Cacao Crepes & Cashew Creme Fraiche



Russell James

The Raw Chef

For the crepes



2 medium (2 cups/250g/9oz) peeled courgette (zucchini)

1 1/2 cups (220g/8oz) mango flesh

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons agave nectar

1/2 cup flax meal*

1/2 cup cacao powder

Pinch salt



* Flax meal is flax seed that has been ground in a coffee grinder or blender, to produce a fine flour.



- Blend in a high-speed blender until smooth.



- Form 8 equal-sized circles of about 12cm on dehydrator sheets, being sure not to spread too thinly.



- Dehydrate at 105 degrees F for 4-5 hours or until you are able to remove them from the dehydrator sheets.



- Return to the dehydrator on the mesh trays for a further 2 hours. The crepes should be dry to the touch but still very soft and pliable.





For the crème fraiche



1 cup cashews, soaked 2 hours or more

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon probiotic powder*

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar



* If you can’t buy powder just open up probiotic or acidophilus capsules and discard the capsule part.



- Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.



- Transfer to a small bowl, cover and leave to stand for 12 hours at room temperature.



- Stir and place in the fridge for another 24 hours and then it’s ready to use.





For the chocolate sauce



1/2 cup cashews

2 tablespoons cacao powder

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup agave

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Pinch salt



- Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender.





To assemble



- Stir the berries in with the crème fraiche.



- Take one of the crepes and fold in half twice.



- Open up one of the crepes so it forms a cone and fill with some crème fraiche and berry mixture.



- Arrange 3 on a plate and drizzle with the chocolate sauce.





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Cherry & Mango Ice Cream Cup

Russell James

For the base



3/4c cashews

1T agave

1t vanilla extract

Pinch salt

2t lemon juice

1T desiccated coconut



• Grind all ingredients in a food processor.



• Press into 2 small individual cup or cake moulds of your choice that has been lined with plastic wrap.



• Dehydrate for approximately 3 hours until the shells are strong enough to hold together without the case, and then remove from the case to dry for a further 6 hours or overnight.



For the filling



1/2c cashews

3T coconut oil

2T lemon juice

2t vanilla extract

Pinch salt

2T water

1T agave

1/2c cherries*, stones removed

1/2c mango, flesh only



*You can substitute cherries for any other fruit, such as pineapple or bananas, depending on what you like and what’s available in-season.



• Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender under smooth, it's nice to have some chunks of mango or cherry stirred in at the end so you get little bursts of flavour.



• Pour into an ice-cream maker or freeze in a tub, if doing the latter then once frozen pass through a juicer with the homogenizing attachment on.



• Fill the shells with the ice-cream and garnish with slices of mango. Easy!



Who is Russell James?



Russell James has been hailed as 'the UK's leading raw chef' by The Times. He has honed his natural ability to create incredible raw cuisine by training with the top raw chefs in the world. This includes regular visits to the US to raw food 'hot-spots' such as California and, most recently, New York where he worked with the author of upcoming books Everyday Raw and Entertaining in The Raw, co-author of Raw Food Real World and co-creator of the restaurant Pure Food & Wine, Matthew Kenney...



"Russell James joined our team at The Plant for an extended visit last fall - on every level, he is a true professional; talented and creative, and a pleasure to work with. I particularly admire his dedication to raw food cuisine, and his unwavering interest in its forward movement. We continue to miss him (and his kale salad!)" - Matthew Kenney



Russell has also worked with the UK's raw and living food organisation The Fresh Network in the execution of monthly raw dinner parties in Cambridgeshire and London during 2006. He has also appeared in their quarterly publication Get Fresh.



Russell is a personal raw chef, provides raw catering for small and large scale events, and runs raw food classes. His blog continues to inspire people with recipes, pictures and advice on living a sexy raw life.



Russell recently catered David Wolfe's UK retreat in Dorset...



"I was very impressed with Russell James' raw and living foods cuisine. He's a pleasure to work with and a rising culinary star."

- David Wolfe www.sunfood.com & www.thebestdayever.com



Russell's mission is to show you that far from feeling restricted on a raw food diet, you have an abundance of options. Whether that's being able to eat raw sandwiches all week or to put on a show-stopping dinner party for friends.



Visit www.therawchefblog.com & www.therawchef.com

Chocolate Torte with Whipped Cashew Cream

Russell James

For the base



1/2c cashews

1/2c pecans

1T coconut oil

1T melted cacao butter

1t agave

1t lemon juice



Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until they bind.



Press into a 9” springform cake pan and place in the fridge to set.





For the filling



2c Irish Moss paste*

1c cacao powder

1 1/2c grated or chopped cacao butter which has then been melted

1c water

1/2c agave necture

1T lemon juice

1/2t tamari

1t vanilla extract



Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth and pour on top of the base.



