It’s time for a 5-day raw detox

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Brittany

Sample meals: raw detox

Good news! We’ll be running a 5-day raw detox in early February. What does that mean? It means you can feel great by eating healthy and delicious raw food for 5 days without having to lift a finger in the kitchen. We will prepare all of your meals and deliver them, so you just need to eat them, drink lots of water and voila… you’ll be feeling amazing in no time.

For those who are interested in eating more raw food but not sure where to begin, this is a great way to try it out. For those who over-indulged during the holidays, this is a great way to press the re-set button.
The detox will run from 6-10 February, and costs R300 per day (R 1500 total). It includes:

*breakfast, juice, lunch, snack and supper daily
*introductory consultation (by phone or email) on goals, health and nutrition
*final consultation (by phone or email) on the detox experience and future dietary plans
*ongoing motivation and support during the detox
*free delivery within 10 km radius

All of the meals will be delicious, nutritionally balanced raw vegan creations, made fresh. We will try to cater for special dietary requirements, though this may involve extra charges. Space is limited, so book early to reserve your place (email joziuncooked@gmail.com for more info).

Sample image: raw detox meals

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Upcoming vegan workshops: Jan/Feb 2012

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Brittany

Asian-style salad served in cabbage leaves

One of the most common new year’s resolutions is to eat better.. yet many people don’t know where to begin, and quickly give up on their efforts. Let us help with that. We’ve got workshops that will suit total beginners as well as more advanced chefs. Here’s what’s on the agenda for the next few weeks:

Raw fig, almond feta and parsnip cous cous salad

January 26th– Summer soups & salads
@ Jozi Uncooked, Observatory 18:00-20:30
This workshop will show you how to make delicious, creative and healthy soups and salads. These are NOT your boring lettuce and tomato salads… they are colourful, nutrient-dense and “dressed” in amazing and nutritious dressings.  They make wonderful, easy meals during the summer. This workshop is high-raw (not 100%).

February 2nd — Introduction to Raw
@Jozi Uncooked, Observatory 18:00-20:30
This is the basic introductory workshop– it covers the why, what, and how of raw foods, including the nutrition behind it, the key ingredients and equipment, as well as some recipes for raw “staple foods”. If you’re curious about eating raw food and want to learn more about it (in theory and practice), this is the workshop to do.

February 16th– Decadent desserts (part 2)
@Jozi Uncooked, Observatory 18:00-20:30
Following on the success of the first raw desserts workshop, we’ll be offering another one that will cover different desserts. If you didn’t do the first one, it doesn’t matter at all. We’ll be doing pie, chocolates, biscuits, sorbet, etc. Let’s face it, raw desserts are always a winner– you will impress your family and friends with these.

All workshops include a recipe booklet, participation and a delicious feast of the food created.  They are R250 each, and pre-booking is required. Email joziuncooked [at] gmail [dot] com to book.

Raw chocolate-strawberry-vanilla layer cake

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Vegan travel: Buenos Aires, Argentina (part 2)

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Brittany

Fruit and vegetable stall, Buenos Aires

As I mentioned, Buenos Aires caters fairly well for vegans, despite the abundance of meat.

Dinner at Kensho, Buenos Aires

My favourite vegan restaurant was Kensho, which had both raw and cooked options, all delicious and beautifully presented. I really wanted to get the 5 course tasting menu, but decided that might be overdoing it a little. So instead, here’s what I got (or sampled off other people’s plates).

First we were offered an amuse bouche of pickled broccoli. I loved the tartness of it– just perfect. Then for a starter, we had a trio of dips with dehydrated flax crackers. There was a carrot mousse (or foam, as they called it) that was light and flavourful, a black bean dip and a sunflower seed-rocket tapenade, accompanied by different flavours of flax crackers. They were all delicious.

Trio of dips with raw flax crackers

For my main course, I got the mushroom burger. It came with mashed potatoes and a mustard sauce. It was very rich and quite meaty.

Mushroom burger with mashed potatoes

My friend got the tabbouleh salad, which was made with quinoa and had a little falafel ball on the side.

Quinoa tabbouleh

And of course, I had to try out the raw pizza.

Raw pizza @ kensho

When I have the pleasure of dining at a vegan restaurant, I’m usually overwhelmed by the abundance of choice. Usually I am lucky to find one vegan option on a menu in South Africa, so choosing from a whole vegan menu can be daunting– mostly because I want to try everything. Kensho kindly offers a dessert sampler plate, that has all of their dessert options on it. Yay!

