because she wanted more but seeing as though dogs aren't allowed to many nuts and coconut she wasn't allowed anymore. But it just shows that not only humans like animal friendly food, animals love animal friendly food.

Raw Red Velvet Cupcakes

Cake:
2 cups raw coconut flour

1/4 tsp sea salt
2  tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups chopped raw red beets (peeled)

1 cup medjool dates, pitted (soaked in filtered water for 30 minutes if not soft, then drained)

1 cup raw coconut nectar or your choice of liquid sweetener
3/4 cup filtered water (or as needed)

Frosting:
3 cups cashews, soaked
1 inch chunk red beet
1/4  cup plus 2 Tbsp coconut water
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp raw coconut nectar or your choice of raw sweetener
1/4  tsp sea salt
seeds of one vanilla bean, or 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raw coconut oil, warmed to liquid

For the cake, combine dates, vanilla, beets, nectar and water in a food processor and process until pretty smooth. Place in a bowl and add the coconut flour to the wet mixture and mix until smooth with a sturdy spoon (wooden is good). The batter should be like a dough which you can form into balls in your hands and then place in silicone cupcake molds to shape them. Place them in the dehydrator for at least 12 hours or until tops are not sticky anymore, they should be still moist in the middle.

Once the cupcakes are dehydrated, to make the frosting place beet, coconut water, coconut nectar, salt, vanilla and coconut oil in a blender and blend until completely smooth. Then to the blender add cashews one cup at a time, blending after each cup until smooth. Place frosting in a pastry bag and pipe a good amount of frosting on top of each cupcake.

Raw Pomegranate Cheesecake

Vibrant and delicious, that is the two words that describe this cheesecake. Pink is my all time favourite colour, I know right I am such a girl! I had never used beetroot in anything before but now I love it. It makes things turn such a vibrant hot pink and it looks so amazing and tastes even more amazing.

Pomegranate seeds are the nicest touch to this cheesecake especially the layer of them in the middle of the cheesecake. When you take a spoon of the cheesecake its all soft and luscious and then you get this burst of juice from the pomegranate seeds, its an amazing surprise and sensation in your mouth.

I had the biggest raw vegan “cook up” today. There are so many recipes still to be put up but I am yet to take photos due to the fact some items are currently in the dehydrator. The feast includes:

• Raw Sushi
• Red Velvet Cupcakes (currently dehydrating)
• Raw “Spaghetti and Meatballs”
• Tropical Smoothie Bowl (for breakfast tomorrow)

And last but not least......POMEGRANATE CHEESECAKE!!!

Raw Pomegranate Cheesecake

Crust:

1 1/4 dried shredded coconut

1/4 ground flaxseed

1 cup soft soft medjool dates, pitted

Filling:

3 cups raw cashews, soaked

1 cup raw red beet, chopped

1/2 cup coconut water

1/2 cup raw coconut nectar

1/2 cup plus 3 tbsp coconut oil (warmed to liquid)

1 1/2 cups pomegranate seeds (divided)

Lightly coat a 6 inch spring form removable bottom pan with coconut oil.

To prepare the crust, place coconut, flaxseed and dates in a food processor and process till the mixture holds together when squeezed between your fingers. Firmly press the crust into the bottom of the prepared pan and set aside

To make the filling, in a blender combine beet, coconut water, coconut nectar, and coconut oil and blend until it is smooth and creamy. Add cashews one cup at a time, blending after adding each cup, making sure you blend each cup till the mixture is smooth and creamy before adding the next cup of cashews.

To assemble the cheesecake, pour half the filling over the crust, the sprinkle one cup of pomegranate seeds on top of that layer. Pour over the remaining filling then place the cheesecake in the freezer to firm up for about 4 hours or until set before unmolding. 

Garnish the top of the cake with pomegranate seeds and enjoy. Store cake in the fridge.