Repost: nut squares - OH YUM

NUT BISCUITS

by Loulou

These Nut Biscuits are very easy to make with only a little pre-thought prep-work involving soaking of the ingredients and then a quick whizz of the blender using the 'S-blade' and there you have it.....

RAWLOULOU'S NUT BISCUITS

1 C of each of your chosen nuts (I used pistachio, almonds, pine, pecans and hazelnuts)

1 C dried figs (soak for a few hours)

1 C pitted dates (soak for a few hours)

You will need to soak the nuts for at least 2 hours before making this recipe although longer is preferable.

WHY SHOULD WE SOAK SEEDS AND NUTS???

Nuts and seeds naturally come coated with a layer of enzyme inhibitors that can hinder the absorption of these vital amino acids needed. This can be easily dispersed and eradicated by the simple process of soaking.

It is best to soak the nuts and seeds needed for a recipe for at least 2 hours prior to usage in order to release the enzyme inhibitors. By doing so, the nuts and seeds will be easily absorbed, digested and circulated around the body where needed.

Nuts and seeds are crucial for the body to maintain it’s optimum health levels due to their vitamins and minerals and essential fatty acids, omega 3 and 6.

Once the nuts have been soaked, rinsed and drained well, add them to a blender and blitz them until they are to the consistency you desire. Add them to a large mixing bowl.....





....Then add the soaked/drained dried figs and dates to the blender (again using the 's-blade') and blitz until a gooey sticky paste has been formed. Add this paste to the nuts in the bowl and mix up together....





....... simply flatten out the mixture onto a baking tray layered with a stretch of parchment paper and leave in the freezer to harden.......





..... After a few hours, you can take this biscuit mix out of the freezer and slice up as shown above....





..... These can be wrapped individually and kept in the freezer until needed. They are great for 'on-the-run' breakfasts or snack treats (the healthy way).

Let us wrap

After an overnight fast in preparation for an annual physical exam (my first in 16 years), I'm hungry. Time to go to Yakima Fresh Market for a $20 splurge on fruit and veges.

I look over my loot as I unpack it and consider what I'm hungry for. Quinoa with this stuff? I start cooking 1/2 c. quinoa with 2 c. water and set the timer for 10 minutes.

I wash, slice, and chop leaf basil and the vegetables - cabbage, tomato, onion, red pepper - and grate the carrots and ginger. Into a bowl they go!

Meanwhile, I spot a package of sprouted grains and beans in the cupboard. They only need 5 minutes of cooking and a 10-15 minute "rest." When the timer beeps, I measure 1/3 cup of grains and break 5 stalks of asparagus into the pot. Lid on. The timer gets reset for 5 minutes.

The timer dings. I turn off the gas heat to let the quinoa, bean, and grain mixture settle for 10 minutes. Might as well tidy the kitchen. Knives go back on their magnetic strip, dishes in the DW. There's time to halve and remove the stems from two big romaine lettuce leaves ... and make a cup of tea, too.

Combining the grains and chopped vegetables makes a beautiful arrangement beside the lettuce. I sprinkle on thick soy sauce for flavor ... and plate the food. (See the large tablespoon in the photo for perspective.)

I'm ready to wrap and eat! Half the salad makes 4 substantial lettuce rolls. I'll save the rest of the mix for supper.

Rating: 4.5
Taste: nice combination of bitter (lettuce, asparagus, and cabbage) with savory and sweet (basil, ginger, quinoa, carrots).
Calories: 350-400? for all 4 rolls. Bulky calories!
Time to prepare: 15 min.
Tea: Trader Joe's Well-Rested teabag (sadly). Nice spearmint smell to clear the nose between bites.
Beauty: 4.5 Tighter rolls might be prettier. The color is fabulous and the sizes and textures vary.
Improvements? Perhaps add smashed fresh walnuts and chopped fresh apricot, or - Chinese mustard or wasabi peas, blueberries, and pine nuts. Maybe tonight!

best breakfast ever?

Do you like okra? I love it. W hates it. I got some at Ranch99 Market yesterday.

This morning I woke up starved for okra. So I washed some and let it drip almost dry. I soaked dried onions in water from the hot tap for 2 minutes.

Then I fried chopped garlic and the drained onion in 4 tsp. olive oil, added okra, turned up the heat, and sprinkled on smoked paprika. Tossing ingredients around the pan around prevents burning on high heat.

hurry hurry i'm hungry ...

In the meantime, I cooked some Asian "Oil noodles" (wheat, water, bit of oil) for 2 minutes. Drained them and put them in a bowl.

I lifted the cooked okra, caramelized onion, and garlic into the noodles and drizzled Bango (Indonesian kecup) on them, moving the ingredients around until everything was mixed.

Might have been my best breakfast ever. Mind you, I was hungry for okra! And fresh veges are a joyful thing to eat.

Rating: 5
Taste: savory, liked the rosy gold of paprika and the smokey flavor with the sweet-salty Bango, which is a thick soy sauce. Undercooking okra makes it pop open in the mouth without being slimy. Yum.
Calories: 400 (120 noodles; 150 oil; veges 130)
Time to prepare: 10 min.
Tea: Trader Joe's Earl Grey Teabag (sadly). Hit the spot.

Dissertation celebration

"... so... do you want to go to ..." he asks me when I tell him I passed my dissertation defense.

YES YES YES I DO. I'm ready right now. We're at the door when they open at 5pm for dinner.

Cafe Juanita in Kirkland is our "very special very very special occasion" restaurant. He's saying, "This is a big deal and I'm proud of you" by offering.

CF is a little place with exquisite seasonal food. The exterior is plain and squat. The ceiling tiles, if painted mocha, would disappear into welcome oblivion. (yeah, I'm that visual and it's that ugly; bugs me every time.) You'd never dream that such a jewel lives in Kirkland, WA, especially driving by.

We never know what the menu will be but it's always interesting. Creative. Mind-blowing, even. And that's before we taste what we order. The chefs are in love with flavor, color, and design, thrilling the senses. The servers are attentive, too.

We start with a small plate of four kinds of bread and crackers. I sigh over the potato bread. They bring replacements ... twice.

 

We share Goat Cheese Gnocchi with Escarole, Pinenuts and Currants. I barely remember to snap a photo before eating it all, rolling it around my mouth to capture all the flavors. My husband and I smile at each other and remember why this is a fantastic place to eat.

It's an a la carte menu, so we order Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Cumin, Lime and Pinenuts

and Lacinato Kale with Garlic and Chili Flakes

to go with our splurge, the Blackmore Wagyu Flatiron with Gorgonzola, Cipollini Agro Dolce and Caramelized Endive. 

For a usually vegan foodlover, it's a taste of heaven.

Toasting a place that never disappoints, thank you to Holly Smith and the staff at 4-star Cafe Juanita! And company that loves and encourages, thank you hon!