Friday, January 2, 2009

Raw 101- Root & Leafy

Face it you go to the market...walk around the fresh produce and vegetable isle and how much do you really buy? Some carrots, onion, potatoes, a few on the vine or grape tomatoes, and a bunch of romaine...into the cart...we get home...I rinse some carrots and grapes, maybe a tomato or three...pop them in my mouth and I have done my 'Raw' job for the week...then its on the stove or in the oven and blast that food till its done...

...but sometimes an exploring personality comes out...I go to the book shelves all over the condo (one in every room) to find that perfect cookbook for an idea...

...Ahhhh I have not looked here in a while...oh noooooo forget 'about it (in my Joisey personna in need of a manicure)...I cannot start a 'Raw' following with this book...

...Okay the real 'E' is back...I will just have to come up with some experiments on the root vegetables I purchased the other day...parsnips, onions, potatoes, and rainbow swiss chard...

Raw food can be cooked with a low degree of heat...so I throw some veggies into the pan- drizzle citrus oil, sea salt & pepper to bring out the natural flavors, and cook them on 110 degrees for an hour and half...on the the next dish...

...Parsnip Soup- cleaned, peeled, chopped- veggie stock (preheated to 120) and soak for an hour- in the food processor with some heavy cream and the stock...

...chop, chop, chop...onion, rainbow swiss chard, grape tomatoes (whole), dab of oil and turn on the stove top to 'Low'- stir every now and then for thirty minutes, and it will all wilt and meld together...check on the other stuff...getting hungry, cause my hubby is and wondering what kind of experiment I am doing...

...the Parsnip Soup has not been pelted with high heat and its free radicals are still in tact...and Tasty I might add...eating 'Raw' can be boring the way we have come to know it, but there is so much more to it than you think...