Kensho dessert sampler

Clockwise from top left, that’s a piece of raw strawberry cheesecake, a baby scoop of raw ginger ice cream, a gluten-free brownie, a baby scoop of raw chocolate ice cream and in the centre, a raw napoleon (coconut base, chocolate ganache, raw ice cream and fresh fruit), which was definitely my favourite. So delicious, and so wonderful to get to taste everything. If you’re ever in Buenos Aires, I highly recommend Kensho.

The most raw-friendly option in BA is definitely Buenos Aires Verde. They have raw ice cream, raw chocolates, crackers, etc etc. Sadly, I didn’t get to eat a meal there, but I did stop by one afternoon for a snack– ice cream, of course. They also have a lot of products for sale.

Buenos Aires Verde- cafe and shop

Dessert case @ Buenos Aires Verde

I’ve been experimenting with raw ice cream made from avocado– in Brazil, avo is generally used in sweet desserts, and in Ethiopia it’s served in fresh juices. So far, my avo chocolate ice cream is delicious but not perfect, the avo mint chocolate chip is pretty good, and the avo lime needs a little work. So of course I was very keen to try out the avocado ice cream. I got one scoop each of avocado and chocolate raw ice creams. The verdict– chocolate was great, avo was so-so.

raw avocado & chocolate ice cream

I should have said that Buenos Aires Verde was the most raw-friendly cafe– since there is a vegan/ raw meal delivery service in Buenos Aires called Cocina Verde. Not too different from the old Tuesday take-aways from Jozi Uncooked. There’s a menu of several vegan and raw items available for each week– you place your order and then it’s delivered right to your door. Kara, the brains behind the operation, gave me a tour of her kitchen and told me all about the raw scene in Buenos Aires. She also gave me a delicious raw burger to try. Thanks Kara!

Kara in the kitchen, Cocina Verde

Raw burger from Cocina Verde

I also ate at Artemisia, a vegetarian restaurant with two locations. The menu was not quite as vegan-friendly as I might have liked, but there were a few dishes to choose from. I went for a giant salad with fresh greens, roasted veggies, quinoa and avo. Sadly, I don’t have the picture, but I’ll add it later if I find it.

Another vegetarian restaurant I tried was Bio. They had a few raw options on the menu, in addition to the cooked vegan and lacto-ovo vegetarian options. Again, I went for a big salad, along with a raw brownie and a raw tart. Again, I’ll have to add the pics later.

While not exclusively vegetarian, Meraviglia is an organic cafe that has some nice fresh veggie options. I had a sandwich with greens, tofu and veggies on a gluten-free flatbread. Very tasty.

Veg and tofu sandwich at Meraviglia

Once again, this post has reached absurd lengths, but I wanted to be sure you got a taste of the lovely vegan food I had in Buenos Aires. What’s your favourite vegan meal you’ve had while traveling?

 

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Vegan travel: Buenos Aires, Argentina

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Brittany

Feliz año! Or happy new year to all of you non-Spanish speakers. While many sites start the year with a bunch of new year’s resolutions and plans, or a recap of the previous year, we’re jumping right into 2012 with a vegan travel post. Welcome to Buenos Aires, the beautiful capital of Argentina.

Presidency building or Casa Rosada

While Argentina is generally known as the land of steak, Buenos Aires is a very cosmopolitan city that has welcomed waves of immigrants from all over the world– along with their cuisines. So there is plenty for a vegan to eat while steering clear of the parrillas and dulce de leche.

Every little cafe, no matter how small, has fresh squeezed orange juice (jugo de naranja or exprimido de naranja). In fact, they even sell freshly squeezed juice on the streets.

fresh juice on the street

Most cafes also have smoothies (licuados) that can be made with water, juice or milk, either with one fruit or a mix of fruits.

licuado de frutas (mixed fruit smoothie)

If you want to prepare your own food, there are health food shops (dietéticas) all over town, though their selection is fairly limited. The focus at the moment seems to be gluten-free and sugar-free items, as well as bulk grains. I was happy to find seaweed in most of the dietéticas, and even got some vegan dulce de leche (which tasted a little too chemical-ish for me).

Mostly, I bought fresh produce at the corner fruit and veg shops  (frutería & verdulería), and then topped up with a few health food items from Chinatown (the barrio chino in the area of Belgrano). The grocery shops in Chinatown have great Asian ingredients as well as a broader selection of health foods (e.g. bulk quinoa, chia seed crackers or soy products) at very good prices.

Argentina has become a major producer of soy in recent years. Perhaps that explains the presence of tofu, soy cutlets and similar items on cafe menus that are otherwise not terribly veg-friendly. Whatever the reason, there is a surprising amount of tofu available at cafes in Buenos Aires (though strangely, no soymilk in the cafes). With the hot weather, I was in the mood for a giant frozen coffee drink, and found one made with coconut milk and dark chocolate at Baraka. Delicious!

