I love making things for St. Patricks Day – probably because my favorite color is green!  You can be sure there will be tons of kale and avocados and olives on my plate, and this year I also wanted to make a special dessert to mark the day.  I love using matcha powder.  It is just green tea made into powder form and it is wonderful to cook with.  It also has amazing health benefits.  In addition to providing trace minerals and vitamins (A, B-complex, C, E, and K), matcha is rich in catechin polyphenols – compounds with high antioxidant activity. These compounds offer protection against many kinds of cancer, help prevent cardiovascular disease and slow the aging process. They also reduce harmful cholesterol in the blood, stabilize blood sugar levels, help reduce high blood pressure and enhance the resistance of the body to many toxins. The most important polyphenol in matcha is EGCG (epigallo-catechin gallate), which is the subject of many medical studies. Matcha has a significant amount of dietary fiber and practically no calories.  That’s a lot of good stuff for one deliciously green powder.  Combine that with these raw brownies, and you get an easy to make dessert that is worthy of special holiday recognition!  Enjoy!

For the brownies:

• 1 c pecans
• 1 c walnuts
• 2 c dates
• 6 T cacao powder
• pinch salt
• 1/4 t vanilla
• 1 T maple syrup

Place pecans and walnuts in food processor and process into small pieces like sand.  Add the remaining ingredients and process until it comes together into a ball.

Press into an 8×6” pan, lined with parchment paper.

Place in fridge while making the frosting.

For the frosting:

• 3 T coconut oil
• 1 T + 1 t matcha powder
• 1 T agave
• 1 t vanilla
• 1 c powdered sugar

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  Add 1 T water if needed for frosting consistency.

Spread over brownies and place in fridge for an hour before cutting.

Store in fridge in airtight container.

I’ve been making hamantaschen for many years now.  When my kids were small, we used to make hundreds at a time so we could deliver baskets of them to friends and family.  We’ve all looked forward to them every year, and going vegan, we did not have to miss a beat.  I veganized our favorite recipe and they still come out perfectly every time.

I think everyone who makes hamantaschen should be making these vegan ones.  After all, the holiday is about escaping the cruelty of Haman, and what better way to truly appreciate that than by making these cruelty-free hamantaschen?

• 1 c sugar
• 1 c vegan shortening
• 2 T ground flax seed mixed with 5 T warm water, and let sit 5 minutes
• 2 t vanilla
• 1/4 c orange juice
• 3 1/2 c flour
• 1 1/4 T baking powder
• 1 t salt
• various flavors canned cake and pastry filling
• optional – vegan chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

With a hand mixer, cream shortening and sugar.

Add flax mix, vanilla and oj and mix until all incorporated.

Add flour (in two batches), salt and baking powder and beat until all combined.

Form dough into a ball and place in fridge for 1/2 hour.

Using flour, roll out dough to about 1/4” thickness and use a round glass about 3 1/2″ wide to press out circles.  Place a teaspoon of filling on each circle and some choc chips if using and then wet the edges of the circle as you press each one into a triangle shape.

Place on parchment covered sheets and bake 12 minutes.  They will be very soft, but will harden as they cool.

Makes about 40.

The more I make raw desserts, the more amazed I am at how incredible they are.  Not only are they delicious and so much healthier, but they are so simple to make.  This tart is the perfect dessert for a summer day!  No need to turn on an oven!  In just a few simple steps you can have a creamy and wholesome dessert that tastes great!  I think it is my new favorite way to use the strawberries from my garden!

For the Brownies:

• 3/4 c walnuts
• 3/4 c pecans
• 1 3/4 c pitted dates
• 1/2 c cacoa powder
• 3 T maple syrup
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 t vanilla

Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until well combined.

Press into an 8 or 9” pie pan.

Place in fridge.

For the Berry Cream:

• 3/4 c strawberries
• 3/4 c raspberries
• 2/3 c cashews
• 3 T unsweetened coconut flakes
• 5 T maple syrup
• 6 T melted coconut oil
• 2 pinches salt
• 1 t vanilla

Place all ingredients but oil in a blender and blend to combine well.  Add oil and blend just to incorporate.

Pour all but 1/2c of the berry cream over brownie crust.

(The extra 1/2 c will be great in oatmeal or granola or as a dip for fruit.)

Place in freezer for 2 hours.

For the topping:

• 1 cup strawberries, muddled
• 1 cup strawberries, sliced
• few squirts lemon juice
• 1/2 t maple syrup
• 1 T chia seeds

Stir the lemon juice and maple syrup into the muddled berries.

Place muddled berries on top of tart.  Then place the sliced strawberries on top of that.

Sprinkle with chia seeds.

Place in fridge for 45 minutes.

Store in fridge.

These brownies are AMAZING!!  Not only do they taste incredibly fudgy and delicious, but they take less than ten minutes to make, and are much, much healthier than typical brownies.  There is no butter, no dairy, no eggs, and no processed sugars.  Would you believe that in 1900, the average person consumed about 90 pounds of sugar per year, while  today, that number has increased to 150 pounds (a whopping 66% increase).   Raw desserts are made from whole, unprocessed foods so they can be digested fully and their nutrients absorbed completely.  Once you try these, you won’t want that other processed stuff, loaded with saturated fat, eggs, white sugar and who knows what else.  When you eat these, you will experience how fantastic whole-food plant-based eating is!  Enjoy!!

• 1 c walnuts
• 1 c + 3 extra medjool dates
• 5 T cocoa powder
• 4 T shredded, unsweetened coconut
• 2 T maple syrup
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/2 t vanilla

icing:

• 3 T coconut oil
• 2 T maply syrup
• 2 T cocoa powder
• pinch salt
• 1/2 t vanilla

In a food processor, process walnuts until it is small crumbs.  Add remaining ingredients and process until it mostly comes together into a ball.  Press into a 6×8 or 7×7″pan and place in fridge.

Mix icing ingredients in a small bowl and spread over brownies.  Slice into squares.  Keep in fridge for up to 5 – 7 days.

Get creative and add peanut butter, cinnamon, orange zest, or anything else that you want!

Yup – this settles it!  Anything can be made vegan!  I was making this coating for my raw candy bars and realized that since it was solidifying on contact to the frozen candy that it would do the same on ice cream and lo and behold – magic shell!  And it is so easy to make.  Here I put it on non-dairy ice cream but it is just as great on vegan soft serve.  Wondering how to make vegan soft serve at home?  Just throw 3 sliced frozen bananas and 3/4 cup non-dairy milk in a high speed blender and voila.  Get creative too – add peanut butter, vegan chocolate chips, frozen cherries – the possibilities are endless.

Just mix the following ingredients in a small bowl.   Store in fridge for a week or so.

• 1/2 c melted coconut oil
• 3/4 c minus 2 T cocoa powder
• 1/8 t salt
• 1/4 t vanilla
• 1/2 c agave nectar