Friday, January 7, 2011

"Raw" Sundried Tomato Spread


I've kind of made this sundried tomato spread recipe before, but it's so simple that it easily got changed around a little for the 3rd Annual Volk/Watson Christmas Extravaganza (in the photo, it's the dip on the right):

1 cup macadamia nuts (soaked for 30 minutes to 1 hour and drained - not just because of "raw" food dogma - mostly because you need them to soften up and be creamy)
Juice of half a lemon (or to taste. I like it kind of sharp)
2 tbsp raspberry vinegar (it was unpasteurized, so I'm not sure if it was raw, but you could just use twice as much lemon juice if you want and be a little sadder)
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup "raw" sundried tomatoes (So this is a bit fishy, I know. Sundried tomatoes are often a chemical process involving sulfites for preservation and things that aren't the sun for drying, but you could just dehydrate your own tomatoes in an oven on the lowest possible temperature with the door slightly ajar. This is probably not what happened to the tomatoes I had stored in oil...so this particular version of the recipe wasn't exactly raw)

I love raw food recipes for this reason:
Directions: Blend.

That's all. You only need to roughly chop ingredients, if at all, and then all you do is stick them in a good blender or food processor. Add a little of the sundried tomato oil or olive oil or water if it's too thick. You can optionally add a pinch of garlic powder or an entire raw clove for immune benefits (and taste, though bad breath comes along with it), or half a shallot (again, breath). You can also use cashews instead of expensive macadamia nuts if your mother is not currently in a digestive fight with them.

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