Frozen coffee with coconut milk

At Mooi, a beautiful cafe in the neighbourhood of Belgrano, I had a lovely salad. The place is not exclusively vegetarian (it’s omni, as some would say), but it had plenty of vegan-friendly options.

Salad of mixed greens and tofu with seed crust

Look how gorgeous this restaurant is! It absolutely deserves the name Mooi (beautiful).

Mooi restaurant interior

Another little cafe, Como en Casa, came up with this healthy sandwich, with greens and grilled veggies (including broccoli!).


Grilled vegetable sandwich with greens

Aside from steak and dulce de leche, Argentina is famous for empanadas–mini pies usually filled with ham and cheese or other non-vegan fillings. Luckily, vegan empanadas are available from some of the health food shops and vegetarian restaurants. La Esquina de las Flores makes really delicious vegan empanadas in all sorts of flavours (pumpkin, corn, eggplant/aubergine/brinjal, swiss chard, azuki bean and more).

Vegan empanadas from Mil Flores

vegan pumpkin empanada

vegan empanada filling: azuki beans

I think this post is approaching world record length, so I’ll save the rest for part 2. But here’s a teaser…  vegetarian restaurants Artemisia and Bio, healthy organic cafe Meraviglia, as well as raw vegan cafe Buenos Aires Verde, vegan gourmet restaurant Kensho and raw/vegan meal delivery service, Cocina Verde. Stay tuned!

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Fresh from the garden, part 2

Posted on December 4, 2011 by Brittany

Continuing on the theme of food I made from the fresh fruit and veg I harvested from my friends’ garden, here’s a wrap I made out of the gigantic mustard greens I picked. In case you didn’t see the pictures from the last post, here’s the mustard leaf overflowing over the edges of my dinner plate.

huge mustard leaf

I added lots of delicious fillings: avocado, carrots, sprouted lentils, rocket (arugula), yellow peppers, macadamia cheese and dulse flakes.

Mustard leaf with lots of fillings

Then I rolled it up like a burrito and sliced it in half. Delicious! It was filling, a little spicy, and had a lovely mix of tastes and textures.

Mustard leaf wrap

My delicious mustard leaf wrap

And then for dessert, I used the fresh-picked plums, with some leftover cashew cream and pecan crumble. Perfect little bites of sweetness.

Mini plum crumble bites

Two days’ worth of delicious meals, fresh from the garden. Nothing tastes quite as good as home-grown organic fruit and veg. Moral of the story…. get out of the house and grow something! I am very inspired, and will share some stories of my gardening (mis)adventures in the near future. I will also try to provide some options for those who don’t have yard space– Joburg has some places where you can rent plots, or even nurseries where people will grow things for you. Watch this space.

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Fresh food from the garden

Posted on December 3, 2011 by Brittany

Giant mustard greens!

Somehow, food always tastes better when you grow it yourself. Sadly, the food I refer to in this post is not from my garden (which at the moment consists of a tiny patch with a kale plant and a marogo/ amaranth plant… but more on that another day). It’s from the huge and impressive garden of some friends who very generously invited me over to “harvest” some fresh, organic fruits and vegetables. What a treat! After seeing the amazing work they’ve done, I am doubly inspired to get my gloves on and grow something.

I dug right in and harvested mustard greens, mixed lettuces, rocket, herbs (basil, parsley), squash blossoms, plums and blackberries (these got harvested straight into my mouth and didn’t make it home with me).
Naturally I stuffed the squash blossoms- no deep frying though. I just filled them with a macadamia cheese (seasoned with Maldon smoked salt, paprika, nutritional yeast and a little lemon juice). Delicious! They reminded me of the squash blossoms that were on the menu while I was in the kitchen at Pure Food and Wine.

"Thanksgiving" salad and stuffed squash blossoms

I used the mixed lettuces in a Thanksgiving-inspired salad, with microgreens, pecan nuts, pears and a cranberry citrus dressing. Yum!

I also whipped up a cucumber-grape gazpacho– one of my all-time favourite raw summer soups. So light and subtle.

Cucumber-grape gazpacho

And for dessert, plum crumble with a pecan-date crumble and a maple cashew cream.

raw vegan plum crumble

What a fabulous lunch! More pics and recipes coming soon. And many many thanks to my lovely and talented gardening friends for sharing this bounty with me.

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Holiday catering menu

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Brittany

raw vegan pumpkin pie & apple crumble with vegan vanilla maple ice cream

The holidays can be difficult for people trying to eat a healthy diet, or for those with food allergies or other “special” dietary needs. Holiday food tends to be heavy and loaded with wheat, dairy and of course meat. Jozi Uncooked is happy to bring you a menu of delicious and nutritious holiday dishes to help make your holidays a little easier. We’ve got both raw and cooked vegan menus– all wheat free and almost all gluten-free. There are delicious nibbles, main courses, side dishes and of course, decadent desserts.