Leave in the fridge to set.



*Irish Moss paste can be made by soaking 1c Irish Moss in water for 3 - 5 hours and rinsing THOROUGHLY until rinse water turns clear (there'll be a lot of sand in the moss). Then blend the rinsed moss with 2c pure water in a Vita-Mix until completely smooth. Leave to set in the fridge if not using straight away.



Chef’s tip: Add 4 drops of food grade peppermint oil to the filling mixture for a mint chocolate variation.





For the cream topping



1c cashews, soaked for 2 hours or more

1/2c water

3T Irish Moss paste

1/2t vanilla extract

1/4c agave nectar

1t lemon juice

Pinch salt

1T macadamia oil (optional)



Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.



Serve with chocolate torte and fresh berries.





Did you like this recipe? You can sign-up for Russell's eZine here to be put on the list for more great recipes like this, plus tips and all sorts of advice to help you become a raw food culinary artist!



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Russell James

For the marinated vegetables



3c portabello mushrooms

1 1/2c aubergine (eggplant), peeled & diced small

1c peas

1/2c broccoli, cut from the stem into 1cm mini-florets

6 medium tomatoes, diced small

1T lemon juice

2T tamari

2T olive oil

2T curry powder

2t salt



In a large bowl mix the mushrooms, aubergine, peas, broccoli and tomatoes in lemon juice, olive oil, curry powder, and salt.



Spread onto a dehydrator sheet and dehydrate for 2 - 3 hours at 105 degrees F.





For the curry sauce



1 red pepper

1 clove garlic

1t lemon

1/2T tamarind pulp*

1cm cube of fresh ginger

1/2c fresh coriander

1T curry powder (try to get curry powder without salt in it)

1/2c fresh coconut from a brown coconut

1/4c water

Salt to taste, depending on whether your curry powder had salt in it. Start with 1/4t.



Tamarind paste can be made by soaking tamarind in water until it goes soft (the seedless type you can buy in a packet in fine for this) and straining through a sieve. If you don’t have any tamarind available, simply leave out.



Blend all ingredients in a high power blender until smooth and creamy. You may need to add more water depending on what type of coconut you used.



Mix the softened dehydrated vegetables with the sauce and return to the dehydrator in a large covered bowl to warm before serving.





For the parsnip rice



2c peeled fresh parsnips

3T mac nuts

3T pine nuts

1T olive oil

2t agave nectar

1t lemon juice

2 pinches salt

1T white miso



Pulse in the food processor until rice-like. Set aside.





For the spiced mango chutney



1 medium mango

2 pinches salt

2t lemon Juice

1t apple cider vinegar

1t minced ginger

1/2t cumin



Finely dice one mango and set aside.



Blend all remaining ingredients in a high power blender.



Combine the blended mixture with the diced mango.



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Makes 2 napoleons



For the Napoleon Crackers



1c tomatoes

1T Italian seasoning

3 sun-dried tomato halves

15 basil leaves

1/2t salt

1T lemon juice

1T agave

1/2c pumpkin seed meal*

1/2c flax meal*



*Pumpkin seed and flax seeds meal is simply the seed turned into powder in a high-speed blender or coffee grinder



- Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.



- Spread in 6 even ’rounds’ on a dehydrator sheet, and dehydrate for a few hours until they can be removed from the sheet. Dehydrate for a further 6 - 8 hours at 115 degrees F, or overnight until fully dried.



For the sour creamed cashews



1c cashews

1/2t salt

2t lemon juice

1t apple cider vinegar

3t minced lemon thyme, minced (or regular thyme)



- Blend all ingredients, except the thyme, in a high-speed blender until smooth.



- Add thyme and pulse until fully mixed in.



For the pepper sauces



The following is for red pepper sauce, if you want yellow pepper sauce as well then you should repeat with yellow peppers



2 red peppers, chopped

2T olive oil

1t salt



- Mix all ingredients in a bowl and dehydrate ofr 6 - 8 hours at 115 degrees F



- Once removed from the dehydrator, place in a high-speed blender with 1t olive oil, 3t water and 1t lemon juice, and blend until smooth. You may have to add more water, depending on how dry your peppers got during dehydrating.



For the assembly



- Prepare 300g spinach by mixing in a large bowl with 2t salt and 2T olive oil. Massage the spinach until it wilts and takes on a lightly cooked appearance.



- Cut open 2 small avocados and, using a spoon, remove the flesh from each half in whole pieces. Cut each piece into a ‘fan’ by slicing them several times, 4/5ths down the length, leaving them connected at the top. You should then be able to fan them out.



- Assemble by starting with a napoleon cracker then adding a layer of spinach, one of the sliced avocado halves, and finally some of the creamed cashews. Repeat this for a second time and garnish with the pepper sauces.



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