Golden Matcha Tahini Bites

One of my herbal mentors, Kerry Bone, describes chronic disease as a mosaic. While drug manufacturers look for ONE physiological pathway to correct or ONE vaccine to target an infectious disease, or geneticists look for the ONE gene causing a disease…holistic health practitioners know better.

We know that there is no one target or magic bullet. We look at the numerous, little decisions someone makes each day and how those choices positively or negatively impact their lives. And of course, we take into account forces outside of ourselves, like the weather or socioeconomic pressures.

We then begin to see patterns in someone’s life and how all these things come together to create you. You may not like the way it looks or feels, but your body is a piece of art, just like a mosaic.

When using real food and herbal medicine, the goal is to nourish the body and nudge multiple pathways in the body, not push them. It’s not glamorous. It’s simple. In fact, it’s stupid simple…and it often starts in your kitchen.

In the spirit of good food, plants and healing, I have a new recipe for you – Golden Matcha Tahini Bites. Healthy fats combined with cinnamon, turmeric and green tea are an awesome treat.

Eat in peace!

Golden Matcha Tahini Bites

½ cup tahini (Artisana)

½ cup butter (Vital Farms)*

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon turmeric powder (Dr Cowan’s Garden)

1 teaspoon matcha

1 tablespoon low-carb sweetener (I used MitoSweet from Bulletproof)

10 drops vanilla-flavored stevia (Omica Organics)

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Pour into silicon molds or a pan lined with parchment paper. Freeze until set. Pop out of molds or slice into bite size squares. Store in an airtight container in the freezer.

*I feel confident that you could make this with coconut oil or coconut butter instead of regular butter if you have a dairy sensitivity.

I adapted this recipe from Mark Sisson’s new book The Keto Reset Diet using his recipe for Tahini Fudge and Green Tea Tahini Bites (p294-5). I saw the two side-by-side and thought, “These must merge into one!”

Three more things before we go…

1) Need more inspiration in the kitchen? You can find more tasty and nutritious recipes on my YouTube channel.

2) And when you’re ready to dive deeper into a life of vibrant health, check out my new book, Eat in Peace to Live in Peace: Your Handbook to Vitality.

3) If you want the VIP treatment, be sure to SUBSCRIBE to my weekly newsletter where you’ll get more helpful health tips, recipes and in-depth articles delivered straight to your inbox!

7 Cashew “Cheesecakes” That Will Blow Your Mind

I can only imagine that being invited to eat dinner at a nutritionist’s house leaves some of my guests wondering if I’ll be serving a dry chicken breast, steamed veggies and a fruit cup for dessert.

It’s truly an eye-opening for my friends and family who have been lead to believe that healthy equals gross, or sacrifice or a life not fully lived, to discover that feeling and eating well also means tasting things that are insanely delicious. No dry chicken or steamed veggies in this house!

Growing up I had a serious sugar addiction, so when I discovered that I could make so many amazing healthy variations on one simple cashew “cheesecake,” I knew I’d found a wonderful go-to recipe for all occasions.

Enjoy!

Lemon Cashew "Cheesecake" For crust: Combine all ingredients in food processor until blended, then press into an 8-inch springform pan: 1/2 cup raw pecans 1/2 cup pitted dates 1/4 cup shredded coconut 2 TBS butter or coconut oil Pinch of sea salt

For filling*, Combine all ingredients in your Vitamix until smooth. Then pour on top of crust. Freeze for 4 hours to set and then move to refrigerator: 3 1/2 cups raw cashews that have been soaked overnight in water (this is an important step that releases the nutrition of the cashews) 2/3 cup maple syrup 2/3 cup coconut oil, gently melted 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1-2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or crushed vanilla beans (VanillaMax) Zest of 1 lemon (optional, for a more lemon flavor)

For Raspberry topping, Combine all ingredients in your Magic Bullet until smooth and then drizzle on your "cheesecake" upon serving: 1/2 cup raspberries 1/4 cup water 1 tsp honey 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp nut milk

*I have made many variations of this cheesecake, which include:

Lemon Green Tea – use zest of 1 lemon and add 1 TBS organic Matcha

Raspberry Lime – ½ cup fresh raspberries and use lime juice instead of lemon juice, also add zest of one lime to the raspberry sauce

Pumpkin Cinnamon – add 1 cup organic canned pumpkin, along with 1-2 TBS pumpkin pie spice (use more for a robust flavor)

Orange Dreamsicle – add 1 additional teaspoon of VanillaMax, zest of one orange, and use orange juice instead of lemon juice

Chocolate – use 2/3 cup of water instead of lemon juice and ¼ cup cocoa; top with Enjoy Life mini dark chocolate chips

Maple Vanilla – use 2/3 cup of water instead of lemon juice and 1 TBS VanillaMax

Recipe: Chocolate Cashew "Cheesecake"

Hello lovelies!

You all know I love, love, love it when you tell me what you want! Some experts rotely say, "send me your most pressing questions. I'd love to hear from you," but it doesn't feel like an earnest invitation. Well, not over here! This particular recipe has been a hot topic the past couple weeks as it has topped the charts on most requested recipes. So without further adieu...

Okay, a little bit of adieu...

For those of you who have cut out sugar, gluten and dairy from your diets, this recipe will seem WAY to good to be true. This decadent chocolate cheesecake is a wonderful reminder that many of the things we let go of along our path toward vitality, can be replaced with foods that are as mouth-watering as they are nutritious. In this case...we're talking cheesecake!

Chocolate Cashew "Cheesecake" For crust, Combine all ingredients in food processor until blended, then press into an 8-inch springform pan: 1/2 cup raw pecans 1/2 cup pitted dates 1/4 cup shredded coconut 2 TBS butter or coconut oil Pinch of sea salt

For filling, Combine all ingredients in your Vitamix until smooth. Then pour on top of crust. Freeze for 4 hours to set and then move to refrigerator: 3 1/2 cups cashews that have been soaked overnight in water (this is an important step that releases the nutrition of the cashews) 2/3 cup maple syrup 2/3 cup coconut oil, gently melted 2/3 cup water

1/4 cup organic cocoa 1-2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or crushed vanilla beans

*In the photo above, I've added a handful of dark chocolate chips.

I know what you're thinking...how can something so easy taste so good?

Well, I have a little bonus for you - tomorrow, in my weekly email, I'll be sharing two absurdly amazing toppings that take this cheesecake over the top. Make sure you subscribe to get the goods.

And, YES, I want to hear from you in the comments below. My question for you today is - what old family recipe or comfort food have you had to give up or can't seem to let go of along your journey to vitality?