Raw vegan stuffed mushrooms

We will be accepting orders for Christmas up to the 22nd of December, for pick-up or delivery up to the 24th. If you have any queries about the menus, please contact us (on the contact page above, or by email: joziuncooked [at] gmail.com).

Raw hazelnut tartlets with herbed nut cheese

Butternut with brown/wild rice stuffing with pears & dried cranberries

Click here to download the 2011 holiday menus, raw and cooked. Feel free to mix and match items from either menu, or if you need help designing a meal, just contact us.

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Upcoming raw workshops for Nov/Dec 2011

Posted on November 23, 2011 by Brittany

The year is winding down– already!– so there are just a few more workshops for 2011. Of course, there will be plenty more for 2012, but this is your last chance to get a little training in before the end-of-year holidays. These classes are designed to ensure that your holidays are as healthy as possible, without giving up any of the taste. Remember to book early to reserve your place!

Raw Holiday Feast- Tuesday, November 29th
@Jozi Uncooked, Observatory. 18:00-20:30
Eating healthy food over the holidays is easy with these raw versions of old favourites.

Raw Party Appetizers- Tuesday, December 6th
@Raw, 44 Stanley Ave, Milpark. 18:00-20:30
Learn to make elegant and healthy raw platters to serve at parties. This is our first workshop at Raw, the new raw juice bar and cafe at 44 Stanley. Come check it out.

Decadent Desserts- Tuesday, December 13th
@ Jozi Uncooked, Observatory. 18:00-20:30
Learn to make beautiful, decadent but healthy raw/ vegan desserts, from biscuits to cakes to pies to frozen treats.

raw ice cream cake with strawberries

All of the workshops include a delicious feast and a booklet of recipes and health information.

Space is limited, so book your place early. Your space is only confirmed once payment is received.  No refunds within 48 hours of class.

For more info, email joziuncooked [at] gmail.com

raw spinach quiche

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Final raw potluck (picnic) of 2011: Saturday December 10th

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Brittany

2011 has passed by in a flash, and we’re already approaching the end of the year. Here in Joburg, that means sunny summer weather, holiday parties and sadly, the last raw food potluck of 2011.

Feast at a Johannesburg raw vegan potluck

It will be a picnic at the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens (map-walter sisulu -directions-2009). As a special bonus, there will be a 1-hour pranayam breathing and meditation exercise from 11:00-12:00, followed by the raw potluck lunch at 12 for 12:30. There will also be a talk on cellular biology.

It’s a great opportunity to enjoy some fresh air and beautiful surroundings, meet other people interested in raw foods, try your hand at uncooking in the kitchen and sample other people’s culinary exploits.

Bring R25 per person (to enter the park), a picnic blanket (and yoga mat if you’re coming for the meditation) and a raw vegan dish to share. Make sure to bring your own serving dish and utensils, as well as as plates and cutlery, and any drinks you might want– we’ll be outside, not in a restaurant this time.

 

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Upcoming workshops: November 2011

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Brittany

Before I get to the workshops, I just wanted to remind everyone that Jozi Uncooked is back at the Market on Main. Every Sunday from 10-3, we’ve got delicious raw vegan goodies like raw pizza or falafel, chocolate mousse pie, lemon cheesecake and healthy snacks. Come visit us! In addition, we’ll be there for a special night market on Thursday, November 3rd, from 7-11pm, which will feature live entertainment and loads of lovely shopping.

Jozi Uncooked stall at Market on Main

And now, the workshops (all raw, vegan and gluten-free):

Decadent Desserts- Tuesday, November 8th
@ Jozi Uncooked, Observatory. 18:00-20:30
Learn to make beautiful, decadent but healthy raw/ vegan desserts, from biscuits to cakes to pies to frozen treats. These will satisfy all your sweet cravings without the gluten, dairy, eggs or processed sugar that make traditional desserts unhealthy.

Raw Party Appetizers- Wednesday, November 16th
@Jozi Uncooked, Observatory. 18:00-20:30
Learn to make elegant and healthy raw platters to serve at parties. Great for the holidays or any other occasion.

Raw Holiday Feast- Tuesday, November 29th
@Jozi Uncooked, Observatory. 18:00-20:30
Eating healthy food over the holidays will be easy once you learn these raw versions of old, unhealthy favourites.

All of the workshops include a delicious feast and a booklet of recipes and health information for R250 per person.

Space is limited, so book your place early. Your space is only confirmed once payment is received.  No refunds within 48 hours of class.

To book, email joziuncooked [at] gmail.com, or make a comment on this post.

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